Hello Everyone!!!
I hope you are all doing well… and that spring break is off to a great start for some… and that it went great for others…
At the moment I am listening to my roommate Becca yell from the kitchen that her jam is gone yet again. It happens to all of us, as I see it. Over all, we are great at sharing with each other and living semi-communally. However, some things in our apartment just have a way of disappearing. That’s what happens when you live with eight people. You just have to learn to hide your goods reallll good. Today was our last day of Arabic class, actually it was our final. It was a sad day, saying goodbye to Nahed, our beautiful and free spirited Arabic professor. Yesterday our class got to go to her house to make up some classes she had missed and to have lunch also. What a treat it was to see her in her space and with her two grandchildren. So, Arabic is over now. Il hamdu li laah! And dang, who would have thought these classes would fly by so quickly. Though I can’t say many of us our sad about being done with Islam!
Right now I should really be writing my papers… we have two due tomorrow… and I just woke up from the most beautiful nap ever! Most weeks I can get away without a nap… but having to write a paper about things I am not necessarily interested in makes me a bit more inclined to play “hit your head on the pillow” (Grandpa – I taught that to my friends here! And some of them are pretty good at it… no matter where we are! But I am doing a good job at holding up the family name!) with bedmate Becca. 2 hours quickly went by
Another thought, are Muslim women oppressed or are American women oppressed? Yes, Muslim women are subject to the laws of Islam, but those laws are there for protection. Ask any Muslim woman and she would tell you that, if anything, she feels protected by the laws she follows. This was the same point made by the women in Siwa. The number one thing they loved about the society/laws in Siwa was that they feel very protected. What is it that makes security in life such a priority? It is taken for granted in so many other countries.
Also: Have I mentioned that food is wonderful here? One of the best things possible is the availability of fresh fruit and vegetables at almost any part of the day. Strawberries flow like water here… just consider the cost: 4 LE/kilo. For those that are unaware, this is less than one dollar for a whole kilo of red deliciousness!! Yes, our taste buds are indeed blessed.
Another tidbit from the past couple weeks… probably two weeks ago now our group had the opportunity to meet together with a large group of our Coptic friends, at a beautiful place called Anafora. This is a beautiful, beautiful monastery, maybe an hour out of Cairo, somewhat in the desert. It reminded us of Siwa, but even more beautiful than our hostel there.
I cannot remember when I last posted on here… but have I mentioned yet that last weekend WE CLIMBED MT. SINAI!!!!!!!!!! DID I FORGET TO MENTION THAT?!?!?!?!? Well, we sure did. And for those of you who are going to go and get all skeptical… let’s just assume for now this is the real Mt. Sinai (Dad!). The thirty of us left Cairo around 6 pm, mumkin, and drove a handful of hours before starting to climb around 2 AM. The hike was wonderful, with many camels in our way… and climbing around the top at sunrise was unbelievable! More later on this!
Also, I am not sure if I described our weekend in Luxor… of which most of have mixed feelings about. We stayed in Luxor for two nights, mumkin, taking the overnight train there and back. Our hotel was quite a treat… very, very nice. Near to the river. Accommodating. Clean. Long hot showers. Delicious continental breakfast. POOL ON THE ROOF (said in a MN accent which apparently sticks out for all my Minnesotans back home!). We spent the first day relaxing and sleeping if we wanted to. The majority of us camped up at the pool, napping and the guys swimming. Then a group of us decided to take a felucca (the real ones, with a sail!) to crocodile island, down (or up!) the river, and in time to come back for the beautiful sunset on the water. This was definitely my favorite part of the weekend, being on the water with everyone at sunset, and with our weird Captain Noobi. Karnak Temple was my favorite of all of the history jazz… google it… it is old, beautiful, ornate, and huge! Running out of time before Turkey…
That is all I have time for now. It is quite broken up, I apologize for that.
HOWEVER… we are flying out to Turkey this afternoon! Travel component has begun, as we know it. Turkey for a week and a half, Jordan for a couple days, Syria for almost a week, then Israel for two weeks. Easter in Israel!! That is all for now!
Love to you all!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Just another day... or month! in Cairo
Some Point a Week Ago From 25/2/09….
Hello Everyone!!
I hope everyone is doing well… I/we are doing wonderful here in Agouza. Today was our first day back from our homestays! I think it is safe to say that a majority were very happy to come home to Agouza and each other, guys and girls alike!
Valentine’s Day was absolutely delightful! It started with a bittersweet goodbye with my host family… who would have expected parting after only a week would create a trail of tears among us! Saying goodbye to Mona was very difficult and I wish so much that I could stay longer with her and Mai, and Noha.
After departure I headed out with my backpack all the way down the metro line… A group of us went out to Helwan (which is at the end of the metro line… about an hour long metro/subway ride to the outskirts of Cairo) to have an Egyptian picnic with Ramy & Amgad. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and Helwan has a beautiful green park area in its possession… which wild puppies and all!! We made lemon chicken and koofta (a spicy beef mixture) and slowly ate, while enjoying the sunshine and semi-quietness of the area. Some of us came straight from our homestays and so were ready to go home in the evening… So Carolyn, Nat, me, Hannah, Sam, Bryan, & Aaron started the trek home. If there’s one thing we love about living in the city it is being able to walk everywhere! So it works well to take the metro to the opera house and walk from there, maybe a 20-30 minute walk down the Nile to Agouza. This is probably one of my favorite things: just walking with the guys, enjoying each other’s company!! So much!!
