Day 9: Fun WILL Be Had!

Tonight is our Egyptian Buffet Banquet and Galabeya Party. We were warned in advance that everyone was encouraged (though not required) to wear a galabeya, and by this time most of us had acquired one, or at least some item of Egyptian-ish apparel. Even me! At least I'm getting some use out of the thing!



We all assembled in our splendor before dinner,



and then ate the incredibly yummy buffet dinner. I always liked it best when we got a chance to eat Egyptian food. We had lamb, fried fish with some kind of spice in the batter, rice with vermicelli, and the glorious dessert table:



Here is Dad with Abe



and Mary on the other side of the table. The couple with her are pretty cool too, the kind of folks who don't take themselves too seriously and will try anything.



As you can see, Dad avoided buying a galabeya, preferring his "Charlie Sheen shirt".

After dinner the Galabeya Party started out with music from some Nubian musicians and antics from our Program Directors: Ihab and Atiya (Green Leader) did the shimmy with a length of rattan held between their middles:



The object was not to let the rattan fall out from between you. This was pretty hilarious.

The rest of the evening was devoted to Games. First there was a dancing game that was a variation on musical chairs: the music played and everybody danced, and then when the music stopped they called out a number and you had to get into a group with that number of other people. If you were left over you were eliminated. I was up there for at least half an hour before being eliminated. If you ask me, though, they missed an opportunity. Some of the music they played was Middle Eastern pop, and the rest of it was fifties stuff like "Rock Around the Clock". If they'd tossed in this or this there'd have been a RIOT up there!

After the dancing game there was a mummy wrapping game using toilet paper as bandages. Unfortunately by this time of the evening I had a headache, and I decided to go to bed a little early. I missed at least one large scale game related to Hot Potato - it looked fun on the DVD - but I needed the rest.