A day at the Red Sea

Just what I have been needing these past two weeks! ISA (International Student Affairs) had arranged a trip to Ain Sokhna, which is this gorgeous place right on the Red Sea, with the Dome Marina Swiss Inn Resort, that has a private beach on the Red Sea, with dolphins that swim by three to four times a day! YES. ISA have been the group of people dealing with me and my lost wallet and frustration and sometimes breaking down and needing a good hug and a juice box, so it was nice to see them outside of the ISA office and all of us not worrying about that anymore now that it is mostly taken care of!

Despite the fact that I really disliked the idea of getting up at 6:50 am on a weekend to go do this trip, I think it was worth it. I was awake for most of the drive there (surprisingly only about two hours!), and when we were finally able to see our first glimpses of the Red Sea on the one side of the bus, everyone got excited! I bounced on my seat, because there were dolphins! Wild dolphins! I think that was my first time seeing wild dolphins, because from what I remember, whenever we tried to do a dolphin-watch when I was younger, someone got seasick or the weather wasn't the greatest. So I was really, really excited to see dolphins, and possibly get to swim near them. Or well... as near as possible. They are still wild dolphins, that can become territorial and defensive.

But these were also dolphins who swim by people pretty much every day, so they aren't completely wild, but they aren't tamed either. They've adjusted to human interaction and contact. They didn't stop, just swam on by - about three or four of them at any one time.

So we sat through some lectures about Street Harassment and Public Safety ( recaps of what we had already been talked about ) and the reward was four blissful hours of beach time! I didn't plan on spending most of it in the water, but I did. We all swam out pretty far, and Nick bought goggles. Smart decision, because when they were passed around and you put them on, you could see the coral reef and rocks underneath you and it was amazing to see that you were actually swimming several feet above fish!

Cat, Me, and Ross in the Red Sea

Our first order of business was swimming around in said water, to see how far we could get and what was underneath and what not. There weren't any waves (and no Mom, no sharks either. Sharks only go in the Red Sea when they get really really lost, like that penguin that ended up in New Zealand) just gentle rolling of the water... very calm. But there were sea urchins everywhere. It was quite difficult getting out of the water without stepping on any sea urchins, but I did it! We got out, and it was just about 3:00 PM which is when the dolphins swam by for the first time. A huge group of people had already been close enough to the area where they were going to swim through, and we had been looking at hermit crabs by the ramp and getting water to stick in plastic water bottles to take back. The lifeguard blew his whistle and shouted "DOLPHINS!" and I started bouncing up and down, gave my water bottle, camera and flip-flops to Ashley and swam the whole way back out again.

But I missed them by a few minutes. By the time I got out far enough, they were already past the resort. :( Though I was sad, it was still really cool to have been in the vicinity of them as they passed and to have gone swimming in the freaking Red Sea! And have free lunch and free dinner.

We hung out on the beach until dinner, and of course, after dinner in Egypt always comes a dance party when you're in groups. We were too tired to do anything, so our group sort of just sat at the table and entertained ourselves by talking and other various means (I filled glasses with water and tapped them with silverware to play music). 

And then the very long bus ride back. Three hours of a nice nap. I got back at 10:30 pm, roughly, and really did not want to wake up for class this morning. 

It was a really nice one day break from everything, and of course my brain is back to it's normal worrying about everything whether I can control it or not (like where my package is, or if my wallet issues are really done and over with) and also should be writing my religion paper. But still. It was a nice day at Ain Sokhna! Never in a million years did I ever think that I would get to swim in the Red Sea and see wild dolphins, and coral, and just be here. I suppose I should be thankful for that, at the very least, through all the homesickness!

My shells and various bits of coral I collected

Classic excited pose in front of the Red Sea!

One month.

Two days ago was the one month marker since I've been here. Needless to say, a large part of me is wishing that I could go back home now. There are lots of things I've learned in that one month that either make me dislike it here, or make me like it here. Today, in particular, is the mail system. I was sent a package last Thursday, and reception says that they'll call my room when they get it. Not very effective if I'm not in the room, eh? Then how will I know? I don't feel quite comfortable going up and bugging the receptionist every single day if I have mail. I just got a letter from Mom (Hi, Mom) that was postmarked in the U.S. on the fourteenth...