Let’s see… where to begin… I don’t know if I have written since Alexandria? Or maybe just Siwa… but both were wonderful… and Siwa even more wonderful than Alex.
In between the two was a wonderful time… busy but great. Filled with classes, tabla, cooking in the flat, going out with Hodan, Fanheih, & Eman (some of my wonderful Egyptian friends!) Another night was spent traveling (a dang long time!) to City Stars Mall in Nasr City with Adham & Amen, my super sweet Egyptian guys that just loooove going around Cairo. They are great and so much fun… more pictures later (for everything actually!!)
25/2/09 Wednesday
Hello Everyone!!! Here we are, alas. Getting down a pattern seems to be a constant pattern and one that should be conquered before going places. It is about 1 AM here. Carolyn, Mary Kay, and I are sitting in a very clean living room!!! Carolyn just made a delicious pot of black coffee. We (+ Nat) just got back from going out with Adham to a concert at the Culture Wheel (a beautiful place right on the Nile where a lot of concerts are performed). One of his friends is the lead singer for the band. And for all who care… I have now been to my first real concert, a short and sweet rock concert. And I will break my concert virginity once again this week by going to….. YES! AKON IS INDEED IN CAIRO! And some of us are going to his concert at the opera house on Thursday… we’ll see how it is. I am brushing up on my Akon, compliments of Bryan (who is by far the most excited to go!!) as I type this… and as Carolyn sits across from me, trying to figure out what devo to do for Sunday morning before classes… slightly contrasting…
Tomorrow we do not have classes, which is unusual for a Wednesday, but this week is a little different… and what a beautiful week though!! Tomorrow morning
… … … … … … … … … … …
Saturday we got back from Luxor around 6 AM, on the overnight train. Most of us slept a bit more once arriving home in Agouza, and then we kicked off the day with my favorite meal: cooked peppers with feta!! Hannah and I then went running over on Zamalek… before doing some homework… and then going to Suffi Dancing!! Suffi dancing takes place over by the Khan, near downtown Cairo. It was a wonderfully sequenced day and suffi dancing was beautiful. It consists of a group of men dressed in cinched white galibayah’s that fly wonderfully while spinning. Some of the men play tabla, or tambourines, or sing, or electric violin. It was just so fascinating to watch and so beautiful… AND the man in the middle was probably spinning for 30 minutes, just insane! He was probably also the oldest of the group!
Sunday
Il hamdu li laah that the majority of us were not at the Khan on Sunday night instead of Saturday. A bomb exploded in the Khan, near the main drag of cafes, killing a 17 year old tourist and injuring a number of others. How awful and dreadfully real it is to be near something so completely fatalistic. The Khan is a huge attraction for tourists in Cairo, and really is quite a lot of fun. To imagine though, that a bomb exploded right where we were the night before is staggering. For most of us it is a flash back to reality, to where we are in the world, to the reality of the consistency of this world.
Instead, on Sunday night the ladies gathered in flat 5 for a belly dancing/dinner party. What a wonderful evening we had downstairs! Eman, Fanheih, Hodan, Zem Zem, and Hagger came to join us. Hagger is the lady who taught us how to belly dance and she was awesome. I cannot even begin to explain how fascinating it is to see the transformation of a conservative Muslim woman on the streets to a sexual belly dancer in the house! To be able to see this transformation and actually knowing the being who is going through the transformation is one of the most intimate insights into the culture that you can have. It was so touching and so endearing. Many may see Muslims (primarily the women) as very oppressed… which may be true in some cases… but not here! This is a beautiful example of an average Muslim woman! Hagger’s story is actually very interesting. She is 27 years old and grew up in Cairo. She just got married in November 2008, to a man who grew up in and lives in America. He found her through one of her mother’s connections and called her up one day after both parents approved…. They talked… his parents came to Egypt to meet her parents and her. They approved. Then he flew out to Egypt… met Hagger… they approved of themselves… and then they got married. He left a couple days later to go back to America, and they have not yet consummated their marriage… because she is waiting to be able to move America. So here she is, a 27 year old Muslim woman living with her parents, she doesn’t work, she likes to sleep in every day, she doesn’t get to talk to her husband very often and says she forgets she is married some times. Yet, here she is ready to move in an instant’s notice to America, to the other side of the world, leaving everything familiar behind, forever.
Monday
This was also a beautiful Monday in Egypt. Every day is so beautiful here… you don’t need to worry about not having sun because it is always sunny here! This day, however, actually turned quite windy later in the day… cloudy & windy & sprinkles of rain. This is all very abnormal for Cairo but was quite a treat to have. A treat of weather from home!
On Monday, after Arabic class, all of us piled in taxis to ride over to the Dutch Institute on Zamalek. Here we had the awesome opportunity to meet students from all over the Netherlands and have discussions in small group settings. It was very interesting and enlightening to be able to meet these students… all of who are Arabic majors back home. Their program is quite different than ours and most aren’t Christian, so it was very refreshing being introduced to the European point of view on: Islam, Egypt, Iraq, female/male roles, UN issues, and etc. Some of the students actually live in Agouza, so Krista & I will be getting together with them soon, In sha allah!
Tuesday & such…
Shout out to all of my fellow lovers & runners!!!
Mr. Kruse & Coach Timp I hope you are reading this at some point!
And for all of you that know me… being outside & doing something active & partaking of the place is what I am all about. So I am just loving it!!
