I can do this.... right?

I returned to Cairo tonight from my big trip camping in the desert for 4 days with 6th and 7th graders. Let's just say that I have a lot to complain, I mean... say, about the adventure. However, after writing several paragraphs about this, I decided it would be highly inappropriate to publish such things on my blog. Therefore, I will save all comments to be better explained in person.

The main point is that I'm SO happy to be coming home for a while. I love it here. I love living on my own and having adventures every day and getting lost and miming to people because I don't know enough Arabic and they don't know enough English. All of these things make me feel incredibly happy and fulfilled. My job also makes me really happy. I'm doing what I love to do and I feel like I'm sometimes getting through to someone at least. But it gets hard being constantly... the "other." I'm just really looking forward to being with people who already know me, speak my language, don't stare at me because I'm not covered or because I'm showing my elbows. Sometimes life here feels very suffocating, as I'm sure it does anywhere. And I especially feel this way after my trip and being "the other" as the only foreign non-Muslim and a woman on top of that. But that's for another time.

So halas, poor me. I know my life is incredible compared to so many people's in this world and I'm so lucky. I just need to complain every once in a while. I am so excited to see my friends and family and my home and CLEANLINESS. No garbage on the streets, clean air, ahhh... I just can't wait.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Prost to Cologne - Berlin and Munich

In continuation of my story of Germany... I love that country. We went to the beautiful city of Berlin after Cologne. One of the highlights was seeing pieces of the Berlin Wall. It's amazing that the city was so divided not long ago, and you can't even tell now. Actually, that's amazing about all of Germany. There are no Communist "things" (for lack of a better word) or swastikas (for example) still around. They get their shit together fast and move on. I appreciate that about Germany, especially because I live in a country where it takes 5 trips to TE Data simply to get internet.

We also visited Checkpoint Charlie and saw a monument (well, several monuments) to the Holocaust. Berlin also had some of the best bars. We took a taxi to the "downtown" area, and walked around visiting all the places we had read about. Let's just say that by the end of the night, we were all feeling good. We decided to go to Burger King that was right across from our hostel before we went to bed. I think we caused quite a stir in the place because I was taking pictures of the menu (why? I'm not sure), and we were being quite boisterous. I think I added to the whole stereotype of Americans being annoying. But hey, I had a good time.

After Berlin, we were off to Munich. We stopped in the town where Martin Luther started the Reformation and visited his church. We tried to find the famous Martin Luther socks, but couldn't find them anywhere! But it was a cute town and a really cool site to visit.

In Munich (or Munchen), we went to the Christmas Fair which was pretty much the happiest place on Earth. I love countries that celebrate Christmas. I bought a mini Christmas tree, ornaments, and decorations for my apartment. The whole fair was outside and it was huge. You could buy anything from a Christmas tree to ... anything Christmas basically. We decided to stop in a bar and have a drink around noon (we were really becoming German by this point) before we headed to the Gestapo (you know, Nazis) museum. There were people in the bar that were totally hammered and checking us out. This one guy even came over and sat next to me, a little too close for comfort if you know what I mean. But hey, at least he didn't offer to have sex with me as now TWO cab drivers here have. Anyway... they asked us where we were going and why we were leaving so soon after only one beer. My friend said we were going to a museum, and I accidentally said "Gestapo!" Ooopps. Right away I knew I made a mistake and tried to say that I said the wrong word. But it was too late. This guy looked at me and said "Are you a Nazi?" Let's say we got out of that bar real fast.

We had one last stop after Munchen, which was Baden-Baden in the Black Forest. One of our stops there was a spa... one of the first spas in Europe. My parents, and anyone else who blushes easily, should probably skip this paragraph. It's a nude spa where you go through these different Roman baths, these saunas, etc. We didn't know, however, that we were going on a day where it was co-ed because there are different areas for men and women. I was being brave. I went into the changing room, and got naked. I'm not usually one for walking around naked, so this was a big deal. All of a sudden I started to see a lot of penis. My first instinct was to look at it because, well, it was just out there. For the whole world to see. And then I started wondering, "Why am I seeing so much penis?" I mean, it was everywhere. I guess boobs and ass were too, so the whole experience definitely took me out of my comfort zone. It was also strange to get a massage while you're totally nude. I mean, everyone can see what you got going on. Anyway, I felt amazing afterward and it was definitely worth all the nasty old hairy men I had to see. The sauna wasn't even artificial. It was being heated from the Earth's core or something I don't understand. So onto something other than nudity...

We went to a castle on the foothills of the Alps which was the most breathtakingly beautiful drive I've ever been on. And there was snow! We were driving along, looking for this castle that was supposed to be at this hill. All of a sudden, the fog shifted a little as we came around the corner, and we could see it with the Alps in the background. I can't even describe or show a picture that could capture how beautiful it was. We wanted to tour the castle, but we didn't want to wait 2 hours for the next tour. So we went to another castle and walked around outside of it. Basically, I discovered that the man I marry should love me enough to build me a castle. I don't think that's asking for too much.

OMG. I had the best food of my life. Cheesy noodles with fried onions on the top. Delicious. And Black Forest Cake is to die for. Oh yeah, we almost died (not really) driving through the Bavarian Forest. It was pitch black. And when I say pitch black, I mean we could barely see in front of our Mercedes. And the road was super narrow and curvy and it was just dark, dense forest all around us. And it was raining. I was pretty sure that death was near. If not by car accident, then by mutant cannibals coming out of the forest and killing us. I was terrified. But alas, we survived and here I am telling you about the experience.

Basically, Germany is beautiful and amazing and everything wonderful and everyone should visit the country. I know I want to again, and maybe even live there when I'm done in Cairo. Although my mom would kill me if she heard me say that I'm staying overseas for longer than 2 years! But they can always come live with me in Germany.

Onto more Cairo-nian news, I am going camping in the desert with 6th and 7th graders for 4 days and 3 nights. Pause for response. 4 days... 3 nights. Camping. Outside. In the desert. And right after we get back, I come home! I leave for home in 11 days. I don't even know how I feel about it because it doesn't seem real yet. But I know how I feel about camping in the desert for 4 days with 6th and 7th graders. Ecstatic.

We had the expat Christmas party last night. It was so much fun and it put me in the Christmas spirit! We even sang the 12 days of Christmas, Egypt style. So we changed the words to be things from Egypt... like 5 was 5 Daily Prayers. hehe. I also got my hair cut yesterday for the first time since I've been here. I know, that's disgusting. But now I have somewhere to go because I like what the guy did. And he was funny.

I will see you all soon, Insha Allah. If anyone needs anything from Egypt or really wants something from here... let me know. I will do my best to get it. If not this time, I can at least bring it back when I come home for the summer. Prost!

Prost to Germany!! - Cologne

I have been back from Germany for 2 weeks and have neglected to update my blog. So I will start with my adventures in Cologne, a very beautiful city!! We flew into Frankfurt to discover that our rental car had been upgraded to a Mercedes.... which was awesome! I'm not old enough to drive it, but I looked pretty cool riding in the backseat on the Autoban. The Autoban is pretty much the best invention ever because there is no speed limit, so we had fun testing just how fast our Mercedes can go.

Our first stop was Cologne, which we drove to right away. And the most exciting part? It was raining!! I haven't experienced rain or cold in 3 1/2 months, so I was pretty stoked. I was even wearing a winter coat, and had to go to H&M the next day to buy boots, a scart, a hat, and gloves. It was awesome. Germany is.... EXTREMELY diferent from Egypt. There are rules, there is no trash everywhere, it's green, and it's much more liberal. Meaning that no one stared at me for showing my hair or elbows, and you don't have to search hard to find a bar. That's pretty much the first thing we did in Cologne, go to the nearest pub. We ordered sausage and potato salad which was to die for. And German beer? Well, it puts the Stella that I'm forced to drink in Egypt to shame. It's so good. Better than anything I've had before. We ended up meeting cool people and staying out until almost 1 AM, which is pretty early. But we were all tired from traveling all day. So we headed back to our hostel.

The hostel in Cologne was very nice. We ended up staying in mixed rooms everywhere with men, but luckily these men didn't snore thoughout the night!! The next day, we got up early to go exploring. We took the trolley and the subway to the center of the city. Germany also has amazing public transportation, very clean and efficient. We went to the largest cathedral in Europe, and walked up 509, yes 509, steps to the top of the building to see views of the city. I'm not good with heights, and and one point I almost backed out because it was raining, the steps were slippery, and I could see below me and how high I was. But, I conquered my fear and kept wealking to the top. I couldn't turn back after how far I had come, and I hate letting my fears win. The trip back down the steps was also interesting because it was a spiral staircase structure, and I kept having to stop because I was getting dizzy and disoriented. But overall, it was an amazing workout and we had awesome views from the top. (I think my two new favorite words are "amazing" and "awesome.")

It was raining the whole time we were in Cologne, so we decided to take a bus trip around the city because walking was miserable. So we got some Dunkin' Donuts Coffee (something else that is not in Egypt) to warm up, and sat in a bus for an hour and half to see the rest of the sights of Cologne before driving to Berlin.

