Egypt - Culture and tourism

 

Introduction

Egypt, a place where pyramids, desert and ancient civilization comes to my mind when I think of it. The monuments and the culture makes the place and a reason why many people are so intrigued to visit the place themselves. Many of us have watched shows, movies, documentaries about Egypt which shows the interesting places, artifacts and mummies. A place where pharaohs, Egyptian king and queens once ruled.

Six thousand years of culture in Egypt has been recorded in history. Is it to be known that Ancient Egypt is said to be among the earliest civilizations. For a millennia, Egypt has a complex and stable culture which influenced the later culture in Europe, the middle east and Africa as well. After the ear of Pharaoh, Egypt not only came under the influence of Hellenism, but also Christianity and later Islamic culture. In modern times, Egypt's ancient culture is mixed with newer elements, such as the influence of modern western culture. The people in Egypt are known also as Egyptians. They have a population of more than 77 million and grows at a rate of 1.78% a year. Most of the Egyptians which is 94%, claim to be Muslim. The official language is Arabic, but English and french are also spoken as well. It is estimated that 57% of the population are literate and 71 years of age is the life expectancy.

There are two major settlements which are the villages and cities. The villages have residents area which are surrounded by agricultural land and fields. Many one story mud brick houses are built along narrow dirt roads. These houses have stables for farm animals such as cow, water buffalo. The rooftops are interesting as they can be used to store dung cakes, straws or even chickens and rabbits.

The urban Egyptians who live in the city owns rented apartments. Houses which are individual are rare. A reform for socialism was to keep rent lows as a form of rent control. Sometimes an extended family can own the entire building to make apartments to its members.

Muslims in Egypt celebrate feasts marked by special meals. The 'Id al-Fitr after the fast of Ramadan is celebrated by baking kakh, which is a special cookie sprinkled with powdered sugar. The cookies are offered to guests who bring the greetings of the feast. An important occasion which si the prophet's birthday, which marks the birth of the prophet Muhammad, is celebrated by eating the halawet al-mulid, a variety of sweets cooked with many kinds of nuts.

Fasting in the country is seen as a spiritual exercise by the Muslims and Christians. The people have to abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sundown, during the lunar month of Ramadan for twenty-nine of thirty days. Devout Muslims fast also on days of celebrating the birth of the prophet Muhammad in the Islamic calender.

The Bedouins

An indigenous group in Egypt is the Bedouins.

The Bedouins are nomads who made archaeologists intrigued for centuries. Bedouin is a word which is derived from the Arabic word “Badawiyin” which means desert dweller. They are a group which live out in the open desert and are often referred to as the “ideal” Arabs due to their lifestyle of herding, having a rich poetic tradition and as well as their traditional code of honor. Bedouins have an estimated number of 4 million being spread out in the Syrian deserts, communities in Arabian, the Sahara desert and as well as the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt. There are many Bedouin tribes although most of them have their origin in Jordan, but there are still quite a few with their origins being in Egypt like Muzziena and Al-Murrah. The language the Bedouins speak is Badawi, also known as Bedouin Arabic. Egyptians refer the Bedouins as strict Arab, as they are distinctly different from other Arabs due to their extensive kinship networks. The network provides community support and necessities for basic survival. In the ancient days, the networks were important and crucial to ensure families' safety and the kinship's tradition is to serve and protect the Bedouins property.

Bedouins have sub tribes such as the Alagat tribe, which wanders through the deserts of egypt searching for fresh graving to feed their domestic animals such as camels and goats, as well as finding water for their families. They do eventually return yearly to various places in their territory where the land and water there can last them throughout a season. Not all Bedouins are nomads in modern times. Some for example, the Hamada tribe, mines and stay in one place without moving about. The more traditional Bedouin in the desert, knows where to look for water, tell the difference whether it is brackish or toxic. He can tell from the shrubs when it last rained and even how much rain. The signs, footprints in the sand, tells him who has been there before him and the direction they came and departed from. The traditional Bedouins can even navigate by the stars, stone markers left by previous trekking as well as familiar landmarks.

Bedouins dressing is depended on the weather and taste of his own. The robes worn can be layered to absorb the hot rays from the sun and serves as to circulate breezes. The cloth around their head and necks is worn to slow moisture from losing which can cause heat stroke and even shieding his face from the sand that blows through the desert. Women wear dresses in black and wear head covers which are embroidered. Blue color would mean the woman is unmarried while red signifies the woman being married, and for both, their faces are covered with a veil. The women dress very modestly even so today, but Bedouin children are beginning to wear more modern clothing.

Bedouin practices conservation which comes from the knowledge of the desert ecosystem. They are able to tell the difference between habitats, identify floral ranges, life cycles, and identify species with medicinal uses, those that are palatable for man and animals, and the usefulness of a species as a source of fuel. They can tell whether an area can be exploited without degrading or reducing its capacity to recover to original state. also have a good sense the extent to which an area can exploited without degrading it and diminishing its capacity to recover.

