It’s not fair....

I love dance.

I love being a dancer.

I love being a dancer in Cairo.

I hate the prejudice that us dancers face here. The small-minded attitutes that even many eductated, westernised Egyptians unfortunately seem to share, never mind the uneducated majority.

The reason for this complaint? I've been thrown out my home of 6 years, purely because I bellydance.

In June, the doorbell rang, and one of ‘Hotel Bellylorna’s house guests, answered it. It was the downstairs neighbour complaining about the noise and asking what she was doing. She, innocently enough, replied, “but we weren’t making any noise. We were just bellydancing.”

The woman went crazy, “that is inappropriate behaviour- what do you mean you were ‘bellydancing’ ?”. The poor girl was confused why the outburst against the artform she was practising... so the male folkloric dancer went to the door and attempted to get the neighbour to calm down. That was it. Red rag to a bull. Not only was this foreign girl ‘bellydancing’ but she was alone in a room with an Egyptian man, they MUST be up to no good!

I stressed , and waited and waited... but it seems the neighbours didn’t pass on their complaints to my landlady.

That is... not until 2 weeks later, as soon as Morsi had been elected as president of Egypt. Then, and not before,  I had an hour of abuse over the telephone with my landlady calling me all sorts of names... accusing me of running the house as a business and having ‘men there all times of day and night’ . Now EVERYONE who knows me can verify just how far from the truth this statement is... but the neighbour had decided to get her revenge- so she had made up all sort of stories about me and seems like the landlady believed them all. Not surprising I guess, since they are related, but I did feel incredibly hurt that the fact that I had been a model tenant for nearly 6 years, always doing my own maintanence for the flat, always paying not only on time but often early, never causing any problems with neighbours etc, all that suddenly meant nothing at all.

The problem was, in some things the landlady was sort of correct. I did run the place not just as my home, but as a semi-business- but not the business that her sordid mind had imagined!

I have been renting out my spare rooms to visiting (female) dancers for years now, and teaching private classes too. The work of a bellydancer in Cairo, especially since the ‘revolution’, pays nowhere near enough to even cover the rent let alone food and travel expenses! So when she accused me of ‘not’ being an English teacher, as I had told her- well, she was right. But you can see why I said it! (Actually, I never said I was an English teacher- but when I told her I was a ‘teacher’ , she just assumed it was English!).

Bless the bowab , who MUST have known all these years what I actually do for a living (hard not to, with bags and sticks going in and out the building!) but who had obviously never said anything to her.

Anyway, to cut a long story short.... I was on TV.

The Ramadan TV drama by Adel Emam came out 2 weeks ago (see my previous blog entry for the whole story and to view the clip!). It's a show that EVERYONE watches, especially old women who stay at home all day. It features me as a dancer in a cabaret in Syria, and was it was shown on all channels in Egypt and my face is clearly shown...

The truth was out. I knew there was no way I was going to be able to continue with my story that no of course was not a dancer! ( I had already done a google search just for 'lorna' and was at the same time very chuffed that I came up so early in the search- and worried that the landlady's son or neighbour might think to do the same search and find out my ocupation) what a way to live huh? frightened to tell anyone what you proudly do for a living.

The landlady had made it painfully clear that she did not approve of entertainment work, waxing lyrical about this ‘singer’ that i had staying with me (who she hadn’t even met but had managed to make up all sort of interesting, hair raising stories about!), But then, to find out that her tenant of 6 years was a bellydancer. You can but imagine!

I returned to Cairo on august 20^th. I had paid my rent until 26^th, and I knew I had no option but to leave by then.. ...

What a hellish week.

In 6 years living somewhere, discounting the memories, you also collect a lot of things around you. ‘Stuff’. Not to mention about 50 bellydance costumes!

The past 6 days have been full of boxes and bags, tears and tantrums, stress and sleepless nights.

Thankfully Ellie had returned to Cairo the same day as I had, and she was an immense help with packing and organising, and the running for the tissues everytime the weight of it all broke me down again and again. It was hard on her too. Ellie has been living in Cairo for over a year now working successfully as a singer, and she loved the flat too!

‘Hotel BellyLorna’ had so many guests over the years... so many fabulous memories... so much care put into it, I kept – keep - feeling the enormity of how unfair it all is.

The upside of it was I was able to give so much of the ‘stuff’ away to people who really needed it and who also find scraping together a living in Egypt a trying task at times. The popular idea that us foreigners are ‘made of money’ is so false it is laughable! All the left overs completely disappeared, my cleaner and her brother came round and took away things that to people in the UK would have been seen as rubbish, used shower curtains, coathangers, shoes, clothes, half used toiletries. They took the lot. If they couldn't use it themselves, they knew people who could. Recycling here at its best!

I dance.

 I love dance.

 I love dancing in Egypt.

I am gutted that my job is viewed in such a negative way by so many people. That my personal character is slated because i am an artist.

People who would happily hire me to dance at their son’s weddings or watch me as they eat their meal on the Nile... but who would never allow me to be any part of their personal life, to the extent of even renting out their apartment. The worry about what other people think here is so very strong. Much stronger now that Morsi is ‘in charge’ !

When she came over to collect my house key, and make sure I really left, the landlady was still horrible to me. Still accusing me of a lot of things that I almost wish now I had done! I can only feel sorry for someone who acts like that when out of fear of what others may think. As long as she got her money, and people didn’t think badly of her, she was very happy to take my money.