I decided right away that I love Germany. In some areas, it looks similar to driving in parts of Wisconsin with the tall trees and the beautiful green grass. I miss things that are green. The air was also clean along with everything else. Cologne was an amazing city and somewhere I'd like to live or spend a longer period of time one day. The people were nice, and I was overall in a state of bliss and happiness the whole time. I love Cairo, but it has a way of consuming you and becoming very... what's the word... irritating? Arab and Egyptian thinking is sometimes very backwards to me as a Westerner. I have learned not to question why things are the way they are here anymore because it just makes me more frustrated at times. But in Germany, things made sense to me. So my point is that it was nice to get away from Cairo for a while and experience a part of Europe for the first time.

On a side note, it is Election Day in Cairo and I have a day off of school for it! It's not nearly as exciting as I thought it would be. Mubarak's policemen are on the street with their guns and protection and whatnot, but other than that nothing is out of the ordinary. I can't read the election signs anyway, so I honestly don't know a lot about it. And what I do know probably shouldn't be published on my blog.

So that is what I did in Cologne. I also went to Berlin, Munich, and the Black Forest in Baden-Baden along with seeing the Alps and a beautiful castle. But I will write about that later as my laptop is dying and no one wants to read a blog entry that is 20 pages long. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone as well! I hope you all had extra mashed potatoes, turkey and lefse for me as there is no Thanksgiving in Egypt. It was probably the most depressing 2 days I've had here, but my friends made it better. My Thanksgiving meal consisted of chicken shawerma and pashed potatoes. And me bitching about how I wish I was home! (Excuse my language). More on Germany later! Prost! (Which means cheers in German, always a good word in know).

Halloween in Cairo?

Last night was the big Halloween party at the ACE Club, which is where I spend a lot of my time. But first, let's rewind to Thursday night. I went to this place called Sangria Country Club in downtown Cairo on the Nile... which wasn't anything like a country club in the US. Apparently it's cool to hang out by the Nile here. Driving on the bridges or by the Nile at night, you'll see hundreds of people there with their boyfriend or girlfriend or their families. There literally is nowhere to park and there are people everywhere, it's crazy. But I guess I would love a river too if my whole city was built around it and depended on it for survival. I went to Sangria with my Egyptian friend(s), and my Turkish friend. It was a lot of fun... I also got invited to a wedding! My Egyptian friend who I've been calling "S" is friends with this Egyptian guy and this girl from the UK who are getting married in a couple of weeks. S is going to their wedding, and the couple invited me too. I would love to go to a wedding here, espeically one between people who aren't both Egyptian. But I think I will be in Germany... sad day.

So on to the more exciting Halloween night. I went as a pirate with my other friend from Baltimore. OK, let's lay out some names for the next story. We'll call my Turkish friend D and my Baltimore friend M. D and I were going to M's house to get ready and have a few drinks before going to ACE. My friend M left her phone on the bus from school, so we had no way of contacting her... but I've been to her place before and thought I knew where I was going. So D and I got out of the cab when I thought we were there... and then I realized I had no idea where we were. Ooops. So we're walking around looking for Road 15, and we try asking some people. But of course no one speaks English and I don't know how to say "15" in Arabic. I know how to say road and five, but that didn't help. So we keep walking and realize with the help of a security guard that we were on Road 12. So we keep walking, and walking, and walking. We were so lost. Finally, just when we met someone who could speak English, I knew where we were!! And we got to M's house safely, Humdelellah. I learned that you never get out of the cab until you're sure you know where you are. These are life lessons.

So we got ready, and had a few drinks. And a few shots. We went to ACE and there was free beer and free food! There was also a DJ and dancing with fog machines. It was very Halloween-esque. Even the workers were dressed up. And I'm from Wisconsin, so I can put back a few beers... especially when they're free. We ended up closing the place and stayed way after the music ended. We were just talking to these other people we met and having a good time. I stayed up way too late both nights this weekend. On Thursday I was drinking vodka and Red Bulls, so I had a lot of energy!

It was what I needed after a bad week at school. Insha Allah this week will be better... I just need to keep trucking and trying to reach them. I also have a cleaning lady now, so I am officially Egyptian. Everyone here has a cleaning lady because it's so cheap! It's about 100 LE a week, or about 20 US dollars for her to clean your whole house. So that's one less thing I have to do during the week! And she speaks English, which is a plus. I'm keeping positive thoughts about this week, or I'm trying to.

Beating me down into the ground

I must admit that I have not been the happiest person lately. But I think I'm on the "normal" path... as much as I hate to admit that. All of a sudden, everything about Cairo started pissing me off and I was snapping at my friends for no reason.

The Walk for the Cure: this was on Saturday and probably started my bad feelings about Cairo. There were thousands of people at the pyramids to participate in the walk... but do you think they thought to close down the pyramids to other visitors? Of course not. Do you think they thought to close down the road we were walking on to busses and camels? No... what logical sense would that make? There was literally no starting or ending point, and we were trying to be run over by camels or busses the entire time... or be trampled by other people. But alas, I was walking by the great pyramids and the sphynx, so I suppose I don't have much to complain about. Afterwards, I walked around downtown with some friends and bought a designer bag for 150 LE. That's right... less than 40 US dollars. This is a reason I love Egypt... amazing knockoffs.

I think I am just going through a rough time right now and I will hopefully get over my angst soon. This weekend is Halloween (yes, I found somewhere to celebrate in a country that doesn't believe in Halloween), so hopefully that will make me feel more homey. The challenges at school are becoming greater and greater and sometimes I feel like I'm drowning. I don't want to coast through... I want to have an impact. I just don't know sometimes if I can do that here.

Life's Traumatic Moments

This week has been filled with a lot of drama and moment that have probably taken years off my life. But I guess living in Cairo alone takes year off your life anyway. Really, it all started when I decided I should be healthier. That's just a crazy idea to begin with. I went with 2 of my friends to a group fitness class on Sunday night called Body Pump. It was an hour long and you exercised every major group of muscled in your body using weights. Thank God it was a group class because I would have quit after 15 minutes (it also helped that the instructor was nice on the eyes). I felt great afterwards, but let's just say that I'm walking around like a 80 year old today. I can barely sit down or stand up and I'm hobbling up and down stairs at school. I don't think I've ever been this sore. But hopefully it will get better? I'm determined to look like a bronzed, skinny, beautiful Egyptian goddess when I come home for Christmas.

The next event was much more traumatic. A girl threw up all over my floor yesterday in school. I felt so bad for her, but at the same time I was trying not to puke. Also, right after her class I had my worst class. Of course. So I was trying to take care of her and trying to get someone to tell a matron to clean up vomit (I don't know how to say that in Arabic), and trying to tell my next class to wait outside in the hallway. It was stressful ... I think I have 5 more pimples today. So I took my next class outside which meant they went crazy like monkeys. It was not a good day.

Then this morning... there was a freaking cockroach in my apartment!! I freaked out, grabbed a shoe, and killed it. The shoe is still sitting on its corpse (Insha Allah)... I'm afraid to look because what if it was really still alive and still living somewhere in my apartment? So yeah, I need bug killer and a cleaning lady NOW. My apartment is clean too. I just cleaned it the other day. So what's the deal cockroach? Why are you freaking me out and disturbing the peace? And what if it's not there when I move the shoe? So many fears. Everyone knows I do NOT deal with these things well. I wish I had a roommate.

I got offered a free cab ride the other day... apparently I was looking cute even though I really wasn't. But I had a semi-conversation in Arabic. I need to learn to lie when men ask me if I'm married. The answer should always be "aiywa."

In exciting news, the Walk for the Cure is in Egypt too! And it's this Sat. at the pyramids. A group from my school is going and I'm super excited. Not only is it for a good cause, but I'm doing it at the pyramids. That's pretty amazing. That's all from Cairo. No interesting news except for vomit, sore muscles, and cockroaches. And it's been 100 degrees here the past few days. I miss fall.

Lights will guide you home...

I suck at updating my blog recently. But I look at that as a good thing... I am busy with school, out enjoying the city and my new friends. But I will try to get better, Insha Allah. First, updates on school.

I genuinely enjoy going to school everyday. I suppose it's a good thing to enjoy your job, right? Of course half the battle is actually getting to and from school. Cairo traffic is never fun, especially when I'm tired and cranky in the mornings... and, well, when I'm tired and cranky in the afternoons. But it's always fun to see about 1,000 Egyptians crammed into a bus, a family of 6 on a motorbike, people crammed into the back of trucks, etc. It's incredible how many people can fit into such a small space. School is its own battle everyday. I learn new management strategies all the time. For example, there's a tsa tsa type sound in this country that is used to say "no" or "be quiet please, it's my turn to talk." This sound has proved to be much more successful than telling them to be quiet, or sssshhhing them, or anything else that would work in the US. There's also a different signal for "be quiet" or "stop that." You know, when you put your hand up to someone? Here it's different. Students don't respond to that because they don't know what it means. Instead, you put all of your fingers together and point them to the sky kind of. That's how you ask someone to wait or to please be quiet. I'm learning...

My students are challenging and humorous at the same time. They make me laugh everyday, they also make me want to pull my hair out. It's a give and take. One of the hardest things is that I don't speak Arabic well. So even when I'm walking in the hallway or on lunch duty, I don't know what they're saying because they all speak Arabic to each other. For all I know, they're talking about me. Of course they would never do that with the teacher look I have.

