El Arish

El Arish is in the Northern Sinai, not far from the border with Israel. When Europeans come to vacation in Egypt, they go to Sharm el Sheikh. They have the Hilton and the Sheraton, high end resorts and lots of restaurants. El Arish is where Egyptians go for vacation. The hotels are not as plush, the restaurants are much smaller in number. There is the Mediterranean Sea.

But you have to watch out for the jellyfish. (A couple people in our group were stung, nothing life threatening, just painful.)

The major draw for us to go to El Arish was the Bedouin Market. Several of the speakers we’ve had compared the Bedouin to the Native Americans in the US. They are a separate society from mainstream Egypt. Most people identify Bedouin women as being covered in black with decorative veils.

The market was overwhelming. The Khan el Khalil Bazaar seemed calm compared to this. There were many more locals; in fact I would venture to say that we were the only tourists in the whole market. It was very frustrating that many women either hide their veiled faces or shook their fingers “no” as soon as they saw my camera. Some people did pose for a photo. This mother was proud to show off her beautiful baby.

This man tried to sell me a goat.

Here’s the sheep and goat market.

This was the equivelent of a lemonade stand. You could use the glasses there, or for the "to go" option, he would put the drink in a small plastic bag and twist it around a straw.

The stall for spices and grains.

This little girl was very happy to pose for me.

This woman was carrying a huge head of cabbage on her head.

This Bedouin woman allowed me to take a photo, but notice how she's not looking at me.

After the market, we went to Mari Culture Research Center. We met the director and founder of the school, Dr. Samir Ghoneim. He told us that his vision of the school was to help the people flourish in the Northern Sinai. He did not believe in specialization, rather wanted to give the student skills to survive and live off of the land. Instead of specializing in micro-biology or chemistry, students learn just enough to be useful in their daily lives; such as being able to test their well water. He brought together faculty to work on land management, irrigation, bee-keeping, etc. His school works on developing plants that can withstand high sodium in their irrigation. (The well-water here is high in salt, and they are hoping that one day they can develop crops that can be irrigated with sea-water.)

This man didn’t just build a school; he wanted it to be self-sustaining and part of the community. There is a bee-keeping section, to extract honey and provide hives for the farmers for a reasonable fee. They have an olive oil press; they provide help to Bedouin farmers (either free or low-cost).

I will admit after spending time with someone who was so driven to help the economy and production of his community, my profession seemed pretty silly. “Let’s see, you help farmers and the community to survive in the desert, I study and teach about old stuff.”