Algeria was pretty much a day run \u2013 arrive in Algiers (the main city) in the morning, go to the hotel to check in, go to the theatre, rehearse, perform, go to a quick reception, then back to the hotel, sleep and leave the next day.\u00a0 As we drove through the streets of Algiers I was struck by how few women I saw walking along the streets.\u00a0 The streets were crowded \u2013 just not with women.\u00a0 Those women that I did see were all dressed in identical outfits with one of their hands clutching their veil closed under their nose.\u00a0 I sank down on the bus seat and sighed.\u00a0 Another Muslim country where the dogs were worth more than I was.\u00a0 The men in Algiers seemed more aggressive than usual so it was decided that it would be safer for all of us if we did not leave the theatre for meals.\u00a0 Going to the hotel for a meal was out of the question \u2013 because it was about twenty kilometers away.\u00a0 Food (a couple of roast chickens and some oranges) was arranged to be brought to us at the theatre where we had to remain for the rest of the day.\u00a0 The theatre in Algiers was old and infested with cockroaches.\u00a0 And when I say infested \u2013 I mean infested.\u00a0 They were everywhere!\u00a0 They filled the bathrooms, covered the walls and were imbedded in the upholstered dressing room chairs.\u00a0\u00a0 There was no safe place to sit.\u00a0 We ended up constructing clotheslines across our dressing rooms where we could safely hang our costumes until we needed them.\u00a0 All our precautions failed.\u00a0 Mid-performance, Lorraine started gyrating.\u00a0 A cockroach had found its way into her leotard and was desperately trying to escape its entrapment.\u00a0 It gave us all a good laugh.<\/p>\n
Returning to the hotel, we decided to redo the roommate list.\u00a0 Normally, the women roomed together, as did the men.\u00a0 However, most of the company women were uneasy in Algeria (the whole worth less than a dog thing) so everyone decided to pair up boy\/girl for the night.\u00a0 Every woman would have her own personal protector.\u00a0 I roomed with Brian.\u00a0 As we lay down to go to sleep, I looked over at Brian.\u00a0 Skinny, effeminate Brian \u2013 my best friend.\u00a0 \u201cYou know honey, if someone breaks into this room, I\u2019ll probably have to be the one who fights them off of you.\u201d\u00a0 Brian chuckled in agreement and turned over to go to sleep.\u00a0 The next morning the company gathered in the lobby to leave.\u00a0 Although our bus call wasn\u2019t until early afternoon, the entire group was ready to leave at seven o\u2019clock in the morning.\u00a0 This truly was the first time that no one was late for the call.\u00a0 How desperate were we to leave?\u00a0 The entire group sat in the lobby all morning long – waiting.<\/p>\n
Finally we got to the airport.\u00a0 While standing in the ticket line, I ran into trouble.\u00a0 The man behind me in line kept moving closer – until I could feel his breath on my neck.\u00a0 His hand moved to my hip and slowly began to caress my butt.\u00a0 OK, you\u2019re a foreigner in a strange country and you get into an altercation with a native.\u00a0 The police show up.\u00a0 So who do you think is going to come out of this one on top?\u00a0 Take in consideration the whole woman versus dog thing\u2026and you get my dilemma.\u00a0 I thought a moment and did what I thought was a brilliant course of action.\u00a0 I pretended that someone called my name and I abruptly swung around (with as much force as possible) and knocked the man to the ground with my ever present, shoulder-held and incredibly heavy dance bag.\u00a0 I then turned to the man with a look of dismay, batted my eyes at him and apologized for my clumsiness.\u00a0 Problem solved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Algeria was pretty much a day run – arrive in Algiers (the main city) in the morning, go to the hotel to check in, go to the theatre, rehearse, perform, go to a quick reception, then back to the hotel, … Continue reading