Last night, I had a delicious iftar in Zamalek at my friend Hadeel's. I arrived just in time to eat a date to break my not-so-fast again with other faux-fasters and a few Muslims who were actually observing. The spread laid out was delicious. I had bamya (okra and tomato stew), wara ainab (rice-stuffed grape leaves) and other kinds of mashi (rice-stuffed vegetables), molokhaya, and more. In between servings, I met some of Hadeel's friends, mostly journalists and professors. We had conversations about Canadian politics, Egypt, racism, sociolinguistics. Later, Hadeel, an Iraqi-Canadian journalist, told us about her experiences in Baghdad. Rather than retelling them myself, I recommend you check out a story she wrote that was carried by several newspapers and networks in the States. The desserts came out and sealed the deal–our food comas were well worth it. Qatayef, baqlawa, konafa, and other Middle Eastern pastries took their places next to chocolate cake, brownies, and cupcakes.
Today I headed to the ol' copy shop near AUC's now-sold Greek Campus. I purchased enough course packets to turn my reusable grocery bag into a strength-training apparatus and then went to wait in Tahrir Square for my friend Amanda. From my perch in front of the Hardee's, I could feel the warm sun and the breeze. Drowning out the noise with my iPod and closing my eyes, I almost felt like I was somewhere by the ocean. Then I realized the ocean spray was in fact air conditioner condensation dripping on my head. Oh well, can't win 'em all. I watched with empathy as three different people tripped over paving tiles jutting up from the uneven pavement. I bet that a little more attention to the infrastructure in Egypt would lower their healthcare costs. My friend Amanda, who had been spirited off to the far reaches of Qasr al-Aini after her cabdriver misunderstood her request to be taken to Tahrir, arrived around one and we headed down into the metro station. She caught the womens' car to enjoy a more tranquil ride down to the Ma'adi station where we met back up again and headed to Lucille's. Yes, it's been less than a week and I've already taken refugee in my favorite American restaurant. Prevention is better than cure, right? After I polished off some mushroom fajitas and Amanda her burger, we strolled onto the network tree-lined residential streets just adjacent. It was like being transported to another world. An Egyptian man begging, however, and grafitti on a utility box in awkward English calling for the downfall of the rich reminded us of the incongruousness of this community with the realities of Cairo. We walked by golf course-lush grass and stopped to look at it as we mused about what our post-Egypt lives would be like. We took a gander in a grocery store and looked at all of the imported European and American foods a little to pricey to indulge in for the time being and began to plan for Thanksgiving.
Feeling a little guilty about my un-Egyptian day at first, I am now looking at my thesis research spread out around me and the hefty heap of course packets waiting to be read and am reminded that it's ok to take it easy. There will be plenty of time for culturally enriching adventures once I get back into the swing of things.

News & Issues

Egypt
· Pig cull has consequences more far-reaching than anticipated; tensions high over trash problems
· Israeli PM Netanyahu meets with President Mubarak over iftar
· Copts mark new year with prayer rather than protests aimed at ending discrimination against them
· New Coptic TV channels elicit worries over the propagation of extremism
· Osama Diab of the Guardian weighs in on the government's campaign against those eating, drinking, and smoking in public during daylight hours
· Budget airlines to link Egyptian cities with destinations elsewhere in the Middle East and in Europe

Middle East
· Islamist thugs' campaign of gay killings in Iraq facilitated by the internet
· Differences remain between Israel and US over peace talks with Palestinians

