Cynthia and I just got back from a relaxing and satisfying dinner outing to Café Arabica in Zamalek. Stuffed with salad and fiteer and frozen yogurt, we stopped to get her some phone credit on the way home. Perched on one of the Mobile Store's stools was a distinguished looking man in his 60s who inquired where we were from. I told him America and he wished us a good visit. I politely corrected him, telling him we lived in the neighborhood. He told us we had more courage than he, as he, though Egyptian, had been living in Australia for 38 years and was only here on business. You know you're in trouble when an Egyptian's giving you kudos for living in downtown Cairo.
Alas, Bab al-Luq isn't so very shabby. The water and electricity have been working far more consistently this semester and a couple of the doors in the apartment aren't broken.
I finished my contributions to the mock convention that is our group project for Comparative Migration Law and tonight I plan to make a dent in my final paper for that class. I can't believe next week is the last week of classes for this semester. Al-hamdulillah!
AUC hasn't been doing much to garner my favor lately, it having been revealed to me today that I may have to register for the "thesis guidance" course during the spring semester of 2010 rather than doing so this fall. Meanwhile, its student newspaper has revealed that a majority of the student body at this university whose mission includes "advancing the ideals of American liberal arts education" and "promoting international understanding" do not believe that Israel has a right to exist. AUC produces many members of Egypt's élite. The ideas of today's AUCians is likely to bespeak the direction of future government policy.
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