Siwa, Sahara, and Scary Amounts of Food

What a great few weeks it has been! On the 10th, we all headed by way of a ten-hour bus ride to Siwa-a desert Oasis where the culture is very different than Cairo. We got to meet a Siwan family and then we rented bikes and explored. We rode to a great salty lake that lets you float like the Dead Sea and then rode back in the dark under a starry sky. The next day we took a desert safari. What does a desert safari include? You get in a jeep and you speed over sand dunes in the Sahara Desert. Does it sound amazing? It was. I also tried to sandboard, but after going down twice I gave up and just watched :). After watching the sunset and enjoying some Siwan dates and tea, we headed to a Bedouin camp where we ate a classic Bedouin meal, sat around a fire, and slept under the stars. It was an amazing weekend, and I was sad to leave. There is the short version.

Sunday night we met our families that we stayed and experienced true Egyptian life with for the week. I was adopted by a mom and her 3 (of 7!) daughters who were close in age to me. The youngest one had just turned 17 and she was the English-speaker of the family. I was impressed with her. They lived in a neighborhood about 20 minutes by taxi from where I live in Agouza, so it was a fairly easy commute. Here are a few things I experienced:

FOOD: The first day of my homestay, I ate FOUR FULL meals with a snack and many tea breaks in-between. I quickly learned that if I came close to clearing my plate, it would promptly be refilled with just as much if not more than I started with. …I really have gained weight since I’ve been here.

Late nights: To my family, going to bed at 11 pm (which is what I normally do) is like going to bed at 7. 11:00 is about the time my dinner was served.

Awkward silences with my mom: …

An Engagement Party!: My sister Nevin took me with her to an engagement party which was just as big if not bigger than a wedding reception in the states. It was a lot of fun to watch.

Great TV: We watched television a LOT. I saw some pretty great dramatic soap operas and a lot of good music videos. I also watched Oprah.

Grass!: Yesterday my sister Isro’ took me with her friend to an International Park. We just walked around and hung out in the shade. I had a lot of fun and it felt good to be in some nature.

It was great, great week, but it feels good to be back “home” again and stay away from the kitchen. It was a humbling experience, as I truly felt like a child in every way. I was being taught words and practicing my alphabet with my family; everything was done for me, and my hand was always held while crossing the street. But humility brings you more knowledge. So I’m a fan.

A lot is planned for this week, and on Thursday we leave for Mt. Sinai/Dahab! After that, there are a lot of papers due that are creeping up on me. I better get started!!

Random Facts:

If you talk to me for 2 minutes or less, you might think I’m conversational in Arabic. After 3 minutes, however, I’ve exhausted all my vocabulary and you realize I know nothing.

Egypt has made a tea-drinker out of me. I'm especially a fan of shey w leban (Tea and Milk!)

Egypt loves drama. People will just start yelling and fighting like someone has committed murder...and then it's over. And everybody is friendly.

There's an update of my life :). Love you all!

"Keep an open mind, but make sure it's not open on both ends."

It’s been another week already?! It was a good one, but a busy one for my brain. Besides my every-day Arabic class, I learned some about US foreign policy, Iran, Islamic Thought and Practice, Muslim-Christian relations, and Egyptian cooking (mmmm). Friday we drove down to Anafora, a monastery/retreat center in the desert, where we held “Coptic-American Day!” We were able to meet many Coptic Christians around our age and engage them in conversation about our faiths and where/why they differ. I also got to hear a devotional from the Bishop Thomas! It was a very beneficial day for me and I walked away with an overall greater respect for the Coptic Church. I would love to tell you more about it when I get home. While I love being here, I sometimes get excited at the thought of coming home and just sharing! This is a short blog, but that just means I’ll have more to tell you personally :). My next blog will probably be epic as I leave tomorrow for SIWA and then begin my homestay on Sunday. There’s so much ahead! Ilhumdulilah!

Random Facts:

Cairo is infested with cats…and not just normal cats. These are special cats that can make the weirdest meows/screeching noises I’ve ever heard. Maybe that’s what Arabic sounds like in cat language??

I think the most commonly used phrase I hear is, “Mish mush kala!” (No problem/worries!)

I've begun to sleep through the night without waking up to the early call to prayer!

For all my family members that love to play Boggle/Scrabble…invest in a game called Bananagrams.

21 days in!

Thursday night we headed south to Luxor by train. After ten freezing hours of bumping and stopping throughout the night, we arrived and checked into our hotel where I relaxed by the pool on the roof in beautiful weather. I know everyone back at home in the snow is jealous :). If it’s any consolation, just remember that you are breathing much cleaner air. Don’t take it for granted! That afternoon we toured Karnak temple and Luxor temple-both impressive. Saturday we went the Valley of the Kings and I got to go inside three tombs (Ramses III being one of them). It was so cool! I was thinking of how I get excited in the Johnson archives over books 200 years old. …I’m not sure my brain knows how to process THOUSANDS of years. But there I was. We also got to see Hatshupsut’s temple from afar and checked out a papyrus store and an alabaster store. Other than all the touring, I was able to get some reading done and chill out. I found some Rook players which was very exciting and made me feel more at home. It struck me as funny that I was sitting in Luxor, Egypt playing all sorts of mid-west games. All in all it was a great weekend, but I was very glad to come back to Agouza (my neighborhood in Cairo). The market sellers in Luxor were much more aggressive and harassing, and I was glad to leave that part of it. I really wish Egyptian men would realize that I have no desire to be compared with Shakira.

Sunday we were welcomed back home with crazy parties on the streets due to Egypt winning the African Cup. It was all pretty exciting, but the security guards made us go home and stay away from the craziness. They’re very protective of foreigners.

It was hard to transition back into classes, but at least I always find them interesting. It feels good to learn, although I’ve been getting frustrated with my Arabic and feeling like I’m not picking it up as quickly as I want to. I’m just trying to remember that even if I am the worse student here, I’ll still go home speaking more Arabic then any of my friends in the States ;).

Last night we went to see a special showing of an interfaith film/movie called Hassan and Morqos starring Omar Sharif (who was there!!!). Here’s the basic plot: A Muslim Sheik and a Coptic Christian are both in danger due to to religious extremists on both sides. They are put into a protection program where the Muslim Sheik has to pretend to be a Copt and the Copt has to pretend to be a Sheik. They end up as neighbors and become very close friends both thinking that they really share the same religion…. It was epic.

Today, just like every Tuesday, I went to the Sisters of Charity Orphanage in Garbage City and hand-washed some laundry. Next time you use your washing machine you should think about how blessed you are to have one. Those things are great.

Just like every week, this one will be busy. We’ve got great speakers lined up and a lot of reading to do to prepare. Next Wednesday, insha’allah we leave for SIWA! Time is flying by, but it’s great.

Like always, here are some more random facts for you:

I can buy 4 pieces of pita for 25 piasters…I’m pretty sure this is less than 5 cents in America. A Kilo of delicious oranges will cost you 2 or 3 pounds (50 cents).

I’m not sure I’ve actually touched grass since I’ve been here.

“A decision made by a camel offends no one.”-The Message (It’s like the Jesus movie, but about Mohammed.)

All my Egyptian waiters so far seem to be great lovers of brain teasers. They're always giving me some to try. I never know the answers, so I just give them some back.