A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Watching My Old Street Erupt

There's been a second day of clashes and confrontations in and around Tahrir Square, with much of the trouble seeming focused around the American University's old downtown campus and Mohamed Mahmoud Street. A lot of the pictures and videos are focused on that street. Back in 1977-78. a long time ago I know, during a year at the American Research Center in Egypt, I lived in an apartment building at the corner of Yusuf al-Gindi and Mohamed Mahmoud, across from AUC. Though my apartment building is long since gone, most of the other buildings I'm seeing in the scenes of the clashes are places I used to pass every day (though the stores have changed on Tahrir itself). Even nearly 35 years later, it still is a strange sensation.

No comments: