Selected Cronicas

A RIDE ON A CAMEL, THE SPHINX AND A BELLY-DANCER

On one of my trips to Europe, the plane, for some reason never explained, had to make a detour. And quite unexpectedly, I found myself spending three days in Egypt. I first saw the Pyramids by night. I went there by car and the sky was pitch black. As I got out of the car I asked: But where are the Pyramids? They were only two metres away. An overwhelming apparition. By day, they seem less threatening. I also saw the Sahara desert in the daylight. The sands are not so much white as light yellow. There was a camel hirer on hand and for a pittance tourists could ride a camel. I sat between its two humps. It is the strangest creature and never stops chewing its food. I believe the camel has two stomachs or am I imagining things? I also saw the Sphinx. I could not decipher her meaning, nor could she decipher mine. We confronted each other as equals. She accepted me and I accepted her. Each with her own mystery.

In Morocco, I was invited to go and see the famous belly-dance. I could scarcely believe my eyes. Or my ears. The dancer was shaking her belly to the tune of: ‘Mamá, yo quiero, mamá yo quiero mamar!’ [‘Mummy I want, Mummy I want to suckle.’]*