Woke up early today despite the sleep deprivation of the past few days. Was awake at 9am local time and Evan and I went downstairs to have our breakfast. Breakfast at the hostel includes 3 pieces of bread (similar to bread sticks), a hard boiled egg, and tea. The staff are friendly but it feels odd to be receiving your morning meal from a Muslim who is fasting for Ramadan.
After breakfast we dressed to go out and headed towards downtown and the Nile. The ‘downtown’ section of town is located about a mile and a half southwest of the hostel through a maze of streets. After some searching we found Talaat al harb. Which is the kinda like the main square in Cairo. Located on the square is the Egyptian Museum and nearby is the old AUC campus.
From here we crossed over the Nile on one of the many bridges spanning across it. Crossing the bridge I could not help but be reminded of Dublin, a city also divided by the river Liffey. Both rivers are simply breathtaking due to their size and importance to the culture.
Once over the bridge Evan and I found ourselves in the Zamelek region of Cairo. This region is a small island in the middle of the Nile. In Zamelek is the student housing for students at AUC. Evan and I decided that we should check out that area for apartments so that we could be close to our fellow students without paying the 10k required by AUC. However, the island had other plans and we ended up following a seemingly straight street 180 degrees and ended up on the wrong side of the Island. This of course we only noticed when we got to the Opera House located on the south side and where wondering how in the world we had gotten off track. Our second attempt proved to be a success, and by keeping the Nile on our right we were able to make it up to the north side of the island and into the more residential district of Zamelek.
We had lunch at an Arabic Pizza place which was one of the few restaurants open due to Ramadan. After lunch we explored the surrounding area and stepped into the local vodaphone store. At the store Evan and I were able to purchase phones and pay as you go plans so that we can contact people in Egypt.
Walking back proved to be adventurous as we played human frogger through the crowded streets back to downtown and our hostel. The always crowded streets are subject to a constant flow of people attempting to cross. Many of whom jump and weave to make it safely across. Evan and I found ourselves stuck doing likewise due to the crazy traffic conditions. Luckily nobody was injured although I thought we were going to get run over on more than one occasion. By the time we returned to our hostel we had a full days worth of jay walking under our belt and had become seasoned veterans ready to take on any street in Cairo.
On the way back we ran into an elderly man who asked us if we were from America. Evan and I had been using our Arabic as much as possible and even conversed amongst ourselves primarily in Arabic. We assumed that we either looked out of place or sounded out of place so told the man that yes we were indeed Americans. He then happily explained that he had a son in Texas and wanted to ask us some questions about America. We agreed thinking it would be a nice way to speak with an Egyptian. A few questions in he asked us if he could give us his business card, and like fools we accepted…. Once inside his place of business the man asked us to be seated and proceeded to show us pictures of the places he’s been and the people he’s met through his business. He offered us drinks which we declined, he insisted, we declined, he insisted on the basis of hospitality, we acquiesced (although we never received them..). Pretty soon he is talking about the ‘essence’ a fancy way of saying oil or perfume that he sells that is made from papyrus or other flowers. Offering again and again samples and small bottles despite our attempts to decline and leave. Finally Evan and I decided to drop formalities and made our exit. Alive but barely…
The long day in the sun and the new sleep schedule took its toll on both Evan and myself as we returned to the hostel. We both decided that a nap was in order and lay down to catch a few z’s. Seven hours later we awoke to find it near midnight. We decided to make the best of it and attempt to stay up late like the locals who stayed awake late in order to eat during Ramadan. During Ramadan Muslims cannot eat, drink, or smoke until 6:30 PM. After this time they eat a meal which is called fattar( which is where we get the word breakfast from… to break fast) and latter before they go to sleep they eat the sharoor. We went down to the local shops and proceeded to eat our dinner or fattar. We ate at a small shop which sold fool, a bean dip which can have meat or vegetables added, and is eaten with flat bread. We got a lamb and tomato fool which turned out to be delicious. The crazy part is combined we payed 13 LE or two and a half American Dollars.
After walking around some we returned to the hostel and joined in a meal with a few of the hostel employees. This turned into a conversation about both Arab and American culture. After our snack/their meal we went up to our rooms and did some studying in preparation for our upcoming oral exam. Soon thereafter both of us where passed out.
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