One of the things that really upset me was the Bowab’s reaction to my news that i was leaving. He actually slumped and his eyes welled up. Only people who have ever met my bowab can know how unlikely it is that he would ever cry in front of a woman especially. He is the top dog of the street, the head bowab. The saaidi man on the street, to be feared and respected. But I swear, he had to hold back his tears. I couldn’t. I stood blubbing on my doorstep. He assured me that they would never find someone as good as me. Because above all, I was a good person. God bless him. I know it. But it was really what i needed to hear to stop myself from hating everyone around me!

I am staying with a lovely Scottish friend, in her spare room. She is very welcoming and I really appreciate her putting me (and Ellie) up at a moments notice. At times like these I am even more grateful to my wonderful friends.

Also a huge thank you for all the many many messages of support I have had from around the world, with lots of what I affectionally would call ‘things my granny would say’ ; “everything happens for a reason” and  “what’s for you will not go by you” etc. It really does help to know people care , and to think of my granny sending me her support somehow!

 However, I miss my place already, although it’s only been 3 days. Maybe it is wrong to become so very attached to a flat, but I can’t help it.

 I still cry when I think about all those lovely evenings with friends coming over to visit.

Being able to open my house to interesting, fun, talented girls coming to stay with me from all over the world.

All those hours spent teaching and dancing in my very own studio.

 All those nights sitting in my ‘internet cafe’, my house guests and me all sitting round the giant dining room table each interacting to the leggy internet spider that spans the globe.

Those nights when rather than go out, we would all go into the studio, dim the lights, pour a drink, and just dance the night away.

Following the ever changing news of Egypt from my living room, and watching it live from my balcony.

The love and tears that went into making that flat a real home, for me and my guests.  The memories.

It’s always sad to leave a place you have been happy in, but usually you have some time to get used to the idea, Time to sort your things and pack. Usually you want to move on.

 I didn’t and the only way I can really fully express how I feel about it all is to stamp my feet, fold my arms, knit my brow, stick out my lower lip and sulkily shout;

“IT’S NOT FAIR"   !!!!

...

.........

 

.... and quietly hope that the next tenants are wild party throwers and enjoy living there as much as I did... whilst making the nosy neighbours and narrow-minded landlady’s life miserable!!

Lorna bellydancing on Egyptian TV

When I was back in UK over Ramadan this summer, I was very happy to receive emails and messages on facebook from friends back in Cairo, telling me that they had seen me on TV!

It was Ahmed Refaat who had given me that particular opportunity. Ahmed is a folkloric dancer here in Cairo and has on occasion rented out my dance studio to teach in. He was asked to do some choreography work for a TV series, and they also asked if he could supply a good, foreign bellydancer, someone with the correct work papers to perform in Egypt. He thought of me straight away and within a few days I was heading out to Haram early one morning, taking Ellie along as my chaperone, dresser and moral support!

The scene was set in a fabulous old nightclub, next to the Movenpick hotel in Haram (the area in Cairo right beside the Pyramids of Giza). When we arrived I still had no idea what I was going to be asked to do... I didn’t know if it was just me dancing, or if there were a few of us. There were certainly other girls around, mostly Egyptian, a few Russian.

 I had been asked to bring a small selection of costumes with me, but no red ones (since the backdrop was all red). A woman came over and introduced herself as the costumes manager, and she chose the same costume out of my selection as I had. A turquoise blue and gold Eman Zaki creation which I really love and is very comfortable to wear. Eman had recreated it for me out of an old costume she had previously made for me which had a gold skirt rather than blue, but since metallic material always gets sweat ruined when I wear it night after night for performances it had eventually become unusable. Now it was transformed it a stunning ‘new’ costume;

from this costume:

 

to this one:

Photo credit: Maani Vadgama

So, after costume selection was hair and makeup. The makeup artist was a boy whose fingers reeked of cigarettes and who was surrounded by other boys smoking and an older woman, and not sure how to write this politely, but from the look of them I have to admit, I was slightly concerned how I would end up looking! My fears were unfounded. They were very talented indeed. The makeup was not so different from how I would have done it myself... but somehow, I’m still not sure how, made me look very Egyptian!

The hairdresser, also male, spent a long time ‘ironing’ my hair and hair piece (the one my normal hairdresser had made fun of saying it wasn’t real hair, so she couldn’t do anything with it... that proved her wrong!!) and he spent a long time attaching the ‘prestige’ as they call it here, so there was no risk of it falling out! I had long straight luscious locks!

Then to dress, in the nightclub toilet with a bunch of Egyptian girls who looked, well... to put it bluntly, rough. At this point I was still unsure what we’d be filming, and I was rather concerned that if these girls were dancing up alongside me, it wasn’t going to be a very classy show!

I worried for nothing.

The girls were the ‘waitresses’. That is to say, in low class nightclubs they hire girls to stand around the tables and encourage the men to drink more.

The beer bottles were filled with pineapple juice; seemingly just the right fizz and colour!

There were men dressed up as gulf Arabs, with some of the Russian girls sitting at tables too.

On stage, the band was all set up. Turns out there were the musicians from the Mena house hotel. They were good. Well, good at their job anyway. When the director called action they first time, the poor men didn’t really know what to do, so they started the introduction to a song..... ‘no no no, cried the director, we need to go straight into the middle of the music’, ok, they said... but they still missed their ‘action’ cue again. From then on, the director called equivalent of ‘lights, camera, musiqa’ so that the band started on time! It was obviously the first time for them to do something like this too!

I was told to stand in the centre on the stage, a fabulous catwalk style stage so I had tables all around me, and ‘just dance’. I didn’t get to request the song, or even know what it was going to be before I started... ‘Just dance’.

Thank God I am not a choreography type of dancer! I only ever improvise in any of my performance although then of course I know the music because I have chosen it! However, I am always up for this sort of a challenge!

