Sister Dorothy Moroney (Lilydale), Australian Army Nursing Service: In a letter to her sister: ‘Now, here I am in Cairo, where we were instructed to proceed to a nurses’ club, but having had some at Alexandria, we decided to put up at the Grand Continental, which, though it is not Shepherd’s is quite good enough for me. The best hotels suit me down to the ground, but one thing we miss is the lack of electric fans. We never sat a minute in India without a fan being switched on.  

Now, everybody has said how dirty Cairo was, but compared to Bombay it is almost beautifully clean. Well of course, the first thing was the Pyramids, and as someone had told us not to miss the zoo, which is on the way, we called at the zoo. Of all the places in the world that I despise, commend me to a zoo. We went inside and walked about twenty yards, and could see nothing! We expected beautiful gardens, but could only see beasts in cages, so I said ‘If anyone expects me to wander round here in the heat looking at wild beasts – well, they’re mad’ and as the others were bored too, we came out and had afternoon tea at an awful little roadside cafe, and then took the tram for the Pyramids along a magnificent road lined on either side by huge shady trees, and were quite affected by the first glimpses we had of the Pyramids.  

We each took a camel to go round them, and oh! the mounting of the brutes. Of course, they lie down till you get on, and then three lurching movements and there you are mountains high. How we laughed! The natives have picked up a lot of Australian slang, and one who posed as a guide said, when I told him I did not require a guide, he said ‘I’m not an ordinary guide Sister; I’m the dinkum Moses’, and when he saw I meant it, he remarked ‘Nothin’ doin’ and went off. When we made our camels trot, I wish you could have seen us. The shops here are really splendid, and didn’t we revel in them. We spent our money freely, but it is the only pretence of furlough I have had for years, so I did not mind, but thoroughly enjoyed it.  

One morning we spent in the ‘Mouskie’ as they call the bazaar here – a most fascinating place, and glorious things to buy. The Persian rugs were dreams, but everything is much dearer than in India. We met three Australian boys in one shop buying silk and being taken down so we went to their rescue. They were down from Palestine on furlough, and there are swarms of them. It gladdened our hearts to see them, when we had not seen any of ‘our’ boys for ages. Really, when one see’s them among other men it makes one feel proud of them; they are a strong, manly lot of fellows. Oh! they’re some boys, I tell you. Well, the three we rescued asked if they might call and take us to afternoon tea, and, receiving permission, went to a cafe with two cars the following day, and drove us 26 miles to the Barrage – a system of lochs and weirs that controls the whole irrigation system of the Nile. It is a most interesting and beautiful place; with splendid lawns and lovely shady trees; then we had a drive home in the cool of the evening. We all thoroughly appreciated it.  

We expected to be sent forward today, but seventy others have gone and the Indian Unit has been kept back. Palestine may be our destination, and as all the British troops have been transferred from a place we were expecting to go to, none of us is complaining. It is seven weeks now since I had any letters. I think if I do not receive a batch when I reach my destination (where-ever it is) I shall go mad. You will, of course, receive my letters very irregularly, but you are not to worry, as the mails are only being dispatched very casually, but I shall post every week on the off chance’.