My New Super Star

My girl, Haidi, has such a big heart.  On the seventh day of school she brought her teacher her very own freshly baked cake.  I told her "Shukran, Shukran owie owie owie!!!"  She smiled then gave me a hug.

I could tell Haidi had watched her parents welcome others in a similar way.  She put her arms out like she was an experienced host and shouted in her proudest voice "Welcome to Hayah and Welcome to Egypt".  I think this gift helped her feel like a mature and responsible eleven year old.  It was a wonderful feeling to receive such a welcome and even better to see her so proud of herself, her family and her culture.

Back to the Midwest!

Ok, not technically, but it felt pretty close to it.  On the bus ride home this evening, I was talking with a small group of staff members sitting near my seat and I over heard Lisa sharing the menu she was preparing for her family tonight.  Steve and Lisa, are a couple from good ol' Minnie that also brought along their two adorable 7 year old twins, Natalie and Thomas. When I heard "Sloppy Joe's", my ears instantly perked up and I got a bit giddy thinking of Momma J's Sloppy Joe's.  I think she thought it was quite funny how excited I was for such a meal.  About an hour later I received a call from the cute family around the corner inviting me, with another couple, Musa and Kathleen, to Sloppy Joe's (how could I refuse!?!).


We opened the door and walked in the flat, the smell was overwhelming.  The aroma brought on a flood of good memories, like a mix of Gram Jo's house and MJ's cooking.  The entryway opened into a large living and dinning room which were connected to the kitchen through an old fashion bar that peered right into the kitchen.  I think it took Natalie 30 seconds before she grabbed my hand to give the proper tour.  She led us into her room filled with dolls, a Hannah Montana poster and awards she had earned at school.  Thomas showed me his spider man web shooter-- pretty sweet.


The best part of the night, even before any food was served, was when Thomas and his Dad brought out a sand dollar they found on the Red Sea a few weeks ago.  Right before the family left for their trip, I was talking with Thomas, Natalie and their Dad about looking for washed up sand dollars on the shore.   I remembered how excited my siblings and I would get as babes when Grandma Ursula brought us sand dollars from Florida.  She showed us why we should crack open the dried out sand dollars and how to find the little symmetrical surprises inside.  Thomas decided these pieces HAD to be fossils or teeth!  It was really neat to see the conversation the kids and I had together about Grandma Ursula, encourage them to find sand dollars on their trip and bring it back to show me.  It was undoubtably a Chris Scheldrup moment (he might have even cried at this one).


When dinner was served we shared a pretty killer dip, salad, fries with ketchup and/or sour cream, sloppy joe's and to top it all off she baked banana bread with chocolate chips!!  I couldn't really believe my eyes or my taste buds.  After five weeks away from the simple pleasures of the midwest (good food, good beer, good football, good peeps), I was so thankful for the invite to a Sloppy Joe night.

Day 1

And it has begun, after the "longest summer break of my life" (thank you CC) we are officially back as educators.  My class is filled with energetic and extremely vocal 5th graders.  


I was excited and nervous to begin the new year and my first day proved to be just that.  I was immersed in more cultural experiences than I have had since I arrived in Cairo.  Many of which added a unique challenge to our day.


Just like the beginning of every new school year, I love to play the alliteration name game.  This game involves everyone in class while supports my name recognition progress.  As we began the game today, I reminded students to have an idea of what they would like to call themselves when it was their turn.  Then we came to a very long string of "H".. Habiba (1), Habibia (2), Hara, Hana, Haidi, Haya and Hend.  Now, as first language english speakers it might not be too difficult to think of seven describing words that begin with an "H", however, we were not as fortunate.  Who would have thought I'd have seven student's with the name of "H".  Back in the States, I cannot recall more than three common-day names that begin with the letter H, let alone seven in one classroom...  But in the end we now have a few "Happy Habibia's", "Honest Hana" and "Hungry Haya".


Hayah International Academy is an American based school so roughly 90% of the employees speak English very well.  Traditionally, the ones who do not speak English are the "matrons" as well as the Arabic and Quraan teachers.  This is fine until you must speak with one of them about a student's needs or a task that must be completed.  In the first day I have already learned a very important lesson and I think this problem can be solved in one of two ways: first choice, use a fellow student to translate the pertinent information to identified party OR second (and probably most preferred) choice is to provide a nice breakfast treat (post Ramadan) to share with said party.  This is guaranteed to clear up all confusions..


