Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
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.
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.
Friday, October 1, 2010
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.
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.
Monday, September 27, 2010
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.
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.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
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?
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?
Sunday, September 12, 2010
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 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!
Saturday, September 4, 2010
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...
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