Castration

All of us were having a splendid dinner in Istanbul, hosted by the Village Head.
Long tables with hundreds of diners.
Wine and meat were aplently.

Then the Village Head made an important announcement.
Something that we were not aware prior to booking the Mediterranean Cruise.

"All the female tourists here would have to be castrated tonight!"
It would be a D.I.Y. procedure with witnesses to ensure that nobody was missed out.
D.I.Y. so that everyone would be in charge of their own instruments making sure that the instruments were properly sterilized.
We were supposed to make a straight line cut across the 'u know where'.
Lady inspectors would then go around with a white linen.
A clean swipe would be performed across the named area.
Presence of blood will confirm that the procedure had been carried out.

We were the only ladies at the table that looked totally flabbergasted.
In fact some ladies were seen very enthusiastic about this holy event!
They were giggling and squealing with excitement to be privileged enough to be part of this thousand-year-old-tradition.

I asked the Village Head, "Did your daughter have to do this too?". A question which I later regretted asking. Seated next to him, she was garbed in black robe with black headgear and veil, revealing only her eyes.
She kept her head down throughout the dinner.
To that he answered, "But of course! She had hers done when she was 9 years old.
In fact, we even reversed the skin to ensure that she is thoroughly cleansed".
Eventhough I didn't exactly know what he meant, it sounded like the creepiest horror movie to me already!

It was at this exact moment, the 4 ladies who were travelling with me left the table angrily.
I did not, fearing that this will make the Village Head fuming mad.
If he is angry, God knows what other 'punishment' he might have for us.

After dinner, everyone was allowed to go back to their rooms to shower themselves clean for the ceremony.
3 guards were waiting outside my room to ensure that I adhere to the instructions.
I tried to delay the impending moment of horror by taking the longest time to choose my choice of attire for the night.
The guards got impatient and entered the room.
They looked at the chips in my room and hollered if they could eat them.
It wasn't really a question because I don't think I could have said "No".

So I showered and changed.

Everyone were lined up in the large quadrangle next to our rooms.
The atmosphere was somber and tense (at least for me).

Next, a voting was to be carried out.
Those who were against the procedure, would have to form a separate line.
Around 10 ladies formed themselves to a new line. Including by 4 friends.
I remained in my line with hundreds of others.

5 minutes that seemed like eternity later, an announcement was made: "EVERYBODY!!! You are now dismissed!!"

And the crowd dispersed.

I was very puzzled.
What happened?
So there won't be any ceremony?

I later found out that, as long as there was one single objection from any ladies in the crowd,
the ceremony would then be deemed cancelled.

What a relief!

And to my greater relief, I later found out that the whole thing was just a dream!!

...the one who woke up in fear this morning.