Egyptians and Siwans

Egyptians, especially the men, can be very cruel. Everyday I have to face a barrage of harassment beginning from the moment I step out of my dorm and continuing to the moment I return home. Their behavior has at times shocked and disgusted me. The girls in my group have been catcalled, groped, insulted, followed and a good many other even more vile things since our arrival in this country. We were warned of it before we came, but nothing can prepare you for the reality of it. According to a study by the Egyptian Center for Women's Rights, 98% of foreign women in Egypt report being sexually harassed on a daily basis. But it is not limited to foreigners, as 60% of Egyptian women say the same thing. 60% of men also admit to having harassed a woman. It is a constant struggle to be a woman in this country, especially a Western, white woman. I have never lived in a place where I am a minority and the experience has truly given me a new perspective on race relations and issues of gender in Islam and in the world as a whole. My brain is too jumbled and my emotions too high for me to really sort through everything I am thinking and feeling, but something very significant is brewing in my mind.

That said, there have been many times when I have been truly overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of the people in this country. The majority of Egyptians that I interact with (not the ones I pass on the street or in a shop, but the ones I deal with on a day-to-day basis) have been some of the most welcoming and friendly people I have ever met. For example, today I had plans to go have a copy of my room key made after class. In my Egyptian colloquial class this afternoon, I asked my teacher how I could go about asking for this service. Not only did she tell me the proper way to ask to have something copied, but she found out where the nearest key shop was and then proceeded to walk with me there after class and pay for the copies herself! Granted, the cost was less than a dollar, but that is not the point. The point is that she went significantly out of her way to help me and to make sure I wasn't ripped off or unable to communicate what I needed. As we were leaving the shop, in the midst of my enthusiastic appreciation, she assured me that she would help me with anything I needed, gave me her cell phone number, and instructed me to call anytime in the day or night if I had a problem or a question.

I have another example of Egyptian hospitality and it leads beautifully into the story of my trip to Siwa. Siwa is a fascinating anomaly in the western region of Egypt. It is a desert town with an abundance of natural hot and cold springs, it is populated by Arabs who don't speak Arabic, and the Siwans do not pride themselves and the history and tradition of Pharaonic Egypt, but on a much older, more traditional Berber culture. The oldest human footprint was discovered here a few years ago, it is believed to date back over 3 million years. The dialect spoken is a Berber one, influenced by Egyptian Arabic. To me, it sounded a bit like how Arabic would sound if one were speaking with a mouth full of marbles.We took a trip out to the desert and after a ten minute drive were surrounded on all sides by the rolling, curving, golden gleam of thousands of sand dunes.

That black spot is me, just to give a little perspective

Our (crazy) dirver Hassan and a spectacular backdrop

Ten minutes drive further into the desert and we were enjoying a refreshing dip in a natural cold spring. The water was so clear and you could see all the little fish swimming around you when you went in. If anyone can explain to me how on earth there came to be fish in this isolated pond in the middle of the desert, I would be much obliged.

And two minutes further into the wide expanse of sand, a small natural hot spring appeared into view. With a strong smell of sulfer, the water was warmer than bath water and equally relaxing. In the center of the pool you can feel the spot where the hot water is rising out of the earth to fill the enclosure. The knowledge that the water is being heated by the powerful forces beneath the earth's surface adds a whole different element to the experience.

A few more hours, some ancient fossils, and one beautiful sunset later, we returned to town, exhausted but exhilarated by the incredible experience.

The town of Siwa is very small, with just one or two restaurants, a few street food vendors, an abundance of fruit stands, and shops offering local crafts, clothing, and jewelry.

But I haven't told you about the best part of the weekend yet. And you are probably wondering how all this relates to the first part of my post. Let me show you the two biggest reasons our weekend trip to Siwa was so incredible:

Mustafa

Mona

The two people pictured above are named Mustafa and Mona and they are husband and wife. Mustafa owns a fantastic little coffee shop in Siwa (creatively named Mustafa's Coffee Shop) which serves incredible crepes, smooth shisha, and delicious juice, including a killer drink called Red Sky that consists of mango and pomegranate juice (speckled with ripe, juicy pomegranate kernels throughout). Mona is an artist in Alexandria (you can see her sketching in the photo) whose work is well recognized (she has pieces in museums and galleries throughout Africa and parts of Europe) and absolutely spectacular. She seems particularly drawn to the female form and many of the pictures she showed us of her work featured it. She does mostly sculpture and she had a wide range, from small, intricate pieces done in stone and metals to huge 5 meter tall figures done in clay and other materials. Her talent is truly impressive. We met them on our first night in Siwa after walking into the coffee shop quite accidentally. We got to talking with the couple and their friends and really hit it off. I think the best way to describe them would be "Egyptian hippies." Soon they had invited us to go out into the desert for a midnight dip in a hot spring. Who could possibly say no to that? The rest of the weekend they really took care of us; giving us free food, free drinks, free shisha, and even a mix CD of Arabic music. They were so incredibly kind and warm and welcoming and Mustafa assured us that we had a friend in him anytime we came back to Siwa. Mona took the bus back to Alexandria with us and before going our separate ways in Alex, we exchanged numbers with Mona with promises of meetings in the near future. She wants to cook for us, introduce us to her mother-in-law (who she lives with), and have us sit in on some of the art classes she teaches at the University. I think she really meant it.

So, despite the hardships I face as a Western woman in Egypt, I have met some truly beautiful people here and have often been greeted with tremendous hospitality and treated with unimaginable kindness. I want to love the Egyptian people and for the most part, I do. But the misogynist, patriarchal system and the perverse sexual tension of the society, not to mention the hostility that is felt by many towards foreigners, makes it hard to ever truly be comfortable in this environment.

One last thing, I realized that I had been asking everyone to leave comments but the settings on the blog required you to be a registered user in order to comment. What a pain! So I have changed the comment setting and, insha'allah, anyone should be able to comment now. Give it a try!