Crossed legs and cross Egyptians

I am currently outside in the courtyard of AUC's Greek Campus. I've traded my drab olive couch, my tiny TV, and the plethora of nearly-tastefully upholstered dining room chairs in my living room for pigeons, cats, and palm trees and remarkably beautiful weather. The reason? My landlord (whoever that is at this point, since apparently the one who I haven't seen in months has handed the reins over to his brother and niece(s)) neglected to pay our internet bill (the second time he has violated the rental contract by not paying for a utility). Since I've been fuming lately, thinking about how much money I've lost in overpaying for this ersatz abode, my blood pressure had nowhere to go but up, so it's a good thing that the internet's working on campus and that the sun is shining.
Despite my recent frustrations, I had a great time yesterday. I joined my French friends for a jaunt to al-Azhar park where we had a leisurely lunch before watching the sunset. For once, the call to prayer was beautiful. You could hear it from so many different minarets that it all blend together into ambient background music for the scene of the sun sinking behind the Cairo skyline. After navigating the alleys and streets back to my building, we rested our weary feet for a while before heading to Ma'adi to get Thai food with Phil and Ross's guest who's been visiting. It was good as usual. On the way back, in the metro, a curious thing happened. I was sitting with my legs crossed in a way so as not to show the bottom of my shoes (because the bottoms of one's shoes and feet are considered offensive to display to others) and talking to my friends when all of the sudden I felt a tap on my shoe. A young but severe-looking man in a galabaya motioned to me that something about the way I was sitting was inappropriate. Shocked that he had the nerve to touch my shoes with the bottom of his and thoroughly annoyed at his intervening, I asked him in Arabic just what the problem was. I'm not sure why I did, because my Arabic's not good enough to understand any explanation he could've offered, but he gesticulated along with his words and I signaled my discontent and ignored his admonition. I can't imagine what his problem was as Egyptians sit the same way I was sitting in the metro all the time. I don't think I accidentally flashed the sole of my shoe at him either, but by the end of the metro-ride I wanted to take it off and throw it at him. As much as I tried to be inconspicuous and inoffensive, the very fact that I have the skin, eye, and hair color I do attracts vapid stares and obnoxious greetings or even snide remarks and rude gestures. I'm tired of being harassed and ripped off just for being a non-Egyptian. At least I'm not a woman, they have to deal with much, much worse here.
Ma3lesh, at least the weather's nice. Mid-70s and sunny!

News:
Egypt demanding return from US of ancient sarcophagus
Cairo the worst city in Africa for air pollution
Water scarcity an increasing threat to Egypt

A night of Risk

Yesterday, I trekked down to Ma'adi with Cynthia where we met up with a Sudanese friend and ran some errands both in the parts of Ma'adi where expats seldom wander and in the parts where they wander too scantily clad, inviting the still-undeserved negative attention of young Egyptian men. We hung out at a coffee shop with Sudanese men who were not nearly as amused as Cynthia and I were by the cheesy Lebanese music videos blaring from a small television perched high up in one corner of the establishment and we shopped at a couple of grocery stories where I stocked up on the same things I always buy: coconut-flavor Lactel yogurt, Rich Bake baladi brown bread, frozen peas and carrots, Isis organic pasta, and pasta sauce.

Later in the evening, I had Phil and Cynthia over for "dinner" which consisted of my specialty-pasta with a side of peas and carrots. Who'd have guessed? Later on, we went back out to a toystore a block away. There we purchased Risk and Scrabble, though I doubt that Parker Brothers is making a dime off of the "special" version that we found ourselves playing.
Today, I made some headway in writing a reaction paper for my migration and development class. The topic is North African migration to the European Union. Speaking of the European Union, I will be spending the night there on the 1st of June. That is to say, I booked my return flights that will lead me homeward in two and a half months. I'll be back in Peoria somewhere in the second week of June and I hope to begin giving my Rotary speeches soon thereafter!




News:
Darfur rebel groups cease peace talks with Khartoum
"Islam's Soft Revolution"
Relations with Iran up in the air

Inert Elevators and Desert Foxes

Google's weather description of Cairo today does not read "sun" or "haze" as usual, but rather "sand". Yes, sand. Though I'm not quite sure that's accurate for today, the change in the weather that began yesterday was an agonizing reminder that it will only continue to get hotter from here and the sand forecast means the onset of the khamaseen (also called khamsin). Apparently, right now it's in the 80s out there in the world beyond my apartment.

In light of this, purchasing tickets to Tunisia for spring break yesterday was all that much more of a joy. Lonely Planet tells me that mid-March through mid-May is the perfect time to go and we (Ross, Phil and I) are going in mid-April. Mid-perfection, in other words.

