East Wareham resident Bucky Elsayed describes a different Egypt than the one being pictured on television during recent weeks. He recalls his childhood home as "peaceful" and "safe."

The political atmosphere in Alexandria, Egypt, where Elsayed grew up, has recently made the country anything but serene. Now, as dramatic images of violence and unrest in Egypt flash across his laptop screen, Elsayed can only utter words of disbelief about the protests that have rocked his home country.

Alexandria is the nation's second largest city and is currently the site of massive demonstrations by protesters demanding an end to the regime of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

"We never had any problems in Egypt," Elsayed explained. "So, when people see army tanks in the streets it scares them."

The fear can be felt more than 5,000 miles away at his Wareham home, where he resides with his wife, Erin, and their  two young daughters and his stepson. Elsayed moved to town 12 years ago and has enjoyed success as the manager of Somerset Gas in Somerset.

Last week President Mubarak said he would not seek re-election, but fighting between his supporters and anti-government activist groups continue to rage on.

"The people are afraid of the police because they hold a lot of power over the people," Elsayed said. "They just want to see the president gone for all the bad things he has done for the country." Elsayed cited Egypt's weakened economy, which was "similar to the United States'" before the protests began three weeks ago, as one factor for the upheaval.

Looters and dwindling food supplies are reportedly the latest in a slew of problems Egyptians are facing, but Elsayed said his family felt relatively safe in its neighborhood when he last spoke with relatives. He also noted that many images of the riots are "exaggerated."

Still, he said the concerns of violence are not baseless. "I have a car in Egypt that was completely destroyed by protesters, my brother told me they smashed it," he said of the mounting violence that is shaking nearby suburbs of the nation's major cities, such as Alexandria and Cairo. "I want my family out of there now."

Elsayed left behind most of his loved ones when he moved to Massachusetts more than a decade ago, but makes frequent trips to see them. “I go about every six months,” he said. The social unrest has not deterred his desire to return to Egypt with his wife and kids. “I want to go as soon as possible,” he stated declaratively.

The homecoming may be awhile, however. Several commercial airliners have since canceled flights to the nation. Until then, he said he will continue to talk to his family and patiently await the end of the uprising.