I would've never gotten it if I hadn't asked for my package.

I miss having my own mailbox at Gettysburg and email alerts when I get packages of things. I hate the mail system here. They have mailboxes, why don't they utilize them for God's sake! D=

Thanks to Alex for the idea of putting GIFs in blogs where there are no relevant pictures. Click for animation

Another thing I dislike... that sort of ties into the whole Egyptian time thing and my previous rant that I must emphasize again - it takes forever for someone to do their job they are paid to do. Seriously, I'm starting to think that the Egyptians take cues from the Italians and the French - the Italians for their laziness and sudden siestas (the whole "I'm going to take a break and do what I am being paid to do later, mkay?" attitude, especially when something's urgent or important) and the French for the sudden fondness of revolutions and protests.

You'd think since Egypt was in control of the British for a while (Cairo especially) that they'd adopt some of the promptness of the British society. 

Guess not.

Thankfully, last night we went to Cafe Arabica, which is a cafe that allows you to draw on their table covers and take them with you! We sort of went crazy...

The entire placemat.

My section: very BBC-esque, and Harry Potter themed.

A violent game of Dots.

We colored on one side and then the other side started as a game of Dots. And then evolved to a violent game of Dots. And then evolved into scribble wars. All in all, it was a great start to the weekend, and a good way to get my mind off of lots of the stressful things that have happened in the past two weeks.

Tomorrow is the ResLife trip to Ain Sokhna. I finished my book I bought at Diwas used for 10 L.E. (Mom, you'd like it! It's like Dan Brown's stuff), and found out that the AUC Library has popular fiction books! I checked out one for myself, from an author whose series I have started already at home (Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon) and decided to pick up her spin-off series as well (Lord John series). Score.

What I finished last night.

What I am going to read next!

So, other than that, things aren't going as eventful as they were during orientation. I have a paper for Modern Judaism & Zionism to write (my topic is on the Holocaust, of course, what else after spending a summer at USHMM!) and my grad class is going very well, also. My professor says absolutely hilarious things. She's a hoot. Things like: "You can always tell an archaeologist because when they walk they look at their feet and run into things." WHICH IS SO TRUE. I always look at my feet when I walk, even if someone's talking to me, I look at my feet! Also, I never remember where I'm going, and I have a hard time recognizing places because I'm always looking down. It so fits! I mean, the whole looking at your feet when you walk when you're an archaeologist is because of field survey/field-walking where you have to watch where you're going to look for shiny objects or anything that might be a site indicator.

But still. One more sign I'm going in the right career path.

Tomorrow is Ain Sokhna, a Swiss Red Sea resort, for a day of the beach and dolphins. God knows I need to get away from the smog and light pollution (or just Cairo overall) for a day!

Learning and growing?

I'm still in my rough patch and figured I'd sit down to vent and write about my day, because I have a Hieroglyphs quiz tomorrow, so why the heck not be a normal college student for one day and just write and procrastinate instead of memorizing for the fiftieth time which symbols go with which sounds? I got up at six for classes, and really, really didn't want to. I'm still not used to this whole classes on Sunday deal. Especially when I see people studying in Europe who get Sundays off.

I... get Fridays off? Woohoo!

Anyway. I got up, went to Art & Architecture of Ancient Egypt, and took the usual two pages of notes on things like the Narmer Palette (stone palette depicting a strong overarching theme of the unification of upper and lower Egypt with King Narmer) and "art as religion" which is my Professor's favorite saying in the history of sayings ever. And then I had a break from 9:45 until 2:00, which bodes unwell for the unsettled mind. I sat in the library and watched the newest episode of Doctor Who, and that made me happy for a while, and then I got around to thinking.

About internships for the summer. About the fact that if I hadn't come here, I'd have money to do a field school this summer, which is what I really want to do. About even if I can afford to go to Greece I shouldn't because then I won't have money to go to Sinai, which is also another big to-do on my list. I'm confused, my head hurts, and I honestly couldn't think straight. I got to the point they warned us about during orientation - the point of homesickness where you begin to regret your decision to come, and you start to dislike everything.

