Fights of Sexual Frustration

If you look around any classroom at the university, you will notice several things. One, they lack of any sort of technology that an American university would have. Two, the walls and desks are graffitied in Arabic. The thing you may not notice, however, is probably the most telling. Look at the desks. They are bolted to the ground.

The explanation I got when I asked why was a bit, um, revealing. It is obviously frowned upon to have sex before marriage in a Muslim culture. All the pent up sexual frustration comes out in what was called “tribal warfare,” basically the male version of the Mean Girls. When they get angry, they tend to through anything insight, which is why the chairs are bolted to the floor.

I got to see a fight today. I don’t know if it was one based in sexual frustration, but it very well could have been. I was buying a two liter water bottle (50 cents!) and I noticed there was a group of young men all fighting. The police were there, but they didn’t seem to actually stop it. The storekeeper told me and a few other girls to stay inside where it was safe. (well, I presume that’s what he said…I don’t speak enough Arabic to actually know.)

Otherwise, today was my first full day of classes. My colloquial class was all in Arabic, so I only got about ½ of what was actually said. My other two classes, Economic transformations in the Middle East, and The Politics of Water, seem like they will be interesting classes. The first thing my Econ teacher said was “Those Bloody Chinese never make good products.”

I also joined a gym today (when I became a gym rat, I don’t know) but it is a nice facility within a decent walking distance. Since it is a coed gym, I have to wear sweatpants to keep my legs covered, which kind of sucks since it is already 90 degrees outside (I miss Iowa falls!)