I think pictures can suffice for now.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Homestay Week
February 14th-20th.
Well remember when I wrote that I was hoping I wouldn't end up living with a family far away?
My morning/nightly commute was about an hour to an hour and a half...one way.
Lovely.
Each morning I would wake up at 6 am...walk out the door by 6:30...walk through the dirt allies to meet up with another girl from MESP who was staying in the same neighborhood and then we would begin our commute together.
Picture a small old van in the worst shape possible...dented, scratched, rusted, doors that won't close fully, zero shocks to absorb bumps etc...
We would begin our day riding one of those until we got close to the metro station where we'd be dropped off. Then we'd get on the metro and ride it for about 14 or so stops (almost always having to stand b/c of the crowd).
For those of you who asked: No I was not able to ever read or get hw done or have a nice quiet time during the commute...not possible with Egyptian public transportation.
After a long ride, we'd get off the metro downtown and head up to the street where we would catch a taxi to take us to Aguza where class is.
Long process.
But actually, it really wasn't too bad.
My family would probably be considered lower or lower middle class and from what I gathered, were pretty conservative Muslims.
The family structure in the house was interesting.
I was living with a mother and three girls...ages 10, 13, and 20.
Olah (the 20 yr. old) doesn't actually live with them, but was staying there since she was on holiday for school. Her father passed away when she was young, and her mother remarried and had two more children (the two other girls in the home). So Olah lived with her siblings from her mother's 1st marriage and her grandparents.
The current husband wasn't there at all while I stayed with them because he works as an engineer in Saudi Arabia.
[This was nice because I didn't have to worry very much about dressing as conservative inside the home as I would've if a male had been around.
But...I think it also took away from the experience because I wasn't able to see the husband/wife and father/daughter relationships played out.]
Happenings/Thoughts:
-Besides class and my commute...I did basically nothing all week.
Really. Seriously.
I went outside of the home with my family only twice the entire time. The first time was to walk with my 3 sisters to their aunts house (which was in the same neighborhood so hardly counts). We sat there talking with her for about 20 minutes or so (and when I say "we sat there talking" I really mean they sat there talking and I sat there smiling, looking from person to person trying to guess what in the world they were saying).
The second time, was on Friday when we traveled to their cousins' home (in a different neighborhood in Cairo) and spent the day in their flat with them.
-From the moment my family woke up, to the moment they went to sleep, they had the tv on...this is the norm here. Family interactions at home take place in front of the screen. They don't even necessarily watch the screen all day, but it's definitely always on, and they're always in front of it.
-Egyptian hospitality revolves around food. They love to feed their guests LOTS of food. When you finish a plate of food, they automatically fill it with more. If you tell them "La'a Shokran" (No Thank you) they insist. Doesn't matter how many times you tell them you're full, they always want you to eat more. Ha. So basically I got stuffed with food for the week.
-I had bits of interesting conversation with my sister Olah about Islam, Bin Laden, Bush, Obama, the taliban, family, and also Judgment Day according to Islam. I would write it all out, and actually I did write some of it on here, but I had to delete it because it took up way too much room. If you want to hear about it, then let me know and I will give you a bit of a summary.
-I learned that Egyptians are very dramatic. Actually I had learned this already in being here, but got to see even more of it during home stay. Interactions between people/family members are way more dramatic than you see in the States (except for maybe my family). There were a lot of times when I would watch and listen to my family speak with each other and I had no idea whether they were having a serious fight, or having a normal conversation.
Overall, I had a great week with my host family. They welcomed me into their home lovingly and the whole experience definitely gave me more insight into the culture, and what life may be like for some Egyptians in Cairo.
Well remember when I wrote that I was hoping I wouldn't end up living with a family far away?
My morning/nightly commute was about an hour to an hour and a half...one way.
Lovely.
Each morning I would wake up at 6 am...walk out the door by 6:30...walk through the dirt allies to meet up with another girl from MESP who was staying in the same neighborhood and then we would begin our commute together.
Picture a small old van in the worst shape possible...dented, scratched, rusted, doors that won't close fully, zero shocks to absorb bumps etc...
We would begin our day riding one of those until we got close to the metro station where we'd be dropped off. Then we'd get on the metro and ride it for about 14 or so stops (almost always having to stand b/c of the crowd).
For those of you who asked: No I was not able to ever read or get hw done or have a nice quiet time during the commute...not possible with Egyptian public transportation.
After a long ride, we'd get off the metro downtown and head up to the street where we would catch a taxi to take us to Aguza where class is.
Long process.
But actually, it really wasn't too bad.
My family would probably be considered lower or lower middle class and from what I gathered, were pretty conservative Muslims.
The family structure in the house was interesting.
I was living with a mother and three girls...ages 10, 13, and 20.
Olah (the 20 yr. old) doesn't actually live with them, but was staying there since she was on holiday for school. Her father passed away when she was young, and her mother remarried and had two more children (the two other girls in the home). So Olah lived with her siblings from her mother's 1st marriage and her grandparents.
The current husband wasn't there at all while I stayed with them because he works as an engineer in Saudi Arabia.
[This was nice because I didn't have to worry very much about dressing as conservative inside the home as I would've if a male had been around.
But...I think it also took away from the experience because I wasn't able to see the husband/wife and father/daughter relationships played out.]
Happenings/Thoughts:
-Besides class and my commute...I did basically nothing all week.