I just got back from Dahab (again) last night. It was amazing as always. I actually got a tan, I swam in the Red Sea, laid on Turkish pillows, ate a ton of fish and food, smoked sheesha (only once), got a henna tattoo (don't worry, it's not permanent), and did a lot of shopping. I went with 2 of my friends, and I'd say we all had a fair amount of marriage proposals. We each got offered a fair amount of camels to be Egyptians' wives. But we decided it wasn't enough. It was a perfect trip, despite the 9 hour ride on the public bus that insisted on blasting movies and music all throughout the night. Really?

I am officially coming home for Christmas, Insha Allah. I feel super excited and elated, and also have a knot in my stomach about it. I still have dreams that I'm at home and haven't left to come here yet. And I'm still saying goodbye to everyone and have all the nervous energy I had before. Then I wake up and realize I'm still/already here. And that I've been here for 2 months now. It's not that I'm nervous about coming home... I just feel that I might be a mess the whole time. I feel like I'm changing a lot... not necessarily for the worst or for the better, I'm just changing. I guess anyone would who's living in a foreign country, espcially an Arab country. Everyone else is at home doing their thing too and I just want to still fit in where I come from. If that makes any sense. I want to be recognizable to my friends and family... I want to be the same Sara. But what if I'm not? I guess that's what I have a knot in my stomach about. But at the same time, we change throughout our lives all the time... so no one will ever stay the same. Everyone who knows me knows I don't have any qualms about being myself and saying what I want to say... that's never going to change. So I guess I'll never change that much. I'll probably just be a little more conservative in my clothing... or go crazy while I can, haha.

I'm also going to Germany over November break... Insha Allah once again. It will be November-fest instead of Oktoberfest. Yes, I am travelling a lot. No, I do not care about saving money. I'm not going to spend 2 years abroad saving money... what would be the point? I'd rather come home with $5 in my pocket and have seen amazing things and had unforgettable experiences than sat in my apartment in Maadi and missed out on all the beauty that exists in this part of the world. Plus, I'm only 24. I'm reminded everyday about how young I am from all my friends here. I have plenty of time to meet my rich future husband and inherit lots of money.

My Big Adventure Downtown

I have a lot I want to say (or write about, rather) ... but I must dedicate a blog, or at least a portion of an entry, to my big adventure last night. I have a new Egyptian friend, and we decided it would be fun to go to Cairo Jazz Club. Some friends and I tried going there during Ramadan, but of course they were closed. My good Turkish friend and I were going together, and he was bringing some friends as well. He lives about 5 minutes away from the jazz club, so it made no sense for him to drive all the way to Maadi to pick us up, so (I'll call my friend Di) Di and I were going to take a cab to downtown. Downtown Cairo is about 30+ minutes away from Maadi, and our Arabic skills are not good enough to get us there... and we didn't know where the jazz club is, so we couldn't direct him there if we wanted to.

So we started at ACE and had dinner (Di and I), and met some other cool expats there, which is always nice. My Egyptian friend (I'll call him... S) said we should call him when we get in a cab so he could tell where the cab driver to go. We finally left ACE at about 9:40... we were supposed to meet S downtown at 10:00, but apparently we were on Egyptian time. By the grace of God, we picked a good cab because he knew where to take us after talking to S on the phone. But he didn't speak any English... so it was a good time for me to practice Arabic! His name was Mustafa, and luckily he wasn't a creeper. Some cab drivers will stare at you the whole time in the rearview mirror and do a lot worse things than that... but this guy was very nice and cool. I asked him to turn the A/C on, and he did that too!

Di and I were in the backseat going God knows where, and we thought it was hilarious. In the US, I would never do something like that... this is what I love about Egypt. My mom will freak out... but I got in a cab, let S tell him where to go in Arabic, and then trusted that the cab driver would get us there. And I didn't know where we were going to help him if he got lost. It was all very funny. So after about 40 minutes and a 50 LE cab ride, we arrived at our destination. But not without some creepy encounters. In downtown Cairo, there are literally people everywhere on the streets. Everywhere. So people are walking right by our cab, and there's this group of 3 Egyptian men. They all start staring at me and pointing at me in the backseat. So I just shouted "Hello, yes, I am white. Nice to meet you." They looked like they had never seen a white girl before, which I guess is possible. Or maybe not one as beautiful as I am, haha (that was a joke).
Second creepy encounter: we met S and his friends outside of a hotel for S to drive us to the jazz club because it's really hard to find. The cab driver stopped and asked a group of guys were the hotel was, and they pointed and talked in Arabic. Then they all started looking at me and waving. I waved back with a stupid look on my face. They kept waving. I kept waving with an even stupider look on my face. Seriously, this stuff gets annoying.

So we actually got to our destination and gave the cab driver a very nice tip. It could have been much more uncomfortable... believe me, I've been in a couple uncomfortable cab rides. My friends have worse stories than I do, but I won't share them now. So we get to the Cairo Jazz Club, and we're late (because of Di and I), so they gave our table away. Sad day. But it's okay because we just get some seats near the bar. There was a live band singing American songs that I knew, which was very exciting. It was a really cool place and there's live music every night. I love Maadi for several reasons and because it's also very foreigner-friendly, but I wish we had more things like that here. I also was confrontational with two guys who were laughing at Di and I for some reason... I went over there and said "I can tell that you're laughing at my friend and I, and I really don't know what your problem is. You should probably mind your own business." Then they got all freaked out (in my mind) and started saying that they didn't understand in another language. I said yeah right, and walked away. S was wondering what was going on, then there was totally going to be a fight.... but I just told everyone to calm down. S saw that I can be confrontational sometimes.... he said I shouldn't do that in Egypt, haha. So that was my big adventure. S drove us back to Maadi, so we didn't have to worry about getting a cab back... which would have been even more difficult. Di brought a scarf to cover her head if she needed to, haha. She looks Egyptian, so it would have helped. Except that I would be the one speaking in Arabic because she doesn't know a lot yet.

On to school.... I only have 3 days of school this week and then we're on break for Armed Forces Day!! Yay! Yes, another break. So I'm going to Dahab again with a few of my friends. I'm pumped because I love Dahab. It's so relaxing and beautiful and everything I ever wanted. And no one stares at you there... you can even wear shorts and a tank top! Scandalous. Anyway, I love Egypt even with all the staring and language barriers. And I also love vacation and Dahab. And I still am enjoying the challenges of school.

My First Week Teaching...

So it has been a while since I've written in my blog. Which is strange, because I actually came here to teach so you'd think I'd want to write about it! But I've been super busy and tired... so there, that's my excuse. Anyway, school finally started last Sunday!! I survived the first week with no meltdowns, no yelling, and no tears. So I'd say it was pretty successful. I'm so glad I don't have the boys until next semester because they are terrors from what I hear. It's frustrating, but hopefully manageable. My biggest hurdle in high school is getting them to speak in English!! When they work in groups, they constantly speak in Arabic. This, too, is a problem I have never faced in the US.

Overall, I enjoy the school and what I'm doing. I have a lot of freedom when it comes to lesson planning and designing the after school program. The kids are... an intriguing challenge. That's how I look at it. So not only is it my first year teaching, I'm just putting an extra challenge on there.

We have (yes, another) vacation coming up in almost a week. Apparently is Armed Forces Day, so I have a 4-day weekend!! I am going to Dahab, yet again. It's perfect because it's only 7 hours away to paradise. Plus, I'm getting very irritated at all the stares I get on the street. It was just creepy at first, now it's super super irritating. And I have about 9 months of it left. Even when I'm completely covered, men still stare at me and even when their wives are standing next to them. All the foreigners face that here and I luckily haven't been groped or anything yet. I just don't get what the fascination is over someone who has light skin and light hair and blue eyes and who is maybe showing elbow and wearing sandals. Wow, that's some pornography right there. So let this be a lesson to you.... please stop staring at foreigners or people who look different. Chances are, they already know they look different and stand out. If you don't stare, it will make them feel much more comfortable.

Speaking of people who stand out... I went to this crazy expensive "hip" club over the weekend called Tamarai. I was way not cool enough to be seen at this place, but I went with some expat friends and some new Egyptian friends. It overlooked the Nile and apparently Paris Hilton went there when she was in Egypt (don't ask me why she would be here). I didn't know Egyptian girls could show so much skin!!! I thought I was showing skin, but I was covered compared to them. They were probably 17 or 18 years old (so I was basically a grandma) and they were wearing the skankiest dresses I have ever seen. I see a new side to Egypt and Muslim life all the time. I guess there's the extreme of covering everything except your eyes... and then there's the other side.

I still love it here and feel like I am fulfilling something that I need to do in my life. (On a side note, I got a pedicure for the first time! It was very exciting, everyone should do it.) Teaching is definitely what I want to be doing... we'll see how long I do it in Egypt. Anyway... life is good. Still hot, but good.

