4 Unsolved Egyptian Mysteries

[DJKeefy]

Phenomena that no one can explain...

Egypt is a country of a great many mysteries, some of which we really can't quite wrap our heads around. They are the greatest unsolved mysteries of our time really...



1. The Mutant Pinky Phenomenon

There is a phenomenon amongst a certain sector of Egyptian males in the country of growing out one's pinkie nail to a freakishly unnatural length. MEN SHOULD NOT GROW OUT PINKIE NAILS. Scientists (and by scientists, we mean us) have yet to conclusively get to the heart of the purpose of this growth. Many theories and opinions attempting to explain this phenomenon have been offered, but no one can seem to agree. Some of the more popular ones we've come across are: mechanics, drivers and the like allegedly have it to screw and unscrew screws and such. This theory seems unfounded because any girl can tell you that so much as struggling to open the wrapper of a water bottle can cause nail breakage. We imagine that turning a metal screw would cause similar damage. A couple other goodies are that they use it to pull a cigarette from a pack of Cleopatra's, to turn the page or to stir their 2ahwa, but really, does one need a mutant fingernail to do any of the above? We've all managed just fine without one. The most popular assumption is that it is a tool for picking one's nose and ears, but we have yet to find a reliable source to confirm this. Surely they can buy cotton buds to clean out their ears. When asked, these pinkie-wielding men of the country will vehemently deny this so it makes it hard for us to really know… Another theory is that they use it to pick locks. If that's the case, then we here at the CairoScene office will be growing out our pinkies so we can start a breaking and entering spree…We could use a little injection of cash. But seeing as there is a general lack of consensus on this issue, numerous theories have been presented but none unanimously agreed upon, if anyone out there has any further insight on this very important matter, kindly enlighten us. Thanks!


2. The Heterosexual 2angaja Tendency

There is a common tendency amongst many a male in our population, to walk arm in arm. Instead of strolling in a nice, heterosexual manner down the Corniche, with the normal human six inches of space between each other, as God intended platonic friends to walk, they instead opt to walk me2angajeen – arms linked and happily bouncing down the street like it's the most natural thing in the world. It’s not. The confusion, the mystery really, is that in a country that's rife with raging homophobia, it seems odd that two men linking arms while they walk would be common practice. We mean, it really couldn’t get any gayer if they tried. If the men of our nation are so damn afraid/horrified by homosexuality then how do they justify walking like a gay couple? This act of 2angaja really suggests a degree of gayness that far surpasses that of the most flamboyant gay person we know. Ok, so that may not be entirely true, but it's pretty damn gay. Yet another unsolved mystery. We'll stop one of these couples sometime and ask.


3. The 'B' and 'P' Switcheroo

Another thing that confounds us to our core is the Egyptian swapping of a 'b' for a 'p'. We would understand if, due to the Arabic nature of our speech, the majority of Egyptians couldn't pronounce the 'p' sound, much like those pesky foreigners can never seem to master the '7a' sound. We mean, we are nothing if not understanding. But the pickle here is, they can pronounce the 'p' sound. They just decide to swap it around. Bebsi. Pikini. Why? Why? We need a nationwide refresher course in this.


4. The Racism Ramifications

Despite the fact that we are essentially considered brown on the race spectrum, we still manage to be supremely racist. We thought that right was reserved for humans of the Caucasian variety but apparently not. It's not a right exactly, it's actually a hugely negative thing, but the question is how can so many Egyptians be racist against black people if we are just a few shades lighter? And not always that many shades lighter in many circumstances. Just to be entirely clear, if the politically incorrect term for African Americans is n****s then FYI we are sand n*****s, which officially puts us both in the same category, essentially rendering our racism towards 'el sood' a real ******* mystery to us.

Source: http://www.cairoscene.com/ViewArticle.aspx?AId=2672

[Dusak]

... and one of the biggest sellers in the pharmaceutical shops for woman's cosmetics is skin bleach chemicals to get them whiter than we are. Perhaps they are racist and want to be pinko's.

[Dusak]

... and one of the biggest sellers in the pharmaceutical shops for woman's cosmetics is skin bleach chemicals to get them whiter than we are. Perhaps they are racist and want to be pinko's.

[carrie]

I think that one of the attractions for Egyptian men are the pale skins of European women. There was the most beautiful black girl who lived here from the Sudan, very intellegent very well dressed, what my Mum would have described as "looking classy" but she was black. When I said to an Egyptian that she was gorgeous he replied "she's black" and they certainly want to marry girls with as light a skin as possible hence the sale of Light and Lovely.
The number of times I have asked do you know so and so and been asked do you mean him with the black face, amazment follows when I say I didn't notice. I don't really think it is racism but a throw back to the time that anyone with a darker skin was seen a worker in the field a fellaheen, much the same as in Europe the upper classes kept their big hats on and their parasols to prevent the sun from tainting their skin, only relatively recently has a tan been seen as attractive.
Thought the article great. Amusing and thought provoking.

[Scottishtourist]

The long pinkie nail?
Maybe they don't own a credit card or have access to bank notes!I'm sure I read somewhere that a long fingernail can be used for "scooping"up cocaine for snorting and was specifically grown for that purpose.

