Part Two: The madame's story
Part one of this two-part article described the experiences of Fadila, a part-time cleaner for Cairo’s more affluent classes. One of her clients is Kawsar, a middle-class widow living her retirement in a small flat in a concrete block in one of the many new developments on the sandy northern fringes of Cairo out near the airport. She is effusive in stating her dependence on Fadila’s twice-weekly visits:
‘Fadila is my Number One (same words in Arabic)! I can’t do without her. She took off once – not sure if it was because of a car crash or some sickness in the family – and left me stranded. For two whole months I had to make do with a stream of temporary replacements: all were useless – one of them even (hooting with laughter) made off with my brazierres (bras)! Every time I moved my head something went missing!’
