RaqStars Choreography

Wow! So much has happened since my last post! I'm just going to dive into the stuff that's been at the forefront of my brain...

So I have a troupe now and we are called the RaqStars. In case you didn't know, raqs means 'dance' in Arabic. Our name is a play on words! I love it! I think we should do a performance one of these days with stars painted on our faces like Paul Stanley from KISS. What's more rock than that? It's on!

Anyway, we had our debut performance last Sunday at my new monthly event called "Raq The House" at Tannourine. My girls busted their buns learning the choreography and technique and indeed we did Raq The House. We had so much fun coming up with names for the moves in our routine. There are very few standardized or formalized names to belly dance moves. Sure, everyone knows what a shimmy is, but one dancer's "undulation" is another dancer's "camel". Throughout the rehearsal process, we had to come up with ways to identify the steps and here is the choreography in its entirety:

Habbousu by Hakim
Fabulous Opening
Charlie's Angels
Veil Toss
Chorus
Step Touch
Ya Sidi
Head Slide
Wax On
Wax Off
Swish Swish
Jab
Jabby Jab
The Marilyn
Bouncy Circles
Upper Body Walk
Quick Change
Beauty Sleep
Punch the Walls
Push the Head
Forward and Back
Big Sensuous Circle
Chorus
[repeat]
Finale
Money Shot

There it is! Feel free to try and reproduce it!

What would Andrea do?

Jerusalem is a beautiful city with some pretty amazing historical sites. It has very high spiritual significance for Christians, Muslims, and Jews. The hotel I stayed in was conveniently located across the street from the Old City which is enclosed by an ancient wall. Inside the Old City there is a Muslim Quarter, Jewish Quarter, Christian Quarter, and Armenian Quarter. The rest of Jerusalem is pretty much Jewish. Much of the cultural flavor of Jerusalem is provided by the Orthodox Jews that live in Jerusalem. You can easily spot them by the large black hats, long beards, tassels on the corners of their shirts, and overgrown sideburns. Not the most flattering or chic ensemble, but I suppose that fashion isn't the point.

I loved wandering through the zig-zaggy streets of the Old City. Religious monuments come crawling out of the woodwork! My first day in Jerusalem, I had coffee in Pontius Pilate's home. (It's now a souvenir shop.) I played Jesus, walking along Via Dolorosa and stopping at the stations of the cross. I walked into the Chapel of the Flagellation, where Jesus was tormented by gassy Roman soldiers. I visited the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, where a I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Let me explain: everyone in the Mediterranean/North African/Middle Eastern area of the world thinks I'm Egyptian! I know I look the part and I don't blame them for making the assumption. In fact I think it's fun to make people guess where I'm from and I enjoy the looks of incredulousness when I tell them my ethnic background! But at the Tomb of the Virgin Mary the priest named my ethnicity and the city I live in on the first guess! It must have been Divine Intervention. I might have said one sentence to him ("Do I have to take my shoes off?") and on my way out of the church he said "You are Mexican. From San Francisco." Then he handed me an autographed poster of the the Mary.

I continued up the Mount of Olives and gazed at the view of Old City from the outside, crowned by the golden dome of Al Aqsa mosque.

Coming up for air

What a whirlwind last few days I've had! Is it really the 7th of July already?? Since my last post I've been on the go with Yun assisting her with her film and experiencing lots of new things. Here is what the last few days has been like:
Long bus ride, quick shower, go out and shoot, brief nap, hit the gay clubs, crash at 4 a.m. and repeat several times! It's been intense and I will try to encapsulate the highlights.

Gay clubs always have the best music!
Amman is tres tres different from Cairo. Much less crowded but also there is not much happening there in terms of sights, nightlife, things to do in general. Interestingly, the downtown area of Amman is the less modern section of Amman. We stayed outside of the downtown area, where there are big hotels, Burger Kings, and the gay bar RGB is located. Yun's friend and one of the subjects of her film, Boody, took us there on Friday and it was so much fun! They played Arabic tunes as well as American dance tunes and I danced my little heart out for hours! I represented California on the floor and made quite a splash. RGB proved to me that the gay clubs always have the best music and are the most fun! Yun and I were the last ones on the dance floor when it finally closed at 4:30 a.m. I felt like shouting "California in the hizzouse!" We loved RGB so much that we went back there the next day. However, because it was Friday it was pretty dead. That didn't stop us from staying there until it closed anyway.

