Not drinking a great deal of alcohol, and also avoiding the thick, sickly sweet liquor that passed for coffee, we had become accustomed to confidently requesting 'karkade' as our drink of choice. The tea made from an infusion of petals from the hibiscus flower is deep pink, and has a sour flavour similar to cranberry. It is normally (as with most drinks in Egypt) sweetened with lots of sugar, but I preferred it without. You can almost taste the vitamin C in its tartness.
Memorable occasions of drinking it include our night spent in the middle of the Western desert near the border of Libya, where it was brewed in a kettle nestled amongst burning logs. We also sipped from mugs of it overlooking the Mediterranean in a cafe opposite the great library in Alexandria. It seemed to have become such a part of our trip that when we found this spice shop on our route to the train station in Luxor, we couldn't help buying some to take home. The dark petals were strewn at the back of the shop, and scooped up in to plastic bags for us. Incidentally, we also bought some peanuts from the same shop to snack on which were the best peanuts I have ever had. Now back at home, after a long dinner, it makes for a satisfying ritual to soak and boil the petals and decant the viscous liquid into cups to fuel the rest of the evening.
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