The Ending:
So the first round of papers and finals have passed. They began the beginning of last week and ended this past monday. In the span of a week I wrote two large papers and had two finals. My Arabic class and Islam class have ended now. I am relieved that the tests are over but will miss the discussions and learning the local language- I will definitely continue to learn about both topics past this time.
Saturday night in the midst of studying I took a break to go to Sufi dancing at the Kahna Kahalili. It is free concert if you get there early enough to get in. I made it just in time as they were opening their doors and met up with other students and some of my Egyptian friends. We had a good time talking before it began. When it began we were able to hear both musicians and see the dancers-all men in pants and skirts for the whirling. One an whirled or spun for 45 minutes straight-no stopping-he would speed up and slow down and take off different layers of skirts and used prop such as flags and plates while constantly moving. Both the musicians and dancers were amazing and I would pay good money to see what I saw for free-it was a great study break.
We also on Monday had our last cultural activities and had a chance to see our students preform Dabka (Palestinian dancing) and Tabla (traditional drum). They all did a great job for the little amount of time we had to practice every week. A group of us girls that night then went to a local Salon for some relax time. I got my hair straightened and eyebrows threaded-I'd never had my eyebrows done(or did much to them at all) it was a good experience.
Then Tuesday was our last service project I spent it with the toddlers at sisters of Charity-they have a lot of energy and were in a small space but they kept me busy and it was good spending time with them.
Beginnings
Then yesterday we left for Turkey-Istanbul. As we were preparing to leave Egypt I couldn't help but think how much I was just really beginning to understand the culture and make connections with people there and just beginning to feel comfortable speaking my very basic Arabic with the local people in our neighborhood to just say hello or get my groceries or dinner. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Egypt and am looking forward to coming back after our travels.
As for Istanbul- we arrived in early afternoon to a cold and rainy day-I felt like I was back in seattle with the green and water front of the Bosporus straight. We took a bus with all of our luggage and drove through town-it is such a large and busy/urban/modern city- we took a boat out onto the Bosporus (after a lunch/snack of starbucks) and got a tour of the straight that leads to the Black Sea. It was cold but enjoyable-great views. We then got back and headed to our hotel and settled in for the night getting some basic reading on Turkey done preparing us for the visits and speakers we would have coming up. I went out to eat near Tax-him square where we are staying and had "toast" for dinner-cheese and tomato sandwich as well as of course I tried Turkish delight for the first time.
Today we got ready and headed to Koc University a private university where classes are only taught in English. We heard a good overall lecture on the social and political history and current climate of Turkey is like then had a chance to eat lunch with some of the students. From the school which is on some hills outside of downtown Istanbul you can see the Black sea and a surrounding forest- great view. This afternoon and evening has mostly been spent trying to catch up online and get reading done for upcoming events. I am overwhelmed in a good way by all we will see and do in the next month and am looking forward to the adventure. It will take a lot of flexibility and constant changes as all of a sudden I am not speaking Arabic and I know little to no Turkish and am using new money system as well. I am no longer reading Arabic script on buildings or eating Egyptian food. It is definitely different but so far its been a good experience. Just as when I arrived to Egypt I am just taking it all in and am fascinated by the culture and environment. I am looking forward to the Adventures ahead.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Midnight Mt. Siani hike, the Red Sea ,Alexandria, and more . . .
February 21- March 8th
So this is a very long blog-as a heads up warning
So I know it has been a long time since I have last written so I will try to write when I can remember about what I have been doing since my last blog.
So I had planned on going to Sufi dancing at the Kahna Khalili the night after I wrote my last blog but it was already crowded and full by the time we had gotten there. But we had an opportunity to watch a performance of Turkish Baglama Folk Music.
Following this we had another week’s worth of classes and on Wednesday met with students from the Dutch Flemish institute here in Cairo. These students learn both Classical Modern Arabic and Egyptian or common Egyptian Arabic both in Europe and Cairo. They are currently on a semester abroad here as we are. We had a day of discussions about Middle Eastern issues being able to compare both their views as on issues in light of European perspective verse our American perspective on our involvement as the West in the Middle East. It was a good chance to speak to other foreigners who are living here much as we are and to hear the many similar views we had an also the differences.
