52

It's one year to the day since I arrived in Egypt. Oddly enough, I arrived back here again on the exact same day as last year.

But, my stay will be short. Tonight, I leave for Tanzania, where I will be supervising a group of CAS students from Hayah in Moshi. I can't wait.

I have spent the last 10 days in Ireland with family, and it was a great time. Funny how quickly family slips right back into being family, despite long periods in between visits. Laughs, fights, dinners, walks, travels, more fights, and so on.

I loved every minute of it.

- - - - - - - - -

I was in the Dublin airport and as usual was the first one there waiting for my flight, a Lufthansa jump to Frankfurt. I figured out where the check in was, and in spite of the fact that the cue was currently being used for Air France, waited at the back. I knew that at any minute the Lufthansa people would show up for check in.

You see, I don't mind waiting, I just don't like waiting in line.

So, I was in a nice place to observe a strange - should I attribute it to individual, cultural, or business - change.

The cue for the Air France flight check in looked a lot more like a labyrinth of mental exercise than an organized line for a flight. In fact, the origin of the line was at the closest point to the check in counters that you would be in. Passengers started right up front, wove their way through curving and makeshift lines away from, then slowly back towards, until they actually got back to the area near where they started. Then, once near, they all broke free from line and tried to navigate their bodies and luggage into an advantageous position to catch the next available attendant. It went this way and that, using the makeshift movie theater (or airport) line makers. The people figured it out, and in a system that was as effective as it needed to be, got on their plane.

As the attendants left the counter, and the Lufthansa employees began to set up shop, one attendant from Lufthansa came out and re-designed the cue line. Methodically, yet with incredible precision and with very little movement wasted, he lined up the barriers into perfect lines. I didn't hear him whistling a tune, but he seemed to be perfectly calm and content in his goings about, and seemed smugly satisfied with his efforts when he was finished. He didn't seem to need a square or a measure, but I swear the thing was on spot perfect in every way. The length of each row equaled the next, and passengers would systematically make their way to the counter.

I smiled to myself, and then found out that somehow, not surprisingly and not pleasantly, I was now 10th in line behind a group of people who had aggressively positioned themselves and their luggage nearer the counter than I had...

We touched down in Frankfurt, and the airport was the picture of organization. In the middle of the darkness of night, planes, cargo lifters, people movers, and many other vehicles were moving with incredible synchronization across the concrete field of lights.

- - - - - - - - -

From Frankfurt, I sat on the plane next to a young girl from Cairo who was returning from studies in Germany. She's one year away from a degree in Computer Engineering. I asked her how many languages she spoke. She ran off a list of languages as I mentally counted to myself. Five. Then, I asked her how many computer languages she was fluent in. Again, she started down a list of names as I counted. I lost track at ten.

- - - - - - - - -

I got back to Cairo at 4 a.m., and played the usual game of I don't need your expensive taxi with an eager bunch of men. It was instantly hot, and it appears the desert has been attempting to reclaim the city while I've been away. Sand was blowing this way and that, and was all over the roads.

I got my guy, who spoke no English, and who instantly began trying to get me to give him American dollars. I told him I didn't have any, but he kept asking. (We had already negotiated the price in EGP.) Seeing he wasn't getting far, he decided to show me his collection of currencies from around the world. (As if I would be so impressed and then understand how important it would be for him to have my dollars...) He showed me what he called Saudi money, various other denominations from other countries, and so on.

Eventually, I got him to move on, but he returned quickly asking that I be his banker and change his 50 Euro note for him. I was not happy, as I am not a bank, and he had a note that might have been Turkish, but I've never seen it before. He was trying to pass it as Euro and take me for a ride. I told him to go to the bank. He kept telling me why he couldn't.

I wanted to get out, but it was the middle of the night, we were screaming down the sand blown road (visibility was bad) at almost 180 kmph in a beat up old Russian Cab. I didn't have much choice but to sit back and take the pain.

About then, I saw ahead a problem, and alerted him to it. He didn't acknowledge he understood (I expected him to slow down) until it was almost too late. 3 giant trucks were sitting motionless in the middle of the road. This road is Egypt's version of an interstate, and what was happening was incredibly dangerous by anybody's standards. We swerved quickly to one side (the wrong side, as it turns out) and narrowly avoided crashing into the back of one semi trailer. Behind us, I heard the screeching of other tires.

