One Month Down

The week has been relatively uneventful as far as seeing new sights. My classes are interesting, but I am not used to such a small class size! I haven’t been an active participant in a class since high school, and I am finding it exhausting especially because of the language component. My one on one class was the highlight of this week, as I learned in depth about the five pillars of Islam, including how Muslims pray, and perform abolutions (the systematic and specific way to clean your body before you pray). Along with this came a lot of fun facts like, a menstruating woman cannot read the Qur'an, and that if it was a life and death situation it would be ok to eat food that is not Halal, like pork products, as long as one doesn’t indulge and just eats enough to stay alive. My first class on Islam (two weeks ago) was really long and it was difficult to focus because it was just the teacher and I for two hours. This time I made a conscious effort to have a dialog instead of a two-hour lecture and we fell into comfortable discussion, which was a great improvement from the first meeting’s stiff lecture.
My other teacher for my one on one is a little more extroverted, and we clicked immediately on our first meet. At the end of the lesson he invited me over to his house for tea, along with the other students who are studying the same topic! We are going over tonight to meet his family and I am so excited!
Going out in Alexandria is definitely a feat. Most of the women in the dorm don’t leave except to go to class. Additionally, there aren’t a ton of places for women to go at night, and some of the Ahwas (cafes) don’t even allow women inside. All of the bars and clubs are tucked away in alleys, and you can’t ask anyone on the street where they are because then you are automatically assumed to be a prostitute. It is important to know the location of the place and some of the landmarks around it. For example, Andi and I found an ex-pat bar after looking for half hour. We went into the Sofitel and asked the receptionist there, who told us to look for Partners Loyal Hotel. We inquired on the street about the hotel, but very few people knew of it despite the fact that it was a massive hotel, and only one street over. Finally we found the bar, a little hole in the wall that looked like it was out of an Ernest Hemingway novel and it was really fun! After that, we met up with the rest of the group at a local haunt that has an upstairs with music. Tuesday nights are the first nights of our weekends, but nobody else is off, so usually we have most places to ourselves, which is really nice. Wednesday was pretty uneventful. It is still over ninety degrees here everyday, and it that makes walking around and exploring really difficult. I personally cannot stand the heat, and when I am in jeans and a sweater and a scarf it is even less fun. But I just did my homework and relaxed in my air-conditioned room. After dinner we met up with some of the boys and hung out along the Corniche. All in all it has been a low key, but not boring, weekend. Tonight we are going to try a fish restaurant and then I am going to my teacher’s house.
I am still definitely processing life in Egypt, and I may be processing it until I leave (only 74 days, 11 hours and 4 minutes…but who is counting?). It is hard for me not to feel like an orientalist at times, especially when my Internet shuts off in the middle of a conversation, or when people on the street or in a tram car who have really extreme body odor (Egyptians do not take the same measures for personal hygiene as Americans do...deodorant is not a necessity, they change your clothes once a week and showers are infrequent). I am making an honest effort to be more relaxed, and even if I don’t want to embrace the differences here, I can just accept them. September is almost over (TOMORROW) and October is going to be crazy! I am going to Luxor and Aswan on the fifth, my parents are coming on the thirteenth and we are doing a group trip to Marsah Matrouh (a beach town two hours away) on the twenty-seventh, so hopefully this month will move by a little faster.

Weekend Rollercoaster

The past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster. I knew exactly what I signed up for, and Middlebury definitely delivered. I am bombarded by the culture and language in every aspect of my life, and it definitely took its toll on me. After countless nights of insomnia, I finally cracked, and begged my parents to buy me a ticket home (a part of me is surprised I lasted this long before asking them for one). After a lot of complaining and tears we all decided my number one priority should be sleep, so I have been actively trying to sleep more, and have been somewhat successful.
Fueled by Tuesday’s breakdown, I went to Cairo with Andi and Stephanie (a girl from GWU). The trip was interesting, and it was definitely nice to get away. The train was punctual (one point for Egypt!) and rivaled Amtrak in its quality. We took second class which totaled to be LE70 round trip (about $13). We found a clean hostel in a great area (thank you hostelworld.com) for a whopping $15 a night for three people, and set out to meet Stephanie’s friends at a Yemeni restaurant.
Last time I was in Cairo was during Ramadan. Strangely, the city was LESS hectic on a normal day. We took the subway, and it was fantastic! It looks a lot like the Underground in London (it was built by the French when Egypt was under their occupation) and was cheap, efficient and air-conditioned! There are also special women’s cars just like the tram in Alexandria.
Stephanie’s friends were great to chat with, and the restaurant was awesome. We ate salat mushakl (a soupy meat dish) fasah (very similar soupy, cheese concoction but with beans) and fusholeyah (a rice and meat combo). No utensils are provided, and you are given massive (maybe two feet in diameter) pieces of bread that look kind of like Indian naan bread to scoop up all the food. It was a totally awesome experience, all for LE12 (about $2). I was so hungry I forgot to take a picture, so I guess I will just have to go back!
We met up with some more Americans (and may have broken the pledge to talk to them, but oh well) and it was really great to hear a range of experiences. All of them were in different programs, from different American colleges, and knew different degrees of Arabic before coming here. Hopefully they will come visit Alex and we can show them around.
That night I had some more insomnia…ugh…I think it’s rooted in the anxiety spurred from basic daily life in Egypt. I am a major control freak, and 95% of things here are absolutely out of my control. I am working really hard in losing any expectations and just rolling with the punches, but that saying about old dogs and new tricks really stands true here.
The next day we ventured out across Cairo to an ex-pat neighborhood that has an authentic American diner called Lucille’s. To say we were in heaven would be an understatement. I got a fajita (which was awesome) and the other girls got pancakes. We each got diet cokes (the fountain soda kind not cans!) and there were free refills. It was so much fun! While the restaurant was run by Egyptians, almost everyone in there was speaking English, and we were the only table speaking in Arabic.
Full and happy, we went to the old location of the American University in Cairo (it recently moved to Heliopolis a suburb of Cairo), to meet up with some of Andi’s friends. They both just graduated from Duke, and are incredible at Arabic. They were really patient with us, and not once while talking to them did I feel like they were condescending, a stark contrast to some of the more advanced speakers in the Middlebury program. We had a great time, and told hilarious stories in Arabic! It is extremely rewarding when you get your point across, even if it takes a while.
The train back was even better than the one to Cairo because it arrived early! I did some work and a load of laundry and promptly passed out, commencing my first full night of non-codeine induced sleep!
This morning, when I was watching a Criminal Minds episode before starting on the rest of my work, one of the characters quoted Eleanor Roosevelt, and it was particularly inspiring. She said, “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this, I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” Now she was probably referring to World War II, but I definitely can relate this to my life at the moment. I can do this, and I will do this. It is definitely not easy, but it is worth it.

Three Strikes and….?

