Since living in Egypt...

...I'm proud to say that I have become quite the expert at peeing in holes, like the one shown below.

It's a skill that I'm sure will come in handy for the rest of my life.
Thank you, Egypt.

Siwaaaaaaat? Oasis

We took a weekend to go to the Siwa Oasis.
See it on the map???

If you are ever in Egypt... we highly suggest taking a weekend trip to Siwa.  It is totally worth it.  It was probably the greatest trip Andrew and I have ever done.

We left right after Friday church and drove 10 hours to get there.  We could have walked to the Libyan border, but to reduce the risk of being sex trafficked or kidnapped by terrorists, we stayed at our camp.  And a great camp it was!!!  We were with a Bedouin tribe in the middle of nowhere.
We all sat on the ground inside this huge tent and ate delicious food, and then they threw us a party at 2 am with lots of music, dancing, and tea.
And then, we slept under the stars.  GAAAAAAAAH, those stars!!!!!!!!!!  I can't even begin to use words to describe it.  It was the clearest night sky I have ever seen in my life.
Just try to imagine being in the middle of the Western Sahara Desert, where there is no pollution, haze, or lights.... we could see every single star in the universe.  Ok, I'm exaggerating, but you get the point?  Seriously though.  Every star.
We couldn't sleep because we were all so in love with the sky.

Anyways, we woke up, got into our Safari jeeps and took off to play in the natural springs, see the ruins in Siwa town, and ride the dunes of the great sand sea.  Really.  Best trip ever.

And here is a serious picture overload.  Good luck.

Inside our tent.  And there's Becca, taking a nap.  Don't let her fool you though, she slept outside under the stars too!

The outside.  Clearly the inside is much more lively and colorful.

The natural hot spring at our camp.  The Bedouins bathe in it every morning.

Campsite!

Our lil' Safari Jeep!

Jumping into Cleopatra's Bath, the most famous Oasis in Siwa!  It's ancient people!!!

Us, being naked.

The ancient Temple where Alexander the Great came and was told by the oracle that he was the son of God. Pretty cool if you ask me.....

Dare devils!

The city of Siwa, and part of the ancient fortress.

MegAndy on top of the Mountain of the Dead... all of those holes below us are tombs in the ground.  We found bones and everything.

Inside one of the tombs at the Mountain of the Dead.

Just us, our jeeps, and the great Sand Sea!

I bought that shirt for $5.  It is an XXL, and the sun has faded the color in some spots, but I am in love with it.

This is our jeep pointing straight down.  Literally.  I thought we were going to die more than once on that ride.  Those dunes are steeeeeeeeep.

This is not a mirage.  That's a lake.  In the middle of the DESERT.

Andrew, sandboarding down a ginormous dune.  The second time he went, he got going so fast that he crashed into the sand at the bottom.... he's had a scab and a black and blue and purple eye for about 2 weeks now.  He is proud of his battle scar.

This is me, and the Western Sahara Desert.

The perfect sunset to end the perfect day.

We love you, Siwa!

M.

Picture Post: The pics you've all been waiting for.

"Man fears time, but time fears-- THE PYRAMIDS."

[Actual quote from the super tacky Sound and Light show the Pyramids put on every night...]

I've been hearing horror stories about the Giza Pyramids for a few months. 

They're not even that big.
You'll be attacked by men trying to scam you and take your money!
It's too hot!
I didn't like them... they were underwhelming.

While all of those things may or may not be true, my personal Pyramid experience was one for the books.
It was PERFECT.

The weather was the coolest it had been for weeks.  I never once broke a sweat or needed water and there were dozens of clouds dotting the sky- that's right- clouds!  In Cairo!?!!

We went on a Friday and late in the afternoon near closing time, so there were barely any people there, tourists and merchants and camel drivers alike.  Who can beat having a tourist attraction like the Pyramids all to yourself??

