The Pharoahs and the Desert Foxes

First off, I gotta say, I dig when national sports teams have nicknames. Especially appropriate and cool ones like the Desert Foxes of Algeria and Egypt's Pharoahs. This rivalry is apparently one of the bitterest in the world of sports, and most Americans wouldn't even know. But I would. Why? Because I live in Astoria.

This past November cops lined the streets when the two teams faced each other in a World Cup qualifier playoff. Algeria won to go to their first World Cup since 1986, upsetting reigning African champs Egypt. Today they are playing in the Africa Cup semifinals. How do I know this?

Because right now every restaurant and hookah bar on my block is packed full of loud, rowdy, overzealous fans, spilling out onto the sidewalks, at times spilling into the streets and causing gridlock for blocks. There are mounted riot police at mid-block. There are uniformed officers positioned near local businesses and around the larger crowds. The local shops and restaurants all proudly display their allegiances with either the red, white, and black Egyptian flag or the green, white and red of Algeria. Some establishments (like Rotana) have both flags waving, as if saying "It's love, muthafucka, LOVE!". It is quite a spectacle to behold, but I can hear them cheering loudly OVER the episode of "LOST" I was watching on my computer, and my windows are closed.

What's ridiculous is that the rest of the year, all the Arabs in my neighborhood seem to get along well. Today they're screaming at each other from across the street.

For more info about this rivalry, here's a Sports Illustrated story about the rivalry and the aftermath of the WC qualifier, and the diplomatic tensions between the two North African nations that got so bad that Qaddafi had to step in and try to ease tensions.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=731614&sec=global&cc=5901&cc=5901

Picture the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, only if after the Yankees lost in the ALCS in '04, the state of New York severed diplomatic relations with the state of Massachusetts and urged New Yorkers in Massachusetts to return home, and the governor of Connecticut was trying to calm everyone down.

Hookah bar!

Last night I went to my first hookah bar, Rotana. I steal their wireless enough, so I figured it was the least I could do to go in and see what it was all about.

Compared to most of the hookah bars on my block (Steinway, between 28th and Astoria Blvd), Rotana seemed to be the most laid-back of the, I hesitate to say, "outsider-friendly" establishments. This neighborhood has the largest Arab population in the City, and while most, if not all of, the bars are open to the public, there are many where I've never seen any patrons who were not middle-aged-to-elderly Arab men. In contrast, there are also quite a few where I regularly see younger customers, including whites and Latinos, however most of those tend to be flashier, louder, chromed-out club-type establishments. Rotana, however, always seemed like a laid-back, relaxed place to sit back and enjoy hookah and conversation. I pass it every night on my way home, and I finally went in last night.

My friend Morgan and I got there around 11pm, and aside from a younger gentleman on his laptop in the front corner, the only customers were a group of 6-8 Arab men playing cards, engaged in what seemed to be an Arab version of a drinking game (though no alcohol was being consumed). The Cameroon-Egypt soccer match was muted on the flatscreen, and soft Middle Eastern music was playing.

We had the fakher hookah with fresh orange shisha that lasted the entire 2 hours we were there. The proprietor of the establishment was quite friendly and his staff quite attentive when it came time to switch out the coals. Around 12:30am, it began to pick up a little, as a few more patrons came in, and by nature of the cozy confines, it got slightly louder, but never intrusively so.

With the fresh shisha in fakher hookah, and 2 sodas, the grand total spent for 2 enjoyable hours of relaxing was $14. Not bad at all in this city and this economy, so Rotana can expect my patronage from now on.

Bar regular

So I've finally frequented a bar enough that the bartender calls me by my name. Which is pretty cool. What's cooler? That bartender's name is Thor.

Happy New Year!

Every time I want to write in the blog I get distracted by other things.

Happy New Year everyone.

Spent it in BK with Bunce, Matty, and Kaelin. Annie was there with her bf, and Bunce and I took them to the Gator for pints and pizza, and shots. After we snagged some NYE plastic hats and noisemakers and got some food and alcohol in stomach, we headed back for boozing and partying in the apartment with Matty, Kaelin and her sister Lauren, friend Meryl and their dates.

Just after midnight, Aaron and his gf showed up (literally, just after we all screamed "Happy New Year", the bell rang). After partying it up, Matty, Aaron, and I headed to a party up the road where Mac was at. It was full of hipsters and not at all where I wanted to be, so I made my retreat as soon as I could to go chill with Bunce and Kaelin back at the apt.

Started drinking water relatively early on, and Gatorade when I got home, so even though I was HAMMERED last night, I had no hangover this AM. Score :)

Cifu is in NYC for a few days, so I'm trying to figure out plans with him to hang out this weekend. I haven't seen that little Spaniard since I left Madrid in April '99. This should be awesome :)

WTFMTA?

After seeing signs saying there would be no N running late night tonight, I walked from a post-show Christmas gathering in Hell's Kitchen to Times Square to catch the 7 to QB Plaza. The 7 was stopped at the station for 15 minutes, then again in the tunnel for a few minutes. Then after waiting a good 15 minutes at least at QBP, the N showed up coming from Manhattan. Apparently it WASN'T suspended. All told, it took 2 hours to get from W 50th to Steinway. Thanks MTA.

Luckily the soundtrack was wonderful, selections:

Walking through Hell's Kitchen: "Static-X - "December"

Walking through the Theatre District: Mike Doughty - "I Can Hear the Bells"

Walking through Times Square: Relient K - "Silver Bells"

Waiting on the 7: Tchaikovsky - "Waltz of the Sugar Plum Fairy"

Riding the 7: John Prine - "Christmas in Prison"

Waiting at QB Plaza: Flyleaf - "Do You Hear What I Hear?"

Riding the N: Ramones - "Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight)"

Walking down Astoria Blvd: Run DMC - "Christmas in Hollis"

SAVE OUR STEELERS!

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been kidnapped by extraterrestrial alien body snatchers. These aren't ACTUALLY Roethlisberger, Tomlin, Harrison, Parker, Ward, and the offensive line. These are evil doppelgangers. Jon Stewart in "The Faculty." Polamalu's doppelganger couldn't handle BEING Polamalu and went and broke himself. These are NOT the real Pittsburgh Steelers, and SOMETHING MUST BE DONE! We must contact the FBI and the CIA and NASA immediately and let them know that the Steelers have been kidnapped by aliens. SOUND THE ALARM!

SAVE OUR STEELERS! S-O-S!

Either that or this is all some elaborate ruse being perpetrated by the criminal syndicate Cincinattica Bengals, who have somehow risen to the top of the standings for just the second time since 1991. The fix is in.

Safe in New York City

This happened 3 blocks from where I work.

What exactly is an "aggressive" panhandler?

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local&id=7163491