I haven’t updated since Saturday, because nothing really positive has happened, and I have spent the past few days being a big Negative Nancy.
Sometime last week I noticed that I had small, chicken pock-like bites all over me. They itched. I came to the conclusion that I had a mild case of bed bugs, and I was right. I was bummed to the extreme. Eman helped me change my sheets and fix the problem, but I couldn’t use my bed all day on Yom Kippur (ugh). Strike one.
To continue my rant, I have been having issues sleeping and I am not totally sure why, but I think I can attribute some of it to my bed. I come from a MAJOR “princess and the pea” family. We never sleep properly, and are constantly replacing our mattresses (Mom and Dad…I learned that we do this much more frequently than the average person). We go on vacation and stay at beautiful hotels, but have issues sleeping because the beds are "uncomfortable". We have changed mattresses, rooms and even hotels (insert something about an apple and a tree) in search of a better bed. However, Egyptian beds take the cake. Mine is by far the best out of all of them in the dorm, but still nothing like my fantastic mattress in 4044 Walnut Street. They are basically two large pieces of cotton stacked on top of each other. Inevitably, there is a massive dip in the middle of it that is unavoidable. Some people get back injuries by doing crazy, drunken things in college. I will be forty years old and still talking about how that bed in Egypt really messed up my back. Strike two.
My awkward sleep rhythm came back to haunt me right after Yom Kippur as I passed out at 8PM only to wake up at 4AM. After two episodes of Criminal Minds (thank you Megavideo and Raquel) I decided to go for a run and get my life together. Feeling somewhat better I jumped in the shower. We had yet to get hot water, but its so hot out that I didn’t really care. I turned the knob a little bit, just to check, and was promptly scalded by BOILING water. I don’t think my shoulder will ever be the same. Strike three.
What in the world was I thinking signing up for this? I can’t even articulately complain because I have the language capacity of a ten year old (if that). Daily life is dismal…and I just want to shout: I PROMISE I AM WITTY AND INTERESTING IN ENGLISH IT JUST DOESN’T TRANSLATE, but that’s not allowed…great.
The cultural differences may even be more trying for me than the language differences. Women don’t really go out at night, and when we are out with the guys and their Egyptian friends I feel like they may be semi uncomfortable. We spend most of our nights in the dorm, doing work and it can definitely be less than exciting.
A few of us decided to go to Cairo for a day, just for a change of scenery, so I am excited for that.
I guess the most important realization that I have had so far is that I don’t have to like it here. I appreciate everything about Egypt and I am enamored with the culture and daily life from the position as a spectator. But at this point in time, being an active participant sort of goes against the grain of everything in my life so far, from punctuality to manners to social interaction. And regardless of how positive or negative my experience is, I am still learning a lot about the world, and about my self.

Yom Kippur

I have never been a particularly spiritual person. I was raised to be a conservative Jew, and after some time at a semi-WASPy boarding school, I was happy to be at UPenn, and get involved in the Jewish community (on a social level). It was fun that we were all in the same boat, and had religion, and the culture that comes with it, in common (yes the SDT chef cooks K for P meals). Throughout my time in high school and college I have started to gravitate more toward my religion, finding comfort and sometimes even a haven within it. But Yom Kippur in Alexandria took my personal spirituality to a whole new level.
I have spent the past three weeks in a Muslim country. The athan (call to prayer) can be heard from any point in the city, as mosques are ubiquitous and there are always people ready to pray. The cultural aspects of this religion, like the prohibition of alcohol and the veiling (and sometimes total covering) of women are also prevalent.
A group of Jewish students in my program decided to check out the old synagogue of Alexandria because one of them heard there was a make shift service there for Yom Kippur. I had very little faith in this, but was willing to go see. We arrived at the gates, only to be asked several times if we were Jewish. The guards were shocked, and kept asking if we were ALL Jewish or just some of us. When we finally convinced them we were all Jewish they showed us around to a back entrance past armored vehicles and guards. We were then searched and asked for multiple forms of identification. Finally we were admitted into the courtyard.
To say it was beautiful would be an understatement. The courtyard was something out of a storybook, with the synagogue facing a once affluent street. The synagogue itself was palatial, and when we went inside we were in awe. There were vaulted ceilings and limestone pillars. I don’t really understand why modern synagogues don’t mimic this architecturally, and instead favor the strange art deco minimalism. The pews were massive and wooden, and there was an enormous balcony on the periphery where the women formerly sat. I say formerly because there are no regularly functioning services in this synagogue. There were all of fifteen congregants for Yom Kippur (including the six of us) despite the fact that the building seats five hundred.
The other congregants welcomed us warmly. They couldn’t believe that we were Jewish students from America studying in Alexandria. They also looked like long lost members of our extended family (the Sassoon side). It was so moving to talk to them about their lives, and the service and Judaism in general. Most of them live in Israel part time and Alexandria for the rest, and make it a habit to be here for Yom Kippur as their families were before the diaspora. However they have not had a minyan (ten Jewish male adults are required for certain religious obligations) on Yom Kippur for over ten years. They couldn’t contain their excitement when we told them we would bring a few other Jewish guys from the group for the services the next day. At some point during the service, maybe it was when they had one of the guys from our group do hagbah (lift the torah for everyone to see) or maybe it was when the ardently thanked us for coming, I felt both saddened about the lack of Jewish presence in Egypt but also proud to be a member of such a long history.

Weekend One

The past few days have been really low key. My class on Tuesday was great. The teacher goes at a good pace, I am learning a lot of history as well as great new words and phrases and the work is totally manageable, enjoyable even. After class Molly (from Smith) and I went to another neighborhood called San Stefano and walked around. Before we went back to the dorms we grabbed some Starbucks and sat outside. The Starbucks was delicious (a taste of home!), and as we were sitting one of the employees approached us and began to talk to Molly. She said we were Norwegian (nobody speaks Norwegian here and if we say we are American people just speak English to us) and gave us fake Arabic names. At first the exchange was friendly and light, but then he got aggressive. He demanded to get our numbers. She said she was married, and I said I didn’t have a phone, but I would get one and maybe return. He demanded to know when, where, and what time I would return. We tried to be evasive, but he was persistent. Finally we said we had to leave and walked away. This is by no means an uncommon occurrence, and we have to keep in mind that it’s not rude to refuse to speak to someone or publically scream at someone if they are bothering us.
That evening about fifteen of us met at a bar on the corniche. Yes, alcohol is forbidden by Islam, and therefore sort of taboo in general here, however beer is pretty accessible while hard liquor and wine are more expensive and less safe to drink (there are a lot of cheap Egyptian made versions –Johnny Waller anyone?- that are dangerous). They played American music and we hung out and had fun. It was nice to have a break from Egyptian life.
Wednesday was the weekend (my classes are Saturday-Tuesday), and it was relaxing. Andi and I ran to Starbucks in the morning (its not nearby the dorm) and encountered some Americans. They saw my “Million Dollar Cowboy Bar” t-shirt from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and started chatting with us. They worked in Qatar (which they pronounced “cutter”) and were clearly not immersed in the culture, they didn’t know a word of Arabic despite the fact that they traveled with a team of native Arabic speakers and live in an Arab country. For the rest of the day, I did work and got lunch and then we went to a café at night. I tried to work in McDonalds because I’d heard they have the best Internet, to find that it was out of commission only after I bought my massive, expensive Diet Coke…oh well.
Today I woke up late, which I was thrilled about as I haven’t really been sleeping well, and did work. Molly and I took a lunch break and got some juice. They didn’t have mango, so I decided to be adventurous and pick a random juice. I picked one and it was like saccharine, you win some you lose some I guess. I looked it up and asked Eman and neither of us could figure out what it was in English. I will most definitely avoid it in the future.
At 5:30 we had a scavenger hunt! It was SO much fun. We split up into random groups and I was with Sam (from Middlebury), Allie (from Davidson) and Molly. We had to find as many places as we could (and take a picture in front of them) on the given list and be at a restaurant at 7:30. We stratigized by visiting my friend Ahmed, the fruit man, and he told us which places were the closest and which were the farthest. We then set off. We had such a great time and worked well together! We ended up getting six out of eleven of the places, and were the first at the restaurant. WE WON! It was so exciting, and honestly nice to make a new friend, as I hadn’t really spoken to Sam before. After dinner, we went out to a bar, and Molly and I took the tram back. When Egypt goes my way, it is a really fun place to be. But at times, when everything is working against you it is so frustrating. Tomorrow I am going to run with Andi and finish my homework, and on Saturday a bunch of us are going to try to go to the synagogue for Yom Kippur. There isn’t a working congregation there, but it is open if anyone wishes to see it or pray there. We shall see how that works out!