Lindz, Kels, Erica, & all who love running in the rain (which almost happened yesterday! & probably now never will)… and just running/exploring in general… I wish you were here to run/explore with me! So much so! I am not a big fan of living in the city, but having some perception of freedom with the ability to run through the city and fly freely is a wonderful thing and a connection with God himself!! Thankfully, Bryan also enjoys running… exploring… and delving into random things that occur… and even is humble enough to accommodate my pace! So exploring we go… none of this I ever even dreamed of being able to do in Cairo, with the role of women, and so I am being fairly culturally inappropriate running around town… especially with a guy. Just embracing my foreigner label per say.
Running along the Nile is probably my favorite… and let me tell you… running here is not always easy. There are always obstacles. ALWAYS. Awful roads with potholes, strange obstructions. People everywhere. Cars everywhere. Awful sidewalks with weird steps everywhere. Basically everything everywhere. So it is easiest to just be able to run in the road… while dodging people and cars.
Today we ran over around Cairo University and thought we would just cut across campus for a variety of reasons. They don’t just let anyone on campus though, but a professor was driving out of this entrance… and noticed what we were trying to do so he told us to hop in his car. His name is Dr. Belal, and is a professor of pesticides in the agriculture faculty. He has taught there for 30 years and actually started up the agricultural faculty part of the school, so much dedication and intelligence!! He ended up giving us a tour of his labs and telling us a little about his life. And guess what?! His daughter actually lived in MN for 5 years, studying O’Chem at the U of M. It was a great sidetrack & just reminded me a little too much of O’chem back at Bethel…
LUXOR
Luxor was a very interesting… perhaps slightly disappointing, but a beautiful and relaxing weekend. It was an 11 hour train ride to Luxor. We arrived around 7AM on Wednesday morning… to a hotel that was absolutely gorgeous and luxurious! The Emilio Hotel was very western accommodating, which we all warmly embraced, putting money thoughts aside! The roof deck had a very cold pool and wonderful lounge areas… where we managed to spend a good amount of time… a break from the culture and the dust down below.
Wednesday morning and into the early afternoon we lounged on the roof deck and managed a quick dip into the pool. Relaxing and napping in the sun was a dose of the best medicine we could have hoped for at the moment. The day got even better… after realizing we could take a felucca to Banana Island… So we ended up taking a beautiful felucca, under Captain Noobi, to Crocodile Island. The name obviously entitles that there would be crocodiles on the island… one the size of his arm, and the other the length from his fingers to his elbow!!!
I will finish off Luxor later… and catch up soon. Love to you all!!
Hello Everyone!!
I hope everyone is doing well… I/we are doing wonderful here in Agouza. Today was our first day back from our homestays! I think it is safe to say that a majority were very happy to come home to Agouza and each other, guys and girls alike!
Valentine’s Day was absolutely delightful! It started with a bittersweet goodbye with my host family… who would have expected parting after only a week would create a trail of tears among us! Saying goodbye to Mona was very difficult and I wish so much that I could stay longer with her and Mai, and Noha.
After departure I headed out with my backpack all the way down the metro line… A group of us went out to Helwan (which is at the end of the metro line… about an hour long metro/subway ride to the outskirts of Cairo) to have an Egyptian picnic with Ramy & Amgad. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and Helwan has a beautiful green park area in its possession… which wild puppies and all!! We made lemon chicken and koofta (a spicy beef mixture) and slowly ate, while enjoying the sunshine and semi-quietness of the area. Some of us came straight from our homestays and so were ready to go home in the evening… So Carolyn, Nat, me, Hannah, Sam, Bryan, & Aaron started the trek home. If there’s one thing we love about living in the city it is being able to walk everywhere! So it works well to take the metro to the opera house and walk from there, maybe a 20-30 minute walk down the Nile to Agouza. This is probably one of my favorite things: just walking with the guys, enjoying each other’s company!! So much!!
Let’s see… where to begin… I don’t know if I have written since Alexandria? Or maybe just Siwa… but both were wonderful… and Siwa even more wonderful than Alex.
In between the two was a wonderful time… busy but great. Filled with classes, tabla, cooking in the flat, going out with Hodan, Fanheih, & Eman (some of my wonderful Egyptian friends!) Another night was spent traveling (a dang long time!) to City Stars Mall in Nasr City with Adham & Amen, my super sweet Egyptian guys that just loooove going around Cairo. They are great and so much fun… more pictures later (for everything actually!!)
25/2/09 Wednesday
Hello Everyone!!! Here we are, alas. Getting down a pattern seems to be a constant pattern and one that should be conquered before going places. It is about 1 AM here. Carolyn, Mary Kay, and I are sitting in a very clean living room!!! Carolyn just made a delicious pot of black coffee. We (+ Nat) just got back from going out with Adham to a concert at the Culture Wheel (a beautiful place right on the Nile where a lot of concerts are performed). One of his friends is the lead singer for the band. And for all who care… I have now been to my first real concert, a short and sweet rock concert. And I will break my concert virginity once again this week by going to….. YES! AKON IS INDEED IN CAIRO! And some of us are going to his concert at the opera house on Thursday… we’ll see how it is. I am brushing up on my Akon, compliments of Bryan (who is by far the most excited to go!!) as I type this… and as Carolyn sits across from me, trying to figure out what devo to do for Sunday morning before classes… slightly contrasting…
Tomorrow we do not have classes, which is unusual for a Wednesday, but this week is a little different… and what a beautiful week though!! Tomorrow morning
… … … … … … … … … … …
Saturday we got back from Luxor around 6 AM, on the overnight train. Most of us slept a bit more once arriving home in Agouza, and then we kicked off the day with my favorite meal: cooked peppers with feta!! Hannah and I then went running over on Zamalek… before doing some homework… and then going to Suffi Dancing!! Suffi dancing takes place over by the Khan, near downtown Cairo. It was a wonderfully sequenced day and suffi dancing was beautiful. It consists of a group of men dressed in cinched white galibayah’s that fly wonderfully while spinning. Some of the men play tabla, or tambourines, or sing, or electric violin. It was just so fascinating to watch and so beautiful… AND the man in the middle was probably spinning for 30 minutes, just insane! He was probably also the oldest of the group!
