Ramadan Kareem!
I know you've all been waiting on the edge of your seats for my next Egypt update! Well, wait no longer, because it's here! So, stuff has happened since my last post...Ramadan started today, which is pretty cool. All of our classes get pushed forward and shortened so they're all finished by Iftar (the sunset meal that breaks the fast). I myself am obviously not fasting, because 1) I am not Muslim, 2) It seems kind of unhealthy to starve yourself all day and then gorge yourself at dinnertime, and 3) I enjoy eating (and also drinking juice/water, which Muslims are not allowed to do during this time). Just in case you didn't know, they all fast from sunrise to sundown. It was really funny because I was sitting there eating a sandwich at lunchtime and all these Egyptians were staring at me. I felt all guilty, but I was in the cafeteria, so I didn't know where else I was supposed to go!
In other news, my first AIESEC meeting was on Saturday! It was quite ridiculously long, lasting for a whopping 6 and a half hours. And I am one of only two Americans in the whole club...which is pretty sweet, because I get to make some Egyptian friends. Among MANY other things, we had group discussions about the Denmark Cartoon Issue. At first I was afraid to say anything because I thought I might offend someone, but I was really surprised by how openly we were able to talk about Islam and the problems between the Middle East and the West. We thought of ways to help bridge the gap between the two cultures, and it was so inspiring. This is why I love AIESEC--whenever you go to a meeting/conference, you walk out feeling like you can change the world. And everyone was so interested in what I had to say, and I actually said some worthwhile/semi-intelligent-sounding things! Good times. I think AIESEC here is going to be a whole lot of fun. I even got to teach them the correct AIESEC dance steps to Cotton Eye Joe (they were off-beat and it was kind of bothering me), which was awesome.
Thirdly, I am (probably) officially going to Istanbul, Turkey over Fall Break in October! Mumtaz!!! Jill and I signed up today, and I'm very excited. AUC is sponsoring the trip, so they're going to plan everything for us--it's going to be sweet. I'm kind of mad because Molly pretty much ditched me behind my back and randomly decided to go to freaking LEBANON for the break without consulting me. Okay, number 1, Lebanon is NOT SAFE RIGHT NOW, and number 2, way to completely forget about how we agreed that we would travel around the Middle East together. Fine, fine. But I don't really care, because Turkey will undoubtedly be amazing.
Other things...well, I saw Lady in the Water at City Stars (this really upscale Western-style mall), and I actually liked it. Sure, it was silly at times with the "scrunts" and "narfs" and whatnot, but I thought it was an interesting and very imaginative story. I don't really know why everyone hated it so much. While I was at the mall, I also bought myself a fancy shirt with my mom's credit card as a birthday present. And we ate at Chili's, again. Haha. I love that restaurant, and the waiters there are always really amused by us. Arabic is still going excellently--my teacher is great and there is hardcore learning taking place. I guess that's about it...vocab flashcards await me. Ma'a salaama!!!
In other news, my first AIESEC meeting was on Saturday! It was quite ridiculously long, lasting for a whopping 6 and a half hours. And I am one of only two Americans in the whole club...which is pretty sweet, because I get to make some Egyptian friends. Among MANY other things, we had group discussions about the Denmark Cartoon Issue. At first I was afraid to say anything because I thought I might offend someone, but I was really surprised by how openly we were able to talk about Islam and the problems between the Middle East and the West. We thought of ways to help bridge the gap between the two cultures, and it was so inspiring. This is why I love AIESEC--whenever you go to a meeting/conference, you walk out feeling like you can change the world. And everyone was so interested in what I had to say, and I actually said some worthwhile/semi-intelligent-sounding things! Good times. I think AIESEC here is going to be a whole lot of fun. I even got to teach them the correct AIESEC dance steps to Cotton Eye Joe (they were off-beat and it was kind of bothering me), which was awesome.
Thirdly, I am (probably) officially going to Istanbul, Turkey over Fall Break in October! Mumtaz!!! Jill and I signed up today, and I'm very excited. AUC is sponsoring the trip, so they're going to plan everything for us--it's going to be sweet. I'm kind of mad because Molly pretty much ditched me behind my back and randomly decided to go to freaking LEBANON for the break without consulting me. Okay, number 1, Lebanon is NOT SAFE RIGHT NOW, and number 2, way to completely forget about how we agreed that we would travel around the Middle East together. Fine, fine. But I don't really care, because Turkey will undoubtedly be amazing.
Other things...well, I saw Lady in the Water at City Stars (this really upscale Western-style mall), and I actually liked it. Sure, it was silly at times with the "scrunts" and "narfs" and whatnot, but I thought it was an interesting and very imaginative story. I don't really know why everyone hated it so much. While I was at the mall, I also bought myself a fancy shirt with my mom's credit card as a birthday present. And we ate at Chili's, again. Haha. I love that restaurant, and the waiters there are always really amused by us. Arabic is still going excellently--my teacher is great and there is hardcore learning taking place. I guess that's about it...vocab flashcards await me. Ma'a salaama!!!