I went and got my Visa today, to stay here past one month. The girls before me and after me both got Student visas, like they asked. For some reason, he wouldn't let me get a student visa. Instead, he made me pay 12 L.E. more for an extended Tourist visa until December with Multiple Reentry. What. The. Heck. If my visa ends before December, I'm going to be one unhappy person. I am sort of already unhappy. You know... that stage about regret? Yeah. It's pretty strong.

And I'm learning things about myself in ways I would've preferred not to learn. I had an inkling that I would fit in more in a European country. I like it here, don't get me wrong. But I don't want to make the Middle East, or Egypt, my home or concentration of study. I belong somewhere in the UK or Europe. I look at other people's pictures from places like Denmark, Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Germany, and get really jealous because of the ease of travel, and the different kind of history that makes me even more excited than the pyramids would.

Granted, the pyramids were amazing. Everything here is amazing. But certain kinds of history strike a certain chord in my heart and make me squeal. Like some Victorian architecture I saw on a house on the way through town. I do like it here, and I am getting my fill of a unique experience. But ultimately? Not the place where I want to spend the rest of my life, or even want to specify in. I know this is awful to say even before one month of being here is through, but I've learned that part pretty quickly.  All because my brain refuses to stop!

Nonetheless, after having several spazz attacks, I went to Zionism & Modern Judaism at 2:00. The first two weeks I dreaded going to this class. Now, not so much anymore - I mean, some of it doesn't pull at those aforementioned heart strings, but it's interesting material, anyway. I am working on choosing a research paper topic with the Holocaust which should be interesting since I spent the summer in USHMM. Narrowing it down should be fun, and that does touch on a particular interest.

I've also started, though I know I shouldn't, looking at grad school programs in Historical or Medieval Archaeology.

Mom, when you read this, would you kill me if I said I wanted to go to the UK for grad school?

-runs away-

Long entry: a rough patch, some protests, and a list.

So I've hit a bit of a rough patch here in Cairo. I was really homesick last weekend, and I miss Gettysburg and Pennsylvania and rain. Yes, after watching you East-coasters go through a hurricane and flood, I miss rain... And then Sunday just blew it out of control. It was September 11th, of course, but that's not what did it. It was actually a normal day, aside from the fact that the AUC Student Body decided to protest...

Banners for the protest

On Sept. 11. 

We were told that they forget that this isn't a day for them, it's a day for Americans. Granted, we make up about 10% of the student population, but still. It's technically an American institution. You'd think there'd be some sort of unease or at least the slightest bit of a reminder what day it is, but we're in the midst of a revolution where free speech and right to protest on things that need changing are valued high above anything else. It didn't really bother me all that much until a boy walked into my Zionism and Modern Judaism class wearing an Achmed the Dead Terrorist t-shirt.

That made me really, really uncomfortable. And kind of angry.

Then, I took the bus home, and it had been a relatively uneventful day.

Until I went to get my wallet out to go to dinner after arriving back in Zamalek. I opened my backpack pocket to find my wallet gone. Completely and totally gone. Without a trace. Panicking, I threw everything out of my backpack and onto the floor, from every single pocket. Nothing. I looked in my purse seven times; nothing. I looked in all the drawers and closet cubby holes. Nothing. My wallet was gone! I remember walking onto the bus with my wallet in my hand with my iPod because I had to get it out to get onto the buses., but then I couldn't, for the life of me, remember what I had done with it after that fact. Panicking, I turned my room upside down and then decided to call as many people as humanly possible. After not accepting the fact that there was nothing I could do that night, I went down to reception and asked for at least the number to lost and found.

I got the number, and walked over to the other desk with the phones in the lobby, picked up the receiver and began to dial. I dialed twice, and both times, the number failed to work. I picked up my cell phone and also tried, but that also did not work. Frustrated, I headed back to my room to begin a frantic search for phone numbers for the bus company's lost and found or even someone at Campus who would pick up their phone. It took a good three hours to find someone, but finally, I remembered I had an emergency contact list from ISA (International Student Affairs) and called the emergency help number.

Finally, someone picked up the phone.

The rest of Sunday night is a blur, because of the anxiety and frantic/hectic-ness, but Monday, I got up with the hopes that my wallet would be at the lost and found. When I got off the bus and explained my situation so I could get on campus without my ID, it was a frustrating process. They didn't seem to understand I didn't have my ID or proof of bus pass purchase because A. I lost my wallet, and B. I never got a proof of purchase. Just my ID! Thankfully, they let me in and I checked Lost and Found.

