Coming to a Close

So let me start off by saying the past week i did a lot of sightseeing to the areas in and around Cairo (including the Pyramids) and around Sinai. Although they were fun it was very much of the same thing. Haggling, relaxing, sitting in awe, and of course enjoying my time. The photos will do a that justice.

My friend Sam and his Camel

Pyramids at Giza

Sphinx and the Pyramids

The Blue Hole at Dahab

We went Snorkeling. I did not have any actual swimming trunks so i just used my shorts.

Safa and I rode on the back of the pickup truck because well its funner in the back.

The gulf of Aqaba (or seomthing like that) the one close to the right of the Sinai Penninsula

On top of mount Sinai watching the sunrise.

They say Moses hiked up here to talk to god.

In the distance you can see the monastery of St. Catherine which is one of the oldest monasteries around.

What i really want to write about i guess is what I think I've learned. Its been hard to come up with the exact words for what it is but one thing is for sure i know that i have discovered some things about myself being in a place so very different than home. I think Egypt above all has taught me respect and perspective. Respect? I know it seems so very simple that concept that people have been trying to teach us since we were children but it is different here. Respect is a quality I think we like to talk about but very few people really have and you notice it when you arent in a familiar place surrounded by things you like and enjoy. I mean there are things people here do that i would just be outraged by at home, or things i do which create the same effect among the Egyptians. Its not just differences in cultures, traditions and societies. Its hard to describe but i have to say I think the world could do with a little more respect.
With respect i think comes perspective which is why i think i said i learned a little bit of both. One thing is for sure although i do not think i could ever live in Egypt full time there are many things that im not happy about in the country ranging from the way the throw things away (or lack there of) to the way people act around foreigners and women. Although, there are some things that i think are lacking everywhere else in the world that can be found here in Egypt, despite how rude people can be i have also never thought so many complete strangers could be so nice. Its this weird world of contradictions and i think its that actually that im upset with. That the students at AUC are both the ones on the street protesting the corruption in the government but also sometimes are blatantly cheating on their tests. That both strangers can be so very helpful and offer food and shelter to strangers but, these are the same guys who harass women on the streets for dressing certain ways. Dont get me wrong Egypt is not a horrible place but as with every country, person, and household there is always room for improvement.
For the past 4 months i have lived in a place that well is not really regarded as a welcoming place for tourists. Not anymore at least. Through unrest, revolution, and struggling i do think there is going to be change here in Egypt. I do think the Arab spring has changed the Middle East for better, i remain hopeful that the people within these nations are not that much different from other nations. They want peace, security, and a stable job to feed their family. Its not as full with extremists as the news would sometimes have you think. I'm glad i was able to go out and see a whole different (yet still so very familiar) world with my own eyes. Egypt has been worth it. All the friends and incredible people i have met maybe i will never see again, which however depressing that sounds, i cant be happier. I think ill leave this home away from home happy and sad. One thing is for sure ill have to be back one day. I'm so very lucky to have this opportunity and if anyone reading this is ever wondering to study abroad or go see something out there in our small (huge) world go and do it.


Its been fun Egypt.

Istanbul

Normally i would write much more about my vacation to Istanbul but with finals and papers i decided to be quick but at least write something since my time here in the Middle East is almost over. I actually went to Istanbul almost 2 whole weeks ago.

First off i would like to say that security in Egypt despite the fact you do it three times, is incredible simple process. I know the US we are on the look out for terrorists and such but i mean i still dont understand how it can be such a pain but anyway moving on. Landing in Turkey was a weird experience because it was almost like re-landing in Cairo but this time i knew some things about the place i was going and how to get to the hostel. But again everything was in a weird language i didnt understand (at least the letters though were Latin script) and the metro was not running unfortunately when we arrived. We took a cab and made it to the hostel and one thing that made me instantly realize i was no longer in Egypt traffic lights. Who knew people actually needed them? I had forgotten what it was like to actually stop in the middle of the road not because there was traffic but because a light said to do so. When we arrived at the hostel it was one of my first experiences in such a place 10 people one room and of course im glad i was with 2 friends but the others were strangers. We slept woke up for breakfast were given a small tourist map and Nate, Amro, and I decided the best thing to do our first day was to walk as far as possible and get as lost as possible.
We saw the Blue mosque and other things like the Hagia Sophia. We wandered through the streets and saw the people ate the incredible food.

There is not much to say about to Turkey and Istanbul other than to go and visit it. Its a great city easy to navigate and fun to be in. Im glad i went even if i did miss one day of class. The people were awesome and I had fun. I could go into exact every detail about what i ate and what i saw but I dont think that will help. So instead i posted a lot of pictures more than usual and ill write some captions. A picture is worth a thousand words as they say.

The Blue Mosque the nickname of the Mosque of Sultan Ahmet. Its a  suiting nickname once you see the interior.

