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Religion, contracts and relationships
Entry 6 of 53 | show all | print this entry |
Okay, some cultural stuff today as I had, well, yet another lovely lazy day! First: religion. If you looked at the pix from the last entry, you'd see that Anwar has a big cross around his neck. Now, in the US only the cheesy Italian men wear big jewlery and the like, so my fellow Americans may have been thinking what is up this guy? Well, here there is a small, yet very old, Christian population. They are known as the Copts and their lineage (bloodlines) can date back to the pharoahs. It was in the 1st century AD that Christianity came to Alexandria, Egypt and even throughout the Arab conquest (641 AD)and rise of Islam in the area...the Copts have always been here. Today, they only make up roughly 6-10% of Egyptian population and in general, are a fairly marginalized group (i.e. don't hold much politcal power and are subject to Islamic law). In any case, the Christians here are very proud of their faith and are easily recognized as they usually bear a cross necklace of some sort. Also, most have a tiny cross tattooed on the inside of their wrist and maybe in other places. Anwar received his tattoos in the church when he was 12 years old. Some say the tattoos serve the purpose of preventing future conversion (forced or selected) to Islam.
I find it interesting to see the varying degrees of Islam and even its perversion in places like Dahab where tourism has greatly affected the way of life. Dahab is not short of Western women married to Egyptian men. I was introduced to one Egyptian man in particular who spoke wonderful English with an Australian accent. Anwar told me that he had been married about 20 times!! This piqued my interest and it turns out there is this little thing called the "Dahab Contract." Basically, the no frills explanation is that this is a piece of paper that a Western woman and Egyptian man sign to say that they are "together." It's not legally binding but is only filed with the police so that there are no "problems" or questions concerning a Western woman and Egyptian man co-habitating. So this man apparently tends to sign contracts with every woman tourist that he decides to hook up with. This contract is basically the only way in which a Muslim Egyptian man can live with a Western woman without encountering problems.
The reason I bring this up is because it never ceases to amaze me the contrasts in ways of life and just how tourism has changed places like Dahab and Sharm El-Sheikh on the Sinai. I am curious to see what these places will look like in 10 and 20 years--what the tourism industry will do to the Egyptian way of life and even Islam.
Ok, so I have a new form of entertainment. There is basically one 'main' disco/bar here in Dahab: Tota. This is where the locals go to relax and enjoy a beer and where the tourists go to get wasted and dance like chickens to American music. It's so much fun to watch the British and Aussie men with no rhythm to speak of out busting a move on the dance floor. They are joined by the numerous Russian women with their painted on jeans, barely there tube tops, black roots and bleached blonde hair. They never have their Russian man (read: pimp) too far off serving as their bankroll while they drink the night away. Then you have the occassional wasted American group who thinks everyone is interested in seeing them try to do a sexy strip-tease dance on a bedouin table before falling over and knocking a 3 foot tall sheesha pipe to the ground. I guess this is what happens when all you have to drink is really bad Egyptian vodka! But really, it's great fun. I also got to see the most competitve game of ping-pong ever--these Egyptian men could move just as well as any Asian ping-pong champion.
Today was really nice in Dahab with the winds having moved in last night and thus making it perfect weather today--a cool breeze to counter the heat. The Red Sea is the deepest blue color today with whitecaps off in the distance. As with most days, it's hard to say what will happen. As Anwar knows probably 90% of Dahab...I'd say a good 1/3 of the day is spent in encounters and greetings. There is a lot of comradery amongst the Egyptian men. They stop to greet each other each time they see one another in the street with a strong handshake, a kiss to each cheek and a big hug. Then, you never know when someone will need your help. Today as we were walking to get lunch, a friend drove by in his jeep and the next thing I knew we were off to run errands which meant I got to see more of the animated manly conversation that I love to watch. I had a lovely and filling lunch of chicken, pita, tarhini sauce, chunky tomato soup, rice, and lentil soup...all for about $1.50! I've been trying to stay out of the sun a bit today as my poor little white girl skin has a little heat rash on my hands and arms (oh how I continue to wish I'd been blessed with lovely dark skin!)
Alright, that is all for now. I believe it's time for some coffee and conversation before my siesta to get ready for a late dinner and night.
What I miss today: scented candles at home
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| 6. | Religion, contracts and relationships - Dahab, Egypt May 15, 2005 |
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