The guests had started to arrive. A few old people who were Zaki el Dessouki’s friends came, some of whom were known to Christine and with all of whom she shook hands, inviting them to visit the bar, where beer and whisky were offered free. The numbers of the guests continued to swell. Friends of Busayna’s from Commercial College came, bringing their families. Ali the Driver came (and forced his way straight through to the bar) and Sabir the laundryman with his wife and children and many others from the roof. The women were wearing shiny gowns embroidered with gold thread and sequins, and the girls of marriageable age came in their best and smartest clothes, conscious of the opportunity for marriage that was implicit in the wedding. The roof people were awestruck at the poshness of the restaurant and its old European style, but little by little the women started to break through this by means of mirthful conversations on the side and loud bursts of laughter that were closer to bawdiness than the spirit of the occasion demanded.
At around nine the door opened and some people entered quickly, followed unhurriedly by Zaki el Dessouki in his smart black suit and a white shirt, a large red bowtie at his neck and his dyed hair swept back in a new cut that the hairdresser had suggested and which had secured its object, in that he appeared ten years younger than his real age. His steps were a little halting and his eyes bloodshot as a result of the two double whiskies that he had decided to start the evening with, and no sooner did he appear at the party than shouts, whistles, and applause—“Congratulations! A thousand congratulations!”—rang out on every side, with a few shy ululations. While everyone was shaking his hand and wishing him the best, Christine darted up to him, embraced him, and kissed him in her warmly affectionate way.
“You look like a movie star!” she exclaimed enthusiastically. Then she sighed, looked at him for a moment, and said, “How happy I am for you, Zaki! You’ve done what you should have done long ago.”
This was the wedding party of Zaki Bey el Dessouki to Busayna el Sayed—who was a little late in coming from the coiffeur, as brides usually are, but who soon arrived in a white wedding dress the ends of whose long train were borne by her sisters and her little brother Mustafa. The moment the bride appeared, the sight of her touched all present and a clear and uninhibited storm of melodious, repeated ululations burst forth. Everyone was happy and as soon as the band had finished with the wedding march and the buffet had opened, Christine made a bid to preserve the European style of the occasion by playing Edith Piaf’s song “La Vie en Rose” on the piano, singing in her mellifluous voice,
Quand il me prend dans ses bras
Il me parle tout bas
Je vois la vie en rose
Il me dit des mots d’amour
Des mots de tous les jours
Et ça m’fait quelque chose
Il est entré dans mon cœur.
The bride and groom danced on their own, Busayna a bit nervous and almost stumbling but guided to the right steps by the groom, who took advantage of the opportunity to pull her close to him in a move that did not escape the notice, or the laughing comments, of the guests. Zaki thought that Busayna in her wedding dress looked like some wondrous, pure, newborn creature and that she had rid herself forever of the blemishes of the past that through no fault of her own had tarnished her. When the song was over, Christine suavely tried to propose other French songs but in vain. Public opinion was so pressing that in the end it had to be accommodated and the band started playing oriental dance numbers. This was the magical moment, for the women and girls jumped up as though they had finally found themselves, clapping, singing, and swaying to the rhythm, more than one of them tying a sash around her hips and dancing. They kept insisting that the bride do the same until she gave in and allowed them to tie a sash on her and joined the dancers, while Zaki Bey el Dessouki watched her with love and admiration, clapping enthusiastically to the rhythm. Then little by little, raising his arms aloft amid the joyful laughter and cries of the others, he joined her in the dance.
Glossary
Abd el Halim Hafez: a singer and youth icon (1929–1977) who starred in many movies as the sort of character Busayna describes.
Abduh: a short form of Abd Rabbuh.
Abu Bakr: the first caliph (successor to the Prophet as ruler of the Islamic state) (died 634).
Abu el Aala el Mawdudi: a revolutionary Indian Islamist thinker (1903–1979).
Abu Hamid el Ghazali: a celebrated scholar of medieval Islam (1058–1111).
Abu Wael, i.e., Father of Wael: it is polite to address a parent by his or her child’s name, preceded by “father of” or “mother of.”
Age of Ignorance (jahiliya): this term is used in general parlance to mean the period before the announcement by the Prophet Muhammad of his mission. Radical Islamic groups, however, apply it to the (in their eyes) nonobservant mass of Muslim society today.
Ali Badawi: a leading jurist of the 1940s.
Ali ibn Abi Talib: son-in-law of the Prophet and fourth caliph (died 661).
Anwar Wagdi: dashing film star of the late 1940s and early 1950s (1904–1955).
Approval and Light Stores: the name has strong religious connotations, the “Approval” and “Light” referred to being God’s.
El ‘Aqrab Prison: a high-security prison in the Western Desert.
El Azhar: a mosque-university in Cairo and one of the most authoritative seats of Islamic learning.
basbusa: baked semolina soaked in syrup.
Bilharzia: a debilitating liver disease contracted by peasants from parasites in irrigation canals.
Center Platform: in 1975, following the liberalization of the economy under Anwar el Sadat, and by way of liberalizing political life, three wings or platforms were allowed within the Socialist Union—the Right, the Center, and the Left. The Center was understood to represent the ruling regime.
Central Security: a heavily armed branch of the police force used for crowd control at demonstrations or after large public events; the riot police.
Court of Cassation: Egypt’s highest court of appeal.
Dar el Salam: a densely inhabited suburb of southern Cairo.
Drinking Sheikh: the logo of a brand of tea, in the form of an old man elegantly dressed in oriental clothes and holding a small cup in his hand.
Egypt Party: within a year or so of the formation of political platforms within the Socialist Union, the platforms were turned into parties. The Center Platform became the Egypt Party.
Emergency Law: in 1981, following the assassination of President Anwar el Sadat, a state of emergency was declared that sus