Nothing.

Distressed, I sat and waited until 8:30 until the ISA office would open, so I could ask for help like I was told to on the phone the previous night. Sitting there, I suddenly heard someone shouting very loud in angry Arabic on the phone. Amal, the woman I had spoken to the night before, came into the room holding a cell phone and said, "I put up a fight for you! They will call back in ten minutes; they're looking." I had been hearing that all morning, 'oh we'll call back in ten minutes' 'oh no we haven't looked yet, call back in fifteen minutes', and I was really getting tired of the Egyptian-time when ten minutes actually takes half an hour. I just wanted my wallet back!

Ten minutes went by, and the phone rang.

They hadn't found my wallet. I had to accept the fact that it was lost and gone forever, with a lot of things in it that I absolutely needed. I had just taken out 200 pounds the previous day! Barely accepting the fact that my wallet was gone, I had to get things in order with my debit cards. And here's where the issues rose. I was talking on the international cell phone from 9:00 am -1:00 pm, and having some serious issues with the Visa people on the other line, trying to get a new replacement card faster. They asked me how to spell AAA... ("I'm sorry?" "Could you spell that for me?" ".....A...A...A... three A's?")

Yeah. You can see how I was frustrated.

The call I had been on hung up on me, because I ended up being transferred so many times I had no idea who I was talking to anymore and just sat on hold for a good fifteen minutes. I was tired, I was frustrated, and I was about ready to burst. I walked into the room to hand the phone back to Amal and found the others of the ISA staff sitting having lunch. I almost lost it, Amal could tell, and she took me by the shoulder to go get some juice and take a break. 

So I sat, talked to Amal, and decompressed for a little, sipping a juice box (the Egyptians have really good fruit juice, I will give them that!) and then decided to tackle my other debit card. That went over well. It took about ten minutes, and then I called home after Amal encouraged it. So then, from 2:00 - 3:00, having already missed my two classes of the day, I tackled more of the Visa 911 people, and finally thought I had gotten to the end of things with them. "We'll call you right back to confirm that AAA gave us permission to expedite your card!" They did not call back until 12:30 am my time. By that time, I was severely disgruntled, and upset.

I wanted nothing more than to go home.

But! That got taken care of. Thursday came around and I called the other bank back to get that taken care of, and the woman that picked up the phone this time contradicted what I had been told on Monday. I got extremely angry again because a phone call that should have had no problems and lasted five minutes took half an hour; I was late to my anthropology class that I had missed on Monday. I am never generally like this - late for class or miss class at all. I was really, really angry. I have to call them back again to get that handled.

But I think the worst of the wallet situation is over. Thursday night was the beginning of my weekend, and though I was a bit disgruntled and just wanted to curl up in bed with a good book (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) I was thankful that I would get to sleep in.

Friday I found out that some AUC protesters had torn down the American flag on Campus on Thursday.

Don't worry, friends and family who have probably been having heart attacks since the beginning of this entry - It was a "symbolic ripping down the flag for the American President - Lisa Anderson". Honestly, I don't care why they did it, it was rude and did not make me feel welcome. It is an American university after all! If you want to read more about the protests - read this blog entry: "Don't you dare take down my flag and expect me to be okay with it."

I am still completely safe and sound. I even went exploring yesterday in Zamalek and got Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (anyone who knows me from home knows my copy of that is falling apart) in Arabic.

Now here comes some venting. There have been some things I don't like about AUC or Egypt that have been eating at me (I still like it here, but these things just really irk me). 

