25 - 31 October 2001
Issue No.557
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 25 - 31 October 2001 Issue No.557 |
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The spirit of Omdurman
The Sudanese capital Khartoum is where the Blue Nile (Bahr El-Asarco) meets the White Nile (Bahr El-Abiad). It is also a meeting place for people, and for an exchange of goods and culture. It is interesting, exciting, it defies superlatives writes Khaled El-Fiqi, who captured its spirit with his lens
Sudan is the gateway to middle and southern Africa, so it is no wonder that its inhabitants, transitory or permanent, come from a variety of cultures. From the north come the Nubians, from the east are the Bishari and Ababda -- who can be found also in Egypt's Eastern Desert -- and from the south are the Shuluk, the Nuer, the Dinka, and the Latoqa. Most of these people are nomads, some of whom live in Uganda, Kenya, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Chad.
On a recent trip with a friend I rediscovered Omdurman, which I knew from school history lessons when we learned about the late 19th century colonial expedition and the destruction of the Mahdi's tomb. This man, an extraordinarily gifted orator of impressive physical appearance, followed in the true tradition of the warrior-priests of Islam and claimed to be one of the descendants of the Prophet Mohammed.
I should, perhaps, have first made my way to the National Museum, to see the treasures dating back to 4,000 BC and earlier, and the temples of Queen Hatshepsut and Pharaoh Thutmose III salvaged from Buhen and Semna during the Nubian rescue operations and reconstructed in the garden. But I was more interested in the Omdurman camel market and the 1,800- year-old Arab souq, and that is what I made for.
There a person can find anything and everything for sale, from a pin to a rocket, as we say . The souq includes various small markets specialising in leather, fish, fruit and vegetables. Ivory and ebony candlesticks are carved by market craftsmen, and there are gold and silversmiths who fashion all kinds of exotic jewellery.
Walking around the souq I felt it somewhat similar, yet different from our own Khan El-Khalili. There are narrow streets, peddlers, an craftsmen on the sidewalks selling their products, but the spirit is different. How? It is indefinable, and probably a question of the manner in which different people traditionally buy and sell their wares.
But this is no place for the environmentally- sensitive. It was sad to see how inexpensive snakeskin handbags were -- the equivalent of LE 55. And even the more expensive crocodile skin goods were reasonably-priced compared with markets outside the Sudan. Ivory, despite restrictions on its sale, can be bought with ease. The asking price of a tiny elephant-shaped statue was the equivalent of LE 75.
Henna is plentiful in the souq, and I never knew that so many products were made from this herb. Natural henna is used by the women in their daily lives as well as for certain ritual ceremonies. Among the varieties is that used to paint the upper part of the nails of both hands and the feet; another for painting the palm of the hands, and the sole of the foot. As for the bride, there is a special type of henna -- naturally the most costly -- called Henna El-Aroussa, henna for the bride.
Every night after prayers, in the cool of the evening, the people of Omdurman get together with groups of friends to sing, play musical instruments and chat. Every Friday night a different Sufi Muslim group -- of which there are ten in the Sudan -- performs. The most-famous of them is the Mukashafiya, followed by the Sunna. They have an enthusiastic audience. My friend and I shared their magic that night.
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