Marsa Matrouh

[map] Arrived a couple of hours ago. Just came back from the Friday prayer, sitting in the balcony facing the beach. Forgot my scrapbook, so writing on the back of this "Science of Islamic Fiqh" paper.

The Christian experience

Checked in at St. Joseph Sisters of the Sacred Heart Summer House. My mother has recently fallen in love with this place. She's been coming here for the last 2 years. Convinced my father to join her, and I've decided to join as well. I don't know how she managed to get us a room here. I feel like a minority for a change. I'm not sure if I miss that feeling, but its certainly a healthy feeling. They have a picture of Jesus on the wall. Is that really him? My mother is right. This is the best place I've seen so far in Marsa Matrouh.

I've only had very few Christian experiences in my life. My most regular one was when I spent a year in the states. Too long ago. The first few months of that year, I almost went to Church every Sunday (and I missed almost every Friday prayer). Didn't really know what was the point of going to Church, so after a while I asked to be excused from joining. I remember doing a presentation about Egypt in that Church by the end of that year. After the presentation, the nice priest asked me if I'm willing to talk about Islam? I said No. Until today, I still regret saying No. An interesting experience I had back then was participating in a play that was conducted in another church, Hans Christian Anderson. I don't remember what role I played, but I remember not finding myself in acting, and hence not joining the other play in the winter season. Christmas Carols and Christmas eve service were the best I've enjoyed.

Just checked if there's a Bible in the room. Unfortunately, didn't find one.

Memories

Marsa Matrouh brings back so much memories. I have mixed feelings of liking the place, and missing those old days. The place feels like I was here yesterday, not 10 years ago! Its just much more crowded, the Corniche looks nicer and there are now jet skis in the sea. I had almost forgotten how wonderful Matrouh's sea is. But seeing it with my own eyes, and I'm sure swimming in it, is totally different that just remembering it. Can't wait to swim to Shatt elGharam tomorrow. My mother should be a good company.

I used to come to Matrouh every summer with my parents and sister when I was a kid, stay at that routine place with family friends. I grew tired of the place and of the company, so one year I cut my routine 10-day vacation short and never joined them there again. I still remember Matrouh vividly from those days.

After a few years break, I started coming again for a few years. This time only with people of my age group. I had a crush on a girl that was with us on one of those trips once. She was so spoilt, but so cute. Probably the cutest girl I've ever met. Just remembering how cute she was makes me smile now. I might've actually loved her! I was a stupid kid then, but I was smart enough not to tell her, knowing that she was travelling for a whole year shortly afterwards. Heh, I remember when I was in the sea singing Sayyed Mekkawy's "leilet embareh magaleesh nom", to find her calling me in my room that night to sing it for me. So cute she was. I was afraid of dreaming of her that night, lest my roommate would hear me halucinating her name while asleep. Heh! She loved that balady chewing gum, that I brought her some in the airport to take with her on her year long travel. She came back from her travel, and since then I only saw her once by coincidence maybe.

In one of those trips I was caught on one of the girls video cameras going totally bananas while leading the singing in the Karetta and on the beach at night; "everywhere we go, people wanna know, who we are, where we come from, so we tell them ...", and "say heidy heidy heidy ho, say wigley wigley wigley wo, now raise your hands up to the sky, ..., a little louder". Well, actually my favorite song which I was a little reserved in singing in public went something like; "One and one, we're having some fun, in the bedroom, all day, and all of the night." It goes on until ten and ten :)

These were good days for sure, and this trip is bringing all these memories back. But this time I'm here just for the sea, and for the company of my parents.

My folks

I'm still living with my parents, but we almost don't interact at all. My father can sit for hours next to me without saying a word, and my mother has two to three topics that she never deviates from, and I'm done talking about them. I figure its enough that they're one of my excuses for staying in Egypt, but really, they're the ones doing me a favor for allowing me to live with them. They're actually the least demanding parents I've ever seen. They ask absolutely nothing of me. When I moved back with them, all I asked of them (of my mother really) was not to invade my privacy. It was perfect at the beginning, but now my room sometimes turns into one of my mother's living rooms.

Well, we haven't been interacting for so long, I was starting to miss them. Or rather, started to worry about not missing them.

I'm glad I decided to join them in this trip. About time to interact abit more. Yeah, I don't know where they are right now, while I'm sitting in the balcony writing this. But hey, I'm going on a good swim with my mom tomorrow, and I'll sure be sitting on the beach with my dad figuring out something to say.