The
boat anchors for a few hours at the town of Esna. The tranquillity of the
town offers a 
big
contrast to the throbbing life of Cairo, Aswan and Luxor. We rest for a
while to the lazy street sounds of Esna, which in a magical way reflects
the Egypt we've met and learned to love. The only thing that disturbs the
peace is a recorded prayer from the towering minaret. By a sound resembling
that of a tape recorder filled with molasses, the five o'clock prayer is
called out. Even the prayers walk more slowly here!At
Esna repetition is a virtue and a pattern of life. The children play without
mass-produced toys in the same way, at the same spots, generation by generation.
The men drink coffee and talk 
of
the same topic year by year, unaffected by the enormous
garbage heap, developing close to the coffee shop. The women carry their
burden back and forth on the street. The task is handed over from mother
to daughter. So heavy appears the steadfast pattern. But what does it matter
when everybody shares the same fate?
First published: Monday 20th May, 1996.
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