The Cairo-nian Life of an American Girl, Continued

I'm thinking of starting a blog dedicated solely to all the stupid things guys here say to me in an effort to flirt. That sounds mean... but really. Here's the story: I was walking from my apartment to meet my American guy friend to walk to the ACE Club yesterday to have lunch (I was finally feeling better and decided to actually leave my apartment). I saw this guy walking in front of me, no big deal... there are usually people walking everywhere. I see him turn around, and stare at me for a while. I am getting used to being started at by men here, it kind of comes with being foreign. I usually look at the ground, or sometimes look at them in an extremely irritated manner if I'm feeling testy. In this case, I just looked at the ground and kept walking... and he kept staring. I stopped where I had to meet my friend, and he stopped too. Then he started talking to me. No big deal, I can hold my own. Turns out he's from Southern African from Zulu. He instantly starts asking me where I live, if I'm married, etc. I tell him that it's none of his business where I live, and if I'm married or not, I'm still allowed to talk to people. He says that he was watching me and that I "walk like an angel." Seriously. Thank God my friend showed up and we went on our way. I think being an American here means you could have any guy you want because in the US I'm not even that cute. That sounds bad... but you know what I mean. I'm cute when I try I guess. But I don't even try here. I don't even own hair products. Literally... my hair dries in the wind outside and then does whatever it wants to. It's just insane how much attention Americans get....

It almost makes me miss American men at home who are smelly and gross and don't apologize for it... almost. I will admit that a lot of Egyptian men are good looking in my opinion. But also will fall in love with you in about 5 minutes. They dress well, do their hair, have beautiful skin, and speak Arabic. That's hot, right? There's something attractive about the unknown... but I've always been like that. Attracted to who I shouldn't be, story of my life. Why am I writing about this?

I walked to the pharmacy today after school. I like to go there because it's right next to my road and the people there are nice. I bought some shampoo and soap. The guy that was working today clearly did not speak a word of English. He looked at me when I came to the counter and had a look of panic. He rang up my items, and then punched the total into a calculator and showed it to me. HAHA. I wanted to laugh. So I paid him and left. It was cute. But hey, I'm in his country... I should be the one able to speak Arabic. I can say "how much is this?" But if he told me how much in Arabic, I wouldn't understand. I'm still learning how to say numbers... but I can say my street number to get home in a taxi. One step at a time.

Ramadan is also over if you didn't know!! YAY!!! It was over on my birthday, which I think is a good omen. It is still a little strange to see Muslims eating and drinking and smoking in the middle of the day, like they're committing a sin or something. It's also nice to not hide when I'm drinking water, or to feel bad about it. The Eid break is also over, so Insha Allah life will be "normal" here. I've never known Egypt when it's not Ramadan, so we'll see what happens. Cairo is slowly becoming my home for the time being. I guess that is a good thing. I'm getting accustomed to walking on the street and getting out of the way of traffic so I don't get hit, getting around in taxis, knowing what shops to go to for what I need around my apartment, picking up more Arabic words everyday, etc. My new favorite word is "meshi," which I'm not sure how to spell. I say it all the time. It means "okay" or "I'll do it" or "I'm leaving." I'm pretty sure that when I come home I'll accidentally let Arabic words come out that I say all the time here like "aiywa" and "la" and "meshi" and "shukran" and "mumkin" and others.

I also like to look at the surprise in people's faces when I say certain things in Arabic. They say "Oh! You speak Arabic!!" And I'll say "La." Which means "No." And they'll laugh and say "You speak Arabic very well" which is a total joke. This guy in Dahab, who I actually had a conversation with in Arabic (granted it was about buying alcohol), was hilarious. He asked me "If you can speak Arabic so well, why don't you understand what I'm saying?" HAHA. I told him it was because I don't speak well, and then we laughed. Arabic is hard. Why didn't I move to a Spanish speaking country?

Beautiful Dahab

This week was a whirlwind of emotion... Dahab was one the most beautiful, serene vacations I have been on, I conquered a huge fear of mine, I turned 24, I had to come back to Cairo, I may or may not have flirted with a hot bouncer with big guns (arms) at a club, and then I got sick. Wow, there's a lot to write about.

I left for Dahab last Monday morning at 11:00 for a 7 hour ride in a bus. The bus trip there was much more fun than the bus trip back because of the excitement and all the cool things (like sand?) we saw on the way there. We had to go through several "checkpoints" on the way to Dahab, even though we never left the country. I'm not sure what the point of them was... but I don't understand a lot of things in Egypt. Our bus driver just gave the policeman a paper, and we went on our merry way. Once we reached the Red Sea, we could see Saudi Arabia on the other side, and we could see Jordan at one point as well. This will be the closest I ever come to visiting Saudi because, well, I would have to have every part of my body covered and always be accompanied by a man... basically. Jordan would be cool to visit though, so who knows.

When we (finally) reached Dahab, I knew it was going to be a great week. It was silent. There was no trash everywhere. There weren't calls to prayer (which don't really bother me, but it was nice to get away). And, I just enjoy travelling overall and seeing new places. Dahab is on the Sinai Peninsula and on the Red Sea in Egypt. We stayed in a cute motel (I need to upload pictures) with the hardest beds I have ever experienced in my life. There was a man who worked there named Makhmud who, in the span of the 5 days we were there, supposedly "fell in love" with me and could "see the whole world in my eyes." How did this happen? I'm not sure. I enjoy talking to local people (but now I know NOT to talk to Egyptian men). We would all sit around a big table outside out of the hotel and talk, and he would join us and make us tea. I would talk to him about his life, etc. and all of a sudden he was in love with me. This is another good example of the Arab world is very different from the Western. Of course not all Egyptian men are like this, this is one case. But I know of many other stories from other foreigners who the same kind of thing has happened to. So I'm not trying to stereotype Arab men at all... it was just crazy how fast he could fall in love with me. I guess I don't know my own power... that was joke.

Anyway... some people chose to dive in the Red Sea, others to snorkel. I chose to snorkel because I have a fear of jellyfish, sharks (which there are none) and an overall fear of dying in bodies of water. Laugh if you will, but I was TERRIFIED to go in the water. Sameh was our instructor, and he was amazing. He even gave me a wet suit so I would float more and assured me that I would not float out with the current and die. We also stayed with partners and swam around. So at first, I would basically almost start to cry at the thought of getting in the water and swimming around. This was especially true when we had a yacht (to ourselves) for one day and had to jump off the yacht and swim around. It seems like such a small thing now, but I am so happy that I was able to conquer my fear, and learned to love snorkeling. I really want to dive now next time I go back to Dahab, but I know I need to be more confident in my swimming abilities. We also snorkeled the Blue Hole in Dahab which is the 2nd (I think) most popular diving spot in the world. No joke. Of course this is probably because a lot of people have died there. We could see monuments to the people that passed away while diving. But this is because the Blue Hole is so clear that people don't realize how far they are diving down. They get disoriented, and die... or something like that. Google it. It was beautiful... but incredibly busy there. Overall, I snorkeled about 5 or 6 times in 4 different locations. It was awesome too to lay out on the beach (or on our yacht) and relax. I did a lot of reading, sleeping, and soaking up the sun. Of course I still don't have a tan.

On Friday, I turned the ripe age of 24. This proved to be strangely difficult. It was my first birthday abroad, which was probably the biggest problem. Of course, all of my friends here were amazing. We went out to dinner on Thursday night to celebrate because we would be spending 7 hours in a bus on Friday coming back to Cairo. Funny story!! A bunch of us ordered the catch of the day. (There's amazing fish in Dahab) Which means that they grill up a whole fish, and bring it out you... head and all. It's delicious. Anyway, they bring out everyone's food except for mine. I may have had a few beers by this time (it was my bday celebration after all) and I'm upset!! I have never been so mean to servers before in my life. It literally look 30 extra minutes to get my food, and all the while I am not being nice to them at all. I even made them give me a free beer. When I finally get my food, I say something like "Great, I'll start eating now that everyone else is finished!!" They just kept apologizing. Little do I know, that the reason it's taking so long is because they're making me a birthday cake. Am I the meanest person in the world? Yes. So they bring out a cake, turn out the lights, and start playing "Happy Birthday" for me... and I'm so embarassed. Needless to say, I apologized profusely and left a huge tip. Then we went out to the opening of this new club in Dahab. One of my shoes broke, so I decided to take it off and only wear one. Luckily, the streets there are clean (unlike Cairo). There was this super hot bouncer named Nmzy (don't ask me how to pronounce that), so he told me to call him Richard, haha. He had big guns. We danced together, it was fun. They also gave us free tequila shots... overall it was a good birthday celebration.

It was super sad leaving Dahab. It was so beautiful there... but now I am back in Cairo. I woke up this morning at 7 AM and have been sick ever since. I have no idea why. It's probably because I thought I was so cool for not getting the "Egyptian sickness" during my first two weeks here. Or maybe my new 24 year old body can't handle Cairo. Anyway, last night was the first time I felt homesick and almost cried. I've literally had 2 birthday celebrations here, and my friends have given me awesome gifts and spent time with me... but it's weird not being around my friends from back home. I guess this is part of growing up? And I just realized that I'm in my mid-twenties. I'm not even sure what that means. But I really don't want to leave this on a depressing "I'm getting old and I'm sick" note. Dahab was beautiful and amazing and I'm proud to have gone snorkeling, instead of just saying that I was too afraid to do it. I think that's what this whole experience is about. Doing things that I'm afraid of or that make me uncomfortable sometimes because life isn't always about being comfortable. I was comfortable for 23 years... for the most part. Well, that's a lie. I lived a comfortable life, that's a better way of saying that. And I look around here and realize how amazing my life is here and back home. I'm just feeling sorry for myself, and I hate when I do that. Being sick doesn't help the situation either. Tomorrow is a new day... and Insha Allah things will be looking up!