As it turned out, three gigantic stone blocks were sitting on the road. One truck had lost it's load, broken it's trailer, and the other two were somehow there in recovery. These blocks were about 4 meters in length, and were probably 2m x 2m wide and tall. Needless to say, had we hit them at any speed we would have died. We then couldn't continue down the side of the road we had originally chosen, so we were backing up in total darkness, during a sandstorm, down an interstate.

I thought I might die. I wondered if the engineer was on the same road.

But, luckily, we got around the problem. Then, not 10 feet past, my money changing taxi cab driver began accelerating back to light speed. As I calmly asked him to slow down a little bit, and mind the other massive stone that was sitting on the left of the road. (I don't think he had seen it yet, either.)

Seeing that we were out of danger, and finally realizing that I was not interested in giving him my money for his fake money, he began down the next usual "I've got a rich American in my cab" angle. "Are you married..."

Ugh. (This doesn't happen a lot, maybe 5-10% of the time, but when it does they always follow with offers for prostitutes. It really pisses me off.)

Finally, after all of that, I arrived home safely, got my bags, my keys, and watched the guy drive away. I know now I watched him drive away with my favorite sweat jacket in his front seat. I sincerely hope it finds it's way back to me as my lost goods (camera in particular) sometimes do.

- - - - - - - - -

I wanted to do laundry and get ready for my next trip, but my water was not working. It's the second time in a year this has happened. For some reason, the pump loses it's gaskets (I think) and needs repairing. So, I slept on it for a bit, and enlisted the help of my bowab when the sun had a chance to greet the morning sky.

Only one hour and 75 EGP later (about $15) I had water not fit for laundry. For some reason (I think the reason is called sand, dirt, and rust) the water is pretty brown. I don't know if lots of flushing will clean out the (tanks? lines? problem?) but I'm trying to make sure I get a clean line before I can wash the clothes. So, outside of that happening, I will be light-packing my bag for Tanzania.

I've updated the photos with some shots of Ireland. I hope I get some really good chances to shoot in Tanzania, so I will be taking the Nikon along.

Until later,

One year down

I understand my blog posts seem to be adhering more to a Fibonacci number series than to a system of someone who cares, but it was a crazy end to the year. Sorry if I have left you hanging.

After returning to NE and hearing people reference this blog as someplace they are indeed seeking out for updates, I am going to try to check in at least monthly. We'll see how it goes.

One of the perks of working overseas is the possibility of catching a tax break from the U.S. government. If you meet a few requirements, there can be an advantage for me.

So, at the advice of my accountant, I am leaving. Next stops - Ireland (10 days) and after 24 hours in Cairo, Tanzania.

Home is home, and it was great to be back in NE for a short stay. I wish I could have seen more of my friends/family, but it is what it is. Those who I was lucky enough to have met for breakfast, lunch, second lunch, etc. it was really great to catch up.

It's funny, almost everything here seems to be about the same as I remember from year ago, except that everyone's children are getting bigger. Other than that, Amigos is still strangely deliciously greasy, many people in Nebraska still wear red despite there not being a football game for a couple of months, and spiky haired punk rock girls still take out their angst on cheap guitars on main street in Breckenridge. (Yeah, hammer strumming through simple chord progressions while singing "When the sky falls on uh-uh-uss...)

So I'm off. This is short b/c I am slow in packing, will likely forget something, and have to leave in about 15 minutes. It's been fun being home, but it's time to go.

Hopefully will report back soon,

Scott

35

I've just returned from Cyprus.

It's a wonderful place to visit. North Cyprus is currently Turkish occupied, and more difficult to travel to, but well worth the visit.

The south is still under Greek rule and has different feel. It is also a bit more expensive (part of the EU now) and has just developed differently over the past 30+ years than the other half of the island.

If you can stand to see the heartbreak and tension a split land can have on the people of a small island, there are plenty of resort laden beautiful coastlines to visit all over the island. And, if mountains are your thing, the coastline rapidly gives way to mountainous regions. Despite being so small you can cross the island in any direction in less than 3 hours, the tallest peaks reach in the neighborhood of 1600 meters above sea level. Bountiful hiking, beautiful wineries and vineyards, and incredible towns etched into steep and rugged hillsides (with narrow lanes and beautiful architectural buildings) abound.

