Teacher's Day

There's nothing quite like Teacher gifts. My favorite are always the cards.

HA! What??


The girl who gave me this said it was for my business cards. Hmmm...yes, thank you.

Ultimately, the best gift for Teacher's Day would be a day off....

A very Singaporean moment.

The other night, I went to dinner with a few gals from work. During our conversation, I realize that I'm the only one without a live-in maid. Seriously. Later I realize that my only friends without live-in maids are the newbies. Apparently, everyone gets a live-in evidently. It's really cheap and they do the cooking and everything. Even though I am accustomed to a weekly maid, I really can't see the point of a everday maid. I've been told that it's just a matter of time before I change my mind.

Sentosa

Last Saturday, we went out to Sentosa Island. It's only like 30 minutes away by bus. Then you take a tram for like 5 minutes. It's pretty nice considering it's the closest beach. There's a Universal Studios which I promised Owen I would go back and ride the roller coasters sometime. They have an indoor wave pool, zip lines that go to other islands, a luge, theater for concerts on the beach, etc. Looks like you could never get bored here.

This is Merlion Park. Reminds me a lot of Parc Guell in Barcelona.
Just a random shot from the beach. There's a tiny island across from this beach that you can walk out to on a bridge.

The Merlion statue. Yes, mer-lion. Part mermaid- part lion. Symbol of Singapore? Not sure why. I need to look that up.

This sign was on our bus. The third picture is the Durian fruit. Apparently, it smells like poop and tastes like a banana. Singaporeans love it. Personally, I have no desire to try it.

book reviews....why not

I finished 3 books before going back to work. I don't think I'll have much time for reading in the next few weeks since my schedule is pretty busy. Just wanted to recommend these books b/c I liked them.

This was a story about a circus in the 30s. I really liked the way the story was told. Very unique. A very quick and easy read. Can't wait to see the movie.
This books is about the slave trade in the 1700s told from a woman's perspective. Very good book, but also very disturbing. Slavery must be the worst thing humanity has ever done. Most is based on facts. Just unbelievable what some people have been through. "The book of Negroes" was a real list of people who were allowed to escape slavery and go to Canada which reminded me a little of Shindler's List. Also, just bought that book too- even though I know the ending.

I liked this book alot. It's based on a true story about a man who escaped from an Australian prison and lives in the slums in India while working for the Mafia and also acting in Bollywood films. He also started a free health clinic and then fought in Afghanistan. Most of it is true. It doesn't really matter that some of it is fiction because he's such a good writer. My favorite parts are when he talks about what it's like living in the slums of India. After seeing those slums, you just have to wonder what a life what that is like as a foriegner. I loved reading this book because it has such vivid descriptions of India. Can't wait to go back and see more of that amazing country!

conveyor belt sushi rocks

Still having a great time in Singapore. Did a little Ikea shopping today and controlled myself as best as I could. I love that place. Not much to report, just trying to keep an update on stuff. In the Lonely Planet books, there is always a section on each country entitled "Dangers and Annoyances". Sometimes they make me laugh so I always try to think of what I would add to this section with each country I go to. For Singapore, I would say that the people tend to walk "at" you. They will walk straight toward you until you jump out of the way at the last minute. It's slighly annoying because I don't understand it. I mean, evidently, you will have to move so why walk staight toward someone. I've been told by friends who have been here several years that you just get used to body checking a few people. Also, enormous amounts of the cutest babies I've ever seen. I just have to keep reminding myself that it's illegal to 'accidently' take one home from the store. In the paper, they have a whole section of cute Asian baby pictures. At first I thought it was all the ones that were for sale. No, just parents who are so proud of their cute babies. Pretty funny stuff.

conveyor belt sushi

Orchard road at night

I walk past this guy ever day so I thought I would take a picture. Lots of tourists take their pictures in front of him while laughing hysterically. I decided against that.

Singapore

I've been told that I need to update this as soon as I get to Singapore. I've been here a few days and nothing out of the ordinary has happened. No culture shock or anything odd to report. The only thing that really shocked me was this article. It's so crazy to think that I left the Middle East for Southeast Asia and I have to worry about a terrorist attack here. I don't think that article says which metro stop it was- but it's the main one. It's kinda the Times Square of Singapore and my school is a five minute walk away so that would be the MRT stop I would take. Kinda scary. It makes sense though. Singapore is a big city flaunting it's capitalistic ways. We've also seen a few muslim women covered, but very rarely. At the hotel breakfast there is this middle eastern man with 3 wives all wearing the burka and the Asian waitress hate them so much, they throw him hateful looks and refuse to refill their coffee. It's not really about religious intolerance, it's more about women's rights. It makes me just as mad to see something like that and to know that these women are his property in a form of slavery. Disgusting. There are so many religions here it's so awesome. I've seen buddhist temples, hindu temples, mormon churches, mosques, catholic churches, etc. I haven't really taken any pictures yet, but I'll try to post better ones later. These pics are just outside our hotel.

more culture shock

This morning I was asking my dad about the scanner. Our conversation went like this:

Dad: What do you need to use the scanner for?

Me: To scan my passport and email it.

Dad: What?! You shouldn't do that, you need to be careful about identify theft.

Me: What....? How is someone going to steal my identity through an email?

Dad: Well, may I ask who you are sending it to.

Me: My boss in Singapore for my work visa.

Dad: Ohhhhhhh.... Well, that should be fine.

He thought I was just going to scan it and send all my info to some scam online? I may have been out of the country for the past 2 years, but I'm not an idiot. It's funny how there are all these commericals about identity theft, making sure your baby doesn't die from whooping cough, all the diseases you could die from, etc. And the shows are all about how people just snap and kill everyone in their family for no reason. Wow. I feel like I should be afraid to leave the house. It's so similiar to the book, 1984, where the people live in fear of things that probably won't happen to them. Just this past year while driving to work each day in Cairo, I saw 7 dead bodies on the side of the road. Just from crossing the road. It's not unusual to see an entire family riding on a motor bike with the mom carrying a newborn. Obviously without helmets. You know it will only take a bump to kill them all. It's so extreme to see absolutely no safety measures to the extreme American fear of everything. Part of me wants to laugh at the idea of identity theft being the worst thing to happen in your life, but I guess that would really suck if someone stole your credit and stuff. I get it, but it just seems like we have it sooo good here. It's weird how the cops just sit and wait for someone to speed just a little. I hate driving in fear of going slightly over the speed limit. It's a really big change from just doing whatever the hell you want in Cairo.

What I've learned from living abroad

Here are a few things I've learned the last 2 years living abroad.

1. I don't need as much personal space as I think I do.

I was running this morning on the sidewalk and a lady and her dog approached me. They move off of the sidewalk and into the street so that we can pass each other. My thought was geez, there's plenty of space.... This happened 3 more times with various people passing me. In Cairo (and most of the world) people are very close to each other. Physically close. When I would ride the metro and be the only person in the car, a woman would come and sit right next to me- practically on top of me. Why? They feel more comfortable being close to someone. I still need my personal space and sometimes it would bother me when people violate this, but I have come to realize that I don't need as much as I thought.

