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"Basha, he's got three cameras and a badge hanging round his neck..." said one into a cellphone, followed by a long description of the press accreditation card provided by the authorities, before he awaited instructions.
"The badge is not valid," came the verdict.
"But it was issued specifically to cover the elections," the AFP photographer said.
"Yes, but only to look. You can't take photos."
Next stop Imbaba, but again no access.
"You have a zoom -- you can take photos from a distance," said an official, before then asking the photographer to leave.
His hopes were raised when he got to a third polling station, in a school. "You are journalists, you are welcome," said a young official with a smile.
But once in front of the actual ballot box the tone changed. Suddenly permission was needed from the official's superiors, and they were not present.
"Photography or videography inside polling stations and counting committees is allowed with the permission of the chairperson of the polling station or counting committee," said the official media pack.
The authorities have made the presence of accredited foreign journalists proof of their commitment to transparency, as well as the right of Egyptian civil groups to observe the vote, after refusing to allow foreign observers.
Local civil society groups have complained that the authorities rejected requests for thousands of permits to monitor the vote and the count, despite the electoral commission saying it had granted more than 6,000 permits.
One video journalist who entered a polling station in Cairo was surprised to discover that there were no private booths for people to vote in, and was quickly asked to leave.
In Egypt's second city Alexandria, many polling stations denied access to journalists whether or not they were accredited, according to an AFP reporter. "We have instructions," said one policeman on duty there.
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"The badge is not valid," came the verdict.
"But it was issued specifically to cover the elections," the AFP photographer said.
"Yes, but only to look. You can't take photos."
Next stop Imbaba, but again no access.
"You have a zoom -- you can take photos from a distance," said an official, before then asking the photographer to leave.
His hopes were raised when he got to a third polling station, in a school. "You are journalists, you are welcome," said a young official with a smile.
But once in front of the actual ballot box the tone changed. Suddenly permission was needed from the official's superiors, and they were not present.
"Photography or videography inside polling stations and counting committees is allowed with the permission of the chairperson of the polling station or counting committee," said the official media pack.
The authorities have made the presence of accredited foreign journalists proof of their commitment to transparency, as well as the right of Egyptian civil groups to observe the vote, after refusing to allow foreign observers.
Local civil society groups have complained that the authorities rejected requests for thousands of permits to monitor the vote and the count, despite the electoral commission saying it had granted more than 6,000 permits.
One video journalist who entered a polling station in Cairo was surprised to discover that there were no private booths for people to vote in, and was quickly asked to leave.
In Egypt's second city Alexandria, many polling stations denied access to journalists whether or not they were accredited, according to an AFP reporter. "We have instructions," said one policeman on duty there.
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