FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL (kind of)

Hello! (or Sah-lahm!)

It has been quite a busy week here in Cairo for a teacher and a grad student.  Firstly, our cupboards do not look so naked because we are slowly building an inventory of amazing spices and goods.

Secondly, we are often home by 7 and completely ravenous and too tired to cook.  :P

I began school last week and have been busy preparing, decorating, cleaning and signing up for after school activities and clubs. (You are looking at Halloween Festival, Christmas Recital, and theatre/performing arts go-to girl) :) 

My office is fabulous and i share it with a fellow staff member.  It has become a social hub and there are people and students popping by all the time to check in.

We are also in the midst of a serious bulletin-board war.  Word around the school is that many parents carefully compare their class bulletin boards with eachother.  With this noted, the teachers have taken an extra effort in decorating their classes and outside bulletin boards.  Its like a rosebowl parade in there!  Every teacher for themselves!  Not to be outdone...I made a trip to the "teachers store" here in Maadi and picked up a few things.  Being in this store was comparable to Christmas and i grabbed a few theatre/improv/dramatic arts books as well. 

Luther wandered through the bookstore upstairs and freaked out over the abundance of REPUTABLE books on Ancient Egypt.  If he thinks this is good wait til he sets foot in the AUC bookstore.  He showed me all the authors he has come across already and all the books he has wanted to obtain for his thesis but never had the chance.  Well, here they are. 



 

 

 And here is my bulletin boards.  One of them is not complete but you get the idea...
Tomorrow is our last day before the long weekend!! A bunch of us are seeing the pyramids, going for dinner, dancing, shopping at 'Citystars' (the largest mall in Egypt) and mani-pedis. :) should be a good time before the first OFFICIAL day of school begins!



garden of good manners - outside

above my desk

 

 

 Stay tuned for more on Luthers orientation at AUC!!!  Good-bye for now!

 

 

 

sheesha-suckers

A few nights ago I was finally able to call Winnipeg for a short chat.  The time change is awkward because as Winnipeg wakes up, Cairo has just settled down after a long days work.  I believe its about 7-8 hours, not to mention that our first day back at work is Sunday and our day before the weekend is Thursday.  After running errands all day, a group of us went down to Road 9 where we grabbed a bite and had some drinks (this place serves alcohol) and the waiter entertained us with mind puzzles.  We headed down to the garden where I was introduced to the sheesha pipe. 

I am not a smoker so the experience was more of a novelty.  The guys loved it though.  A Sheesha is a pipe that is smoked through a long straw.  Like ‘Alice in Wonderland Caterpillar’ style.  There is no nicotine and it comes in “delicious” flavors like mint, lemon, watermelon and guava.  I had green apple.  We discovered you can actually MIX TWO flavors of Sheesha together.  This was a pleasant surprise (kind of like when you find out you can order a pizza and discover you can get half a pizza of each topping)

Getting into the Ramdan spirit

Anyway, we got home by 3 and the next day was spent doing NOTHING (by nothing I mean frivolous housey things)

My apartment is fabulous and i posted a picture of myself in the lobby.  Please note the awesome Ramadan lamp. :) (And Luther in the mirror taking the picture for me.  Our apt. is on the left side closest to the door)

TODAY WE BOUGHT A STRAINER. This is the highlight purchase of my month.  Well, besides those awesome flowy skirts…and my new bag…and bulletin board stuff...more on this later.

Speaking of bulletin boards...i am now lugging around my 'sub tub' (container full of emergency activity/lesson plans) :)

welcome to egypt

This is our current substitution for a pet-less house

We have been here a week and visited the Egyptian antiquity museum. This museum is PACKED FULL of artifacts. So full they can't control the inventory, organization and security. This in itself is an experience as you struggle to understand many of the pieces in the museum. They are labelled, but they are labelled poorly.  Actually, i'm pretty sure that most of the inventory has last been recorded when it was first found (ie: 1800's) There is no store so there is no book about pieces in the museum.  Luther ws frusterated but when he found something he recognized from his studies he would gather a small crowd by explaining its importance. (The Narmer Stone, for example)

After the museum, we walked about Tahir square past the AUC (American University of Cairo) and the leftovers of the riots and revolutions of 2010 and 2011.  They've done a great job cleaning up, but in true 'Egyptian' style- there is still garbage everywhere. Then again, theres garbage everywhere.  This isn't a bad thing, just not what we are used to in Canada.  Along the way, we bumped into a well-dressed man claming to be a doctor on his break from the museum. When we told him we were from Canada he recalled a few of the Egyptian exhibitions touring through Canada. He also said he was angry w/ National Geographic and their touring exhibitions because they are taking jobs and money from Egypt. 