We did maybe only four takes in total, with different camera angles. The actors, both famous, but for the life of me I couldn’t tell you their names, other than one is the son of the most famous actor in Egypt, Adel Emam, had to come up onto stage and throw  (pretend) money over my head. It was a strange experience for me, because although this is the custom in cabarets in Egypt, in the years I have worked here I have never worked in a place like that! Should I look at the actors, at the camera, at the ‘audience’, I had no idea and no one gave me any direction. When I asked.. I was told, don’t look at the camera, and just do what you are doing, it’s perfect!

Certainly when they were all looking at the playback on the monitors they were lots of lovely comments from them about me (they hadn’t realised that Ellie and I could understand what they were saying about me, but thankfully it was all positive, about how good I looked, very Egyptian,  and danced and how perfect it all was!). When I had a look on the screen I got excited too- it looked so professional, with all the lights and camera angles! I had caught the bug- I loved doing this- it was so much fun!!!

In fact, when Ahmed came to me and said, ok you can change now, they are finished, i was most upset! I wanted to stay more and dance more!

At the time I didn’t know any of the story line or even the name of the production or whether it was going to be in cinemas or TV! They wouldn’t tell me any of it!

I never knew what a huge thing it actually was... maybe that was just as well!

It was part of a TV drama, ‘Fer2et Nagy Atallah’, due to be run throughout Ramadan and starred Adel Emam and his son amongst others. It was shown on every channel in Egypt and I played the part of a dancer in Syria, seemingly!

One of the channels, channel 1, took out the dance scene, since seemingly that channel is owned by the Muslim brotherhood? Not sure whether that is correct, but that is what I was told!

They used my dance scene the night before as the taster for the next day’s episode, so I was on everywhere,over those two days, so I am told. It was very exciting, both filming it and then receiving all the messages from people in Cairo who were watching it. I spent the day going around Edinburgh telling people- I am on TV today in Cairo... I was so chuffed! I managed to get someone in Cairo to record it and send it to me so i could see what they had edited in and out... and it looked good. They kept in a lot more veil work that i had actually done, they obviously really liked that stuff! The ending was really sharp too. Granted it doesn’t show off a lot of my dancing, but enough so you feel i really do know what i am doing. I did post it up onto youtube, but it was unfortunately blocked due to copy right within a few hours! i am uploading it here... hope this doesn't get blocked too and you get to view it!

 

When I returned to Cairo last week after Eid, all the people whose first comments were ‘you were on TV with Adel Emam!!!!’ Not strictly true, since he wasn’t in the scene we were filming- but he was there on the day! All my friends were coming up to me telling me I had been on TV. I think it was almost as exciting for them as it had been for me! Almost enough to make a girls head swell!

One of my Cairo dreams was to have a dance role in Egyptian film. Tick!

Except now it has whetted my appetite for more......

Anyone out there need a bellydancer for their tv/film...?!!!

Sunshine in Leith!

The lovely Norma Bain in Edinburgh has shared these photos of my night at Mimi's which yes, is in Leith, and has agreed that i can share them with you too.............. You can see perfectly in these what i mean by the sunshine acting like a spotlight on me while i was dancing!!!

Not so sure about the facial expression i am pulling here- but the costume looks good.....

Ah yes- me in my civvies... and all those wonderful cakes... not that I got a chance to sit and eat really... but that was my choice... I just wanted to dance and dance!!!!!!!!!!!!

Krys in Kent

When I danced in Kent, I was lucky enough to have the fabulous portrait photogrpaher, Krystyna Fitzgerald-Morris as a guest. Thank you so much Krys for these- I love them all!!! You can check out her work at www.krysphotos.co.uk

 This one HAD to be included for comedy value!!! Captions welcome!!!

Me and the girls...........

Crazy ladies...........................!!!!

Swansea shots!

In Wales this weekend we were lucky enough to have Ant Howell at our hafla, a wonderful photographer... here are some of my fav shots he took (mainly of me!!) . There are quite a few because I found it really hard to choose which not to include!! Thanks Ant !!!

Yes - this is me dancing on a chair in front of a bar!!!

These next shots i couldn't resist. Farhana did the most amazing Henna I have ever seen.....

Look at the concentration on Zag's face as she works.... !!

Photos from Edinburgh show

I am blessed when I do my UK performances by meeting people who really know what to do with a camera... here a a few of the shots taken in my Edinburgh show... which was an afternoon tea party - but in the evening! The sun appeared just as i started to dance and it was like I had a spotlight on me!

Thanks to Elspeth for organising the night for me at such a lovely venue (mimi's cafe!)

here is a lovely photo that Caroline took, shows the cakes,and the sunshine both off to perfection;

and thanks to James Campbell in Edinbugh for the following shots;

Wiggles in Wales

This weekend I flew down to Wales to perform and teach there in Swansea. I have been to Wales as a kid... but not since, and i can’t really remember much about it, so I consider this my first trip there.

I loved it.

The people were all so lovely and friendly to me. I have so many interesting conversations and lots of people asking about the politics of Egypt just now and where bellydance stand in the middle of all of that. I told them my hopes, fears and prayers and we are all just waiting to see what will happen in that, and everything, since Morsi has become president. ‘Hanshuf’ (we will see)

Sophie was the host for the whole weekend. I hadn’t seen her for years but had met again in Cairo and she used to come to my dance classes at Edinburgh University, long before I moved to Cairo. On Friday, I was collected at Cardiff airport by Sophie’s other half, Aram, who is Kurdish. I am totally ignorant of the Kurdish language, music and dance and we talked about lots of interesting things on the journey to Swansea. It was like home (Egypt) watching the way he interacted with his friends... driving into a carwash owned by other Kurds and just getting out the car, helping them wash some cars, in return they helped him wash his, then we drove away. We also were given the best chicken shawerma, free through his connections! A friendship barter service, filtering into professional and personal lives. It was lovely and friendly and although I see it often in interactions between Moroccans, Iraqis, Egyptians etc living in UK, it is not something that the Brits tend to do.

