The Gaza Siege Stinks…literary

The Gaza Siege Stinks…literary
By Hanitizer
Those with intimate knowledge of us Arabs know how obsessed we are with fragrance. Good fragrances to us are the trucker hats to suburbanites, the cool sneakers to the urbanites. While most do it for cosmetic reasons; others do to cover up the sweat on a hot summer day; and few do it for religious reasons. If you notice many venders of fragrance especially the oily ones tend to be on the religious side. I know I am an addict to fragrance being an Arab and all. Not to brag, but I own at least twenty different bottles of fine cologne, I am loyal consumer and a collector. When I first planed to visit Gaza, I thought I would buy lots of fragrance as gifts. I was lucky in my choice of gifts as it turn out Gaza has a shortage of fine fragrances. The cologne and perfumes I gave to family and friends were treasured.When I ran out of fragrance I had to look for replacements. It turns out that on hot July and August, my consumption of cologne went up! I called my fiancé and asked her to give me some tips on where I can find the best cologne. She promised to help me find some, but we need to go to certain places to find things I might like. As I learned it’s traditional when a bride to be visits a family member, they shower her with gifts. Among the bags my fiancé was getting form my sisters and relatives are bottles of perfume. So when we opened these bottles and smelled them I really hated them and felt like I am about to vomit. I know my sisters have a great taste and are well off so why would they buy these awful perfumes? My fiancé was grateful for the gifts thanked those giving her the perfume. I am not a snob nor am I high maintenance, but those were mighty awful smells—I might be ok with the stink at that point.
Realizing that we are in an embargoed area and the options are limited it came as a no surprise to learn of the lack of good fragrance. “Khalik Style” translates to “be Stylish” in English is the name of the store where they cook up lots of fragrances. As I passed by famous store in down town Gaza that has many franchises thought out the Strip, a young man spread my arm with fragrance as marketing ploy I guess and he also handed me a promotional flayer. The stuff smells good, but the smell all vanishes in an instant.I looked inside the store to find, labeled aluminum jars, empty small perfume bottles with all sorts of fancy stickers. You walk in and tell the clerk, I want you to make me the smell of Joop, Diesel, Calvin Kline…etc. they only have the traditional smells so good luck finding Usher or anything that P. Diddy is selling. The clerk brings in a bottle and mixes a cocktail of liquids and in moments you get clone of your favorite cologne. That’s the best possible outcome! Finding genuine fragrance with the proper labeling is all but impossible. Even the dollars store fragrance in the States will be sold in top dollars if they make it into Gaza as what’s available is weak.You know all these materials are coming from the tunnels, the Gaza market is a replica of the ones in Egypt. You know if the found the original brands in Egypt and knew they could make profit in Gaza they will bring them. Did you know that the Chinese are now selling fragrances in Gaza? The Chinese make everything, but I would never have guessed they sell cologne. I am sure other countries have that too along with other genuine brands. The problem with the stuff they cook up in Gaza is its lack of stability. You can spray the whole bottle and still stink in five minutes. I know I might sound out of touch here with the common Gaza man and woman, but this is a problem that goes to show the complexity of the unjust siege where even those who have money in Gaza cannot buy luxury.