I Found my Zen

Vacation is treating me very well so far. Thursday night I decided to go to bed early... but then I couldn't sleep and my friends started texting me and telling me to come out. I have never been one to resist peer pressure, so I went out and met them at the ACE Club. Then I went to my first house party while in Egypt and ended up staying out until 4 AM. But hey, I'm on vacation. Yesterday I went to the biggest mall I've ever seen in my life!! It was 7 stories tall and so large that I can't even begin to describe it. We saw Inception (I've already seen it once before), and it was still amazing. I always enjoy going to movies when I'm in other countries because I feel like I'm at home. I also went shopping! And accidentally charged things to my credit card. Oops...

Everything in Egypt is brown and sandy and dusty. But today I went to a park where everything was green!! I laid down in the grass (that felt like golf course grass, but it still made me happy) while everyone played frisbee or catch, and I felt so calm and at peace. Families came to have iftar dinner there after fasting, and they were looking at us like we were crazy... probably because I was laying in grass and we were playing games. It was also clean there! There was no garbage in sight which was amazing... Cairo is a very dirty city, generally speaking. There is garbage everywhere.

Have I talked about the calls the prayer? I think so... they happen 5 times a day over a loudspeaker-esque thing and you can hear them wherever you are in the city. I can hear it in my apartment, for example. Every mosque (and there are a billion of them, approximately... that's sarcastic, but still) will do their own call to prayer. So if I'm walking down my street, I can hear 3 different calls to prayer at the same time. At the park today, we were walking up a hill and it was time for iftar (the 6:30 call to prayer that means the fast is broken and people can eat and drink). All the mosques in the city below us started their call to prayer, and they all happened at the same time. It was such a hauntingly beautiful thing to hear. I tend to think that the calls are peaceful sounding, unless the guy doing it has an awful voice because it kind of sounds like he's singing... but he's praying. So to hear a bunch of them all together at the same time was incredible.

I am actively preparing for my trip! I'm doing laundry... oh yeah. To wash a load of clothes in the US takes about 20-25 minutes. Here, it takes about 2 hours! The machine will randomly stop and just sit there. I call it the resting period... the machine is just taking a break. Everything else here takes about 10 times longer than normal, why not laundry too? Tomorrow I need to buy sunscreen, pack, finish laundry, maybe get a pedicure (which only costs about 50 LE here, or about 10 US dollars!!), and get ready for 5 days of fun!! I'm so excited to snorkel... even though I can't really swim. I have doggy-paddling down though, so I'm pretty sure I won't drown. I'm just excited to see the Red Sea! Oh yeah... I'm pretty sure that Insha Allah I'm going to go to Istanbul for spring break. One of my friends here is from Istanbul, so hopefully a group is going to go there! There are so many places I want to go... I just need to find the time and money. But it's what the experience is all about! And teaching, I guess...

VACATION!

My vacation has officially begun... and I am enjoying it by watching Hotel Rwanda on tv. It's actually a very depressing way to start my vacation... but it's a good movie so far! Update on my difficulties communicating with people: my bowab just came to my door and automatically pulled his phone out to call someone to translate! haha. I fail at Arabic. So far... And he always wipes his phone off after he's been talking on it before he hands it to me. It's so amusing. Oh Muhamed.

Yesterday I discovered the wonder of otlob.com. It's pretty much the most amazing invention EVER and I had no idea that Egypt could be so advanced. You register with them with your address and phone number... and you can order food from anywhere! And they deliver within 45 minutes! Have I mentioned that you can order ANYTHING and they will deliver? Groceries, medicine, food, pretty much anything you could ever imagine. So last night, I ordered Pizza Hut and they delivered to my door in 30 minutes. And it was glorious. So otlob is pretty much my new best friend.

I went to an art show last night where the artist was Egyptian and actually there talking about his work. It was really cool and I would have loved to buy one if I weren't poor. And there was free wine, which is always a bonus. Afterwards, I went to the ACE Club with some friends. I can't remember if I've talked about the ACE Club yet... but it's a club for expats living in Cairo. So I meet people from all over the world there. And by club, I mean a place where you can go, have a couple beers, eat food, and sit outside or at the bar if you want. It's a nice place to hang out.

I was at the ACE Club with a couple who has lived here for 1 year, but they have been teaching abroad for several years. I learned a lot more about the culture and the "class" system in Egypt. For example, the way a woman wears her headdress represents what class she's in. I also see a lot of women wear head scarves that are Gucci or Chanel or expensive brand names. I see a lot of Coach bags too!! So my Coach feels very at home here.

This JUST happened. I paid my landlord with the rent check that the school gave me, which is of course all written in Arabic. I can't read Arabic (I did teach myself the numbers though!). He looks at it and says it's not made out to him. It's made out to some other guy. Wow... I feel like a 1st grader. I can't even read to tell that it's not made out to him. So I call people from the school and they're working on it for me. You take things for granted in the states... like being able to read all the signs and names on checks. I did ride in a cab for the first time alone last night though and spoke in Arabic the whole time to get home! One small step at a time.

Ummm.... what did you say?

Today was payday... which is always a good thing! But then my day got confusing and I decided I need to learn Arabic at a much faster rate than I am currently learning it. I stopped by a small shop to buy some water after school and saw my bowab, Muhamed. I figured out that he was offering to carry my bag back to the apartment for me in Arabic. I declined, saying that I had my school bag to put it in, but shokran! And I went on my merry way. I wasn't home for 2 minutes when I heard the doorbell ring. It was a lady who didn't speak ANY English. And my Arabic skills are not amazing. But I figured out she was telling me to call the housing guy from the school. So I did. And he didn't answer. So I called my saving grace "M" who always offers to translate for me. Luckily he was available and talked to the lady. She was there to collect the monthly fee that goes to the bowab. So I payed her. In my mind I was thinking "wow... they really collect their money at the end of the month."

About two seconds after she leaves my door, the bowab and the meter reader come to my apartment. The meter reader sees how much electricity you've been using somehow. I don't really understand it all. I should take a moment here to explain that in Egypt, no one sends you bills in the mail. They come to you door to collect their money. It's quite strange. So I invite them in and the guy goes to read my meter (whatever that is). And again, they're telling me to call the housing guy. So I call him, and he answers! I explain to him in English what's going on, and he talks to my bowab in Arabic, and Muhamed gives me the phone back. My housing guy tells me to pay the electricity with the money the school already gave me. Since I haven't been living here during the summer, the school already gave me money to cover the electric bill. So, I give the guy his money, ask politely for a receipt, and they leave. Wow, I really need to learn more Arabic! And they will really come to your door on the last day of the month to collect their money. Luckily it was payday.

I went out with some friends to the ACE Club and came home to a pleasant surprise! My sister, nephews, and niece were at my parents house and we could Skype. It made me so happy to be able to see and talk to them. Even Chloe said "Hi Sa" to me because she can't fully say my name and she waved and smiled. My biggest fear (Ok, one of my fears about moving here) was that Chloe and Jackson would forget who I am because they're so young. And two years is a long time to be away. But so far, Chloe and I still seem to be "besties" (as I call us, and she laughs), and Jackson still is my little man. Mathew and Marshal asked me questions about Egypt and we talked about school starting soon for them. They wish they lived here because school is always postponed! Typical.

Then my doorbell rang again when I was Skyping with them. I answered it. This time it was a Chinese woman. I can speak Spanish and English. I can barely get by with Arabic, and I certainly can't speak Chinese. I just kept looking at her and shrugging and she was asking me a question. Then she pulled out of her bag the ugliest dress/nightgown thing I had ever seen like she was asking if it was mine. I probably had a disgusted look on my face and just shook my head. I said thank you and closed the door. But seriously, I don't know who would ever wear that. Hopefully she wasn't trying to sell it to me.

2 more days until vacation!

One Week!

Is it bad that I will be on vacation one week from today and I haven't even started teaching yet? I'm going to say that it's not because I have been in inservice for three weeks! I am so excited for vacation! One week from today I will be in beautiful Dahab on the Sinai Peninsula. I'll be there for four days laying on the beach, snorkeling, relaxing, and taking in the sun. It will be perfect! I think it will be nice to get away from the city for a while (even though I've only been here for 3 weeks)... but it gets tiring hearing traffic all the time and dogs barking and people yelling and everything 24/7. The only downside of the trip is that it's a 7 hour bus ride, but luckily it's with people that I know and like. We're also coming back on my birthday (September 10 for anyone that still needs to send me a gift, haha!)... which means I'll be sitting on a bus for 7 hours on the glorious day that I turn 24 in Cairo. But I've already made everyone promise that no matter how tired we are, we WILL be going out to celebrate that night. And they agreed. What choice did they have?

My Egyptian life was made a lot better today by a few events. First, I had Mexican food! I adore Mexican food and can't live without it, and realized that there's a Mexican restaurant about 15 minutes away from my house. I love Maadi. Next, I went to a house where a couple lives who works at the school. They had a bunch of stuff left over from someone who left last year to move back home. This was perfect for me because they offered to give me whatever I needed! It's really difficult moving to a foreign country and not having a lot of kitchen supplies for example and learning where to go buy everything and also not having a ton of money to buy stuff. So I took everything! I now have more glasses, a strainer, picture frames, towels, sheets, and a blow dryer!! I have been living with NO hair supplies since I got here. I also lived without a fingernail clipper for 2 weeks. Gross, right? So I was pumped! It was so much stuff that I couldn't carry it all back to my house today... I'm getting the rest tomorrow.

