Let's get deeper into this well regulated market.
First, you can't say "that's what she said" to the previous statement. They simply don't have that type of joke here.
Hooking up is out of the question. But, so is what Americans would call traditional dating. There are no dinner or movie dates, and there's never time to spend alone with someone outside of Egypt's watchful eyes. If you're sneaky, you can sneak in some long walks along the Corniche (right next to the beach), but don't even think about kissing her. Culturally, PDA is --حرام -- literally, forbidden. People love to hold hands and they get pretty touchy down by the beach, but you will never see a kiss in public.
One of my Egyptian professors calls her own culture a "culture of glue." It's a reference to the marriage-centric thinking of Egyptians. When I meet new people, the typical order of questions is "Where are you from?" "What's your name?" "Are you married?" "Well, are you engaged Everyone gets married as soon as possible, and Egyptian guys consider all Egyptian girls mozas (babes). I've been asked, in complete seriousness, if the three girls I was traveling with were my wives. Of course, I said yes and the Egyptians gave me a lot of props.
I'm not going to contradict Harry's advice to Sally on their ride to New York, but Egypt really takes it to the extreme in considering any acquaintanceship between a guy and a girl paramount to eternal love.
A couple 16 year-old boys told me that in Egypt, no one is looking to date, everyone just wants to get married. So be careful when you ask a girl for her number, that's the fast track to marriage or a dearly broken heart.
And, that's the dating scene in Egypt.