2. I don't need as much technology as I think I do.

In Egypt, I had a cellphone whose most advanced feature was the calculator. Nothing about it bothered me. I liked that I couldn't check my email every 2 seconds. I'm back in the states for a few weeks and here I am with a Crackberry that I'm already addicted to. I didn't have a tv the past 2 years and learned that not only can I live without it, but I don't even want one. It's very liberating to not have nonsense to distract you all the time. It forces you to sit down and really talk to people. I got to know my friends in Cairo better than I've ever gotten to know anyone.

3. Americans do not have a good reputation.

Sorry y'all, but it's true. When I would meet people while traveling and it would come up that I was American (which is something you want to hide as long as you can) they would get awkward and say something like "We love Obama!" or "Wow, you don't seem like an American, you're so easy going!" or "No, I don't hate Americans.....there was one time I met an American who was really cool...." Americans who travel are typically the biggest a-holes you've ever met. They are super high maintenance and worried about every little thing so they tend to have public meltdowns. When you see or meet English-speaking peeps, you can immediately tell where they are from before you get a chance to recognize their accents. Aussies are always the loud ones trying to get in fights. Kiwis are the same-less intense. The brits are the ones who are badly sunburned, wearing sock with sandals, and already loudly drunk before noon. The obnoxious young backpackers(18-25) are just trying to hook up and party hard. They care nothing about the culture or the people and are just looking for a good time. The Canadians are the ones that are super friendly and apologize for everything. Everyone loves Canadians. I've noticed that while travelling a lot of non-Canadians, especially Americans, have been putting the Canadian flag on their bags so people will think they are Canadian. Smart move.

4. Obama is the best thing that could happen to America.

I don't know about how he's doing as far as running the country. But as far as an international perspective, America NEEDED someone like Obama if we want to be supported by other countries. His reputation abroad is amazing and everyone loves him.

5. I like experiencing new cultures.

I haven't experienced the culture in each country that I've been to, but I like it more when I try to do so. I love how different everything is from the food, the language, the mannerisms, what pisses people off, etc. It's great learning about other people because ultimately I learn more about myself.

6. I do not have the American Dream.

I do not want to live in a suburb with a house, fenced-in yard, dog, and little white kids. There's nothing about that that sounds appealing to me. I would one day like to get married, en shallah (God willing) and have kids. I really really want to adopt kids. I want my kids to be bilingual and live in a culture that is very diverse. I want to have friends from different countries who are nothing like me. I don't want to be consumed in materialism and owning too much stuff. I am an expat and don't regret it.

7. I would like to never own a car again.

That sounds really random, but it's sooo much easier to walk, bike, or take the metro everywhere. A car is so much trouble. You have to worry about gas, oil changes, insurance, etc. I guess that means I'm going to keep living somewhere that doesn't require a car.

8. I love beaches.

This is always my fave place to vacay. There's something sooo relaxing about laying on the beach, reading a book, chillin with friends, possibly with a drink.....

9. I own too much stuff. And I hate it.

This kinda goes back to what I was saying before. When you see poverty on a daily basis you realize that you are sooo privileged and you just don't feel the need to spend money on new shoes or anything that seems excessive. Don't get me wrong, I like to shop and get new stuff. But I have to get rid of stuff when I get new stuff. This also goes with moving overseas. It's like the old saying. "You just can't take it with you." And it makes sense. Why keep stuff that I'm not going to use when someone else less fortunate might use it or even need it.

10. I like to travel.

Ok, that seems pretty obvious. I didn't realize how much I liked doing this until I was travelling every few weeks. I'm pretty sure that 2 years ago, I'd never heard of some of the places I went to- Tunisia, Bahrain, etc. I love it and hope I can keep travelling for many more years.

Mooooooole

Every year I go to the Dermatologist to get checked for skin cancer. I've had more than 1 dermo tell me that I WILL get skin cancer at some point in my life. Very positive feedback, doc. I've had a good friend(who is my age) who had skin cancer a few years ago, so I know it's a real threat. I've had 11 moles removed due to their suspicious appearance. All but one has been benign. One was deemed "precancerous". Isn't all of my skin "precancerous"?? Really? I think that's a made up term. So this time I had 2 moles removed. Now I've had moles removed on my butt, boob, underarm, bottom of my foot, etc. that have been in very uncomfortable places while healing. This one was on my scalp. Yes, my hair had to be shaved to get to it. Not only that but it's HUGE! When they remove a mole, they usually just scrape it off. But with a big one, they have to cut it out. When they finish they burn it so it'll stop bleeding. So now I have this giant hole on the side of my head sans hair and was burned. I look like a freakin burn victim. The doctor even gave me cream for burn victims and she would cringe every time she looked at my head. I was going to get my hair colored and cut this week, but that doesn't look like it'll be happening. Whatever, it is all in the name of skin cancer prevention.

Egypt made me fat.

That's crazy talk, right? No way. It's just facts. I feel like I can officially say this now. I've been back stateside for almost a week and have already lost 5 lbs and I'm sitting here eating a bowl of cereal with chunks of chocolate in it. (Yes, that's what fat people do) Everyone I knew in Egypt struggled with their weight. Guys and gals. It was just a normal part of life there- gaining weight and not being able to lose it.

So why does Egypt make you fat? Oh, I will tell you.

There's nothing to do to stay physically active except for the gym. You can't just go for a quick run. You will be chased by creepy men and stray dogs. You can't even go for a walk for the same reasons. Most likely walking you will be grabbed or groped as I had the lovely experience of screaming at men and boys who do this. The gym is more stressful than it's worth. The meatheads on roids who walk around the gym get in the way of actually accomplishing anything. One day I realized how hot it was at the gym. I actually had to ask the manager to turn on the AC. We are in the middle of the desert, people!! No one does anything more than walking slowly on the treadmill. The only people who are running or sweating are us whiteys. So it's annoying that they occupy all of the cardio machines. Don't get me started on the dressing room as it's a free-for-all. There are attendants in there who do nothing except randomly decide to get out their prayer rugs and pray. I'm all for religious tolerance, but when there is only a 3' by 3' area to access my locker and you are your yoga/prayer time is occupying that entire space, then your praying is now getting on my nerves. Why do they have to do it there? Because the Egyptian mindset is not thoughtful of others. You just do whatever you want, whenever you want. Plus you have to show everyone how religious you are. Like I said, the gym would stress me out.

The food is always soaked in butter before it's cooked. I would get so sick sometimes from eating out just because of the fat added. You can forget about eating anything fresh like salads because you are just asking for some food poisoning. Why eat out so much? Well, because it's sooo cheap and after a long day at work and the gym, the last thing you want to do is cook. It's also great socializing. I absolutely love my friends in Cairo and we have such good times together. But there's nothing for us to do except go to the bar and/or eat out. Mucho drinking took place as well. I should say moderate drinking each day. Just drinking everyday. You can't drink too much alcohol at once or you'll get a major hangover. Not only are the local spirits terrible, but they have so many preservatives that they give terrible headaches. Being in the desert dehydrates you more than usual too. If I wanted to have 1 beer after work, I would need to be sure to drink 3 liters of water during the day to curb the dehydration headache.

I'm sooo glad to be done with Egypt. I love it and I hated it. But very glad to move on to something else. When I tell people that I'm moving to Singapore and they have lived in SE Asia, all they can say is "That's great! It's sooo humid there! You'll love it! Oh, you'll love to food! You'll lose so much weight!" I'm very excited. It seems that there is great food from India and Thailand which are my 2 faves. Maybe one day I'll be writing a post on why Singapore made me skinny.

Leaving Cairo- Airport Edition

The airport in Cairo is never without a little adventure or possible bribing of officials. Both of my checked bags were clearly overweight, but the local Egyptian woman who was working the counter for Air France really couldn't care less about that. However, the weight of one of my carryon bags seems to disturb her.

Her: This bag is too heavy.

Me: Well, could you bring back my checked bags and I'll put some some in it?

Her: No, they were both overweight.

Me: Hmm....well, what if I just take out some stuff from one carry on and put it in the other. (And before she can respond, I start doing this. Always act like you own the place- best tip for travelling in Egypt and no one will really question you)

Her: Ok, it's underweight now.

As soon as I get to the gate, I transfer everything back into the other carryon. Really doesn't make any sense, but I'm not going to start questioning Egypt now. One of the worst things about flying back to the states is that you have to claim your checked baggage right after immigration and recheck it for your final destination. This is very difficult to do when you have 4 bags with you and all of the bitches with their 1 suitcase have taken all of the pushcarts. Also, because it's a huge airport and everyone who is flying into the airport has to claim their luggage in just 1 carousal, makes for a lot of bag stacked on top of each other. As a very independent woman, I feel that I can do everything on my own. I saw my bag underneath 3 other bags so naturally I jump on the carousal and as it's taking me around I dig through the bags, grab mine, and leap off of the moving carousal almost breaking my leg. There also may have been a few F bombs dropped in the process. As I'm panting and recovering, this elderly gentleman next to me says, "Why, ma'am I can help you with your next bag.....unless you think I'm being sexist...." in a thick Georgian accent. I'm sure I looked like I was a do-it-herself kinda girl who would be offended by chivalry. Not at all, I let him get my other bag for me. Then I dragged and kicked all of the luggage to the checkin counter. I was sweating profusely by the time I got there to say the least.

As I was headed home on the last flight of my 20 hour journey, the culture shock sets in. The flight attendants seemed to think they were the lead entertainers on a Disney cruise with their jokes and theatrics with the announcements. No need to entertain us- we're on an hour flight. As I was reading SkyMall, and trying to justify purchasing an underwater pogostick, I realized how Americans are completely attacked by consumerism. It's everywhere-even on the plane. There's just so much stuff to buy and so little time to have it all. Fighting against the consumerism and materialism is my goal while I'm here. Although I'm sure I've already failed this as I can't wait to go shopping for new summer clothes and already have my new Blackberry set up.

Mummy Tummy

Before I moved to Cairo, talking about bowel movements was just not something I was comfortable with. I remember one of my first conversations with my friend Peter. I mentioned that my stomach was a little upset. He then asked if I had diarrhea. I gave him a "how dare you ask me something so personal" look. Nowadays, it's standard conversation. Maybe even mentioned over dinner. Everyone can relate because they've probably recently had a bout of Mummy Tummy. I was just thinking on the walk home from dinner how bizarre it is that we are all so comfortable with each other to mention it. Another reason why I love my friends here and why it'll be hard to say goodbye. Won't miss the diarrhea, though.

The good, the bad, and the awkward

Just finished reading this book that Owen bought for me at Christmas. I really have no interest in mountain climbing at all, but this book is really good. I have probably read 4 or 5 books about climbing Mount Everest and watched about 7 documentaries on it and I still learn something new each time. It's so fascinating how hard it is to climb that mountain and how so many people die trying to do it. This book is about 2 rich guys who know nothing about mountain climbing having the crazy idea to be the first to climb all 7 summits on each continent. Since they are trying to be the first to do this back in the 80s, oh, and they are in their 50s, it's interesting because back then it wasn't as easy as it would be today. I won't ruin the end and let you find out yourself what happens, if they make all 7, who dies, etc. True story.

I absolutely loved "Life of Pi" which has the same author as this book that I borrowed from a friend. This was the weirdest book I have ever read. The back cover describes it like this "a man wakes up one day and discovers that he is now a woman". Umm, yes, super weird. Not very good. If you like really weird books, then this one is for you and I won't ruin the ending. Since I knew Owen wouldn't read it, there were times I would stop, explain the plot and then read a selection for him. Then we would look awkwardy at each other and then burst out laughing.

FINALLY, saw the movie, "The Blind Side", which was awesome. I'm sure I'm the last person to see this movie, but I'm glad I did. If you haven't seen it- you should! Also, saw "The Proposal" and it was kinda stupid just as I thought it would be.

I read a lot.

Just finished this on the day I was sick. John bought this book in India while we were in a cab and a guy came to the window to sell it to us. The books that he had were obviously copied from a copy machine. When you buy books like that, you never know what you're gonna get. Sometimes they are missing pages or some pages are blank. This one is complete so we were lucky. We had heard that this book IS India. It's a really interesting story about a taxi driver in India and it reminds me a lot of the lives of our boyabs. These are the old couple that we sometimes refer to as our pirates because that what they look like and sound like. It's just so interesting to know that there are people who live in your building who are living in utter poverty and you see it everyday. What do you do? What do you say to them? How different our lives must be. If you've ever travelled to India or plan on it, you should read this book. It's a great insight to how the structure of the country works.

my favorite things

Oprah does it....Or she use to, I haven't seen an Oprah show in 2 years. I've been really negative about Cairo lately, but there are so many things that I love about living here.

Obviously, it's pretty cool when go out to the pyramids for the day... but it's always a big reminder when you catch a glimpse of them from a distance. On a clear day, I can look over my shoulder when running on the treadmill at the gym and see them in the distance. That's when I realize how spectacular they really are.


This card says:

"Jast for your love

You are laugh make me fly

You are voice takes me high

And saying good bye make

me wont 2 die

you know why

because you are asweet

romantic angel from the sky"

I love how random everything is. I love that everyone walks around in the most ridiculous clothes from the 80s and broken English that you hear being yelled at you. IOWA?!? STRAWBERRIES?? Very very good. Sometimes you just have to laugh aloud at it all. Also, I've recently decided to carry my recess whistle, as John so lovingly refers to my "rape whistle" and blow it loudly at any man/boy who approaches me with any remarks on my beautiful eyes or unwanted touching. Love it.

This website might be completely to blame for gaining 15lbs since moving here. But it sure does make it convienent to get the best food from the best restaurants delivered to my door for 20cents delivery charge. I am so lucky to have such great friends who love to travel and are very adventurous and always up for a good time.