After two nights in Jordan we had to take the most direct bus route to Tel Aviv to catch a Butch/Femme party there. The most direct route by bus entails a long stop at the Israel/Jordan boreder and a pit stop in Jerusalem! The whole ride should only take 2 1/2-3 hours but the delays at the Jordanian/Israeli border stretch the journey several hours more! Entering Israel at the area which is part of the Palestinian territory is a hassle. Even more of a hassle for Palestinians! We ended up waiting and waiting hours to get through each little check. But if you are a male with an Arabic sounding name, even if you have a passport from another country, you are pulled aside and questioned and may be strip searched. This happened to a young man we met, incidentally from San Francisco, who is American born but has an Arabic name. Even though he was pulled aside and interrogated and had to wait for his baggage, we all ended up outside the border at the same time! Once we were finally out of the customs area, we had to wait in the blistering heat for a shuttle to Jerusalem. I hosed myself off in my hotel, then hopped on the sherute to Tel Aviv.

Ooh ee ooh ah ah ching chang walla walla bing bang
Tel Aviv is the most gay friendly city in the Middle East. It's gay scene is much more lively and open than Cairo, Jerusalem, and Amman. It's much easier to be out in Tel Aviv! We met up with Samira, another character of Yun's film, who took us to the butch/femme party. "Did you go as a butch or a femme?" you may ask. Hmmm... a femme as a half-assed butch? I just wore my cute jeans and a cute top and called it a day. This club did not have good music! It started with a show which left me thoroughly unimpressed, then opened the dance floor with Elvis, and ended with some bizarre American doo wop. There were a few good tunes in between but if it weren't for the yummy cherry beer they served, I may not have stayed. I'm sure I was the only heterosexual woman there, as I was the only one with any fashion sense and grooming. I felt like a sore thumb...a stylish sore thumb among a handful of frumpy fingers. The after party, however, was off the hook! We went to a ginormous club called FansionCafe which was located right on the beach! That's were the more fashionable lesbians were. The music was much better, as was the dancing, but I mainly enjoyed sitting on the roof patio and gazing at the Mediterranean Sea. Yun and I tried absinthe for the first time, but I didn't notice any special effects. For the third night in a row, we stayed out past 4:00 a.m. Do we know how to have a good time or what?

The next day I got to spend a little bit of time on the beach in Tel Aviv. The waters are so clean and blue and warm! It was very very hot and humid so the brief dip in the Mediterranean was a very refreshing treat. Then it was back to Jerusalem to climb the ramparts of the Old City's wall to film the sunset! Walking around the perimeter of the Old City from up on the wall is not to be missed if you are ever in Jerusalem! Got some amazing pictures from up there! Yun and I shared a dinner on the wall over looking Mount Olive and Al Aqsa, then she set up the camera while I shot production stills. Even though we were working, it was a nice peaceful break after all of the busing and clubbing we had been doing.

Gotta go now and meet Yun for some night shots of Jerusalem! Then later we're checking out a drag show after dinner. Inshaallah I'll upload some photos and write about Ramallah when I get back. That is, unless we end up dancing until 4 a.m.!

Filming on site

Hey peeps! Just wanted to let you know that in a few minutes I'll be going to Jordan to do help Yun with filming one last story. I'll not be bringing my computer with me so I won't be able to blog until I get back to Jerusalem on the 5th. I'll leave you with a couple of photos to hold you over. The first one was my last night in Cairo, fanning the meat at an awesome lamb kebab and kofta restaurant called Rifai which Morad and family took me to. The second one was taken on Mount Olive in Jerusalem. the last one is the Damascus Gate of the Old City in Jerusalem. Wish I could write more! Till then, hugs!

Wrapping things up in Cairo: 1

I spent two weeks in Cairo and didn't have a chance to write about everything I did in detail. I ask myself "What the hell was I doing that kept me so busy I couldn't blog more often?" So here's the rest of the story:

