IN EGYPT

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 206, 1 September 1941, Page 5

IN EGYPT

" FUNNY COUNTRY " SOLDIER'S RACY COMMENT The buoyant spirit of the New Zealanders abroad is well illustrated by a racy letter received the other day from a member of the N.Z.E.F. in the Middle East. "I don't think I shall embarrass the censors," he writes, "if I tell you I am in Egypt, and go to a city every week-end—always provided I have leave, and even sometimes without it. The sandy beaches here are great. We have miles and miles of isand, but unfortunately the tide goes out a long way, roughlv 100 miles. I do not want you to think I have been wasting my time. As a matter of fact I have been hard at it. especially at meal times, and am happy to say that I have at last discovered where the flies go from New Zealand in the winter time—they come to Egypt, every son-of-a-gun-one-of-them. Big ones, little ones, fat and lean ones. You will see from this that we have a few flies out here, and most of the confounded things find their way to my tent. "Now to be serious, please let me I know how the war is going. 1 don't imean the usual acrimonious remarks about who should have tho bathroom first—but the real war. We are doing fine here, as it appears to be getting further and further away. I am naturally very annoved about this, because, after touring" all over the place and getting approximately 10.000 miles away I should like to 'dong' someone or'something. I "A Proper Gala Day" "Yesterday was a proper gala day for the boys," the writer proceeds "We received our first patriotic parcels. My, what a dav! The officers were as bad as the men. and it was really great to watch them All you could hear was: 'Who will" swap me a tin of nvlk for a tin of foot powder " or "wouldn't that rotate you. what the — go T want with this?' I laughed all day. One could hear moans, groans and cheers all over the nlac«-_"'

"I didn't do so badly, but unfortunately I think the board must have thought we wanted heating up. I got a darned great scarf, and another free gift was a 3* lb box of cereal. I properly, and promptly, got rid of this, but it took ten minutes' very serious talking to do so. I popped it on a new chum Tommy by telling him it was a foot lotion; with water it had no peer—it could be used before and after shaving. This one Tommy anyway will retain the schoolgirl complexion. Ho may have a spot of bother getting the paste out of his hair, but I feel sure it will do his face good, because look what it does to your tummy. In exchange 1 got a tin of coffee and milk. As I smartly used this up. I regret, but a re-exchange is now impossible." The Camel's Glory The happy warrior proceeds in similar strain to sketch the beauties • scenic) and customs of the country. He went to see the pyramids. "And io. the jolly old saucy camels were there in all their glorv. I think their glory must be very old. Anyway it would be impossible, even with all of the well known cleansers, to wash off the glorv. Camels definitely smell, in fact a clothes peg must always be carried. I know of only one thing which smells stronger than a camel, and that's its owner." After several narrow escapes from being bitten by the camel as he learned the ritual of mounting it and having his teeth and .-pine jarred by his eccentric pail he decided that camels - didn't Jike him—and lie didn't like them. -Please don't fall lor this blue Nile business." he goes on. "The Nile waters are not blue In truth they are somewhat cloudv. in short, dirty. ' This is a funny country/' he sums up. "You see beautiful fiats, and right next door rome filthy-look-ing hovel vhich houses dozens o 1 natives, plus their live stock. About 40 per cent of the money is bad. net that it makes anv difference, as you soon get rid of"it. But to go into a very large shop and have to bounce your change on a r.lab of marble is a bit thick. Nobody take= offence; it is the recognised custom, but I found it funnv at first. It can be really hot here.'from 120 to 130 degrees in the shade. They can't measure the temperature in the sun. ;t i- Ti„j hot, but you soon get u.-ed