I love going on Felucca rides on the Nile. I am only a 5 minute walk from the Nile this year so it's great to walk over through the madness to escape all the noise and relax on a sail boat ride with some wine and hummus as the sun sets. This is a super old pic of a felucca ride, but I always forget to take pics when we do this.
Ok, this will have the be the first post of my favorite things. It's just taking too long to find pics and put them up- I'll finish this later....

another good book

Just finished this book, and it's really good. It's a fictional story about 3 of the 18 wives of John D. Lee who was a mormon back in the 1800s. He was a part of the Mountain Meadow Massacre which I knew nothing about until reading this novel. The author did such a good job of writing from the perspective of the different wives. I think it's important as an American to be informed of the Mormon movement. This is a religion that was completely created in America by Americans and is how the world views us. It's important to realize how corrupt and evil some of the founders of Mormonism were. This is how the rest of the world views "Christian" America.

karma

Last week, I took a sick day when I was just really tired and not so sick. So what happens this week....you got it, I actually got sick. It's a kind of really weird sickness. My lymphnodes on my neck are really swollen, my throat is sore, slight fever, and a very runny nose. Sounds like a cold, right? Well, I've been taking every cold medicine offered here- Egyptian and foreign- for 5 days and nothing is helping. In fact, I feel worse. So it must be Swine Flu, right? No no, much more likely to be caused by the pollution. Yes, the pollution has been terrible lately. The kind where you can't see your hand in front of you. Ok, not that bad. It's very hazy outside and the air is hard to breathe. Can't believe my parents are coming in town this weekend. I warned them not to come. It's weird how I've been travelling a lot the past few years and it just seems very natural to look information about a country before I visit it. Obviously, they have not done an ounce of research and they don't listen to anything I've told them. So I'm still getting questions like "Should I bring an umbrella?" We are in the Sahara Desert. "You said to pay the taxi driver 15 pounds?" No, I said 80 pounds. "Can I wear jeans?" Why the hell would you wear jeans? It's 90 degrees here. We are in the Sahara Desert. "Should I bring sunscreen?" We are in the the Sahara Desert. "Can I bring a laptop?" What? "Do you have internet?" How do you think skype is working? "Well, I just really really don't want to get Mummy Tummy..." You will. Sorry, but if you are in Cairo for more than 3 days, you will get sick. Everyone does. That's why I said to stay only 3 days. Oh well, last time to do touristy stuff in Cairo. I hate toursity stuff here. It's the worst part of Egypt. Everyone harrasses you. They over charge you. They grab at you. The pyramids are the worst. You would think this would be my favorite part of being here, but not at all. I hate going there. There are a million tourists who are paying 100 times what they should be paying to ride a camel or have a guy take their picture while they put their finger on the pyramid. It's embarrassing. If they only knew that it should cost $10 to ride a camel and not $100. Poor shmucks. My favorite touristy place is the Khan. I love it. It's crazy, people are in your face, men are making cat-calls, people get in your face and grab at your arm to get you to come in their shop. What I love is to take visitors there and just watch their reactions. Nothing about it shocks me anymore. And I know how much things should be and I know how to say enough Arabic words to make them lower the prices a lot. And then I just walk away because I can get all of that stuff on Road 9 with no hassle. It's just fun to mess with them and make them think they are going to have an overpriced-sale. There was a bombing there last year, and it gets bombed a lot because it's such a touristy spot. I can't wait to take my parents there, I think they will crap their pants.

Book Reviews

Maybe because I took the day off (sick- cough cough) and I'm bored or maybe because I just inhaled 2 boxes of Nerds, Sudafed and 3 cups of coffee- I'm going to write another post. I've been reading a lot of books since I've been in Cairo for several reasons. The most obvious is because I don't have a tv, but also because I travel a lot. Travelling requires waiting around for a plane, train, bus, boat, taxi, etc. so it's good to have something to do to pass the time. I've also read a lot because most of my friends are avid readers here too- for the same reasons I mentioned. They are able to recommend good books since there's nothing worse than wasting your time reading a terrible book. So here are a few books I've read in the last couple months and would recommend. Don't worry, I won't ruin the ending or plot too much. I'm a big fan of Jon Krauker(spelling?). I would recommend all of his books that I've read- "Under the Banner of Heaven" and "Into thin air". He does a great job with investigating the story and giving the facts while also writing an intriguing story. You've probably heard of this book and/or the movie which I later watched and also loved. It's the story of a guy who gives all of his things away, burns his money and goes to the Alaskan wilderness. It's not ruining the story by letting you know that he dies- it says it on the back cover. When I first heard about this guy I thought what an idiot he must have been, but the book gives more detail into his life and why he did what he did.

Coming back from India, I was interested in their history. This book gives a good look at the modern history of India. I had no idea about any of it. Before you read this book, you should read "A Fine Balance". It is the "Kite Runner" of India. Amazing book but not a light read. Read that book and then read "In spite of the gods" which is a nonfiction account explaining the events that happen in "A Fine Balance".

These next 2 books are really long books. Both are about how "religion" ruins 2 families. I was surprised to find out that the author of "The Brothers K" is a christian because it is written as if the author is trying to make a point that organized religion is harmful. Really interesting. I liked the "Poisonwood Bible" more just because the plot went a little faster. I don't know anything about that author, but it does bring up important points to remember when people are missionaries to a foreign land. It's about a family from Georgia who goes to the Congo in Africa during the 60s as missionaries. I would assume the author hates missionaries, but maybe not. Definitely an interesting perspective on how people come into another culture and try to change it.

I just finished this book. I really liked it. It's competely shocking and hard to read while sitting on the beach eating ice cream. It's unbelievable what some people have gone through and difficult to imagine living in a war.

Stalking 101

"His debilitating disease validates how wonderful I am."

Forgot to mention my stalker. Everyone has had one. Maybe even more than one. For some odd reason, Egyptian men will randomly dial numbers until they hear a Western woman's voice. At which point they will continue to call every 5 minutes. The goal? No clue. So I had this guy calling every 5 minutes from 10pm to 2am or until I turned my phone off. He would just sit there and breath when I answered and screamed at him. Owen screamed at him. Then each of my guy friends would call him every 15 minutes starting at 7am and keep waking him up. Then he started texting me in Arabic. I had a friend translate these for me. The texts would say things about how beautiful my voice it- (I've only screamed profanities at him) and how he wants to see my eyes. Yeah, totally creepster. Every female that I know has had this happen at one point or another. The solution? Change your phone number. No, I'm going to be stubborn. I have less than 3 months left and I'm not changing my number. Turns out that a man from my work knows the highest ranking official with the police department. Apparently, this is a major problem that the police have to deal with. Their way of dealing with this, is to bring bring the stalker in for
"questioning". (AKA beating the hell outta the guy)

Also, I was followed home the other night, AGAIN. Conversation went like this:

creepy egyptian guy: Don't worry. (as I am shining my flashlight in his eyes)
me: too late
weirdo: Can I talk with you?
me: no
weirdo: Can I walk you home?
me: no
weirdo: what do you do? do you live here? (still following me)
me: ugh. (be nice, be nice) yes, i'm a teacher.
weirdo: are you married?
me: YES!! VERY MARRIED!!
weirdo: do you have kids?
me: (realizing this guy is probably about 17) No, I hate kids.
weirdo: I'm a student. (obviously wanting to practice his English)
me: okay, that's nice.
weirdo: I want to see you again.
me: NO!
weirdo: Is this your street?
me: er- maybe
weirdo: Can I walk you to your door?
me: NO!

