CAIRO 2003CAIRO 2003Of all the bellydance holidays I have organised this was the most difficult trip to arrange so far, with several very concerned people thinking they would rather be at home than in a country where they may be threatened due to the conflict in Iraq. I had never been to Egypt and it was a huge responsibility for me to be taking so many people into the unknown.All I could do was to keep in constant touch with the Foreign Office and keep within their guidelines as to what to do. I also checked with other dancers who had recently been in Cairo.This however did not stop the very stressful and concerned last minute phone calls. I thi
The history of the KocheksThroughout the Islamic world we find restrictions on women singing and dancing in public. However what we see behind closed doors is another thing entirely. However this can be 'milked' for all it's worth with the very high prices we have to pay to see some of these dancers. During the Ottoman Empire this problem was somewhat solved by dancers known as kocheks who were men dressed as women, doing bellydancing. This meant whenever they had any kind of party that dancing was allowed within the strict rules of Islam. They would have performed at weddings, circumcisions, after battles. There were also kocheks who danced as men, they were known as
Istanbul October 2003ISTANBUL OCTOBER 2003Day 1.. 6.30am - Leave home by taxi to Thirsk railway station, for train to Manchester airport. Very long walk from train to terminal 1 for myself, dragging very heavy large suitcase.Met the other members of the group at the check in desk. Easy to guess the bellydancers!Good flight with Turkish airlines, straight through to Ataturk. Bit of a problem understanding the 'new' visa control! however we all got our luggage and faculties together within half an hour of landing. We were met by my good friend Bulent's representative and taken on a hair-raising trip to the Hali (Ha-eye) hotel in the Sultanahmet district of th
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