Being Culturally Correct.

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Pictured above - the modern day skyline of Khartoum, a series of comfort stations along the highway outside Khartoum, the Acropole Hotel where we stay (the oldest hotel in Khartoum), and the birthday cake ceremony at a children's birthday party)

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The weekend in Arab countries is comprised of Friday and Saturday. Yesterday (Sunday) was a working day in Sudan and everything that had been closed over the weekend, and before that for several days because of the holiday, were open again. The women in our group spent several hours yesterday with a group of women in a Sudanese shop learning about Sudanese customs, women's rights issues and in general, women's concerns. While learning from each other, Helen, Kim and Nancy agreed to have henna tattoos while in the shop. No men allowed in this shop, so the talk was frank and animated. A sideline fact learned was that if a woman has henna tattoos from the wrist up, she is not married. If she has tattoos on her hands, she is married. Otherwise, henna is meant to be private. A visit to the offices of the Khartoum Monitor (An English Language Daily newspaper) proved to be enlightening as while the offices were relatively small for the size of the paper, the staff were working on modern equipment and producing Khartoum's largest English newspaper. Alfred Taban, the Editor in Chief and Chairman of the Board of the newspaper is the vice-president of the Khartoum YMCA and very active with the organization.

In the evening while discussing the events of the day and Sudanese culture and modern day changes in lifestyle, we were standing by the shores of the Blue Nile when a pick-up truck full of about 15 members of a family pulled up. The family excitedly walked down to the riverside and proceeded to throw dates into the water. We were told by our host that this is an ancient tradition in the area. Before a couple get married, they go to the Nile with their families and throw dates in the water to symbolize the riddence of past evils and things that might have negative impact on the new couple. As they walked back to the truck, all were smiles and very happy and Dr. Wageeh asked which of the group were the future couple. Everyone laughed and finally one woman who was holding a young boy told him there was no wedding, but a circumcision. The ceremony of the dates is used for more than one occasion. We subsequetly discovered that some local and very illegal alcohol is made from dates. Sounds like it could taste more like prune juice.

We were also told that recently a group of rebels from the Darfur region were able to pass through the outskirts of the city and proceed to the government buildings in Khartoum. When asked how they were able to get so far into the centre of the city without being stopped, we were told that they were all wearing a special leather medallion either on an armband or as a necklace.This special medallion was said to make people invisible when worn, meaning they could not get shot. They believed this is why they were able to make it to the government buildings. Old beliefs and new learnings provide for a fascinating situation in Khartoum and affects our project through the adult school downtown where annually over 1,000 students graadulate with most able to secure a job to support their family.

In some extra available time we had during the day, we were able to visit the ancient pyramids of Meroe, north of Khartoum. The weather was very hot and the wind blew the sand in the desert into our clothing and our hair. As we looked at the ancient hyroglyphics on the walls of some nearby temples from time before Christ, we noticed a considerable difference in the way women were portrayed here and in Egypt. In the ancient paintings and sketches on the walls of temples and tombs in Egypt, women are generally protrayed much shorter (and thus smaller) than men. In Sudan, women are portrayed equal in size to men.

Family togetherness is a major Sudanese cultural feature. We attended a birthday party for four children of one family that are Sudanese but who have been living with their parents lately in Austrailia. The importance of celebrating childhood birthdays with the extended family is so important, the couple came back to Khartoum so they could have a huge birthday party for the whole extended family. Another Sudanese custom - things usually don't stgart on time and they just about alaways go late into the night. This children's birthday party officially got under way after 10:00 pm and was starting to break up about midnight. Whew!!!

Getting familiar with the Sudanese culture is critical to the success of our project with our Khartoum partners. A trait we have been becoming increasingly aware of while working with our partners is the importance they place on working effectively but having fun while doing it. It is important to learn how to do things properly, to have fun while doing it and to remain enthusiastic about the work you are doing. The Sudanese are good at this and have been teaching us a lot. They keep their families together and support each other in times of hardship and difficulty. They add features to their work that keep their spirits high and their goals strong. The YMCA choir is an excellent example of how the YMCA can work hard at providing an excellent education for over 1,000 adults and close to 500 children with very limited resources but also provide an outlet for members to celebrate and produce something that keeps their spirits high and their goals strong through music. The YMCA choir has recently recorded a song that is being played on the radio in Sudan and will soon be on television as well. It concerns the ujpcoming referendum in Sudan which is predicted to result in major clashes and disruptions to life in the country. The song is about peace in Sudan and was written by a university professor and performed by our Khartoum YMCA choir.

Stay tuned - more to come.