Cairo's Urbanity and Rooftop Adventures

Cairo; the biggest city in the Middle East and Africa, and one of the most densely populated in the world. It is certainly a world in itself. Egyptian author Alaa Al-Aswany's famous novel, The Yacoubian Building, offers an interesting insight on some of the denizens living on the rooftop of a faded apartment building in downtown Cairo.

Taha, the son of the Yacoubian building’s doorkeeper and one of several living on its roof, is a devout Muslim who exemplifies the frustrated youth who are drawn into more reactionary values as a rejection of Egyptian society’s treatment of its own citizens . At the beginning of the novel he is aspiring to become a police officer, a title that seems to garner respect and power, especially given Taha’s disadvantaged background. He truly believes that God will make his dreams come true. However, despite a promising interview for the police academy, Taha’s application is rejected because his father is a property guard as opposed to a civil servant. He no doubt feels humiliated, more so because his official compliant to the president of the republic is rejected on the grounds that his claims of discrimination (due to his father’s profession) are unfounded. This scenario provides the basis of the abuse of power and corruption that permeates every aspect of Egyptian society. It is this long-standing corruption that Al Aswany argues is the cause of individuals turning to Islamism. He doesn’t say this explicitly, but it is very much clear by the path that his character Taha takes in the book.

Anyway, poverty and overcrowding has forced thousands amongst the poorer classes to live on the countless rooftops of Cairo. An entirely different world of satellite dishes, makeshift shacks, and colorful lines of laundry exists here. Some of these places develop into their own tight-nit communities. For some people at least, living on the rooftops beats sleeping on the street. More importantly, these rooftop communities highlight the problems of informal housing as a consequence of huge rural to urban migrations characteristic of many developing countries. The millions of Cairo citizens come from every corner of Egypt and beyond, and the infrastructure in the large cities is currently incapable of handling such huge population increases. Many people have no other options but to live in these rooftop communities or the countless slums that surround wealthier areas of the city such as Zamalek.

Lastly, even though so sounds of traffic and people are muffled from up high, the sheer vastness and chaos of the city itself is never absent. Cairo never underwhelms. On the bright side, the breeze up here is quite lovely.

I'm sorry, but I'm not Egyptian...:(

Today I was in a rather positive mood. Last night I had a really great time with Julia at the Cairo Jazz Club, one of the premier venues in the city. The music was oriental jazz led by an Egyptian jazz artist named Yehya Khalil. The music was amazing and truly a creative blend of Middle Eastern music and traditional jazz. Fast paced drum beats were accompanied by a saxophone, accordion, and the wailing voice of a very talented young man. I've actually been rather impressed by the singing ability of a number of men here in Egypt. When you first see them, you don't quite expect them to produce such beautiful range and haunting vocals. The audience seemed to love it, and there was plenty of clapping and cheers after each segment was finished. I enjoyed the audience in their appreciation, but this sort of music forced me into quiet contemplation even though I didn't quite understand what was being sung. As long as it sounds nice and speaks to me, I don't really care whether or not I understand every word in a piece of music. Afterwards we walked along the Nile corniche and the bridge that went into downtown Cairo. The breeze was nice and the atmosphere was lively, but we did get a lot of stares for various reasons. You have to remember that it was after midnight, and a non-Egyptian woman without a hijab with a strange man is going to attract some unwanted attention. Perhaps it was foolish or naive on my part to enjoy a nice evening along the Nile in such a way, but I was in no way meaning to make some sort of obnoxious statement by my actions. A random guy grabbed my arm and asked me in a more concerned than threating way as to why as was with this girl. I tried to explain to him in Arabic but quickly decided that the ignorant American card would be best played at this moment. He apologized to me in English and quickly disappeared into the crowds on the bridge. I was upset that the guy felt he had to make an exception for me because I was American, something that would certainly not be extended to any old Egyptian. I stilled enjoyed the night regardless, and I had the lovely sounds of Yeyha Khalil in my head until it hit the pillow.