One last thing made me have a nice day. I hung up pictures of my friends and family in my apartment. I am slowly working on making my apartment more home-y. I figure I better try since I am going to be here for 2 years. It made me so happy to be able to look around and see pictures of the people I love! I also have the pictures of playwrights on my wall because they're my inspiration and because I'm just that cool. So overall, I'm feeling better about making this apartment feel like it's more my own.

But one bad thing did happen today. I went on a huge rant in my blog yesterday about Coke products and I stand by them! And I don't drink any soda. But I have been drinking Fanta Orange sometimes since I've been here. Well... I was looking on the can and realized that Fanta is a Coke product!!! I feel so ashamed. It really quenches my thirst because it's so hot here and it doesn't taste like soda. So now I don't know what to do. Maybe it's okay because I only drink it sometimes? But maybe I just shouldn't to stand my ground against Coke. But then again maybe it's okay because I won't be shopping at other evil corporations like Wal-Mart for 2 years. So it's a give and take. I'm going to give in and say it's okay once in a while. But only while I'm here and only when I'm really thirsty and hot. So there.

Tomorrow's my hump day! Yay! Only 3 more days left of work until vacation starts!

Can't I just have a telephone?

There's something at school that is taking me a while to get used to: the role of matrons. Matrons are ladies who work for the school; they generally do not speak English, they are usually very young, and they are obviously Arab/Muslim. Their job is to sit outside of the majority of classrooms and offices and... wait. Wait for you, the teacher or administrator to need something or need a message to be sent. Because we have matrons, we don't have telephones in our classrooms or a loudspeaker coming from the office. It seems very strange to me, but apparently it's very common in Egypt. So usually when I'm walking down the hallway, I'll see all the matrons sitting outside the rooms practically falling asleep because they're so bored.

I asked an expat who had been here for a while... what do I do if I need a message to be sent right away or have an emergency in my room? You tell the matron. And since they don't speak English very well, you get a student to tell them the message in Arabic. I used a matron the other day for the first time. I was working on covering my bulletin boards in my classroom and didn't know where to find the fabric that goes over them. I asked a fellow expat. She said, "oh honey, you don't do that yourself. You send a matron to get it for you." So I worked up the courage, and asked a matron to get the fabric for me in purple. Luckily, she speaks pretty good English. Did I mention that my classroom is right across from the head principal's office? No pressure there. So I must have the really good matrons by my room. I just hope I'm never too loud with an activity or something to make her mad.

Today we had to get blood drawn for our HIV test to get our work permit. I know, it seems a little extreme to get an HIV test to be able to work here. I thought it would be sketchy ... but the doctor seemed to know what he was doing, haha. The only thing that made me nervous was that he didn't wear gloves when he did it! Isn't that something all doctors do when they're drawing blood? Especially when they're testing the blood for HIV? Maybe the concept of gloves hasn't hit Egypt yet. Furthermore, wouldn't it be discrimination in the US to fire someone for having HIV? I guess I'm not in the US anymore, and hopefully I don't have it!! But how would I know? This is how I freak myself out.

I'm slightly depressed because I realized that I bought Dasani water today and I didn't know that Coca-Cola is the Company of Dasani. For those of you that don't know, I strongly boycott Coke products, and you should too! Coke is pretty much the devil and they have a huge negative impact on indigenous people in Mexico because they're trying to take all the clean water that's left and use it to make more Coke. They're also responsible for a ton of health issues and overall bad things. So I hate them and don't buy any of their products. So now I feel bad for buying Dasani water... but I didn't know!! And I only bought 4 bottles of it... so now I guess I know. Live and learn... and then only buy Nestle Pure Life water.

The Battle of the Internet

Nothing in Egypt comes easily. I have been trying to get internet for... a long time now. My friend (I'll call him M) has kind of taken me under his wing and is always looking out for me. He also speaks fluent Arabic because he's from Jordan and Arabic is his first language. He was very influential in helping me get internet. It took us FOUR trips to TE Data (my internet provider) to finally get it!! And I still have to go back one more time after I pay my phone bill to prove to them that I am living in this apartment. They can't seem to understand that the lady who lived here before me moved back to the US and that I live here now. They also wanted a ridiculous amount of paperwork, and practically my left ovary. M had to fight with them in Arabic and I had to practically cry and yell at them in English and tell them I just wanted to be able to communicate with my family back in the US... couldn't they understand that?!?!? I brought them everything they told me to and they still wouldn't hook it up?!?! Oh yeah, if I wanted to cancel with them and go with Vodafone who only wants my passport and telephone number... TE Data still wanted the same amount of paperwork. So I was stuck!! Finally they called a manager. And I finally have internet!! Egypt is crazy. I haven't even tried to get banking yet because it is even harder to get. In case anyone is keeping score... it's tied: Egypt 1, Sara 1. After I get banking I will totally be ahead. One battle at a time.

The Eid el Fitr break is coming up. From what I understand... it's the holiday after Ramadan. Even though Ramadan is pretty much a month of holiday. Anyway, I'm deciding whether I should go to Dahab for break or stay here in Cairo. Dahab is a beach-y place on the Sinai peninsula in Egypt about 7 hours away from here. Some of my friends from school are going, and it's the cheapest option. Other friends of mine are going to Thailand (which I would love to do but just don't have the money right now), or Turkey and various other places. I think I'm going to go to Turkey in November during the "Thanksgiving" break Insha Allah if I have enough money though!! I'm thinking I should really go to Dahab instead of sitting at home for 10 days and I can go snorkeling or diving there, relax, go out, and get away from the "big city" life for a while. Even though I've only been here 2 and a half weeks. That reminds me! I made the 2 weeks without getting traveler's illnesses!! I have been healthy thus far. I think this is a good sign... hopefully this means that Egypt is a good fit for me.

I went to Khan el Khalili again tonight with some friends. This is the big market I've already been to twice before. It's so much fun there! Tonight, some shop keeper told me that I have beautiful eyes. I pretty much wanted to marry him for saying such a nice thing... or not. Last night I went to the Air Force Club with some friends and had such a good time. It was pretty much the closest thing to an American bar I will ever get to here. I even drank Bud Light!! It was pretty amazing. I got home at 3 AM and decided it would be a good time to SKYPE with my parents... so I ended up staying up until 5:30 this morning skyping with people! That's only because I'm living in the future... 7 hours in the future to be exact. Tonight I went to the ACE Club again. It's a club for expats living in Egypt and it's fun to go to because it's cool to look around and see people from all over the world. It's also nice to sit outside with a nice breeze! I'm starting to enjoy it when it doesn't get over 100 degrees here!

I had a dream last night that I decided to go home for the first break. Which is weird because I've only been here for a little while. More things ensued while I was there in my dream... but I somehow lost my passport and was worried about how I was going to get back to Egypt. When I was working on waking up this morning... my eyes were still closed, and I was deciding on whether I was in Viroqua or Egypt. Then I wondered which was better... then I wondered if I had ever been in Egypt at all. Maybe I had never gone and everything that had happened here had been a dream? As much as I miss everyone at home, before I opened my eyes I hoped I was in Egypt and that it wasn't a dream. I feel independent here and I know (or hope) that after this experience I will be able to take on anything life gives me. When I opened my eyes, I was still here in Egypt. And I was happy.

One last story. At the market in Khan el Khalili, you can get your name written in hieroglyphics on necklaces. I already have one, but the shopkeeper was super nice and wrote out my name in English, then in hieroglyphics, and then explained to me what each letter meant. The S meant that I will unite two families, and I forget what the R meant. But... I have two A's in my name which means that I have a very strong-willed personality and that I am a goddess. I joked around with the shopkeeper and told him that I already knew I was a goddess and that my family and friends already know I have a strong personality. He asked if my male friend was my husband and I said... hell no! Do you think someone with 2 strong personality signs would have a husband?!? And he said yes... it would just mean that I'm the boss in the relationship. Haha... it made me laugh. So the moral of the story is that I will unite two families (like in Romeo and Juliet?... I guess they never united though) and that I am a goddess who is strong-willed. Pretty accurate I'd say.

Delays

I went to school yesterday (yes, on a Sunday... my work week is Sunday through Thursday) eager to meet the entire staff of Hayah. It was the first day for all staff, not just the new staff orientation. The day started with a meeting in the gym... and there was a delay/bad news right away. I already knew that the government said no schools are allowed to start until after Ramadan and Eid El Fitr (the holiday after Ramadan) are over. But Hayah was going to "ignore" this and start anyway. Well... guess what... not anymore. Apparently we've been ordered not to start or the school will be shut down. This means that I don't officially start teaching until September 13.... I was supposed to start teaching next Sunday, August 29th. Holy ****. I was really pissed off at first (pardon my French, but I was). Why am I here?!?! Why couldn't I stay home for 3 more weeks, then come if I'm not starting until the 13?!?! Then the new expats had a meeting with someone from the school who tried to calm us down. We're not getting paid any differently, and I'm still working next week... even though I should have been teaching. The school is going to plan fun and CHEAP things for the new expats to do every day that we are on break now since we're starting late. A lot of expats are going on trips during the long break, like to the beach. I would really like to... but money's tight right now. So keep your finger's crossed! Apparently this is very normal in Egypt. Last year the school shut down for 2 or 3 weeks during the H1N1 crisis. Hopefully this is the only time we shut down!