After some trip-planning and koshary, I left with Phil to Ma'adi to watch The Secret Life of Bees at a friend's. It was nice to watch a happy film that wasn't a mindless comedy, we were briefly transported out of Egypt and into the American South (which, ironically, is almost more foreign to me than the Middle East as I've never been anywhere down there but Virginia and Florida). Immediately afterward, though, Phil and I were reminded where we were. We hopped in an elevator hoping to make our way speedily to the metro stop and head back downtown. No dice. As we descended from the 13th floor, we stopped on the 9th where two Egyptian men, the shorter one in a worn-looking suit and the taller, lankier one in a tan galabayya. Strangely, the illuminated G (for ground floor) became unlit and the man in the suit pushed it again. The doors closed and we lurched to a halt. "Oh good," said I. "Oh good," laughed the man in the suit before he began trying to call out on his cell phone, realizing that the interphone in the elevator was dead. None of us were getting service in the elevator car, though. By this time, I saw that suit man was carrying in his hand and handgun in a holster. Strangely, I was entirely unaffected. Par for the course, right? There I am trapped in an elevator with a jovial armed man, his sidekick, and my friend Phil in Egypt. What else would I be doing on a Thursday night? Suit man handed his weapon to his pal and proceded to pull open the doors of the elevator car only to be met with an even more solid set of doors to the corridor. He pounded, Phil pounded. Nothing. After a few more times of the doors closing again and suit man opening them, we heard noise outside. Suit man managed to yell for someone called Sherif who apparently scurried off to some control panel somewhere and turn off the electricity to the elevator. Great. Now I'm in the pitch black with a jovial armed man, his sidekick, and my friend Phil in Egypt. I took a drink of water, pressed a button on my phone that lit up the car with a feeble blue light, and kept waiting. Soon the electricity was on. The dear little G button was again illuminated, but the car had its own ideas. We ascended to the 21st floor where Phil and I bade our new friends farewell and took the stairs all the way down. We walked to the metro only to find that the last train in the direction of El Marg had stopped. Ma3lish. We went to a grocery store, got a cab, and headed back downtown theorizing about what would've happened if we'd gotten stuck for hours or days and wondering who suit man was and why he was armed.

Earlier in the evening, Phil, Camilla (the friend in Ma'adi we'd gone to visit), were purusing our university's illustrious news publication, The AUC Caravan. The content of some of the pieces in it is often good, even if the writing or framing of problems on campus are a bit off. One article, though, conveyed sheer absurdity. If you're down for a laugh, the article, entitled "Desert fox raids AUC campus" is full of gems. The title itself, alluding to German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's operations in North Africa during the Second World War, is a ridiculous hyperbole. "I did not see the fox, but if I saw it, I think that I would not come to college again," was the compelling testimony of one student while a construction worker was quoted as saying, "Even if there were lions on campus, we will keep working." Brilliant! Then why isn't the campus finished? The comments on the article are just as comical as the piece itself.

It's nice to have a bit of levity to make living here just a bit better, but it's all too easy to forget that there are people, presumably in greater Cairo, still locked up without charge. Human Rights Watch came out with another article on the situation of Diaa Eddin Gad and other activists on the 4th. He has been held since 6 February. I guess all I can do for now is blog and send letters.

This morning, my landlord's brother came over to talk to my Ross who in turn woke me up saying something about signing a document. It's the question of taxes again. Now they're asking us to outright lie in writing, claiming that we pay 1400 Egyptian pounds less than we do. We politely declined pointing out that being dishonest with government agencies isn't the sort of thing that puts foreigners in good standing with their host governments. Perhaps Dr Rizk should just lower our rent to that level. Then everyone would be happy (and honest). I just hope they don't forge our names on a legal document. Oh the joys of renting in Cairo.

News:
Rapists sentenced to death by hanging in northern governorate of Kafr al-Sheikh
Russian diplomats cause row on EgyptAir flight from Cairo to Sanaa
Ancient statues uncovered, the latest in a string of significant archaelogical findings this year

