Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
First day
Wow..so the jetlag has definitely set in. I woke up this morning at 7am after 7 hours of sleep from being up for about 30 hours without it. I woke up to car horns, birds chirping, and the arguing of two men on the street. Im staying in Suzette's beautiful modern home. It isnt quite the culture shock I had in Ukraine. I think mostly because Im somewhat used to it in a bizarre way. My flight here was probably the easiest of my travels, mostly because I had little angels along the way helping me get to where I needed to go. Once landing in Germany I found myself standing in front of what was supposed to be my gate with dark skinned people, colorful turbaned wrapped around their heads, staring at me curiously. I could feel that I wasnt in the right place, as I definitely stuck out. The plane was headed to Dubai or something....go figure. So I proceeded to run across the airport looking for my gate. I met a very nice Brazilian pilot sitting next to me on my flight into Cairo. He is working in the city to train the Egyptian pilots that fly regional jets here. He helped me to get my visa, through passport control, and customs with no problem. He acted like we were together, which helped greatly, and no one hassled us. He even made sure, after his bags and shuttle had arrived, that I had gotten my luggage and was safe with Suzette and Karim. Before we left the airport I had an interesting interaction with 3 older Egyptian women in the small airport bathroom. I proceeded to walk past a prayer room with shoes sitting out front into the bathroom where these women continually tried speaking to me in the few words of English they knew. They giggled and said,"beautiful woman. American?" They introduced themselves and of course, continued staring me down. As I walked out of the airport, the smell of Cairo came over me..a smell that is really hard to explain, not bad or good, but just somehow nostalgic. The breeze was wonderful to feel, and right away, I got a taste of crazy drivers coming at us. We drove through crazy traffic to Zemalek, where Im staying. I crossed the beautiful Nile River and saw some of the most beautiful mosques. Suzette and Karim's flat is modern and very nice. No culture shock really...
As I woke, I heard some noise and the kitchen and appeared an older Egyptian woman, Amil, the maid, who cleans the house from all the dust everyday. It took us 20 minutes to try having a conversation of how to brew the coffee when the coffee pot was broken. Smiling and pointing seemed to be the best way of getting through it:) I heard the eerie yet beautiful sound this morning of the calling of the prayers. I opened the windows and could hear it very clearly. Suzette and Karim joke about how awful the guy's voice is and how thankful they are that the mosque isnt too close.
I finally ventured out of the flat this morning to find a sim card. The walk was only 5 minutes, yet with all the chaos and craziness, it felt like forever. Every man I passed spoke to me, "beautiful woman..welcome.." and everything was so crowded, noisy. I walked speedily and was terrified to cross the street, as you will surely get killed if you dont watch yourself. I met up with a friend for coffee in the afternoon and had to ask a pharmacist for directions. He could tell that I was nervous to get to the other side of the street so he had his son take me across. I dont even try to imagine parallel parking here because people double and triple park so close that you cant even try getting out. My friend says he's been in a few accidents, but that is to be expected driving here when no one obeys any traffic law or light. I say they shouldnt even waste money on drawing lines on the road because there will be 3 lanes in a 2 lane highway. I got home after a bit and had to shower from all the dirt, fumes, and smoke...ugh.
Im coming to realize that I just have to get used the stares, the curiousity of Egyptians. Overall,they are quite friendly people, almost too much! I feel much better travelling with a man with me, because then, men dont harass or talk to me.
Tomorrow is New Year's Eve and we will see what unfolds for me :) More later...
Savi
As I woke, I heard some noise and the kitchen and appeared an older Egyptian woman, Amil, the maid, who cleans the house from all the dust everyday. It took us 20 minutes to try having a conversation of how to brew the coffee when the coffee pot was broken. Smiling and pointing seemed to be the best way of getting through it:) I heard the eerie yet beautiful sound this morning of the calling of the prayers. I opened the windows and could hear it very clearly. Suzette and Karim joke about how awful the guy's voice is and how thankful they are that the mosque isnt too close.