Eid Mubarak!

I have been in Egypt for two weeks now, and I definitely feel more comfortable here. The past few days have been pretty low key. On Saturday the highlight was definitely eating at an authentic fish restaurant. I ordered a “small, white fish, grilled, without the head.” Additionally we went to a public concert at the Library of Alexandria, which started four hours late…oh Egypt.
On Sunday, a large group of us went to a student’s house to have an Eid meal. He lives in the countryside, very similar to Rasheed. We walked around the area for a while, and then went to his house. The hospitality here is unmatched. He and his siblings wanted to know everything about us and take pictures with us.
Its hard not to feel like a tourist attraction because EVERYWHERE we go no matter what we are wearing or how we are walking we get hissed at or harassed in some way. I now know what it feels like to be a character at a theme park and have people constantly wanting photos with you, but I don't have a costume to take off at the end of the day, its part of my daily life.In the past two weeks alone I have been shouted at in English, Spanish, Arabic and French. Additionally, I have been called “asal” (sugar cane) and “ishtaa” (cream), and asked if I “wanted sex”. It can definitely be trying on ones nerves to say the least, especially with the persistent ones.
Today was the first day of classes (YAY!). My first class was my Arabic language class (MSA) and is a literature class of sorts. We have a special book that’s a collection of articles from academic works with drills and writing exercises. The class is small (six people) and moves quickly, I just hope I can keep up!
My second class was my history class. My teacher is an adorable man who looks like an Egyptian W.B. Mason. He went over the syllabus, and explained we will not be having written tests just oral ones. He then proceeded to give a lecture on the beginning of the 16th century in the Middle East, and after an hour he had us summarize the lecture. It’s a fun group (just four students) and should be interesting!
I then met with my one-on-one professors. All of the students in the program work directly with a professor for three hours a week on a topic of their choice. My one-on-one is “Religious Life in Egypt”, and I have two professors. I meet with the Dr. Saeed for two hours a week to learn about Muslim life in Egypt, and Ustez (teacher) Imad for one hour a week to learn about Christianity in Egypt.
My ECA class was great. My teacher, Heba, is hilarious. She mouths words in English to us if we are absolutely confused, and it’s a big class (about ten people) but a really fun group.
All of my teachers gave us their cell phone numbers, and assured us that we should contact them if we have any problems at all. This opportunity is so different from ANYTHING I have found at Penn, where lectures have sixty people at a minimum and three hundred at maximum, and professors have two hours of office hours a week.
After class I studied with Allie (from Davidson) and Ariana (from Tufts) and the Library of Alexandria. There is free wifi, and a considerable amount of security, but it was absolutely incredible to be studying below sea level. The building is amazing (even rivals Huntsman Hall), and it was a great place to get work done!
After dinner a few of us went to the Citadel with Andi to celebrate her birthday! We got ice cream and walked around a little.
I have a lot of work for Saturday, but I only have one class tomorrow at 2PM, and then the weekend!

Min gheer Ingleezeyah (Without English)

Today was day two without English. It is absolutely exhausting. One would think there would be a lot of quiet time, but we manage to chat in a funny broken way. It was also Rosh Hashannah today and yesterday. Unfortunately, there are NO synagogues in Alexandria that are functioning, and few in Cairo, and the holiday went by without any celebration. We spent the past two days in Rasheed, and they were interesting to say the least.
The claims to fame of Rasheed are few, as I said before the Rosetta Stone was found nearby. Another exciting thing is that it is one of few places surrounded by both the Nile and the Mediterranean. We had minor complications at every step because of language issues, and I think that traveling the first day of the pledge was brave of us. There were 11 of us, so navigating the microbuses was our first adventure. After being hassled at the entrance we found a bus with a good price. A few funny anecdotes from that ten minutes of the day include us knowing they were trying to rip us off and trying to communicate we knew. Esra (from Wellsley) whipped out a pen and paper and showed him we knew how to multiply (that LE3.5 time 11 did NOT equal LE60 for all of us) and we won that bargain. What we couldn’t understand is why they were pointing to the boys and then the driver over and over. Finally, one of the men opened the door to the microbus (like a minivan) and pulled out a boy and put him in the front seat, and said, “Free Arabic lesson.” We laughed, and we were off.
Our first altercation in Rasheed occurred when we learned that foreigners all need passport copies to check in, and we didn’t all have them. That was resolved with a quick call to Nehad, and we stuck to Arabic no matter how hard the clerk tried to speak to us in English.
Rasheed is a small village with no tourism, so we got a lot of stares. Additionally, in Egypt (except in Cairo) foreign tourists in groups bigger than four people are assigned a police escort (ours was an entourage of sorts comprised of four or five officers). I was happy about this because they acted more as tour guides than anything else as we didnt exactly need protection.
We visited the museum, which was done up like an authentic house. The houses in Rasheed are famous for their intricately carved wood shutters. It was beautiful, and very similar to houses I had seen in the old cities of Fez and Marrakesh. We also took a ride on a private felucca down the Nile and saw a beautiful, small mosque. After a long nap, we explored the town (with our entourage of course) in smaller groups. We visited a café by the Nile and walked around the streets of Rasheed. Finding little to do, we returned to a room and played charades in Arabic for a while which was hilarious.
Around 4AM it became apparent from the noise from the streets that Ramadan was over. The exact date is never definite, as it depends on the situation of the moon. There was cheering in the streets and people with bullhorns all over. In the morning, everything was open and people were walking around in their best clothes. We visited the citadel in Rasheed (which is made from limestone taken from ancient pharonic monuments), as well as the famous houses (very similar to the museum but not restored on the inside) and the Turkish bath there. From the citadel, you could see the whole city and a lot of the Nile. It was sad to see about 100 feet of garbage between the land and the Nile. Clearly there isn’t a functioning sanitation department, which contributes to the pollution of the Nile.
We also had a photo op at the place where the Mediterranean meets the Nile, it was beautiful but surprisingly vacant. I would have thought that would a great resort location. We asked all of the local guides to speak to us in Arabic only, so we had to pay specific attention to get everything they were saying, but we confirmed with each other.
I was very happy to come back to Alexandria. I definitely appreciate it more now that I have seen the countryside. After dinner in the dorm a few of us went out in search of kunafah, a traditional Eid dessert. We found it, and were overwhelmed with the choices (raisin, cream, chocolate, nuts, chocolate and nuts, ricotta cheese), and tried the chocolate. After that we walked along the Mediterranean and found an Ahwa (café) and relaxed there. A lot of the night life in Egypt is about sitting and drinking tea and smoking shisha, a great contrast to the bar hopping of America. I am absolutely ready for classes to start.