It is not that we don’t help our friends, of course we do, but we usually wait to be asked for help, not wanting to offend someone by suggesting that they can’t handle something on their own., Or we offer help but seldom just roll up our sleeves and do things. We usually keep ourselves to ourselves. For instance, if I was having a problem financially, I would go to the bank to get a loan, which would then cost me even more, since I would have to pay interest; however that would still be preferable in my eyes and culture than going to my friends or even my parents and asking to borrow from them. My thinking would be, ‘It is my problem, and I need to get myself out of it’. When I have discussed this idea with Egyptians they are shocked, especially at the idea that I wouldn’t go first to my family. For them, it is normal, if you have money in your pocket to happily give it to friends, because you know eventually when you are having issues, you can go to them and they will help you. It is not even a, borrow now and pay back a week on Friday type arrangement, it is more than often an open ended loan! I can’t help feeling that in this in many ways, assuming no one takes advantage and everyone acts with a high moral code, that this is the ideal way to be, since then the money is in the place it is most needed all the time rather than sitting building up in one place and not helping anyone.  Of course, that is the crux of the matter isn’t it- the assumption that everyone will act in a ‘good’ way.

Anyway- I digress.... belly dancing in Wales...

The hafla on the Friday night was extremely enjoyable. I saw some lovely dancing and met a lot of very friendly interesting people. There was even a man there who had recently taken up tabla, and at the end of my show I had everyone clapping a beat for me to continue dancing to, and persuaded him to get out his drum and join in, he was nervous but did it. I have to say- I was very impressed when I learned he had only been doing it for 6 weeks!!! We had a wonderful night and although numbers could have been better, we were aware we were competing with the rare Welsh sunshine and also the opening night of the Olympics. So all in all- I would class the night as a huge success.

 One woman, bless her, was in tears after my dance and took me aside to thank me for reminding her how much she loved dance. She had been involved in the UK bellydance scene and then given up dancing because she had felt she had been up against people who all took things too much to heart, that is was becoming bitchy and that had spoilt her enjoyment of the dance itself. She told me that my dancing had reminded her what it was all about, and supposed to be about, and that she was going to start dancing again. I was sad to hear her reasons to quit in the first place- but very happy to be part of her returning since she has a lot of talent and would be a shame to waste it especially when she loved it so much.

 I wish everyone involved in dance, wherever they are in the world, could remember, that even when it is our job, our profession, and even when there is competition for jobs, that by putting other people down, or spreading gossip about other dancers, all you do is create a ‘them and us’ type atmosphere which is excluding to many people and means no one gets to experience the pure joy that dance can and should bring! Be nice ladies!!! Soapbox moment over....

The workshops were a huge hit. The largest number turnout on the tour so far and it was like standing in front of a room of sponges... they took everything I threw at them. It was impressive to see a difference in people’s dance even just after the first two hours! I was asked more than once if I would please move to Wales and people were only pacified when I agreed to come back soon! One woman told me that in her training as a teacher, she  had always been told that a good teacher does not actually teach, but rather guides people into learning and discovering for themselves. She said that this in particular was what she loved most about my workshops, that I was generous and it had been obvious to her that I wasn’t holding back anything from them, but i also wasn’t spoon-feeding them. I agree a lot of what I cover in my workshops works the brain as much as the body!

I really love dancing in Egypt. It is my dream come true. My own band, Egyptian audiences, being part of the culture. Sometimes however I really miss these human connections and sense of appreciation I feel when I dance outside of Egypt and also reward when I help people progress in their own dance. In Egypt people there are impressed at the foreigner who dances like an Egyptian. In this UK tour so far I have felt that people are impressed that one of their own dances like an Egyptian- but also can teach it in their own language, with cultural references that help them understand how they too can dance like an Egyptian. Anyway- what I am saying is... I love both!

On Saturday night my friends took me to a sheesha club. Because smoking indoors is illegal in UK, private clubs have formed where, for amembership fee, you can go and join other likeminded people for a puff on a sheesha pipe. It was ‘another world’ type experience. One minute I was in a French restaurant, eating frogs legs (as one does) and next I was in a street in Swansea and then I was in a Bedouin tent surrounded by Turks and Kurds and various Arabs all of us watching Arabic TV and smoking sheesha and largely speaking in Arabic. After that we were in what seemed to be a gay club dancing to funk and disco! All of those cultures and experiences in one evening! It was fantastic!

All in all, I loved my weekend in Wales and am really looking forward to organising another one as soon as we can! Thank you to all, especially Sophie and her family, for making me so welcome and showing me how lovely Swansea and the people there can be!

Kent and Cambridge

forgive me...only just publishing last weeks weekend review... never mind having written this weekend in wales (which was fabulous....) here goes;

Kent and Cambridge

It is really quite lovely how excited some of the women in the UK bellydance scene get about coming to a show or doing workshops with a ‘real Cairo Star’ (their words, not mine!!!). In one workshop it was really hard to get people to respond at first, which is not a problem I usually ever have, so I couldn’t understand it. Then their teacher told me there were a little overawed at having their first workshop with an ‘International teacher’.  I laughed out loud and told her to tell them not to be so silly... I may live and work in Cairo, but I am just me, Lorna from Scotland!!