And with both the Turkish and Greek influences, as well as any neighboring regions, there is plenty of food of every type and for every palate.

I spent a week, and given that it's one hours flight from Cairo, I believe I may return if the opportunity arises. I was not able to SCUBA dive on this trip, and if I get my open water (advanced) I think I'm going for the shipwreck on the east coast.

There's not much more to say. Just finished one week off for Spring Break, and now work 11 straight weeks with one "three day weekend" only. (There's actually a one day weekend in there, so it's going to be a grind - especially after a year full of breaks.)

And, I've updated my picassa web albums, for those of you thiat enjoy the visual nature of the posts. There are mini photo stories available as always via the Picassa slideshow features.

Until next time,

Scott

32

March 17

I have had many different brushes with cultural differences, but last week I had a very interesting thing happen to me.

Many of us were going out for a celebration. A teacher from my school was fortunate enough to have visitors coming and wanted to give them a fun experience in Egypt.

So, we loaded up supplies - lots of food and beverages for a Nile boat cruise - and hopped in a cab, planning to make one stop along the way for additional items.

Providing the food yourself is the only way to go on this type of adventure, both for the economy of the voyage and the safety in knowing the food will be appropriate, tasty, and safe.

Then, as can only happen in Egypt, our original cab broke down while we were loading up more groceries for the night. So, without a moments hesitation, and despite our driver's assurances he would get the car started, we grabbed a new cab, transferred our things, and hopped in.

10 minutes later, we arrived and unloaded everything we had brought along. Everything, that is, except a bag I had along with me for the day. Inside was an iPod, my camera, and some other various odds and ends.

Needless to say, I was devastated. I went on with the night, hoping that one of two things would happen.

The one I was not hoping for - the cabby was immoral (actually very rare here), very poor and in need (common here) or of a certain belief that found goods were gifts from God, and money isn't really owned by any of us.

What I was hoping for, and what happened, miracoulously, became a reality less than 24 hours later. My phone rang.

Deep inside my bag I had an electric company receipt from my flat. The cabby found it, and drove all the way back in to my apartment from his house. He lived in Helwan - a area of town where many cab drivers live, and one that certainly is not very wealthy. In his run down 30 year old cab, he traced his way to my neighborhood, to my building, and found someone who knew my number.

I was away from my apartment, and I could make out only 1 of every 10 words I was hearing in Arabic on my cell phone, but I instantly knew what was happening. I quickly grabbed a cab and got home to find my bowab, the cabby from the night before, and one other man I recognized but could not place. In their hands was my bag from the night before.

I did a very terse check, actually just glancing in as a reflex action. I was certain that either everything was there, or everything there was all I could expect to get back.

Without skipping a beat, I handed each of the two men that I felt must have been responsible for returning the bag a reward. They seemed happy, and I hopped back in my cab to return to might original plan for the night.

In the end, I was left feeling happy and amazed with the kindness and generosity of the men, especially when the value of the goods in the bag sold, even if sold second hand, could easily have garnered them more than a months expected pay on a cabbie's salary in Cairo.

29.2

Hey all,

After slowly posting for months, I will hit #2 in 2 days.

Last night, I agreed to meet with a few friends after work for supper.

I did so. Then, it started hailing, despite the fact that I had other plans for my evening.

Yes, hail in Cairo. Last night, there didn't seem to be too many words to describe it here...snow never happens, rain rarely does, and - from what I hear in the last 24 hours from friends - yesterday was pretty strange. Cairo got 3-5 inches of rain and "ice falling from the sky."

So, I left my after school group at 6. The plan was to meet some friends to go downtown for a good time - dinner, culture, drinks, and evening out.

b/c of the hail, I met my friends at 6:10 at the metro station.

We bought our tickets, and walked in to the metro. Instantly, I was nervous about some of the actions of the employees there. There was a massive amount of water standing around, and instantly I recognized this as unusual.

Keep in mind, this is a desert.

But, there were a lot of guys with bladed push-brooms pushing the water out of the way. So, the poor guys were just pushing all the excess rain water to the lowest point around...the metro tracks.