The Pledge! (September 8, 2010

Today we signed the pledge! We were called into a room one by one and asked if we had any questions and then signed a pledge to speak Arabic until December. It was nerve wracking and exciting at the same time. One by one kids would come out of the office and would only speak and respond to Arabic, I was the last person to go. I will be updating weekly or bi-weekly depending on how everything goes. I may post once a week, but still write a post for each day.
All of the students are taking it seriously, so it is actually really fun! We have to figure out creative ways to express what we want to say with the limited vocabulary we have. It was absolutely exhausting, but rewarding to speak Arabic all day for just half of a day, so I am confident the rest of the semester will be similar.
A large group of us went to Carrefour after the pledge and then the whole program went to a last Iftaar together with traditional Egyptian food. As noted by my commentators, the food in Egypt is definitely a focal point, especially during Ramadan. Egyptians love their cuisine and eat a lot, and definitely expect you to do the same. They take pride in well prepared food, and even people who don’t have much are honored to share what they have with you.
I was exhausted at the end of it so I came back to the dorm. Six of us rode the tram back to the girls’ dorm. We sat in the women’s car near a woman taking on the phone. When she got off she heard us speaking in Arabic, and began to talk with us. She was warm and welcoming, and continued to commend us on our bravery and our Arabic. When the ticket man came around she asked for seven tickets, and paid for us. Random acts of kindness (RAKs!) like this are all over Egypt. You don’t find many New Yorkers willing to give you a swipe off their Metrocard, even if you are desperate.
Eman is at home for the Eid, and tomorrow I will go to Rosetta (Al-Rasheed in Arabic), which is nearby where the Rosetta stone was found in 1799. It is a small village on the Nile with little tourism so it will be really interesting to see, I will definitely have an update after that!

Funny Exchange of the Day

I forgot to include something in today's post. Mama Hoda is the woman who supervises in the kitchen at the girls' dorm. She frequently asks how the food is, and we were SPECIFICALLY told to give her constructive criticism. Today, at breakfast we had the opportunity. To fully appreciate this story you must know that Mama Hoda speaks to us aggressively in broken English even if we reply to her in Arabic. Also fool is the traditional Egyptian breakfast food made of pureed fava beans and spices. It is acutally delicious and usually a rich brown color. However the fool at breakfast is a sad gray color with a horrible pasty texture. Nobody has eaten it after the first day, and it is our only complaint. Nehad suggested we notify Mama Hoda because according to her, bad fool in Egypt is inexcusable. There were about six of us at the table including Katrina, who was not afraid to take on Mama Hoda. Every time Mama Hoda speaks, picture a five foot woman screaming at you in a non-threatening but aggressive way. The dialog that occurred went like this:
Mama Hoda: How is the food?
The table (in Arabic): Okay.....(cue awkward silence...will we REALLY confront her?)
Katrina: I don't like the fool.
Mama Hoda: You don't like fool?
Katrina: NO. I like fool. I don't like THIS fool.
Mama Hoda: Then don't eat it.
Katrina: Okay.

So...so much for constructive criticism. Nobody lauged at the time, and maybe you won't find it funny. But we re-enacted the conversation at Hosny and were laughing hysterically!

The Last Supper

Today was crazy! In the morning Andi and I went running on the corniche (which was approved by all of the staff, don’t worry), which was absolutely beautiful. Nobody really bothered us (surprising because she has blonde hair which usually attracts a lot of attention), and I decided that running along the Mediterranean is definitely a great way to start the day.
Following that, we had our MSA language placement tests, which went well! It was timed, and we had to write two essays and do two reading comprehension exercises in just under two hours. I felt prepared for the test as a whole, and I am excited for classes to start. We will be getting our schedules some time in the weekend. After lunch, we did a taxi role-play in ECA, which was extremely helpful, and I ended up using my new skills later on.
Nehad told us we were in for a treat that evening. The entire group took a bus along the corniche to Ma'moura (another neighborhood) to a restaurant called Hosny, for an official Iftaar, Egyptian style. Egyptian Muslims, unlike other Muslims, break the daily fast with a massive meal. We arrived promptly at six (Iftaar is at 6:15), and were shuttled up to a private room with big screen TVs and a view of the street. From the TVs we watched Mecca for our cue to eat. The waiters brought copious amounts of food to the table. Fresh humus, babaganoush, grape leaves, stuffed peppers, kefta, pita, salad and rice with raisins. We also had apricot juice that is made from dried apricot in the shape of a fruit roll-up (kamr al-deen), which was incredible. The street was insane! People were handing out dates, tables were set up in the streets and we watched the night take over from our window at the restaurant. It was so much fun to just relax, and be out with everyone and celebrate our last night before the pledge.
From there we walked to Montezah, another area on the Mediterranean where King Farouq’s palace is located. Now it is a beautiful hotel that also functions as a museum. After a tour of the fantastic palace (wood paneled offices that are now used as breakfast rooms and bars), we were led out into the garden. There were comfy white couches and tables with live music playing. We were treated to drinks (non-alcoholic of course) and shisha, and it was an absolute blast. Unfortunately, my camera died, so I used my phone and the pictures are not as great. The dean who had spoken to us a few days ago was there, as well as all of the Middlebury staff. We drank tea and coffee and assorted (amazing) fruit juices, and had unlimited shisha and relaxed to the live music in the open air. The weather was perfect, and there was a beautiful breeze and no mosquitoes. It was definitely an evening to remember.
Tomorrow we sign the pledge. This means that we will ONLY be speaking Arabic to each other and to our roommates. I am minimizing my other forms of communication. I will not be bringing my BlackBerry with me to class on a daily basis (AN post program: that lasted about a week), but will bring it when traveling. I am going to update the blog continuously as things happen, but if a day isn’t particularly interesting or different I will refrain. I am nervous and excited, as this is the beginning of the next four months!