This weekend I was hosted by two lovely dancers, who are also lovely people, Ann Hall in Kent and Emma Chapman in Cambridge.

In UK these days there are so many bellydance events here, there and everywhere that I am always very grateful when people who haven’t hosted me before take a ‘risk’ and do so. Thankfully, as yet, they have never been disappointed and have always asked me back again. I hope I am not tempting fate by saying that when I still have 5 out of my 8 tour cities to go, although I am fairly confident since I know that one of the Manchester workshops  on 4^th August had sold out by last week! Fingers crossed for this coming weekend which will be my first time in Wales and thank you in advance to the host there, Sophie Smith who is hosting for her first time ever, in order to get me there (book your places at the workshops and halfa in Swansea now if you haven’t already!!!)

Back to Kent. On Friday night Ann had organised for me to perform at Mandaloun, a lovely Lebanese restaurant in Rochester. I really recommend it! The private function venue was lovely but strange, it was a vault which felt like being in someone’s wine cellar, or inside the intestine of a large animal! It was just perfect for the 48, mainly, women, who came along to partake of the very generous deal the restaurant owner, Joseph, gave us. This is obviously a clever man who understands how to best advertise his venue. Tickets were £25 per head, which included the show (me!) and a 3 course meal (I swear some of the best Arabic food I have ever tasted anywhere in the world, especially the baba ghanoug) AND all drinks included. Alcohol or otherwise!!! Can you imagine? What a fun night!!! 

As I went round at the start of the evening, introducing myself to people and chatting I realised that a lot of people were interested in the same things about my life in Cairo, so I asked Ann’s permission, which was happily given, to do a wee 10 minutes talk about my life in Cairo before we even started the dancing. It is lovely to see so much interest for the country I have chosen to live in. Not just about the dance and trying to imagine the rollercoaster lifestyle of a dancer there, but also about the politics, specifically since revolution and the election of a Muslim brotherhood president. Thank you Kent ladies for making it such an enjoyable night! Most of the time I couldn’t even hear the music because the clapping was so supportively enthusiastic!! Fun.

Cambridge is a stunning city. Especially when seen in the sunshine! My train arrived in early so Emma showed me the college she had attended, and also where she had gotten married! It was like stepping into a film set. Young pretty girls wearing flowery summer dresses were everywhere, cycling on their bicycles which had wicker baskets on the front! It was all very quintessentially English, and beautiful. Since it was a stunning day, between the 2 workshops we went out to sit in the sunshine and then I discovered that Emma had previously suggested to her ladies that we picnic on the grass and people had come prepared with food to share and picnic blankets and everything! It was lovely, as was the sampling of the locally made cider after the workshops had ended!

I loved teaching all four workshops I did this weekend. It is always very interesting to see how people interpret the music differently and how they respond to the ideas I throw at them! It feels too much like blowing my own trumpet to write how good they were... but maybe if I am lucky then some of the ladies who attended my workshops will add their comments to this blog entry so you can see how they felt about them, and hopefully they liked them! Emma did, and has already written a blog entry about them which you can see at www.emmabellydancer.co.uk . Thanks Emma!!

Heading back to Edinburgh now... will be performing there on Thursday night, in a lovely wee venue where I will be dancing whilst my audience enjoy Cairo style afternoon tea..... i.e.  Cake and sandwiches, but in the evening rather than the afternoon! Really looking forward to it, I just hope there will be space enough to swing my stick around!!!

Customer Service

This was written last week- but the tour is so hectic i am only getting a chance to publish it now!!!

I am on a train... comfortably making my way from London to Edinburgh. But only just!

I missed my 9.30am train by 0.28 seconds!!!!

Thankfully the lovely lady who is head crew of the 10am saw my distress and told me that the ticket office would endorse my ticket for her train...........

 I didn’t even know they could do that- but seemingly if you have a good enough reason they will.

The ticket office man wasn’t very convinced by my surprise that the journey in the tube took so much longer than I expected it to. He has fair point; I should have left more time. Hindsight is a wonderful thing! However, in my defence, the blister on my hand from pulling around a heavy case on the tube and the fact that my phone was a good 5 minutes behind time were also major factors!

Thankfully, eventually, he agreed to take pity on me and the lovely lady was waiting on the platform for me and sorted out storing my huge case and pointed out where the best available seats were too, so I have a window, table seat, with a plug point!!

Helpful, friendly service. Staff that just wants to make their customers happy, not for a tip or any sort of selfish reason.

UK may have a long way still to go in terms of friendly customer service, if you compare it to the USA that is... but compared to Egypt it was like fresh air.

There are good and bad everywhere, I know that. I also know that if I missed a train or bus in Egypt, unless the man behind the desk took a shine to me, or to my wallet, then the chances of a free, new ticket are very unlikely!!! Also I find a common problem in Cairo is people only looking at their own tiny section of the overall service. So a waiter in a restaurant, for instance, might not take your drinks order, or empty plate when passing and may well even ignore you if you are sitting in an area that is not ‘his’.

I sound fairly disgruntled with Cairo just now, don’t I? I am a bit. No specific reason but I guess it just seems to me to be harder and harder living there. Maybe it’s me, getting weary after nearly 7 years living there, but I am not the only person I know who feels that the city is changing, especially since the revolution, and unfortunately not for the better.

Then again, in Cairo it wouldn’t be 17degress and raining in July!

(Although... to be fair- it is 30 degrees and sunny in London- mind you, in London you have to pay £10 for a sheesha!)

Where am I going to...?

... I hardly know myself!!!

