20 September 2007

it's been....

...one week and two days since i landed in this grand gateway where africa meets near east, meets europe, meets mediterranean. i'll update you according to a tentative outline to spare you from my randomness -- thoughtful, i know :)

FOOD - FRIENDS - FAMILY - FUN

[For those of you who haven't figured this out, i thoroughly enjoy alliteration and absolutely appreciate the consonants f and l...the most important nouns can be found with f -- as stated above -- and the most important verbs begin with l -- living, loving, laughing, learning, listening, lighting (those around you)......this list is not extensive but adequate.]

Ok, FOOOOOD!

let me paint a brief vignette of my current setting......in a cafe, eating a panini hawawsheni and sipping mango juice. now, this is not the italian panini; it's more like an egyptian style pita with this meat -- hawawsheni. delicious! and for the mango juice, imagine throwing a fresh mango into a cup and drinking it......this makes odwalla taste like, i dunno 0.23333% juice.

lianne and i enjoy simple sandwiches prepared with whatever we buy from street vendors and small stores...our favorite it the "happy family" store....and it sure makes us one happy family. um, moving on.

FAMILY!

i have a few families. at the school i work with, i have a faculty full of friendliness. they are very helpful, and we exchange english/arabic lessons. great

the student i teach make another family...today, i taught poetry to 13-14 year olds. loved it. and as of today, i am the official PE teacher at my school. my students were impressed with my futbol skills b/c none of the girls at the school ever play....that doesn't say much for my skill level (or lack thereof) but it was fun.....and very hotter!

then i have my van fam -- the people i ride to and from school with each day. yesterday, they decided to help me practice my arabic.....my students generously help me, their "mooh dah ressa" - teacher.
then i have my lessons, which are going quite well. i spend a lot of time studying on my own (mostly between classes), and practicing with my van family love it.

then my hawaii family -- you have been very generous in ALL your support...thank you! and of course, my family family -- i love you :)

FRIENDS AND FUN

are fantastic.....we went horseback riding in the desert to see the sun setting behind the pyramids...nothing too special :) although, we were a bit late to see the sunset...but then we floated on the nile in a really chill boat thing....i forgot the name. we enjoyed some syrian cuisine....and tomorrow lianne and i are going on a tour of the pyramids. this weekend is going to be mass busy.....more stories in the making.

and for those of you who have stuck around until now, i'll entertain you with a.......silly situation:

my first trip to the bathroom at my school: i got stuck in it....seriously.

for three to four minutes - STUCK - which of course, feels like an eternity when your stranded in a bathroom in a foreign country. needless to say, i made it out and lived to tell about it....lucky you.

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About Me

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Hawaii, United States
trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.
O, dreadful is the check — intense the agonyWhen the ear begins to hear and the eye begins to see;When the pulse begins to throb, the brain to think again,The soul to feel the flesh and the flesh to feel the chain. - Emily Bronte, "The Prisoner