Getting into the Swing of Things? (September 6, 2010)

Today was the first day that wasn’t totally new and exciting, which is good in its own right because it means I am starting to get used to my life here. We had a little more ECA instruction in the morning, but I am not finding it very helpful. I would prefer to do role-plays, while we are just learning the differences between an assortment of MSA and ECA verbs. Then we went to the Alexandria National Museum. It was a very long walk to the museum at noon (read:scorching) and we saw everyone praying in the streets, which is so incredible and a constant reminder that I am not at home.
The museum was great! It was extremely well organized and air conditioned (more than I can say about the Egyptian Museum), and had a lot of things from the Islamic period, as well as Grecco-Roman artifacts. The best part about the museum was the actual building itself. It used to be the home of a very wealthy man who sold it to the American embassy for LE200, who then sold it to the city of Alexandria for $2 million! Cameras are prohibited inside the gated area and a garden blocks the outside view so I couldn’t get a picture.
It was 90 degrees today, which under normal circumstances is more than bearable, but with the dress code restrictions was very hot. Everyone was visibly sweating and clearly uncomfortable. I will be happy when the weather gets cooler.
We had a talk after lunch with a graduate student who is doing research on study abroad for her thesis. I decided to participate in her experiment. It entails a few short interviews and several meetings throughout the semester charting our progress. After that we had another Q & A session with Sharroq, Lizz and Nehad.
After dinner, Lizz took us to the train station as we were trying to buy tickets to go to Luxor for the weekend. We were totally bummed to find out that there were no tickets left (AN post program: which we later learned was not true, but an attempt to keep foreigners off the train), as the weekend is really busy because of Eid (the end of Ramadan). The station was extremely stuffy, and the man at the window kept saying, “No English here”, despite the fact that we were all speaking Arabic including Lizz who speaks better ECA than most Egyptians.
Disappointed, disgruntled and sweaty, Andi (who goes to Duke and is in the Navy) and I decided to latch on to another trip going to Rosetta. Rosetta is two hours away, and is a beautiful, quaint city where the Rosetta Stone (the key to deciphering hieroglyphs) was found. We will go there for one night with a group and then come back the next day. We will have one day of down time in Alex, and on the last day we are going to a nearby town to an Egyptian student’s family. I am still disappointed that we won’t be making it to Luxor, as this is our only four-day weekend of the year, but it will probably be nice to rest.
Tomorrow I have my MSA placement exam, and in the evening we are going to an open air dinner by the beach. It should be fun!
Fun Ramadan Facts of the Day: Women are allowed to eat during Ramadan while they are menstruating. They can eat in front of the males in their immediate family, but otherwise must hide it from men. Also, right now, the time is six hours ahead of EST. After Ramadan it will be seven hours ahead. They move the time back one hour so that Iftaar is earlier (they eat from sundown to sunrise).

Day Two in Alex (September 5, 2010)

Today was a pretty low-key day. We went to the school and were tested on our knowledge of Egyptian Colloquial (of which I have none), and then given a very short tutorial that will continue tomorrow. We returned to the dorms to eat lunch and a couple of us started to plan a possible trip to Luxor during the Eid. Following lunch we had a discussion on sexual harassment. It is definitely an issue here, and is absolutely inevitable to a degree. It is common for men to say things to a woman (Egyptian and foreign) when she is walking in the street like, “Your face is like the moon and stars.” These comments are absolutely harmless. However, it can escalate, and we talked about how to try and deal with such instances. If someone is making you feel uncomfortable in a crowded place it is fine to shout at him or scold him. It is also a good idea to walk nearby a family, as usually the family will scold the offender as well. There have been scarring instances, like public masturbation, in which women have pointed the offender out to another group of men who promptly beat him up. Unfortunately it is a huge reality, but by dressing and acting conservatively and trying to walk with a guy at night it can be manageable.
After the lecture Laura picked me up and I went over to her family’s house for Iftaar (the meal to break the fast). Yet again, I realized how much Egyptian Arabic I need to learn, and how different the two are. More often than not I can understand if the person speaks slower than they would usually. However I cannot avoid responding in MSA, and sounding ridiculously formal. It is intimidating and nerve wracking, but they were wonderful. The food was UNBELIEVEABLE. There was a chicken curry over rice, chicken and potatoes, grape leaves, samboussak (pastries filled with cheese, olives and tomatoes), babaganoush and another spread that looked like humus but was like humus and yogurt. They were so kind and friendly and we communicated as best as we could with Laura acting as a translator.
I was supposed to go out with them to San Stefano, by the Four Seasons, and walk around on the beach. But I decided to head home instead, as I was absolutely exhausted. Eman is at the mosque praying until the early morning, so I studied some of the ECA Laura wrote out for me and am heading to bed early.

I got a haircut...in Egypt (September 4, 2010)