• Egyptian time - You may be able to tell from previous blog posts that time here works a little differently. We were first told during orientation that we'll find out when someone says meet at 8:00, get ready to leave at 9:30. But I, personally, didn't believe that thoroughly to begin with. How wrong I was... It really irks me that no one is on time for anything around here. For instance, a plane scheduled to leave at 12:20 should not be pushed back to 1:00. And a meeting to leave for said trip scheduled at 1:00 am should not take until 2:30 to leave the building. 
• Lack of milk - The first time I had milk since being here was a little over a week ago, in the form of a chocolate milk juice box which I now have been getting almost every day. Anyone who knows me from home or Gettysburg knows that milk is a staple. I miss milk. :(
• In reply to that, an abundance of soda - I think I've had more soda here than I ever would've had at home. It's too easily available to take advantage of (in my case). 
• Pricey plane tickets - I really wanted to go to England or Greece for my November break. But at the rate of how much money I have left, that's enough for a flight alone and that's it. Nothing else. I'd be broke for the rest of the semester. Why does it cost so much just to have an hour or two flight to another country whereas in Europe it costs half that? Urgh! I understand, actually, why, but my brain just refuses to accept that answer. I most likely won't get to go anywhere for break, and that really worries me that I'll have to give up a chance of a lifetime to sit here for a week on my own.
• The bigness of AUC - I am so used to the barely over 2500 students at Gettysburg that it's kind of difficult to handle the 6000 plus at AUC. I miss my small school!

And I'm sure there's more, but I should be doing homework right now instead of complaining. I do still like it here, and I am trying to enjoy it as much as possible (despite the fact that this week has been an EXTREMELY rough one). Until next time, which will hopefully be a better entry!

Coming Soon:

1. A day-trip to Ain Sokhna (Resort by the Red Sea!)
2. A possible trip to City Stars Mall in the future

My first Grad class and other adventures.

This week, as far as classes went, went really well!

A lot of my worries about switching into the Grad class from a lower level were completely taken care of come Wednesday night. Wednesdays, of course now, are going to be extremely long days. I'll be on campus from around 8:00 am to 8:30 pm when my grad class officially ends; the bus, however leaves at 9:10 pm. Which means I won't get back to Zamalek until 10:00 providing traffic is friendly and not congested (yeah, right, this is Egypt we're talking about...). This past week, also, has been suffering a severe lack of photographic documentation. Hopefully something interesting will come up in the next week that will be picture worthy!

Anyway. For my first grad class, let alone a 500 level, it went surprisingly well! Dr. Sabbahy is one of the nicest people I have ever met and I'm so extremely glad she let me take her course early. I'm the youngest in the class, go figure. There's only one other undergraduate and he's almost finished with his undergrad anyway. By now, I'm used to being the youngest... Anyway, we're actually using one of the texts I used in Anthro 106: Introduction to Physical Anthropology/Archaeology! I was really excited when I saw her hold up the book and read the name on the syllabus. Fortunately, I don't have to buy it all over again (because I left my copy at home... oh the trials of a study abroad student and packing your life in two suitcases and a carry on...) because she's the only one that has a copy at AUC because the bookstore wouldn't order it, but it's going to be interesting reading again it from a different perspective. Other than that, it doesn't seem like a horrible amount of work, and I think I can manage it! At least, I'm committed to managing it now that I've officially switched into it! I chose my five-point method report to be on Dendrochronology (tree-ring dating, for all the non-archaeologists out there ;) ) and I have to give the report on this coming Wednesday; shouldn't be that hard, except for that part where I dislike giving speeches... but this I know and I tend to be a little more comfortable and at ease speaking when it's something I'm really interested in and I know about!

Also, I learned how to write my name in Hieroglyphs... I think...

 


We haven't actually learned the alphabet yet, and I can't draw the symbols to save my life. So we'll see what happens...


Anyway. Yesterday was my first "official" weekend, I guess you could call it. I basically sat around, did some homework, and procrastinated. But of course, it can't be a real Friday in Egypt if SOMETHING doesn't happen. Fridays are protest days in downtown Cairo (five minute cab ride away off the island of Zamalek); some of you in the U.S. may remember that on January 28th, 2011 Egypt declared itself in a state of Revolution against the government and military rule, primarily against President Mubarak who was forced to step down from his role in power by the people. The revolution is not over. Egypt is still in a state of huge political and social change and Friday was my first real glimpse of that.


Don't fret, though. Zamalek is an island district of Cairo that's about a five or ten minute cab drive away from downtown Cairo - or the center of political change - Tahrir Square. Some international students chose to go yesterday to Tahrir because there was a big protest with hundreds of thousands of Egyptians there. The military let the protesters have occupation of Tahrir Square providing things did not get violent, and for the most part, they didn't (sorry, Israeli embassy...). I did not attend, and I don't feel like it's our place as Americans to attend. Of course, it'd be amazing to witness - and I did via local television - but it's not my protest or my fight to fight. It's theirs. I watched from TV when I was downstairs for a little in the cafeteria, but that was the extent.


