** V I S I T ** E G Y P T ! ! ! **

On Friday I went to a rally to promote tourism in Egypt.

Millions of tourists fled Egypt at the start of the Revolution, and although the country is basically back to normal and perfectly safe, people are not returning in great numbers yet. So many people rely on tourism for work, and it is a hugely significant part of the national economy (and more so in particular areas, like Luxor or the Red Sea resorts.)

So a group of young people in Alexandria decided to take a positive step and hold this celebration of Egypt to send out the message that the country is open for business again, and ready to welcome visitors.

We gathered at the Alexandria Library at 8 a.m. It was not warm! I have become totally acclimatised to the weather here, so although it was much like a Spring morning in England (albeit with a strong sea breeze) I was freezing!

Here are the first people gathering. At this stage it was just a couple of hundred people:

The glass building to the left of the photo (behind the palm trees) is the Alexandria Library (more info on their website here). The dome-shaped building is the Planetarium.

Many of those participating were students. These girls represented the Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, at the University of Alexandria:

  

Here's a closer look at the girl on the left:

Let me digress a little... "God Willing" is the translation of the VERY common Arabic phrase "Inshallah". People in Egypt will use this word in pretty much every conversation at some point. It's just not the done thing to talk about anything in the future without saying "Inshallah". In English, it can sound a bit worrying - for example if your pilot says "we'll be landing soon, God willing." So an English person would happily promote Egypt with the words "Egypt is safe" but an Egyptian has to say "God willing, Egypt is safe."

It was not all young people (though mostly). This woman was very keen for me to take her photo:

Gradually more and more people arrived, mainly dressed in red, white and black, which are the colours of the Egyptian flag. After a few speeches, we set off to walk the two miles or so along the sea-front to the 15th century Qaitbey Fort.

People were carrying signs or banners welcoming back tourists in many different languages (some written more accurately than others...)

The girl on the left is my friend Asmaa who invited me to the event.
(Note that the sign on the right helpfully has a Latin translation, presumably for the benefit of the many Ancient Romans who visit Egypt each year.)

After an hour or so, we arrived in front of the Fort, and waited for the long train of people to catch up (there were several thousand by this point.) Everyone gathered round, and some gymnasts entertained the crowds:

In the background of the second picture, you can see the Fort itself. It was built in the 15th century on the site of what was in ancient times the Pharos - the Great Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. By that time the lighthouse had fallen into ruins (though it had still been standing only a century before) and some of its stones were recycled into the foundations of the Citadel.

Finally, everyone gathered to form a huge Egyptian flag on the steps:

It was a really great event, and I wish this kind of thing could be seen on the news, as well as the unrest and uprising. People are SO positive at the moment, and it's a great time to visit Egypt. Patrick's parents have just arrived for a 2-week visit, and they have been bowled over by the welcome they have received. (For example, they were given a bouquet of flowers at the airport saying 'welcome to Egypt', and everywhere they go, people stop them to say welcome, thank you for coming, enjoy your trip.)

So here's a final message from one of the girls I met - "Support Freedom & visit Egypt". Says it all really!

Glistens the evil spirit to send the element

My sister Katy is a beautiful, talented, glamorous young woman. As you can see from this photo, she was right at home in Cairo, hoiking her suitcase over the building site that is currently the main train station:

So what better to give her for Christmas, than a selection of Egypt's finest Chinese imports:

Nice, huh?  Let's take a closer look.

We begin with those well-known brands "Mas Factor", "Chamel" and "Bourjuis"

Closely followed by ever-favourite "Dvoe"

And if Dvoe doesn't do it for you, why not substitute another four-lettered bird beginning with 'D':

In case none of the above have worked, you can change your look entirely with the "Disguise Brush", favoured by glamorous spies and secret agents the world over.

 Finally, I can't believe anyone can live without this product:

I think it is hair glitter, but I'm not entirely sure. I'll let you draw your own conclusions from the description on the back of the bottle. Suggestions on a postcard please...

TLDSITD TPSTA

Glistens

the evil spirit

to send the

element

Moves the feeling modelling

202ml

Characteristic: Increases luxuriant lives with

the elasticity; Forms the hair surface protector,

Saves After dyes burns suffers injury sends the

nature.

