After spending most of yesterday morning fuming over more of the trials OSA has put me through (such as the fact that my tuition money has still not been paid by MSU to AUC), I headed back over to campus to sit in the gardens and read for a bit before dinner. When I got there, I called my friends Caprill and Stephanie, who were at a cafe across the street from AUC's main campus, and Caprill told me that a bunch of people were planning to go to the Pyramids for a sunset horseback ride, and was I interested in going?
Ten minutes later we were in a cab heading out to meet Stephanie's friend Jai, along with approximately a dozen other AUC students at Zamalek (the main AUC dormitory on one of the Nile islands). Caprill and I ended up in a cab with these two guys named Sam and Tripp, which in and of itself was an adventure. It was probably fortunate for us that our cab driver didn't speak much English, and Sam didn't speak much Arabic, because if not for the language barrier, I think we would have been booted out of the cab before we even crossed the river on the way to Giza. The cabbie was trying to convey his frustration with the heavy late afternoon traffic (we ended up leaving smack in the middle of rush hour) and kept throwing up his hands and yelling "Cairo, no good! America, very good! Cairo, no good!" Later, he attempted to learn what our religions were (I really have no idea how we got onto that track), and when Sam said that he had no religion (which in Egypt is the wrong answer; 90% of the country is Muslim and the concept of atheism doesn't sit well even with those who don't practice their religion), the cabbie said to him, "You Osama bin Laden!"
After some deeply frustrating adventures attempting to locate the other 3 cabs (the short version involves Caprill and I walking around Giza with very little idea of where we were, or where we were going, or what we were supposed to find when/if we got there), we finally met up with some of Jai's Egyptian friends who were going to get us a deal on horses (in the end, it was an amazing deal - LE40 for about 2.5-3 hours of riding). About half of us rode horses, and the others, assisted by little kids, rode camels. Having seen just how tall a camel is while we waited for our mounts to arrive, I elected for a horse instead. Those of you who know me are well aware of my...discomfort...around horses and my near total lack of equestrian skills; perhaps sensing that this was the case, they put me on a horse that I firmly believe may have been stupid.
Some of the other horses were straining to go while we waited for the camel-riders to saddle up; mine was not one of these, which I took to be a sign that it would be a calm horse. Once out of the parking lot, it moved at a decent pace to keep up with the front of the pack, and we enjoyed a nice mellow ride through the neighborhoods of Giza. Although the pyramids are such a popular site for tourists in Egypt - understandably so - the surrounding area is fairly run-down. The main streets featured small restaurants and shops, most selling tacky pyramid-related souvenirs, but it was clear from the condition of the streets and the houses that the people living in that vicinity really relied heavily on tourist traffic to make a living - and even with the volume of Pyramid tourism, that this wasn't nearly as lucrative a business as one might suppose.
When we finally got to the desert, my horse just stopped. I kicked it in the way that I am given to understand that one kicks a horse in order to make it go. It would not go. One of the kids who had been assisting us made some clicking noise at it. Then he tried swatting it with a crop. Then he took the reins from me and tried to physically pull the horse off the road and onto the sand. Still, it would not go. (If you see those people/camel-shaped specks in the middle of the photo at right, that is the slow part of my group. Then there was me.) It probably took us an hour to get from there to our destination, a plateau just beyond the view of this photo where we could take pictures and walk around. Luckily, on the way back they gave me a different horse (probably because I told Jai's friends flat out that I was not only not going to pay for that terrible horse, but if there wasn't an alternate way for me to get back to town, I was going to walk), which I'd like to think I handled pretty well.
Luckily, while my first horse lacked mobility, its constant stopping made for some excellent photos, which you can view here. After we returned to town and settled our bills with the stables and paid our ba'sheesh (tips), Mango and Zeke (who organized the trip for us) took us out for kosheri down the street. While we regrouped and planned our next excursions after dinner, a wedding party made several passes down the street, honking and blasting Egyptian music. About 2/3 of us (all 6 girls plus 2 guys, Josiah and CJ) elected to head to Khan el-Khalili, the major marketplace in Islamic Cairo, while the rest of the guys decided now (read: past closing time) would be a great time to sneak into the Pyramids. I suppose I'll have heard by the time everyone gets back to campus on Monday whether they were successful or are currently in the custody of the no-nonsense Egyptian police. Maybe I should have lent them my transferred Egyptian bail bond...
