Luxor... MT. SINAI... DAHAB '09!!!

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!