El Balad Dee a7san men Gheerha


“E7na 7anshoof ayam soda fel balad dee”, “Da 7atta el hend wel seen saba2oona”, “Ya 3am el balad dee RAY7A FE DAHYA”

SOUND FAMILIAR?

What you have just read above is a sample of what a lot of our conversations sound like nowadays.

It’s actually becoming a major fixture of our Egyptian culture it doesn’t matter if you’re an illiterate doorman or a multilingual college professor this is our new past time, it’s almost as popular as foul sandwiches and nokia cell phones!!!!

Basically they are hours and hours on end of fellow Egyptians dissing their country and I am ashamed to say I was one of them (major diss-fest starter) but……..

Not anymore!!

Don’t get me wrong I understand the reasons behind the country- dissing I’m the first to admit we have major problems and I know how damn frustrating it can be living here
How corrupt the system is, how chaotic our traffic is, how retarded our industries are, how annoying government employees are, how high the crime rate is getting on top of all that we have enormous potential going down the drain I can go on for pages I know I know I live here

But then again, are any of us planning on getting off our pretty asses and do something???

Anyone for a demonstration?? Anyone care for political arrest??

Ummm nope not me, I didn’t think so

Let me ask a question and please holler at me if the answer is yes….

Who has ever bribed to get their license back after getting a ticket / or to get their documents signed quicker??

I can hear you all the way from Alexandria (and I Live on the tenth floor)

My point is I have made a vital revelation many of you may not believe this but despite our raging criticisms of Egypt really deep down we like Egypt dare I say LOVE Egypt

Come on

We love Egypt it maybe dirty ,polluted ,crowded and filled with crazies but it’s our country we can call it our own we all have the fugly green passport right? We’ve all had a generous sip of the Nile (or at least Baraka, it is Egyptian right??)

I know my opinion maybe highly controversial but hear me out we’ve been whining about this for way too long we don’t really have to change the country we can just change the way we think it’s worth a try most of us are here to stay (or at least waiting for their visas)

So for all it’s worth this is a list of top ten things I LOVE about living in EGYPT

1. I love that the weather is never too hot or too cold to go out
2. I love that Cabbies and Mashroo3 drivers can abuse anyone on the street without fear (just to demonstrate the level of freedom they are the un-defied kings of the road)
3. I love that us Egyptians can talk our way out of any situation whatsoever
4. I love the Egyptian sense of humor (sarcastic and slightly sadistic as it may seem)
5. How 200 people will magically appear to help on an accident scene or to chase anyone who cries “7aramyy!!”
6. How hundreds of thousands of people come to Egypt to see the pyramids while we use it as a public restroom (we give a whole new meaning to holy crap)
7. How great our national flag is and how simple it is to paint it on your face for an Egyptian football match (red lipstick and black eyeliner will do the trick)
8. How bimbo biscuits have braved their way through major competition and still manages to cost 25 piasters (I wonder how the company still operates)
9. I love that anytime you get introduced to someone new he/she always happens to know one of your relatives or is a friend of a friend
10. Last but not least I love that no matter what, I know that I’ll always have my family and friends to lean on
Ta7ya Masr