I took some photos at Khan el-Khalili; unfortunately, the dust from the desert and the roads had obscured the lens (just the outer part, alhamduliila) on my camera, and so all of the photos have these gray orbs all over them. I'll almost certainly return, though, and take some better photos then. We ended up spending a lot of time at one shop selling mother-of-pearl inlay tables, gaming boards, and boxes, where the proprietor taught us the difference between the price classes of products (pure mother-of-pearl vs. decorated wood), then heading to a nearby cafe for tea, where we stayed until after midnight. I was exhausted when I got home and fell asleep immediately.
This morning Caprill and I got up reasonably early (everyone else has left for the study abroad orientation at the Red Sea), and went to the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. But that's another story for another day...
I still have not taken any good photos of AUC's campus, and for this I apologize. I've gone every day since I arrived here, and it has always been for the purpose of getting things done and then getting the hell out. Although the buildings are largely air conditioned (and even the parts that are not, such as hallways, are much cooler simply for lack of direct sun), it is unbelievably hot here, and the heat is starting to take its toll on me. We keep the air conditioner in our room on at all times, and the curtains shut (which to some extent is a practical adjustment, since Nafiza understandably likes to go hijab-less in our room), and walking in after a long morning at campus feels wonderful in a way that cannot be properly understood anywhere that isn't routinely in the upper 90s F.
One of my major adventures this week has been conquering Cairo's Metro system. After ALI orientation and lunch out on Tuesday, Caprill and I decided that rather than wait almost an hour for the next shuttle bus to arrive, we would take the Metro from Sadat (which is the station located under Midan Tahrir) to El Behoos, which is the nearest stop to our dorm in Doqqi. We paid a guinea (LE1, approximately $0.20) each for the privilege of riding what I can honestly say is the cleanest and most idiot-proof public transportation system I've ever encountered. Like many other local rail transport systems, the Metro requires only that you know what the last stop on your line is (though knowing your own stop would also be beneficial), which made my complete lack of navigational skills a non-issue.
We walked down two flights of stairs to get to the platforms, all of which are painted in bright colors and air conditioned. Because it's so cheap and efficient, the Metro is also usually quite crowded; when we got to the platform at approximately 1 PM there was a train waiting, but we elected to wait for a second, less crowded train. On all trains, the first car (and sometimes both the first and second cars) are reserved for women and children, and therefore are much less crowded and generally considered safer and more comfortable for individual or groups of women travelers. Through Caprill and I attracted a fair amount of staring from our fellow passengers (which is why I didn't take any photos), this was nothing compared to what we'd have encountered on the mixed-gender cars. To be honest, I think that even if I were traveling with a group of guys, I'd probably elect to take the women's car simply for spatial (to say nothing of physical) comfort.
Overall, I haven't found the harassment that I was warned about to be problematic. Since I'm usually with a group of girls who are all obviously American (except for Nafiza), we tend to attract stares wherever we go - even on campus - but so far I've only had a few men be so bold as to whistle or comment aloud. It helps, too, that I don't have the vocabulary to understand the conversations that occur as we pass; thus even if Egyptians are commenting on us, I don't have any way of knowing for sure. I've been wearing my sunglasses anytime I go out on the streets, not just because of the sun, but because eye contact is often construed as an invitation for interaction. (I was wearing my big sunglasses when Nafiza and I were exploring Midan Tahrir recently, one guy yelled at me "Hey, nice shades!" which I found more amusing than anything.)