Dance

In my past trips to Cairo, I've gone to as many 5-star shows as I could! This time, I focused on seeing more homegrown Egyptian dance since that is what my training has been lacking and that is what I could afford. As a result I experienced a totally different feeling of dance and got to learn even more about Egyptian local culture. And I got it all on video! Since Cairo is the center of music and dance for the Arab world, it's not hard to find music pulsing locals dancing around you anywhere and at unexpected times! First, there was the night felucca on the Nile with Yun and Alex. Our small group of passengers danced our hearts out on that little boat! Men, women, children, Alex, Yun, and I shimmied up a storm in the middle of the Nile! I got some amazing footage of several of the passengers and they were really good. Just random people on the boat! Another time I encountered a wedding party on the Corniche outside of TGIFriday's in Giza. There was a band and the bride and groom were dancing right on the edge of the Nile. How romantic is that? The men in their suits, the women in their fancy dresses were hopping and dancing singing! I also came as a guest to Yasmina's cousin's engagement party in an alley in Giza. The music was so loud my ears rang for days, but I had a blast dancing under the colorful lights to the DJ and drummer. At this wedding the drummer played western style drums along with the Arabic music. I got footage of me dancing with the aroosa (bride), Amani, Morad, Yasmina, Merna, and the other guests. By the time we left the whole alley was bumpin'! Let's not forget the zar. The dancing may have involved less repertoire and more trancing, but it was still a form of cultural dance. And the music was good! Another form I hadn't experienced much of in Cairo is just regular club dancing. Alex took me to Coma on Ahram Road and I was delighted to see a lit up disco dance floor, just like in Saturday Night Fever! The DJ started with lame house music but when the crowd grew, he played Arabic and American pop tunes. I loved that juxtaposition, it's just what I play at home. I also like flavoring my club moves with belly dance and vice versa. I danced until 3 a.m. that night! Finally, on my last night in Cairo I went to Khan Al Khalili with my Egyptian family and we were treated to an impromptu khaleegy music set by live musicians in front of Egyptian Pancakes.

You may wonder if there are people who dance on the street for money, like buskers in San Francisco. The answer is no. Though music and dance are an integral part of Egyptian culture, it is haraam to make money as a dancer. (I could go more into that at a later time.)

I feel as if these experiences have deepened my feeling for Egyptian dance and music greatly. They are an important part of my growth as a dancer.

Attention dancers! You want to read this!

My stay in Cairo has coincided with the world famous Ahlan Wa Sahlan dance festival. It’s run by the (self-proclaimed) queen of Raqs Sharqi in Egypt, Raqia Hassan. It lasts a week and there are lots of workshops by a wide variety of dance teachers and attracts dancers from all over the world! It’s huge! I attended the festival in 2004 and participated in some of the crowded and overpriced classes. It was that experience that led me to return to Cairo in 2005 and 2006 to take private dance lessons from the same people who teach in the mahragaan (festival). The festival is a good experience and I’m glad I did it once but I did not feel the need to take any of the workshops this time. However, I did score a ticket to the opening gala! For a passionate yet budget-minded dancer like me, it is the best deal for seeing the stars of raqs sharqi in Cairo! For less than $100 I got to see Soraya, Randa, and Dina perform with their full bands in one night!!
Soraya opened the show. She is just so cute and a damn good dancer too. Petite yet powerful, you can tell she works out because she has no body fat. She is known for her drum solos and this one certainly did not disappoint. This year she even picked up a drum and played a bit with her band. I could do without all of her lip synching, though. It’s great that she knows the words to her songs, but half of the time I felt like I was watching the Egyptian version of “Puttin’ on the Lips” instead of a dance show. But I’m just being very nit picky about her show. Other than that it’s a great show and her costumes are fabulous.

Randa was second. Her fame is growing wildly as she has been developing her own style. She is a master technician of the movements, a real artist, and leads her band well. I was happy to see Randa dance with a cane, too, though she didn’t use it much. She would deliver a powerful performance, hit it out of the park with her strong shimmies, and really command the stage with her presence, and when it’s over she’d become humble pie with her meek and appreciative bow. I love that! I was seated with Eman Zaki who had designed 2 of the 4 costumes Randa performed in at the opening gala, so my table was especially raucous and enthusiastic during her show. With Eman’s designs, Randa’s costumes have improved a lot! In the past her costumes had been, frankly, ill-fitting and unflattering. But Eman is a master of making designs that will enhance the dancer’s body type. (Most of my costumes have been designed by Eman Zaki and I think they look fabulous!) I felt so cool after Randa’s performance when she gave a big shout out to Eman and the spotlight shone on our table. It was like I finally got to sit with the popular people!