Then on Thursday a thunder storm rolled through Cairo, which is of course rare, we watched the clouds, lightening, and wind from our flat’s porch until the rain hit. We packed and got hyped up and dressed for hiking Mt. Siani that night/early morning but when we met at the Villa to leave we were told that the weather changed our plans and that we may not even be leaving until the morning. It would have been extremely difficult and cold to hike the mountain in the rain and wind. We were all disappointed and stayed around hoping for good news. We were then told that we would still be leaving but hiking Mt. Siani on the way back out of town that weekend. So we all piled into the bus and spent about 2 or more hours trying to get out of Cairo which was in chaos as a result of the rain and flooding. Cairo does not have a drainage system that is prepared or used to rain so the streets which are always crowded with cars were also filled with rising flood waters. We finally got out of the city and began to travel to Dahab which is along the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aquaba where we had planned to spend the night when we arrived. After several hours of driving and watching the storm and sleeping we came to a place where the road had been closed; deemed impassible until morning. We then settled in for the night on the bus until the road cleared. Some of us slept on the floor of the bus others laid out across the chairs. Early in the morning before the sun rose we began to drive again toward Dahab and got there early in the morning, too early to check into our hotel/inn for the next night. So instead we got off the bus and disoriented by the sun we headed toward the Red Sea water front to sit, have coffee, and eat breakfast. It was an amazing view and the restaurant was right on the water. We ate a lounged on pillows and low tables looking out on the water and seeing in the not too far distance the mountain ranges along the water of Saudi Arabia. In my disoriented state it was hard for me to think that I was seeing what I was. I got Turkish coffee and read my novel for my bookreport until lunch time and had lunch there as well (they just kept a running tab for me until I left much as with other people-very laid back).
We then went to check in at our hotel and dropped off our things then changed into swimsuits and rented snorkel gear and headed to the beach. We walked out of the main restaurant tourist blocks and many of us got in with our snorkel gear. I was shocked at how clear the water was and how shallow. I was three feet from the bottom watching parrot fish eat off the coral and seeing sea urchins and cucumbers. Then all of a sudden I reached the shelf or ridge of the reef which opened up onto the ocean depths as far down as I could see. I was so amazed I struggled to breathe through the snorkel. In my explorations I almost ran straight into a small pink jellyfish a few inches from my face! After our exploration we went back and dried off then headed out to dinner at another outdoor restaurant by the water where we sat by a fire and ate.
The next day we got up and put on swimsuits and went out to breakfast then headed out in jeeps to the Blue Hole. As we came around the corner we could see the many scuba divers and water front stores. We dropped off our things and got our snorkel gear. As we looked down from the restaurant that was built up against the mountain side we could see the water and where the coral reef shelf dropped off only a few feet from shore. This snorkeling and suba diving location is world famous and is often compared only to the great barrier reef. We all got in and it was an immediate drop off into the depths deeper than anything I have ever looked and could not even come close to see the bottom of it. We followed the shelf of the coral along the hole. I saw seahorses and more parrot fish, clown fish, and eels. Other people saw octopus and lionfish as well. We could also see the scuba divers below us exploring deeper than we could go. Often I got so excited at what I was seeing I forgot the snorkel and dipped my head too far down and swallowed salty sea water. I took a nap out in the sun there and ate lunch then headed back to town where I explored the shops and got a little homework done.(it was difficult to focus on homework with such an amazing setting) We went out to eat again then packed everything up getting ready for hiking Mt. Siani.