I'll definitely be using the Metro again soon; even with the walk home from the station, it was much quicker than the shuttle and comes every ten minutes (as opposed to the shuttle, which comes every hour, and only until 7:30 PM). And, with the way traffic works in Cairo, it's probably safer to not be on the road! I took this photo as Caprill and I were waiting to cross the road to get to the Metro station in Midan Tahrir; as you can see, traffic is very heavy, and it hardly ever lets up. Midan Tahrir reminds me of Place d'Etoile in Paris - many, many "lanes" of traffic, where everyone essentially drives wherever they want to and lays on the horn when somebody gets in the way. All of the traffic circles have lights, which are occasionally obeyed, and some have police directing traffic during rush periods who are, again, occasionally obeyed. My friend Sara equated crossing busy streets to playing Frogger, but we've become astonishingly bold in just a week of being here; none of the American kids think twice anymore about crossing halfway and waiting in the street for traffic to slow enough to cross. (Mom, please pretend you didn't read that.) And people think Chicago residents are aggressive about crossing the street...
(FYI: The red building at the back of the lower photograph is the Egyptian Museum, which I may be visiting as early as this weekend. The study abroad kids depart for El Gourna either tomorrow or Friday, and so Caprill and I are planning to hit up some sites so that we don't die of boredom at Kanzy all weekend. From the perspective of the photo, the university is behind me and to the left, but from this point all one would see is the wall surrounding Main Campus.)
I left O'Hare at approximately 3 PM on Friday (my flight having been delayed by about 20 minutes due to late arrival from LA - good thing I didn't leave any earlier) and flew 8 hours to Frankfurt, Germany. In Business Class. And let me tell you, if you have never flown Business Class, you don't know what you're missing. I had probably 2 feet of leg room, a fold-out leg rest, and a seat which reclined almost all the way to horizontal. And a really big tray table which came out of the arm rest, and a personal video screen which came out of the center console (on which I watched Waitress). And then there was the food. Case Hall would have been hard pressed to provide food this good even on one of their above-average days.
The Frankfurt International Airport is very nice; I walked about a mile (seriously) through the airport at 5:45 AM on Saturday (local time) from my arrival terminal to the center court, which is called Goethe Plaza and features a large number of shops and restaurants that seem to have been designed more for yuppies than for people who go to airports at 5:45 AM. (Or any other time.) I could have bought Versace ties, designer watches, and gallons of Jack Daniels (all duty-free, of course), or even had my suit tailored while I waited. I declined, though did get an overpriced cappuccino while I waited for my connection to Cairo (9 AM local time).
Cairo is four hours from Frankfurt, and an hour ahead. For this leg, I was unfortunately resigned to Economy Class (back with the rest of the cattle), but did have a window seat with an amazing view of the Alps and the Greek islands as we crossed the Mediterranean, itself phenomenally blue. (I had a window seat from Chicago to Frankfurt as well, though most of that flight was at night, but I did get to see some Scottish and East Anglican cities all lit up, as well as the stars from 37,000 feet.)
Getting from Cairo International to my residence was trying in and of itself - never mind that I'd been awake for about 23 of the previous 24 hours at that point. First, we got lost in Doqqi looking for the Marwa Palace Residence. (Arabic Students: Let me emphasize the importance of your short vowels here and now. If I had told the driver we were looking for Sharia al-Khatib, pronouncing it with an "i," as opposed to Sharia al-Khatab, pronouncing it with an "a," I'd have arrived about one hour earlier.) When I finally arrived, I handed my passport and confirmation email to the receptionist, who went to confer with her supervisor regarding my rooming assignment. 20 minutes later, they had packed me into a taxi with directions to Fonduq Kanzy, a women's residence hall in Doqqi, because apparently in the two days since my housing had been confirmed, I'd been switched to Kanzy. Fine, whatever. Except that Kanzy didn't have a reservation for me either. Kanzy's receptionist was on the phone, speaking angry and annoyed sounding Arabic, as I attempted to hold it together at the desk. They finally stuck me in a room; truth be told, I have no idea if I'm supposed to be here or not, but they will have to pry my cold, dead hands off these orange vinyl chairs before I will move.
My room itself is a bit of an eyesore, apparently decorated by someone with a bad case of '70s nostalgia. The carpet is orange shag, accented with orange vinyl chairs and orange light fixtures. Our TV looks like the one that my mother took to college circa 1975 (this morning we watched Saudi cartoons before we went to the university), and the bedspreads and curtains are made of the same supremely ugly material (in the pictures, it might appear that it is some sort of African print, but in fact it is not; it is just ugly, plain and simple). Even the bathroom is a blast from the past, with its dark yellow ceramic fixtures, blue tile/decor, and this thing that I do not know what it is. I have claimed one corner of the room, next to the TV as my computer/desk area, ceding the small round table to Nafiza, my roommate (American University).
