Fellucas, AUC, Khan El-Khalili

Oh my much has happened since my last post so I want to go ahead and apologize for the length. First of all, the felluca ride was amazing. This was really the first time I had seen Cairo at night, or any other way than flashing past on a crazy bus ride. There were several other boats on the water with some romantic lights on blaring the music of Fairouz and other Arabic music legends, it was really quite an event. 

Felluca

The next morning we went to the beginning of AUC orientation. This was organized in a somewhat dysfunctional way wherein several tasks that could have taken us only one day to complete are now taking us all at least 3. However, we did get to scope out campus which is massive and very gorgeous- the campus looks more like a small resort than a university. Also, we started our "Survival Arabic" course that ND is requiring us all to take.

AUC Campus

These past few nights I have been tired and somewhat blue so I decided to stay in at night instead of going to the shisha bar or a party. However, tonight totally made up for all of that. Tonight we decided to go to Khan El-Khalili, which my guidebook describes as "the oriental bazaar of fable." This may be true in the daylight but at night and during Ramadan this place was not exactly as picturesque and quintessential David Roberts as one might think with such a description. 12 of us went on this expedition and took three taxis to get there. Along the way we saw stores full of scandalous lingerie with women clad in full burkas walking outside, black gloves and all. We had someone of a challenge meeting up because we all arrived to the bazaar at different times and in various locations. After two of us groups of four found each other, a random egyptian man from the street started talking with us offering a tour "free of charge." He helped us talk with our missing friends on the phone to discuss a rendezvous point but then took us down a nondescript side street and to a dirty sketchy staircase. He insisted we follow and one of our group members (a female) started up the staircase after him. I was worried at this point, but didn't want to abandon her so we all decided to follow this stranger up this dingy flight of stairs that went on and on and on and on. The further up we got the more I was sure we were going to be sold into the underground trade of sex trafficking or something, it was that sketchy. However, it turned out that this man was taking us to a store of papyrus paintings. This was a much better alternative. We were up in this tiny hot room for a long time and finally insisted that we had to go meet our friends and were poor. 

We found the other members of our group and the man that took us to the papyrus store (his name is Tewfak) took us on an unofficial tour of "the real Khan El-Khalili." This included a fast-paced walk through smelly mud streets with beautiful mosques nearby. Finally, we walked through an alley where men were smoking shisha outside and the smell of their tobacco mixed with the smells of fresh pita and a spice shop finally helped me feel at home in this strange new place. Eventually we had Tewfak take us back to the main road so we could take a cab home. This cab ride was an experience in and of itself- my friend said we were going as fast as the car could go through a tunnel-- it looked like we were in a fast and the furious video game or something. I have never experienced driving like that before. Now it's time for bed!

In Zamalek!

Hello! So finally we are here in Cairo- our airport journey was even better due to the fact that we met a girl in the Chicago airport named Mary who is also going to AUC (the American University of Cairo) this fall from Wisconsin. Our first view of Cairo from the airplane even included a glimpse of the pyramids through the haze that is the pollution of Cairo. Last night we got into the airport around 6:30 and were picked up by people sent by AUC  and were taken to our dorm, on the Nile island called Zamalek, which is apparently an area where a lot of international embassies and therefore has more of a european feel to it. I am in a triple and right now it is only me and my new friend Clare (from St. Thomas in Minnesota!). One of the male RAs took us right away to get Egyptian cell phones and then we got some food at the grocery store, unpacked, then went to sleep.
This next morning a big group of us met down in the lobby and wandered around zamalek for a while and ended up at the Cairo Museum on the main land. This was such a great introduction to Egypt- a stroll through modern day Cairo then a taste of the ancient history Egypt is so well known for. This is the month of Ramadan, wherein muslims do not eat or drink during daylight hours, quite and impressive practice. However, being a tourist and a christian, it is tricky to stay hydrated while seeing the sights. They say not to drink Cairo water but i'm not so sure about that...

The Nile and the island of Zamalek

Some of the group on our journey across the Nile

Cairo Museum

Now we are back at the dorm and have a bit of down time before an organized lunch in the dorm cafeteria at 4, after which we get a tour of the dorm and then at some point we will go on a felluca (type of boat) ride in the nile.

Destination: Cairo

It's the night before i leave the country for 9 months. My 2 huge suitcases are finally packed and ready to go, they barely make the 50 pound weight limit, so i'll either have to eat steroids for breakfast tomorrow or bank on some chivalrous soul assisting me once I get to Egypt. I'm a bit apprehensive at this point, I know I am really going to miss everybody at home and at school but I hope the cure for all of this worry is a seat on a Boeing 767 as well as the faces of the other students who will be going with me from ND. If I had a firmer grip on mathematics and time zones i could tell you how many hours from now it is until touch down but alas i cannot. So until my next post... good bye!