I had such a good time in cairo that I am planning to go back for a month in the spring!! but oh my allah egypt is so gay!! from my siwan experiences to hearing stories from friends about falluca sex and fallucca 17 year old masterbating to orgies at the marriot and stories of military showers full of used condoms every morning left from the night before, oh my god this place is out of control.. also the exchange of eye contact is very intense with men on the street and how can I forget the security guy in siwa, the taxi driver in cairo and the waiter in alexandria all of whome made clear sexual offers to yours truely.. the best was on my night out with my cousin and friends in alex where hazem, one of the guys, was clearly in love with my cousin and I knew right away that he was a team player just by looking at him, we later bonded. even walking on the courniche in alex, especially on the bridge in stanley there was some serious cruising going on. but the best was meeting jack. I will be living on an island off cap d'agde in the south of france for three weeks starting on my birthday. no electricity, no running water, no internet and no disco.. just me and 11 others!! so exciting and hot oh I cant wait. here is a picture of my home for those three weeks. right now I am in Nice trying to get my life together before its too late. I just bought my third camera this summer.. I gotta go get a conference paper done.
I have been feeling very guilty about alot of things lately. one: I didnt get anything done as far as collecting visual evidence for my thesis as I had promissed my advisor... I havent written the conference paper that I will be presenting in Thailand later this year which was due last week... I didnt visit my fathers family.. I am not sure what I actually did for the last two weeks. I also feel very guilty about partying too much which is very hard not to do in Egypt these days especially here in cairo.. its a bit strange to be smoking up hash, drinking endless bottles of stella, dancing in a zamalek apartment with other egyptians, americans and english friends and speaking with this tattooed lebanese guy half high about (kus um el arab) complaining about the bombing of beirut, cant help but feel guilty. when I was in Siwa on my last day I met these two police guys, one was a handsome young mohamed who is being trained by this amazingly masculine big true egyptian named Youssef. I was very very turned on by captain youssef who was swimming in one of the siwa natural springs in his underwear and came out of the water .. couldnt help but stair at his wet underwear. o man. anyway, we had a great time talking about everything from politics to sexual adventures and how horny he is.. very interesting conversation! anyway, I felt really guilty to hear that a guy like him who is completly content with his situation, only makes about four hundred pounds a month!! which was what I spent in a day and half in Siwa! it just didnt make sense to me. ofcourse he was the usual happy egyptian making almost nothing but for me to even start speaking about how much I spend a day compared to how much he makes or anyone like him makes a month just makes me wanna .. well not do anything, I just feel guilty.
after coming back from siwa I went for two days with my cousin ahmad to his house and farmland outside of Tanta in the delta.. it was great to be in whatever is left of the egyptian countryside and meet his family from his father's side. I loved his father more than mine and i love him like my brother/lover.. I had so many great conversations with family members who are enjoying the simple life, planing their own everything in their own garden, eating together out of big plates.. it was great. but again I heard so many things that made me feel guilty.. guilty to be american, guilty to spend so much money, guilty about doing nothing to maintain egypts tresures... one guy complained about farming in egypt today... it is a known fact that we now import wheat, which is a very sad fact, but I didnt know that we stupidly exported our high quality cotton seed so that the USA can grow egyptian cotton on its soil and therefore fuck up the cotton industry in egypt. I didnt know that we import seeds from the US which are only good for one planting meaning they dont produce fruit with new seeds which means we would be constantly dependant on importing US seeds...ofcourse we stupidly agreed to use US chemicals in farming which means the food here is begining to taste like nothing but look good just like in any american supermarket. this all sounded so sad coming from a man who grew up in the traditional farming environment and witnessing this huge transition and loss of our agricultural tradition. also more and more buildings are being built on precious farm land. I just feel guilty.
last night was henry's birthday so we had a party for him in Saima's apartment, it was all very sweet. I tried not to feel guilty.
siwa is the kind of place so good I dont want anyone else to go there. I have never been to a place like it, the people are simple, honest, educated and gorgous. cars are not used much and so most transport is on foot, bike, motorbike or karetta (donkey driven cart) and of course 4by4 for desert trips. the Shali remains of the ancient city are surreal and are lit up in a dramatic way that makes the place a bit of a showpiece. local women are not seem much in public and are mostly covered up, which means the streets are full of siwan men strolling in their galabas and sandals sparking conversations with other locals and visitors. I was surprised to find that most siwans speak atleast one other language besides english, arabic and siwan, which is pretty impressive since most city people in egypt can only speak one language besides arabic. nature in siwa is raw, and untouched. they grow everything they need and they maintain their farms in traditional clean ways with non of this crap the US sends to egyptian farmers these days.
