the suburban experience

for one week i am back to the suburbs where i grew up
i have forgotten about the traffic in cairo and its crazy ways
it has almost stopped completely
it is a near death experience driving at night on the "mehwar" or the ring road

the list is scary:
no lights
trucks of crazy sizes changing lanes like maniacs
they keep changing the way the road looks you never know if you missed your exit

being female in a traffic jam you have to put up with the staring masses not only the frustration of being trapped.
i decided to drive after being a passenger for one year, it was not a wise decision
i discovered i have lost many of my skills when i moved back to the city
i am not brave anymore
i lost my survival skills on the cairo road
i got used to having someone drive that i stopped looking at the road and now it looks so different

if you are hungry on the road you are screwed because you might have to wait for hours with a stomach that is louder than the traffic. You need thick skin and a lot of practice to move between the crazy masses.

I looked to the car next to me and i find a man holding a gun, i try to escape him and my heart beats faster than ever but we are all stuck on the road. I put the volume up of the Quran that I believe will protect me through this nightmare.

when i finally reach my parents house in the suburbs i have no will of repeating this experience and i cancel my plans with friends and i end up staying home. Sleeping in until 1 pm and not having the will to get any job done.

my studio awaits me but my bed pulls me closer to the covers and my body is so heavy that i feel like doing nothing all day.
the benefits of the suburban life is fresher air, more green, more quiet once you get there.

Isolation is what you experience because no one will pass by your house and you can not take a walk to the super market.

Sleeping becomes the answer to your problems and getting up seems like the hardest thing.
Dreams become more elaborate and you start hating the high way and all the dangers it brings.