Sunday
Il hamdu li laah that the majority of us were not at the Khan on Sunday night instead of Saturday. A bomb exploded in the Khan, near the main drag of cafes, killing a 17 year old tourist and injuring a number of others. How awful and dreadfully real it is to be near something so completely fatalistic. The Khan is a huge attraction for tourists in Cairo, and really is quite a lot of fun. To imagine though, that a bomb exploded right where we were the night before is staggering. For most of us it is a flash back to reality, to where we are in the world, to the reality of the consistency of this world.
Instead, on Sunday night the ladies gathered in flat 5 for a belly dancing/dinner party. What a wonderful evening we had downstairs! Eman, Fanheih, Hodan, Zem Zem, and Hagger came to join us. Hagger is the lady who taught us how to belly dance and she was awesome. I cannot even begin to explain how fascinating it is to see the transformation of a conservative Muslim woman on the streets to a sexual belly dancer in the house! To be able to see this transformation and actually knowing the being who is going through the transformation is one of the most intimate insights into the culture that you can have. It was so touching and so endearing. Many may see Muslims (primarily the women) as very oppressed… which may be true in some cases… but not here! This is a beautiful example of an average Muslim woman! Hagger’s story is actually very interesting. She is 27 years old and grew up in Cairo. She just got married in November 2008, to a man who grew up in and lives in America. He found her through one of her mother’s connections and called her up one day after both parents approved…. They talked… his parents came to Egypt to meet her parents and her. They approved. Then he flew out to Egypt… met Hagger… they approved of themselves… and then they got married. He left a couple days later to go back to America, and they have not yet consummated their marriage… because she is waiting to be able to move America. So here she is, a 27 year old Muslim woman living with her parents, she doesn’t work, she likes to sleep in every day, she doesn’t get to talk to her husband very often and says she forgets she is married some times. Yet, here she is ready to move in an instant’s notice to America, to the other side of the world, leaving everything familiar behind, forever.
Monday
This was also a beautiful Monday in Egypt. Every day is so beautiful here… you don’t need to worry about not having sun because it is always sunny here! This day, however, actually turned quite windy later in the day… cloudy & windy & sprinkles of rain. This is all very abnormal for Cairo but was quite a treat to have. A treat of weather from home!
On Monday, after Arabic class, all of us piled in taxis to ride over to the Dutch Institute on Zamalek. Here we had the awesome opportunity to meet students from all over the Netherlands and have discussions in small group settings. It was very interesting and enlightening to be able to meet these students… all of who are Arabic majors back home. Their program is quite different than ours and most aren’t Christian, so it was very refreshing being introduced to the European point of view on: Islam, Egypt, Iraq, female/male roles, UN issues, and etc. Some of the students actually live in Agouza, so Krista & I will be getting together with them soon, In sha allah!
Tuesday & such…
Shout out to all of my fellow lovers & runners!!!
Mr. Kruse & Coach Timp I hope you are reading this at some point!
And for all of you that know me… being outside & doing something active & partaking of the place is what I am all about. So I am just loving it!!
Lindz, Kels, Erica, & all who love running in the rain (which almost happened yesterday! & probably now never will)… and just running/exploring in general… I wish you were here to run/explore with me! So much so! I am not a big fan of living in the city, but having some perception of freedom with the ability to run through the city and fly freely is a wonderful thing and a connection with God himself!! Thankfully, Bryan also enjoys running… exploring… and delving into random things that occur… and even is humble enough to accommodate my pace! So exploring we go… none of this I ever even dreamed of being able to do in Cairo, with the role of women, and so I am being fairly culturally inappropriate running around town… especially with a guy. Just embracing my foreigner label per say.
Running along the Nile is probably my favorite… and let me tell you… running here is not always easy. There are always obstacles. ALWAYS. Awful roads with potholes, strange obstructions. People everywhere. Cars everywhere. Awful sidewalks with weird steps everywhere. Basically everything everywhere. So it is easiest to just be able to run in the road… while dodging people and cars.
Today we ran over around Cairo University and thought we would just cut across campus for a variety of reasons. They don’t just let anyone on campus though, but a professor was driving out of this entrance… and noticed what we were trying to do so he told us to hop in his car. His name is Dr. Belal, and is a professor of pesticides in the agriculture faculty. He has taught there for 30 years and actually started up the agricultural faculty part of the school, so much dedication and intelligence!! He ended up giving us a tour of his labs and telling us a little about his life. And guess what?! His daughter actually lived in MN for 5 years, studying O’Chem at the U of M. It was a great sidetrack & just reminded me a little too much of O’chem back at Bethel…
LUXOR
Luxor was a very interesting… perhaps slightly disappointing, but a beautiful and relaxing weekend. It was an 11 hour train ride to Luxor. We arrived around 7AM on Wednesday morning… to a hotel that was absolutely gorgeous and luxurious! The Emilio Hotel was very western accommodating, which we all warmly embraced, putting money thoughts aside! The roof deck had a very cold pool and wonderful lounge areas… where we managed to spend a good amount of time… a break from the culture and the dust down below.
