Skip to main content

The Nile, Romantic.

3) 26.03.08

Today, I shall conjure up a romantic image of Cairo: A park, overlooking the nile, abounding with all the young pharoes in love, as does every green spot in this country. Walking down the shore f the nile, they all sport those brilliant egyptian smiles, handsome on male and female faces lit up by the sunset.

The colours are magnified and enhanced here, the sunset becomes a polaroid postcard. The same pollution that causes this turns the sky slightly grayer, slightly pinker than it would be otherwise. Heat and the general fug do their part, of course. 

Youth take romantic picture of each other with their cell phones, against a backdrop of fellukahs sailing on the nile and a chromophony of brightly coloured flowers. A gentle breeze blows the heat of the day away, and brings tididings of the cold of the night in this sweetest of hours, a night which will fall on us soon.

The sound of electronic tablas comes from some of the boats, ferrying lovers no doubt. From others comes the sound of modern arabic music, as homogenous as anywhere else.

Hegabs are blown around like Marilyns dress, uncovering not undergarnements, but wisps of hair that would otherwise remain hidden by faith. The young men enjoy this unexpected hair, the older ones appreciate it, remembering their young loves, who were probably unveiled.

A boatman handles his boat like a showhorse, cantering for our appreciation, trotting here and their for the publics amusement, before continuing on his way. 

Public and chaste expressions of affection, limited to the holding of hands, loving words, whispered in some ear and deep looks into beautiful black or brown eyes. 

Interestingly, the Hegab (the veil) is the only piece of modesty these ladies in love seem to be wearing: beneath their headgarb, on most of them tight shirts and even tighter jeans remind me that no body is like Egyptian booty. It is a bit controversial, but the hegab has become more than a symbol of faith, it has also become a signal of availability.

Also in this park are Anja and Kazya, a German/Japanese couple form Berlin, whom I will encounter in almost all other stages of this journey.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

IGAF: Utopia- Les Jours Meilleurs

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote this post, titled Dystopia , containing a dark version of the future, a look at the negative outcomes that might crawl out of the COVID-19 crisis. It has, by now been described as "9/11 in slow motion". Someone else broke a golden editorial rule to describe it as "2008  on crack". Media outlets, including Youtube, have warned of the long-term effects of this, on civil rights, labour and employment, surveillance and press freedom. And some, most notably Mr Orban of Hungary, have used this excellent opportunity to pass new, restrictive legislation that concentrates power in their hands. There have been calls for the elusive COVID cure not to be patented. And yet… And yet… It's easy to lose yourself in a media bubble, following the news and media 24/7, following, queuing in line to get into expensive shops, just walking into discount stores and the constant desire for many drinks (preferably with 10 friends or more, in a park...

The Books of Faragh 4: Of Lines

This time, it's really all about lines ;) Below: Book of Faragh 4: of Lines (May 2020) Faragh/فراغ (Ar): emptiness, vacuum, a free space http://caramk.net/faragh/faragh.html

IGAF: Disappearing the inconvenient.

This IGAF (Is Goodness a Fashion) series explores, from a non-expert point of view, the social, economic and narrative ramifications I see developing from the COVID-19 crisis, worries, but also hopes for a future that the current shock to the system may result in. It's a pity that random things happen when random people interact. That a person might be exposed to unexpected, or unpleasant sights when they leave the house. That we might see trash, homeless people, the effects of gentrification, closed stores in polluted streets, trees withered by mercurial weather, people in environmental suits, afraid of the diseases lurking within the safe confines of those suits. The world divided into those who have to face the streets, the Outside, and those who are safe Inside. It's a pity that these still interact. Our measure as a species that claims moral, ethical and intellectual hegemony over this planet will be two-fold as we deal with the COVID-19 crisis: On the one hand, socie...