Church, a House Party, and Research Ethics

Hours ago, I had all kinds of delightfully witty and insightful things to put in this entry. Unfortunately, I've filled the intervening time with reading about research ethics, writing a reaction paper, and trying to finesse the germ of what will eventually be my Master's thesis into something submittable to my Methods professor. It follows thus that my brain is mostly of a mushy consistency at this point. Nevertheless, I'll recap the recent goings-on:
I went to Ma'adi Community Church with a relative of my Egyptian friend, Maged's, and his American wife. My friend Phil came with me. It reminded me of many a community church back in the States, except that we were in the middle of a Cairo suburb, no doubt in some proximity to where Jesus Himself actually walked while He was in exile, and surrounded by the Egyptian police (as many churches in Egypt are, for the protection of those within). Graham Kendrick, author of the song "Shine, Jesus, Shine" is currently a guest of the church and led worship which was all fine and well except that the service turned out to be exclusively a worship service with no sermon. It was strange to take everything in–trying to reconcile what seemed and felt like a distinctly American phenomenon in the midst of Egypt which, despite its emulation (or in fact caricaturization) of American consumerism and its adoration of various of our pop stars, is a world apart. The lack of Egyptians was conspicuous and felt wrong somehow. There are other evangelical churches with services in Arabic, though, which have a preponderance of Egyptian attendees. They are by and large converts from the more liturgical and traditional Coptic churches; the fact that conversion to Christianity from Islam is punishable by death in this country is something of a deterrent for Muslims.
Afterward, Phil and I went to a party there in Ma'adi at the apartment of a Somali-Norwegian friend of his. Several other Norwegians, a Swede, some Americans including a girl from Puerto Rico, many Egyptians, a German, and a Congolose guy made for excellent conversation. Many of us are AUC students and we ended up discussing aspects of our various graduate programs and how they fit with one another (I'm not even joking, we're huge nerds). Religion, African politics, gender, and a host of other issues kept us around the table chatting until well past 3 AM when the downtowners among us caught a cab back together. At one point, I met an Egyptian whose paternal grandfather was a Czech Jew who'd converted to Islam in order to marry an Egyptian Muslim woman, changed his named, and moved to Egypt. This same Egyptian's maternal grandma is Italian. It's stories like this that make me love studying migration. The converging of diverse cultures and the interplay between them is fascinating.
For lunch today, I went with friends to the French culture institute for galettes. I got to use my French with the waiters, but was reminded that I was in Egypt by the salade verte which was, in fact, shredded iceberg lettuce, and the fact that the establishment had no change when we were trying to pay our bill. Ma3lesh! I caught a cabride to Zamalek, did some grocery-shopping, lugged a few bags and a box of 12 1.5-liter bottles of water up to the fourth floor (by American reckoning) of my apartment building and into my apartment and then realized I had reading to do, a reaction paper on that reading, and a preliminary outline of my thesis proposal to turn in all by tonight. And so it was that I spent hours reading and writing about research ethics, which was ok by me because its actually quite an interesting topic. Tomorrow we have a Saturday class to replace our Monday class because our professor will be traveling elsewhere in the region.

News:
Sec. of State Clinton to come to Cairo in March for Gaza-rebuilding donors conference
Tourism in Egypt slumps compared to last year, global economic downturn blamed
Still no word on the whereabouts of Diaa Gad

Ma'adi, Mohandaseen and Methods Reading

Late yesterday afternoon, Phil and I met at Tahrir Sq. where Marise and her friend Michelle picked us up. Marise, who deftly dodges microbuses and taxis while simultaneously holding conversations in Arabic and English, conveyed us safely and soundly down the Corniche and on to Ma'adi. Along the way, we passed Ahly (soccer team) fans and trucks atop which there were people perched precariously.

Our destination was Lucille's. We were going for a 4:30 brunch, which I'm not convinced even qualifies as brunch at all, but we had a great time. We went to a coffee shop afterward and chatted until we realized it was after 8 PM. Among our various interesting conversations, we talked about the expectation Marise's parents, who grew up in Egypt but have since lived in Canada and the States for many years, had of anyone who would want to date or marry her. Interestingly, aside from religious qualifications (the family is Catholic), the most important thing to Marise's mom is that this potential suitor be at ease in the social setting of Egyptian family life where, like when I went to the Red Sea with my Coptic friend, literally dozens of relatives and friends and relatives of friends sit around for hours shooting the breeze and eating and reveling in the opportunity to be in one another's company. No stiff, watch-watching Americans allowed. Marise and Michelle dropped Phil and me back off downtown and I showered and got ready to meet up with Phil again to go to our friend Amanda's in Mohandaseen for a party. There were people from the International Organization for Migration, from Africa and Middle East Refugee Assistance, and from AUC in addition to expats and Egyptians in other jobs and from other occupations. I chatted with a couple of French Canadians and realized just how different the Québecois accent is from standard French. Conversations centered on travel experiences or planned travels and, for my friend Cara who's birthday is a week before mine, our plans for a joint birthday party next Friday.
Today I plan to get some reading done for my Research Methods class lest the world think I've forgotten I'm here attending graduate school and volunteering (my English class, as I may have mentioned, starts up again on the 17th).