Again, this is a desert, and there are no drainage ditches. I found myself thinking: "This can't be good."

As we were about to get off the metro and go grab a cab, it started to move.

At the next stop, we again sat motionless, waiting for the doors to close and the Metro to move. Neither ever happened. The most incredible explosion sent people running everywhere. I think a transformer blew, not surprisingly as there are always exposed wires sticking out of everything here. With a little rain, you get what you get. But it was still crazy, and people were racing out of the metro - overrunning the turnstiles along the way.

We went out to grab a taxi to get the rest of the way downtown, and were lucky to get one quickly.

1 1/2 hours after leaving, we arrived downtown and found it to be a difficult place.

Many restaurants were closed due to leaking.

Wild night.

29

So much to tell.

Thanks all who have continued to be in touch. It always makes my day to get emails, Skype calls, letters, anything from home. Cairo is great, but...you know.

I've been up to a lot, but mostly have been working. We just finished our first semester. I have to say, after a delayed start, surprise schedule changes, swine flu breaks, and a brief stint with live online classrooms, it was the most interesting semester I've taught in my life.

But work is work, and life is life. To overgeneralize, not a day goes by where nothing unexpected happens. (In case you missed that b/c of my late night affection for tinkering with grammar, that was supposed to mean something really strange happens on a daily basis.)

Highlights:

There's a roundabout called "Midan Victoria" near my house. Last month, Egypt won the Africa Cup for the fourth year in a row, a huge deal over here. I'd never thought about the name of the roundabout, just figured it was associated with the Victoria College or something. But, when the game ended, I decided to walk around town and see the excitement firsthand.

As I followed my instincts, I felt the crowds being drawn to that area. I didn't figure too many locals would associate the name with Victory, but either they did or it was an interesting coincidence for me to ponder while I ambled along amidst the throng making it's pilgrimage to the area.

At one point, I was standing dead center of the midan area - loving it - until a huge firework exploded too close for comfort. (You know those star burst shells that are supposed to look cool in the sky? They don't look as cool at eye level.) I figured I'd seen enough of the crowd, and guessed they had also seen about enough of me, so I split. It was cool.

Also, it was interesting to share the story with my Arabic class the next day. Turns out, as I was meandering and enjoying the evening - without much of a care in the world - my Arabic teacher was angrily trying to navigate a car through the masses. As she shared the story, I was smiling. She was not.

I attended a Cairo Chili Cookoff. It was really cool, and kinda nostalgic. I didn't make a chili, however. I still have not cooked in Cairo. (Unless you count toast on the green tray.)

I'm continuing to try to explore and trying to expand my roaming grounds. It can be difficult to stray away from the familiar, especially when the routine is becoming so comfortable. But in the last month I've made a more conscious effort to stray a little further from my well trodden paths. One such excursion took me to see the Nilometer - a cool column that was once used to establish tax rates. More water = more crop yields = higher taxes. Low water...you get the picture. It was a neat trip and a cool thing to see, I was able to visit an area of town that was new to me, and I got Koshary in a new restaurant. Thanks Kevin and Kai for being tour-guides! (Photos in Picasa web albums.)

I'm planning a trip to Cyprus.

The weather got cold - for about 3 weeks. Now, it's warming up again, and the students are prone to inventing temperature wars in school. One want the air conditioner on, the other just a fan, still others open windows, and of course, some still are wearing winter coats. I guess people are people wherever you go. It's about 60 degrees during the day now, and on warm days gets into the high 70's. Even at that, someone is always wanting something better.

Most of my days are filled with school and either Arabic class, coffee shops and restaurants, basketball in a league with friends from school, softball league (also with school friends) or catching up on reading.

For school, I'm currently re-reading "The Crucible" and just finished "An Inspector Calls." I'll shift to Sherlock Holmes detective stories and "The Hound of the Baskervilles" soon. For fun, I'm rolling through a few different works, including "The Count of Monte Christo" at the moment. I didn't realize how much I missed having the time to read like this.

I just met a man who MIGHT be printing the yearbook. I'm glad we finally met, but am hoping to schedule a meeting in one month to begin plans for 2011's book.

