Saturday, February 19, 2011
Revolution: Day 6. Perhaps, it is time to reassess the situation?
Day 6- Sunday, January 30th, 2011
It was such a beautiful day. The sun was out and the curfew had lifted; the citizens of Maadi were gaining confidence to venture out of their caves to see the streets first hand. Many stores, small shops and banks were boarded up while most of the streets were barricaded off in some way to prevent vehicles from entering their neighborhoods. As I walked past my favorite bakery, the Egyptian owner, Tony stops me. In his attempt to comfort me, he tells me not to worry because the continued gun shots are only coming from the Maadi Prison to scare the escaped inmates.... Thanks, Tony.
After meeting with the very scared and concerned Hayah staff, may of us realize the school was not overly organized in their next steps. It was unfortunate, because at the time, many of the other American Schools had put plans into place to provide their international staff with some protection and security with immediate evacuation plans. At that point, we realized it might be time to reassess the situation and create an independent plan of action.
Sunday night was a repeat of Saturday... Gunshots from the local militia, Egyptian Army shooting off their tanks only blocks away from my window and one last really tasty dinner with my five new roommates. The boys also extended their weapons (American metal baseball bats) to our security around the neighborhood. Below is a picture of Marco with his weapon in the kitchen.
We enjoyed our dinner on the balcony and listened to the sweet sounds of the Revolution. At one point the boys got excited and raced to the terrace on the roof. After a few additional seconds I knew to remain under the protected and covered balcony. Once gun fire goes up, it must come down.....
It was such a beautiful day. The sun was out and the curfew had lifted; the citizens of Maadi were gaining confidence to venture out of their caves to see the streets first hand. Many stores, small shops and banks were boarded up while most of the streets were barricaded off in some way to prevent vehicles from entering their neighborhoods. As I walked past my favorite bakery, the Egyptian owner, Tony stops me. In his attempt to comfort me, he tells me not to worry because the continued gun shots are only coming from the Maadi Prison to scare the escaped inmates.... Thanks, Tony.
After meeting with the very scared and concerned Hayah staff, may of us realize the school was not overly organized in their next steps. It was unfortunate, because at the time, many of the other American Schools had put plans into place to provide their international staff with some protection and security with immediate evacuation plans. At that point, we realized it might be time to reassess the situation and create an independent plan of action.
Sunday night was a repeat of Saturday... Gunshots from the local militia, Egyptian Army shooting off their tanks only blocks away from my window and one last really tasty dinner with my five new roommates. The boys also extended their weapons (American metal baseball bats) to our security around the neighborhood. Below is a picture of Marco with his weapon in the kitchen.
We enjoyed our dinner on the balcony and listened to the sweet sounds of the Revolution. At one point the boys got excited and raced to the terrace on the roof. After a few additional seconds I knew to remain under the protected and covered balcony. Once gun fire goes up, it must come down.....
Revolution: Day 5. Hello Cell Phones, Good-Bye Security
Day 5- Saturday, January 29th, 2011
After pressure from the Western World, Mubarak was encouraged to return cell phone service to his country. However, he remained in control by keeping text messaging and internet connection down.
When Leah stopped by my flat at 10am, we decided to enjoy the nice weather on my balcony with a coffee and Bailey's. Throughout the morning, several colleagues walked by and stopped up to chat about the weekly events. Within the hour, we had received word that school on Sunday was canceled and we were to get to safe location until further notice. At that point, we knew the situation had been raised from a 2 to a 5. Leah met Didem at the Maadi Grand Mall to accomplish two important things; remove as much money from their Egyptian bank account as possible and stock up on water and food in case of immediate shortage. While they ran around I gathered things together at my flat and waited for their return. Less than twenty minute later they were frantically pounding at my door. Seems as though they were greeted by friendly protestors with sticks, flags and signs shouting at them to "Get the F* Home!" The girls must have been pushed around a bit because by the time they reached my flat they were hysterical and almost to tears.
The current situation just went from a 5 to an 8.
For the next three days I decided to stay at at the safest place I could think of, the top floor of an apartment building with five male American teachers all armed with bats (and enough beer and burgers to last a couple of weeks).
Later that night, our neighborhood police station was raided by local Egyptian neighbors (the good guys). However comforting or frighting it was, our local militia was now armed with rifles and hand guns. Throughout the night we listened to the sounds of gunfire, army tanks and helicopters until sunrise. Both manual and automatic gunfire continued until the final minutes of curfew.
Overnight, the "freak-out meter" jumped from an 8 to a 10.
