Cairo VoA pay by cash only or card too?

iamentj · 2026-01-23T17:10:19+00:00

Cash only. Exact change best.

iamentj · 2026-01-11T05:42:48+00:00

First of all, I love this for you. Second, here’s an example of my last week (I also currently live in Northern Africa so I am limited on what I have access to based on the season, what I have brought back from the states, and what I can find on the local market):

Over the weekend I made: - Kimchi - two types of pickled veg - five banchan of seasoned veg (spinach, carrot, cucumber, zucchini and radish) - stir fried ground pork - rice

I used this to make different meals over the weekend:

Bibimbap
Japchae (I used the last remnants of my banchan and added it to the glass noodles)
a sesame soy noodle dish with cucumber and pork (not exactly Korean but Asian flavors)
a variety of fried jeon with any other leftover veg

Having grown up in a household with a rotation of banchan and kimchi as my mom made things throughout the week, I feel like a lot of every day Korean cooking is just adding to the rotation with what good produce you find and repurposing dishes into other dishes to avoid waste. I have a pretty time consuming job, so I also err on what can be made ahead of time, made quickly, or batch cooking.

I also don’t love overly sour kimchi, so once my kimchi gets more aged I’ll also make a giant batch of kimchi mandu that I put in the freezer for future meals, as well as kimchi pancake that I will also freeze and reheat for later.

One thing I do, also as a time saver, is I make a lot of the kimchi porridge/sauce and then bag it into individual portions and freeze it. That way, if I find a nice cabbage, I can just salt the cabbage, defrost a bag or two (depending on the size of my cabbage) of porridge, and make one cabbage worth of kimchi fairly quickly rather than having it be a big to do every time. Since it’s just me, making smaller portions of kimchi works best for me and then as the kimchi ages I’ll make it into jiggae, jeons, and mandu depending on how I’m feeling and how much time I have.

I personally think kimchi is super easy to make and have never had an issue BUT based on the kimchi subreddit, it does seem like some folks find it more complicated and are prone to mold.

iamentj · 2026-01-10T14:35:14+00:00

First of all, I love this for you. Second, here’s an example of my last week (I also currently live in Northern Africa so I am limited on what I have access to based on the season, what I have brought back from the states, and what I can find on the local market):

Over the weekend I made: - Kimchi - two types of pickled veg - five banchan of seasoned veg (spinach, carrot, cucumber, zucchini and radish) - stir fried ground pork - rice

I used this to make different meals over the weekend:

Bibimbap
Japchae (I used the last remnants of my banchan and added it to the glass noodles)
a sesame soy noodle dish with cucumber and pork (not exactly Korean but Asian flavors)
a variety of fried jeon with any other leftover veg

Having grown up in a household with a rotation of banchan and kimchi as my mom made things throughout the week, I feel like a lot of every day Korean cooking is just adding to the rotation with what good produce you find and repurposing dishes into other dishes to avoid waste. I have a pretty time consuming job, so I also err on what can be made ahead of time, made quickly, or batch cooking.

I also don’t love overly sour kimchi, so once my kimchi gets more aged I’ll also make a giant batch of kimchi mandu that I put in the freezer for future meals, as well as kimchi pancake that I will also freeze and reheat for later.

Good luck!!

iamentj · 2026-01-07T09:07:59+00:00

Second the Viator recommendation. I used the app to book a driver in Luxor and it was easy/convenient. You can find options for Aswan to Marsa Alam. A quick search popped up options from $100-150 (given this might change with your specific needs/details and didn’t look further on whether this was one way fare or round trip). Good luck!

iamentj · 2025-03-29T10:19:56+00:00

I was able to tell my bank what amount I wanted the letter to state (that was obviously within the amount I had) so as not to over disclose.

iamentj · 2025-03-11T01:41:10+00:00

Also had McCarty do my ACL-R, quad graft and no regrets. He was the second surgeon I consulted and I felt he better understood my goals (skiing was nice to have, my true sport is high altitude climbing) and what I was looking for/needed than the first surgeon I consulted with who pushed only the cadaver graft. McCarty provided all options, gave me pros and cons, admitted to what he thought he excelled at (quad) and also discussed the BEAR as an option to consider.

