“I remember the thrill of the whispered word on my young lips- America. America, the open-sesame. America, which got rid of the British long before we did. Let Sir Darius Xerxes Cama dream his colonialist dreams of England. My dream-ocean led to America, my private, my unfound land.”
–Salman Rushdie, The Ground Beneath Her Feet
With so much Rushdie, ocean, and dreams of America in my last few days in Egypt, what words could be more appropriate? Though the Rushdie was more satanic in nature and title, the ocean a surprisingly calm sea (Red, in fact), and the dreams of return more than discovery, it still seems to fit.
America is so much more luxurious and comfortable than I remember! Nothing like traveling to remind you just how high the general standard of living is here… not only my personal standard of living (though that does always make coming home exciting after traveling on the cheap), but the way all the people around you live as well. General point: life in an affluent nation has many perks.
Doesn’t sound particularly enlightened when I put it like that, but I guess I’m in fairly good company, as the New York Times has published a number of articles lately where the basic thesis seems to be “Egypt is really poor,” with the follow-up article: “No seriously, guys. Poor.“
To be fair, it’s not an immediately obvious point. Thanks to Pharonitourism (portmanteau?), I think most of us in America think of Egypt as one of the easier, more accessible countries in an increasingly uncertain Middle East. Unfortunately, that tourism is practically the only industry, which is a big reason why I think it can be so difficult to live there as a foreigner. The rising cost of living and disappearance of the possibility of a middle class life has recently been linked to increasing sexual harassment, sectarian clashes, and Islamic fundamentalism among young Egyptians.
That last article, by the way, is from a series called “Generation Faithful” that NYT has started this year about the rising religiousity in my generation across the Arab world. They’ve done some pretty fantastic snapshots of young life in Jordan, Dubai, and other places, and I highly recommend it.
Anyway, the heaviness of a world-wide economic crisis and strained international relations aside, home is lovely. I’m missing being able to speak a polyglot of English peppered with Egyptian Arabic, and I’m sure as time goes on, I’ll start to miss more tangible parts of Egypt as well (though now it still feels a little… early). Then again, Arabic as a language is what lured me into Middle Eastern studies in the first place. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the thing I end up yearning for the most.
But for now, I’ve got plenty to occupy myself. Family, friends, pets, the obvious things. But also: enchiladas, guitars, novels. The unlikely dream that I may one day finish my Spring 2008 reading list. Gradual climate adjustment. Walking down the street while thinking of other things entirely. Learning to cook (so far completed: one kind of salad dressing?). Recreational organization. The endless reformatting of this blog. Salad that is actually salad. General cultural readjustment.
Open-sesame, indeed.
Pyramids, creeping towards the horizon line.
