So…It’s Been A While.

In case you were wondering…I’m still here in Egypt, I just haven’t gotten around to updating my blog.

It’s Thursday afternoon and I’ve been sick, on and off, since Sunday evening. One word of advice for travellers to Egypt: “Don’t drink the water!” It’s true what they say-it’ll make you puke your guts out for days.

Besides feeling sicky and icky, I’ve been enjoying my stay and am happy that school hasn’t started yet because I don’t know what I would have done trying to go to class and being sick at the same time.

A few touristy things I missed/am missing while I was/am sick:
1. Going inside the Pyramids
2. The Citadel and Azhar Park
3. Going to Alexandria and seeing the famous Alexandria Biliotheca. (Which by the way my roomie is going on the trip so she will be gone for three days and I will be all lonely!)

Lucky for me I’ll be here for four months so I can plan trips with friends to go to these places. :]

Ah, there is so much I have to write and update you guys about my trip, but it’s been a long week and I don’t remember everything! Let’s see….Oh, I went to City Stars which is apparently the second largest mall in the world. I’m thinking, there’s a mall bigger than this? The place is HUGE!

Um…Man, I know there was a ton of stuff I was going to write, but I completely forgot it all. :[

I went to an Egyptian hospital which was quite the experience. It is nothing compared to an American hospital, but at the same time it wasn't really that bad.

What else? Oh, also my internet isn't working here so I've been having to go downstairs to the computer lab, and I don't want to upload my pictures onto their computers so I promise I will eventually put pictures on here. If you have a facebook, I have a couple of pictures on there. I think if you click these links you can see the pictures:

This one is just pictures from the plane on the way up.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2194363&l=d6c19&id=9219330

This one is pictures of my first day in Cairo.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2194503&l=ccc01&id=9219330

Annnnd, this one is pictures from when we went horseback riding in the desert and the the Queen concert.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2195133&l=7768b&id=9219330

So...school doesn't start until September 7 but for those who are wondering, these are the classes I am taking:

ALNG 109: Introduction to Colloquial Arabic
ANTH 312: People and Culture of the Middle East and North Africa
JRMC 360:Principles of Broadcast Journalism
JRMC441: Camera and Editing Workshop
JRMC 471: Online Journalism

OK, guess that's it for this blog. I will try and write more often and keep you guys updated! :]

Egypt: Day Three

So, it’s my third day in Egypt and again it has been fantastic!

I was going to go sign up for a trip to Alexandria, Egypt and also hopefully get my Arabic course changed, but that didn’t end up happening. I woke up about nine and went in and out of sleep until 1:30. It was the first day that I got a TON of sleep. I don’t think I was jetlagged in the first place, but if I was I should be over it.

 

After waking up me and Christine, my roommate, went downstairs to hang out and get some online stuff done for a while. Then, we took a taxi to the old AUC campus and wanted to change classes/sign up for the Alexandria trip, but everyone from orientation had cleared out. So, by this point, around 6:30 we still hadn’t really eaten a meal so we walked over to Hardee’s and got some American food, which by the way was really yummy in my tummy.

 

We scarfed down our food and then waited to go on the horseback riding trip that we signed up for.

 

By the way, the taxi ride was good. I really enjoyed it as well.

 

Once we were finally on the bus, we took a look trip to Giza and went horseback riding, in the deserts and were able to see the Pyramids. It was all really nice and beautiful. From one side you see the city; the other, the pyramids.

 

We all saddled up on horses and took a long ride through the dimly, to not at all, lit desert. It was my first time on a horse, (sad considering I’m from Texas) and it was fantastic. We got the horses to ride and gallop fast.

 

Once we hit our destination, I took some pictures with the pyramids, horses and camels, but sadly my camera died!! I say it’s just another excuse to have to go again. The ride back was also fantastic; though of course as a first timer it took a while to get used to. Like everyone else, I kept on getting my legs squished in between the racing horses as well as  bouncing really high up and down my horse. I do anticipate being a bit sore tomorrow, but it was worth it.

 

There were quite a few times that my feet came out of the little thing you put your feet in (I know, I know, I don’t know what it’s called and I should) where I would lean to one side, but thankfully I didn’t fall.

 

Anyways, throughout the trip we were told not to give them baksheesh, a tip, but of course they kept asking for it. I felt rude for it, but the AUC people said they were already paying them, and their tip.

 

Anyways, my tour guide was a little too friendly, and desperate for baksheesh and afterwards and came up to the closed bus asking for Sarah looking angrily sad, asking for baksheesh. Of course, I ignored him and started looking the other way. This was my first encounter of someone really asking for a tip, and I was able to say no. J

 

 

Anyways, that reminds me that yesterday Christine and I went down to an art store and met some really friendly old guys that work there. I don’t know if I’m just being naïve, but I think they were really nice, in a not creepy way, and have decided that that will be the place I go to practice Arabic.

 

The guys were nice, asking if we liked Obama—they really seemed to have a genuine interest in what is best for America, and said they liked Obama if he was good for America. We also talked about Bush a little and said that most people in America don’t really even like him. He said something to the effect of, Bush was good for four years, but maybe not for eight.

 

Anyways, I want to go there again. It was the first time being in Cairo that the people we were buying stuff from carried on a conversation with us as well, instead of just selling us our products and letting us leave.

 

Anyways, I feel like there is so much more I can say about my trip here, but its late here and I feel like I’ve repeated a lot of my stories.

 

But basically, I’m having a blast. I don’t understand why people wouldn’t want to visit the Middle East. I know I am only in Cairo, which has been quite Europeanized, but the parts outside of Cairo that I have seen have seemed nice and enjoyable as well.

 

So, that’s all for this blog—let you know what happens tomorrow! (Hopefully time will permit).

(p.s. not edited=random)