The event that had the greatest impact on me was during the students time for prayer, which happens after lunch.  Students are directed towards the bathroom's where they are to preform "Wudu" or the Islamic act of cleaning the body.  Muslims are required to clean their face, arms, elbows, hands and head in preparation of ritual prayers.  The boys and girls are separated onto different mats on different sides of the hall for prayer.  Our girls are also required to wear a veil that covers their entire body except their face.  To begin the midday prayer, the students line up in rows, facing Mecca.  The Quraan teacher leads them in their traditional prayer and for 10 minutes they are silent except for the words of the prayer.  It was the quietest I heard my students all day.  I remember having chills as I watched the students in unison, rise up to their feet, bend over, then down to their knees, placing their forehead to the floor, and finally back to their knees and up again.  I think for me it is one thing to witness adults showing strength in their faith but it is another to see such devotion from someone so small.  It was something I had never experienced before and I will cherish that first observable moment.


To end the day, my class and myself almost missed the bus ride home.  The final bell rang at 3:30, however I was unsure of the exact time to dismiss the students from my room.  I thought I would wait with them in a line inside my door while watching for other classes to walk by the room, giving me the cue to dismiss.  But when twelve minutes pass and no one had walked by, I realized there was a problem.  Suddenly, the Principal, Miss Margaret came rushing down my hallway... and yes, we were late.  Every student and teacher K-12 had already loaded the buses.  I was bummed because we didn't get to part the way I wanted on the first day, but I suppose things were good because they made it back home.  I remember my former administrator, Mr. Palmer saying the most important thing to accomplish on the first day is to get the students to school, get them fed and then get them home safely.  If you can do all three it was a good day... (woops?!)

10 Ways to Walk Like an Egyptian

--or just 10 more reasons to visit L.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/egypt/travel-tips-and-articles/68293

Eid Break in Dahab

Holidays on the Red Sea can be so stressful and strenuous at times.  Waking up to the waves crashing against the rocky beach then strolling down (I don’t stroll, but you get the idea) the boardwalk to our preferred Bedouin café for a hot Nescafé and a cool banana milk shake….  Pretty rough, would you say?

Every morning since Monday has begun that same way, but on the third morning I laid back against the beach pillow and thought, “Can it get much better then this?”  Suddenly, I was struck from my daze to hear Sameh, dive instructor by profession tour guide by heart, had reserved us a yacht to explore the untouched sea life Dahab and the Red Sea have to offer.  (Like I said, stress-ful!)

With our scuba gear in toe, we cruised through the Red Sea to find a far-off-land called Gaber El-Bint with a beautiful reef protected by a large cove.  The boat saddled up next to three others of the same magnitude and the games were on; scuba diving, snorkeling, swimming or reading on the upper deck- just to name a few.   All the while, the crew was busy preparing lunch for their guests to be served under the boat’s canopy, overlooking the reef and coastal mountains.

My choice of poison was scuba diving, as I had decided to take this trip as a chance to earn my diving certification.  This morning was my second day of training.  The first day was at a rocky beach and was spent primarily on the shore going over drills and discussing diving techniques.  By the end of the day, I had completed two 4-meter dives while practicing the application of those drills and techniques underwater.

I was excited to begin my second day of training because I was to have my first open water dive.  However, during my decent, I began to have troubles equalizing my ears.  Not really understanding the intensity of pain this could create I continued to descend until I reach 8 meters.  At that point, I reached my threshold of pain and had to go back up.  However, on my ascent I experienced something called a reverse block, which caused additional squeezing in my ears and provided a quick shot of vertigo sending me into a spinning whirl-wind.  As I reflect back at that moment a day later, I don’t remember if it was really that painful or just the fear that I was stuck at 5 meters under the sea and could not go up or down until my ears released some pressure.  When I finally reached the surface with the instructor by my side, I was more pissed off at myself than anything.  Every other diver was below me, why couldn’t I get down there?   Sameh sent me back to the boat and suggested I refrain from diving until we get my ears checked by the doc later that evening.  (which I was also not very pumped about….).

In the end, turns out there was swelling and bleeding in both my ears that were caused by my lack of equalization (and possibly a head cold).  I was not very pleased when the doctor scolded me for being reckless and continued to rain on my parade by ending my dive training until the swelling goes down and the bleeding stops.  So, with only two days left in our trip I am S.O.L.  However, after much consideration, I have decided because the water is so crystal clear blue, the food, beer and hotel are so incredibly cheap and the dive is already paid for, I will be back sooner than one thought… for another strenuous weekend in Dahab.