The Bedouins' conservation practices preserve not only economic and aesthetic values, but also an entire way of life. Conservation of plants and animals is one of the Bedouins beliefs. A loss of livelihoods would mean losing a home without cultural and historical ties that go along with the place.

Many of the Bedouins retain their authenticity of culture through traditions and customs. A visitor who travels to Egypt in search to know more about this indigenous group would find that, much of their original traditions remain unchanged in our ever changing world submitting to globalization and modernity. The Bedouins show case their way of life through showcasing them in their daily life. The houses and places they live in, the activities they engage in and the authentic doings of what their indigenous group are capable of. The Bedouins are an interesting group which can definitely enrich the minds of visitors or tourists who are interested in seeking the traditions and culture that the Bedouins have to offer. 

 Tourism Impacts

Tourism in Egypt shows impact and an example would be negative environmental impacts. The arrival of tourism impacts on local cultures and shows gradual irreversible degradation of marine and terrestrial habitats which results from tourism related activities. The damages to natural treasure in Egypt may seem small but can lead to bigger consequences. For example when visitors travel to coral reefs in Egypt, the coral can be vulnerable to bacterial attack and diseases when coming in contact with people. Photographers also damage the corals when in search of capturing a nice photo. These impacts will reduce the value of coral reefs, and hurting the ecosystem as a result. In the desert, when visitors with vehicles drive off track, they would often damage the fragile plant life and displacing rare wildlife such as numerous small mammals, birds and reptiles. Driving off track also destroys sand dunes which increases wind and water erosion of desert surfaces. 

 

The Bedouins are affected by social-cultural impacts as well. Visitors who come will exchange cultural values with the Bedouins, which in turn enriches both sides with both cultures. It works as a force for peace too when tourists and Bedouins understand each other which can reduce prejudice and increase mutual sympathy and understanding. Tourism helps the Bedouins to get more income through selling crafts to visitors or taking in revenue when visitors visit them for a price. However there are clash as well when tourist behavior is not within the acceptable image in the eyes of the Bedouins. For example, when visitors dress skimpily in short shorts, bikinis, they would offend the Bedouins as they are very modest in their dressing. 

 Examples of Disneyization

In Egypt, disneyization have taken place and it can be seen through an aspect such as theming. Themed malls are not uncommon in Egypt and are on the rise as well. The malls offer many kinds of themes ranging from outdoor to fun. Hybrid consumption is also another form of disneyization. In certain hotels in Egypt they are linked to shopping malls. Hard rock cafe in Egypt is also another form of hybrid consumption. You can shop for souvenirs in the cafe, eat, drink and even listen to live bands. Perfomative labor can also be seen in the Bedouins. Some traditional dances and performances which are normally only used during special festive and occasions are being used to entertain tourists and their needs. It is a good way to show the culture and traditions to the visitors, but however this also mean it loses the true meaning of the activities and performances. This is because the reason for these traditional activities to be performed is not due to special occasions but just a way of showcase and earning extra income.

Dream park in Egypt shows all signs of disneyization. The park is being themed in different zones, for example, “Movie Adventure Land”, “Techno Zone” and the “Ancient Area”. Each zone has their unique areas provided to tourists to experience a different fun. In dream part itself, they have many cafés, fast food outlets and souvenirs shops. These cafés and shops in dream park itself is considered hybrid consumption. The Dream Park logo is copyrighted and any promotions being done will have the logo as a trademark. The staff in dream park have to maintain happy faces and a willing to serve attitude to enable their guests are happy and enjoy their visit to dream park. Even when visitors complain or have minor disagreements, the staff have to put on an act to appease the visitors, and this shows performative labour.

  Conclusion

Egypt is indeed still rich of its culture and groups such as the Bedouins still shows that the traditions and customs of the place is not yet all lost but still present despite globalization and modernization. Tourism brings different kind of impact may it be bad or good to the people in Egypt. One has to understand the need for tourism in the country for it to develop further as tourism is becoming one of the bigger revenue earners in many countries. If I would have the opportunity I would definitely visit Egypt to see its traditions and customs and the indigenous people who live in the desert such as the Bedouins to experience rich cultures and new customs.

References

Ancient Bedouin Life, Retrieved from http://egyptview.com/ancient-bedouin-life/

Ruth Shilling, jimmy Dunn, Bedouins of Egypt, Retrieved from

www.touregypt.net/featurestories/bedouins.htm

Egypt festivals and events, Retrieved from http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/egypt/egypt-festivals-and-events/index.html

Humans impact, Retrieved from http://www.touregypt.net/parks/humanimpacts.htm

Tan Kai Yuan, Disneyization( December 8^th 2010 ), Retrieved from http://kyinegypt.blogspot.com/2010/12/disneyization.html

The Bedouins, Retrieved from http://www.marinegardencamp.com/bedouin.html


Done by Goh Wee Ming of Hospitality and Tourism, Temasek Polytechnic year 2.2, 2011.  Admin no. 1000406G