We had a nice, long camel ride and paid a decent price for it too.  The only downfall was that one of the camels was rabid, but that's another story for another post.  Oh, and my crotch hurt for 3 days- riding those things was terrifying so I must have had a death grip with my thighs trying to stay on.  Man, was I soooore.

I think they size of the Sphinx and the Pyramids was just right.  The 4th grader inside me who once dreamed of seeing the Pyramids in real life could not have been happier.
Alhamdulillah.

Here's the fun we had:

Good weather, good times, and good friends, what more could we have asked for??

Here's to more adventures.  Cheers,

M.

Random Thoughts: Part II

Today Andrew and I went on a shopping spree.  We bought a load of tacky souveniers, for the fun of it.  Then we did grocery shopping and bought over 90 EGP (about 18 US dollars...) of foreign cheese.  That's more money than we spend in a week living here.  We have a cheese problem.  And then we went to the vegetable market, where I bought 3 LARGE grocery bags full of assorted veggies for less than 1 US dollar.  YOU CAN'T BEAT IT!  It's all fresh, and it's all delicious.

At said veggie market, a man selling mint stopped Andrew and asked if I was his wife.  Andrew said yes and the man congratulated Andrew and gave him a big high five.  He then turned to me and said, "Miss, you are very beautiful and you are very sugar."  We don't know what me being sugar actually means. 
I got a rad henna tattoo done from a Sudanese woman.  It was at her apartment that she shares with her mother and her children.  She told us many Egyptian brides get henna done, and they often dress in traditional Indian clothes for their wedding's here in Egypt.  Before I knew it, we were all playing dress us up in their home, wearing Indian sari's and loads of gold jewelry and dancing around like we were in a Bollywood film.  Lots of pictures were taken.

I rode a camel at the Pyramids and my crotch STILL hurts.  And those camels almost ate us alive, they are terrifying creatures.

Once I got spit on by a random man.  And then when I yelled [and cursed] at him, he didn't even look at me or flinch so I still don't know if it was an accident or totally on purpose.

Tonight we went to a carnival.  We don't know why there was a carnival, and we're still wondering what all those people were celebrating.  All I know is that it was super shady, with lots of wandering hands trying to touch my down under girl parts, an excessive amount of LOUD music, plenty of street food, tons of lights, and just about everyone in the area showed up.  There were also shoddy looking carnival rides that are going to break down any second.  Oh, and there were fireworks thrown at us from balconies.  All in all, it was AWESOME.  I had a good time!

There are only a couple more weeks left for us here in Cairo.  I am sad, I love my Egypt life and I honestly don't want to go home yet, it's too soon for us!  I still have lots of pictures and stories to share, so be prepared for post overload the rest of this week while I play blog catchup.

Until next time,
your beautiful and sugar friend.  bahahahahahahhaa.
  

Luxor Trip

A few weekends ago, the +50 peeps in our study abroad group made a mass exodus to visit the ancient city of Luxor and it's surrounding tourist attractions. 
It was great.

Here's the proof.  (Please note- blogger takes 4 EV ER to load my pics, SO if you're dying to see the pleathora of shots we captured from our trip, feel free to look on facebook ...or add me on facebook if we aint frenz yet.)

First stop... the Temple of Karnak

Together in the Karnak ruins

The Luxor Temple

A felucca ride down the Nile.

The Colossi of Memnon

Ramesseum Temple (my personal favorite.)

Valley of the Kings

Al-Deir Al-Bahari Temple

Last stop- Hurgada for some more Red Sea fun.

It was a great trip couple of days and I thoroughly enjoyed the sites we visited, even in the 105 degree weather.  I wish we could have gone to Aswan and Elephantine Island, but we'll save those for the next time we're in Egypt.  When YOU come to Egypt, I highly recommend touring Luxor, but make sure to plan accordingly- we were up at 6am everyday trying to hit the sites before the hellish heat really turned on by 10 or 11.  I think I would have loved it even more if we came in the cooler season and had more time/energy to really explore our surroundings.  Still, what a great trip!  