Dina went on last. I hadn’t seen her live since the Ahlan Wa Sahlan opening gala in 2004 and I had heard that her dance had really grown and improved. She is the mama of the modern style that most of the dancing stars emulate. That means that both Soraya and Randa have been strongly influenced by her. In the past I’d have called either one of them Dina-light, but each has come into her own dance expression. Still, Dina would have to really win the audience over with something new or it would look like the same style three times in a row. And it did! Dina is certainly a master of what she does, but by the time she went on I felt like I had seen the same moves and moods already. Plus Dina’s repertoire these days seems very limited. She performed in 4 different costumes and yet I felt as if each of her routines was the same as the one before it. One of her costumes looked like her intestines had exploded out of her bum and onto her bra. Yeah, it was bizarre. Though her style has truly influenced all modern day ra’aasahs (dancers) including myself, her shows never really moved me.

I’m so glad I got to see these three big influential dancers LIVE on my trip! The costumes, the music, the production value give me inspiration to be my best! Listening to a 22-piece Arabic band play the songs and music that I love so much is treat. That’s what dancers in the U.S. would love to experience—dancing with a full band and being able to direct it just like the dancers do in Egypt. I could tell them where to put some strong teks for my accents, let the qanun taqsim linger longer, play an extra bridge here, let the melody take over there, speed up or slow down the tempo. That would be awesome! In the Bay Area, you’re lucky to dance to a keyboardist who may or may not know the songs you ask for. Sigh…

Anyway, I had a great time! I saw some other Bay Area dancers there, re-connected with Mohamad Shahen, said hi to Jillina and Hala, and shared a seat with Karim Nagi. I also had my photo taken with Nagwa Fouad, Mo Gedawi, and Randa by the hired paparazzi. Unfortunately because of AWS's strict no-camera policy, I couldnt record any of it on my own camera. You'll have to take my word for it!

I'm more of a princess than I thought

I'm in Jerusalem now, and I've found I have time for some silly blogging (read previous post). It's late night/early morning of course. 3:12 a.m. to be exact. I spent 16 hours traveling from Cairo to Jerusalem, slept most of the way in the buses, and now I'm wide awake! The rides themselves were uneventful, just long. First I had to pick up a bus from Cairo to the border town of Taba. I didn't miss any interesting scenery during the 6-hour jaunt: each time I opened my eyes all I saw was desert and electricity lines. We had a brief break at a small rest stop in, literally, the middle of nowhere. I went to the bathroom, knowing full well that it would be awful but thinking it couldn't be worse than holding the urge for 4 more hours. I may have been wrong....That bathroom probably hadn't been cleaned since 2003. I had to wade through the floor get to a toilet that wasn't completely covered in excrement. There was no paper of course and there was a pile of surprises in the corner of the stall. I think I'll have to through the shoes I was wearing away and no way was I going to order food from that restaurant!

The next leg consisted of me walking out of Egypt and into Israel. The Egyptian border patrol was a bit lackadaisical. Scanned my bags for contraband, asked a few questions, shook my hand, and said come again! Once officially out of Egypt, I lingered a wee bit to view the Red Sea! It's acutally blue, by the way. (I wonder what that area in between the two borders is called? Israegypt? Egyprael?) Then I entered the Israeli side. They went through each bag and asked me the same questions a dozen times: Why did I come at this time? How long was I in Cairo? Who do I know in Cairo and what do they do? How did I meet my friends in Cairo? Where were my parents born? Where am I staying in Jerusalem? What am I doing in Israel? Then I spent half of my week's allowance getting a cab to the bus station, a bus to Tel Aviv, another bus to Jerusalem, and yet another cab form the bus station in Jerusalem to the hotel. All of that was not very interesting or scenic either. Tel Aviv looks like any modern city except for the signs are Hebrew. Then we drove into Jerusalem and there was a totally different feel. It was already past 12:00 a.m. by then so there wasn't much to see. I did notice that 95% of the people who were out and about were orhodox Jewish men in black suits with the long side burn curls and the tassles on the hems of their shirts! All I could think of was, "Oh boy, this city is going to be an interesting city!"

Tomorrow I'll wander through the old city which is conveniently located across the street from the hotel. Actually, I'll probably get lost in the old city, knowing me. Then I'll meet up with Yun and Robin at the hotel at 4:00 p.m. Oy vey I must get some sleep now so I can have a couple of hours of touring around tomorrow. Nighty night!