Today was my first full day in Alex. We had breakfast in the dorm (edible) and we went to the Mediterranean. It is directly across the busiest street in Alex, so you have to walk through a tunnel, but it was fantastic. If you want to swim you have to go to the private beaches though, and the only women who spend time alone on the corniche are for the most part are prostitutes (note: avoid the corniche alone).
The group went to the TAFL (Teaching Arabic as a foreign language) Center, met the staff and split into two groups. My group went to the new Library of Alexandria first. It was absolutely magnificent. The ancient library was destroyed by a series of earth quakes and about ten years ago, a world wide competition was held to pick the new design. Again I could go on and on about the library, its exhibits and its facilities but I will pick a few high points. The library itself has seven floors, four of which are below sea level (SO COOL!). It is designed to look like a sun disk, and there are all different types of sundials around the outside. The weird part about it is that there is an entry fee of LE2, which is about forty cents (what happened to free libraries?), and you cannot check out a book (yet again challenging the definition of a library). For more info go to: www.bibalex.com.
We ate lunch all together in the girls’ dorm, and it was actually really delicious. This was followed by a welcome lecture from the dean of the college (in Arabic) and then a Q&A session with the coordinators Lizz, Sharroq and Nehad about academics and campus life. We also spoke about the language pledge. This was extremely scary/stressful. We are expected to read, write, speak, text and email in Arabic. All of our homework must be typed and printed, and typing in Arabic is not my strongest suit. However, they emphasized the fact that the pledge is why we are on this program, and that we are only cheating ourselves if we break it. It officially starts on Wednesday, and we will see how that goes.
We had dinner all together and I skyped with the fam for the first time! The picture was clear and we had a great time, they even met Eman and talked to her about medicine and they all spoke a little Arabic with her. She was very impressed! After, I went with Haidy (my Egyptian neighbor) and Amira (my language partner) on the tram to get my Egyptian phone. The tram is an inexpensive, but slow, way to travel. It is extremely safe and there is a women’s car in the front of the tram. The phones are all pre-paid cell phones and you can add minutes as you go.
I returned to the dorms in a taxi alone. It was the first time I have been alone since I left New York. It was great. Haidy had told the driver where to go but he got a little lost and I was able to help him find my dorm. We also talked about the music on the radio (Umm Koulthoum).
I met Laura again at my dorm so she could show me around Alex. She took me to the coiffure (read: salon) that she goes to and I met the owner. She convinced me to let him blow my hair dry, and I decided to also let him cut it while I was in the chair and she was there to explain what I wanted. It all worked out great! My hair looks the same but shorter and without dead ends, and I realized that I will not be slumming it at ALL this semester (AN post program: this was a bout of naive optimism). Egypt is an extremely modern country hidden by a poor façade. The place looked like a dive from the front (and not so much better from the inside), but my haircut is great and it was only LE40 ($8)! He asked me if I would be coming in a lot, and I told him it depends how often I need a pick me up, and he said he thought once a week would be good. I found this in some way to be analogous to the movie Legally Blonde when Elle Woods finds Paulette, but Egypt is not Caimbridge, MA and I am pretty sure all of Elle’s classes were in English.
Following my fabulous cut, I met Laura’s homestay sisters, Dina and Ayah, and saw her apartment. They were cool and seemed really fun, but we could hardly communicate because of the language barrier. I definitely want to spend time with them once I pick up some Egyptian Arabic though! Laura then took me to the top of the Sofitel, which has some of the best views in Alex, as it is right on the corniche. We took a bunch of pictures, and then walked around, and she showed me a great sandwich place called Mohammad Ahmed, where I got a fool sandwich for LE1. By this time it was nearly 1AM (however the city is still totally bustling) and she dropped me back at my dorm. Alex is a busy city for sure, less so than Cairo though. During Ramadan, both cities take on a different form. Make shift mosques are set up in the streets as the mosques are too full to accommodate everyone. It is not at all unusual to see people praying in the street in masses or alone. It is absolutely wild.
Eman welcomed me warmly upon my return, and I tried as best as I could to speak to her in only Arabic. She showed me some of the things she bought for her and for her sister for Eid, and Amirah showed me things she bought for her fiancé who is working in Kuwait. He was her neighbor growing up, and because her family is in Saudi Arabic right now he will spend the Eid with them, while she goes to his family (SO CUTE!). Eman showed be how to use the laundry machine (it’s a super strange one that takes TWO HOURS to do a load), and I will try my hand at the clothesline in the morning!

Alex Alex Alex (September 3, 2010)

Today we took it slow, as planned. After my bout of insomnia, I slept until noon we packed up the room and hung around the hotel (not much to do in a hot city when everything is closed and you only have an hour to kill) until it was time for the bus. Half an hour before the bus was going to come (it was coming right by our hotel) people started flowing into the lobby from our program! To name a few, Molly and Jessie from Smith spent the night before in Cairo and Allie who goes to Davidson had just come in from a summer in Syria. All in all, our group grew to about ten people and we ventured across the street to find the bus stop. Unfortunately there were about fifteen bus stops, and in the confusion we found about ten more people! We finally found the bus, and then went to pick up others from the airport.
The ride to Alexandria took us about three hours (apparently very good time), and when I got off the bus I was extremely overwhelmed. The bus pulled up to the girls’ dorm and we got off and had to find our luggage quickly so that it could move on to drop off the boys. Our roommates were waiting on the curb to greet us and Eman (my roommate) knew me instantly (we are facebook friends) and greeted me warmly. I am pretty sure I had a deer in the headlights look going on as she tried to make small talk with me (in English). After a little commotion she led me to our room, which was set up so adorably. She had “welcome” written in ribbon and pasted it onto the wall. I was still overwhelmed, and extremely quiet. All of the roommates were walking around introducing themselves, and it was exciting but daunting to meet them all.
Eman confessed to me that she was very excited for me to start the language pledge as she felt her English was not so great. I was surprised to hear this as she seemed to communicate perfectly, but I told her that I know MSA, I just don’t know any Egyptian. We quickly began talking, me in MSA and she teaching me how to say the same thing in Egyptian. By the time Liz (the coordinator) came in to give me my schedule I had mastered some of the basics. I was settling in, when a surprise was at the door. Laura had come to my dorm! Laura and I are friends from high school (she was my prefect at Choate my junior year). We also went to Morocco together in 2007, and have stayed in touch. Laura did this program last year, and enjoyed it so much she came back this summer to teach English and live in Alexandria. It was exciting and relieving to see her. It turns out that all of the Egyptian women in the dorm (including Eman) know her really well from all of the activities last year. She helped me unpack (she was EXTREMELY shocked with how little I brought), and we caught up.
I mentioned to her that I wasn’t tired and wanted to get a few things like towels and toothpaste (mine was confiscated as I accidentally put it in my carry on bag), and she quickly called Liz to ask for permission to take me out. Permission you ask? Yes, there is a curfew at the dorm. It is strongly enforced for the Egyptian girls, as the dorm matrons (more like guards in hijabs) report back to the parents of the students. They are a lot more lax with Americans, but I really didn’t know the rules. We asked my roommate Eman if she wanted to come, and she got permission. Another room came as well, Ariana, a girl from Maryland who goes to Tufts, and her roommate Heidi. We went City Center, a MASSIVE mall. It has all of the comforts of home including Zara and Starbucks. I immediately felt at ease. While I am not going to be frequenting City Center (Author's note post program: I LIVED at City Center), it is nice to know there is some place to get away from Egypt for a little while if I need it. We went into Carrefour (a Walmart like place) and I got everything I had needed including things I wouldn’t have thought of like toilet paper (its BYO in the dorm) and an extra pillow. I was so happy to see Laura and spend time with her, but it was also nice to have her there to explain some of the thing the Egyptian girls didn’t know how to say in English.
I returned to the dorm with my new stuff feeling at ease and got right on the Internet. It is SO nice to have Wifi after several days without it in the hotel. I even tried skypeing a little bit but it seems that the connection isn’t that strong. Tomorrow, our first full day in Alex, we have a campus tour and we are getting our Egyptian cell phones.