Really. Seriously.
I went outside of the home with my family only twice the entire time. The first time was to walk with my 3 sisters to their aunts house (which was in the same neighborhood so hardly counts). We sat there talking with her for about 20 minutes or so (and when I say "we sat there talking" I really mean they sat there talking and I sat there smiling, looking from person to person trying to guess what in the world they were saying).
The second time, was on Friday when we traveled to their cousins' home (in a different neighborhood in Cairo) and spent the day in their flat with them.
-From the moment my family woke up, to the moment they went to sleep, they had the tv on...this is the norm here. Family interactions at home take place in front of the screen. They don't even necessarily watch the screen all day, but it's definitely always on, and they're always in front of it.
-Egyptian hospitality revolves around food. They love to feed their guests LOTS of food. When you finish a plate of food, they automatically fill it with more. If you tell them "La'a Shokran" (No Thank you) they insist. Doesn't matter how many times you tell them you're full, they always want you to eat more. Ha. So basically I got stuffed with food for the week.
-I had bits of interesting conversation with my sister Olah about Islam, Bin Laden, Bush, Obama, the taliban, family, and also Judgment Day according to Islam. I would write it all out, and actually I did write some of it on here, but I had to delete it because it took up way too much room. If you want to hear about it, then let me know and I will give you a bit of a summary.
-I learned that Egyptians are very dramatic. Actually I had learned this already in being here, but got to see even more of it during home stay. Interactions between people/family members are way more dramatic than you see in the States (except for maybe my family). There were a lot of times when I would watch and listen to my family speak with each other and I had no idea whether they were having a serious fight, or having a normal conversation.
Overall, I had a great week with my host family. They welcomed me into their home lovingly and the whole experience definitely gave me more insight into the culture, and what life may be like for some Egyptians in Cairo.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Siwa
There is NOTHING like the desert.
This was my favorite trip yet…
Siwa is a town located in an oasis in the middle of the Saharan desert (close to Libya).
One of the first things we did in Siwa was rent bikes in town and ride to a local’s home to hear all about the culture of Siwa. It’s very different from Cairo…way way way more traditional. Ex: girls get engaged as early as 7 or 8 years old…and while engaged the male can only see the girl once a year during the engagement for literally maximum 12 seconds.
After he shared with us, the males in our group left and some local girls came so that we could ask them questions and get a taste of what life is like for a female in Siwa. The girls were all family members (cousins, sisters, mother, aunts, etc.) of our local friend so he was able to be present to translate for us.
Interesting:
-The parent-child relationship is extremely different…The daughters don’t really ever talk with their Father, and conversations with their mother are basic, concerning only practical things. Very surface level…nothing deeper.
-We asked a girl (8 yrs old) if she was excited to get married, if she was looking forward to it but the response we got was one of almost confusion. Marriage for them is simply something one does…like going to the market to buy food or cooking etc…there’s not the same emotional attachment to it as in the West.
-We also tried asking what “Love” meant to them, but this question didn’t facilitate much of a response because the girls had nothing to base it off of, nothing to compare…they don’t interact with males at all unless they are a family member.
-Even Siwans love their television (one thing you notice here in Egypt is that EVERYONE has a tv and at least in Cairo it is the norm for a family to have the tv on from the moment they wake up to the moment they go to sleep…all day is spent in front of the tv)
-Sadly the Siwan culture is changing and modernizing because of tourism. There aren’t that many foreigners who visit Siwa compared to many other locations in Egypt, but the Egyptian government has decided (against the will of the community) to build an airport there…this will drastically change the culture and destroy the traditions….
After our time with the Siwan girls I and a few others explored the “Old City” in Siwa and biked to the Oracle and some Hot Springs. We somehow missed the Temple tho and ended up biking out into the desert for quite a while before realizing we were definitely not headed in the right direction (fun detour tho!).
Then that night we biked to a nearby salt lake to swim, rode back in the pitch black night, and went back to our “hotel” for dinner around the campfire accompanied by a local Siwan band.
Friday.
I and another girl in my group stumbled into the shop of the only Christian in Siwa. He invited us through a side door that led into his “home” and served us tea while we sat and chatted (via his 11 yr. old boy who spoke minimal English). He told us that there’s no church in Siwa so the only time they are able to go is during summer when they drive a few hours to the closest town that has one. We had a cool conversation even though we were only using basic language.
Later.
We took jeeps into the desert.
If only I could adequately describe the majesty of the desert…
Sped through the sand in the jeeps, up and down the dunes, weaving crazily right to left.
Illhamdulilah there were no crashes.
Drove to a giant dune and sandboarded (not as cool as expected…the boards didn’t work too well—and also more painful than expected)
We also drove to a cold spring (how the heck it stays as cold as it was out in the middle of the desert, no one knows) a hot spring and then stopped on top of a giant dune for the sunset. The drivers then made a little fire in the sand and we sat around drinking tea and eating dates (which Siwa has A LOT of).
That night we slept in the desert in giant tents (or some slept under the stars) and I froze to death even with all my layers. I brought my smartwool long underwear tops and bottoms that I use for skiing, smartwool socks, sweatpants, a fleece, another fleece on top of that, hat, and gloves. Even with all the layers, it was one of the most miserable nights of my life. Haha. I was SO thankful for morning.
More updates to come...hopefully I can get caught up.
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