The Belly Dance Chronicles Oct/Nov/Dec 2020 Volume 18, Issue 4 | Page 33

Ma * Shuqa Mira Murjan from America .” It is surreal to listen to a radio station playing classical music and hear your name and show mentioned – and for a moment I thought I was back in America because I could understand the commercial for the show .
Another memory my mind recalls is when I stepped out of the train station at the Koln Dom ( the ancient Gothic cathedral ). Turning a corner , I found myself staring at an entire wall – probably 100 ’ -long plastered with my image on the Comedia Colognia show poster – 3 posters high . It was one of those “ oh , I wish I had a camera and someone to take my picture in front of this massive wall of my posters .” All I have is one show poster hung in my dance studio as a memory of that particular show and the memory of that moment standing in front of the wall of show posters .
Revisiting Koln 38 years later with my husband Carl and a German photographer friend Andre Ebling – we visited the Koln Dom ( cathedral ) – then visited a photography store off the cathedral plaza . Inquiring how long this store had been in business , I learned that they were open for business when I stood in front of my wall of show posters . If only I had noticed the photography shop , I would have an image of me with my wall of show posters . Now , in the cell phone camera era , I would have had many Europeans taking a picture of me posing in front of my show poster – and the image capturing the moment would have been shared on social media . Since I do have a framed copy of that show poster hanging in the studio , there is always a reminder of living the dream .
At my 2013 workshop in Duisberg , Germany – a woman approached me to introduce me to her students attending my workshop . She told me that she had been in the audience of the Comedia Colognia show . I also inspired her to study belly dance , become a dance teacher opening a dance studio in Duisberg , Germany , and she enjoyed a long career training many belly dancers . Even years later , it ’ s so gratifying to know that I helped inspire so many dancers in Germany , Belgium , and beyond . When I worked in Germany , there were only three working belly dancers – it was a new dance phenomenon in Germany at the time .
Lifelong Memories and Cultural Understanding Amazing to think that I decided to pursue professional teaching and dancing in Germany without giving a thought to the realities of daily living and working without speaking or understanding German . I ’ ve shared my experiences , lessons learned , and how to survive living and working abroad . One of the most amazing disparities was – having terrific performance and teaching opportunities , enjoying everything about the food and cultures of Germany and the Turkish community in Koln , yet experiencing profound isolation and the inability to hold an intelligent discussion and conversation with people around me . Remember , before cell phones , telephone calls overseas were costly , so the opportunity to conveniently converse in English was minimal .
Life continues , and you just never know how you have connected with someone and influenced a life . Some years later , in 2011 – my first visit to teach a workshop and perform in Berlin , a famous European belly dancer from Belgium , taking my class , approached me . She shared that she had attended that Comedia Colognia show and was inspired to study belly dance . Before this contact , I had only seen her picture on the cover of “ Habibi magazine ” and read articles of this famous dancer teaching and performing in Europe .
October 2020 � The Belly Dance Chronicles 33