Reporters on the Job

• My Daily Bread: Staff writer Jill Carroll knew that by shopping at a Western-style grocery store in Cairo, she was paying a premium for her bread. But it wasn't until she did the reporting for today's story (see story), did she realize how much it was marked up. "I learned how much bread really cost with the government subsidizing the cost of flour. I had to be impressed with the brash capitalism of the Westernized market," she notes.

Her Western-style loaf costs $1. But Egyptians pay the equivalent of 17 cents for 20 pieces of "baladi bread," a pita-style flat bread.

This week's look ahead

• Monday July 30:
Moscow: Palestinian Leader Mahmoud Abbas meets President Vladimir Putin.
Cairo: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to visit Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the West Bank. Defense Secretary Robert Gates plans to accompany her on stops in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Camp David, Md.: President George W. Bush hosts Britain's prime minister, Gordon Brown.

• Wednesday Aug. 1:
Moscow: Flights between Russia and Georgia resume. A year ago, Moscow cut transport links after Georgia detained four Russian officers it accused of spying.

• Friday Aug. 3:
Arusha, Tanzania: International meeting on Darfur, chaired by African Union and UN.

– David Clark Scott
World editor