I'm also considering picking up an instrument again. (Have been hoping to do this since I got here, but am finally getting a bit more serious about it. Any recommendations?)

I still have a small number of friends, but many whom I consider very close. Almost all are teachers or employees from school.

I've updated the photos on Picasa, and the photo slideshow with captions is likely more entertaining and informative than this blog. Hope you enjoy the shots!

Until next time, say hi to anyone who cares...and point them to this blog!

Foster

25

3:30 a.m.

I'm curious. I've been watching CNN via satellite for the last 30 minutes covering the quake in Haiti.

It's not what I'm used to from my media.

They have been using Facebook and Twitter as primary image sources for showing the damage. Some guy is running around in the studio, dragging the camera man behind him, and asking the camera to focus in on different computers. As he is doing this, you can hear other computer operators beckon him to their station, where they have the next good photo, or the next good bit of news.

It's disorganized, unprofessional, and beautiful.

Never was a source cited, and there's no guarantee for the validity of the claims, but it's there - and I'm watching.

A little background info

Yesterday, I came home from school and crashed. Hard. A bad mixture of jet lag, exhaustion from travels, exhaustion from work, and stress from both my desire to be a good teacher as well as a good employee (unfortunately, two very different pressures) left me sapped.

I woke up (for the third time this week) at 3 a.m. and now, in what otherwise would have been a restless night,

I'm stuck to the tv.

5:00 a.m.

In the wake of this disaster, the first tools used to describe what was happening were interesting.

At first, all the photos shown by CNN were acquired via Facebook and Twitter.

Later, they began reporting the tweets from one man in Haiti. They showed up as text on the screen in the broadcast.

Eventually, they got a reporter in the room who knew the area. She gave a report about Haiti using Google satellite images. As she discussed slums and different areas within the country, they were surfing around on Google Earth and sharing it with the viewers.

Finally, a reporter finally showed up. How? Skype.

He mentioned that shortwave radio would have been used in the past, and halteringly admitted that ..."I guess, now we have this." While the news is bleak, and I worry for the citizens of Haiti, his claim made me smile.

Apparently, the telephones were down, and it was all being reported via the tools we know so well. No fancy cameras (They've just stared coming online as I write) and no large budget productions.

It was firsthand reporting, quickly accessible, and really pretty cool.

I don't quiet know how the Facebook photos and Tweets were acquired. Maybe they were actually photos taken by journalists and written by journalists (otherwise, I don't know how CNN was gaining such quick access...they must have already been "friends"...?) but it was still interesting.

I'm guessing maybe they were using laptop technology with satellite internet connections. If power went down, if phones went down...

Anyway, it's been an interesting viewing experience, in what otherwise would have been an otherwise sleepless night...

Now, I've got to go figure out that debate topic for my Animal Farm students.

24

Yemen

I was lucky enough to go to Yemen early last week.

Yes; Yemen.

According to recent news reports, nothing more than the country of Taliban and Al Qaeda.

The current whipping post of media, commanding a lot of media air time on CNN, BBC, and I'm sure in newspapers across the world.

I have 2 thoughts on Yemen.

1.) I'm wondering why. I know the attempted bombing of the Delta flight had links to Yemen. But I wonder why a plan so intricately contrived would result with the man failing in colossal proportions. Questions such as "Why not attempt to light the "bomb" in a bathroom?" for instance.

Yemen is a country on the brink of civil war. Their people are reluctantly ruled by any type of government. The mountainous terrain combined with the tendency to seldomly travel away from home has a culture not unlike the U.S. 200 years ago, or (from what I've seen) like the Appalachias of the U.S. today. People really don't seem to care much about events outside of their town. Not that they are ignorant of world events, but everyone I met seemed happy and content and prefer to be left alone to live their lives.

I just heard a claim on Wolf Blitzer that U.S. officials in Yemen were hoping for a U.S. military excursion into Yemen.

Ouch.

I think it's possible Al Qaeda is waging a media war, and I think the U.S. is already losing. Media exposure is like free advertising for Al Qaeda, and a war into an otherwise peaceful people in their homeland will not do the U.S. any favors.

Media creates panic, and if the U.S. responds to panic and reacts with forces in Yemen, Al Qaeda will get everything it wants. It's a serious mistake, and one I hope we avoid.

