The previous installments of this journal? For Part I, please go here, and for Part II, please go here. And just to remind you: We’re at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East, in the “Egyptian Riviera,” on the Sinai Peninsula.

At these WEF meetings–whether in Davos or elsewhere–I’m always struck by one thing: the variety–seemingly infinite–of cellphone rings. Here at the conference, I hear a traditional Middle Eastern wail–out of a cellphone, I mean. It could be a plangent voice in the desert. Amazing.

And a jazzy version of the Preludio from Bach’s Partita in E, for unaccompanied violin? In fact, it’s more like a disco version. Pretty revolting.

(If you’re interested in a transcription of that prelude, try Rachmaninoff’s, for piano–preferably played by Rachmaninoff himself.)

‐Friends, I think you’ve had enough for this installment. I’ll be back tomorrow with the fourth and final installment, featuring the deputy secretary of state, the prime minister of Turkey, a funky ride in the desert, and more.