on the first morning after my hash and arak night, saima, nagine and I rented bikes and went around the town and to nearby sites such as the amun temple and the alexander tomb and the cleopatra spring pool. siwa is a hidden secret from most egyptians which is really good for me. but many europeans have homes and gardens here where they spend only days or a couple of months out of the year. I have seen in siwa some of the best contemporary vernacularish architecture in egypt. there was this french guy at the hotel resturant speaking with this puertorican woman and they had their own gorgous siwan guide (abdellah), after they left I asked their guide about the french guy who turned out to be the top guy at jean-paul gutier who comes here every 4-6 weeks to chill out and hang out with the locals!
there is also the eco-lodge, a hot hot secret built at the foot of a picturesque mountain on lake siwa, entirely built of palms and salt instead of glass, with no electricity and only candle light. its very exclusive and very organic. a night here costs $400 which includes horse riding, meals, drinks and some other secrets.. its pretty much a shag pad.
that afternoon the three of us joined an overnight safari excursion with two canadians, two french, two americans and another strange woman who looked like oliveoil from popeye. our guide mohamed was very cute, spoke 5 languages, is able to cook a full meal in the desert, belly dances very well and is only 22. then we had two drivers one of who I became friendly with later that night.
we started with a stop at a cold water spring in the middle of the desert after stopping to see the salt formation on lake siwa then we headed for the heart of the great sand sea. riding up and down the sand dunes some reaching over 60 meters was pretty amazing. we stopped a few times at various sites to roll down the dunes or pick up sea shells from a dried up ancient sea. at one point I sat on top of the jeep which was the best rush I have ever experienced. we finally went to sweet spot to watch the sunset and set up camp. the desert is one of the most beautiful places Ive seen, it was heaven with a cool breeze starting to roll with everysecond as the sun goes away. mohamed started to cook dinner using palm tree wood for fire, he cooked us rise, potatoes and veggies and some amazing grilled chicken. after the meal Osman the driver and I had been speaking about things.. I really liked him, it was a very honest and transparant conversation with topics ranging from life in siwa, to drinking arak and its effects with fucking to the types of people he encounters with his job. he also made me realize that I am not normal, he said that him and mohamed never met someone like me who acts like the forigners yet they know I am egyptian. he said that egyptians who come to siwa are full of themselves, misrable, iffy, elitists and are unwilling to really let go and enjoy themselves, rather he thinks they come because they can say "Ive been to siwa" so its a status thing or something. I was so happy to hear the nice things he said about me but I realized how I am really two different things that cant always be one. sometimes people here done know if they can respond to me as an egyptian or as an american which is very frustrating for me. I want to just be egyptian here but because of burecratic bullshit, the fact that I have a US passport and no Egyptian ID makes many people whome I want to be intimate with feel the need to be careful. I cant explain more.
we drank shots of arak, the traditional liquor and started smoking hash out of the Goza (bong made with a jar and a bamboo stick). I was so happy to see saima willing to take a taste of the hash, and the french couple smoked and drank with us too but the two canadians and two americans stayed on the otherside watching. it was great. the drum came out and we began to sing clap and dance. the night started to end and people started to sleep. I slept next to Osman the driver whose head was on my lap and we shared a cover. I really liked him, he was just a nice authentic human being with nothing to hide and no shame. too bad he had to take his wife and family to Matrouh the next morning to start their summer vacation.