Get a clue! If you want to practice your English, following me down the street at night is not the way to do so....Also a favorite pastime for Egyptian men- facebook. They seem to think it's some sort of dating website. So they will randomly write messages like "Wow! U look awesome! R U live in Cairo?" The best is when they tell you all their stats as if you are looking for a 38 Egyptian male who is 5'6'' and wanting to meet in person. This might seem flattering if there wasn't the 2 to 10 rule here. If you are a "2" in the states, then you are a "10" here. One of my guy friends came up with this theory, and it makes me laugh- but it's true! Sometimes it's like being a celebrity with the way people stare at you. Sometimes it's annoying, but most of the time I've gotten used to it and just walk with my head down and sunglasses on. No autographs, please.

update

Guess it's been awhile since I've had an update. I've been pretty busy lately. Since February- was that really the last post??- we've had Spring Break in Spain and Easter Break in Dahab. Spain was really great. My favorite part was being in Granada and Jaen. After Suzanne and Steph left, we met up with Owen's friends who invited us to their home for lunch which was an incredible traditional Spanish lunch with the entire family. We also went out with some of his other friends who took us to their favorite tapas bars. Free tapas with any drink you purchase is pretty much the greatest promotion ever. It happened that the night we went out, there was some sort of competition among the univsersity students. The guys dress up in jester outfits(not sure, that's just what they looked like with tights and everything) and sang songs on weird looking guitars and accoridons for the ladies. Apparently, it is tradition to pay these guys to seranade the girl you like. We were with one of Owen's former professors and he said that's how he got his wife to like him! So there are all these groups of guys wondering the streets singing in and out of the bars. Very entertaining. I wonder how they determine which group of guys wins....

Easter weekend was a very relaxing trip to Dahab. This was most likely the last trip ever to Dahab which is kinda sad. Great friends and good food. One night we went out for a Bedoin dinner. This is when you drive out in the middle of the desert and the Bedions (the people who live in the desert- kinda like the natives) cook you dinner and sing and dance. We also went to the best Thai restaurant in Egypt. Which makes me can't wait until next year when our "Dahab" will be somewhere in Thailand.

Back to Cairo for the last 12 weeks of school. Never a boring moment. One morning last week, we are heading to school and at the turn off for our school- which is in the middle of the desert- literally- the road is covered in water. Now remember that it only rains 3 days a year here and hasn't rained in the last 4 months. Why the road is flooded is anyone's guess. As we get through the flood waters, we pass 2 horse carts having a "chariots of fire" race down the road. The drivers are standing and screaming while whipping their horses to go as fast as possible. This is like a major road we are on...
The next day we are driving home from work. We are driving pretty slowly because there's lot of traffic and we notice a taxi driver behind us screaming at the driver in the car next to him. Next thing you know, he (taxi driver) has gotten out of his car and goes to the other car, opens the passenger door and starts punching the woman in the face! He starts choking her and punching her as the driver is screaming at him. We stop our car and Owen starts to get out as the taxi man gets back in his car. Both cars start driving away, and the taxi man pulls out a big stick (because we always carry this in our cars-right?) and drives after that car. We pull off onto another freeway so we didn't see the rest of the fight. It must have been some sort of domestic fight. Maybe that woman was his ex-wife or current wife or daughter- who knows? Crazy. Apparently, there are a lot of domestic fights that end in murder here. According to the papers, that seems to be how most murders occur. Like I said, never a dull moment.

What a girl needs

It's funny how life changes when you move to a 3rd world country. It's the little things that you take for granted in the States that you start to miss. But after 2 years, you really don't miss them at all. Here's a list of things I don't have here in Cairo. And I just don't need them.

TV- I don't miss this at all. Obviously, we don't have cable either. I feel like I wasted so much of my life sitting in front of the tv watching something mindless. If there's a show or movie that I want to watch, I just download it and watch it on the computer. I haven't seen an English commerical since last summer. (We have tvs on the treadmills at the gym- but the commericials are in Arabic.)

Voicemail- I really don't miss this at all. I hate checking voicemail. Everyone texts which makes things easier. No one has voicemail which is really weird. So when I have to call a parent from school, I can't leave a message. But I can text them. Which is weird.

A cellphone with internet- Ok, that is just ridiculous. Why do you need to have access to facebook from your phone? My phone's most advanced feature is the calculator. It's a great phone- the cheapest one available. And I only pay about $10/month for the minutes.

Fast food- Forget Taco Bell, there's not any fast food here. There is a McDonald's but it's not exactly fast and doesn't taste the same at all. We do have food delivery from any restaurant in town. But it will take a minimum of 45 minutes.

Car- I don't miss driving. It's nice to have one less thing to worry about. No filling up for gas, no insurance, no repairs, no tickets, no worries. I do ride to school with a friend who has a car which is much better than riding the teacher bus.

Microwave- Well, we have one now, but I didn't have one for an entire year. And guess what? I survived! I don't buy frozen food or anything that you really need a microwave for. I rarely use the microwave. Maybe only twice since I've been here.

Walmart/Target- There's no such thing as a store where you can buy everything on your shopping list. Even for groceries I have to stop at 3 different stores. And you aren't guranteed to find everything on your list. I figured this out the hard way when I first got here. But then you realize that you don't actually 'need' everything on your list. If I can't find scotch tape, oh well, life goes on.

Shopping- I'm going to include all my favorite stores like Gap, Banana, Bath and Body Works- none of those are here. The clothes in Cairo are cheap and Euro/Arab styles= not cute. I really think I save so much money here because I don't spend any on clothes, accessories, etc. That's how I afford to travel so much. Which is fine with me.

US Weekly/ Gossip Magazines- I'm so glad I don't know what the latest fashion is and the latest celeb gossip. Who cares? It's nice not feeling like my clothes are very outdated. When you see a widow on the street with 2 small children begging for food, it puts life into perspective.

Radio- I have no idea about the latest music. Itunes tells me what is popular, but I really doubt everyone is listening to a song that says something about brushing your teeth with gin. Please tell me it isn't so! Our radio station here (that we listen to in the car on the way to school) plays English songs. Any English song- so it could be Frank Sinatra or Jay Z. Very wide variety and songs that we haven't heard in years. But most of the time, we just listen to the ipod in the car. This is why I rock out to Miley Cyrus and I'm not embarrassed at all about it.

Oh, Punny....

Bunny was getting a little agressive and started terrorizing my roommate. After some research, it seems that she needed to get spay or neutered depending on what she is. Also, cats will try to reproduce with bunnies- which really grosses me out. So we found a vet who takes rabbits and took her over their last weekend. Conversation went as the following:

vet: Is it a girl or boy?

Owen: not sure

vet: how old is it?

Owen: not sure

vet: Where did you get it?

Owen: from an Egyptian

vet: You know Egyptians eat rabbits, right?

Owen: ummmm pleasedonteattherabbit

We called the next day, but she wasn't ready. The following day Owen went to pick her up and I'm assuming it's probably not living anymore. She was very sedated from the medicine and being really sweet. Owen hands me the Vaccine booklet with her shots and stuff. I notice an obvious spelling error.

Me: What is this?
Owen: Oh, yeah the vet asked what her name was and I said Bunny. He wrote Punny and I didn't have the heart to tell him that's wrong.

Best Valentine's Day ever.

Even though I didn't allow my class to have a party on Valentine's Day, we had an exchange at the end of the day. Tacky gifts are a teaching tradition. But Valentine's Day usually reveals the top gifts. Not to be disappointed, one of my kids gave me this lovely phone. What I love/loathe the most about it is the fact that he picked it out. So something about this reminds him of me. I obviously like hot pink, shiny phones....in the shape of giant lips. Yes, it's real. It is the epitamy of everything that is tacky in Egypt. We have decided that whoever has the next social gathering, we will replace it with their regular phone in secret. It is definitely the gift that needs to keep on giving.