We also bumped into lots of little kids.  They LOVE to speak english (the little english that they know. 'WELCOME TO EGYPT!' 'how are you?' and 'i loooooooooove you!') and they love my blonde hair, and the really teeny ones cannot stop staring.  A few have touched my hair and at one point some older ones (perhaps 12-13) asked if they can take a picture with Luther.  Then they wouldn't stop shaking his hand.  Then they ran to their friends and kept pointing at him so i think they must have thought he was a celebrity.  As we walked away they continued to whisper, point and take pictures of him.



The museum experience is certainly amazing.  Luther said he will definitely be back once his classes begin and he has a better hold on some of the treasures the museum has to offer.  He certainly should be back.  It costs a mere 30.00 LE. (5.00 CDN) for students.

We made our way back to Maadi on the metro and me and some of the girls were forced to sit down because we were females.  Here in Egypt, standing room is for males.  Men are expected to give up their seats for women, children and seniors.  We came home and grabbed some Arabic fast food just before it closed for evening prayer. Chicken talook for myself and Beef Kofta for Luther. 

Today we are running a few errands and i will hopefully be posting pics of the apt.
Til' then!

 

the city of lights. and pyramids. can't forget the pyramids...

     'Just start walking and pray to Allah you do not get hit'

  - An arabic man upon seeing the confusion/hysteria of 5 teachers trying to cross the street in Tahrir  square

 

This pretty much sums up how life in Eygpt will be for the next few years.  Take your chances, dive in, and pray that everything works out on the other side.  This goes for the metro(train), taxi cab, streets, any type of produce, and water of any kind.

 

That being said, Cairo is an amazing place, with amazing food, amazing people and a culture that i'm not sure i can ever get used to. In heavily populated areas, you are walking between a woman who is fully covered (including gloves, socks, and a strip of fabric between her eyes) and a british tourist who looks...well....not-so-covered.

 

I should begin with the first day.  Luther and I had already befriended the 7-8 teachers enroute to Cairo (all new teachers, i should add) which made our flight much easier.  Once landing in Cairo we were picked up from the gate via those cool little white signs that NEVER have my name on them. (These ones did!)  After this, we were each taken to our apartments in Maadi.  Maadi is best described as an 'area' of Cairo more than a 'quaint expat neighbourhood'.  I can compare Maadi to Winnipeg by saying its larger and bigger than St. Boniface but if i said to someone, 'i live in St.Boniface' you would immediately know what i'm talking about. By metro, Maadi is 6 stops from Tahihr sqaure.  In between is the stop for 'Coptic Cairo' and we lucked out by being on the main 'red' line which costs a whole 5LE. (Egyptian Pounds or 'Leiry') In CDN. funds that is about .75. AMAZING.

 

Our apartment is amazing.  We have all appliances but are currently lacking a toaster but otherwise we are slowly deveoping an inventory of kitchenware and food.  Its been hard because we are constantly going out and therefore getting home around 11pm where we just end up ordering in for convenience. (Everything can be delivered here. McDonalds, Arabic food and grocery stores all deliver via bicycle with no extra fee) 

 

Our street has been a bit crazy due to Ramadan and Eid.  As most peope are aware, Ramadan practices involve fasting until dusk where there are many large feasts throughout the night.  After dusk the city comes alive and stores open until after midnight.  This makes running errands like hooking up cell phones INCREDIBLY difficult.  Once Ramadan ended, we were told it was now Eid-el-Fur.  This is the 4-day celebration that takes place after Ramadan.  There is no fasting but instead, a 4-day holiday with eating, dancing and music. (muslims do not drink alcohol) 

While it has taken 6-7 days for the city to finally resume to its normal pace, i am glad that i had the opportunity to experience the sights and sounds of the holiday.  There are strands of 'ramadan' lights and every home has a large lantern that is lighted each night.  Ours is in the lobby and is pretty nice. :)

 

Sleeping has come quite easily.  Blankets are not needed.  Air conditing is a must and the mosques are all the way down the street so when they call for prayer at 4am we are able to sleep right through it.  Sand is everywhere, but not in the bedsheets!! (yet!)

 

Write soon!

 



happy Ramadan!