Revolution: Day 4
Friday, January 28th, 2011
Friday mornings with the Maadi Runner's have become my favorite day of the week. Usually gathering at the US Embassy School in Maadi around 6:30am for marathon training. We run our tails off for a few hours and conclude the morning with the most extravagant post-run brunch and some laughs. However, because of our busy morning, no one realized that every line of communication had been cut off. Gmail.com, Facebook.com, BBC.com, cell phones, text messages, blackberry service- everything, Khalas!! The only form of communication available at the time was a land-line. Come on, this is 2011, I don't even know how to use my land-line.
That night a curfew was enforced at 8pm. Did we follow this curfew? Was there any potential sign of danger in Maadi? I can honestly say, No. At that point, no one thought these protests could go much further. Tahrir Square was 10 kilometers away which seemed like the other side of the world. However, when a group of us left for a party located just down the street at around 10pm, it only took a few moments to realize the unusual silence that surrounded us. There were no honking of cars, shouting of men or running of children. But, what concerned me the most was even the overpopulated and endless presence of wild cats and dogs were absent from the streets. Almost as if they knew something was coming that we didn't.
Friday mornings with the Maadi Runner's have become my favorite day of the week. Usually gathering at the US Embassy School in Maadi around 6:30am for marathon training. We run our tails off for a few hours and conclude the morning with the most extravagant post-run brunch and some laughs. However, because of our busy morning, no one realized that every line of communication had been cut off. Gmail.com, Facebook.com, BBC.com, cell phones, text messages, blackberry service- everything, Khalas!! The only form of communication available at the time was a land-line. Come on, this is 2011, I don't even know how to use my land-line.
That night a curfew was enforced at 8pm. Did we follow this curfew? Was there any potential sign of danger in Maadi? I can honestly say, No. At that point, no one thought these protests could go much further. Tahrir Square was 10 kilometers away which seemed like the other side of the world. However, when a group of us left for a party located just down the street at around 10pm, it only took a few moments to realize the unusual silence that surrounded us. There were no honking of cars, shouting of men or running of children. But, what concerned me the most was even the overpopulated and endless presence of wild cats and dogs were absent from the streets. Almost as if they knew something was coming that we didn't.
Pre-Revolution Party
Pre-Revolution:
The Egyptian Revolution started like any other revolution. No School Day!! January 25th had been considered a national holiday for many years. With that, we felt it our duty to celebrate our current home country on Monday night at a jazz club in downtown Cairo. This place was buzzing with the local flavor. But, when I say local I really mean someone average, you know, like former Egyptian Royalty or the (recently former) Minister of Education's son. Each of them very well dressed, very well educated, and fairly moderate in the traditional Islamic values ie: pork and alcohol.
Throughout the night, there was not one hint of revolutionary talk. If there was, perhaps it was spoken in code (Arabic) or far away from the ears of western looking women. I woke up the next morning with nothing more than a small hangover and a much needed Cola Light.
Day 1-3:
These days were all the same. We went to school and taught. The only exception of abnormality was a 15 minute early release. Essentially, Hayah's attempt to avoid the "small" protest traffic our students would face as they passed through downtown on their way home. Each day, we returned to work hearing more and more about the peaceful crowds gathering in Tahrir Square. But each day, I was reminded about the risk these protestors were taking. As Egyptian law stated; the gathering of small groups, peaceful or not, was an illegal act. Many Egyptians were worried for the protestors and the potential brutality Mubarak's Police could bring. On Thursday, January 27th, 2011 our first form of communication was cut off-- FACEBOOK.com??
The Egyptian Revolution started like any other revolution. No School Day!! January 25th had been considered a national holiday for many years. With that, we felt it our duty to celebrate our current home country on Monday night at a jazz club in downtown Cairo. This place was buzzing with the local flavor. But, when I say local I really mean someone average, you know, like former Egyptian Royalty or the (recently former) Minister of Education's son. Each of them very well dressed, very well educated, and fairly moderate in the traditional Islamic values ie: pork and alcohol.
Throughout the night, there was not one hint of revolutionary talk. If there was, perhaps it was spoken in code (Arabic) or far away from the ears of western looking women. I woke up the next morning with nothing more than a small hangover and a much needed Cola Light.
Day 1-3:
These days were all the same. We went to school and taught. The only exception of abnormality was a 15 minute early release. Essentially, Hayah's attempt to avoid the "small" protest traffic our students would face as they passed through downtown on their way home. Each day, we returned to work hearing more and more about the peaceful crowds gathering in Tahrir Square. But each day, I was reminded about the risk these protestors were taking. As Egyptian law stated; the gathering of small groups, peaceful or not, was an illegal act. Many Egyptians were worried for the protestors and the potential brutality Mubarak's Police could bring. On Thursday, January 27th, 2011 our first form of communication was cut off-- FACEBOOK.com??
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