This made Owen homesick. He might have cried a little when he saw this.


And this made me homesick. I cried a little too.

My friend, Jay, just had this on his facebook status:

Winter in Cairo= the greatest collection of outdated Cosby sweaters the world has ever witnessed.

This is so spot on that I had to share it.

Incredible India

They say that nothing prepares you for India. Not true. Living in the chaos that is Cairo for a year and 1/2 prepared us quite well. We stayed in a very nice part of New Delhi, but we walked each night about a kilometer or so to a shopping center(for lack of a better word) for dinner. The food was incredible. I know that everyone always jokes about Indian food and what it does to your stomach, but I didn't have any instestinal disturbances the entire 6 days. Also, we were all lucky to not get Delhi Belly. The first day we get there, we decide that we want to get into "real" Delhi and get a driver to take us to a few sights. The main 2 were the Red Fort and India Gate. Then we took a rickshaw down a street in Old Delhi. Pictures really wouldn't do this justice so I had to take a video of this. I'm not a very good videographer and I never use that function on my camera so I apologize for it.

The Taj Mahal is amazing as you would guess. We also went to Agra Fort which was also very pretty. The time went by really fast. I felt as though I was getting very comfortable with life in Delhi and can't wait to go back to see the rest of India. There will be a return trip very soon...possibly next fall? The one thing that can't be found in the pictures is the smell. It smells just awful pretty much everywhere. Urine and feces are the most distinct smells. Monkeys were all over the streets in Agra. I have read that the monkeys are a growing problem because they get into people's homes and bite people which passes on rabies and other diseases that kill them. It's really hard to pick out pictures to add on here. There are just so many. I'll post most of the pics on facebook just because this tends to take longer.

You know you're back in Egypt when....

As soon as you exit the baggage claim there are about 2,000 men begging you to take their taxi. They jump in your face and show you pictures of their cousin's hotel and claim that they have the best taxi in all of Egypt. The guys walked ahead of me and it was like the Red Sea closing after them. None of these touts went after them, but came full force on me. I was dodging them left and right. I actually had to stop and fake a guy out, turn and run around him like a football play. Next I had to duck under a guy's arm who was shoving a picture of something in my face. Maybe the pyramids? Saying "no thank you" , or "I live here", doesn't seem to do much for these guys. I couldn't take it anymore. I screamed IMSHEEE!! at the top of my voice. This basically means "f off" in arabic. They all jump back 2 feet with their arms up as if they've kicked a ball out of bounds and are not claiming it as their fault. Owen turns around and comes after me, grabbing my arm and pulling me through this madness. Apologizing profusely for leaving me. I left the men standing around mumbling stuff about imshee? They were pretty shocked that I knew that word and that I screamed it. On the ride home, we passed by a lady walking on the street wearing a black burka. Not unusual. However, on this burka was a large picture of a horse and in big gold letters "Arab Hores" on the back of the burka. I wish we had a camera ready, but we all had a good chuckle. As I came home, a guy came around with the gas bill. 30 cents for the month. No joke. Oh, Egypt. How I love/hate you!

gotta get my nails did

I went with Elizabeth to get pedicures the other day. My usual place was packed so we went to the salon across the street from me where no one speaks English. It's a really nice salon and you can get a spa pedicure for less than $6. So Elizabeth picks out a nail polish color and the lady shakes her head and clicks her tongue. (this means NO in Arabic) The lady picks an entirely different color for her. Ok, whatever. So it's my turn to pick a color... I pick the same color that Elizabeth has on her toes. Lady shakes her head and clicks her tongue. No. No?? What?? She picks an entirely different color for me. What is this? I can't pick my own nail polish color? So bizarre. As everything in Egypt is. We laugh all the way home and always go back to my regular place that gives the BEST foot massage in the world.

a bunny story

The other day I had Bunny running around on my bed. I had my laptop on my bed which Bunny sometimes jumps on or tries to eat the cord. I left the room to get my phone and came back to a screen on my computer that said "End karat browsing now?" with Bunny sitting on top of the lap top. True story.

an Egypt story

I promised to post more funny stories, so here goes:

Some of my friends were sitting at a restaurant in Dahab. The restaurants in Dahab are all Bedoin style so you sit on the floor with pillows and stuff right on the beach. Like Thailand. So they were having dinner and these kids run up to the table next to them. Usually, whenever you leave the table, they always clear all the condiments, sugar, etc. Here is why. The table had not been cleared yet so the kids run up and grab the bottle of sugar and start chugging it! They are pouring the sugar in their mouths straight from the bottle! The waiter comes out and starts chasing them down the beach. They said it was one of the funniest things that has happened to them in Egypt. Only in Egypt.

the guy who follows you home

Two of my friends were walking home one day from dinner. Wait, let me preface this story. Sexual harrassment can be a major headache in Cairo. Egyptian men for whatever reason like to harrass Western women aka Whiteys. For example, getting your ass grabbed by a random man on the street is not unusual. Last year I had a cop grab my boob at a soccer game which ended with Owen punching him in the face. Another story for another day. About 2 weeks ago, one of my girl friends ordered food (very typical) and the delivery guy asked to use the restroom. She said yes knowing that there aren't public restrooms in Egypt. He comes out of the bathroom, looks at her and says "You are beautiful. I want to f*ck you." Yes, that happened. And that doesn't surprise me. So let's begin the story.....
Two of my friends are walking home from dinner at night in the dark down a Cairo street. This guy on a bike starts following them and saying something that sounds like "fuuu". They keep walking faster and start complaining in English how annoying and gross Egyptian men are. This guy keeps up next to them. One friend turns and yells (in English) "YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE!" They keep walking. He continues to follow and begins to reach for them. They turn and one yells at him "F*CK YOU!! GET AWAY FROM US NOW!! WE WILL CALL THE COPS!!" Hoping this will cause a scene and deter him from approaching any further. They run down the street. He is still after them. They run into a jewelry store. Suddenly, one friend says...."I think I left my takeaway box at the restaurant." Yes, that was a waiter from the restaurant who followed them home for 15 minutes trying to return their takeaway box to them. They both feel ridiculously embarrassed. Later they call the restaurant to explain. The restaurant sends that same guy to deliver the food. At this point he is terrified to even come near the door of the flat. Things aren't always what they seem.