Extras from Cairo

I haven’t mentioned several notable and interesting things about Cairo. First, all of the major hotels have security checkpoints. You must scan your bag and walk through a metal detector upon entry. Additionally there are guards with guns at ever hotel and along all the major streets, and around all of the tourist areas and embassies. I don’t really know how I feel about them. We have asked several of them for directions, and some prove to be helpful while others shout, “NO ENGLISH”, indicating that they don’t speak English, despite the fact we are addressing them in our broken Arabic.
Also, you may be wondering, “Broken Arabic? Hasn’t she been studying this for a while?” The answer is: yes, I have been studying Arabic for four years now. However, the Arabic that one is taught at a school in the United States is called Modern Standard Arabic, also commonly referred to as fus-ha. This standardization of the language is derived from Koranic Arabic as well as some common dialects, and is used by locals in all official documentation, on the news, when writing and when speaking to someone who speaks a completely different dialect. Over twenty countries list Arabic as their primary language. They spread from as far west as Morocco to as far East as the UAE. Every country has a different dialect, and in some countries there are regional and dialects. Dialects can only be learned through immersion in the culture. Egyptian Arabic is EXTREMELY different from MSA, as a lot of it is derived from the ancient Coptic, Greek and Egyptian languages. Verbs are conjugated differently, words are entirely different, and the syllable that receives emphasis in a word changes, producing a whole different sound from the very formal MSA. Speaking MSA to an Egyptian person is almost the equivalent of someone walking up to you in a mall and asking for directions in Shakespearean English. Its strange, archaic, and you can only understand bits and pieces. Upon our arrival to Alex we have a week long crash course in Egyptian Arabic. The language pledge will officially begin on Wednesday, so we have some time to get to know each other in English. Next time I return to Cairo I will be armed with Egyptian Arabic!
Cairo during Ramadan is different that during the rest of the year (see NYT article on the right). During the Muslim month of Ramadan (the Islamic calendar is a 10 month calendar so it doesn’t always fall on the same dates of our calendar), it is a sign of piety and respect to fast from sun up to sun down. This means no food or water, and Muslims who don’t abide by this usually hide their food as it is seen as shameful. When the sun goes down, everyone is out eating and shopping. Stores are open until midnight or later and cafes are open until sunrise. The Eid, or end of Ramadan (September 10th this year), is a huge celebration and people are buying new clothes for the celebration as the date is approaching. While this is all very exciting, it has definitely been challenging to find food during the day. Every day is a new adventure as far as lunch goes. And the traffic gets significantly worse in the city as the iftaar (break fast, or sunset) gets closer. Ramadan in Cairo has definitely been an experience, and next time I come back Cairo will be cooler (in temperature) and most stores will be open.
A final note on Cairo is the haggling. Like many other places in the Arab world, haggling is a big part of daily life. I haggle to buy my bottles of water, haggle for the toilet paper in the bathroom at the Egyptian Museum and I haggle for taxis. It is important to stand firm when haggling, and also to know what is a reasonable price. When a cab driver offers a high price, you give him a counter off and then walk away if he refuses. More often than not he will call you back and the cycle will continue once or twice more until he concedes or you walk away for good and find a new cab. This is yet another piece of daily life in Egypt that separates it from my life at home.

Pontificating on Pyramids (September 2, 2010)

This morning was incredible. We woke up early for a private guided tour of the Pyramids at Giza. Giza is actually the name of the entire district on the opposite side of the Nile, and the pyramids are on the outskirts of it. Our guide, Mona, was wealth of knowledge. The second we got into the van she began our tour, pointing out important buildings and neighborhoods we would have easily missed like Garden City which used to be the area of Cairo where there were villas and gardens but now is home to many embassies including the American, British and Canadian embassies.
It was sweltering as we were standing literally in the middle of the desert (I look sweaty and disheveled in my pictures…ugh), but I loved it! I could honestly write forever about the pyramids and relay all of the information Mona told us, but I will spare you all and just talk about some highlights. First we saw the Great Pyramid, built by the pharaoh Khufu in 2730 BC. It was such an immense structure (the only remaining wonder of the seven wonders of the ancient world), it is incredible to believe it was built before the invention of the wheel. Scientists and architects still cannot figure out how the Ancient Egyptians built the pyramid, and could not replicate it without a computer.
We went inside the second pyramid, or the pyramid of Khafre, Khufu’s son. We had to walk down a steep path and bend over the entire way, as the ceiling was extremely low. We then had to walk up a similar path, and it was cool and clammy and we were inside the pyramid. The room at the end of the path was where the empty sarcophagus of Khafre was left open. The walls were bare, as the first tomb art was not until much later, however it was so incredible to be INSIDE a pyramid.
We continued on to the Sphinx and the mortuary temples of the pyramid, Mona taught us about the mummification process and the stories of the Sphinx and it’s significance in ancient and modern history. With that we concluded with the tour of Ancient Giza, and moved on to a place that makes essences and blends for perfumes.
Our time at Siwa Essence Maker was an absolute blast. The Ministry of Tourism in Egypt requires craftsmen to do a demonstration of their craft for all patrons who come in free of charge, and for there to be air conditioning. We sat in a beautiful room surrounded by decorative glass and learned about different essences with Mohamed, our guide at the Essence Maker, drinking Turkish coffee, tea and a traditional Egyptian hibiscus tea. The presentation was fantastic. We smelled essences that are unique to Egypt like lotus flower (smelled like Herbal Essences) and Papyrus flower (smelled like Old Spice). In addition to jasmine, gardenia, orange blossom and narcissus. He also asked us to pick our favorite fragrance from home and he would find a blend that matched for us to smell. Additionally, popular blends include the aphrodisiac “Secret of the Desert” (smelled like a candy store and was more fondly referred to as “Egyptian Viagra”) and its counterpart Harem Perfumes (meant to attract women but I would find it a deterrent as it was extremely strong).
We began talking with the staff in Arabic (although they spoke English fluently), and they began joking with us. One woman called us “Butter, White and Guava”, in Arabic. I had no clue what she meant even when it was translated. Katrina turned to me and said, “She is talking about our races, and you are the butter in this situation.” We all cracked up and had a great time. Even though we didn’t buy anything Mohamed gave us his contact information so we could come for a meal with his family next time we visit Cairo (we have accumulated a lot of these “invites” now, Egyptians, while pushy, are very hospitable and interested in practicing English with Americans).
After saying goodbye to Mona, we went to lunch at Falfela, a restaurant she recommended saying it was where a lot of Egyptians go out to eat on a regular basis. On the way to the restaurant we inquired about it to a man who was crossing the street with us. He took it upon himself to walk us a little of the way, and then quickly told us it was “most definitely closed because of Ramadan.” I was skeptical and frustrated because Mona AND the hotel staff said it was open. He then said, “But the government bazaar is open and having a very very big sale.” THIS WAS A SCAM. I had just read about it in my guidebook, apparently these guys lie and say places are closed for lunch/holidays/repairs. There is a “sale” every day at the government bazaar, and the stuff is junk and these guys get a cut of whatever cheap, rip off goods you purchase there. We finally got away from him and found the restaurant, which was alas OPEN. (ZING)
Lunch was long and delicious; I tried Egyptian falafel, called taamia in Cairo, and I couldn’t resist more fresh mango juice. We returned to the hotel for rest and relaxation until dinner.
We had a great dinner at Abu el-Cid, a restaurant that was recommended to us by several people (thanks Ginny!) as well as Mona. It was beautiful inside an the food was fantastic. We got a mezze platter with amazing spicy humus, vine leaves, fool (a traditional Egyptian dish comprised of fava bean puree), and one dip I didn’t like that had a ton of dill in addition to various main courses. We relaxed and ate slowly (a major feat for a Sassoon) and ended up spending over three hours at dinner. We also ran into Liz (one of the coordinator of the Middlebury program) and her colleague Sharroq in the restaurant. It was exciting to meet them, and we will see them tomorrow on the bus.
We left the restaurant at midnight, and for the first time in Cairo it was actually cool out. There was a breeze as we walked over the bridge and along the corniche back to the hotel. Families and groups of people were out along the corniche and the traffic was heavy, as usual. Cairo is incredibly beautiful in its own, sort of run down way. It is sad to see buildings that were once clearly glorious (circa 1950) dilapidated and run down with window frames hanging off. But in some crazy, dysfunctional way, the city works.
I am really excited to go to Alex tomorrow. We thought about getting up early and going to the Citadel and Coptic Cairo, but decided to just sleep in and rest. We have four months in Egypt and can come back to Cairo another time.
Major panic hits and I cannot sleep. My mind is totally reeling. WHAT IN THE WORLD AM I THINKING? Language immersion? Egyptian roommate? Leaving my beautiful apartment in Philadelphia and all of my friends who are there? I attempt to watch TV, but don’t want to wake up my room mate, finally I am totally drained and fall asleep after 3AM…