I have been wanting to write about so many things but I keep on letting things be as ephemral as they were meant to be.
last week I went out with ahmad and met up with some of his friends, the hash was excellent and the night was fun.. I ran across the corniche highway while high (very near death experience) and risked getting questioned by the police due to strange behavior on the crowded stanley bridge past 3 am.. we also watched a group of men sitting at a cafe which is in the middle of the water reached by a thin walkway, these guys seemed to be having a good time until we noticed them starting to take their clothes off. it seemed like there was a bet and one guy jumped in the very deep water. the waves were too strong, he swam further out towards the piers of the bridge we are standing on then turned around and attempted to swim to shore, but half way he was drowning, it was all so surreal to watch this with my own head spinning.
the other night saima and naghine came from cairo to spend the night with me in alex and we had some good sea food, and headed to 24/7 (a sheesha place) where we ran into this guy from london and his two quasi-egyptian friends and we spent the rest of the night talking, speaking and eating too many deserts. the one guy was very interesting, his mother is english and his father is originally indian but their families have a history in egypt with businesses, etc. so he is infact egyptian because he lives there and speaks like one but he cant have an egyptian passport because neither his father nor mother are technically egyptian. a little fragment of a cosmopolitan past.
the morning after our night in alex we headed 4 hours west to marsa matrouh en route to siwa oasis. the beach in marsa is incredible, absolutely nothing like it. water so blue and clear it unreal with amazing beach, sand and everything a beach needs. we stayed at bou-sit hotel which seemed familiar and sure enough when I came back home I told my mom and she pulled out some vacation photos from when I was about 7 in the very same hotel.
the road to siwa is a two lane straight road which heads south from marsa into the western desert. my guide book said that in some areas mines are still there from world war two when the british and italians spread mines all over that part of the desert, they are marked with triangles. the women onthe bus were all completely covered up and the men seemed to be very conservative, they also spoke a different language: siwi. we arrived in siwa close to midnight and took a mule driven cart (taxi) to our hotel. shali lodge is probably one of the most beautiful hotels I have ever seen. it is subtle, romantic, if not too sophisticated. I immediatly fell in love. I spoke with this beautiful siwan from our hotel staff with crystal blue eyes so light theres only a hint of color, dark skin and masculine features to perfection. I had said to him that I would like to try arak ( a local traditional liquor made from dates) and also some of his hash. he did not hesitate to invite me for a smoke on top of an old house with a view of the lit up palms around the hotel.
+ I already forgot the endless stream of conversations and people that I met in tunisia but few stick out. Lotfy is a perfectly masculine straight out of a Tom of Finland drawing kinda man complete with mustache, big hairy chest and a black belt in karate! we met at the cafe in Sousse when we sat next to each other and I complained about the delay of my sheesha, we ended up talking and laughing and taking a walk on the beach, I am totally turned on but have no idea of he is thinking this is totally platonic.. anyway, we meet for the next two nights for more talking and walking and he would call me multiple times in the day to check on me but turned me on even more. he invited me to his house to spend a night and eat a home cooked tunisian meal. I am totally excited by the idea and fantasy Kristin bjorn type situations are coming into my immagination. the day I went to his house, he asked me what I wanted to eat and gave me two options one with meat and the other with chicken so I said chicken but I didnt realized that meant we have to go to the chicken store and literally pick a live chicken, put it on the scale then say ok kill that one, which the butcher did behind a wall where there are the proper tools and machine to pick the feathers, etc. I was in shock and had to step outside for a breath of air and I couldnt hear the crying of the poor chicken!!! it was too sad for me, a moment that I would remember the day I turn veggie. after the chicken massacer we went to his house, a cute courtyard house so sweet where they were building an addition to the top floor.. we sat in his roon while his sister cooked the recently killed chicken and o I think I was totally willing to do whatever he said but he really just liked me with no sexual anything what-so-ever. long story short, we went out for a bit then came back and played with some kids and then had a traditional couscous meal with the men of the house all sitting on the floor around a round low table eating out of one gigantic plate, it was very cool, very yummy and I felt very lucky to have that experience and to top it all off, Lotfy and I slept on the roof which was totally romantic as far as I am concerned, dammit!!!