News:
Men arrested for distributing Bibles at Cairo book fair
Hamas says no to weekend truce talks in Cairo
Calls for Egypt to account for harboring former Nazis

Egyptian Hospitality

Yesterday after class, classmates Phil, Marise, and Rebecca joined me in pursuit of Thai deliciousness. It was to be found at Bird Cage, which I've mentioned before. The evening was full of laughs, good conversation, and much-needed relaxation. After dinner, Phil and I hit a nearby store that sells clothes made of Egyptian cotton. I need to start Christmas shopping, so I think it'll be a stop when I make the rounds. After getting home, Ablavie, my Togolese neighbor, came over to hang out with Ross and I. Yet another chance for me to keep up my French!
Today has been just as good and restore my fondness for Egypt (and firmed up my thankfulness for Rotary connections). My new host counselor had me to her home for a late lunch--all Egyptian food. Molokhayya, fatteh, wara ainab, salad, and more. I brought them pastries from the pastry shop near my house, but I'm not sure of their quality. I'm not a connoisseur of Egyptian desserts, but think that if I am trying to be a good guest, I'll go to Al-Abd next time and pick up a tray of sugary goodness. Anyway, the meal was delicious. I decided not to share with Omaima my vegetarian tendencies and thus ate quite a lot of beef. My stomach feels a bit funny, but I think the protein's good for me. Before, during, and after the meal, we had really good discussions about politics. Omaima's husband, Tarek, explained in no uncertain terms his distaste for Hamas and the problems being caused in Palestine. He was also talking about how intractable the conflict in Iraq is. In his opinion, it's going to be harder to resolve than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We also discussed Egyptian names and their meanings and common American names. Tarek told me about his travels in America--apparently he's been to Chicago and Urbana/Champaign in Illinois, Texas, and many other polaces and they have a son that lives in Texas. Both on my way there in the metro and on my way back in their car, I realized that a love for Egypt was seeping back into my soul. It's less fleeting and more realistic than the euphoria that comes with novelty, and hopefully more enduring. It was reinforced by the incredible friendliness and hospitality of my hosts today which in turn was made possible through Rotary. It's finally all starting to work as it should. Al-hamdulileh.

News:
Egypt risks political unrest if economic slowdown not properly handled
Egyptian Minister of Endowments discourages the wearing of the veil
Former Secretary General of the UN condemns Saudi lashing sentence of Egyptian

Fighting Back, Feeling Better

So in hindsight, I might have been a bit rosier in my last entry had I mentioned, for example, that my panang tofu (tofu and veggies in a red curry sauce) and som tam were both pretty delicious, that Ross somehow found Craisins on the new campus and brought me back a package, and a couple of other small positive things, but, when drowning in a sea of aggravating problems, it's hard to pick out the good and highlight it sometimes.
That Egypt and its people aren't all bad, I already knew in theory, but running into Mr Negativity himself today helped me to recall it more clearly, paradoxically. As I was walked through Falaki Square on my way to the metro, a British man approached me, saying, "Do you live here too?" I confirmed and was then subject to a five-minute tirade en marchant about what awful people not only the Egyptians were, but also the Mexicans apparently. This man advised me that the happiest path to take were one obliged to live in Egypt, is one intentionally devoid of friendship with Egyptians. No matter what, I was informed, Egyptians will make ill use of you in the end. I am sprucing up the language which is not appropriate to reproduce here. He complained about the "stupidity" and lack of logic and made himself sound like a perfectly awful racist. I didn't bother to asked what he was doing in the country, in the end, managing to slip away into the metro.
Now, I won't gloss over the fact that certain norms, ways of acting and interacting that are acceptable to the majority of Egyptians, etc. are to me endelessly vexing and intolerable, but I will say that absolutely none of that is inherent. I find racism, that is to say in the sense of discriminating against someone or believing someone to be lesser because of a perceived and widespread biological inferiority in a people group, absolutely ludicrous. To suggest that Arabs are somehow bereft of logic in their very genes is ignorant. This is especially so because it was their civilization centuries ago was the crowning achievement of humanity and to whom modern Western civilization is heavily indebted especially in various hard sciences, philosophy, medicine, and so on. The cultural values and habits of modern Egyptians that frustrate me are the result not of something inborn, but from a complex web of circumstances stemming from colonialism, Islamism (in its current form itself largely a response to colonialism and Western actions), poverty, religion, and more. Rather than writing off all Egyptians from across the ages as one thing or the other, I remain thankful that I was born where and when I was to have acquired the cultural values and idea that I have and wonder if perhaps some of them might not think the same way, to some extent. I don't have to adopt the Egyptian way of life but rather a way of living in Egypt. I'm proud to be an American, and, unlike when I lived in France, spoke French, attempted to pick up Franch manners from my fastidious host mother, et cetera, I'm not in Egypt for cultural immersion. I'm here to represent my country and the values of Rotary to others while being respectful and taking the best from what I encounter. On the same token, I cannot Egyptians to cater to me and my expectations in their own country. With that in mind, I'm trying to go forward down the path of least resistance, having minimal expectations and being pleasantly surprised when anything exceeds them. This is my way of fighting back, not against Egypt, but against some of the unhelpful ways of thinking that I inevitably slip into after days or weeks of setbacks and frustrations. Like one of the true forms of jihad in Islam (or gehad as it's pronounced here in Egypt), the struggle is inward, not outward.
Well, enough of my rambling explanations of how I'm coping with Egypt. The purpose of my trip to the metro (which was interrupted by the one-sided conversation with the racist Brit) was to go to Ma'adi. I met Phil for what was essentially a late-afternoon brunch at Lucille's. Enjoying Phil's company and stories and the food at Lucille's, I had a great time. Afterward, Phil joined me in a quest to find some bug spray. We found some Egyptian-made Off! at a pharmacy, and just purchasing the bottle of 15% DEET insect-repllent gave me a feeling of relief. I can't tell you how powerful I felt when I popped the top off and began spraying my mosquito-bitten feet, and the couch, and pretty much all of Cairo upon my return home. It was more of a psychological victory than anything. And so it is that I'm feeling much better than when I authored my last entry, once again illustrating the ups and downs of life in Egypt.