This time last week I was in Cairo, watching the news daily to find out what new wonders will unfold under a muslim brotherhood presidency...

Now I am in a lovely house in London planning the weekend of workshops and shows and dodging the rain, but more about the weather later!

At the weekend I was dancing in Newcastle (Newcastle Northern Ireland that is..not England!!.) for an Egyptian/Irish wedding (which was amazing fun, Thank you Laura and Garhy for inviting me to perform for you and your guests!). On the sunday I was teaching a 3 hour workshop in Belfast to a dance thirsty bunch of bellydancers... by the end I had them stick swinging with glee and walking like drag queens....... you just had to be there! As the Irish would say.. it was great crack!

Over the next week I will be in Kent Friday 20th for a performance; http://www.facebook.com/events/358380127568823/?ref=ts

and again in Kent on Saturday 21st for 2 workshops;
http://www.facebook.com/events/148342581956601/

and then Cambridge on Sunday 22nd for workshops;
http://www.facebook.com/events/363788480341922/

then I have a day in London to recover (available for private classes- just email me! bellylorna@hotmail.com )

then off to Edinburgh for a Performance up there on Thursday 26th July
(contact Elspethswishandhips@hotmail.com for all the info- lets just say- if you like cake, and bellydance- then this evening is for you!!)

and then Wales....... but that can wait til the next blog entry! otherwise i will confuse myself too!

In other, non PR related, news..............

It has been interesting being back in Uk for a few days. The weather is yucky of course, not too much rain but not exactly sunny either. I had forgotten what it was like to hang about a supermarket doorway hoping for the rain to ease off a little before the walk home with heavy shopping bags. (A huge plus in Cairo is of course in addition to sunshine almost everyday, it is free and easy to get your shopping delivered to your door at no extra cost!) Talking about money; the cost for getting around on the tube for a day is much more than taxi's everywhere in cairo! I miss that from a financial aspect.. but then the freedom to do everything and not have hassle is amazing too!

As I got out the tube this evening with my lepoard suitcases... wearing my lepoard jacket and mini skirt...(Just call me Bet Lynch)  the taxi driver leaned out his window and said... 'Ya assel, Ya mozza'.... actually, no he didn't ....  I am lying.

He did comment though.....  He shouted- ' hey miss- everything matches!!'  I could hardly disagree, nor stop myself from laughing out loud with relief!

What a difference to be able to smile and laugh with people, in airports, shops, you name it, without being frightened. In Egypt, often that would be only asking for trouble. So sad how it has become for women there, and almost all the noticable change has been since the revolution. I really hope that everything settles politically there so important issues such as human rights, never mind women's rights, can begin to be addressed ....

.. right... now I have to get back into some workshop planning........ chat more soon!

Saaidi, Saidi, Sa'idi

However you spell it... the music and dance from Upper Egypt is by far my favourite at the moment!

This morning I have been putting together my 'Wild Saidi' workshop for my upcoming UK tour.

I honestly hadn't realised how much I have blended the oriental and folkloric styles together to create a style and moves that are 100% me!

I am not one to boast ever about my accomplishments...in fact my friends often tell me I should stop putting myself down!...  However, today i will blow my own trumpet a little...  I honestly believe I have something really good to offer to any dancer who wants to learn how to put saidi dancing into their oriental show in a new and exciting way.

That does just sound like a plug for my workshops (and yes it is too... details below...!) but actually it was a bit of an eye opener for me today and i just wanted to share it ... I am loving dance right now and it feels GOOD!

I will be teaching 'Wild Saidi' in the following UK cities;

Swansea- 28th July   bellydancesophie@hotmail.com
Manchester- 4th Aug   www.tasteofcairo.com
London- 11th Aug   www.bellylorna.com
Edinburgh 18th Aug   swishandhips@hotmail.co.uk 

Anywhere I am teaching 'Lorna style and technique' will get a wee saidi section in there too!!!  (Belfast, Kent, Cambridge, Bristol tbc, )

Looking forward to swinging my stick with you all...

Lovely graphic design with arabic script from YOUF studios

A good friend of mine here in Cairo, Youssef, has started his own graphic design business... He has designed a lovely logo for me out of my name in arabic...

Nice huh?!!!

If you are interested in finding out what he could design for you.... (whether you are a dancer or not!) then have a look at his facebook page to see some of the other things he has done and 'like' his page!

http://www.facebook.com/youfstudios

Noisy recycling in Cairo!

This morning I was woken by lots of banging going on......... at 9.30am. Now that might not seem early to you- but when my usual bedtime is somewhere between 3am and 5am, it is very early!

The building directly opposite mine is being demolished. They have made impressive progress in one day... and what is interesting is the salvaging that is going on. All the steel rods that used to hold the cement floors together and being picked out the rubble by hand and straightened by hand and set aside. I guess to be used again or sold. I can’t imagine that being done in UK, but there I guess the cost of labour might offset any value of the materials there. Egyptians are great at recycling, although not the type that involves you separating out your household waste, that all gets gathered together and some family somewhere sit around a huge mound of rubbish and separate it by hand. The amount of ‘old’ ‘broken’ things that get fixed or reused for the same or for a new purpose will never fail to impress me!

The workers ripping this building apart are wearing ship ship (flip flops!). I can’t imagine that adhering to health and safety rules either!

Seemingly all the neighbours’ biggest complaint is that their cars are covered in dust now. I would just like to point out... what’s new??!

So, from the rods used to hold the building cement together- to the techniques a dancer uses to connect her moves together... now I am sitting in a peaceful cafe (well- not very peaceful when the TV has football on, but better than drilling!) structuring some of my upcoming workshops for the UK! The gentle bubble of the sheesha pipe is making me think of shimmys!!

