Amazing Courage

New heroes born each day

I think Egypt has had a lot of unsung heroes for a long time now, but after Jan25 they are beginning to surface more and more. Egyptians are starting to realize their potential to redefine limits, to do the impossible, to stretch the folds of their own imagination, and to allow themselves to reinvent themselves as heroes.


For more on the redefining of heroes in the Arab world, read this article from the BBC on TEDGlobal talk 2011 by Suleiman Bakhit.

Abu Treika

Abu Treika is one of Egyptian football's best players. In 2006 he was nominated for the CAF African Footballer of the Year award, and in 2008 he came second for African Footballer of the year, for his great role in helping Egypt win the African Cup of Nations in 2008 by scoring the winning goal. The ladies in my office are all smitten by him, and the men all seem to have respect for him. This was further emphasized in the 2008 African Cup when he appealed to strong local sentiment after scoring a goal over Sudan, he removed his shirt to reveal the statement "sympathize with Gaza". Apparently Abu Treika is not only an athlete, but he's also a thinker too - a graduate of Philosophy (wow, I am impressed!) and is a proud father of two twins! Here is a nice summary of Abu Treika's career.

Source: Al Ahram

This article by Gabriele Marcotti in the Sunday Times has a fantastic review on Treika, describes him as "possibly the greatest footballer in the history of the world with a bachelor's diploma in philosophy hanging on the wall of his sitting room" and  "arguably the best footballer on Earth not plying his trade in Europe or South America", remaining loyal to Egypt and refusing to move abroad just to advance his career.

Treika is apparently also involved a lot in leading a number of community and charity projects.

Field of Dreams

Egypt is a country, where everyone dreams - not of becoming the next David Beckham - but of becoming the next Abu Treika. You'll find football (soccer) being played in all corners of the country. And they have reasons to believe in themselves - they have won the African Cup of Nations more than any other country - seven times.

An impromptu match down a small side street in Mohandessin, Cairo

Enta Omri performed by Umm Khultum

There is too much to say about Umm Khultum to limit her to a single post in the Fabulous things about Egypt, so I will just start here with Enta Omri, one of her most famous songs and the first she performed written by Abdel Wahab.

There is something so emotional that just resonates so deeply with the listener, as if a piece of your own heart is being unfolded in front of you. But enough talk... let's listen,