On the other hand.....Ana mally???

After that post I wrote about Egypt being "home", I have to warn you that all that glitters is not gold.  There is a litany of standard complaints most expats have about life in Egypt, ranging from the insane driving practices to merchants having no idea what "customer service" means--and a zillion more in between!  But more on that fun later.  Let me tell you about another common problem here--the "ana mally" syndrome.

This is a phrase loosely--and very sarcastically--translated to mean "and this is my problem, why???"   Egyptians say it all the time and in a very condescending way.  They say it for any and all occasions when they want you to be absolutely sure they dont give a damn about what you are trying to tell them!!! With a roll of the eyes and a "talk to the hand" kind of gesture, they hope you will get the point quickly so they can move onto bigger and more important issues in their life.


"Stop throwing your garbage into my yard!"  Response:  "Ana mally?"

"Excuse me, Mr. Butcher Man, but this meat I just bought from you is spoiled rotten!"  Response:  "Ana mally?"

"Didnt I just pay you 6000 LE (almost $1000) for this air conditioner that doesnt work?"  "Ana mally?"

"Hey!  You just ran over my kid with your car!"  Response:  "Ana mally???"

No joke!  About the only time you can get an Egyptian to stand up and take notice of anything you have to say is if he wants something from you--especially money.  Then it's all about grovelling and telling you things like "At your service, oh Pasha!", "Under your command, oh dear sir!", "I'll give you my eyes, dear lady!"  What a crock!  Once you pay for goods or services, they have another expression here..."Hit your head against the wall!"

So I had an "ana mally" moment with my landlord today. Half the electricity in my apartment stopped working.  So did the electric meter outside the apartment I live in--the one I pay the bill for!  So, is it my meter or not?  If half the electric is working, it seems obvious to me that it's pulling from an electric meter that someone else in this building is paying for.  By the same token, I am obviously paying for at least part of someone else's bill.  So I got my housekeeper to call him and let him know the electricity is all screwed up.  Before she could even finish a sentence, he was telling her it's not his problem and she can call an electrician.  Then he asked to talk to my husband.  She told him he was traveling.  Did he care that there were 2 "foreign" women living here with no way of solving this problem?  Would it have killed him to help us out a bit?  At least feign sympathy or concern?  Be polite and commiserate even if he was going to stick it to us?

While I grudgingly accept the fact that I might have to pay for repairs in my apartment (which is usually the owner's responsibility), I sure as hell dont want to pay to rewire his whole building.  But once again, I find myself in a situation I can do nothing about.  And so I rant and rave a moan and complain, to which my husband laughingly says "This is Egypt!  Take it or leave it."  And all I have to say to this is..."Ana mally? " !!!