The Sheep Story

I used to think that only funny/embarrassing things happened to me. Turns out I was wrong. I want to write more funny stories on here because there's pretty much a funny story each week. I will begin with a story that happened last November during the Eid break. This story is completely true as far as I know. Nothing has been added just for the humor. Let me start and explain what this Eid was all about. It's the Eid-Al-Adha which is known as the Festival of Sacrifice. This means that everyone slits the necks of goats and other animals freely on the streets for days at a time. Luckily, I've been out of town during this both years. Hamdullah! (Praise be to God) But we did see a cow tied up outside a home in Luxor and then later we saw the blood covering the same house. They (Those A-rabs) really like to sacrifice their animals on top of their belongings such as cars and homes for good luck or whatever. Well, this is where the story starts..... There is a man named Dan. Let's just call him Dan to save his reputation. Dan is at home in Cairo during the Eid. He looks outside his apartment and sees below a few sheep tied to the building. After a few drinks, he decides that he is going to "rescue" one of these sheep. He goes downstairs and unties a sheep leading him up to his apartment. Not sure what happens next, but the sheep freaks out, comes untied, runs through his apartment, out the balcony doors, and plunges off the balcony to his death. Yes, the sheep is dead. Dan is freaking out. So he calls....one of our principals. Yes, his boss. He tells her what he has done and asks for advice. She tells him to talk to the boyab ('keeper of the building'- basically the security guard). The boyab is furious at what he has done and demands that he pays for a new sheep. Sure enough, a new sheep arrives in the back of a taxi cab. Taxis are not big here at all. The thought of a sheep in the back of a taxi is pretty funny. But that's not where the story ends....Owen has a connection to this story. When we were on our Nile Cruise he received a text from someone that said "There's a sheep in my backyard. What should I do?" And Owen thinking this was Tao texting him who is from New Zealand writes back "Shouldn't you know what to do with sheep. Just do what your people do with sheep." This is a dirty reference to Kiwis and the infamous reputation they have with their sheep. So the question is...did Owen encourage Dan to bring the sheep upstairs? I hope so because this story made me laugh aloud for a long time.

Resolutions...updated.

1. I lost a kilo last week!
2. Maybe....we'll see. Lacking motivation.
3. I've been cleaner now. However, I still leave a big mess for Hanan.
4. Yeah, not so much.
5. Going to India next weekend, Lebanon in Feb, and bought tickets to Spain for Spring Break...
6. Yes! I've only eaten out like 3 times last week.
7. Learned how to cook pizza.
8. I'm doing it.
9. Haven't even picked the guitar up.
10. I made a new friend! And I LOVE love love my friends here. It will be hard to leave in June...

New Year's Resolutions (because I have to)

1. Lose weight. Get in shape.
2. Run another marathon. Prague in May?
3. Try to keep things cleaner and not just wait for the maid to do it.
4. Learn and use more Arabic than just 'saba el khair, henna, shokran masalama' to the delivery guy.
5. Travel to at least 5 new countries. (I went to 15 countries last year so I'm sure this will be an easy goal)
6. Eat out less and cook more.
7. Learn to cook so I won't eat out as much.
8. Update the blog more. (done.)
9. Learn to play guitar.
10. Make new friends (and keep the old!)

Ooops!!

So I started to boil some eggs. Then my roommate came home. We ended up talking for awhile. Then some friends randomly came over. We talked for awhile. Everyone left. I heard a weird popping sound. Totally forgot about the eggs! Run to the kitchen and find that the eggs are boiled and cracked up. No water left in the pot. Ooops!

Has it really been that long???

Has it really been since October that I've written on this? Wow, time flies! Since then, I've been on a Nile Cruise, Malaysia, Singapore, and now Thailand. Sooo New Year's Resolution will be to update the blog at least once a week..... or maybe just have a trip because that's all you really care about, right? :) I didn't bring my laptop on this trip like a dummy so I haven't put the pics up yet because of that. Thailand is pretty much effing amazing. Everyone I know who has ever come to visit has always said that, but it's totally true. Believe everything you hear. We started our 3 week vacay in Kuala Lumpor, Malayasia. I've heard that it's a big, crowded, dirty city. Not true coming from Cairo. Everything was orderly and clean. China Town was really nice. Very tame compared to the Khan-alKahlil in Cairo. Not much to see there, so we flew to Singapore for a few job interviews. Looks like that's where I'll be in August 2010! Not sure yet which school, we're waiting on a school to run background checks and stuff before they can offer the contract! Hope it all works out! Absolutely loved Singapore! We hung out with a few of Owen's friends there. Had a little BBQ and social gatherings at the pool.... felt like anywhere in North America. Then flew over to a remote island off of Phuket. I have no idea what island it is and I couldn't find it on the map. We took a night boat in total darkness and landed on the beach. The locals came over and carried all of our stuff to the cabins. These pics are pretty amazing. We stayed basically in this jungle. Good thing the food was really good, because there was only 1 restaurant on the whole island. We met a really lovely Irish couple, Jane and Allen, and ended up having dinner and drinks with them each night. We had a great Christmas with them. After 5 days there, we took a boat, bus, and ferry over to Koh Phangan to meet up with 3 friends. We were only going to stay here for 5 days and then check out another island, but we like it so much we're gonna stay the entire time. The beaches are beautiful white sand beaches, the food is incredible, the people very friendly and the massages so cheap! We were here for the infamous Full Moon Party on Haad Rin Beach. It's bascially like Mardi Gras once a month....but it was also New Year's Eve so there were something like 20,000 people at this beach party. It was surprising how tame it was considering the large amount of people. The tide is very far out so that's what makes the beach so roomy and the moon is so bright you can see everything so well. Loved it. We were definitely some of the older people at the beach, but it was still so much fun. I don't have pics of this because I was told to leave my camera at home. Really wish I had pics, but I'm sure if you google full moon party and koh phangan then you'll get some great pics of what it was like. There were lots of fire performers, fireworks, and these things that you set on fire and they float away in the air. They looked like lanterns. It's supposed to represent all the bad things from the year before are burning away. We even saw a ladyboy which I was very excited about! A drunk guy with a santa hat was making out with the ladyboy totally unaware that was a not a cute Thai girl. We all had a good laugh at his expense. Most days are the same- sleep in, breakfast, watch Animal Planet or CNN, beach, reading, nap at the pool, thai massage, shopping or lunch in town or on the beach (we have scooters!), a beer or 2, maybe another nap, sunset and cocktails, dinner out on the beach, cards or games on the balcony. Tough life. It's hard to imagine it being cold everywhere else in the world. Hope everyone had a great Christmas and Happy New Year's!

You know you're in Egypt when....

....you're shopping at the grocery store and the power goes completely out....you're standing in total darkness and without hesitation you get out your phone that has a flashlight and continue shopping....

best.birthday.ever

As long as I live in Egypt, I will never have to work on my birthday. Lucky me, it's a national holiday. Since we had the 6th off in the middle of the week we celebrated the night before. Went to the most amazing restaraunt in Cairo with 14 of my closest friends. That sounds like a lot of people, but it was actually really hard to narrow it down to 14 which I had to do because the place is so small. Had the best meal I've had in Cairo so far. Gourmet sea bass and good imported wine. Later we went back to the Harps' rooftop balcony and partied the night away. Teaching everyone how to line dance to hip hop music was my goal for the night. Good times had by all. The next day, Owen bought me a massage and pedicure at a spa and we went to dinner at the Fish Market on the Nile. Also, really good food. Here are some presents I got: Obviously this was from John. Before I opened it, he described it as "What every woman wants".

more flowers!



Yes, I got a bunny! When we were in Turkey a few weeks ago, they had baby bunnies and I just went nuts for them. So Owen decided to totally surprise me and get me a bunny. It's really cute and sooo soft! We just call it Bunny or Bun-Bun (steph's nickname for it) and not sure if it's a girl or boy. It also makes me laugh a lot. Today I put a new hanging water bottle in its cage and it freaked out not knowing that the bottle was and started boxing it. I almost peed my pants laughing so hard. Apparently you can train bunnies to use a litter box like a cat, which is weird but kinda cool. We'll see....the adventures of bunny will continue....