Wednesday morning and into the early afternoon we lounged on the roof deck and managed a quick dip into the pool. Relaxing and napping in the sun was a dose of the best medicine we could have hoped for at the moment. The day got even better… after realizing we could take a felucca to Banana Island… So we ended up taking a beautiful felucca, under Captain Noobi, to Crocodile Island. The name obviously entitles that there would be crocodiles on the island… one the size of his arm, and the other the length from his fingers to his elbow!!!
I will finish off Luxor later… and catch up soon. Love to you all!!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Another Day in Egypt
We are getting into more of a routine, if that is what you can call it! Many are still sick, but we are beginning to become healthy once again… it has cooled off, so the smog has not been as bad…
On Thursday night we went to Aida, at the Cairo Opera house. It was beautiful and romantic, a dream come true. Three of us girls walked there, and it was quite ironic to be walking through some of the poor streets of our neighborhood, to the finery of the upper class and foreigners. It seems this irony is present in our lives every day here. Though many of us have worked hard to get here… our meager moneys are much more than the average citizen of Cairo. It really is quite staggering. For one person you can get a decent meal for 2 LE (5.5 LE = 1 $). Taking the taxi across town usually costs 5 LE, and that means 5 of us crammed into the car, each paying a total of .25$ for the ride. These examples are just factual evidence. Seeing the people every day while walking about town, whether in Agouza or other parts of the city, the poverty is overwhelming, and in such huge numbers. However, most people, especially those in Garbage City, do not see themselves as worse off than other people. They are thankful for what they have and thankful for the chance of a steady income. Jobs are difficult to come by, marriage crisis is on the rise, human rights are ignored, and etc.
As I was saying, the opera was absolutely beautiful and absolutely romantic (yes, it’s true!). Seeing it with new friends and on the other side of the world did not diminish this fact but seemed to enhance it. This does not mean that we could understand everything that was going on… of course it was sung in Italian… and the subtitles were in Arabic. The first oboe player played straight into my heart! Once Aaron made it known that I happen to play oboe, of course it is brought up at the most inopportune times, so now they know!!
Another interesting note, is to be so close to the myriad of situations in the Middle East, but to still feel so far away from them. In the first couple weeks here it was very easy to be swept away by the newness and adventure of our time here in Cairo. Throughout our time here though, little things and big things have reminded us/me all that there is to mourn for. There is so much that it is overwhelming, so much so that it almost feels hopeless. There is so much injustice, so much corruption in the social and political system that it is infuriating. From the people we see every day, to the situation in Gaza, to the people stuck in prison, the people on the streets, the families without an income, and on and on.
Last Friday a handful of us went to Giza to see the pyramids and such. We were fairly confident that we could handle the camel and horse vendors that run rampant throughout the tourist trap. We entered together, and before long we were split up by being thrown on camels… without even being asked! I didn’t mind to much… it was a long walk to the Sphinx… but a fairly short time by riding on a jogging camel. It was a lot of fun, of course, riding with Cait through the desert high up on a camel. Until we finally dismounted and the camel driver demanded 100 LE each! I said NO WAY… and told him I only had 20 LE, which of course I had more. They use these tricks every day to scam foreigners and I was not about to let him get away with it with me. Other people paid 100 LE each but I just set my 20 LE on the ground and walked away as he got more and more mad. Thankfully there were other foreigners around the area, even though the camel drivers try to drop you off in a secluded area in order to get more money out of you. So that’s the camel story… vendors (i.e. cute little boys) are trying to sell stuff everywhere… and try to get you to take pictures on camels… where I happened to acquire another short, free camel ride… to the admonishment of the teen boy who threw me up on the camel!
While at the pyramids, a J-term group from Bethel happened to be visiting at the same time! Unfortunately I did not run in to them… but later heard from Aaron Storsved that they saw me as they were driving by on their way to the Sphinx. However, Natalie did run in to them… Bethel reunited in Giza! So, of course we had to create a true Bethel reunion. On Monday night Aaron/Nat/I went to a local Coptic church with some others and met the Bethel group there. How great and odd it was to meet up with Aaron Storsved, Tom (Yes, Liz, Your man is still alive!! And wearing 500-thread count Egyptian Cotton!!), Stephen Soft Hands, & Adam Banfield (& others) in Cairo!! We left the service early with them and rode in their luxury bus (with their own body guard) to hang out at their hotel for a little bit. It was great to see them and hear their version of Cairo… which was quite different than mine/Aaron’s/Nat’s. However, they did have raving reviews of Amman, Jordan, where they had previously spent 10 days. So, we are very excited to travel there during travel component.
On Friday night we had a party mixer at the Villa. This was an opportunity for all of us to meet some Egyptian friends our age. It went wonderfully! Our interns set up the party and all of their hard work paid off. I got to meet Fanhai & Hodan Ahmed, sisters who are two years apart (just like us, Beth!! I told them all about you!). They are just wonderful young women and I am so excited to get to know them better and to see Cairo with them.
