‘Ra’s Bazaar’ began as an Import/Wholesale business in 2003. The name was chosen as a metaphor for selling everything under the Egyptian Sun.

‘Ra’s Bazaar’ opened a retail outlet in 2007. It is owned and operated by Peter Fern. Peter visited Egypt in 2003 and had life altering experiences there. (read his story- “Lost One, Found One in Africa”)

The motivation behind the business is to be able to support his ‘adopted ’family in Egypt. Peter and his fiancée, Desley, live in Perth, Western Australia.

“Lost One Found One In Africa”

My name is Peter FERN.

This is a story of brothers. One was born in Ballarat in the State of Victoria, Australia in 1956, the other in Melbourne 23 months later.
Fifteen years after another was born in Khartoum in Africa, not of the same bloodline, but a man destined to become a ‘brother heart’.

One died in Africa never aware of his African brother who lives on, yet like the solar boat of the Sun god Ra, he carries him across the river Nile daily.

My big brother Jack loved doing three things in his life and he devoted his adult life to them. He loved his mates, cricket and world travel. Whenever he wasn’t sleeping or working he was with his mates playing cricket or travelling the world making more friends.

He played indoor and outdoor cricket and was a skilled wicket-keeper. Leg-side stumpings were his greatest joy in the game and over thirty years he built up a quite a reputation as a fine gloveman. His batting was brave but not of the same quality as his keeping. Unfortunately this prevented him playing at the highest levels.

At the age of forty-six he set off on what was to be his last trip. His itinerary was Perth, Johannesburg, Zanzibar and the Greek Islands. He left Perth on his own one fine afternoon in August of 2002 and was found dead in his hotel room in Johannesburg the next day.

Perhaps his body was tired from years of partying.
Alas his time had come.

Jack was a bachelor and was survived by his mother, father and myself.

In his lifetime he had travelled Europe, South-East Asia, North, Central and South America, Cuba, the Greek Islands and he twice trekked across South and East Africa in trucks. He made many wonderful friendships on his way and his time at home was often punctuated with overseas friends dropping in. He climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro and white-water rafted the Zambezi River. He walked the gringo trail to Machu Pichu and rode as a 3rd class passenger on trains in Johannesburg in the 1980’s.

My house has pictures of Jack alongside silver back gorillas, pygmies and volcanoes. Stone carvings from Africa and a miniature Eiffel tower stand on a small table in my bedroom. He passed on to me his backpack, camera and money belt.

In May of 2002 I turned forty-four. Two weeks later I was laid off from my employment. At that point in my life I was living in a 100 year old cottage on forty acres of land beside the Preston River in the South-West of Western Australia. It was a rented property and I lived alone. Three months later my brother Jack flew his one way leg to South Africa. We buried Jack in August.

I was unemployed and seven weeks behind in my rent when Christmas time came. It was a sparse Christmas. The New Year came and I was determined to find work. The local paper advertised a position in a timber mill forty-five minutes drive from home. I had worked in mills many years before and decided to apply. I rang the number and spoke to the mill owner. He said he would give me a start on the following Tuesday. I made the phone call from the house of my girlfriend, Desley. When I finished the phone call I turned to her and said, “I’ve managed to work in three timber mills so far and haven’t lost a digit!”

Tuesday dawned and I drove to the mill. The mill boss had asked me to be on site at seven a.m. sharp and I turned up eager and ready to go, ten minutes early. I found the boss and he introduced me to the man I would be working with. There was no filling out of hiring forms let alone orientation, it was straight into it! Seven o’clock came and the first log screamed its way through the circular saw. I was operating a docking saw.

Seven forty-five came and I was in the mill boss’s car being raced to hospital while other workers searched for my left thumb and index finger. An hour later and I was in a light plane flying to our capital city, Perth, for surgery. Beside me was a small foam box containing ice and my left thumb. My co-workers hadn’t found the index finger. I think the mill dog was too quick for them!

Seven hours of micro-surgery followed but was unsuccessful. Two days after being sewn back on the thumb was removed again. I had been left-handed all my life and now had to be right-handed. Remarkably I had been practising writing with my right hand for the three months leading up to the accident. I had read that practising with the non-preferred hand was good for creating balance in one’s life!

The mill was later charged and convicted on several Workplace Safety laws.

I began the process of rehabilitation and the settlement of compensation claims.

 

Three days later and I was discharged and returned home. Three months later and my inheritance came through. Several years ago Jack said to me that if he died before me I was to use his money to travel. I had never been overseas in my life and here I was on long term sick leave and my brothers’ words ringing in my head, “You have to travel!”

I booked an open return ticket from Perth to Cairo. Egypt held many fascinations for me and it was the logical place for me to begin my odyssey. I had plans to visit Turkey afterwards and then to attend a conference in Switzerland before returning home to have some corrective surgery done on my mangled hand.

