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Robson Sharuko in CAIRO, Egypt

HE is simply known as the General, the head of the Engineering Authority Guest House, which the Warriors first made their home when they arrived here, and the hotel at which their fans stayed throughout their stay here.

And, as the second, and final batch of the supporters, left Cairo last night, the General was the man many were talking about, and the man many of them will miss dearly.

Never has a foreigner gone to such lengths, to make a visiting delegation of Warriors feel so much at home and make them feel this comfortable and the General is a man whose touch of class has left a lasting impression on scores of Zimbabweans who were on this tour of duty.

“The General is a man of the people and showed why the authorities in Egypt have been successful in boosting their tourism trade because they really make visitors feel very comfortable and he went out of his way to make our stay such a pleasure,’’ said Marshall Gore, who flew from London to support the Warriors.

“The way he was there for everyone, from morning to midnight, was amazing and until you were told that he was, indeed a General, you would never have believed such a high-ranking official can humble himself to be such a servant of the people he was hosting.

“He gave his country a good name and I think, when I come back, I will look out for him because this was hospitality on another level.’’

Gladman “Dallas’’ Sekawawana was the other Warriors fan who stayed at the Engineering Authority Guest House which, for the first week of the national team’s adventure here, was also the place where Sunday Chidzambwa and his men stayed before they moved to the Le Meredien.

“I think when you are told you will stay at a guest house, from our perspective back home, you believe that it’s something like a lodge but we were proved wrong because this was a beautiful place to stay at,’’ he said.

“It just felt good, every day when I was walking to the restaurant for breakfast, to see the huge Zimbabwean flag that confronted you, which was placed on the wall next to the Egyptian flag.

“This felt like home, far away from home, and it was all because of the spirited efforts of the General to make sure his guests were comfortable and these guys even acquired some Zimbabwean flags which they gave to everyone.

“You could see they were disappointed when the Warriors were knocked out of the tournament because they had really fallen in love with our team and its fans and they wanted us to go as far as possible at this AFCON.

“I believe there are lessons our people, who run hotels and run our tourism back home, can learn from their Egyptian counterparts in terms of really opening their hearts to their guests and you end up feeling you want to come back again and again.’’

The name of the hotel, Engineering Authority Guest House, might be a bit deceiving.

Because, it’s a proper hotel and part of the investments by the Armed Forces Engineering Authority, an arm of the Egyptian Ministry of Defence, which has interests in many areas, including but not limited to:

Contributing in the development of infrastructure and the construction of roads, bridges and schools

Playing a part in the areas of political development and the construction and improvement of sports facilities.

The fortified military hotel, in the heart of one of Cairo’s most affluent neighbourhoods which also houses the headquarters of the powerful Egyptian military, gave the Warriors, and their fans, one of the most secure bases on their foreign adventures.

The Heliopolis neighbourhood is also the home for the regional headquarters of the World Health Organisation and the Red Crescent Society.

It’s also a popular home to Egyptian celebrities, including some of the country’s football stars, while wealthy families and a number of politicians have also set base in the area which, today, has a population of more than 150 000.