*** Another note: Did I mention how awesome our group of 29 students is? They are just ridiculously awesome. And ridiculously diverse and funny and motivating and frustrating at the same time! I could not have imagined a better bunch of people to get to know and love while living and learning through this together! The girls, of course, are wonderful and intriguing, easy to connect with and dig deep with! The guys are just as great, with such a great mixture of respect/fun/ intellect/big hearts for God… it’s inspiring and optimistic. God is so faithful and I cannot even say how thankful and amazed I am!!
Our class week starts on Sunday here. After Arabic class in the morning we usually have another speaker or some sort of debriefing. This past Sunday a professor from a local university came and spoke to us in Dr. Holt’s apartment. She will remain unnamed for many reasons… and she will remain fascinating and passionate! What an amazing woman, working for an amazing cause.
On Monday we went to visit 3 (of thousands?) larger mosques of Cairo. Shahinda, our Islam professor, came with us and we had our first opportunity to hear from her. She is one of the most brilliantly acclaimed women of Islam and architecture in Egypt. She is a devout Muslim and has taught us much already about Islam, through her lecture and through her personal faith story, which is very moving and makes it difficult to process.
Also, did I mention Dr. Holt is newly married (maybe for 1 ½ years now) and his wife lives with him here in Cairo. Her name is Suzanne and she is just the sweetest woman ever. She is so nice to all of us, and with them together around all of us they seem to be almost a pair of surrogate parents. Suzanne is also taking Arabic class, with my class and it is a lot of fun…
AND ARABIC… is amazingggggg!! We learned how to read words this week! Yes, I know, it sounds elementary. This may be true, but it is also inspirational for us beginners. To be able to pronounce this new alphabet, have a vocabulary in Arabic, and now to actually read Arabic script makes us feel much less hopeless than two weeks ago!!
Last night a Carolyn, Krista, and I went out with Adham, one of Sarah’s friends from here in Cairo, and his friend. He is very enthusiastic about showing us around Cairo and about the Egyptian life… It will be fun to learn and experience both the world of these two and of our girlfriends that we have met… not only with the difference in lifestyles, but also in experiencing the difference between the freedom of the young men and the lesser freedom of our female friends.
I cannot even begin to explain how many things we are learning… about literally everything! It is so exciting and exhausting, but just plain exhilarating except through the really difficult topics. It is almost like being on a roller coaster, learning about on aspect of the culture/region that is amazing and something that applies to life for us too, and then learning about something that is completely infuriating and depressing, some things we just have not control but now hold so much knowledge of. What do you do with this knowledge? What can we do to make a difference? What can you do to show empathy? How will this affect future decisions and how do you make it apparent that you are thinking about these things, processing them, feeling them in your heart through daily life? What is the purpose of some of it? I think many of us are asking these questions, and I think that situations in the Middle East not going to be quieting down for quite some time. As globalization becomes a more recurrent theme… and as the conflict between Israel and Palestine continues… and Islam continues its growth… and Mubarak continues his transition of power… something has to change, the world has to be ready.
I think this is all for now. Tonight we have a speaker coming to talk to us about radical Islamic groups and differing views around the world. Tomorrow we have class again… and then many of us are going to a concert of a popular group. I don’t recall the name, but our tabla (the drum) teacher is very well known (aka famous) and plays with this group (along with many others). So, I’m pumped for that! Then on Friday morning we are traveling to Alexandria for the weekend. It is about a 1 ½ hour train ride… out of the city… we are verrrrrrry excited!! To see Alex, to get out of the smog of Cairo, and to be near water and all of the beauty we keep hearing about!
One more note… did I mention we have devotions every morning after breakfast, up on the beautiful roof of the Villa? Well, we do. They have been so good and so powerful. Us students take turns preparing something to share with the group… which will prove to be very interesting and thought provoking with this group of ours! They really are a great connection time with God and even for everyone to sit in rectangle and connect together for a short amount of time. I enjoy this time very much.
Ma Salaama!
On Thursday night we went to Aida, at the Cairo Opera house. It was beautiful and romantic, a dream come true. Three of us girls walked there, and it was quite ironic to be walking through some of the poor streets of our neighborhood, to the finery of the upper class and foreigners. It seems this irony is present in our lives every day here. Though many of us have worked hard to get here… our meager moneys are much more than the average citizen of Cairo. It really is quite staggering. For one person you can get a decent meal for 2 LE (5.5 LE = 1 $). Taking the taxi across town usually costs 5 LE, and that means 5 of us crammed into the car, each paying a total of .25$ for the ride. These examples are just factual evidence. Seeing the people every day while walking about town, whether in Agouza or other parts of the city, the poverty is overwhelming, and in such huge numbers. However, most people, especially those in Garbage City, do not see themselves as worse off than other people. They are thankful for what they have and thankful for the chance of a steady income. Jobs are difficult to come by, marriage crisis is on the rise, human rights are ignored, and etc.
As I was saying, the opera was absolutely beautiful and absolutely romantic (yes, it’s true!). Seeing it with new friends and on the other side of the world did not diminish this fact but seemed to enhance it. This does not mean that we could understand everything that was going on… of course it was sung in Italian… and the subtitles were in Arabic. The first oboe player played straight into my heart! Once Aaron made it known that I happen to play oboe, of course it is brought up at the most inopportune times, so now they know!!
