Hajja Medina Travels to Aswan: Coming and Going (3/6)

In this excerpt, Hajja Medina talks about the reactions she has sometimes received when traveling with traditional Sudanese goods and explains the type of things her friends and neighbors tend to order from Egypt. As she is buying her coach ticket to Cairo, she strikes up a conversation with a young fellow traveler. She explains too why she feels at home in Aswan.

Above, Sudanese foods and spices in Khartoum.

See more Khartoum scenes in https://wordpress.com/post/womensliteracysudan.blog/5441

This excerpt is slightly more difficult than previous ones in terms of lexis and in addition to numerous formulaic greetings and responses you might find useful if you want to sound truly Sudanese, you will hear some interesting colloquial refrains. Hajja Medina mentions a water wheel. Can you guess why?

You can view the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYUe6VC28Go&feature=share

Screenshots from the Aljazeera documentary for this week’s excerpt.

Hajja Medina mentions several Sudanese foods, often used in herbal medicine. In case you are not familiar with them, we picture them below. She also mentions some Sudanese utensils, such as the mufraaka, shown below too.

Top left, boabab fruit (gongolees), top right, tamarind ( ‘aradeeb), Bottom right, fruit of the desert date tree (laaloob), bottom left, fruit of jujube tree (nabag). Photos, Wiki commons and Imogen Thurbon

Transcript and Notes (from minute 16.36 to minute 26)

• 1 desert date tree fruit
• 2 baobab fruit
• 3 jujube tree fruit
• 4 tamarind
• 5 pearl millet
• 6 I’m the only one who was bringing them in. Also, 6) plural of banbar, low stool.
• 7 plural of mufraakah (see below)
• 8 broad-based pan (see Coming and Going 1)
• 9 clay incense burners
• 10 laugh at / make fun of someone
• 11 in Sudanese Arabic, gaaylah means think /imagine
• 12 literally junk.
• 13 literally everything that flies or crawls – everyone, all creation
• 14 literally scoop it up. What Hajja Medina is saying is that from initially being mocked for these things, now people seek out these things.
• 15 plural of shibshib; sandals or slippers
• 16 expression used to apologize – literally, without blame or reproach. (Note to be updated)
• 17 (these are examples of) what the neighborhood, (Hila) (18) orders.

Used by women to make Sudanese mulah, a stew of meat, okra, or mulukhiyah leaves (Jew’s mallow), the mufraaka (stirring stick) is twirled rapidly between the palms to blend ingredients using the spatula base.  It is exhausting work. 

See http://womensliteracysudan.blog/2020/06/04/intimate-geometry-3 for more traditional Sudanese cooking utensils

• 19 literally; may God gives you good health. An expression of gratitude, kindness etc. perhaps we would say “bless you!”
• 20 (in the reservations office) she gets to know …
• 21 What’s the matter? What’s up?
• 22 polite response to news of illness, literally, may God write (ordain) her health.
• 23 polite way to request someone’s name.
• 24 literally Hajja Medina, you have honored us (as he shakes her hand). Polite greeting to welcome a visitor. See below for the formulaic response to this.

• 25 formulaic response to 24, literally may God increase the honor of your position / status in society.
• 26 a nice way to invite someone to a tea/coffee
• 27 become worn out/ exhausted (fatraan; exhausted)
• 28 Hajja Medina explains that she is tired out from traveling, and we feel she’s slightly disillusioned as she quotes the Sudanese proverb, literally “the water wheel takes from the river and pours back into the river”, used for activities that bring no benefit.
• 29 strivers (from same root jahuud – efforts)
• 30 see off/ bid farewell (wadda’)

Who perseveres in his journey will arrive

See more proverbs researched by expert in Sudanese proverbs Muna Zaki in https://wordpress.com/post/womensliteracysudan.blog/1151

• 31 formulaic expression to welcome someone back after a journey / wish someone a safe journey.
• 32 the cafe owner explains he was brought up in Sudan (tarbiiyah) and later settled (mustagir)in Aswan.
• 33 complimentary expressions to respond positively to comment.
• 34 and the cafe owner responds in kind, closing the exchange, by saying and may God ease your way for you.
• 35 as before, may God increase the honor of your position.

• 36 Sudan is just a stop on the way
• 37 as they say, ……………… (note to be updated)

Who lives in storms is unperturbed by breeze. Seen in Khartoum dust storm, 2018.