While Sitting at a local restaurant in Cairo, Egypt, I deliberated between Subia and Dom Palm to drink. Two adult women, the mother (in-law?) wearing a burqa and the daughter (in-law?) wearing an abaya sat in front of me. The third member of their party was a little girl, wearing a bright pink frock. She was small enough to be placed right on the table. Dom Palm, I decided, will be the “authentic” Egyptian taste for tonight.

Soon after, their drinks arrived. The two older women had Coca-Cola. The young girl, probably as a mark of a rebel, drank Sprite. Coca-Cola wasn’t just a sugary carbonated drink for them. Coca-Cola was the “authentic” taste of America for them. Earlier, I saw the posters of the American faux festival, Black Friday, on the streets of Cairo. That all started to make sense.