Oh Happy Day!

"Mabrook! Alf Mabrook!" Tonight I broke my rule of smiling and talking to strange men. I couldn't help it, tonight they deserved it. Egypt just won the African Cup of Nations, and I haven't seen so many smiles since freshman year when we beat Ohio State in the big house. The streets were packed, swarming with happy Egyptians, proud of their country, proud of the team, and I hope, proud of themselves too. With faces painted, banners waving, firecrackers were set, drums were pounded, and there was a palpable sense of unity out there in the streets. It felt like Germany had just surrendered, and I was expecting a sailor to dip me and steal a kiss. Luckily, no such thing happened, but it felt like a war had been won, and we were on the winning side. So I happily smiled, and passed out my "congratulations, a thousand congratulations!" to my hosts. Egyptians often feel the weight of the world in their daily life; unemployment, censorship, corruption, pollution and repression can take their toll. So it was nice to see, for one night, thousands of Egyptians in a euphoria. It may only last one night, or a week, but at least we can be sure that for now, Egypt is having one hell of a time.