Burning Man vs. Cairo

Being in Cairo reminds me of Burning Man. I just can't help but make comparisons between these two very different places. When I sat and thought about it, I was able to list why:

1. They are both deserts! Obvious!


2. Both of these towns really come to life at night. Cairenes and Burners know that the best time to play is when the sun goes down and the temperature drops! Amani and Merna spend the better half of the day hibernating from the heat, just like Disco Dave in Snowball in Hell's small dome. In Cairo I'll eat dinner with Murad and his family, including 6-year old Merna, after 10 pm., then we'll join other familes for tea and shisha in an outdoor ahwa until the wee hours. At Burning Man, the colorful lights and dance clubs blare at night, rousing all the freaks from hibernation! We don't roll back to camp until the light of dawn starts peeking over the horizon.


3. I become nocturnal in Cairo and at Burning Man. I haven't woken up before 12:00 p.m. since I left San Francisco! Bedtime for me here is 3 or 4 a.m.! I follow the exact same sleep pattern at Burning Man!


4. If you do find yourself awake during the hot afternoon, maybe because you had some strong coffee or you're too sweaty to sleep comfortably, you prime directive is to seek shade and cooler temperatures. At Burning Man this comes in the form of a well-designed dome. In Cairo this comes in the form of an air-conditioned restaurant, shop, or museum.


5. Late night/early morning noises can keep you awake. At Burning Man, you might hear the stereo system of a large art car booming outside your tent while trying to sleep. Same thing in Cairo, except substitute a mosque for the art car and the muezzin shouting "Allaaaaahu akhbar!" for the stereo system.


6. Both cities are rather dusty. You get used to feeling a layer of dust all over you and seeing it coating the surfaces inside your home, be it a tent or downtown flat.


7. The public loos are never what you want them to be. At Burning Man, the porta potties are a crap shoot. You may or may not find it dry and clean, there may or may not be paper. In Cairo, they are all just crappy. It's as if there's some sort of nationwide boycott of public restroom maintainence. Rarely is there paper, and often you don't even get a seat. When in Cairo or Burning Man, you have to be sure to carry tissues and hand sanitizer.

See what I mean? They are so similar! The only difference being that at Burning Man I get to show off my hot pants.

And as a bonus, they have McArabia here! Where else can you get a McArabia? Not even in America!

I've got a new tooth! For those of you who didn't hear about my previous trip to Cairo, I got a root canal here in 2007. My dentist in Oakland has been vigilantly checking the tooth because, you know, it was done in Egypt but after a year even he has put his stamp of approval on it! Dr. Ahmed Kouedi did such a great job and his English is perfect and I'd happily get another root canal done by him if I ever needed one. I didn't get a crown, though, so since then I've been buying time and taking care not to crack the old tooth. Once I arrived in Cairo, I called him up and made an appointment to finish the procedure with a new porcelain crown! It's a real beauty! Feels just like a real tooth but it's even stronger! And it only cost 600 LE (or $113)!! I told myself that if I achieve just the crown, my trip will be a success. Mabrook, Andrea!

Another amazing thing about this trip is that I never suffered any jetlag. With the call to prayer at 4:00 in the frickin morning, an American traveler's ability to get a full night's sleep is in peril. Somehow I've managed to sleep right through it and then awake with the 1:00 pm call to prayer. It's like my personal alarm clock rousing me in my sweaty galabaya (the robe I use as jammies and house wear). Waking up to temperatures of 38 C don't give me much will to do anything other than go back to sleep, but once I take a cool shower and fortify myself with a small cup of potent and muddy ahwa I feel ready for anything! Murad told me that the best hours of the day to get anything done are before 10 a.m. (yeah right) or after 5:00 p.m. because at those times the temperature is cooler. Since I'm not likely to be ready for anything by 10 a.m. I've developed the following rhythm: Wake at 1:00, shower, eat, drink coffee. Run a quick errand such as mailing postcards or changing money. Seek air conditioning at a restaurant or shop or friend's flat for a few hours. Dine with family, then go out with either with them or with friends. Come home and watch TV, talk, or play with Mirna until 3:00 in the morning. (Sometimes the 4:00 call to prayer signals my bed time!) Sleep and dream and start again at 1:00 p.m! That's my rhythm here and it works well for me!

Today's source of a/c is McDonald's. You can criticize me all you want for going to an American fast food spot in Cairo but if you were in my shoes, you'd do the same. First, this McDonald's has FREE WiFi! Second, it has a/c! Third, it is just a block away from home! Fourth it is one of the only places you can get ginormous 32 oz Coke Light on ice! Everywhere else, all you can get is a tepid can of soda and no free WiFi. I rest my case.

