Ain Soukhna - Red Sea - Stella di Mare ResortThe Orientalist experience in the Egyptian Touristic geographical imagination. This could be the title of an essay which, inspired by the works of prof. Claudio Minca (in particular Claudio Minca, Spazi effimeri,CEDAM, Padova, 1999) could be written after me attending a Youth Conference Organised by the League of Arab States in this Resort a few hours from Cairo.
I will not write the essay for the moment, perhaps an updated version of this post will be written at a later stage. What it needs to be said is that this place is the perfect example of the ephemeral landscape of tourist attractions. A perfect view, palm trees, grass, sandy beaches, perfect sun, and some recalls to the pharaos and "Oriental" style in fornitures of the Hotel. Beyond the paper scenes there is a place (Ain Soukhna) in the middle of the desert, with some industrial landsacpes all around and the Suez Canal just 50 kilometres far away (meaning big cargo ships passing by every now and then) basically the antithesis of the tourist landscape which one actually sees if he lands in Cairo, jump in the hotel buses and spends most of the time in the hotel without looking around.
The amazing thing is that speaking with the italian staff of the hotel, who lives there between 6 to 12 months before shifting to another resor in some other part of the world, is that they actually stay in this "little paradise" without going out and staying there for months and months... amazing!
I will not write the essay for the moment, perhaps an updated version of this post will be written at a later stage. What it needs to be said is that this place is the perfect example of the ephemeral landscape of tourist attractions. A perfect view, palm trees, grass, sandy beaches, perfect sun, and some recalls to the pharaos and "Oriental" style in fornitures of the Hotel. Beyond the paper scenes there is a place (Ain Soukhna) in the middle of the desert, with some industrial landsacpes all around and the Suez Canal just 50 kilometres far away (meaning big cargo ships passing by every now and then) basically the antithesis of the tourist landscape which one actually sees if he lands in Cairo, jump in the hotel buses and spends most of the time in the hotel without looking around.
The amazing thing is that speaking with the italian staff of the hotel, who lives there between 6 to 12 months before shifting to another resor in some other part of the world, is that they actually stay in this "little paradise" without going out and staying there for months and months... amazing!
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