Effect: Contains the rich persistent effect to guarantee

the wetfactor, the fresh fruit element and the tension

essence And so on, can rapidly moisten, repair each Kind

to surfer injury sends the nature, the instantaneous

supplement hair needs The nutrition and the moisture,

improve the hair structure prevented the split end, breaks

off and Withered, causes the hair to change smoothly, the

rich elasticity immediately.

Ingredient: Rose volatile oil, protein hydrolysate, vitamin B5

Application method: After cleans the hair, dries the moisture

content with the towel, takes right amount this Uniform tubs

scratches then.

Matters needing attention: Avoids contacting the eye, if

has carelessly moistens into intraocularly, namely uses the

clear water Flushing.

This contains Uygur it to assign E, the heat

preservation factor, and so on protects sends

the essence, increases seven colour films

Decides The factor beautifully sends, the

cosmetology, the beautiful body multi-purpose

puts on makeup the essential thing.

Back in Alexandria

We are now back in Alexandria, and life seems pretty much back to normal - apart from a number of burnt out police stations and a lot of tanks still deployed on the streets. Here's one outside a bank behind the Alexandria Library:

As you can see, they have become a bit of a tourist attraction, with families taking pictures of their kids sat on a tank, or with the soldiers.

There are other, more subtle changes though. The first is in freedom of expression - people are openly debating politics in a way that just didn't happen before. A few days ago I listened to a couple of friends discuss the state of the country. One had participated in the demonstrations throughout and could not be prouder of what had happened. The other was still vehemently pro-Mubarak and saw what had happened to him as sacrilege. This conversation wouldn't (couldn't) have taken place just a month ago. It was impressive to witness. (And nice that all the political/media Arabic vocab we've been studying has come to good use!)

The second change is a little more subtle. People seem much prouder of their country and of themselves. It is not just about freedom of expression, but a belief that their actions can have a positive impact on society.

During the unrest, the police deserted the streets. Neighbourhoods set up "People's Committees" to guard the streets at night. At the start of the unrest, these were described in the media as 'vigilante' groups, but that is a rather negative way of describing what has actually been remarkable community action. Night after night, people worked together with their neighbours, who they might not have ever met before, to collectively ensure the streets stayed safe. (Alexandria is a densely populated city, so even the leafy suburbs consist of high-rise apartment blocks - so it's not easy to meet people in the same way as it is on a street of houses.) Others also gathered up rubbish, because regular collections had stopped. Everyone we've spoken to who participated in these Committees has said what a great thing they were - people met for the first time, discovered the power of working together, and were able to play a real role in society, perhaps for the first time. We've seen the difference in various young guys we know - they seem a little more confident, stand a little taller, believe that they can make a positive difference.

Right now, outside our flat, a group of teenagers is cleaning the street:

 People all over Egypt are helping to clear up after the protests. This woman posting on the CNN site puts it very well:

"Every Egyptian wanted to help clean up the square  after the Revolution.

Me and my friends volunteered in cleaning the streets.
I wanted to see a new Egypt without the dirt of the past.
This revolution didn't only change the people in power, it awakened something in every single Egyptian that made him eager to build a new country for a brighter future ."

For the kids in our neighbourhood, it's not just cleaning up from what happened over the last few weeks - it's 'ordinary' rubbish on the streets, sorting recycling, repainting tram stations, and generally making the streets cleaner than they were before.

Otherwise, life goes on as normal - but it's a cleaner, more optimistic normal. Which is nice!

10 days and counting

It’s a quarter past mid-day and Friday Prayers are in progress. The TV is on, and we can see the crowds massed in Tahrir Square. Outside our flat the fields are quiet apart from sound of the prayers from the mosque at the end of the lane – and the rumble of a passing tractor, since harvests and animals don’t wait for politics.

Tahrir Square is now the quietest it has been for 10 days, as the prayers go on. I would imagine that all across Egypt, people are similarly quiet, waiting to see what happens next.  (The moments after Friday prayers are typically when unrest begins – as people who have gathered together begin to leave mosques.)

We can hear 3 mosques now from our balcony (the one at the end of the lane was a little ahead of the others.) The noise is great: “God is great.”

* * * * *

I have been thinking long and hard since I posted my last update. Sitting down now to write, I want to pass on some of the different feelings people have expressed to me over the last week. I think the people I know or have met in passing represent a fairly broad range of social class and outlook: well-off or not; university degrees or barely literate; Muslim and Christian; from town or country or between the two as many are, living in the city but with strong ties to their family’s villages.