We left Dahab around 11 and drove for two hours to the base of the mountain. We bundled up because the wind was strong and cold and then began to climb. Our guide stopped us every quarter of the way to give us a break for water at the many rest stop snack shops along the way. The pace was actually not that fast because of the many other people hiking with us and had to wait for or move to the side for camels coming up and down the path. We were blessed with a full moon so flashlights were not necessary most of the hike. We reached the stairs of penance which are the last portion of the hike which were created by the monks of St. Catherine church at the base of the mountain a long time ago. We were told there were 750 stairs but many of did not count them and many were less stairs and more just steps. It was in the last stretch that the wind kicked up strongly and I tried to stick to the rock wall as much as possible. By the time we got to the top there was little bit of light beginning to come over the mountains and we set up blankets and huddled on one of the ridges next to the church on top. As we sat there I thought of how many other people have seen this view and what their motives were for this same trek. I was able to better appreciate and understand scriptural accounts. Seeing this mountain I understand what the wilderness Israel experienced was like and how difficult it would be to wander it for two days let alone forty years. Once the sun had come up and we had felt that the cold and wind was getting to us and we were looking forward to the warmth of the bus. On the hike down we hit a wind tunnel and I was pelted by sand and gravel the closer we got to the base. By the time we reached the bus we were all wind, sand, and sunburnt from snorkeling and exhausted from a all nighters experience on the mountain. We all slept pretty soundly on the bus for several hours following on the way back to Cairo.
Then after one of our rest stops we pulled out along a spot of sand to which all of us were confused. Then one of our leaders explained to us that we were at the location in which the 12 springs of Elim mentioned in Exodus are. This account is in Exodus 15 in which Moses prays and God turns the bitter water to sweet then the Israelite travel to this Oasis area in which there are 12 fresh water spring. It is also thought that very close to this location where the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and we could see the peninsula across the water from where we were on one side is the Red Sea and the other side the Suez Canal. In order of events in scripture the Israelites crossed the Red Sea very close to where we were then God turned the bitter water to sweet then the Israelites traveled to these 12 springs which are still seen today as stone wells in the sand and then from there they traveled on to Mt. Siani in the mountain range in which we hiked the night before seen in Exodus 19. I wish I was not so sleep deprived and could actually grasp what I was seeing and take it in-it was surreal much as Mt. Siani was difficult to grasp the reality of how significant what I was seeing is to me and to what I have always pictured in my mind in these ancient accounts.
We headed back to Cairo then started our next week of classes. On Tuesday I went to the Sisters of Charity in Garbage City on the outskirts of old Cairo which is a home for the orphans and elderly run by the sisters in the Catholic order established by Mother Theresa. I helped to watch the babies and keep them awake until lunch time then fed them and kept them awake again until nap time. I was impressed with the day in and day out work of these sisters as they care for the facility and do laundry by hand for these children and elderly. Then on Wednesday night we watched a documentary on three women in a local Coptic Egyptian family as they were interviewed in their everyday lives and work. The women who created this documentary then spoke with us about this work and what we observed. It was a good comparison for me after home stays to be able to see the translation of these women’s thoughts in English after seeing and hearing similar in Arabic but not being able to understand it all previously. The next day we had a dance party at our flat in which we invited local Egyptian women over to talk and dance it was fun to interact with everyone.
The next day we left on an early morning train for Alexandria which is only a 2 and a half hour ride from Cairo. When we got there in the morning I and another student went to find a place to stay for the night and reserved a hotel room near the Mediterranean. We then took off exploring the city it was great weather and the water view so great. We visited the catacombs which was interesting to see the combination of Egyptian hieroglyphics and Greek drawings paintings and sculptures. We also visited the Fort Sultan Qaitbey and went into the fish museum and aquarium there. We then got ice cream and walked along the break water and watched the fishermen. That night we wandered around trying to find a place to get seafood and after some confusiong and much walking ended up at KFC for a late dinner.