On the issue of colour,maybe it's a case of "vive la difference."
I always consider white skin to be a bit bland and boring!It's just "white."Never dark white or light white..just white!
That's why I like to lie in the sun and get a tan.I consider darker skin more exotic and am fascinated by the myriad of skin colours I see in Luxor...from the very "light"dark to the "blackest"black.
I consider the Egyptians a handsome race.

As I've mentioned before,my dearest friends in Luxor are a married couple.He is very dark skinned and she is a bit lighter.Their 3 children are all have different skin tones and are beautiful.
Their wedding photos are (to my eye)rather strange.Her face is almost "white"in them.She looks beautiful,almost ethereal...but that is not her real colouring!

Her hubby makes no bones of the fact that he likes light skin and there is a lot of good natured teasing about it.He maintains that all Egyptians should marry European women in order to have lighter skinned babies!He just laughs and splutters in disbelief when I tell him that I consider darker skin more exciting,exotic and mysterious!He just can't understand it at all!

Thankfully,his lovely wife understands his sense of humour..and like most wives do with their husbands..she just laughs at his ideas and teases him mercilessly about them!

[Chocolate Eclair]

Don't think you need to have white skin to be attractive to an Egyptian man, it all in the handbag and nothing else!!!

[Glyphdoctor]

Cairo Scene is a publication for the rich, spoiled elite youth with superiority complexes.

[BENNU]

I have known many African women, including Egyptian, who bleach their skin, but they do not do it to look like us. They want to look fair, not pinkish grey. Some foreign dancers in Cairo bleach their skin, not to get an even paler shade of grey, but to be white and they dye their hair black for the Snow White look that looks pure on stage with professional makeup but artificial in daylight.

I do not believe that Egyptian men in general prefer pale European skin. :lol2: I do meet foreign women here who believe that they are more attractive than Egyptian women based upon what Egyptian men tell them. :roll2: Perhaps it's just me, but I don't believe it! I see a lot of European flesh exposed here in Luxor - it does not look like the lily white pictures on the skin bleaching cream packets.

I am convinced that it is all about prestige, not race, ethnicity or taste.

A Gambian man who had met his Swedish wife on the beach in Gambia told me that he was scared when he went to live with her in the Nordic winter and she took off her clothes - he thought that she looked like a ghost.

A West African man in Copenhagen did not understand why all the women fell for a man from his neighbouring country - he was black. I do not think that anyone had noticed that he was darker than other Africans - a European woman who has a problem with dark skin would probably not even look at an African man in a city full of pale, blond blue eyed men.

European men who have worked and lived with their European families in Africa have told me that "you have not been to Africa, until you have slept with an African woman." They had nothing nice to say about the local people, they just had to try. African men who have married non blond Scandinavian women have said that "you must try a blonde, whether you like it or not." I certainly would not bleach, dye or choose my makeup in order to compete with any of that.

[BENNU]

Instead of strolling in a nice, heterosexual manner down the Corniche, with the normal human six inches of space between each other, as God intended platonic friends to walk, they instead opt to walk me2angajeen – arms linked and happily bouncing down the street like it's the most natural thing in the world. It’s not. ... it really couldn’t get any gayer if they tried. If the men of our nation are so damn afraid/horrified by homosexuality then how do they justify walking like a gay couple?

It is clear to see who is so damn afraid/horrified by their own sexuality. :worry:

[Kevininabydos]

1) The long pinkie nail is used as a tooth pick.
2) Western interpratation of an Eastern custom
3) Oh please!
4) Goes back to when Girls were cloistered. This is still practiced in the poorer sectors of Egyptian society where a girl will be kept in a room with only a small screened window away from daylight so her skin becomes very pale. It is thought her family can afford for her not to work the fields and are of a better social standing and therefore more marriagable. Pale skin is thought of as a sign of wealth.

[Dusak]

Cairo Scene is a publication for the rich, spoiled elite youth with superiority complexes.

Delete the youth bit and I can imagine certain expats seeking a subscription.

[Hafiz]

The skin color thing is not just Egypt. In India white (ish) skin is highly regarded and often a sign of high caste and intermarriage within that caste for hundreds of years. Ultra elite groups like the Parsees can't be easily silenced on the matter of their superior skin color. On the other hand I have known dark skinned Indian southerners exhibit more than a bit of self loathing on the skin thing. North Italians can also be pretty shocking.

The skin whitener product was made famous by the horrible Michael Jackson but, I think, widely used, as are hair straightening products for African Americans.

On the other hand most of the developed world aim for the perfect tan.

[Hafiz]

The skin color thing is not just in Egypt. In India white (ish) skin is highly regarded and often a sign of high caste and intermarriage within that caste for hundreds of years. Ultra elite groups like the Parsees can't be easily silenced on the matter of their superior skin color. On the other hand I have known dark skinned Indian southerners exhibit more than a bit of self loathing on the skin thing. North Italians can also be pretty shocking.

The skin whitener product was made famous by the horrible Michael Jackson but, I think, widely used, as are hair straightening products for African Americans.

On the other hand most of the developed world aim for the perfect tan.