On to other happier/catch me off gaurd school news... I also found out yesterday that I'm teaching high school elective drama classes. What does this mean exactly? I'm not sure. There is no curriculum for drama classes, so I'm kind of making things up as I go. Which is cool, but kind of scary. Did I mention yet that classes are split according to gender? So I'll have all 7th grade girls in a class, for example, and then all 7th grade boys. Which will be interesting... you never want a class of all boys at any age. I haven't received my actual teaching schedule yet, but we are supposed to tomorrow. "Insha Allah" (God-willing), as everyone says, I will.

I like to share interesting things about living in Egypt... this is one of them. Each apartment building, like in the US, has what's called a bowab (or landlord if you prefer). My bowab's name is Mohamad. Here's a fun fact about names. If you ever meet someone of Arab descent and they tell you that they will give you 2 guesses and 1 million dollars if you can guess their name... your first guess should be Mohamad. If that's not right... your second guess should be Ahkmed. Chances are, you've just won yourself a million dollars! Anyway, my bowab is so sweet. Every morning he is out washing everyone's cars like all the other bowab's on the street. When I walk by him on my way to the bus stop, he always says "Good morning miss... miss Sara." Basically, your bowab will do anything for you... run your errands, buy your groceries, take out your trash, fixes minor things in the apartment, etc. You just tip him. It's amazing. And if you're nice to them, they're nice to you.

In the US, you never see people just hanging out or walking on the interstate. You also never see people driving a donkey on the interstate. In Egypt, however, these are all quite common. You will also see people sleeping in the back of trucks, or sitting on top of semi-trucks. These are all reasons I love Egypt. A trip from here to there is never the same and you always see new things.

I hear you call my name, and it feels like home

That title has absolutely nothing to do with this post, but I like it :) I just realized I'm becoming one of those people who update their blog everyday. I hope I'm still cool. But this one won't be very long because I don't have a lot to say. Of course I'll get on a rant and this post will probably be the longest one yet.

Today I went with 2 Egyptian friends to a place called Islamic Cairo. I took the Metro for the first time! It's kind of like the subway in NYC, except it's above ground... but it's the public transportation system in Cairo. And it only costs 1 pound!! That's like 25 cents! There are seperate cars for women only, but we took the mixed one because we were with one boy. And I could still take the mixed car, even if I were with all girls. It's a choice I guess. It was hot, but not very crowded... not as crowded as the Metro system in Mexico City anyway. We went to Islamic Cairo to see mosques, which I was pumped about because I've never been in a mosque before. Unfortunately, there's apparently a new rule that no foreigners are allowed in the mosques after 3:00 because people are praying, and security guards want to go home for Ramadan, etc. I didn't really understand it. So... that's pretty much the one thing they won't let you do as a foreigner here!! As an American especially, you can pretty much get away with anything. For real.

So anyway, we got to go in one mosque. Luckily my friend brought an extra head covering for me. You may or may not know that a female must cover her head when entering a mosque, and everyone must take off their shoes. So, for the first time, I wore a head covering and took off my shoes and went into a mosque. My friends went to pray, and I waited. A man walked up to me and asked me where I was from. I told him the US (I hate saying America, because technically speaking Mexico, Canada, etc. are all considered part of "America"), and he offered me a seat, and told me I could go up the tower if I'd like to. I said thank you, but I was waiting for my friends. There's an example of how I can get/do anything because I am American. When they were done, we looked around and walked up the tower. I could see all of Islamic Cairo from there! It was beautiful! The mosque itself apparently was nothing too special according to my friends. There was a fountain in the center, and places to pray. Men and women pray seperately. There were no rows or pews like in a Catholic or Lutheran church... it was more like seperate areas.

After that, we walked around a market... it was sooo hot! I had to stop for a second in the shade and drink some water. I felt bad because I knew they were fasting and couldn't drink water. I apologized, but they didn't care. They know that I'm not used to the heat yet. Somehow we ended up in the same market that I was at Wednesday night with my expat friends... I'm not quite sure how it happened. We had dinner there (after fasting was over, of course) and came home.

I have school tomorrow.. but it's more meetings and time to set up my room. It's strange to be going to work on a Sunday, but I will get used to it. It's nice having Friday's off! School officially starts next week!! I'm excited but scared. I guess this was kind of a long post. Sorry! One more thing... I learned today that a Muslim man can marry a non-Muslim woman, but a Muslim woman cannot marry a non-Muslim man. I'm just passing on the facts of what I learn.

Beer, Sheesha, and New Friends!

Yesterday was our last day of "New Teacher Orientation." The most exciting part of it was seeing my classroom! I have a little stage area, and a large open working space. There are some chairs in it, but no desks (which is what I wanted... what would you do with desks in a drama classroom anyway?), and a cool CD player. And the best part is that it's mine. No one else uses it unless they need it for a special event or something. I also talked a little with the head of my department about where the drama program has been in the past and where he would like to see it go. Our goals were pretty much the same which is awesome. I'm working on developing a more concrete curriculum of what I want to do, and we're going to have a meeting next week to talk about everything! Overall, I feel great about everything... except for the fact that the students tend to be spoiled and a little out of control (from what I've heard... from everyone). But hey, it will just be an extra chellenge. I want drama class to be fun and exciting and challenging, but there also needs to be control, obviously. So we'll see what happens!

OK, quick story. This is hilarious! I met a neighbor the other night waiting for the elevator. She is Egyptian, but speaks English very well and she's a doctor. We talked for a little bit (she asked if I was married), and exchanged numbers in case I ever needed anything which I thought was very nice. Two nights later at around 10:30 she was calling me... which I thought was strange. I answered. She said she was sorry to disturb me, but that she had a gift she wanted to give me. Then she asked if I like cats. Cats? I asked... like the animal? Yes. Cats. She wanted to give me a cat as a gift. I panicked. I have nothing against cats... but I'm never really home and this isn't even my apartment and how would I get it home with me and potty train it and ohmygod what do I do? I said the first thing that came to my head. I told her I was allergic. She didn't understand. I said that cats make me sneeze a lot. I asked her if she had a lot of cats. She said yes, and she wanted to give me one. But that she would think of another gift for me. Do I feel bad for lying? Yes, because she is very nice. But I just don't want a cat. It would freak me out. Anyway, I thought it was hilarious. That's Egypt for you.

Last night was the falucca ride on the Nile! It was so relaxing and fun to be with a lot of the people from the school for a couple hours on the river. We went right at sunset, so it was beautiful! We all broke the fast of Ramadan together with dates and water, and then had dinner. Afterwards, some new teacher friends and I went out to a bar in downtown Cairo. Downtown is so much fun!!! There's buildings and people everywhere. We went to a bar (after going through a metal detector) that was on the 9th floor and sat outside. We could see all of Cairo practically! It was beautiful. I drank 2 kinds of beer: Sakara and Stella. They were okay. Oh yeah, on our way walking trying to find the bar, every guy was going crazy. It was 5 girls and 2 guys and they were ALL staring at us and saying in appropriate things in English and Arabic. I thought it was funny. We weren't even dressed skanky! And there were men in the streets playing backgammon and smoking sheesha. Everywhere. Sheesha is just like hookah in the US, flavored tobacco. So it's not illegal anywhere, it's just everywhere in Egypt. So at the bar, we smoked sheesha in an apple flavor. It was part of the cultural experience. The sheesha guy was all about us too... he wanted his picture taken with us. So we did. Again, I laughed.

After that place, we went to find the Cairo Jazz Club. Some people had left, so 5 of us squeezed in a taxi and went searching. When we finally found it, it was closed for Ramadan! So we got in another cab and went to this place called Harry's Pub. I felt like I was in the US! We even had popcorn! One thing was different though... there were definitely hookers there. I saw them leaving with guys. They were pretty high class though because it was an expensive bar. There was also a hotel attached to the bar... so yeah. Use your imagination.

We squeezed in a taxi around 2:30 in the morning to come home. Usually places stay open all night (apparently), but closed. Of course, because of Ramadan. I know it's a very special holiday... but I can't wait for it to be over. I'm sorry. Anyway... on the way home there were lights everywhere and big buildings and people everywhere on the streets still. It was cool.

I feel like I've done a lot in the week and a half that I've been here. But so far I love it. I really miss everyone from back home, but all the friends I'm making here are great. It's definitely a huge change from my life in the US and all the luxuries I had there (like all my clothes, a dryer, things to do my hair, etc.) that I don't have here yet, but I feel like I'm in the right place.

Am I really working here?

I finally got to see the school where I'll be teaching at today. It is about 30 minutes away from where I live in New Cairo. A bus (not like a big yellow school bus) will pick me up everyday, and drop me off near my apartment. And Holy Toledo... the school is freaking amazing. It is gated and there are 24 hour security guards. You have to give them your name and check in to even be let in to the school. It is only going into its 9th year, so it's still new. The facilities are fantastic... there is an olympic-sized outdoor swimming pool, tennis courts, restaurants, Smart Boards, and grass!!! Which is very hard to find in the desert. There is air conditioning in every classroom, but not in the hallways.

