A is for Airport Advertisements

My recent summertime travels meant spending several hours at the Cairo International Airport. We were lucky enough to spend many of those hours in the new Terminal 3, which is just beautiful and clean and comfortable – and helped Cairo win a “Most Improved Airport” award from Skytrax in 2010.

I, of course, occupied myself with taking photographs and was amused by the new advertisements for Egypt by a local mobile phone company:

#1

#2

#3

My favorite is #3, because it’s the only statement I can agree with. What’s your favorite or your thoughts on these advertisements?

P is for Pride!

When my hubby brought these tissues home the other day, I just had to get a shot! While we have always preferred to buy products made locally, many people living in Egypt – both locals and foreigners – prefer products imported from abroad. But with many Egyptians’ new-found pride in their country, and in an attempt to aid the recovery of the local economy, companies have begun to show off the fact that their products are made in Egypt with new labels and “I love Egypt” stickers.

Support the Egyptian economy – buy local!

M is for Murals…Murals for Martyrs

Street art in Cairo thrives during the Egyptian revolution – much of which commemorates the hundreds who lost their lives in the uprising which ousted former President Hosni Mubarak.

Simon Hanna, with Ahram Online, reports.

 

Book Giveaway and Author Interview

Hop on over to I Am A Reader, Not a Writer to read the interview and enter the giveaway for a chance to win either a paperback copy or an eBook of An ABC Escapade through Egypt.  If you like free books, I encourage you to follow this site. Blogger Inspired Kathy hosts TONS of book giveaways, many of them open internationally!

B is for Books!

With the turmoil in Egypt making international headlines for a few weeks now, interest in the country has soared. People want to learn more about this modern Middle Eastern nation – and one way they’re doing that is, of course, by reading books. But there are so many excellent books (for adults) out there, where does one start? Well, a few people are weighing in on what they think you should read:

• The New York Times: A Reading List for the Egypt Crisis
• The New Yorker: An Egypt Fiction Reading List
• The New Yorker: An Egypt Non-Fiction Reading List
• The Browser: Humphrey Davies on Egyptian Writing
• Al-Masry Al-Youm: 5 Novels on Revolution and Tahrir Square

I’d also suggest reading What Does the New York Times Think You Should Read about Egypt? by blogger M. Lynx Qualey (who also wrote the article for Al-Masry Al-Youm). In the blog post, she offers more relevant alternatives to the NYT list for Egyptian books.

If you’re interested in joining an online book group, the Middle East/North African Lit group on Goodreads.com will be reading books about Egypt and Sudan during March and April. We’re currently voting on our book choices, so stop by soon if you want to join.

Now, what about books about Egypt for kids? I’ve run across a few book blogs over the past couple of weeks whose authors were asking, searching, pleading for recommendations for children’s book about Egypt. But as far as fiction goes, no one has suggested anything other than The Day of Ahmed’s Secret. That’s because there really is nothing else to suggest, at least to people living outside of Egypt. (If you’re looking for non-fiction, there are a few more options available through Amazon.) Now, if you’re in Egypt, we’ve got a few more English language titles to choose from. Here’s a list of children’s and YA literature related to modern Egypt that I put together a few months ago. The list has titles available both internationally (through Amazon.com) and locally. And, of course, there’s always An ABC Escapade through Egypt, but I’m biased.

L is for Lentils

Lentils, or “ads” عَدس in Arabic, are popular in Egypt. These pictured here are called orange, yellow, or red, lentils. They are split and hulled and are used in Egypt to make delicious lentil soup. Brown lentils are used in koshary and to make a thick lentil stew.

Mango-licious!!

Mmmmm….mangoes!! Another of my favorite summertime fruits, whose season, sadly,  is on the way out. Just past the Smile petrol station after the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel under the Suez Canal (when driving from Sinai to Cairo), there is often a stand selling fruits grown in the Ismailia region. I can’t recall the varieties we bought this summer, but there were quite a few. Mountains of Mangoes was, of course, my topic for the letter M in my book. Visit my website for more info and links on this delicious fruit! You’ll also find audio recordings of the Arabic names of several varieties of mangoes grown in Egypt: Fonss, Zibdayya, Ty-moor, Hindi, and A-wase.

P is for Pomegranate

Pomegranates, called rom-mahn in Arabic (رُمّان), are not native to Egypt but have been cultivated here since ancient times. And they are one of my favorite late-summer fruits! A young Bedouin neighbor brought this one over the other day. My instructions were just to open it for him, but I decided to grab a few shots (and nibbles!) in the process. I’m pretty sure the pomegranates were gift to the young boy from the vendor selling fruits from a truck on our street. It was rather on the small side and quite tart, but the boys enjoyed their snack nonetheless.

Read more about pomegranates in ancient Egypt here.

F is for a Festive Fanooss!

It’s that time of year again! This festive fanooss, or Ramadan lantern, was hanging in front of a shop in Ma’adi last year. I loved how the sun was shining through the colored glass.  So much nicer than all the cheap plastic fa-wa-neess available these days! If you’re looking to purchase your own fanooss, read this Al Masry Al Youm Article, In Search of the Fanous Ramadan, for tips on where to find

one without blaring music or chipmunk renditions of Wahawy ya Wahawy (a traditional Ramadan song), and most importantly, a lantern made of something other than plastic.

You can also check out my past posts and images of fa-wa-neess.

Ramadan Kareem!

Weaving at Wissa Wassef

One of the weavers at The Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre in Harrania, a village near the Giza pyramids.

There, Ramses Wissa Wassef, architect, designer, potter and weaver, set up a tapestry workshop for the local village children. With neither formal education nor artistic training the children of Harrania were to play a vital role in his ongoing experiment…

To begin with, all the weaving had to be done without the aid of any sketch or design. Even the most complicated pieces, which took many months to complete, arose from impressions of everyday life and were improvised on the loom.

It amazes me, the weaving of such beautiful tapestries without a sketch first!