Happy travels,

M. 

Q&A

What brought you to Egypt?
My husband is a Middle East Studies major and part of that is learning how to speak Arabic.  We are on a study abroad and he is in an intensive language program with about 40 other students.  His skills are coming along and we [bahah but really, HE, not so much "we"...] are on track to graduate next April.  (WOO hoo!!!)  We live in Cairo with another couple, Jake and Chelsi and they are rock star roomates.  We are so lucky!  While Andrew works his buns off during the day, I have adventures around Cairo.  We dig our fantastic life.

How in the hell do you guys share a bathroom?!
I'm not going to lie, it is a bit tricky.  Personally, I haven't had to fight anyone for bathroom rights yet (I hope Chelsi and Jake don't feel like they have either!) but we just try to be extra considerate of our roomates and limit our useage.  
Showering together with our spouses helps too.  Saving water AND time.  Genius!  [TMI?  Yeah, probably!]

Can you bring me back falafel? 
I can’t bring food out of the country!  [You know I'd be all up on those ho-ho's!!!!!]  LAME.  But don't fret, there is a KILLER falafel restaraunt in SLC- party when we get back in the Fall!

I want to know more about the surreal things there.  Like the pyramids instead of mountains and the PSA adds.  I think those are fascinating.
Pyramids were a TRIP.  I can't even describe it.  I spent 2 months here before I actually went to "see" them [on a clear day you can totally see them from the top of my apartment building!]  but the whole experience was surreal!  I mean, I've wanted to see the pyramids since I was in 4th grade!  It was a dream come true.  Some people will never leave their country and I'm crossing things off my bucket list one day at a time.  I feel pretty dang blessed, that is for SURE.  
My entire exsistence here right now is pretty craaaazy.  It is totally mind blowing to live in a country with so much history- a country that has been occupied since- forever?  CLEOPATRA walked where I walked.  We went to Luxor to see all the Temples and tombs and I've stood in the Holy of Holies, where hundreds of Pharohs ‘met the Gods’.  I swam in the Red Sea that was once parted by Moses.  It’s a mind trip when you think about it!
And as far as weird things like PSA ads and such, let me tell you- we were watching T.V. one night and this strange commercial came on.  I don’t even know how to explain it, but basically the commercial was for this special face cream for Egyptians that will turn your dark skin tone into a lighter skin tone, so you look more “white”.  We thought that was so strange.  Here I am, baking myself brown, and they’re trying to look lighter.  There’s a cultural difference if I’ve ever heard one!

Because I am an ex-McDonalds GM... please tell me whats on the menu there. I've hear about some whacky things in different places.
My favorite thing on the Egyptian McDonalds menu- the “McArabia”.  It’s basically a thin chicken or meat patty inside a pita bread.  I’m lovin’ it.  [Good on, eh?]

What do you miss the most?
I miss being able to talk to my family whenever I want.  It’s hard trying to work out a good communication schedule when I’m 10 hours ahead and when I don’t have access to a phone.  Skype is a lifesaver.  I also miss Café Rio like nobodys business.  MMMMMMMMMM.

What do you guys do to cool off before going to sleep with no AC?  I can never sleep when its too hot!
Step one:  Remove all clothing.  [DUH!  ....Wait, TMI again?!  FAIL.]
Step two:  Cold shower.
Step three:  Soak bedding in cold water.
Step four:  Turn on fan to full blast.
Step five:  If Steps 1-4 aren't enough, get the ice packs out of the freezer and start getting creative.

