Jennifer Kurushima

National Geographic Television

Luxor is a beautiful city, and has a completely different atmosphere than the crowded streets of Cairo. The Nile is full of ferries, small boats, cruise ships, and of course falukas. Tall elegant hotels and restaurants along with the sites of Luxor and Karnack Temple line the East Bank of the Nile while across to the West we can see lush farmland and the Valley of the Kings. After our success in the Cairo market, our plan of action was to try our hands at catching cats in the marketplace of Luxor. We decided that the team should breakup into smaller groups with the hope that this would reduce the possibility of drawing a crowd, and frightening away the cats. One team was to stay along the main strip of the tourist market, while the other would search the areas surrounding the local’s market.

Photo: Dana Kemp

I was teamed up with Dr. Nashwa Waly from Assiut University and Dr. Susan Little from the Winn Feline Foundation to scour the streets and alleys behind the marketplace. I quickly came to appreciate Dr. Nashwa’s fluency in Egyptian Arabic as we were able to knock on people’s doors and simply ask if they owned any cats. T his was much easier than chasing them through the streets! I am impressed by the hospitality and friendliness of the Egyptian people we met. More than once, after we explained our research, they would invite us in for a cup of tea or a meal. As word spread children came running with their cats held out before them. A quick swab along the inside of the check, a photograph, and a tuna treat, and the cats were returned home, relatively unperturbed. The children seem to be exceptionally amused by our efforts and are eager to help find us cats, however, we did have to refuse the occasional puppy. Later this evening we will be riding a ferry to the west bank of the Nile to hunt for cats in a slightly more rural setting. We are expecting the cats to be more active in the dusk. I hope our good luck holds!