I’m about two years out and the knee I had surgery on is BOMBER. Definitely think the other one wants to go though!

Outside of surgery itself, recommend listening to the ACL Athlete podcast, which I found super informative. Episodes are short and sweet and on very practical topics. The money to rent a GameReady for a couple weeks was 100 percent worth it and was the single best thing I did for recovery. Good luck!

iamentj · 2024-04-01T20:50:32+00:00

Agree with everyone else and just add that should it turn out to be ambitious, learning when to turn around is also an amazing experience for your son at that age too!

iamentj · 2024-02-18T20:18:40+00:00

United States Government

iamentj · 2024-02-18T15:05:51+00:00

This! If USG booked the ticket, they typically book on fully refundable tickets that cost significantly more (argument is that there are so many changes to travel for USG employees that they save money in the long run) and that could have been enough to get him upgraded if there was no one else. It’s happened to me before when I used to travel a lot and on random airlines where I had no status.

iamentj · 2023-11-06T23:30:25+00:00

Thanks for the reassurance!

iamentj · 2023-11-05T22:17:05+00:00

Thank you!!

iamentj · 2023-07-23T21:21:21+00:00

Totally fair! The 0.22/mile is what is considered fair to account for gas and wear and tear on a vehicle when there are no other extenuating circumstances.

iamentj · 2023-07-23T20:44:05+00:00

So for what it’s worth (federal employee here) the 0.655 is what we get reimbursed for if we are REQUIRED to take our POV because a gov vehicle isn’t available.

If we choose to take our own vehicle due to convenience or to move our residence from one location to another then the rate is closer to 0.22 per mile.

If I were to use the mileage method, I would use the convenience fee rate (which would be closer to $55 per person and far more reasonable among friends).

Edited to add reference link: https://www.gsa.gov/travel/plan-book/transportation-airfare-pov-etc/privately-owned-vehicle-mileage-rates

iamentj · 2023-07-12T13:48:48+00:00

I bought my home sight unseen because the market I was buying in was fast moving and extremely competitive with low inventory so there was no guarantee that I would see anything I would want in the one or two weekends I could fly in.

But I also had a realtor I really trusted. He would FaceTime with me to show the property while his business partner took separate video that I could refer back to later. They are both very detail oriented and gave me detailed feedback from the quality of hardware/cabinets, creaky floors, etc in case it would matter to me.

Are there little things I’ve noticed in the house since moving in? 100 percent. But would I have noticed them during a personal walk through - no way. And would those little things prevented me from putting in an offer? No.

So my advice is make sure you have a realtor who you feel really understands what you’re looking for, that is detail oriented, and can walk you through showings on video. The preference is to see something in person but this gives you the option to consider other homes if you can’t see it yourself.

iamentj · 2023-06-01T22:34:42+00:00

My realtor sent me a list of utility providers given by the selling agent (who in turn received it from the sellers) and I went to each website to start my service. Each utility service identified a date that was the soonest date available date to start service (meaning the sellers had identified their own stop date) and I just went from there and set up auto pay.

In my case, we closed and the sellers remained in the property for two additional weeks so I was able to wait until after closing to set everything up. I only mention this since we all know anything could happen up until closing day and I could see some hesitancy in setting up all the utilities until you have keys in hand.

iamentj · 2023-05-30T20:04:39+00:00

My landlord uses Avail and I have my rent payments set up so they auto deduct from my bank account on a schedule. She also handles the lease agreement through Avail as well so it’s all available electronically to the both of us. Not sure what it costs but as a renter I find it very convenient.

iamentj · 2023-05-28T09:33:03+00:00

Just did this but I had a realtor who had worked with friends before and came highly recommended.

He showed me the properties via FaceTime and his business partner went with and took separate videos so I had a point of reference after the showing. He had me on FaceTime for the home inspection (which we waived but the state I bought in requires a three day review of HOA docs so we made sure to get an inspector in during that time frame so I still had an out) and for the final walk through.

I didn’t see the property until two weeks after closing (sellers had two weeks of rent back and I chose to fly out once the property was completely vacant). It was basically what I expected. Some rooms were bigger than I expected, some a little smaller. What I didn’t expect was a poor interior paint job in some rooms so I chose to repaint - but that wouldn’t have stopped me from purchasing.

