Disco Inferno
Trip Start
May 09, 2005
1
30
53
Trip End
Aug 01, 2005
Dahab,
Egypt
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
I love to disco party with Europeans or any non-Americans. In the states, it is not uncommon to see beefcake guys lining the outskirts of the dance floor sheepishly glancing side to side to be sure that all eyes are on him. But don't expect him to actually dance, he's too much of a man for that. Then you've got the girls dressed in their best slut gear with silicon popping out and perfectly scultped (i.e. liposuctioned) legs beckoning men to dance with them. I don't even know that it can be called dancing...more like dry humping on the dancefloor. But elsewhere it's different. Nobody gives a crap of how they look while dancing and I find it refreshing. I mean, there was one Russian girl in her painted on white jeans doing a mix between what looked like she was on the stairmaster machine at the gym and some bootcamp stomping drills. But she had the biggest smile on her face and was having a blast--so that is cool in my book.
Typically here in Egypt, the dancefloor is about 90% men and the rest foreign women. As I've mentioned before, there are no hang-ups here about homosexuality and it's ok for the men to all dance together in a group. Well, they don't have much choice because the Egyptian women are definitely not out at the discos and are instead at home. I've also alluded to how the American rap/hip-hop phenomenon has hit Egypt. It seems to be especially rampant among the boys from Port Said (in the area of the Suez Canal). These guys show up in their baggy jeans and baggy sports jerseys and can break dance just as good as the boys out in Union Square park in NYC.
The only downfall to the night was that the DJ and his crew had apparently spent some time in Italy where they learned that it's a good idea to talk and do voice prompts throughtout the songs i.e. put your hands up in the air and other various instructions. I know they think they're keeping the crowd motivated...but honestly, people are going to dance regardless of your prodding as long as the music is good. But what made it especially bad was that the guy couldn't speak English very well and didn't understand that putting the mic directly to your mouth on an already struggling sound system wasn't pleasant for the ears. But all in all it was an enjoyable night followd by the obligatory shwarma run.
As I know that my time here in Dahab is drawing to a close, my eyes are wide open and the calculations are going on in my head as to what precious momentos of Egypt I want to bring back with me. So this morning I spent wandering the souq and noting what I need Anwar to go back and bargain for me on. As you can imagine, the price for him even if they know the item is for me, will be often in the area of 200% less than it is for other tourists.
Oh, gotta run. Anwar just informed me that he just quit his job he's had for the past 2 years in Al Capone! It's funny how it's the same exact bullshit in the restaurants here as it is in America. Same old drama, etc.
