Carl in Cairo

Yesterday I got together with Ambereen one of the two other ambassadorial scholars here in Cairo that I met a year ago at my outbound orientation in Kansas City. We went for coffee, caught up, and talked about ways to help potential applicants understand more about the program. Hopefully we'll be able to organize something with Egyptian students interested in becoming ambassadorial scholars sometime soon.
Reading and Migration and Development followed coffee which was mercifully followed by my friend Erin's birthday dinner. We had it at Kandahar, the Indian restaurant in Mohandaseen, and it lasted for hours. It was the perfect opportunity for all of us to de-stress and be among friends. An Egyptian man outfitted in a tux sang her happy birthday between his renditions of Copa Cabana and Willy Nelson songs. Well worth the 5 LE entertainment charge we each incurred.
Tomorrow I'm heading to the new campus to meet with a professor about my thesis. I'm hoping she'll help me with ideas and literature for my lit. review.
Oh, and the mysterious situation with the butcher shop in Falaki Square seems to be nothing more than a case of the building fall apart on its own, the government not feeling obliged to repair it and thus tearing down the rest of the part attached to the edifice that was at risk of falling in. Understandably, some people are upset.

News:
Paintings stolen from museum palace in Cairo suburb
Libya finds US hasn't conceded enough after Libyan halting of weapons programs
Egyptian cleric calls for boycott of Starbucks because of its logo