Anyway, today I stopped into a small cafe near the Longchamps. I gave the two people at the counter the traditional Arabic greeting and the conversation began from there, all in Arabic. The pair were Ashraf and Rihanna, and they were both Muslims in their twenties. I told them I was from California and Ashraf exclaimed that he loved Arnold, or the "governator", and his films. I had to admit that he did make some pretty cool flicks back in the day. Ashraf asked me all about my experience in Cairo and what I thought of his country. He himself loved how nice the American people were, but he was less than enthusiastic about the government. I have heard this line of thinking countless times here in Cairo and other parts of Egypt, and its comforting to know that there are those out there who can make a distinction between a country's government and its people. I can think of quite a few Americans out there who can take a lesson or two from this. Again I will emphasis that the conversation I had with Ashraf and Rihanna was all in Arabic, with a few English words thrown in for comprehension. Needless to say I was pretty proud of myself and I even learned a few new words. I hope to see them again tomorrow because not only did I make two new Egyptian friends, but the food was excellent as well.

Some Random Thoughts...

I suppose it is common in the United States and Europe to emphasize the freedom that the women living there have. It is even more common to view the situation of women in the Arab world with a mixture of pity and disgust. The hijab, worn by many Muslim women in the Arab world and elsewhere, is the most potent symbol of so-called female oppression. It is symbolic for many people of a society and belief system (Islam) that treats women as possessions and objects who are given few individual rights. People often hate and fear what they do not truly know or understand. I have an interesting story to tell in a moment.

I have had several great 'dialogue' opportunities with young Egyptians here in Cairo. Some of the girls I had a chance to speak to were all dressed conservatively by most American standards. Nevertheless they expressed no dissatisfaction with their way of dressing. In fact they were all proud of their identities as Muslim women. These women did not look like the sad and oppressed lot that are always presented in the Western media. They were very well educated and occupied a comfortable social background. A women's freedom or lack there of should not be defined by what she wears. I am certainly not an expert on the subject of women in the Arab and Muslim world. Hell, I am not even an expert on my own society. I do believe that things are almost always more complicated than they may seem at first glance. It is perhaps all too easy to make sweeping generalizations of societies and customs that we are not familiar with, and we are all (including myself) guilty of this at some point in our lives. Do we judge out of pity? What are we so afraid of? Certainly things on the surface here in Cairo suggest that relationships with men and women in this part of the world are fractured and strange, but if we only choose to look through our narrow lens we can never see the bigger picture. I'm not sure if I have personally seen the bigger picture in my time in Cairo thus far, but it has been confirmed that women and men all face similar problems no matter where they are in the world. Couples laugh, cry, feel both intense joy and sadness, have sex, fight and makeup here in Egypt just as they do everywhere else in the world.

I have noticed from my admittedly limited perspective that economics plays a certain role in the way that women dress and act here in Egypt. From what I've seen, women from the country tend to dress more conservatively, while upper-class women in certain neighborhoods of Cairo can be seen wearing the latest provocative fashions from Europe. There are, however, plenty of exceptions to this generalization. Some seriousness aside, perhaps in the harsh countryside of Egypt dressing more conservatively is more practical for women. After all, who wants to get sand and dust in their hair? Even as a male with short hair I can say that it's not fun. Anyway, what I think that women of all classes have in common is that they work hard everyday to support their children and families.

As a young man spending only a short time in this country, I sometimes feel shut out of Egyptian women and their world. In Zamalek, the women glide past me on the street like ghosts. Its almost as if for them I am not even there on the street. I do however receive some glares and upset looks from Egyptian girls when I am seen walking down the street with some of my female American friends. Even other males look at me differently, and it can be awkward I'll admit.

I thought of a story I had heard of a woman who lived a life that many in the West would look at as free and independent, and her self perception was based on these these two powerful words. Her life was defined by few limits on sexuality or the use of drugs. Although this is an extreme example, I believe it highlights the fact that there are extremes in every society that are self-destructive and damaging. The woman in this story ultimately found that the lifestyle that she had been living didn't offer her real freedom or self-respect that her society told her she had. She had become a slave to fashion, to the latest trends, and to basing her self worth on her looks and body. I suppose ironically she found in Islam a way of life that emphasized her own internal beauty as opposed to beauty based on her looks. She chose to become a Muslim by her own free will, and it ultimately made her a happier person. I don't consider myself to be a very religious person, but I found this story to be fascinating. I am not saying that Islam is better for women or anything like that, I just personally believe that living ones life at one extreme or the other can leave you feeling empty or worthless. There are certainly Muslim women out there that are unhappy with their social position in their respective countries. But on the other hand there are countless women in the West who are sick of the way they feel their society emphasizes material values and overt sexuality. Again, I feel that there are extreme elements in both lifestyles that I personally dislike. Unfortunately, it is all too often that people in both the Arab world and the West believe that the extremes in the other society are the norm. We believe that our societies are so different and incompatible that there can never be true understanding.