What are some of the coolest things you have learned about Egyptian culture that made you say "WOWZA!"
That’s a hard one!  Hmmmm.  I am constantly amazed by the work ethic of the lower class Egyptians.  They learn to work at such a young age and they dedicate themselves to their trade- it’s their way of survival.  I see 3 year olds managing fruit stands on my street.  There are tons of cultural differences, so let's talk about that in another blog post... :)


Have you eaten anything over there that you found completely revolting?
Sugar cane juice.  I HATE it.  I think it tastes like sugar water mixed with dirt, bacteria and a little bit of urine.  YUCK.  I despise that stuff and all of our Egyptian friends try to get me to drink it and sometimes to be polite I have to swallow it down and try hard to control my gag reflex.  UGH.  As far as food goes, I haven’t had anything too shocking… yet.  But I did see a goat getting slaughtered on my street in front of a butcher shop today.  I almost threw up, but it was an interesting site, nonetheless.  

What SPF sunscreen do you use to keep Andrew from cooking up like a lobster?
I fear that nothing we use for Andrews fair skin will ever fully protect him, but right now we frequently apply an expensive brand of SPF 30.  He still burns.  BUT, Andrew claims that he is getting some “color” and he’s pretty pumped about it.  We check his bod for more tan lines everyday, he is almost African.  Almost.


What has been your best/most rewarding community service experience since you've been there?
Every Sunday we work with an NGO that provides a program for “Street Kids”.  I've only been 3 times so far, but every time it has been awesome and I really enjoy myself.  It’s basically boys between the ages of 5-16 who have dropped out of school to work for their families.  They meet every Sunday (their only day off from work, usually) and we do Arabic lessons, play sports, do art projects, eat good food and basically have a “school” day to substitute for their lack of actual schooling.  It’s a small NGO but I think they’re making a serious impact on these boys lives.  I taught them the Hokey Pokey last week and we did it 5 times together.  They can’t get enough of that stuff.  Or they just like laughing at the crazy American girl singing and dancing around to the Hokey Pokey, but either way, I’ll do anything for a smile.

How much do you LOOOVVVVEEEEE it there????
SO MUCH.  Cairo definitely has its ups and its downs, just like everywhere else.  It’s so hot.  We have no a/c, and we have to walk everywhere.  I get verbally harassed all the time, and although it can get mega annoying (especially if I’m already having a bad day) I never feel like I’m in danger.  


I love adventures.  I love learning about Egyptian life and culture.  And I love living in Egypt.  


Much loves, 
M. 

Would you live in Egypt?

I have much to write about.

But while I get my thoughts, pictures, and witty megalicious-isms together, tell me:

What are YOUR questions for ME?

Leave me a comment.  Ask me anything, and I'll tell all! 

If you wanna know what I eat or how I try to communicate in broken Arabic, or the funniest things an Arab has said or just what I do in my daily life, this is the place to submit those questions about my 'expat life' experience in Cairo.   

You can even ask me about the shower arrangements for 4 people living with one bathroom. 
[Can't wait.] 

Cheers,
M.

Have you been to the Red Sea lately?

We have good friends in Cairo.

Some of our good friends have access to a condo, 10 minutes from a private beach, at a swanky stretch of the Red Sea.
Only 1.5 hours from where we live in Cairo.

We are lucky.
I even conquered some serious fears and I went snorkeling (twice!) in the OCEAN. The OCEAN people! And I lived to tell this tale.

Part of the complex- and the first green grass we've seen in all of Egypt!

Megs and Andy, our first night at the beach.

Egyptians don't wake up for early morning beach days apparently.  We were the first! 

Pre panic attack.  I was so scared! 

Post panic attack.  Round 2!!!  The weather was so nice, the water was SO CLEAR, and the reef was amazing, and the fishies were more curious than scared of us.  I love to snorkel.

On our way home after some baking in the sun!  Thank you Heiss's!!!!!

We loved every second of our quick trip!

We are leaving tonight to take a night train (Darjeeling Limited anyone?!) to Luxor, Egypt and then stopping for a night in Hurghada on the way home- that's right.  We're going to the Red Sea AGAIN. 

Le sigh... It's a hard life.

We love Egypt, and we love all of our friends and family and stranges that read our little travel blog. 

Leave us some love through comments- anyone can!!! 

Do it, I know you want to.

From your little Mermaid (<-- that was for you Chels and Carolee.)

