A tour of Coptic and Islamic Cairo followed through the weeks of our stay in Egypt. From a Synagogue, couple of churches, St George’s holy shrine to the oldest and simplest “Ibn Toulon mosque” , to the highly embellished mosques of the later centuries, my amazement heightened as I admired Egypt’s history
from the Pharonic period to today, and its people for preserving this history with utmost effort so that this mesmerizing history could be shared with anyone who loved just watching centuries pass by!Alexandria, Marsa Matruh and Siwa were the places where I re-lived every moment amidst clean blue waters, soft sands and the yellow sun. In other words…The Sea, the sun and the sand! It was vacation time! Alexandria had in her a Citadel, a museum and one of the most fascinating libraries ever! Marsa Matruh on the other hand screamed vacation in bold! Singing to “I’m gonna Soak up the Sun” repeatedly ,taking a dip in to the Mediterranean sea , a swim with a jelly fish and a tan to flaunt my beach visit fulfilled my dreams of being in my hometown back in India, minus the jelly fish!Siwa was different! Just different! I had seen sand before but not a desert, I had seen lakes before but not the Oasis, I had seen sand boarding but not experienced ita short cool swim in “ Cleopatra’s well” for some and a fantastic dive in the Oasis for the rest got us all geared up to conquer the desert!
Cruising across the sands in the Land Cruiser, bouncing up and down, making cute yet noisy “weeeeeeeeeee---eeee” sounds just to get the feel of being on a roller coaster!!It was simply superb! The sand dunes, the sunset, the “sand devil”, so much so that I even ate some of the sand to prove my love towards the deserts!When I saw the mummy of Tutankhamen, I came out saying...that’s it I have seen it all...and there is nothing more I need to see in this life atleast...! But obviously I was wrong!! In between these trips I had the chance to pay my visits to the Egyptian museum where I saw huge statues, more sarcophaguses and more Mummies! I saw em all…I saw all the royal mummies. Hetshepsut...not obese anymore, King Ramses not young anymore, his hair had turned yellow thanks to the chemicals used to preserve him. The day clearly was for the dead and gone! The sarcophaguses seemed to narrate a story. The artistic/carved sarcophaguses seemed to be for the rich while the poor were placed in a weaved basket. Unsure of this detail , it still makes complete sense when I retrace the memory lane! Also the mummified crocodile that I saw seemed to be larger, much larger than the crocodiles we see today! Evolution ha?In this “Golden period” I lived thru a mix of cultures. The Egyptian, the American and the Indian! Having glass bottles thrown inches from our heads, being called an Indian first and then being corrected and called an Egyptian, being cat-called in a way that said “Welcome to Masr” was a brief introduction to the people of Egypt. I was scared, critical, over analytical and confused! That’s when I decided to note down “fi kull hagga taHt shams” (literally.” everything under the sun).The initial days went with me over splurging on everything I set my eyes upon, including food! I loved the food there..It was simple and spicy and above all affordable! I was addicted to their sweet “basbousa” to an extent that I had to have a piece everyday like a vitamin dose!
Being at the receiving end of cultures I had an interesting tryst with the American culture. How they react to the Egyptian and the Indian culture, their reasoning behind rationalization of events and above all their readiness to respect the culture not by its face value alone but because they understand its sensitivity and its impact on the individual. I had my doubts initially a zillion of them to be honest, about my acceptance in a group of Americans, but all went well. It’s very simple I guess, everyone’s different with the way they are brought up, but one thing that brings us all together are human emotions. I loved the days I spent with each one of my peers. I took home memories, I took home friends, along came the cultures and some of the trends!My satisfaction grew no bounds when I had the chance to work on two projects both completely different, but in their own ways targeting the same goal. The St Andrews organisation worked with tutoring refugees in conversational English, and sincere thanks to Cynthia I got an opportunity to be an active volunteer
for the last two weeks of my valuable time in Cairo. Helping them with their homework, just talking to them about anything they wanted or their experiences in Egypt as well as their home countries made me realise a simple truth about life…to be thankful and to have the strength and courage to overcome any
difficulties in life .The few times I had my rendezvous with them they exhibited determination, courage and the will to survive.Bus break downs...dint stop us from being creative...be it the Hollywood way or the Bollywood way! Sweat trickling down our foreheads...moist hands and the heat of the desert dint let the cameras shut away!!We had fun...in our own ways and sometimes in organised ways! Swirling dervishes were mind captivating…I only wish they could be captured on to our cameras!! I returned to Boston with splendid and beautiful henna on my hand and a scarab on my ankle! Dozens of gifts form khan-il-khalili over stuffed in my bags, a new pair of trendy jeans, and a smile that stretched from one ear to another accompanied me back home. I was sad to leave Egypt, but at the same time I was excited to be home. Even while I am writing this I miss those moments of candid talks, jokes and just hanging out with my new friends. I miss the authentic
falafel, shwarma and the mouth watering Mankousha.I miss Arabic music to which I could sing out loud and no one would think it was weird! I miss the fact that a bottle of Dasani was so darn cheap! All said is true, but I’m home now.To brief the whole trip up, to me it was a trip I would have probably never made on my own. I am genuinely thankful to all the goodness around me, because of which I got to experience century’s preserves, immerse in a new culture yet again, make new friends and acquaintances and above all learn a new language and a new cool script!