It would be nice to say that a single voice unites these people, but this is not the case.

Many of my friends have made their antipathy to the government clear on Facebook in recent days. But a good deal of others have expressed their support for Mubarak. It isn’t possible to determine what ‘type’ of person might express one view or the other. It isn’t about what your religious views are, or your social background. One religious conservative I know is staunchly with the government. Another is desperate for reform. There are the same differences with friends who have been educated at international schools (in English with a US or UK curriculum).

But then why should we expect anything else? In the UK and in America, we might make some broad assumptions about what sort of person is Tory or Labour, Republican or Democrat, but in fact support could come from anywhere. Remember this point – I’ll come back to it later.

My overall impression is that nearly everyone wants change, that most people think that Mubarak’s government is the first thing that needs to change, but that when it comes to the timescales, particularly with the fear of chaos, voices are much less unified.

* * * * *

Over the last few days the biggest group of people, from both sides of the debate, have been calling simply for calm to resume.

This is the great difficulty. Tourists have fled from Luxor in their thousands. Most of the foreigners who remain are long-term residents. Tourism is the life-blood of Luxor. A Canadian neighbour who went across the river yesterday reported that the five-star hotels are essentially empty, and the staff have been sent home (and won’t get paid as a result.)

Reports from other towns are grim. TV cameras are tuned on Cairo and Alexandria, (and tourist-sustained Luxor is a different kettle of fish.) But a young man with relatives in Minya, for example, reports that the situation there is bad. Similarly an old internet friend reports that in Port Said order has broken down: they are relying on the Imam from the nearest mosque to warn them over the loudspeakers when looters are approaching their building, so they can defend themselves with sticks and stones.

* * * * *

Yesterday in an interview with ABC News, President Mubarak said that he feared such chaos if he stood down now. The irony here is that in trying to fortify his position in this way, he has exposed the greatest weakness of his system. Egypt is a country of 80 million people. It borders Sudan, Israel, Libya and Jordan. It joins Europe to the oil supplies of the Gulf via the Suez Canal. If the stability of all this is contingent upon the rule of ONE man, as Mubarak claims, then the world has a lot to worry about. He’s in his eighties, don’t forget.

On the other hand, if an American president fell, or a British Prime Minister, or a German chancellor, then the world might sense the ripples, but the apparatus of that country would continue. The police would continue to protect citizens and maintain the law; the financial system would go on functioning, and people would get paid. Belgium has functioned without a government for months!

We complain a lot in the UK. (We are free to complain as much as we like, thank heavens.) But ultimately we have a whole series of checks and balances which maintain a stable system. Power is not concentrated in the hands of one man and one regime. The government has power, but the civil service is a machine of its own; the police, the army, the media, large private companies, religious organisations, charities, celebrities, social groups – all have power in different forms, and the ability to influence the way the country operates.

So either Mubarak is right, and he is all that stands between order and chaos, in which case something needs to change for the safety of the region. Or he’s wrong, in which case change can take place readily, for the safety of the region.

* * * * *

So how has Mubarak sustained his position?

Earlier on I mentioned the broad spectrum of views, and the disparate nature of the people who might express them. If you listen to Mubarak, the only alternative to his rule is the Muslim Brotherhood, whom he has portrayed as a fundamentalist, anti-Western movement. With this fear, he has reined in support both at home and abroad.

Leaving aside the matter of what the Muslim Brotherhood really stands for, he is offering a false dichotomy.  It is not a choice between “him and them”.

Egyptians have a diverse range of views. The majority of Egyptians are Muslim (around 90%) but some are socially/economically/politically conservative and some are liberal. Most are probably somewhere in between: family- and community-minded, aware of Egypt’s long past, anxious to preserve their values, but desirous of change so that views can be expressed, jobs created, the poor fed, public health improved and opportunities created.

The world does not need to be afraid of allowing the Egyptian people to choose their government.

* * * * *

The Vice-President has repeatedly labelled the protestors a ‘youth movement.’ I have to say, from the point of view of the current regime, anyone under the age of 60 probably counts as ‘youth’.

So I’d like to end with the point of view of one of Egypt’s youth: Patrick had the following conversation with the 11-year old son of a friend:

“I love America, life is great there.”

“Do you want to live in America one day?”

“No way!”

“Why not? You think it's great!”

“Yeah, but one day I want to make life here in Egypt as good as life in America.”