Workshops in Wales

One of the lovely things about travelling around doing workshops is the chance to make new friends and catch up with old ones...

The girl organising my upcoming workshops in Wales (sophie) used to attend my bellydance classes when I taught at Edinburgh University! It's going to be lovely to see her again after all this time and i am really looking forward to the whole weekend!

If you are in Wales (or near it!) see you there..............

Dates for your summer Diary!

My Summer tour dates.

If you are in UK this summer, and want to either see me dance, take a workshop with me or have a private class here is where i will be.

For private classes please contact me via email bellylorna@hotmail.com

There are still lots of details TBC in the listing below- but i wanted you to have the dates now- so you can plan!


BELFAST - Sunday 15th July- workshop 1-4pm
contact info@jeweldancers.com

KENT - Friday 20th July- Performance
Saturday 21st - Workshops
contact ann@medinabellydance.com

CAMBRIDGE- Sunday 22nd July- workshops 12-2pm and 3-5pm
contact http://www.emmabellydancer.co.uk/workshops.html

EDINBURGH - Thursday 26th July - Performance-TBC
contact swishandhips@hotmail.co.uk

SWANSEA - Saturday 28th July- workshops and Performance
contact bellydancesophie@hotmail.com

BRISTOL - Sunday 29th July - workshop-TBC
contact bellylorna@hotmail.com

MANCHESTER - Saturday 4th August - workshops and performance
Sunday 5th August- private classes in Manchester
contact hello@tasteofcairo.com

LONDON - Friday 10th August- Performance TBC
Saturday 11th August- workshops 11-1pm and 2-4pm
Sunday 12th August- workshop 12-2pm
contact bellylorna@hotmail.com

EDINBURGH - Saturday 18th August - workshops
contact swishandhips@hotmail.co.uk

GLASGOW - Sunday 19th August- performance at Nur

From Sunshine to showers?!

I have just today returned from 4 wonderful relaxing days in Sharm, filled by sunshine and smiling.

I need to get out of Cairo more often. The busy city does gets under your skin when you are constantly involved... the noise and pollution and stress wears you down, in fact, time by a pool was just what the doctor ordered. I loved every second of the trip. Plus it was amazing to get a chance to spend quality time with my cousin and her little girl who had come over for a week. I do really miss my family in Scotland, although I suspect living away from my home country means that when I get the chance to see them then we all appreciate the time together even more!

The next week is going to be the rev up though to my UK tour... 5 weeks, teaching and performing all over Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales! I am excited and nervous at the same time! Although I am very scared about all the weather reports coming from UK just now... rain rain rain? really???

If you read my blog on a regular basis but are not going to be in the UK this summer... I will apologise now for the next few blog entries- which will most certainly be mainly (if not totally) concerned with advertising my whereabouts this summer! I promise I will dot in interesting excepts about 'Cairo versus UK'  throughout the summer too!!!!

so- the advertising begins.... not in alphabetical order, nor date order nor in any other preference really just because I am sharing all the flyers that have been made for the upcoming tour! here goes...MANCHESTER...............

my new website...

I've got a new website......!

It is still a work in progress.... but the main thing is that it has all the information for my upcoming tour in UK this summer (July/August).

www.bellylorna.com

Feedback welcome! As are Bookings for my workshops !!!
Also there are opportunities for private classes, at very reasonable rates...

I will be 'appearing' in the following locations;

Belfast
Kent
Cambridge
Swansea
Bristol (TBC)
Manchester
London
Edinburgh
Glasgow


So, for the 1st time ever i will be teaching and performing in all 4 nations! Hope to see you there!

Muslim Brotherhood’s Morsi; Egypt’s President

OK- so I do not intend to write a big journalistic blog entry, despite yesterday being one of the momentous in the history of Egypt. Lets see how I get on...

In case you have been holed up in a cave somewhere- and this is the 1^st thing you see online- Morsi, the Muslim Brotherhoods candidate has won the presidential elections in Egypt and will be sworn into office, this coming Saturday, 30^th June.

Literally within 4 minutes of the announcement of the results (which I watching avidly on tv, twitter and facebook all at the same time!!)  I received a message on msn from a dancer in China, panicking. She was concerned that an Islamist president would instantly ban bellydance in Egypt. Seeing all the reactions on facebook, from people all over the world, including people here in Cairo, it seems like this is the common assumption. That and the fear from my friends and family that somehow, instantly, Cairo had turned into a dangerous place to be for me, a foreign, non-muslim, female bellydancer.

Is the worry a valid one? Yes, it is a possibility. I would be lying if I haven’t had a few teary moments over the past 18 months frightened for the future of my livelihood and my art. There is a risk that the worst of people’s fears may come true. That dance would be banned. That alcohol would be banned. That bikini’s would be banned. That strict dress codes for women will be enforced, etc etc etc .They are all possible. However I personally feel they are extremely unlikely. Certainly not in the near future, if at all. Why not?

First of all, after 18 months of disruption, at a time when there is a world recession, Egypt’s economy is not strong. Tourism is one of the country’s biggest sources of income, and employment. To damage any of the sectors which service tourism would be suicide for a president who I presume would like to stay in office. 22 million people work in tourism. That is more votes than either Shafiq or Morsi won in these elections. In fact, it is close to the actual total number of votes in the whole of Egypt for these presidential elections (just under 26 million)!

Secondly, there is a chance that Morsi will not remain as president for the full 4 year term. Why not? read Sandmonkey’s blog entry with all his reasoning behind this. http://www.sandmonkey.org/  I do not know enough about politics to pass much comment. But the logic seems sound and level headed, so I am going with it!