M.

You learn something every day if you pay attention

I have been living in Egypt for a whole month now!  It is so cliche, but the time really has flown by!

I spend my days doing all kinds of things.  Some days I work with the other wives and the LDS Service Missionaries on various humanitarian projects throughout Cairo.  Some days I lay by the pool and hang out in the club.  And some days I get to spend precious time with my boyfriend (who is constantly loaded with schoolwork) eating out together, watching a movie, or exploring different areas of our Maadi. 

Life in Cairo is good to me.  I don't have a 9-5 job (miss you, UCCU!), I get to sleep in most of the time, and I pretty much have no serious worries or stress.  I especially love being able to do humanitarian work because I start to think less of 'me' and more of others, and that is when I am most happy- when I am able to serve others.

I have learned a lot the past few weeks in Cairo.

I have learned that living abroad is totally possible for a Mormon family- the LDS Branch here is amazing, and all of the expat families are wonderful.  Most of the wives and their kids have had a very positive experience with living abroad and they are very happy with their lives.

I have learned that my body is stronger than I think.  If you would have told me we would walk and walk and walk everyday, and sweat buckets and be hot all the time, and that I would be totally ok with it (most of the time...) I would have laughed in your face.  But it's so good for me and I am getting stronger and more fit everyday.  That being said, I have learned how to live without a car!  And I have learned to drink more water than usual so I can stay hydrated.  Who needs a tape worm now?!  Not this girl!

I have learned that cold showers work wonders. We don't need a/c, as long as the cold water keeps running!

I have learned that putting lots of effort into your look here in Cairo is really just a waste- with the amount I sweat, heavy makeup and eyeliner and cute clothes equals a bad, baaaaaad idea.  And that's ok!  I like looking like I'm glowing and on my way to a safari everyday.

I have learned half of the Arabic alphabet, and I can successfully begin conversations ('Hello', 'How are you', 'Where are you from' etc), count and write 1-10, buy food and drinks from street vendors, and navigate my way in a taxi.

I have learned to stand up for myself when Arab men try to push me around!  (Refer to below story about the pool... haha.)

I have learned that you shouldn't eat falafel 6 days in a row, or else you will be home sick with constipation on an otherwise fun Saturday.

I have learned that I feel more independent and adventerous without a cellphone- others might prefer that I get one, but I like not worrying about it!

I have learned more about Arab women, and my previous judgements have been altered already.  There is much about the Muslim world that I don't understand, but I'm trying.

I have learned to look forward to the call to prayer.  It is a reminder of religion and prayer 3, 4, 5 or more times a day, when I listen for it.

I have learned how to use a loom to make baby caps, and how to teach the Hokey Pokey to 25 little boys who need some fun in their lives.

I have learned that we are all humans and we are all God's children, Egyptian or American, Chinese or Brazillian.  And I have learned that I love living in Cairo!!!  Sometimes I get really annoyed and frustrated, and really hot and sweaty, but I amd trying to be patient and happy, and I know this is where I need to be right now.
I am grateful I am here with Andrew and that we are living the dream, one adventure at a time! 
This experience is changing my life for the better.


Much loves from Egypt,
M.

Alexandria, Egypt

We took a day trip to Alexandria on Saturday. 

I don't have alot to say about it, except that next time I go, I will NOT be touring with a group of 50+ white people, I will spend time exploring the city, and I am definitely going to hit the beach and eat fresh sea food. 

We spent most of the day on a tour bus and although we did vist a couple historical sites (including the Alexandria Library, pictures not included.) I feel like we didn't get a real taste of the city.

That being said, here are some pictures of our first adventure in Alex.

Playing at the Sea.

The Roman Theatre.

The Citadel of Qaitbay.

Out one of the windows of the Citadel of Qaitbay.

p.s.  On a brighter note- the best falafel and hummus and food in general I've had in Egypt= in Alexandria. 

I've begun to drool just thinking about it!