Nate having fun photo bombing my picture. But i do admit he did it very well

Still the breathtaking Blue Mosque

Its sad how little of the blue really stands out. But needless to say the Ottomans loved tiles. The mosque is covered every inch with blue tiles or paint. It is incredible.

The Hagia Sophia from the outside. Look similar to the Blue mosque? Its because the blue mosque and almost every mosque in Istanbul/Turkey/ottoman empire is modeled after it.

The view from galata tower which was across the Golden Horn one of the rivers that feed into the Bosphorus. (I think....) Istanbul is a city full of hills and the tower has lasted the test of time to give you a great view of the historic part of the city.

View of Topkapi palace and The Hagia Sophia from the tower. We walked from all the way over there.

Still the view from Galata tower but now with "The new Mosque" in the foreground and the minarets of the blue mosque far off in the distance to the left.

My first cup of Turkish coffee in Turkey. Pretty good but as usualy very very strong. Taste wise, the caffeine doesnt really do anything for me.

View from the roof of the hostel at night of the Hagia Sophia.

The Blue mosque with the only star in the sky and the crescent moon.

The inside of the Hagia Sophia where the Byzanitine emperors were crowned of course before being conquered by the Ottomans. The church faced Jerusalem but upon entering the city and of after course pillaging and stealing as every army did in those days the Sultan called for prayer and brought the army into the church and it still face mecca. Only a slight very slight turn to the right is needed. 

The cistern in the old city which was used to store water.

On the Boat to the Asian side of Istanbul. Public transportation was so easy! Ferry, tram, subway everything was for one turkish lira around 60 cents.

On the Asian side on our last day in the City

Spring Break Ends and Another One Begins.

So i never really ended my spring break story i realized. I left off right at the end taking the midnight train back to Cairo and man what an experience that was.

My friends and I thought we had figured out the train system and the general rule was that even though you dont have a ticket you can still get on the train and pay on the train but the problem is though that you arent assigned a seat so anyone at anytime can come and claim their seat. Which is exactly what happend for about 3 hours into the night. for three hours i tried to stick with my friend Grace because the idea was that every girl should try to stick with one of the guys but after being kicked out over and over again and slipping by sleeping people to take seats only to realize it was the seat of someone in the bathroom walk around with my large backpack and also the lack of sleep throughout the trip was finally catching up with me. At around 3 i had gotten split up from grace and wandered thorughout the train cars at one point i just gave up hope and told myself the rest of the 8 hours i would stand in the akward  place between cars where everyone goes to smoke their cigarettes. At some point i decided to do what some people do and laid down on the floor in one of the closets between the cars. Lets just say that was the low point of the journey. After being offered lots of cigarettes and other things i saw my friend Nate and he said he managed to find a seat. (Later he would tell me he sat next down to probably the creepiest army officer in all of Egypt... lovely)

I told Nate i would try to find a seat and so after 30 minutes of sitting in the closet/cubical thing (it was not really sitting but rather squeezing myself into a ball they are tiny spaces) i looked again. I walked by these guys who had seen me earlier and being the friendly egyptians that i have met in so many places they spoke in their arabic and i in my broken arabic and i figured out that they were 3 guys for the 2 seats. It happens a lot where they just take rotations and they basically offered for me to join up in their rotation whcih i was so relieved i happily accepted. after about an hour of standing/sitting they all eventually got of at a stop and i finally had not only 1 but 2 seats! all to myself. I was so incredibly happy. But that was short lived when four girls searching for their seats realized that they were separated and asked me politely (and in Arabic and i understood!) if i would move so they could sit together. I really really wanted to say know but it was 5am and i did not want them to go through what i went through. So i gave up my seat luckily at the back of the car there was another seat open.

I sat down where the old man next to me i dont know how but he knew where i was going exactly what time we would arrive and of course said these things only in his broken english even when i told him i understood arabic. I talked to the guys around me who were students I told them i was tired and i finally fell asleep. An hour from Cairo i woke again not only still in the same seat with the pleasant old man but in front of me all my friend Nate Ramsha Grace and Ryan had all managed to find seats near me and were talking to the students i talked to earlier. It started rough but we finally made it home.

Throughout the next week i got to celebrate a birthday/easter with a group of egyptian copts, went back to school for a week then had another small break which my friends Nate Amro and i decided to take advantage of and went to Turkey. Ill save that for next time which hopefully will be soon before i get into finals week.


One thing i did learn though about egypt this trip was how incredibly nice Egyptians can be. Although in Cairo it is different i still have never felt both so safe on a train where everything kept going wrong. Maybe though its because im a man and occasionally blend in. But one thing is for sure people are always capable of surprising you and im glad I traveled egypt and got to meet the people myself. If i listened to what the news had to say about the Middle East and the people then i dont think i would be here enjoying every second. (except that moment in the closet. that was not fun.)