Crossing streets, an act of faith (September 1, 2010)

Today I woke up at noon Cairo time (6 AM EST) and I felt great. I had slept 14 hours. We called the boys’ room and they had already been out, not having been able to sleep because of jet lag. The five of us (Alex, from So Cal who goes to Wesleyan) went to the Egyptian Museum. The museum is across the street, but because of the immense traffic and lack of traffic lights or cross walks, it took us fifteen minutes to walk there. The heat was intense and unforgiving. A block away from the museum we were asked for official identification and had us go through a metal detector on the side of the street. This was definitely a scam, considering we had to go through two official security points at the museum and nobody else seemed to bother with the bizarre makeshift security point we went though. Egypt is full of scams. People are always trying to make you buy something, or rip you off. Everything from cab fairs to kunafah is bargained for, and it’s exhausting.
The Egyptian Museum was incredible. There were artifacts galore, and my guidebook said if you spent one minute at each piece it would take over nine months to get through. Some notable artifacts we saw were the Golden throne of King Tut and the Sphinx of Sanwosret, a Middle Kingdom pharaoh. The tragedy of the museum was that the artifacts were all thrown together, with no captions or labels and not much rhyme or reason to how they were organized. Thousands of years of history is in the museum, but there is really no way to tell what is what. Most of the King Tut artifacts are actually in New York at a special exhibit, which I saw in August, and are well explained and beautifully displayed.
We ate lunch in the café at the museum, as not many places were likely to be open, but I couldn’t even think about eating hot food. The museum (and the café) were not air conditioned. I am drinking water non-stop to stay hydrated. Everyone was ready to relax so we returned to the hotel.
After a restful afternoon we headed back out the Khan al-Khalili. This time we went to a restaurant and ate great food that was really cheap. I had an omelet and Fool Eggplant, a mix of beans, chic peas and eggplant. Everything comes with amazing, hot, puffs of pita bread. Dinner was LE 10 per person (about $1.75). We went to see the Sufi dancers perform, and were told to get there at 9:00PM, despite the fact that it is set to start at 8:30PM (Arab time is always half hour to an hour late if not more). Upon arriving to the hall, we found the doors shut and the 1000 seat theater full. I was so disappointed, as the show only runs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and I have heard amazing things about it, but I will make it a point to go and be on time on the next trip to Cairo.
Mohammad from yesterday found us…we couldn’t believe it. He showed us his papyrus shop and taught us about the different grades of papyrus and how to tell what is good craftsmanship and what is “monkey business”. He warned us about pushy Egyptians trying to scam tourists (irony anyone?) and we were on our way! The Egyptian side of the souk was FANTASTIC. Infinitely better than the tourist side we saw yesterday. We went deep in to the cloth souk and the shoe souk, also passing by the food. We drank some juice a local vendor was selling that tasted like fruit milk of some sort. The city was bustling. This was about 10PM, and I realized that last night, we had been in the souk way too early to see it at its prime. We decided to get some tea Fishawy’s café in the souk. The café overflows onto the pathways of the souk and there we sat, drinking tea (I actually had mango juice which just tasted like someone had mashed several mangoes) and observing. There really isn’t a bar scene in Cairo, especially during Ramadan, and people more frequently sit in cafes and smoke shisha and drink tea into the early hours of the morning.
Despite my disappointment about the Sufi dancers, I really enjoyed Cairo today. It was a vast improvement over yesterday, and I am excited to see the pyramids tomorrow.

Cairo Times (August 31, 2010)

At the gate, I met Josh, a history major from Stanford, and Dane, a creative writing major from Middlebury. Initially I was convinced I was at the wrong gate because of the massive group of identically dressed Asian people who overtook the area. The plane ride was uneventful and I got an exit row (score!). By hour six I had already slept, and watched two movies, and resorted to watching the plane on the “moving map”. If one chose to leave their TV set on but not in use, the direction of Mecca in relation to the plane would pop up every five minutes, and there were suras from the Koran that aired on the plane during the call to prayer.
We easily found a cab and negotiated a fair price (80 LE which equals about $13). The cab ride was insane; one cannot fully comprehend the traffic of Cairo until it is experienced first hand. Another driver hit our cab’s mirror so hard it bent in, and the cab driver didn’t even flinch. I met a third person, Katrina, an Arabic major from Wisconsin, in the hotel. Our hotel room overlooks the Nile, which is incredible, but it is somewhat difficult to see across it because of the terrible smog.
Being the adventurous travelers we were, we decided to venture out on food throughout Cairo. We had no idea where we were going, just “downtown”. Ordinarily, I prefer to have a plan and stick to it, but I decided to just roll with the punches. We spent about four hours roaming the streets of Cairo. We went to Zamalek, an island in the middle of the Nile that serves as the more commercial district as well as Khan al-Khalili, the souk in Cairo. Having seen the souk in Marakkesh, I was somewhat disappointed with the souks of Cairo as they lacked the thatched roofs and charm of the Moroccan souks.
Additionally, to say the vendors were pushy would be an understatement. One gentleman named Mohammad (big surprise there) proclaimed himself our “BFF” and said he would show us all of Cairo if we just took one quick look into his shop. His family makes papyrus (“the real stuff not that banana shit” according to him) and wood pieces like chess sets with mother of pearl inlay. We quickly found a way to get rid of him, but not before learning where the best local joint for kosheri was located.
We wandered around Khan al-Khalili and grabbed some dinner at Nagib Mahfouz Café. Before we left the souk we saw Al-Azhar, the oldest university in Cairo, and one of the oldest in the world build in the tenth century, and now is used as a law university.
Ramadan is clearly a time families celebrate together, however I felt like such an invader walking through these peoples lives’. Families of twenty or more were eating together at long tables in the street and we just walked through. I had anticipated more of a large bustling party on every street corner, but I guess that is saved for the Eid or the end of fast celebration.
The adjustment is definitely difficult, between the culture and the language I do feel a little lost, but I am only on day one. Tomorrow we plan to sleep in and hang by the pool at the hotel, and maybe go to the Egypt Museum as nothing else is open before sunset, and possibly see a traditional Sufi dance performance of whirling dervishes.