The next day we had breakfast down stairs and checked out of hotel and headed to the new Aleandria Library which open in 2003. It is an amazing modern facility with a planetarium permanent modern art exhibits (along with some ancient artifacts) and a performing art center in addition of course to library itself. I spent the majority of the day in the library writing my first paper of the semester on Modern Middle Eastern History and wished I had had the time to look at some of the many pieces of art in the library or to explore the expansive book collections on the Middle East and Islam. After a full day of paper writing we headed to the Cinnabon on the grounds there for snack and my first drip coffee of the semester!!! We then caught a taxi and got to the train station and back to Cairo that night around 10. It was great to hear from other people what else went on that weekend as not everyone went to Alexandria and some stayed in Cairo or explored Alexandria for only the day and not overnight.
Finally up to speed: Yesterday we went to Al-Ahzar one of the oldest if not the oldest still established colleges in the world. It is known for being a primary undergraduate and graduate institution for the study of Islam and students come from over 105 different countries to live on this campus and learn about Islam. We spoke with one of the school’s representatives and had a chance to meet with many students from the school of missions there over lunch. We discussed many interesting topics. There classes are segregated by gender and all taught in Arabic which is difficult for many of them who come from non-Arab countries such as Southeast Asia or other parts of Africa or other locations. It was a great discussion time.
Now currently: This week nothing in particular fascinating that I know of will be happening we are all in paper and test mode. Two of our classes will be ending next week and we have a final for Islam this week and Arabic next week. Then we also have several papers due. Once all of these are in then we begin the travel component of our trip next week in which we will travel north to Turkey then head down and around the meditereanian until we come back around to Egypt a month later visting many other countries along the way. I will know exactly where I will be going and doing sometime this next week.
So that is the update I think this is probably the longest review I have written. I also want to apologize for the lack of pictures- it is hard for me to find the time to edit them and to post them on the blog and facebook has not let me put pictures up and I have not figured out why. I will promise you all this: I am taking a lot of pictures and videos which I will gladly share when I get the time and ability.
So this is a very long blog-as a heads up warning
So I know it has been a long time since I have last written so I will try to write when I can remember about what I have been doing since my last blog.
So I had planned on going to Sufi dancing at the Kahna Khalili the night after I wrote my last blog but it was already crowded and full by the time we had gotten there. But we had an opportunity to watch a performance of Turkish Baglama Folk Music.
Following this we had another week’s worth of classes and on Wednesday met with students from the Dutch Flemish institute here in Cairo. These students learn both Classical Modern Arabic and Egyptian or common Egyptian Arabic both in Europe and Cairo. They are currently on a semester abroad here as we are. We had a day of discussions about Middle Eastern issues being able to compare both their views as on issues in light of European perspective verse our American perspective on our involvement as the West in the Middle East. It was a good chance to speak to other foreigners who are living here much as we are and to hear the many similar views we had an also the differences.
Then on Thursday a thunder storm rolled through Cairo, which is of course rare, we watched the clouds, lightening, and wind from our flat’s porch until the rain hit. We packed and got hyped up and dressed for hiking Mt. Siani that night/early morning but when we met at the Villa to leave we were told that the weather changed our plans and that we may not even be leaving until the morning. It would have been extremely difficult and cold to hike the mountain in the rain and wind. We were all disappointed and stayed around hoping for good news. We were then told that we would still be leaving but hiking Mt. Siani on the way back out of town that weekend. So we all piled into the bus and spent about 2 or more hours trying to get out of Cairo which was in chaos as a result of the rain and flooding. Cairo does not have a drainage system that is prepared or used to rain so the streets which are always crowded with cars were also filled with rising flood waters. We finally got out of the city and began to travel to Dahab which is along the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aquaba where we had planned to spend the night when we arrived. After several hours of driving and watching the storm and sleeping we came to a place where the road had been closed; deemed impassible until morning. We then settled in for the night on the bus until the road cleared. Some of us slept on the floor of the bus others laid out across the chairs. Early in the morning before the sun rose we began to drive again toward Dahab and got there early in the morning, too early to check into our hotel/inn for the next night. So instead we got off the bus and disoriented by the sun we headed toward the Red Sea water front to sit, have coffee, and eat breakfast. It was an amazing view and the restaurant was right on the water. We ate a lounged on pillows and low tables looking out on the water and seeing in the not too far distance the mountain ranges along the water of Saudi Arabia. In my disoriented state it was hard for me to think that I was seeing what I was. I got Turkish coffee and read my novel for my bookreport until lunch time and had lunch there as well (they just kept a running tab for me until I left much as with other people-very laid back).
