In lieu of my very recent trip back to Wisconsin for the holidays, I decided to make a top 10 list about the best things in the United States. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited to get back to Cairo. I can't wait to see my friends, get back to school, and start living a more "adventurous" lifestyle. But I realized that I had been taking some things for granted during my 24 years living in the United States. And you know what? I think a lot of people do. So sometimes it's nice to look around, breathe in the clean air (oops, that was going to be one of them), and appreciate what you have. I will also make a top 10 list about the best things in Egypt when I return.
So here it is...
The Top 10 Best Things About the United States (generally speaking)
10. Wal-Mart. Love it. Hate it. I don't care. You can go to one place and virtually get everything you need. I took many exciting trips to Wal-Mart during my time home.
9. No wild animals on the street. And when I say wild, I mean cats and dogs. Because it's depressing. I want to pet them and love them and give them a home, but... eeew. They probably have rabies and they're so sick looking. It's sad.
8. Men don't stare at you for showing hair or elbows. Even I've become a little more conservative in dress! i couldn't believe how much cleavage was bouncing around on New Years! Come on ladies!
7. Seasons. Again, depending on where you are. But it's not hot, then kind of cooler, then hot. Again, I'm speaking from a Wisconsin standpoint.
6. You understand everything. (Again, this depends on where you are). There's much less questioning of "Why the hell are they doing it this way?" and you understand everything people are saying around you (if they're speaking English). I went out to a restaurant when I first got back, and it was like my ears opened up. I could understand everything pefectly, not just pick out certain words.
5. You stay cleaner. You don't have to shake dust off yourself when you wake up in the morning, or shake the sand out of your pants. I like that.
4. Ease of transportation. Driving or riding in a car is much easier than trying to communicate with a cab driver in Arabic and you can also pretty much assure a complete stranger isn't going to offer to have sex with you. "Just one time?"
3. We have the best makeup and we have Burt's Bees. Enough said.
2. It's not hard to find a drink. There is practically a bar that is calling out to you on every street corner.
1. Freedom of Speech. We can say whatever we want whenever we want. No one is going to judge us if we're not the right religion. Ok, they might... but we don't have to put what religion we are on our i.d. Be thankful. Our freedom is the best gift that our ancestors worked hard to give us. Now I'm being preachy.
Wait!! I have more!! There's no trash on the sidewalk and there is a sidewalk to walk on. This is important. We also have rules when it comes to driving and cars don't honk at you for obscene reasons. So appreciate.
With all that said, I'm stoked to go back! I will be back there tomorrow afternoon. I really do love living there, with as much as I may seem like I'm complaining. I just say it like it is. I hope you enjoyed my Top 10... stay tuned for the top 10 best things about Cairo!
Friday, January 7, 2011
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
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!!
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!!
Saturday, December 11, 2010
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!
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!
Sunday, November 28, 2010
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).
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).
Saturday, October 30, 2010
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.
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.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
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.
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.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
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.
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.
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