News:
European politicians bound for blockaded Gaza in defiance of Israel
Obama sends senior Middle East advisor to Egypt & Syria to outline policy on region
More on the violence at opposition party headquarters in downtown Cairo

A Busy, Breezy Day

My day started at 10:30 with me dashing around to get ready for a Center for Migration and Refugee Studies meeting at the Greek Campus. Once I'd showered and dressed, eaten my habitual muesli and yogurt, and grabbed my iPod, I headed to join my fellow CMRS colleagues who are on the Master's track (which I, of course, am still debating switching to). Ray and Philippe were the faculty there and filled us in on thesis requirements and expectations. Aside from actually choosing the topic, completing a Master's thesis seems a lot less intimidating (but no less challenging) than I had feared when imagining what life as a graduate student would be like. I also had the chance to talk to Ray a bit after the meeting about some of my hesitations and questions about the program, whether to remain and pursue a Master's, and how to come up with a sound thesis topic eventually. I'm hoping to explore the possibility of coming at an issue in migration from an international relations perspective, which might be a bit more work, but certainly fulfilling, I suspect. My classmate Phil and I also talked politics with Ray and ended up being invited to watch the election results at his house, which sounds like a lot of fun.
A small detachment of those attending the meeting, congregated outside in the courtyard in the wonderful weather who's only drawback is that the autumn breeze blows up all sorts of unpleasant things into one's eyes. There, we reviewed a number of possible cases needing to be analyzed for our refugee law midterm which we'll be discussing in class tomorrow. Most consisted of circumstances of people seeking asylum or resettlement and whether they qualified those people for either or not.
From this yet smaller group, Erin, Brandy, and I walked and chatted in Bab al-Luq on the way to my apartment where I grabbed the carrot cake Amanda and I purchased in Ma'adi yesterday, and ultimately Erin and I headed for Zamalek, while Brandy headed to Al-Azhar Park with the Middle East Studies folk.
In Zamalek, I got coffee with a new friend who's a freelance journalist here in Cairo. He's been living in Egypt for three years--I admire his mettle. He was following up on the Moqattam cliffs disaster that I'd mentioned a while back--the rockslides that crushed parts of poor neighborhoods on the outskirts of the city. He also generously brought me back Tom's of Maine toothpaste from a recent trip to America. Ok, so I'm a toothpaste snob.
I met Amanda and Erin for dinner and, though we were suppose to have Ethiopian, we ended up getting Thai. In the short, but respectable, time I have under my belt here, I've begun to develop the ability to expect nothing to go as planned. I don't expect everything to fail, but rather if something I'm hoping for doesn't work out, that something different, but still good will spring up in its place. It's a much healthier and more flexible outlook than moping around blaming Egypt for being chaotic, inefficient, and illogical (though it is all of those things in infinite measure). After dinner, we went back to Erin's to enjoy carrot cake and wine and were joined by Brandy. Not being sated by the dessert and tempted by the presence of a cake shop that delivers even late at night at no charge, we ordered a couple of slices of cheese cake which were actually pretty good attempts. Whether this was calorically wise, I don't think we care to think about. Erin shared stories and pictures of Africa with us and we discussed our musical tastes and some of the things we liked about Cairo. I only just returned from my very full day after midnight, about a half hour ago.
Monday I officially begin teaching English in Ain Shams. I feel like I've been trying to actually volunteer as an English teacher for eons to no avail. We'll just have to wait and see if it works out this time. I'll be sharing my native tongue with Sudanese gang members in the bright pink room I helped scrubbed down last week.