We then went to check in at our hotel and dropped off our things then changed into swimsuits and rented snorkel gear and headed to the beach. We walked out of the main restaurant tourist blocks and many of us got in with our snorkel gear. I was shocked at how clear the water was and how shallow. I was three feet from the bottom watching parrot fish eat off the coral and seeing sea urchins and cucumbers. Then all of a sudden I reached the shelf or ridge of the reef which opened up onto the ocean depths as far down as I could see. I was so amazed I struggled to breathe through the snorkel. In my explorations I almost ran straight into a small pink jellyfish a few inches from my face! After our exploration we went back and dried off then headed out to dinner at another outdoor restaurant by the water where we sat by a fire and ate.
The next day we got up and put on swimsuits and went out to breakfast then headed out in jeeps to the Blue Hole. As we came around the corner we could see the many scuba divers and water front stores. We dropped off our things and got our snorkel gear. As we looked down from the restaurant that was built up against the mountain side we could see the water and where the coral reef shelf dropped off only a few feet from shore. This snorkeling and suba diving location is world famous and is often compared only to the great barrier reef. We all got in and it was an immediate drop off into the depths deeper than anything I have ever looked and could not even come close to see the bottom of it. We followed the shelf of the coral along the hole. I saw seahorses and more parrot fish, clown fish, and eels. Other people saw octopus and lionfish as well. We could also see the scuba divers below us exploring deeper than we could go. Often I got so excited at what I was seeing I forgot the snorkel and dipped my head too far down and swallowed salty sea water. I took a nap out in the sun there and ate lunch then headed back to town where I explored the shops and got a little homework done.(it was difficult to focus on homework with such an amazing setting) We went out to eat again then packed everything up getting ready for hiking Mt. Siani.
We left Dahab around 11 and drove for two hours to the base of the mountain. We bundled up because the wind was strong and cold and then began to climb. Our guide stopped us every quarter of the way to give us a break for water at the many rest stop snack shops along the way. The pace was actually not that fast because of the many other people hiking with us and had to wait for or move to the side for camels coming up and down the path. We were blessed with a full moon so flashlights were not necessary most of the hike. We reached the stairs of penance which are the last portion of the hike which were created by the monks of St. Catherine church at the base of the mountain a long time ago. We were told there were 750 stairs but many of did not count them and many were less stairs and more just steps. It was in the last stretch that the wind kicked up strongly and I tried to stick to the rock wall as much as possible. By the time we got to the top there was little bit of light beginning to come over the mountains and we set up blankets and huddled on one of the ridges next to the church on top. As we sat there I thought of how many other people have seen this view and what their motives were for this same trek. I was able to better appreciate and understand scriptural accounts. Seeing this mountain I understand what the wilderness Israel experienced was like and how difficult it would be to wander it for two days let alone forty years. Once the sun had come up and we had felt that the cold and wind was getting to us and we were looking forward to the warmth of the bus. On the hike down we hit a wind tunnel and I was pelted by sand and gravel the closer we got to the base. By the time we reached the bus we were all wind, sand, and sunburnt from snorkeling and exhausted from a all nighters experience on the mountain. We all slept pretty soundly on the bus for several hours following on the way back to Cairo.
Then after one of our rest stops we pulled out along a spot of sand to which all of us were confused. Then one of our leaders explained to us that we were at the location in which the 12 springs of Elim mentioned in Exodus are. This account is in Exodus 15 in which Moses prays and God turns the bitter water to sweet then the Israelite travel to this Oasis area in which there are 12 fresh water spring. It is also thought that very close to this location where the Israelites crossed the Red Sea and we could see the peninsula across the water from where we were on one side is the Red Sea and the other side the Suez Canal. In order of events in scripture the Israelites crossed the Red Sea very close to where we were then God turned the bitter water to sweet then the Israelites traveled to these 12 springs which are still seen today as stone wells in the sand and then from there they traveled on to Mt. Siani in the mountain range in which we hiked the night before seen in Exodus 19. I wish I was not so sleep deprived and could actually grasp what I was seeing and take it in-it was surreal much as Mt. Siani was difficult to grasp the reality of how significant what I was seeing is to me and to what I have always pictured in my mind in these ancient accounts.
