Egypt -- beyond the mosquitos

FOR THE STRONG AT HEART: FULL LENGTH

SHORTER VERSION AVAILABLE AT THE END :)

Alright...where to begin. I have moments of complete fascination of the culture and anticipation of really engaging the people once I've learned more Arabic...I start lessons tomorrow, FINALLY! I'm currently drowning in rooms full of foreign words....many, many foreign words.

Despite the differences and lack of communication, this weekend brought many changes. Lianne, my roommate who has a cat at home named MOJOJOJO, and I moved into our land-lady's apartment because the current tenants in our flat haven't moved out yet. Sooooo, we'll be living in this back room accompanied with a bathroom and balcony....It's livable. It's an adventure. I'll post pictures soon.

Tonight, we enjoyed our first meal prepared by our own hands....While I was at work, Lianne went grocery shopping for food and basic necessities like...TOILET PAPER. We have to carry little packs w/us. Definitely not a public commodity. Anyway, Lianne prepared a feta cheese and tomato dip for our pita-like bread. I bought some guava, mangoes, pomegranate, and dates to accompany our grapes and pita.....and bottled water (trying to keep stomach issues, along w/excessive trips to the bathroom to a minimum). So far, I've had no problems. sweet.

Well, at 7am Mena Language School bus pulled in front of our apartment to take me, Jeffery, and Meh-ah (sp?) -- my land lady's grandsons -- to school. I observed primary 2, 3, and 4, and will begin teaching conversational English tomorrow. Essentially, I have the freedom to sing songs, play games, and well...do what I do best -- tell kids what to do!!! AND all in English, sweet.

At 1:15, the bus takes everyone home, but tomorrow, I will get dropped off at my first Arabic lesson......wooohooooooo!!!

Let me give you a brief description of a typical bus ride to school. First off, imagine New York driving w/no rules...for those of you familiar w/drivers in Napoli (Naples), Italy, imagine that.....times ten! It's great. Each drive is like a roller coaster ride w/out guaranteed satisfaction! I'm still trying to figure out why they spend money installing traffic lights and painting lines on the ground (I think the city workers must get bored)....seriously, madness is the method - I LOVE it! Honking is like breathing....if you stop, you die. No joke. I can't tell who has the right away, pedestrians or drivers......I like to think of it as a dance, and I still can't figure out who's leading. Essentially, to cross the street, you just close your eyes and walk. They stop when they ABSOLUTELY have to. But, if you don't walk, they don't stop. I now have an idea of what Peter must have felt stepping out of the boat :) Ok, that's a bit melodramatic...but seriously, it's great!

Well, Lianne and I are at a cafe called Pastaccino, which is near our flat and has Wi-fi. I'm emailing, blogging, myspacing, etc., and she's skyping on my computer (thanks, mom); soon, we'll switch....ok, that's about enough...I hope this blog satisfies those who were tired of hearing about Egyptian mosquitoes.........

FOR THE WEAK AT HEART: SUMMARY

Excitement ensues. Great adventures. Tiring immersion. Sometimes I'm swimming in this foreign sea and find myself looking for a life raft full of English words and hugs (so send them my way!)...Even though I'll still be a foreigner once I learn Arabic, I will not be so much of an outsider....CAN'T WAIT! Today, i just wanted to come home to a nice, big, lovely, engulfing hug......Oh, I haven't mentioned, but life is a bit crazy since it's Ramadan, which changes everyday living quite significantly. On Friday, we're going to the Pyramids, YAY! On Wednesday, I'm going horseback riding with some new friends. That's about it.

dis-bah-how-ala-kheir! (phonetically version of goodnight)....