Of taxis, pharaohs, cupcakes and Eid!

Another update, wahoo! This time not as picture heavy. The past two days basically just consisted of long extended periods of survival Arabic. HOWEVER, after long strenuous days of being on campus for long periods of time sitting in one room... I "graduated" from Pre-Semester Survival Arabic! Mumtaz!

The dinner group at Goal with our Waiter

On Saturday night, we went out to eat with a group, and happened to find a place called "Goal" which is apparently supposed to be this Italian and Egyptian bar sort of deal. We actually got to use our Arabic skills (or lack thereof) to order our food! The waiter we had was a very nice and humorous man, and when we tried to order in Arabic, and were saying things wrong, he'd lean forward, motion to come in closer and pronounce it with is syllable by syllable. He was very patient and helpful! If we didn't know the words for what we wanted to order in Arabic, he'd tell us! He also tried to learn all of our names, which was awesome! I had a delicious strawberry milkshake with bits of strawberries in it after my meal (which was alright - I had some sort of seasoned/sauced grilled chicken which I wasn't a big fan of...). The Egyptians certainly know how to do their drinks and deserts!

I also have began to notice more and more how much a shisha (or a hookah) plays in Egyptian life. It's not something I ever intend to try and have no desire to do so, but people sell them on the streets, and it's fairly a common thing to order a shisha before or after your meal. Goal was practically full of shisha smoke the further along the meal we got.

Not a big fan of the idea... let's just say that.

Today was our first day off since we've gotten here, really, now that survival Arabic is over. I got to sleep in, which was FANTASTIC, and we ended up getting taxis to go to the Egyptian Museum in Tahrir Square! It was my first time ever in a cab, and nonetheless in a cab where I had to make sure the meter was on and that it worked and we wouldn't be charged an arm and a leg. Luckily we had a very nice cabbie the first time, who actually spoke more English than we thought. It was a rather pleasant ride there! Nick, Miriam and I took one cab, and Ashley and Cat took another. When us three got to the museum, an employee pulled us aside and gave us some pointers. He said that because of it being Eid-el-Fitr (the three day celebration of the ending of Ramadan and feasting) the museum was going to close earlier than normal so we should get single priced tickets with our student I.D.s (basically 30 L.E., which is super cheap in U.S.!) at 1:30 after groups go through and then stay until they closed things off. Until then, however, he lead us across the street to a bazaar that is government approved where he sells things for the museum.

Of course, Khan el Khalili (another very popular bazaar) would be cheaper, but we aren't doing that for a little while because it's best to do it at night. But still, I got a few gifts for home and a cute little tiny bag that my camera fits into nice and snug. Of course, I realized after the fact that the strap is a little broken, but I can get it fixed, and a few beads are missing.

Now I know! Everything is a learning experience right now! :) 

In the Egyptian museum, pictures aren't allowed unfortunately. And since it was closing early, we didn't have nearly enough time to see everything. I did get to go in through the majority of the first floor and then we found King Tutankhamon's room with all of his burial stuff, and even the air conditioned room with two of his coffins and his infamous mask! No pictures, but it's still amazing to say that I was there, and I saw it with my own eyes. We plan on going back when the hours aren't so constricted and paying the extra 20 L.E. to go into the mummy room!

When we got back to Zamalek via cab (this time our cabbie may have gotten a little lost and stopped to ask the police/guards at embassies every corner for directions) we chatted in the garden with a large group of people and had fun playing some card games before dinner, and then we ordered cupcakes from Nola! Best cupcake I've ever had, hands down. It was peanut butter and chocolate. I plan on trying the banana kind next time. Thank god everything Cairo delivers! (And I mean EVERYTHING.)

Tomorrow we plan to go to Alpha mart if it's open (being Eid and all...) and then hit up City Stars Mall (though it's going to be super expensive because it's Westernized out the wazoo) near the Heliopolis area of Cairo and the Airport! Then, I may not update for a while, considering at midnight we leave to go to the airport to fly to Luxor for a cruise on the Nile! I won't have my computer, but I'll have my iPod and will be able to update facebook and keep in contact if I keep that as charged as I possibly can!