We headed back to Cairo then started our next week of classes. On Tuesday I went to the Sisters of Charity in Garbage City on the outskirts of old Cairo which is a home for the orphans and elderly run by the sisters in the Catholic order established by Mother Theresa. I helped to watch the babies and keep them awake until lunch time then fed them and kept them awake again until nap time. I was impressed with the day in and day out work of these sisters as they care for the facility and do laundry by hand for these children and elderly. Then on Wednesday night we watched a documentary on three women in a local Coptic Egyptian family as they were interviewed in their everyday lives and work. The women who created this documentary then spoke with us about this work and what we observed. It was a good comparison for me after home stays to be able to see the translation of these women’s thoughts in English after seeing and hearing similar in Arabic but not being able to understand it all previously. The next day we had a dance party at our flat in which we invited local Egyptian women over to talk and dance it was fun to interact with everyone.
The next day we left on an early morning train for Alexandria which is only a 2 and a half hour ride from Cairo. When we got there in the morning I and another student went to find a place to stay for the night and reserved a hotel room near the Mediterranean. We then took off exploring the city it was great weather and the water view so great. We visited the catacombs which was interesting to see the combination of Egyptian hieroglyphics and Greek drawings paintings and sculptures. We also visited the Fort Sultan Qaitbey and went into the fish museum and aquarium there. We then got ice cream and walked along the break water and watched the fishermen. That night we wandered around trying to find a place to get seafood and after some confusiong and much walking ended up at KFC for a late dinner.
The next day we had breakfast down stairs and checked out of hotel and headed to the new Aleandria Library which open in 2003. It is an amazing modern facility with a planetarium permanent modern art exhibits (along with some ancient artifacts) and a performing art center in addition of course to library itself. I spent the majority of the day in the library writing my first paper of the semester on Modern Middle Eastern History and wished I had had the time to look at some of the many pieces of art in the library or to explore the expansive book collections on the Middle East and Islam. After a full day of paper writing we headed to the Cinnabon on the grounds there for snack and my first drip coffee of the semester!!! We then caught a taxi and got to the train station and back to Cairo that night around 10. It was great to hear from other people what else went on that weekend as not everyone went to Alexandria and some stayed in Cairo or explored Alexandria for only the day and not overnight.
Finally up to speed: Yesterday we went to Al-Ahzar one of the oldest if not the oldest still established colleges in the world. It is known for being a primary undergraduate and graduate institution for the study of Islam and students come from over 105 different countries to live on this campus and learn about Islam. We spoke with one of the school’s representatives and had a chance to meet with many students from the school of missions there over lunch. We discussed many interesting topics. There classes are segregated by gender and all taught in Arabic which is difficult for many of them who come from non-Arab countries such as Southeast Asia or other parts of Africa or other locations. It was a great discussion time.
Now currently: This week nothing in particular fascinating that I know of will be happening we are all in paper and test mode. Two of our classes will be ending next week and we have a final for Islam this week and Arabic next week. Then we also have several papers due. Once all of these are in then we begin the travel component of our trip next week in which we will travel north to Turkey then head down and around the meditereanian until we come back around to Egypt a month later visting many other countries along the way. I will know exactly where I will be going and doing sometime this next week.
So that is the update I think this is probably the longest review I have written. I also want to apologize for the lack of pictures- it is hard for me to find the time to edit them and to post them on the blog and facebook has not let me put pictures up and I have not figured out why. I will promise you all this: I am taking a lot of pictures and videos which I will gladly share when I get the time and ability.
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