国家地理-2008-06-05 City of The Dead Thrives 亡者之城埃及（在线收听）

The City of the Dead is one of the largest graveyards in Egypt, home to thousands of tomb stones dating back as early as the 14th century. It was traditionally a burial ground for Arab conquerors and their relatives. From a distance, set against the Cairo skyline, it looks like a shanty town, but this is a burial ground with a difference. The city of the dead is full of grave stones, tombs, and living people.

Cairo’s estimated population ranges anywhere from 14 to 18 million. People are desperately searching for work. The City of the Dead offers cheap, and for many, even free accommodation. No one knows for sure how many live in these makeshift cities. Estimates are between 30,000 and 5,000,000. Some dwellers manage to make a living by guarding the tombs for a few dollars a day. It’s a basic existence, no sanitation or electricity.

"When we wake up, if there is a body to bury, we dig and wait for the funeral to start, then we bury the corpse. But whenever I get work outside the City of the Dead, I (will) go and do that."

It’s just as well he doesn’t pay rent here. He only earns a few Egyptian pounds a day, barely enough to feed his family.

"Life is more difficult here than on the outside. If I could get regular work outside, we would have a normal life. We are earning a living here, but life outside the cemetery is beautiful and better."

And so the grave dwellers scrape by[1], not knowing whether they'll ever be able to move out of the City of the Dead.

Notes:
[1]scrape by phr v to have just enough money to live

Vocabulary Mix:
shanty town: area inside or just outside a town, where poor people live in shanties