I know this is just another manifestation of the U.S. attempting to police the world, and I know Al Qaeda is an inherently evil enemy, who's anger against "The West" is only outpaced by it's cagey intelligence.

But Yemen. Really? This is a country who will very possibly be thrown into an internal civil war soon, and this alone will preoccupy the citizens in the country. Picking on Yemen is a strange (and in my opinion) ignorant reach for American military officials.

Why? There are bigger problems here, and I think Al Qaeda hides in Yemen b/c it can. Where Al Qaeda get their money, instead, and who really is supporting them are the questions that the U.S. should worry about. The countries that are responsible for financing and fundamentalist thought driving Al Qaeda from what I've learned are not Yemeni.

It's like trying to beat the Chicago Cubs by paying all your attention to their Spring Training camp in HoHoKam Park in Arizona, and by running down there and bothering all the people in Phoenix who probably don't care much for the Cubs. The Cubs only go there to train.

All you will do is piss off a bunch of Arizonians who didn't care before.

I know it's hard to fight an organization without a country. But why, if they don't have a country, do we continue to try to place them in one?

It's messed up, and Al Queda sucks and need to be dealt with. But until the U.S. understands the organization or their thinking, I wish they would think a bit more.

I don't have answers, but mostly have a lot more questions. I wish those questions would be answered before we went and started another war on another front with people who (mostly) don't deserve it.

2) Yemen is beautiful. I flew into Sanaa in the middle of the night, and was welcomed very kindly by everyone I met. Airport security, customs, employees, taxis, restauranteurs, civilians, and on and on the list goes. Everyone I met or encountered, to the number, was super nice and friendly. I've had far worse experiences in other places about anti U.S. opinion.

Now, yes, I was there for a few days only, but still it was great.

Sanaa is a busy capital city in the center of the country. It sits at about 9000 feet above sea level, and is slightly cold at night now. It's not snowy, and gets little rain, but winter is definitely there. I was glad to have brought more than just my sandals.

There were plenty of modern places, and most seemed to be influenced greatly by Middle Eastern or African cultures. There is a close tie between Yemen and it's African neighbors. Ethiopa and Somalia, especially, seemed to have strong influences and a fair amount of people there.

Gat chews are pretty common as well, especially in Sanaa and in the north. It's more common in the afternoon to see a man with a huge chuck of gat leaves in his cheek than not. It kind of chills the people out, and I compare their attitudes and lifestyles with gat to the beach bums of California. I have a difficult time imagining many of them joining forces for anything. They are really relaxed and fun.

In the South of Yemen, I went to Mukalla. It has to be an untapped resort town. If a tourist minded company went there to develop now, they'd be the first. They'd also be rich.

Mukalla is located on the south coast of Yemen on the Arabian Sea, in what used to be Soviet occupied territory. The people there seemed to have a hard work ethic, and the town of Mukalla reflected that. It was very nice, easy to get transportation around, and shops were bountiful and nice. Things were very organized, and it felt like I was being tracked the entire time. :) (The police called the family I was staying with to tell them my place was delayed and I should show up one hour later than I'd planned. Yes, THE POLICE, not the airline. They then called again while I was sitting in the airport telling me it was time to go to the plane and leave. I felt loved.)

Seriously, I don't quite understand all that, but I think they know exactly what everyone is doing, but not out of fear, just out of routines established historically by the Soviets that have carried through until today. I really didn't feel uncomfortable or afraid, but for a guy who loves independence it seemed weird.

While there, we ate mostly at the house, but went out one time and had 2 ice creams, 2 sodas, and one water for 60 cents (U.S.). I know they aren't familiar with tourism, otherwise inflation would have hit.

I heard there were two places there who would take SCUBA divers out. I'm planning on going back and giving it a try, b/c based on it's location it looks like the kind of place huge tuna, sharks, or other ocean fish may occasionally visit. And I'm guessing it won't cost much.

So, as I go back to work today from a long vacation, I'm very curious about the media, the news reports, and the ensuing actions that the countries will take in the next few months.

Unfortunately, I was stupid and didn't bring a camera, so no photos. Sorry, they would have been incredible.

Until next time,

Foster