As my battery runs out of juice, I'm sitting here in Mickey D's, savoring the feeling of goosebumps on my arms, and my bladder hatinfigl. Tonight for dinner we're having mukh and kibda--sheep's brain and liver-- as per my request. Last night as we were finishing dinner at TGIFridays on the Nile, I was looking through my English/Arabic phrase book and checking off the Egyptian foods I'd already tried. I've enjoyed meals of mulukhaya, bamya, maHshii, and for dessert basboosa, ba'lawa, and Om Ali. I announced to my hosts, half-jokingly, "I haven't tried mukh yet." They laughed but said it's good and I should try it. So tonight they have arranged to buy the best mukh and kibda in Cairo so I can check it off my list! How thoughtful is that?

In my next post I'll write more about what I've done and seen, but now I just just wanted to jot some random thoughts. Wish me bon apetit!

Tant Andrea

Marhaban!  I've been staying in downtown Cairo with the family of my friend and Arabic teacher from San Francisco.  It's exciting living in the heart of the capital of Egypt!  This family definitely exemplifies Arabic hospitality.  They warmly accepted me into their home and made me feel like family right away, even though they didn't know I was coming! My hosts, Morad and Amani, have a 6-year old daughter named Mirna who calls me Tant;  it translates to "auntie" and it's used to address a woman who is a friend of the family, but more than a friend.  We don't really have a word like this in English.  I really hope I can improve my Arabic while staying with them, and of course be as gracious a guest as they are hosts.  Amani showed me how to make ahwah, or turkish style coffee, and she'll show me how to read the grounds as well.  I did her make-up for her for the engagement party we attended today.  I'm helping Mirna learn English and, like her uncle Maher in San Francisco, she's being a great teacher of Arabic for me.  My favorite phrase that she taught me is "Butnee Hatinfigl" or "my belly is going to explode."  That's what you say when you have just eaten and you are very full and you are 6 years old.  Or you are a silly grown-up like me.

I've gotten most of the tourist stuff out of the way so now I can pretend I'm a local.  True to my word, I'm getting the most out of experiencing things I've never experienced before in Cairo.  
Morad and Amani took me Muqattam which is an area southeast of Cairo.  It's an elevated platueau with an amazing view of Cairo!  It's so lovely at night--cool, fresh, and there was even an impromptu ahwa or coffeeshop there.  Unfortunately the police came and closed down the ahwa for operating without a permit or something like that.  Hey it was my first police raid in Egypt how exciting is that!  Today they took me to an engagement party in the "popular style." Basically this means that the family decorates a small section of the street with lights, puts ups a pretty dais for the happy couple, hires a DJ and band, and people dance and clap and cheer in the street!  I got some great pictures and video of the dancing!!!!!  Kids, adults, men, and women were dancing up a storm!!!  In case you didn't know, Egypt is the home of the what we call "belly dance" in the U.S.  Of course I danced with them--how could I resist the music and the celebratory vibe?   I've said it many times, the Egyptians are the best dancers of raqs baladi and this footage proves it.  

I'm glad there weren't any chickens
Last thing I'm going to write about now, because it is 4 a.m. in Cairo for crying out loud, is the zar Amani took me to.  My fourth time in Cairo and finally I get to see a real zar!  A zar is an event which is increasingly hard to find and is considered haraam according Islam.  It's where women go to get into a trance and feverishly dance out their demons.  (Why only women and not men?  I don't know.  Maybe that's what soccer is for.)  There are musicians pounding out music that is supposed to induce the trance and you dance until you faint.  Sometimes they slaughter chickens at these zars too.  Sounds voodoo-ish and cool huh?  They started with a prayer, then lit incense and let everyone sort of bath in the smoke, and then musicians started banging away!   At the start there were only 3 women in addition to Amani and I, but later more kept trickling in.  They were all country-folk.  Several women danced and fainted and one had the most crazy look on her face and attacked one of the drummers as if he was one of her demons!  (got footage of this too.)  In retrospect I don't believe that the trances were real.  How can you enter a trance, faint, recover your sense in less than 5 minutes?  That's how the trances happened.  I'd think it would take at least an hour of continuous music and dancing to achieve that.  I'm convinced that one of the ladies was working with the band, dancing wildly to convince us that their music is magical and the zar is working.  At any rate it was damn entertaining and the music was great!  Real trance or not, the women there must have had some real problems in their lives to bring them to the zar.  Maybe someone's mother was ill, or her husband cheated on her, or her sister disappeared.   I asked Amani the rhetorical question, "I wonder what their problems were?"  and she answered "Maganeen.  (They are crazy.)"