Zamalek was pretty safe to walk around, it was a little busier in terms of people walking around and being out than usual, but we got out to get groceries from Alfamart during the day and got cupcakes from Nola (BEST EVER) at night. All in all, it was a good end to a good week.


Now school work is going to kick up and I'm thinking of my plans for November, and hoping I can make a possible trip to Greece, Italy, or Jordan for Eid-el-Adha holiday. Greece looks most probable right now, I just hope things work out that I can afford a trip - I don't want to be left alone here in little ol' Zamalek!

Other things I want to do (but may or may not happen while I'm here)

- Go to Jerusalem and Masada (probably not going to happen given what just happened with the embassy and Israeli relations with Egypt. Whoops.)
- Climb Mount Sinai for the sunrise and touch the Red Sea
- Visit Greece and see the Parthenon and tons of other old things! (and Kelsey Gerber! ;) )
- Learn more Arabic
- Go visit a dig site
- Go digging!
- Go sand-boarding
- Successfully haggle for something at Khan-el-Khalili
- Get all of my homework done
- Find a possible thesis topic for senior year?
- Go to Petra, Jordan to see where Indiana Jones was filmed! (ehh, limited funds - probably not going to happen)
- Find a lifelong contact in archaeology
- Learn the AUC campus well enough to not get lost (probably not going to happen! xD)
- Ride a camel

Classes!

So classes for the Fall 2011 semester have finally begun. Sunday I had three classes, two of which I decided I was keeping. The day began after that sleep deprived trip home from Luxor, and at 8:30 I managed to find my classroom for Art & Architecture of Ancient Egypt I. Now, the thing about AUC campus is... you can get lost in two seconds. Everyone gets lost. And I mean everyone. I asked the professor if there was a waterfountain nearby and he nodded and said yes, and then I asked if he knew where the waterfountain was.

And he said "... Uhhh.... nooo... But you have ten minutes! You have time to find it!"

People get lost seriously looking for their own office. It's great.

The class was really good. Only about six or seven of us showed up and it was really interesting to see the progression of pottery and decoration through the Pre-Dynastic period. Of course, it was just the introduction and we'll be going far more indepth later on in the semester, but it drew on a lot of archaeological basics that I learned in Intro to Arch/Phys Anthro and Archaeology of the Body! Yay!

Then I had a gap until 2:00 where I went to my Comparative Religion course, Zionism & Modern Judaism. The professor scares me. I know next to nothing about either of these topics, and she is very stern and strict and no-nonsense-y. She said, and I quote, "My Zionism class generally starts with around 30 people, but because it's so difficult, I usually end up with around 17 because people drop out." Hnnnng, whaaat? I'm terrified, but then I look at the syllabus and the readings aren't as much as I've had in 300 levels in Gettysburg, and the final paper isn't nearly as long as the papers I've had to write for Gettysburg either. But still. She scares me!

Then I made my way over to Chemistry, Art and Archaeology. I was seriously asked "What is archaeology?" and when I answered, "The study of human past and culture through material remains in the earth." And that was, verbatim, on the next slide, I almost face-palmed. It's a 200 level course. Which is like a 100 level in the Gettysburg curriculum, I've wagered. A lot of what we're going to be doing is stuff I think I've got covered, such as stable isotope analysis, C14 dating, and other ways to date artifacts and what not. And he's a chemist, not an archaeologist. A lot of the students that showed up for the class were freshman and people who were taking it to fulfill a requirement, not for genuine interest.

But here's the dilemma. I can replace that course with a grad course in Egyptology. Which is Advanced Methods and Theories: Archaeological and Historical. I emailed the professor to make sure it was okay, and she asked for my academic background, as the students in the class are MA students who have basic knowledge in Ancient Egyptian time periods, have been on excavations, etc. I'm going to be the underdog. I told her of my experience in the field (which is slim to none) and how I am a study abroad student taking courses to fulfill that knowledge of Egyptian history, and she said I could sit in the first class and see if it was going to be too much.