I went to campus for the first time today, but I'm going to hold off on posting about it until at least tomorrow, only because today it was all really, really new and I still don't feel that I have a good sense of the place. I'll take some photos then as well. My placement testing and orientation are on Tuesday, but I'm going back to campus tomorrow for a little while to see if I can actually locate the ALI office (I've received several different opinions as to its location and hours). I think I'm going to try taking the Metro to Midan Tahrir and see if that transportation works, since the shuttle only comes once an hour and pick-up times from the campus are a bit shifty.
*With no insult intended towards past, present or future affiliates of either of these groups, or the affiliates of their affiliates.
I am safely in Cairo. Today has been a real test of my faith in my own abilities (for example, my frequently-tested ability to communicate in Arabic) and of my patience and flexibility. It was ugly, but I'm settled into my dorm now and things are better.
I'll post more tomorrow - my battery is pretty near dead and I've been awake for more than 24 hours at this point. I'm going to go have a look around the dorm and try to acquaint myself with this place.
Love,
Liz
I did finally hear back from the good people over at Housing about my residence assignment. As I suspected, it is one of the hotel dorms, buildings kind of co-opted by AUC to sustain their large number of students. Your standard amenities, though nobody has responded to my inquires about room assignments or roommates, so I guess I will just see what happens when I arrive on Saturday. To be honest, I don't see myself spending tons of time in my dorm anyway - I'm going to make my best effort to jump right into Cairo (just as soon as I overcome my jet lag/other flight complications) and work to keep that habit up.
A lot of people have been asking me if it's weird to think that while all my best friends are moving into dorms/apartments in East Lansing for the start of our senior year, as I set off for another country. Right now, I'm dealing with the weirdness of realizing that I am leaving this very week to go (after how long?), but the whole family is going up to East Lansing tomorrow to move in my siblings on Wednesday, and after that I think that yes, it will feel a little weird.
I got my visa on Thursday (after applying at the Chicago Consulate on Tuesday, what a great system), but I'm a little concerned because the application emphatically states that I may not bring "soft drugs" into Egypt. When I called to ask about this little note, the woman on the other end of the phone was a bit perplexed at the question (yes, we're looking at the same visa application), and could only explain that clearly labeled prescription drugs could be brought in without any trouble. (Which wasn't really the answer I was looking for...at all.) I'm sure my fear is unfounded, but I have this horrible vision that my Dramamine is going to get confiscated at customs and I will subsequently be unable to explain what kind of medication it is that I seek. (Like that time in France when I attempted to explain to the pharmacist that my roommate needed medicine for lactose intolerance and ended up buying some sort of anti-diarrheal instead.) And let me tell you, I will be the least fun person in the entire country if I do not have Dramamine.
Alright, the good news is that I got my residence assignment for AUC today. I will be living in the Dokki neighborhood of Cairo, in the Marwa Palace Residence, about which I will post information just as soon as AUC provides me with some. Because when I went to their student housing website...Marwa Palace isn't listed. However, it is in the same neighborhood as the Kanzy Residence, so I am thinking maybe both are located in an AUC residential area. I am hoping this is the case.
I also received a list of ALI students for 2007/08 today, and there is a kid from Naperville (UIUC student) going as well. This is simply more evidence to support the theory that suburban Chicago is the center of the known universe.
After some deeply frustrating adventures attempting to locate the other 3 cabs (the short version involves Caprill and I walking around Giza with very little idea of where we were, or where we were going, or what we were supposed to find when/if we got there), we finally met up with some of Jai's Egyptian friends who were going to get us a deal on horses (in the end, it was an amazing deal - LE40 for about 2.5-3 hours of riding). About half of us rode horses, and the others, assisted by little kids, rode camels. Having seen just how tall a camel is while we waited for our mounts to arrive, I elected for a horse instead. Those of you who know me are well aware of my...discomfort...around horses and my near total lack of equestrian skills; perhaps sensing that this was the case, they put me on a horse that I firmly believe may have been stupid.