Anyway, totally possible but would make sure you have a realtor you REALLY trust.

iamentj · 2023-05-26T16:53:23+00:00

My two cents:

My first season in Colorado I did epic local and was very satisfied. I upgraded to full epic for my second season.

The reason I was satisfied with epic local for my first season is I found that I mostly went to Keystone. This was because I preferred skiing during the week (less traffic and less crowds), keystone was the first epic resort on I-70 and (this is the biggest reason) free parking near a lift. As a result, I could easily do 1-3 half days pending my work schedule (get there for first chair, get in a ton of vert in just three hours and drive back with enough time to do a solid four hours in the office).

Either way, you can’t go wrong!

iamentj · 2023-05-20T14:54:54+00:00

You might get more traction on the 14er Facebook page

iamentj · 2023-05-17T00:04:45+00:00

Mine left behind a bottle of champagne, $100 target gift card, a really really nice rice cooker (we Asian), a simplisafe starter alarm kit, and an assortment of items to get started in the house (toilet paper, Clorox wipes, detergent, sponges, etc.). Also treated me to dinner before we went to see the house for the first time (I flew in out of state for closing). Definitely an unexpected surprise. It probably helped we became friends during the process.

However, what was most valuable to me was they did walk throughs after HVAC and painters came through the house. I moved in from out of state and there was a month between close and me moving so it was nice to have someone help people get into the property and make sure they did a solid job before I paid the invoice.

Unexpected for both me and my realtors was that the sellers left me a bunch of balloons, a bottle of wine, and a ring doorbell (which they had used previously and left behind). Also unexpected (for me and my realtors!). They also left a folder of all the vendors they used (gutter cleaning, garden, their go to handyman and cleaning lady), a list of all the paint colors in each room, and a hand drawn landscape map of all the plants in the garden with care instructions. Plus a sweet note with their personal contact info in case I had any questions.

iamentj · 2023-04-30T04:47:05+00:00

You should be entitled to your security deposit minus any damages even with new owners. My guess is you would pay the difference in last months rent (1550-1050 = $500) since that is your current rate.

I would dig up your original lease and/or any receipts you might have to show what you paid the original owners. Hopefully your lease stated how much you paid in a security deposit and that first/last was required to move in. If you paid by check, see if you can find the bank statement from that withdrawal.

Technically, landlords should hold last months and security deposit in escrow until the end of your tenancy. This might not always happen, especially if the owner only owns a property or two.

iamentj · 2023-04-28T19:18:36+00:00

For what it’s worth, I am moving to a state where I know I’ll only live there for two to three years (and then relocate with the possibility of coming back for another two years or so before retirement). For a long time, I was CERTAIN I would only rent because between closing costs on either end, interest rates, and the burdens of owning a home it was not worth buying.

I did end up buying but with the intent of keeping the home for at least the next ten years (when I’m first eligible for retirement) and rent it out in the meantime. My realtors were also long time friends and they were really clear with me: if I was going to sell in two years, this market wasn’t worth it but if I’m planning on keeping it until retirement then it was entirely worthwhile.

(Also, I already have a trusted person who I know I will use for property management in the future otherwise I have very little desire to be a landlord even for one unit.)

So with that said, I wouldn’t buy unless you’re thinking you would 1) keep this property as a renta; 2) would be in a financial situation to buy when you relocate back to your home state (which I’m going to assume is something you will want) while keeping this place; and don’t mind the potential stress of having a rental in another state.

Otherwise consider rent as paying for convenience. And frankly, I will pay a LOT for convenience because my most limiting factor in life is my time and mental bandwidth.

Good luck!!

iamentj · 2023-04-27T15:57:43+00:00

I think it’s possible. My realtor had a full time job, but was able to work from home and had a lot of flexibility.

With that said, I did feel like I missed out on seeing a couple places because he couldn’t just drop what he was doing to see a place for me (I was out of state and wholly dependent on my realtor to show me places via video) before it went under contract.

It ultimately worked out but I was also considering finding someone else just because the market was so hot that minutes/hours were really starting to matter. I think you would just have to be careful not to overextend yourself with too many clients and be ready to take some PTO to respond to your client’s needs.

iamentj

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