I have always noticed that every country has its own smell and when you get a whiff in your nose, all sorts of emotions flood through your mind in a flash. Egypt always smelled of what I can only describe as burnt camel schitt. It smelled like that everywhere you went. Somalia has the burning trash human misery odor. Afghanistan has that nearly identical smell of Egypt but with that horrible bread they cook everyday.
Maybe it is a continental thing or a culture thing but they all have their signature smell.
