Egypt - The Mother of the World - part I

 Bismillahi Rahmanu Rahim!

Once upon a time, there was a land where the Sun was sacred! That land was Egypt! Today, Egyptians offer you their most precious treasure: the Sun! Egypt - where all begins! Nothing compares to Egypt! Egypt - Mother of the World!

I just love this video so much and I was thinking to share it here...  Today I want to describe Egypt - Masr - Om el Donya...

When I speak to someone about Egypt, I see that people get fascinated... but they are like this because they see Egypt from the side of curiosity, from the side of a tourist... people who don't actually feel the soul of Egypt, can't reach the heart of this country.

My beloved husband call me "the daughter of Egypt" "enty benty Masr"... he knows and understands, as also he is not jealous at all because my heart was kidnapped 20 years before I met him, by Egypt. Therefore, he is so proud with this, as he is with my knowledge and reading about Islam, years before we found each other. 

When I speak about Egypt, I get confused and I have millions of ideas in my mind how to describe it. Some are seeing Egypt as the land of pharaohs, the place of the pyramids, and Sphinx, sand and dust, Red Sea and the resorts from there... for someones Egypt is similar with the best vacation they had or with the riding of a camel... 

Others see Egypt as a country of Third World, so poor and dirty and after they have the chance to see it once, they came back to their ordinary life with the idea: "Egypt - yeah... so much dirty there and omg... did you notice the smell from the streets? and those people how they live??? horrible"... 

None of the situations above don't actually contain the view with the heart, the view with the soul, as a simple person... not the tourist who comes and goes, who's unique desire is to have a real "cool" story to say it when he returns home! Visiting a place, even if it is or not Egypt, has nothing to do with the thing "to be cool"! You can be "cool" too even if you feel and breath the feeling and the soul of the places you walk, you can be "cool" even if you stop a moment to admire and see what others can only imagine and hope that one day, they will see!

 

Allah have granted me the possibility to visit many countries from Europe before I reach Egypt... I still remember when I first visited Le Chateau Versailles - I was 19 years old... the minute we entered inside and I saw the beauty from there, my heart was like stopping... I could hardly breath... I was looking to all the amazing things creating by humans hands and keep thinking that Allah gave us the possibility to create beauty, as also the possibility to destroy it! 

When we reached Nothe Dame and Sacre Coeur, my eyes and my entire body were swimming in tears and keep thanking to my parents, to Allah - that they have made this dream possible for me! I still remember even now how my father was so proud to hear that the high school selected me to represent the city in France to the IUFM Arras - L'Institute des Maitres" - my father did everything that time to make sure I will be there!

After this first chance to see the world with my eyes, Allah gave me other opportunities and one of the most precious is the one when I first visit Egypt.

 

The first thing I remember from that trip is the people from outside the airport after I arrived. I keep see in my mind not the clear images, but many people dressed in white clothes, brown or black and from one place to another, a spot of blue or green or red color... the spots were the women... Little voices you could hear all the parts - kids jumping next to their parents... taxi drivers who were asking you if you need a cab or not, hopping to have a new customer, so that at the end of the day, to return home with some pounds... they know that the tourists can be generous, especially the Europeans and they count on this!

It is impossible not to feel as soon you get out of the airport, the hot dry wind of the Egypt and the power of his ancient God - RA! No wonder that in Antiquity the ancient Egyptians were seeing the sun as their God - RA and were so happy that they are blessed by His gifts.

 As soon I got in the cab, my mind relaxed again and I started to enjoy the view. Some of you could think that what view??? Sand and Dust? well YES! for some.. but for me was more!I was following the line of the road with my eyes and watching the sides to see behind the dunes... I was keep thinking all the time to the wonder of those sand mountains and how that the powerful wind was not vanishing them from years... Because the wind is so powerful!!!!

When I reached the hotel, I remember that the manager, an Italian lady was waiting for me and I was amazed to see a non local actually living and working there and feeling so good!!! But more amazed I was when I heard her speaking Arabic with the employees and give them particular requests!And I can tell now after years, that she is not the only one! 

When I was entering in a fruit shop (I am crazy about fruits!!!), the seller from there was always having with him 2 little assistants: his 2 little boys, all contrary with what I was hearing before - that women are the only ones who take care of the kids and are the only ones responsible for them! The kids were so shy, but with really good manners.

All the parts I was going, you could see all kinds of people: from tourists to locals Egyptians as non locals too... in every shop you enter, even you don't actually buy something, the seller was thanking you for visiting his shop:"shokran ya oustez/ shokran ya anisa". I hear many times from the tourists who went in Egypt that the sellers were after them to make them buy something from them... well... I wonder if those tourists ever informed before how to avoid these situations and what to say to sellers (we don't speak about the sellers from the stores, but from the ones near to the touristic points - pyramids, Sphinx, etc). 

Believe me, it is enough to say a simple "No, thank you sir" or "La/a, shokran ya ustez" and they will not continue to bother you! After all, no matter how poor they are many of the Egyptians, all of them possessed the Egyptian proud! Also, we have to think that this people are living from the trade with tourists and to sell their products, they just can't stay like statues and wait, maybe a tourist will go and buy something from them! I mean... let's face it... if you see a local Egyptian sellerr and you are for the first time in Egypt... would you just run to him to buy quick souvenirs? Me I was not knew what to do first and where to go first! 

Tourists are the "kawaaga"... the ones who come to see Egypt and take a part of Egypt with them when they return... because Egypt leaves marks in everyone of us, after we saw it! And some of us, wish and pray to come back...

Speaking about wishing... I remember that I found a fountain and I dropped a coin on it, wishing from all my heart to come back in one year! AlhamdulilAllah, it happen and after one year I returned in Egypt, that time as the fiancee and the future wife of my beloved husband.

To tell you the truth, when I was in France... I dropped coins in all the fountains from Versailles and Paris, wishing to come back... but  don't think I actually did it with the wish in my heart! I did it because I saw others doing this thing and I said..."Me too"...

When I returned in Egypt, this time I was seeing the Egypt from other side... as a future local from there... as a future wife of an Egyptian... many of you could think that the first trip in Egypt was the one who bring together me and my husband... As a matter of fact... it was Allah's hands and our destiny... because nothing guarantees you that a true friendship can turn into real love and a blessed marriage! But that time... none of us was searching to get married and sure not with a foreigner... 

The man that is my husband he was actually having my destiny in his hands from years before he knew me... my destiny locked in a stone... jade stone... When I look now to the jade necklace, I see on it my past, my present and my future...

Egypt was preparing my destiny from far away... I can look back and see a little girl carrying a huge book in french language about ancient Egypt... I look back and I see a teenager drawing Egyptian antique images... I look back and I see a young lady devouring documentaries and movies about Egypt from yesterday and Egypt of today... I can loo back and I can see a sleepy student reading about the Mystery of Egypt... I look back and I see me... 

But when I look to now and in front, I see US together... I see family...

Egypt has everything what you can find in all the other countries and even more! Egypt has luxury and poverty, technology and rudimentary ways, Egypt has cleaning and dirty, sand and dust as also so good roads, good people as bad ones, children, women and men, old and young people, hard workers and lazy ones, single and married, divorced, Muslims, Christians and other Non Muslims ... shortly Egypt has everything that could make you feel home or stranger... it depends on the eyes of the one who see Egypt and on each one of us way to feel the breathing of this country! And lately Egypt got back something so precious: Freedom!

Above of this, I can tell you for sure that for the Egyptians, the dust of Egypt is much more precious than anything in this world!

Ya Masr Om el Donya!