Another interesting note, is to be so close to the myriad of situations in the Middle East, but to still feel so far away from them. In the first couple weeks here it was very easy to be swept away by the newness and adventure of our time here in Cairo. Throughout our time here though, little things and big things have reminded us/me all that there is to mourn for. There is so much that it is overwhelming, so much so that it almost feels hopeless. There is so much injustice, so much corruption in the social and political system that it is infuriating. From the people we see every day, to the situation in Gaza, to the people stuck in prison, the people on the streets, the families without an income, and on and on.
Last Friday a handful of us went to Giza to see the pyramids and such. We were fairly confident that we could handle the camel and horse vendors that run rampant throughout the tourist trap. We entered together, and before long we were split up by being thrown on camels… without even being asked! I didn’t mind to much… it was a long walk to the Sphinx… but a fairly short time by riding on a jogging camel. It was a lot of fun, of course, riding with Cait through the desert high up on a camel. Until we finally dismounted and the camel driver demanded 100 LE each! I said NO WAY… and told him I only had 20 LE, which of course I had more. They use these tricks every day to scam foreigners and I was not about to let him get away with it with me. Other people paid 100 LE each but I just set my 20 LE on the ground and walked away as he got more and more mad. Thankfully there were other foreigners around the area, even though the camel drivers try to drop you off in a secluded area in order to get more money out of you. So that’s the camel story… vendors (i.e. cute little boys) are trying to sell stuff everywhere… and try to get you to take pictures on camels… where I happened to acquire another short, free camel ride… to the admonishment of the teen boy who threw me up on the camel!
While at the pyramids, a J-term group from Bethel happened to be visiting at the same time! Unfortunately I did not run in to them… but later heard from Aaron Storsved that they saw me as they were driving by on their way to the Sphinx. However, Natalie did run in to them… Bethel reunited in Giza! So, of course we had to create a true Bethel reunion. On Monday night Aaron/Nat/I went to a local Coptic church with some others and met the Bethel group there. How great and odd it was to meet up with Aaron Storsved, Tom (Yes, Liz, Your man is still alive!! And wearing 500-thread count Egyptian Cotton!!), Stephen Soft Hands, & Adam Banfield (& others) in Cairo!! We left the service early with them and rode in their luxury bus (with their own body guard) to hang out at their hotel for a little bit. It was great to see them and hear their version of Cairo… which was quite different than mine/Aaron’s/Nat’s. However, they did have raving reviews of Amman, Jordan, where they had previously spent 10 days. So, we are very excited to travel there during travel component.
On Friday night we had a party mixer at the Villa. This was an opportunity for all of us to meet some Egyptian friends our age. It went wonderfully! Our interns set up the party and all of their hard work paid off. I got to meet Fanhai & Hodan Ahmed, sisters who are two years apart (just like us, Beth!! I told them all about you!). They are just wonderful young women and I am so excited to get to know them better and to see Cairo with them.
*** Another note: Did I mention how awesome our group of 29 students is? They are just ridiculously awesome. And ridiculously diverse and funny and motivating and frustrating at the same time! I could not have imagined a better bunch of people to get to know and love while living and learning through this together! The girls, of course, are wonderful and intriguing, easy to connect with and dig deep with! The guys are just as great, with such a great mixture of respect/fun/ intellect/big hearts for God… it’s inspiring and optimistic. God is so faithful and I cannot even say how thankful and amazed I am!!
Our class week starts on Sunday here. After Arabic class in the morning we usually have another speaker or some sort of debriefing. This past Sunday a professor from a local university came and spoke to us in Dr. Holt’s apartment. She will remain unnamed for many reasons… and she will remain fascinating and passionate! What an amazing woman, working for an amazing cause.
On Monday we went to visit 3 (of thousands?) larger mosques of Cairo. Shahinda, our Islam professor, came with us and we had our first opportunity to hear from her. She is one of the most brilliantly acclaimed women of Islam and architecture in Egypt. She is a devout Muslim and has taught us much already about Islam, through her lecture and through her personal faith story, which is very moving and makes it difficult to process.
Also, did I mention Dr. Holt is newly married (maybe for 1 ½ years now) and his wife lives with him here in Cairo. Her name is Suzanne and she is just the sweetest woman ever. She is so nice to all of us, and with them together around all of us they seem to be almost a pair of surrogate parents. Suzanne is also taking Arabic class, with my class and it is a lot of fun…
AND ARABIC… is amazingggggg!! We learned how to read words this week! Yes, I know, it sounds elementary. This may be true, but it is also inspirational for us beginners. To be able to pronounce this new alphabet, have a vocabulary in Arabic, and now to actually read Arabic script makes us feel much less hopeless than two weeks ago!!
Last night a Carolyn, Krista, and I went out with Adham, one of Sarah’s friends from here in Cairo, and his friend. He is very enthusiastic about showing us around Cairo and about the Egyptian life… It will be fun to learn and experience both the world of these two and of our girlfriends that we have met… not only with the difference in lifestyles, but also in experiencing the difference between the freedom of the young men and the lesser freedom of our female friends.
I cannot even begin to explain how many things we are learning… about literally everything! It is so exciting and exhausting, but just plain exhilarating except through the really difficult topics. It is almost like being on a roller coaster, learning about on aspect of the culture/region that is amazing and something that applies to life for us too, and then learning about something that is completely infuriating and depressing, some things we just have not control but now hold so much knowledge of. What do you do with this knowledge? What can we do to make a difference? What can you do to show empathy? How will this affect future decisions and how do you make it apparent that you are thinking about these things, processing them, feeling them in your heart through daily life? What is the purpose of some of it? I think many of us are asking these questions, and I think that situations in the Middle East not going to be quieting down for quite some time. As globalization becomes a more recurrent theme… and as the conflict between Israel and Palestine continues… and Islam continues its growth… and Mubarak continues his transition of power… something has to change, the world has to be ready.