So, my thinking is this; Morsi may be Brotherhood, but he has committed to serving ALL people. That was in his initial speech yesterday. He will absolutely have his hands too full trying to bring the country back into some sort of balanced economy to worry about us dancers. He may not even be there for long enough to deal with a fraction of what he has to anyway.

I am not an expert in any way. These are my own personal hopes and musings.

When the result was announced that he won last night, my heart and stomach both moved drastically at the same time. My emotions were split since I, like most people I spoke to, did not want either of them. We were all convinced that if Shafiq got in, then there would have been riots and a lot of bloodshed in the streets last night. I am incredibly relieved that this didn’t happen.  Also, if Shafiq got in, then it seemed to be commonly felt around the world that it would be a step backwards in the democratic process, since we all heard the numbers coming from the polling stations last week and since he was seen as being (rightly or wrongly) the puppet of SCAF.

However, I wasn’t exactly backing Morsi, since the truth is; we just don’t know whether he will aim for a more secular unified Egypt or whether his religious duties (as he might see it) could overly influence his political ones.

So, in summary, we do not know what the future holds. It is not certain at all whether people in my industry will suffer at all. Time will tell. People have become politically aware in the last 18 months at an amazing rate. As long as the people now do not sit back and just revert to being sheep, as long as they continue to question and confront what is happening in their own country then there is still hope that Egypt has a bright future.

At the risk of upsetting some people I would like to say this.

I do not feel religion and politics should be mixed. They are different systems in place for different things. As long as Egypt new president remembers that he is there to help his people live, rather than tell them how to live, then everything will be ok!

Inshallah.

So,

Should you come to Egypt on holiday? YES.

 Should we continue to love and enjoy and learn it’s fabulous art form that is bellydance? YES

Do I feel personally safe? YES (if I didn’t I would move!)

Do I fear the worst? YES (although my fear is more about prejudices in the street rather than legislative in connection with work. I am concerned that the ’uneducated’ man might try to turn Egypt into their own islamist country, starting with covering their women and harassing the ones who refuse. Women’s rights in Egypt really are at an all time low )

Despite that, do I try and focus on the good and hope, YES

Does this answer or create more questions for people interested in Egypt and in particular for dance in Egypt?- you tell me......

My Worried Wait.............

So, this is a first for me.

I have never been so nervous for the result of an election before. I am exhausted, it’s been a long hot day... but I can’t take my eyes off twitter. Every time an areas vote has been counted they get posted there.

I’ve never been so interested in politic before in my life. Quite frankly, living most my life in UK, I had never really thought there was much of a muchness between parties. Not so in Egypt now.

Here in Egypt we are all holding our breaths, waiting to find out if we will have a Muslim Brotherhood leader- Mursi, or the 'old regime' favourite , Shafiq.

The race does seem very close- although most areas at the moment I am writing this (nearly 3am) seem to be in Mursi's favour.

These past 18 months have seen so much. I have no idea what the future holds. I cannot even begin to imagine... only fear.

Me, along with most people in the country. Both sides in their campaigns used fear tactics against the opposite side to the point that it is really hard to know what truth, if any is, and what the rumours. My Tabal tonight told me not to worry; it is all in God's hands and whatever the outcome it is for the best. At stressful times like these, I guess faith is the main fall back- so if Mursi is to win due to that, then no one can really be surprised.

Whoever crosses that finishing line tomorrow? I am fairly confident that it won’t really be the finish- but only just the starting line.

Whether Egypt becomes with Shafiq an army run country ( with even more powers than it had in Mubarak’s 'reign' due to new legislation announced only tonight once the results had started to come in) or whether the head of the country is Mursi, part of who's campaign announced that if you vote Mursi you are voting for God and for Islam (which must be a hard argument to vote against unless you are really convinced that religion and politics should not be confused ), the times ahead are bound to be very interesting.

Everyone I know within Tourism and Entertainment voted Shafiq. Whether it will come to pass or not, they are scared that if Mursi gets in he will 'stop all the fun'. No more bellydance, alcohol nightclubs, live music.... a huge list of bans of which these distractions will be merely that, a distraction.

This is still a risk. I just have to hope for my own sake, and for all those who I live beside and work beside, that, no matter who gets voted in by morning, does what is truly best for Egypt.

In my heart of hearts I cannot believe that controlling and restricting people can make a country grow. I am perhaps naive and foolish. I worry. In fact those who know me well, say that worry is my permanent state of being. Just now I am worried right down to my nail beds.

Forgive me this worried waffle......( and thank you for reading thus far!!) .... it is strange writing it in all my uncertainties , knowing that at least part of this will be history before most people get to read it.

By the time you are reading this we probably already know who will be Egypt's next president. (Only probably because in the last 18 months in particular I have come to realise you really can’t take anything for granted).

What we won't know, not for a while.... will be the actual real effects that this choice will bring to us all.

I have to try to sleep now - Tomorrow will bring what it may. 'Hanshuf' (we will see)

nb.- Before I get more sarcastic comments from 'Anonymous'; I am not a journalist. I am not pretending to be. I am a woman, a dancer, who has chosen Egypt as her home for the last 6 years because I love so many things about this amazing country cultures and its people. My fears are partly selfish, which is only human (I am human!) but I know how lucky I am. I also know I have the choice to leave if that is what I would decide to do, if things were to get bad. If my job was to suddenly be banned for instance. My fears are also however, with the Egyptians who don’t have the same choices or freedoms as I do in my life.

I hope my Tabal is right......................