Friendliest Falafel Stand Ever
I wish I could read Arabic because I'd like to know what the sign above this shop at the souq in Aswan says:
Actually, if I sit here long enough with the Standard Arabic Alphabet page of our Lonely Planet Middle East guide, maybe I can figure it out . . . [half-hour later] . . . OK, if I'm reading it correctly, it's "Htghm al Badaldzldy." Somehow I don't think that's correct.
Anyway, so shortly after arriving at Aswan, and before our field trip to Philae Temple, we had to go find something to eat. So a group of us went trooping through the souq looking for food. A shop owner on Sharia as-Souq asked what we were looking for — "meat or vegetable" — and herded us to this falafel place where for 10 Egyptian Pounds we got five falafel sandwiches. The guys at the falafel shop were so, so excited to serve us falafel.
We got a tour of their falafel-making operation:
Soon many men appeared. I don't know if it was because they saw us taking pictures that they wanted to take pictures with us or whether it was because three of us were female that they wanted to take pictures with us, but suffice it to say, pictures were taken, including several with some guy from the market who took a particular interest in Compulsory. It wasn't until later when we went through all the images that we noticed how earnest he was about putting his arm around Compulsory's shoulder. [Edit: Compulsory emails to say that it wasn't just that the guy was holding her shoulder with a death grip that was so notable but also that he had this unsmiling stare — bordering on a glare — that he gave the camera, while at the same time insisting that more and more pictures of the two of them be taken. OK — then how about we call it "very earnest"?]
The sociological aspects of male-female physical contact in a conservative society aside, it really would make a great commercial for Canon or Nikon or any old point-and-shoot camera with the word "pix" in its model name:
WOMAN OFF-CAMERA: Our trip to [fill in name of conservative country] was a real hoot!
[WHIMSICAL SCENES OF WESTERN WOMEN TRAVELING — BOAT TRIPS, SLEEPY OVERNIGHT TRAINS, ANCIENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES]
WOMAN OFF-CAMERA (CONT'D): We traveled by plane, train, boat . . . and even a felucca!
[WHIMSICAL SCENES OF WESTERN WOMEN IN MARKETPLACE MISHAPS]
WOMAN OFF-CAMERA (CONT'D): And through it all we had the YouPix 35-2000D at the ready! Perfect for pointing, shooting . . .
[WHIMSICAL SCENE OF WESTERN WOMEN TAKING PICTURES WITH "LOCALS," ONE OF WHOM EARNESTLY GRIPPING THE SHOULDERS OF THE WOMEN]
WOMAN OFF-CAMERA (CONT'D): . . . and making new friends! The YouPix 35-2000D — for everything!
Now it did occur to me that it might not be wise to eat raw vegetables (Cucumber, I'm looking at you) within 48 hours of landing in Egypt, but the falafel guys were so friendly that it felt wrong to stop them to ask how they washed their produce or request that certain items be peeled. And there were several of us — I assumed someone else might have thought about it in advance and assumed it would be fine. Turns out all of us were worried about the same thing and none of us said anything. The false wisdom of the group.
So we went with it. It mostly worked out. For most of us. Except for when it didn't, which was the problem for some of us. But with falafel this friendly, how could you ever turn it down?
See also the Big Map: Egypt/Jordan, December 27, 2010-January 11, 2011.
Posted: January 27th, 2011 | Author: Scott | Filed under: National Geographical | Tags: Falafel, Gastrointestinal Distress, Grand Egypt & Jordan Adventure, The Difficulty Of The Standard Arabic Alphabet, The False Wisdom Of Groups, The Sociology Of Male-Female Physical Contact In Conservative Middle Eastern Environments