The Aftermath

Who here has accidentally handed over pounds instead of quarters at starbucks? I have.

I thought i was going to die when i got off the plane at the airport in boston, it was so incredibly humid out and i couldn't stand the heat. Everyone kept asking me, "why are you sweating, You were just in EGYPT, how could you possibly be hot here?!" No ONE understands...DRY HEAT DRY HEAT DRY HEAT! It's magical i tell you.....that dry heat. Humidity is horrible.

I must say that things happen a lot quicker around here. Ordering an iced coffee doesn't take 20 minutes and you don't have to play charades when telling the people behind the counter that you DON'T want whipped cream on your iced mocha that was supposed to be a latte.

Oh but nostalgia kicks in at times too, especially when I see someone beeping only once at someone else. I sometimes just wait for another beep to bring me back to egypt, but it turns out people are pretty sane here with the beeping, and i should probably embrace that.

anyways. i can't bring myself to retire this blog. so i'll find ways to keep it going. you should too.

June 2nd

Happy Birthday Libby!

Ok, so the weather today for Cairo made me laugh out loud. I love how it just says "sand"

I don't think i've ever been so excited to see rain and clouds in my whole life!

Thoughts on Sakara Pyramids

So after seeing the Giza pyramids, I didn't think it could get any better. Though smaller, and less "put together," we were able to get close enough to touch the Sakara pyramids which was incredible. Kelly and I stole some sand surrounding the pyramids even though it was "prohibited."

I was able to to go inside my first pyramid! It was perfect because May isn't the ideal tourism season since it's so hot, so we were the first people in, out, and around each pyramid. Inside is pretty awesome, although you have to deal with the feeling of suffocating for a good 10 minutes on the descent into the pyramid....but once you make it down there (I don't advise wearing sandals) and are able to look up.... it is totally worth it. The hike back up, however, is pretty horrible....and you're crouched at a 90 degree angle the whole time!

Oh, and down inside the pyramid kind of smelled like dead people....which makes sense i guess...ahh it was so FUN!

Felucca Ride

Feluccas (big sail boats) are one of my favorite activities here in Egypt. We have been lucky to go out on one more than once...they are especially scenic at sunset when it isn't as hot out and the wind picks up enough to push us down the Nile. They are big enough to fit a big group which is especially fun after some vino, or "Sakara's" if you will, and more importantly, fun to photograph on... right Rob? ;)

Today

Today is our last arabic class. We were going to bring Hassnaa (our teacher) a bagel because she said she had never had one. When she told me this i was shocked and drew a picture of a bagel with cream cheese on the white board to see if she would recognize it.

I will miss arabic class. It's not the most intense course i've taken in my college career (we only meet 3 times throughout our months stay here) but so far it has taken me verbally far enough to get in and out of a cab, saying "shokran" (thank you) at a grocery store, and "bas" (Stop/enough) when a street haggler is trying to get me to buy the most ridiculous trinkets.

Dream Park

Let me just start off by saying that this was the sketchiest place i have ever been to. Our professor, Rob, thought it would be fun to go to the egyptian "disney world" because they stole the "D" from Disney on their website...that's how ghetto this amusement park was. He also thought it would be an interesting place to photograph..which it was, i have to admit. I of course was scared to go because I assumed the rides would just fall to pieces and we would all fall to our deaths while on the ferris wheel. Obviously I have survived, but I did not survive the sketchiness that is "Dream Park."

I was so amused by this place that i bought a 15 LE hat, (3 american dollars) because it was the only one they had in one of their deserted gift shops, which made me laugh to myself, and eventually purchase it. The hat must be 20 years old, all the guys on the trip were telling me i looked "special," while wearing it. I did.

The whole park is pretty much a scam, you have to buy a ticket (about 20 LE's) and then once you get in you have to pay for all the fun rides (rollercoaster, bumper cars), so i was unenthused by that aspect of it. The only free ride we could find was "bumper boats" which were hovercrafts you could steer in the water..... let me just say that the water smelled like dead people to the point i was looking for a body to submerge from below. Matt and Doug found a dead frog floating in the water and threw it at Kelly and I and that's when we decided our Dream Park adventures must come to an end.

OH, and I did end up paying for the roller coaster, it was fun, surprisingly!

Sakara Pyramids

Great pyramid, great beer.

tomorrow we head to Alexandria, Egypt's largest sea port!! So excited to see a coastline! WOO WOO

Cairo Zoo

Most depressing Zoo ever. The lion cages were about 1 sq ft, while stupid ostriches had about 90 acres of grassy land to roam. No body likes ostriches. I just don't get it.

Beeping

The beeping NEVER, ever stops here. They beep SO much that its absolutely POINTLESS to have a horn in your car. I mean in the states we usually beep because we're pissed off and the gratification from the push motion lasts for about TWO or three seconds until we get anxiety about the person pulling out a machete as we speed pass them with our heads ducked down. And then there's the whole SAFETY aspect of having a horn in the states, like if you want to inform the idiot parked in front of you not to parallel park while posting on facebook that Dunkins put too much creamer in her coffee today. And then there's the obnoxious PTA mom utilization of the horn....like for letting little Joey know that mom parked by the tire swing today instead of the 2nd telephone pole by the hill next to where Mrs.Barns always picks up little Veronica.

All of these are legitimate reasons for a horn.

Cairo, you have abused your use of the honking horn. Please stop waking me up.

A taste of the local fare here in Cairo: PIGEON


so gross. pigeons are perhaps the most disturbing animals on the planet. First of all, they're blood red EYE balls are absolutely TERRIFYING, and the constant flapping noise they make......(BARF).


Needless to say.. I haven't tried it yet.

Red Bull X Fighters: Giza Pyramids

Last week we went to see the Red Bull X fighters (motocross) compete alongside the Giza pyramids. I had always wanted to see the pyramids at night,and this opportunity came along to see them in the horizon line of a fascinating sporting event. We were able to see the sun set behind the pyramids, and then watch them light up again when the sun went down completely. So awesome.

I also had never been to a motocross event, it's a pretty fun sport to watch.

Our professor Rob somehow got a "media pass" (yellow wristband) which allowed him to be able to photograph right inside the action. We all thought this was bullshit since we wanted to get closer, so a handful of us approached the "media only" security men and made up fake newspapers that we "worked for." This was pretty fun. And it also helped that we had cameras around our necks.

My thoguhts on Cairo 3 weeks in..


Have you ever played frogger? That is exactly what dodging traffic in Cairo is like, but i've learned to have fun with it. Your life is at risk pretty much every time you cross the street, but it's also kind of theraputic to somehow stop a whole highway of cars from killing you.


Fun fact-egypt isn't THAT hot.


An Egyptian grocery store employee directed me to the peanut butter section without me even asking for peanut butter. I must look American. It also doesn't help that theres always a camera around my neck. TOURIST.


Cairo LOVES Shakira/people from Alaska, and "oh BAHHHH MAA"

Camel Ride Giza Pyramids

getting on an off a camel is more frightening than you would think.

Train Ride to Aswan

We took an overnight train to Aswan,Egypt, about 13 hours South of Cairo. The experience was a cross between the train ride to Hogwarts and Indiana jones. The rooms were tiny, but somehow turned into a 2 bed bunker with the hit of a red button. Pretty awesome. There was a bandaid holding our sink together. Yuck. w

First Egyptian meal

Found great eats in the Souk, in Cairo. Great bread, hummus, and koshery..google it, it's delicious.