Oh, and I forgot to mention yesterday that in Ma'adi, a beared, traditionally dressed and broadly grinning man tried to give me (or perhaps sell me) a live pigeon in the street yesterday. He had no other pigeons or any cages around him, just a single pigeon. "Hammam?! (Pigeon?!)" No thanks, thought I, after recalling all of the new facts about avian flu I'd just learned at the seminar on Wednesay. Though I won't say the idea of briefly owning a pigeon didn't appeal to me (it surely would've gotten away since I neglected to bring along a cage...silly me).

News:
The US pledges more money to fight bird flu at Egypt talks
Egyptian author pens fictional Chicago about Egyptian expats at the University of Illinois
Bloggers in Egypt arrested while an Egyptian blogger is honored in America

Brunch, a Bagel Store, and a Brezel

Seeking respite from the noise and stares of Cairo, Amanda and I again found ourselves at Lucille's, this time with Erin. Among the three of us, we had pancakes and waffles with maple syrup, hash browns, fried potatoes, toast, and omelets. Miraculously, we were able to order the omelets with egg whites only. Try that anywhere in Egypt and see what you end up with, I dare you! Basking in the Americanness of the restaurant, and the relative quite outside, we ended up shopping a bit after our meal. We wandered from one grocery store and fruit stand to the next, and eventually to a German-style bakery where I scored a free "brezel" (pretzel in German). Finding a bagel store was another pleasant surprise as was the courtesy of the man behind the counter. Amanda and I invested in some carrot cake for tomorrow which we plan to eat after dinner (hopefully Ethiopian food). The weather was sublime, probably in the upper 60s. A light rain fell, the first time I'd felt precipitation in Cairo that wasn't a leaky air conditioner. As if unsure how to descend because of their rarity, the raindrops weaved about in the air crazily rather than falling straight to the earth which, despite being in an upmarket neighborhood was covered in litter and stalked by mangy cats and dogs. The whole experience was refreshing, but we were reminded all too soon as we wandered north and found ourselves back in an even more trash-dense neighborhood replete with gawking, whistling men harassing my friends, and with obnoxious drivers honking the more negative aspects of living here. Collecting the money for tickets, I went up to the counter to buy one for each of us and had the man taking the money refused one of the 50 piastre notes that Amanda had given me. It was darkened as if burned, but not to any significant degree. I peered at him and slid the bill back under the window and he shook his head and said "change." Not giving in, I raised my voice and asked, "ay da!?" (What's this!?/What do you mean!?) He kept saying change and I told him that I had none and that it was legal currency and that, therefore, he was obliged to accept it. The volume of my voice increasing proportionally with the increasing length of time I was made to stand there and he tried to hush me at one point, put his fingers to his lips. Determined not to back down, I ended up screaming to the point where I was attracting attention, had a very kind Egyptian man trade me a 50 piastre coin for the haggardly note, and purchased the ticket. This is but one example of the bizarre obsession with the appearance of banknotes in Egypt. It's as though the cleaner and more pristine they are, the more valuable. Rather than blaming Egypt again, I reminded myself that the man who delivered me from my predicament was just as Egyptian as the man behind the counter and furthermore, recalled the time when, at a train station in Rennes, a snooty French ticketseller refused a bill. Ma'alish.
I am now back at home, reading a bit more for class and catching up on the news. Below are some links, as usual, to the goings-on of Egypt and the Middle East.