Day 2 Rags to Riches tour of Cairo

Rags: For some reason we started out touring Manshiyet Nasr, one of the districts where the zebelin or trash collectors reside. It’s an area that you won’t find in Lonely Planet and one I’ve been fascinated with since I read about it in Cairo the City Victorious (which I highly recommend). The zebelin are essentially Cairo’s recycling program. They sift through the garbage for scraps that are re-usable or can be bought as scraps, i.e. metal, rubber, cloth. They do a better job than previous government-sponsored attempts at recycling. Of course, it’s not like any recycling center in the US. The zebelin live with their work. It’s an area crowded with ramshackle housing, animals (dogs, cats, goats, rats), and people (selling tawmayya, smoking shisha, kids playing barefoot) and of categorized piles of rubbish. Here you got your rubber tubing, here you got your metal scraps, here you have your cotton. Yun and I, being spoiled Americans used to our trash taken far from where we live, paved streets, and basic sanitation, assumed that the zebelin are struggling to make a life. Some Cairenes tell a different story. They say that some of the zebelin are actually very rich and choose to live the way they do. That areas like Manshiyet Nasr may look destitute, but the people there are quite satisfied. Because of the lack of sanitation, their bodies and immune systems are actually stronger. A spoiled child from Zamalek might not survive in Manshiyet Nasr, but a child from Manshiyet Nasr can survive anywhere. It’s something to chew on. From there we strolled through City of the Dead which is an old cemetery where people have constructed house-like tombs for their departed. The fascinating part of this site is that real live people live there, too. The caretakers who are paid to care for the tombs also set up homes in the tombs. It’s not bustling like the rest of Cairo; it’s quite peaceful and there’s even plenty of greenery.

Riches: After that we spent a few hours in the Egyptian Museum. It’s like a “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous of Ancient Egypt.” All of the treasures and statues and mummies that used to be in the pyramids or old tombs are now in the Egyptian Museum. Or the Luxor Museum. Or the British National Museum. You get the point. Thousands of years of history are packed into the Egyptian Museum, so it’s daunting. I like looking at the canopic jars, jewelry, and animal mummies myself. From the Egyptian Museum we snuck into the Cairo Marriott’s pool for a very refreshing dip. It felt so good that I may have to do it again!

We ended the day on a high note! After watching Asmahan’s show on the Maxim boat, which is the same campy show I saw back in 2004 but with different props and costumes, we went on a little party boat in the Nile. There was awesome music blaring from the boat’s stereo and the people got up and danced! There was this little girl who couldn’t have been older than five who’s dancing rocked my world. She had great rhythm and technique! (Yes of course I videoed it). Also the young ladies and men got up and danced a storm! In case you didn’t know, Belly Dance is called “Raqs Baladi” in Egypt which means “Dance of my people.” (“Belly Dance” is a misnomer. Ask me more about that when I see you next). It’s the people’s dance, a folk dance, and everyone can do it, not just by women and not just for men. Yun and I got up too and danced and had a blast! It was the most fun I had had so far! I tell you what, the working class entertainment is the most fun!

Egypt in 2 days

I arrived in Cairo on Thursday afternoon. I found the city as expected--crowded, hot, and prices inflated. It's happening all around the world, people! By the time I settled in to the hotel, it was past 7 p.m. In Cairo, things are just getting started at that time because the temperature gets cooler. Whatever time of day you arrive in Cairo, go out and experience the life there! That first night I just wanted to stay awake until 10 p.m. to help me avoid jet lag. I wasted no time making dinner plans with a friend, obtaining a cell phone, walking around downtown, and snapping some great photos.
The first leg of this Cairo stay has been devoted to guiding Yun around Egypt. Her busy shooting schedule in Israel afforded her only 2 days in Egypt and she wanted to see as much of Egypt that she could! While I certainly do not recommend touring even just Cairo in only 2 days, you might follow the same itinerary we did the next time you find yourself in Cairo.

