Muslim or Christian?

Let's go back ten years to 1996... the year that 'California Love' and 'Gangsta's Paradise' were top songs. Who can forget that year? For me that year holds special importance, it's the year that I first laid eyes upon Egypt. The Summer of 1996 connected to me my roots, my humble roots. The sites and sounds of Egypt amazed me, everything from the traffic jams in Cairo to the ancient ruins in Aswan excited me.

I still remember my 'epic' journey to Egypt in the summer of '96, but I'm worried about how much the country has changed especially when it comes to religion. Even in Nady al-Qahiria (Cairo Country Club) there were children that asked me my religion, as if my name didn't already give it away. Being of a certain religion made you apart of the group, excluding or including you based upon your answer. Why does religion matter so much, if we are all Egyptians?

As I'm embarking upon my journey to Egypt and the greater Middle East this summer, I'm scared that the vision that I had of Egypt will be smashed. The news coming from Egypt of sectarian violence and thuggery of Mubarak's regime has opened my eyes that Egypt isn't the land of hope or peace but of tyranny.