I think this is all for now. Tonight we have a speaker coming to talk to us about radical Islamic groups and differing views around the world. Tomorrow we have class again… and then many of us are going to a concert of a popular group. I don’t recall the name, but our tabla (the drum) teacher is very well known (aka famous) and plays with this group (along with many others). So, I’m pumped for that! Then on Friday morning we are traveling to Alexandria for the weekend. It is about a 1 ½ hour train ride… out of the city… we are verrrrrrry excited!! To see Alex, to get out of the smog of Cairo, and to be near water and all of the beauty we keep hearing about!
One more note… did I mention we have devotions every morning after breakfast, up on the beautiful roof of the Villa? Well, we do. They have been so good and so powerful. Us students take turns preparing something to share with the group… which will prove to be very interesting and thought provoking with this group of ours! They really are a great connection time with God and even for everyone to sit in rectangle and connect together for a short amount of time. I enjoy this time very much.
Ma Salaama!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 3 PM
I am typing this as I sit on the balcony of our flat. We live in a neighborhood, Agouza, right on the
It is difficult deciding how to explain everything we have experienced so far and how much to include, especially this first week or so when experiencing all of the different sides of
Tuesday, 20th : Prison
Today was the first day of our service projects. Classes will be S, M, W, Th; with service projects on T. F & Sat will be the weekend. Kendrick, Sam, Ashley, Laurie, Dr. Holt, and I will be going to the local prison every week throughout the semester. The day began with meeting Nuvene at the All Saints Church nearby in downtown
It took about 2 hours to get into the prison… getting through security over and over again, and then waiting in a larger outdoor room for the men to be allowed in. In this room were about 10 other families, speaking with or waiting to see their loved ones. Children, babies, wives, mothers, and fathers. Upon arriving a young inmate was allowed into the room, where his young wife & son, mother, father, and 3 brothers were waiting. To see their excitement and joy upon seeing this man, to see their sorrow at the same time, to see what separation for many months or many years can do to a person.. brought such sorrow to my heart. It was embarrassing trying to hide tears, especially in a situation/country where all men’s eyes are already on us.
This prison is a lower security prison, most men are finishing out their sentences here. They are from all over the area:
Our group’s job is to just talk with the men, who Nuvene meets with almost every week, and be a listening ear. These men are all Coptic Christians and have come to Christ sometime throughout their prison stay. I had the amazing opportunity to meet Daniel, a middle-aged man from
While we were waiting through the whole process of checking-in and for the men, I met another small family who was visiting with their father. Hannin, a spritely 6 year old came over and grabbed my hand, then just stood there shyly. How easy and straightforwardly children give their love!! Her plan was to give me many kisses (as they greet some places here) her mother, Rania, later explained. Hannin’s brother, Joseph, is 5 years old and was just excited to be running around and to see his papa.
Monday 19th :
Yesterday was absolutely amazing!! The whole group went to
Most of the people of
The garbage is sorted through and organized into piles of what can be recycled, plastics, metals which can be re-fashioned and then sold to stores. The recyclable materials are then sold to recycling stations. This is how a majority of the people make their living. GC did smell a bit, but not too much in the 60 degree weather.
The people here just seemed to be a bit more lively, maybe due to many not being Muslim and the children not in school. There seemed to be a different kind of hope alive in GC. It was amazing driving and walking through the streets.
We went to the Sisters of Charity Orphanage when we arrived. First off, I cannot even fathom how these women have such love and commitment to love these children & elderly they are caring for. It was very obviously exhausting and life-consuming. Stepping of the street into the courtyard of the orphanage was like stepping into another world, a cleaner, quieter, more serene world. The elderly live on the bottom floor of the large and complicated complex. There were about 15 elderly women we met. Most were very excited to shake our hands, though none spoke English. It appeared that most were not mentally there, some were very disfigured, and one was just a token of the heart. She was smiling and laughing, and kept making a very active swimming turtle with her hands and sound effects to go with it. Then she would make an elephant’s trunk with her hands to her nose, with the appropriate sound effects also. It was heart-warming and she certainly laughed more when we laughed.
The second floor had, oh man, maybe 14-18 toddlers and babies. They were so precious, as may be expected, and so quiet also, maybe not so expected. Some people went back with the elderly, some stayed here, and some went on to the handicapped/infant floor. Arriving here was heartbreaking, it was obvious that love and appropriate materials are direly needed. There were 4 handicapped girls, ages 5-7 sprawled in baby carriers on the floor. The infants were laying around on bed mattresses. One very tiny girl was Miriam, such a beautiful name to a beautiful smile and eyes. Matina was across the room from her, and she had such a difficult time even laying there. She loved to be held by warm arms. Heidi was next to Matina, we pulled her out of her carrier so she could be in my lap. They fear she is blind so it was best to sing to her and to cause sensations on her limbs with a bumpy ball. She would smile at this and her big brown eyes opened even more widely at the touch.
Sunday 18th : Roaming
Sunday morning we went to the embassy here to finish our visas and then we spent the day roaming
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)