No frivolity to be found, just violence….

While most think that celebrating the New Year is a worldwide phenomenon, I recently discovered that Egyptians (note that this is a huge oversimplification and generalization based on my specific experience) simply don’t use this occasion for a huge night of frivolity.  In fact, we searched rather intensely, but there was no frivolity to be found.  Maybe it is because pious Muslims are teetotalers or because the universities do not recognize this holiday and there were exams on New Year’s Day or because the governor of Alexandria decided to ban sheesha (hooka, water pipe smoked tobacco) from the city two months ago and there are now expensive fines for individuals and cafes who indulge in such activities.  Regardless, our celebration was not quite the raging excitement we expected in the “lively” metropolis of Alexandria.

Okay, I am not being fair.  Grace and I decided to have a low key night and stay in Alex instead of finding a big party in Cairo.  We went to our friends’ basketball game and then out to a cafe that was serving sheesha despite the ban.  Although everyone around us seemed to have no interest in the clock striking midnight, we loudly counted down the final seconds of 2010 and congratulated each other with sparkling apple juice (no alcohol, remember!?!?).  We decided it was time to go when we looked out the window and found teenage boys attempting to light each other on fire with sparklers and chase after each other with chairs, plus the cops were arriving on scene. 

The streets were unusually filled with people as we drove home along the Cornish, but the cafes did not seem to be busy at all.  There is definitely a strange social phenomenon here, namely there isn’t one.  Oh well, I always appreciate a good night sleep in my own bed so I am glad I wasn’t in some dingy hotel in Cairo. 

Unfortunately, 2011 did not begin so peacefully for everyone in Alexandria.  After a midnight mass at a Coptic Church across the city, a bomb went off killing over 20 people.  There are rumors that al-Qaeda is responsible because of their on-going threats against the Coptic Church.  Regardless of who is responsible for the terror, the tragedy served as a sobering reminder that one can never be certain of what each day will bring.  I do not mean to be super cheesy, but I think I want to make a better effort at making the most of my time here by enjoying Egypt, not just complaining about how it is frustrating because it is not America.  I am not very successful with New Year's Resolutions, but this is one that intend to work on daily.