I'm afraid that it will be, and I'll be that kid that will show up the first day, and then never. Ever. Again. I don't know if I can live with myself if I do that. So I think tomorrow when I go to Campus, I'll go to both Chem/Art/Arch and Grad just to make sure that if grad is too much, I won't have missed the other class? I seriously don't know what else to do. =/ I really want to do the grad course, but I'm sort of terrified that it will be too heavy of a course load and too hard and I won't do as well as I want myself to do. Sigh.

So yesterday, anyway, I went to Hieroglyphics I, which is like a legit language course and seems pretty easy, and then I went to Anth 312, Peoples and Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa, which I think is going to be my "eeeeh, this is alright but not super fantastic," sort of class. Regardless, now that classes have started I find myself missing Gettysburg and home a wee bit more. It's not a huge feeling yet, but I do, and I'm sure it will grow a little bigger as the year moves on.

Tomorrow is going to be a long day 8:30 class in the morning and my grad class ends at 8:30 pm. Huzzah!

Mummies, cruises, sunburn and sleep deprivation.

So I got back this morning from a three day cruise down the Nile from Aswan to Luxor. This morning as in ... 4:30 am. When classes started (on a Sunday, yes) at 8:30 for me. A six o'clock alarm was my worst enemy when I got back to my room this morning and just wanted to sleep for ages. There is lots to tell about the cruise. So I'll try and shell out the generalizations and basics so I can flop into bed.

Day one.

Day one began quite literally at midnight that night. Our flight was scheduled to leave Cairo Airport at 3:55 am and we were planning to leave at one. Though, we're going by Egyptian time here, something I really dislike about this country is that nothing ever runs on time ever. We didn't get out of Zamalek until 1:45 ish and at the airport until like 3:00 am. We caught our flight, got in at around 5:00 and checked into our Cruise ship! The ship was called M/S Beau Soleil and it was far nicer than I had expected! Of course, I had paid like, $350 U.S. for this entire cruise, meals and excursions and flights included. What was I expecting, exactly? Nonetheless, it was a very, very nice cruise line. We unpacked our bags and I was really anxious for a nap, but alas, we had to get on the bus for a tour of the Aswan High Dam, the dam that essentially creates the Lake Nasser, which spreads from Egypt to Sudan.

Lake Nasser was really beautiful, but I was also very very tired! After Lake Nasser and the Aswan dam came some more exploration. I had a little bit of a nap between some events and then we sailed out on a fellucca ride towards Philae Temple and a Nubian village. Philae Temple was amazing. At first we saw it just from the side of our fellucca and I wasn't expecting to actually get to go inside of it! When we were done at Philae and a Nubian village (where I saw crocodiles, touched them, and also got to see the inside of a family's home and have soda/tea with them!) we went back to the cruise ship for dinner and then hung out on the deck as we took sail at 10:00 pm. Then, I headed to bed for a well needed rest.

Day two.

Because day two began at six am the next morning. We didn't get to have breakfast at seven that day. We actually went somewhere first. Not a big fan of going somewhere like a temple without sustenance! We went to Kom Ombo temple, which is the temple dedicated half to Sobek and half to Horus. It was fun, we spent an hour roaming around and then we went back to the ship for breakfast and we were told that we were done until four. It was about 9:00 am when I went upstairs on the top deck with some others and watched them jump into the pool and had Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by my side near the pool. Then... the plans changed.

They tended to do that a lot on this cruise. The event for four pm had been moved up to 12. So we headed to Edfu temple. The Temples were starting to all blur together in my mind and look exactly the same. I was having some difficulties staying interested in things that all looked the same. Don't get me wrong, I was so awed by the mere idea of having these huge temples built by hand and experiencing them firsthand also! Living history right there in front of me in hieroglyphics!

After Edfu temple I laid out on the deck of the boat, went swimming, and got horribly sunburnt. But it was worth it. I can now officially say I've swam in the Nile. To do so for real would be just darn stupid, but hey - it's true. I swam in a pool on a cruise ship that was in the Nile. That counts as in the Nile! Also, we were sort of harrassed as we went through the Lock on the way to Luxor. Small boats with vendors trying to sell things inside them pulled up against our boat through the lock and started shouting things at us, and throwing their merchandise (mainly towels, shirts, and table cloths) up onto the top deck! It was really inappropriate, actually, some of the things they were saying...