I finally ventured out of the flat this morning to find a sim card. The walk was only 5 minutes, yet with all the chaos and craziness, it felt like forever. Every man I passed spoke to me, "beautiful woman..welcome.." and everything was so crowded, noisy. I walked speedily and was terrified to cross the street, as you will surely get killed if you dont watch yourself. I met up with a friend for coffee in the afternoon and had to ask a pharmacist for directions. He could tell that I was nervous to get to the other side of the street so he had his son take me across. I dont even try to imagine parallel parking here because people double and triple park so close that you cant even try getting out. My friend says he's been in a few accidents, but that is to be expected driving here when no one obeys any traffic law or light. I say they shouldnt even waste money on drawing lines on the road because there will be 3 lanes in a 2 lane highway. I got home after a bit and had to shower from all the dirt, fumes, and smoke...ugh.
Im coming to realize that I just have to get used the stares, the curiousity of Egyptians. Overall,they are quite friendly people, almost too much! I feel much better travelling with a man with me, because then, men dont harass or talk to me.
Tomorrow is New Year's Eve and we will see what unfolds for me :) More later...
Savi
Sunday, December 27, 2009
It begins again...
December 28, 2009
Two years have past since I last took a journey across the world to explore a new culture, facing the unknown and the expansiveness of it all. I told myself I would never lose the centeredness and perspective I felt coming home from such a rich and profound experience in Ukraine. It taught me to truly think before speaking, being ok with the silence between the words and in conversation, to be ok with the aloneness and all the ugliness around me in some of the most shady living conditions..To see beauty in everything around me and to feel peaceful inside even when everything around me was at times falling apart. I became quite aware of cultural dissonance, this space in between two realities of two cultures, pulling me from one side to the other. Me, wanting to articulate the profundity and depth of what had just happened, feeling disconnected from "home." Yet at the same time, longing for the warmth of my own bed, a hot shower, and comfort food..the safety of my own land. Now....I am going back out into the world, a world citizen, ready to experience this dissonance again, but this time, with much more open eyes and an open heart. With the understanding that we are all doing what we can with what we have, and envisioning that something magical is about to happen....something mystical, life-changing, transformative, and unique is going to bless me. Perhaps some day I will no longer see so much of what separates us but what truly brings us together as people. The dissonance will still be present, but its meaning will be different.
It is 12:20am, and Im still doing. I had forgotten the butterflies that come with something so big such as this. Packing for long trips never does get easier I guess....trying to figure out how to pack all the shoes I want and staying under the weight limit;) It is all unfolding perfectly...as I close this notebook , I remind myself of this:
"Deep peace of the running wave to you; Deep peace of the flowing air to you; Deep peace of the quiet earth to you; Deep peace, deep peace."- Donovan
Two years have past since I last took a journey across the world to explore a new culture, facing the unknown and the expansiveness of it all. I told myself I would never lose the centeredness and perspective I felt coming home from such a rich and profound experience in Ukraine. It taught me to truly think before speaking, being ok with the silence between the words and in conversation, to be ok with the aloneness and all the ugliness around me in some of the most shady living conditions..To see beauty in everything around me and to feel peaceful inside even when everything around me was at times falling apart. I became quite aware of cultural dissonance, this space in between two realities of two cultures, pulling me from one side to the other. Me, wanting to articulate the profundity and depth of what had just happened, feeling disconnected from "home." Yet at the same time, longing for the warmth of my own bed, a hot shower, and comfort food..the safety of my own land. Now....I am going back out into the world, a world citizen, ready to experience this dissonance again, but this time, with much more open eyes and an open heart. With the understanding that we are all doing what we can with what we have, and envisioning that something magical is about to happen....something mystical, life-changing, transformative, and unique is going to bless me. Perhaps some day I will no longer see so much of what separates us but what truly brings us together as people. The dissonance will still be present, but its meaning will be different.
It is 12:20am, and Im still doing. I had forgotten the butterflies that come with something so big such as this. Packing for long trips never does get easier I guess....trying to figure out how to pack all the shoes I want and staying under the weight limit;) It is all unfolding perfectly...as I close this notebook , I remind myself of this:
"Deep peace of the running wave to you; Deep peace of the flowing air to you; Deep peace of the quiet earth to you; Deep peace, deep peace."- Donovan
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