American student arrested and detained in Iran
Smuggling tunnels between Egypt and Gaza mean booming black market business
More on the man convicted for molesting a woman in the street, an exception to the rule of unchecked sexual harassment in Egypt

Mexican in Ma'adi

I keep forgetting to mention it, but somehow the weather in Egypt has subtly shifted to something distinctly southern Californian and it's magnificent. I hear that much of winter is like this-70s and perfect. All of those days where I felt as though sunstroke were imminent now seem worth it. (Ask me again next spring though and I may have a different tune.)
Anyway, yesterday for lunch, my two comrades from the previous night's excellent Thai meal, joined me for Mexican at one of the scant few American restaurants in all of Cairo. Lucille's, complete with offerings of mozzarella sticks, burgers, fajitas, and all-day breakfast on weekends is an oasis of Middle America. I had vegetarian enchiladas that were quite convincing and delicious. Though I'm normally not a fan of country music, it was being piped into the restaurant and I waxed a bit nostalgic.
After lunch, Phil returned home to get school work done, and Amanda and I explored Ma'adi, itself the most Americanized bit of Cairo. After munching British chocolate biscuits and talking about life, we headed back to the metro where Amanda boarded one of the women's cars, the need for which is a disturbing testament to, among others things, the intensity of sexual harassment in Egypt. I hopped in a "normal" car and we headed back downtown, our train inexplicably stopping along the way necessitating our switching to another car. Thankfully a veritable gaggle of giggling girls from Amanda's car helped us to know that we were meant to switch.
Once back in town, I headed to meet with one of my professors to discuss my paper topic for her class. The meeting went really well and I realized both that succeeding is more clear-cut than I'd anticipated, but also a heck of a lot of work. There's much research to do to determine whether one of my paper topics is even viable.
Later on, I attended a seminar on pandemic preparedness among the Sudanese migrant communities in Cairo, and then headed to Horraya with the speakers and various groups of other friends and acquaintances. I spent the next few hours table-hopping and chatting. With Phil, I entered into a conversation with a few Egyptian men who had lived abroad and were comparing life there with life in Egypt. One of them, like me, wanted to return to Paris where he'd spent some time. He also seemed to have had a wife from every EU country, being divorced from each and currently married to a Swiss woman.
Today, I'm preparing for class and reading up on "the culture of humanitarianism". Again, I'm thinking of remaining for a second year and getting my Master's. Fickle, right?

News:
Egyptian central bank chief says weaker Egyptian pound would be good
Egypt to give food aid to Zimbabwe
Ministerial meeting in Egypt on possibility of avian flu pandemic

Metro to Ma'adi

The Indian last night turned out to be relatively spectacular. Though it might not have met the standards of those who regularly feast on the finest Subcontinental cuisine, it suited me, a humble Midwesterner with but one Indian restaurant in his whole hometown (Sizzling India on Main St. in Peoria). We had veggie samosas, pakoras to start, paneer makhani and the house daal for our main courses, and delicious pistachio kulfi for dessert. All of this was followed by some sugar-coated fennel seeds which are said to aid in digestion (I like them because they taste like black liquorice).
Today, I had a meeting in Ma'adi whither I took the metro, making friends along the way (as I tend to do when in train cars with curious Egyptians who merrily initiation conversations, asking the most personal questions about my religion, where I live in Cairo, and the like without giving it a second thought). My destination was the Gugu Center where I'll be teaching English to advanced students at least once a week. We toured around and I met some of the Sudanese refugees that Natalie works with through her Youth Violence Prevention Initiative which is affiliated with St Andrew's. Curiously enough, the pastor at that same church is friends with my grandmother's cousin who is originally from Emden, Illinois.
Natalie, as I've mentioned before, is a former ambassadorial scholar herself and has begun to receive positive feedback from Rotarians about really making the project effective. The YVPI has also recently received some funding from the UNHCR. The Initiative's main areas of focus are as follows:

(1) skills training and secondary school level educational opportunities;
(2) promotion of creative expression as a coping mechanism building on the community’s appreciation for hip-hop culture; and
(3) structured, reliable access to sports and venues for physical activities.

I'm obviously involved in the first bit, but anyone can contribute to the overall mission by donated funds or, if you're in Cairo, by volunteering to teach. Please contact me if you're interested in either and I'll refer you to the proper people.
On my way back from Ma'adi, I had a substantial wait for the train, so I took out the Qur'an I purchased in Morocco last year and began reading it. I see Muslims doing this all the time on public transport and I've often wondered how it would be received if I did it. Well, it made me friends, haha. "Are you Islamic? I saw you reading a Qur'an," said a curious bystander. I explained that I'm a Christian but was hoping to understand more about Islam. He smiled appreciatively and we chatted about life in Cairo until he reached his stop.
Well, it's back to reading I go. The topic is again a variation on the theme of defining a refugee.

News of Egypt:
Egyptian journalists fined for doctoring photo of religious leader
France invites Egypt to proposed G14
A story on the hijab in Cairo
Egyptian Center for Women's Rights calls for law against sexual harassment