+ I really wanted to be with tunisinas but instead, I was mistaken for being a tunisian and a german guy (very handsome) tried to pick me up in sousse, a disgusting bald french guy tried to pick me up in Mahdia, and a Kroatian guy tried to pick me up on the beach in hammamat and I let him sheesha as he signaled with his hands what it is he wants to do. but lets talk about that nasty french guy: he was staying at my hotel and he saw me coming down the stairs as I was going up, he asked some questions like who are you and what room are you in and within three minutes he was signaling with his hands and straight out telling me " I suck you... I suck you..." I am completly disgusted and shocked and just continue down the stairs. as I leave the building, that nasty ugly is already at his balcony where he shamelessly made his offer once more. WOW.. what is wrong with all these bald europeans coming to tunisia to do nothing but suck cock! I had seen another guy looking very similarly in a nother city who also eyed me and I was disturbed but a very very very goodlooking tunisian had a different reaction and got up and went with the guy to let him do his business. I dont blame them, those tunisians, judging by their perfect hands and bodies are very well endowed!!! I KNOW! back to nasty frenchy... after I left the hotel I walked on the beach for about 2 kilometers before I picked a spot.. but minutes later as I was semi sleeping with music in my ears and eyes closed someone taps me on the chest and guess who it is.. motherfucker! so disgusting
later that night I sat in a crowded cafe to watch the france vs brazil game and met these two guys one of which was so cute and we went for a walk and they took me to this ancient semetary right on the beach, it was really cool... again I was thinking this is a hot moment lets do something right here ontop of that grave.. but no, one went home and me and the really cute one remained.. blah blah.. tunisia was just a series of close encounters for me.. I forgot what happened next.
I had no internet access in tunisia, so this is old news copies from paper and out of order.
sitting at the cafe theatre watching the world go by in Sousse is an experience...I have seen some of the most beautiful hands, eyes, noses, lips and asses on some of the most beautiful faces and bodies of men that i have ever seen anywhere I have been and they are in heavy concentration. then men are rediculously handsome, a kind of effortless natural rough beauty that europeans and americans would drool over. the face itself is simple with Om Kulthume playing followed by unexpected jazz or someone like Fiest, while sipping on green tea with nuts and mint. I have cought myself gaze in awe at the passing men with the occationalpair of bright blue eyes or head of blond hair grafted on naturally perfectly shaped tight toned suntanned bodies. the men here wear jasmine behind their ears, they are friendly and very willing to show a stranger around or if the stranger wishes they are willing to show off their endless sexual capabilities!!! I have also sat and watched as italians, french and german men would pick up beautiful young tunisians and disappear into their hotel rooms. this is a heaven for some but if you are looking for muscle queens sipping cocktails with little umbrellas then stay in milano or chelsea. this is a strange country, its not the easiest to get around for independent travelers, most tourists here are on package tours. its not a place where you will e constantly confronted with the comforts of home, I have yet to see a single western rancise not even a carfourre supermarket although I would have been very pleased to see a KFC or MCdonalds since the food thus far has been a disappointment and making me constantly run for the toilet which is making me reconsider my ambition to travel to india and china where food will definetly be a problem. first day here in tunis the capital was a bit hellish, the city has very little to be seen and its too hot to be in duing the summer. but I was hungry late in the afternoon while walking in teh medina and sat to eat a Tajin with Merguise (which sounded good but oh shit it was disgusting) - a mush of I dont know what with little white lumps that could have been half cooked egg white or something that came out of a man, who knows. it was so bad I wnted to vomit while eating it as the resturant staff was watching me.. eeekkk.. I ran back to my hotel and you can imagine what happened, but I am sure all of it was out of my body within minutes of eating it.
so lonely planet has been misleadingly positiveabout some descriptions f sites, transport, etc. I didnt appreciate that, since I would make a two hour trip to go see for example Sfax which according to lonely plannet has the most authentic functioning medina in tunisia only to find a big messy market with hardly anything worth the visit. and many tunisians told me not to go but I believed lonely plannet, silly me.
the language here is really nice to hear, its a mix of arabic, tunisian arabic, french, italian, and even english with words such as calm and car being used. I love it
women enjoy a high status with seemingly half the police force are women and even in Kairouan, the most conservative city with one of the holiest sites in Islam, I took a taxi with a butch short haired woman driver. the cinemas play soft porn on big screens next to family films from egypt, france and USA with posters with male + female nudity shamelessly displayed outside the cinema. but what I liked the most was the fact that on the beach a tunisian woman wearing a headcover and full dress to go swim in the water would be right next to a tunisian woman of eaqual status and class who is wearing a two piece bathing suit but neither of them think or act like they are better than the other. there is no pointing fingers, everyone gets to do what they want and choosing to be nude or wear tight jeans isnt reserved to the wealthy or upper classes as I always see in egypt (which I totally hate and disagree with, everyone should be naked if they want to or cover up if they want to)
