Cairo-June2010

I am now coming to the end of my three week break from Markaz Fajr (Fajr Center). Two days into my break I went to see my overall grade from Level 5. The grades are posted on the board for all to see. I knew my final exam grade about 15 minutes after I took my exam b/c the teacher graded write in front of me (since I have a private session and it was just me) which was a little nerve wrecking. I paid so much attention to the grammar that I didn’t study the vocabulary like I should have. So my final test grade wasn’t as high as the mid-term. Honestly, I can’t remember the numbers. I think I should start writing it down. My overall grade was good but I still want it to be higher.
After finding out my test grades I spent time preparing for my trip to Alexandria. I bought a new pair of shoes and went out to buy fabric for some new scarves in Attaba. While I was out I “discovered” this place called Khan El-Khalili. I had heard nice things about the place from a friend who said she couldn’t tell me how to get there because it involved a lot of walking. It just so happened on the way back from buying fabric I decided to turn down a row of shops. As I was walking I started to notice white people with cameras and backpacks. I asked one of the guys the name of the place and yep it was Khan El-Khalili!! Now this place is not super special but it is very hard to find things like post cards, T-shirts, something nice with Arabic or anything that says “Egypt” on it. Most shops are you everyday Family Dollar type stores. Because I didn’t initially plan on buying anything I mostly looked around. I found out that if they think you are Arab the price goes down. I bought a pair of sunglasses for 20LE but the man initially told me 100LE. The restaurants in the area have two menus: one in Arabic and one in English. The menu in Arabic has cheaper prices. For example, a kabob meal on the English menu is 150LE but 100LE on Arabic menu. This is not exactly a secret because when I asked the guy what is the difference between the two menus he pointed out to me the prices were different. The whole time I was there I spoke Arabic even when people spoke to me English. I have realized that the key to haggling is to know in advance what you should be paying and to just stand there and keep repeating the amount that you want over and over again. My hope is to go back and get lots of nice trinkets before returning home.
The second week of my vacation was spent in Alexandria! This trip was in the making before I even arrived in Egypt. When I announced that I was going to Egypt, Sister Nadia (someone from my masjid and my neighbor) immediately invited me to visit her because she too would be in Egypt over the summer. So I took the train from Cairo to Alexandria. I sprung for first class seating, which was only about $9 USD (50LE). The train ride was very nice and peaceful. It only took about 2 hours to get there on the non-stop train.
Al hamdulilah (Praise God), Sister Nadia had things very well planned. The first day she and I along with her niece went to visit the Castle Qait Bay. The place was big and had a lot of steep stairs. Fortunately we went on a day when it wasn’t crowded. We took a lot of pictures and I was very happy that I bought new comfortable shoes. After that we stopped for lunch and prayer and then went on to visit Al-Muntazah Palace. The Palace was a very beautiful and serene place. We couldn’t go inside although in the past they allowed people to enter. On the first day I rode in the front seat of the car and was able to look at everything along the Corniche (or the coast line). Both the Castle and the Palace were near the water. I also spent a lot of time gasping out of fear when I was in the front seat. I am now more accustomed to the driving in Egypt but in Alexandria the median is very small. Most people run from one side of the street to the median and from the median to the other side of the street. The median in Alexandria is like a balance beam and most people look like they are on the verge of falling off into traffic.
After the first day I was either in the back of taxis or the back seat of a car and my gasping was kept to a minimum. The second day was spent visiting the Alexandria museum and the Alexandria Library. The Alexandria Library was very impressive. We joined a tour group of mostly Americans from Tennessee. Being in the library reminded me of being at the Newseum in Washington, DC because both places are full of information. I think it was the best attractions in Alexandria. The next two days were spent hanging out at the beach. The beach was nice and the weather was never oppressively hot. Overall, my visit to Alexandria was a much needed break and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to go.
I spent the last few days of my vacation saying good-bye to most of my roommates. Majority of the girls in the house have gone home for the summer. Some will return others will remain in their home countries. In the next week about 22 more girls will be arriving for the summer. Hopefully, I will be able to meet some more interesting people.