Day 1: A full-body workout
We walked through Old Cairo, which is my favorite walk. You certainly feel like you're in a whole new world...umm actually an old world. If you head down Shari' Muizz li Din, the main drag from Bab Il Futuh to Bab Zuweila (the old gates which enclosed the city), you cover the length of what was once Cairo in the 10th century. It's a good walk, (especially in the heat!) because you hit so many mosques and monuments along the way. The government has done a lot to restore this area and make it more attractive to tourists. In the street, granite bricks have replaced heaps of garbage and helpful signs tell you when you are approaching an historic monument. Many building facades have been reconstructed and there are many souvenir shops. I like not having to jump over a heap of mango peels, but I hope Islamic Cairo doesn't loose its historic feel with all of the reconstruction! We peeked into the mosque of Al Hakim, played tea party in Beit Al Suhaymi, and haggled for a couple of souvenirs. I thought I was good at haggling but Yun is truly the master! I could have achieved the same results, half the original asking price, but she did it in only 5 minutes. I would have taken 45.
Crossing Al Azhar, we continued down Shari' Muizz li Din. This side of the street is "the non-touristic Khan il Khalili." I remember someone telling me that years ago. Instead of hookahs and mother-of-pearl boxes, you find galabayas, blankets, and sexy lycra dresses for sale. It's like a recipe for a romantic night! At Bab Zuweila, I managed to convince the attendant that I'm Egyptian with only two sentences in Arabic-- "Ana Musraya we sakna fee Amreeka" and ended up paying only 1 LE instead of 10 LE to enter the minaret! We climbed to the top and got an intense 360 view of Cairo. (Danielle, I left you a hidden message there. You and Tim have to climb the dark, steep, narrow steps to find it at the level just under the top.) At the tent maker's bazaar, Il Khayimiya, we admired the gorgeous tent cloth. If you've read any of my previous letters from my Cairo visits, you know how much I love the tenth cloth! I wish I could cover my home in it! After lunch and the de rigeur tea and shisha stop at Fishawi's coffee shop in Khan Il Khalili, we headed for the pyramids!

Mental note: bring Neosporin for Mickey Mouse and Ali Baba
By the time we got to Giza, the pyramids had officially closed. Our trusty and resourceful friend
Alex said "Don't worry, I'll open it for you." He knows people who have a license to take tourists around the pyramids after they officially close! If you know the right people, and I believe that Alex does, you can make anything happen in Cairo! We went on camel back to the pyramids, an experience which is a vegan's nightmare. Even if you are against the use of animals for humans' benefit, you want to support the business to give the camels a better life. Maybe they'll use the money to buy the camels food, upgrade their stables, or at least take them to the vet to treat their flesh wounds. My camel was named Mickey Mouse and Yun's was named Ali Baba. I put my San Francisco brain aside and enjoyed the wobbly ride of the camel at high speed! It was wonderful entering through "the back door of the desert" as Alex called it and seeing the pyramids at sunset. Although the guides have special permission to ride around the pyramids after they close, they don't have carte blanche access. We couldn't get close to all of them, but we did get to touch Chefren quickly before the guards got mad. By the end of this day, I had gotten a full body work-out! Walking for cardio, steps of Bab Zuweila and gripping the camel for the upper and lower body strength training!

There's got to be more than costumes

Alo to everyone wherever you are! I can't believe I'm on my fourth day in Cairo. I've covered a lot of ground--literally--in the past four days. By plane, taxi, camel, subway, and boat, I'm well on my way to a journey that will be like none of my previous journeys to Egypt, for this time it's Cairo on a shoe string!
During my previous trips in 2004, 2005, and 2007 I've come with mucho savings and a clear purpose: buy fabulous costumes, watch dancing, buy costumes, take dance lessons, find great music, and find great costumes. I'm proud to say I fulfilled those goals to the fullest! I tell you what, Egypt is a cheap place to travel--unless you are a dancer. Lessons, shows, and costumes are not cheap. You could easily spend hundreds of dollars a day if you share those goals--and I sure did in '04, '05, and '07. I'll be happy to show you my collection of fabulous costumes bought in Cairo and hours upon hours of recorded lessons and shows. This trip, however, was planned in less than a month! When my friend and dance student Yun invited me to be a part of her documentary film in Israel and be her guide in Cairo, how could I say no? I worked my butt off for three weeks to earn enough cash to cover expenses in Cairo and Jerusalem. But without money for costumes, shows, and lessons, what else can I do the rest of the time? As my aunt Martha astutely pointed out, "Most of the people in Cairo live on a shoe string. I'm sure you'll manage." I figure, with a population of over 18 million people, a history of over 4000 years, and a reputation as a city that never sleeps, there's got to be more the Cairo than costumes! I'm determined to find out!