Hayah is an international school, but it is pretty much all Egyptian students. They speak English in all their classes, except Arabic class (obviously). I kept thinking to myself... how did I get this amazing job?!?! I have no experience. And the staff is so supportive and helpful. They're communicative and actually have goals. They actually focus on the staff and support them and value them. That seems to be extremely rare to find in a school unfortunately. Of course this is only my orientation... everything could change once school starts. Oh... and my principal is wonderful. She's funny, likes it when people stop in to talk, and she's caring. I feel so blessed to be working here.

There are certainly going to be challenges. The first year teaching is ALWAYS the biggest challenge because I don't know what I'm doing yet really. I mean, I know what I'm doing, but I don't yet. You know what I mean? And I'm teaching in a completely different culture than I'm used to. Western thinking is very linear... we have steps and like them. Egyptian thinking is very... non-linear. We will see how this pans out. To be continued...

I am going to something fun tonight that I don't know the name of! Some fun market or something with some new expat teacher friends. And tomorrow night, I'm going on a falucca ride on the Nile!! I'm not sure what "falucca" means... but I think it's some kind of boat. Am I right?!?! Anyway, it sounds extremely fun!! And I'm hoping there's wine involved. And yes, this is all with fun teachers. I'm not actually looking forward to school starting and having to do work... but I guess that is why I came here. Oh yeah! And there is a TGI Friday's near the Nile. Who would have thought that?

The Only White Person in the Room

The last 24 hours have been crazy! Last night I went to my friend's house for fetar (I hope I'm spelling that right) dinner. It was an amazing cultural experience! There were about 40 people there that were all friends with her family and everyone came up to me and introduced themselves in English. Some people knew about Hayah and were very interested in what I was doing here. They even offered help if I ever needed it during my stay here. I have learned that Egyptians, as a whole, are extremely hospitable and will help you out whenever you need them.

But on to the dinner. The table was full of food. And it was all Egyptian food! Everyone grabbed a plate, got some food, stood around and talked to each other. This was a challenge for me because everyone was speaking in Arabic. Occasionally, someone would come up and talk to me in English... probably because I looked so out of place. But I loved every minute of it. I don't think I've ever been the only white person in the room before who doesn't understand what's going on. After the meal, the table was filled with dessert! My friend's mom literally took a plate for me, and filled it with dessert. I guess that is Egyptian hospitality. It was all so delicious, but don't ask me what I ate. Then we watched t.v., talked (well, they talked in Arabic and I tried to understand what was going on), and my friend drove me home. I would say that every night of fetar is like our Thanksgiving in the US times 5.

This morning I got up at 5:30 to go to the pyramids! We went as part of our orientation... I'm not even sure what to say about them. I can't upload pictures right now, but they were unbelievable. I couldn't believe I was actually seeing them up close! I also saw camels!! It was all very exciting.

Tomorrow, I am going to the school for the first time! I'm pumped to see what it looks like in person. Oh yeah... I wanted to talk about traffic. It's insane. There literally are no rules. There are no lines to stay in, they don't drive with headlights on at night, there are no stop signs, no stop signs, nothing. It's mayhem. I don't understand how it works at all... but apparently it does? Also, cars park other cars in all the time. So I asked someone once, "What does the other car do if it needs to move?" Well, the person that parked the other car in leaves the car in neutral. That way, the other person can push the car out of the way if they need to. Crazy, right? I kinda love it. And taxi drivers will honk at you when they drive by to see if you need a ride... especially because I'm foriegn. It's kinda nice of them... but extremely irritating when all I hear is honking when I'm walking down the street. Sometimes I want to yell "NO!! I don't need a f***ing taxi!!!!" But, they wouldn't understand me anyway. So I say "la" (no) and shake my head.

Wow, I kind of went on a rant there. I've almost been here a week!

Did I just go on a date??

Where do I begin... (don't freak out mom and dad). I met this guy from Nigeria in the internet cafe. You meet people everywhere here. He's been in Cairo for 2 months, and we ended up hanging out yesterday. I thought it would be a casual thing... but we ended up taking a taxi (my first taxi experience in Cairo) to get sushi. This was also my first sushi experience... ever. I must say that it was very tasty. We ended up talking for 2 or 3 hours in this restaurant about everything... our lives, why we were in Cairo, what we wanted to do in the future. And I'm not going to say that I "like" him because we just met... but we kind of meshed. I think we might be good friends during my stay here. We have a lot of the same philosophy on life. He plays football (otherwise known as soccer), and he's very into travelling. He kept saying "life is a journey." Umm... yeah, I know. That's pretty much how I live my life. It was so nice to talk to someone that's from a completely different place than me, in a completely different part of the world, and connect with them. He also paid for everything, which made me think it was kind of a date. Well, it at least kind of turned into one. He said he wants to make me dinner (who does that?!) ... a traditional Nigerian meal. Most people reading this might be freaked out, but there's something very genuine and honest about him. I'm just happy to be making friends because it has been difficult being here and not knowing anyone or how anything is done. Anyway, I guess we'll see how it goes. Oh yeah, he had really nice arms and a hot tattoo.... I think we all know I'm into that.

In a nutshell, I want to briefly share what I've learned about Islam and the Arab culture while I've been here because I think it's fascinating. I've already shared a little about Ramadan and fasting. I learned about marriage from my friends from the school that I've become close with. In the Islam religion, people don't "date." If 2 people like each other they get engaged, and then have a period of "dating" that lasts anywhere from 2 months to 2 years, and then they get married. If they find out they don't like each other in that period, they give the ring back and every gift they got for each other, and call the wedding off. I don't think that's very common though. It's also very common in the Arab culture for people to marry first cousins. Weird, I know... but one thing I've learned being here is that everyone has a different culture. I'm in the minority here. I'm learning that just because a culture or belief is different than mine, that doesn't mean it's wrong or bad. It's just different. I wouldn't like it if someone told me that my beliefs or my culture was wrong. So I listen respectfully to other people, and hope that they will do the same to me. And they do! :)

Orientation started today and all the expat (non-Egyptian) teachers that I've met are awesome. They're friendly, funny, and willing to answer all the questions us newbies have. We went shopping today to a huge mall and I felt like I was in the US. It was a nice feeling. Tomorrow I am going to the pyramids!!! I am so excited!!

And I can't upload pictures yet because I need to buy a new camera. I don't have the proper chord to do so ... so I'm kind of waiting to get paid. I'm also waiting to get DSL in my apartment which may take until November. It is Ramadan and everything moves much slower. "If God wills it" (as they say), it will happen. This usually means "we will take our sweet time getting it done." That is another thing I've learned :) Arab time is definitely not American time.

Life in Maadi so Far

I have been in Maadi (kind of a suburb of Cairo) for about 3 days now. I have learned so much and there has been a challenge every day!! I am trying to get used to the constant noise of dogs barking outside my window (even though I live in an apartment on the 6th floor), and the calls to prayer 5 times a day. But it seems like they happen more than 5 times a day because it is Ramadan right now. Ramadan is the month of fasting for Muslims. They don't eat or drink from sunrise to sunset, or smoke, or anything "bad." It is a great time to be here because there are lights up all over the neighborhood, people are really nice to each other, and there are fireworks every night. And when I say fireworks, I mean little firecrackers :).

I have been making some great friends so far, and I'm getting out every day and exploring my neighborhood. I've especially been exploring Master's, the internet cafe, haha. Almost everyone speaks English because a lot of expats live in this neighborhood, meaning people that are not from Egypt. It is really hot!! I always carry around a bottle or water because I pretty much feel like I might pass out everywhere I go unless it's after sunset.

Everyone is super nice. The first full day I was here, I thought I would be cool and go explore my neighborhood a little bit. On my way back to my apartment, however, I realized that they all look the same!! Also, all the signs are in Arabic... I can't read Arabic (yet). So while I was looking for my apartment, i walked right past it. Three people stopped me, and told me turn around. At least, I assued that's what they were saying. They were speaking Arabic and just kept pointing back. Then a nice lady was explaining to me where I lived in Arabic and pointing. I just kept saying "shokran" meaning thank you, one of the few Arabic words I know, and went inside. Oh yeah, I also tripped on my way in. So I'm pretty much the new American girl in the neighborhood who doesn't know where she lives!! I'm making a great impression.

The next big thing on my list of things to do is to go to the market. This is a daunting task to me and sounds very scary because not only am I shopping in a different country, I'm paying in pounds, and then I have to carry all the stuff back to my apartment. I should explain that people don't walk on the sidewalk here... everyone walks in the street. And cars expect you to get out of their way. But I'm going to do it. Oh yeah! My big thing I did yesterday was light my stove! It was very exciting and my new friends from the school helped me... well kind of forced me to do it. But I was grateful.

That was the longest blog post in the world. I have been writing my journal that the lovely Casey Clark bought for me for graduation. It has my favorite quote on the front... "Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterly." (In case you were wondering, I also have a magnet and a coffee mug with the same quote). That's kind of my mantra for this trip. Anyway... at the end of each journal entry (and I've been forcing myself to write daily), I say that tomorrow I will struggle more, and learn more about myself. So that is how I will leave this blog.