Come on, Egypt, pull yourself together!

The Egyptian government has come up with a few good ideas. Wait, no, that's not right. Egypt has never in its life come up with a good idea. Here are their latest ideas for preventing swine flu:

1. No AC in the classroom.
2. Open the windows in the classroom.
3. No AC on the buses.
4. If a child sneezes, they are sent home.
5. 8 Day Quarantine period for anyone leaving the country.

Dear Egypt,
Are you aware that we live in the middle of the desert? Do you realize how much sand will be in my classroom at the end of each day if I keep a window open? I would like you to teach all day in a classroom without AC and tell me how you like it. Why do you want me to stay in the country and not travel? I'm more likely to get the flu from Egypt than anywhere else where I want to go.
hate you,
mel

In other news, we posted our resume online and had an offer from a school within an hour. Shouldn't be too hard getting a new job for next year. Oh, and I have a SMART board in my classroom! Also, girls night on a felucca with wine, snacks, and a good book. Very relaxing after a crazy day. I love my friends here if nothing else. :)

In America, we speak American.

So many words to describe Nascar. Sometimes pictures are just better. It was definitely a life-changing event. Owen was quite excited to see a real Confederate flag and a racist. An easy order. The night started off at Wendy's, just as it should. We were having some issues with our order. The workers were very confused on how to make fries and actually asked me which cup was a small. As if I knew? But the best part was when the girl was about to fill up our last drink and stopped to send a text. Hilarious. We were laughing so hard because we couldn't believe she had the nerve to text at that moment. The redneck next to me, turned and made a comment about "them colored folks" and I was quickly mortified. But this must be part of the experience. Rednecks, racisism, and fast cars. The opening of the race started with some patriotic songs and a skydiver came down with a massive American flag. Sometimes the patriotism of America is ridiculous. We didn't stay the entire race because the actual race is very boring and too loud to talk to anyone. Also, we were going to the Ravens/Chiefs game the next day in Balitmore. (Thank you, Brad Cottam.) If you ever get the opportunity to go to a Nascar race, you should definitely go. It is everything you think it will be. And more. You will not be disappointed.
After Wendy's, we walked about a mile to the race track because there was no parking.

This is when I spotted the car with the Taco Bell sticker. At this moment, I was finally interested in the actual race.

I will never forget this woman. She fell over the bench head first and later had to be carried out by 4 men. Two of the men had a hand on the back of the jeans, carrying her like someone who is hog-tied. She represented Nascar well.

Life in Cairo

When I talk about living in Cairo with people, everyone seems to think that my life is crazy, unpredictable, and exciting. I realized tonight that it's really not that way. For example, today I walked to Gold's gym and watched CSI on my tv on the elliptical machine. Then went over for to my friend's house for dinner with 6 friends. He had his cook make us Indian food. (ok, when we talk about our cooks and maids, that does sound a little crazy.) Then we hung out awhile on the roof and later watched Hell's Kitchen. Last night we went to a pub and watched NFL games with a big group while enjoying pizza and beer. The night before that, 8 of us ordered pad thai and chilled out on the rooftop patio. It's what I might be doing in the States on any weekday night. Pretty much normal stuff. Except for the Call to Prayer blasting from every mosque in town at the exact same time.

USA. Fall. Sports.

Best time to be in the US has got to be the fall due to the sports season. School has now been postponed until October 3rd with rumors it will be postponed later. The HS teachers have been told to post assignments on the website. We are headed back to Cairo tomorrow and then we will wait for a few days and then decide where to go. We have to be in Egypt 8 days before school starts. So that will definitely be the time we spend in Dahab. So we still have 2 1/2 weeks before school starts. There's also a rumor that we won't have to make up any of the time. If we do have to make it up, we will just go 30 minutes later each day rather than make up the days at the end of the year. Not too shabby. Also, we experienced our first NASCAR and survived.

America. #1.

If you had told me 2 weeks ago that I would be sitting in my parents' house in Virginia Beach, I would not have believed you. We arrive in Cairo on August 25th and within 2 hours, there are rumors flying that we might not have school for another month. Sure enough, 2 days later our director made the announcement, "No school until September 26th". Yes, that is a Saturday and 26 days later than it was supposed to start. The Egyptian government has decided that Swine Flu will be spread from the International teachers and all International schools must be shut down. We found some cheap ($714-roundtrip) tickets to NYC so decided to hit up the good ole USA. College football, MLB, NFL, and Nascar- everything you miss from the states! Even better Suzanne and Cam are here since they quit their jobs. The good news= no school for the next month. The bad news= we just found out that we have to be back the 18th for an 8 day quarantine so we had to change our tickets and paid $$$. The way they are planning to make up the time lost is to just add 30 minutes onto the school day. Not too bad when you get 17 prep times a week. (45 minutes = 1 prep time) So we'll go back 8 days early and then head off to the beach...my favorite place ever. DAHAB!! However, we've heard from some friends in Egypt that everything is going crazy. There's even rumors about the school having to shut down for the entire year. Not too worried about that because we have contracts that allow us to still get paid and we aren't allowed to work anywhere else. In that case, we've decide to go live in Thailand for the remainder of the year. But, we'll see what happens. You just have to live each day as it comes. Besides, it's not so bad. I'm sitting here watching The Office marathon on TBS in my PJs on the plasma tv and eating cookie dough while Owen went for a run with Jackie. We just bought our Nascar, NFL, and MLB tickets online for next weekend. Even though it's unexpected, life is pretty good.

Just another day in Eastern Europe...

It's so annoying when you go to sign in to your blog and everything is written in Serbian, ya know? So here I am in Belgrade, Serbia. Certainly didn't expect to be here. We were planning on avoiding Belgrade only because the best it had to offer was the "night life". No, thanks. But because of the bus/train system from Kosovo we couldn't get to Bosnia. Yes, I said Kosovo. I was in Kosovo for 3 days, no big deal. Youngest country in the world. Kosovo has been the only country I've been to the past year that actually likes America. So don't let anyone tell you that America is an evil empire who goes around attacking random countries....er, wait....the USA bombed the crap out of Serbia a few years ago. Well, that was a good thing for Kosovo and they gained their independence from Serbia. Anyways, we had a slight issue getting into Kosovo because Serbia doesn't recognize Kosovo's independence. On the way to Kosovo we were crammed into a van full of Macedonians (Macedonians, I mean what the hell?) who didn't need to get a Kosovo stamp so we didn't get ours. In the middle of the journey, a song came on the radio and the entire van started singing. Visualize a scene from Fiddler on the Roof and that's about what it was like. The Matchmaker was sitting in front of me. No joke. Eastern Europeans kinda all look the same. They all seem to have misshapen heads and large noses. They just look weird. Not trying to be mean, just accurate. The languages are very rough like Russian so it's kinda scary when they talk to you. But like Arabic you get soon realize that they aren't yelling at you because they are angry, they are yelling because they seem to have voice immodulation. I've taken about 700 pictures and we've been to Hungary, Croatia, Kosovo, Serbia, and Montenegro. But I haven't put any pictures on the computer yet so I'll have to work on that. Croatia was by far the best. We spent about 12 days exploring the islands and just relaxing by the beaches. I'll have to write more about that in a separate post. Right now I need to find some coffee.