I flew into Cairo as the sun rose on a hot June summers’ day. I cleared customs and went outside into the Egyptian air. Wow! Here I was all on my own on the other side of the world. I negotiated a taxi fare and we made our way to a Cairo hotel I had picked out of the Lonely Planet during the flight. I showered and had breakfast. I then sat with the hotel manger and booked a ten day trip through Egypt.

At 10:00 pm the following night I caught the overnight train to Aswan, a twelve hour trip covering 900 kilometres. The sun rose about 5:00 am and the light of Ra uncovered a mesmerising vista of rural Egypt as we rattled along to Aswan.

The train arrived late morning and I made straight to my hotel.
I showered and freshened up at the hotel and then did a motorboat trip to the Kitchener and Elephantine Islands. In the late afternoon I strolled the corniche.

The touts for the felucca captains immediately assailed me. I picked the least insistent and was led down to the river to meet the ‘captain’. The captain was seated at a table on a floating restaurant. His felucca was moored off the back.

The restaurant was undergoing renovations. The captain was the only person on the barge. He introduced himself as ‘Eszu’. I negotiated a price then Eszu and two of his brothers sailed me out to the sunset. I fell in love with the Nile. I was awestruck by its beauty and majesty. The Nile- The Mother of Egypt!

When we returned to the river bank Eszu asked me what I planned for the night. I told him that I wanted to have a meal. He took me to a Nubian eating house in the souq and we shared a meal. Eszu asked me about my trip. I told him the story of my brother.

 

Eszu said, “ You opened your heart to me about your brother. I will tell you of my life.” Eszu told me of his family and his life. Eszu left school at the age of 13 to work the feluccas. He was frustrated with his inability to improve the life of his family. He told me the old wooden felucca we sailed on was not his. He worked for the owner. He earned the minor portion of the monies earned. The boat was for sale and there was no guarantee that Eszu would be the captain if it sold.

Eszu invited me to come back to his village that evening. He said that there was a party there. Though booked on an overland trip to Abu Simbel early the next morning, I was keen to accept the invitation.

We arrived at the village and I met Eszu’s family. Eszu has seven brothers and sisters. I met his aged and weary father and his lovely mother. Three of Eszus’ siblings are under 10 years of age and the other four are all adult. We then went to ‘the party’. It was an Arab, Nubian, Moslem wedding!!! The whole village attended the festivities. I was the only westerner there.

Two days later I returned to my hotel overwhelmed by the experience. I was moved by the plight of my new friend Eszu. He and his adult brothers worked long and hard for their daily survival. He boasted proudly that his mother could feed the family for a week with a bucket of vegetables.

The standard of living I enjoy was in stark polarity to his. Yet culturally his life was far richer than my own. Eszu met me in Aswan the day after the wedding. We had a meal together.

I asked Eszu how much it would cost to buy the old felucca and to replace some aged and ragged fittings on it. The amount was $1000 US. I told him that I would like to buy the boat and give it to him. I wanted to help him to provide for his family. He accepted my offer. He said that we were “ Brothers of the Heart.” The felucca was renamed the “ JACK FERN”.

And now “ JACK FERN “ carries Eszu in a rhythmic cycle from Aswan to the village, East Bank to the West bank; just as the solar boat of the Sun god ‘ Ra’ carries Him across the sky East to West to bring the gift of Light to mankind.

 

 

 

Epilogue:

I have recently returned from my fourth trip to the village of Coobahnea, 20 kms down river from Aswan. My brother’s family are well. Eszu, his two eldest brothers and his eldest sister have been able to marry over the last four years. His old father died in 2005.

Four months after receiving the gift of the “JACK FERN”, Eszu bought the “JACK FERN number 2”. It is a larger steel hulled felucca. Two of Eszu’s brothers crew this felucca. He has recently bought the acre of garden between his home and the mighty Nile. He has also purchased a small mango orchard. I bought the one beside it and gave it to him. In 2008 Eszu bought a second-hand ‘village taxi’. A Toyota Hilux ute with canopy and rear running board. I have been in the taxi with 17 others!

More recently Eszu has built a flat for me in his family compound. I was staggered to find that it is a three bedroom flat with Western plumbing fixtures; air-conditioned and tiled throughout!

I am now an Importer/Wholesaler of Middle Eastern goods to Australia. My business name is ‘ Ra’s Bazaar’.

In October 2007 I opened my shop in East Victoria Park;
“Ra’s Bazaar”.

It is now May, 2009 and ‘Ra’s Bazaar’ has launched its Website.

I lost my brother Jack to the dark continent of Africa. I have found another brother in the Land of Light, Egypt. I count my blessings daily!