Something I also absolutely hated about this day was that we took a horse and carriage around to Edfu temple. I felt sick to my stomach. Not because of the motion sickness, but because our carriage owner was abusing the horse. Every horse looked malnourished and not taken care of, and our guy? Was whipping the horse every so often. I flinched every time, I felt disgusted when I got off, and I wanted to cry by the end. I sat on the way to Edfu facing the road so I could see the whip crack every time. I kept my head down but flinched at the noise. On the way back, I was facing the opposite direction... I clenched my hands so hard that I had fingermarks on the back of my hands. It was awful and I never want to do it again. I can't look at horses and buggies anymore. 

Day three.

Began by waking up at 6:30 am and heading down to breakfast, after which we departed for Valley of the Kings! Valley of the Kings is where the pharaohs' tombs were built for their afterlife; there are 62 in total in the Valley of the Kings, in Luxor. There is no photography allowed in Valley of the Kings, out of respect for the dead, as well as the fact that the tombs must be preserved as a part of Egypt's history. When you buy a ticket for Valley of the Kings, you get access to three main tombs: Ramses I, Ramses IX, and Ramses IV. Out of those three, Ramses IV was the largest, by far! Then you had the option of paying an extra 50 LE to enter the most famous King Tut's tomb! There wasn't a chance in the world that I was letting that opportunity pass me by, so I bought the extra ticket (hey, less than $10 U.S. to see King Tut himself? Count me in!) and climbed inside his tomb. On one side was the outer sarcophagus, which of course is beautiful in itself. The other two coffins that sat inside the first are in the Egyptian Museum, as is his 11 kilogram mask. At first I was like yeah okay, this is pretty amazing, his outer sarcophagus and stuff - but then, I turned the corner.

Out of respect, they kept King Tut's mummy in his Tomb in a glass case. I saw King Tut's mummy. He was darkened, and shriveled from the embalming process and the years and years of age and wear. He truly was a small pharaoh, even for being a child when he took reign. Inbred and ridden with diseases like malaria, no one is still sure what caused King Tut's death.

He still had his teeth.

It was amazing.

After Valley of the Kings was Hatshepsut's temple, just over the mountain. She was pretty awesome, and I loved the paintings of the God Anubis with the head of a jackal on the walls. Anubis was the god who decided whether or not you were worthy enough to go onto the afterlife by weighing your heart on a scale against a feather. If your heart was lighter than the feather you passed, if it was heavier... you did not.

Then we visisted Karnak temple, which is by far the biggest temple ever. It's dedicated to Ramses and all sorts of other things that I can't quite recall the history behind. We also got to go to a bazaar/market where we were shown the process of how to make alabaster vases in the ancient way. Then we were taken into the shop. I had my eye on an egyptian cat made of basalt for my memaw (= and when I asked how much (after being reassured that the haggling wasn't awful, we weren't made to agree to buy anything if we didn't want it or didn't like the price) he said 170 LE. I said no, and then he began to compliment me (he did this to Ashley too) and said that because I have pretty eyes he'd give me 130. He could tell I still didn't like the price. I offered him 100 and that was the deal. He also "snuck me" a free hand made scarab (but it wasn't free because I had to tip him). He said that Ashley and I were sisters because of our fairer hair and eyes. Whoops.

The benefits of having light, not brown, eyes in Egypt?

The flight was long and awful. We were supposed to leave at 0020, and we didn't leave until 1. Got baggage at 3:30, the bus driver was a maniac and sped over speed bumps that shot me out of my seat by like, two feet into the air (which really hurts when you're laying across a few seats using a dufflebag as a pillow), and finally got back to Zamalek at 4:30.

Whereupon I had to wake up at 6:00 for classes at 8:30. Art & Architecture of Ancient Egypt went really well. I took two pages of notes. Zionism & Modern Judaism... the professor is super intimidating and scares me. Chemistry, Art and Archaeology, may be a little too easy for me. I think I'm going to try and switch out into a grad class for Archaeological Theory/Methods or Field Work if I can.

Tomorrow: MORE SLEEP, Hieroglyphics I, and Peoples & Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa!