Goin Native

This post is way over due, but it is a testament to how wildly busy I've been and how fast the days go by... faster than you can say 'Inshallah' or 'shukran' !!!
Alex - as the girls have said - was a refreshing break from the Cairo pollution. I think I am allergic to the pollution here, but I have the hookup for all the Bennies (or Bennadryl) I need from my dealer from Queens - Sharon Weintraub, party of 5.
It was a blur of beaches, libraries, catacombs and sufi's but somehow we got through it even though we were staying at the hotel from a Hitchcock movie - complete with creepy hallways and no air conditioning. yea.
After we came back from Alex on Saturday, and I taught a class discussing public transportation in Cairo - and surprisingly (sarcastic) my students didn't know what a driving lane or a traffic sign was. Of couse, the reason they don't know what it is is because NO ONE here believes in them, and the traffic signals don't work. My experiences with cab drivers here have been amazing to awful, but you live and learn and I am definitely learning a lot.
On Monday, I went to City Stars and then the Citadel with my SOAS friends (the juxtaposition of new & ancient - a theme of sorts here in Cairo) and then I went to go teach my class, but I was early so I went around the shops in Coptic Cairo.
I met a social worker named Mustafa that works in a shop there, he spoke perfect english and was interested in what LE was doing here in Cairo. At first it was difficult for him to grasp the idea of 'Volunteering' - working for no money - but we exchanged email addresses and he is going to research and ask around to see if any English centers here in Cairo would be interested in having LE work with them. Rachel and I went by his shop yesterday as well to say hello to him.
My classes went really well, we wrote 'letters to the editor' - another concept I had to explain - about the public transportation in cairo and the students got really into it.
After class, my students and I went to have an authentic Caironese dinner at Gad - a Cairo chain that locals love, and then we went to El Abd - a veryy popular dessert shop. They made me try Basboosa - a yummy grainy dessert, and we then boarded a two leveled boat that went up and down the nile, passing Zemalek - the island we live on. I saw Sequoia - our most visited hot spot so far in Cairo. Downstairs they had a DJ playing traditional Tabla (drum) music - which I thought was live, and I was sad when I found out it was a DJ but thats ok :) It was an amazing way to see how the real people of Cairo see Cairo, I loved it!! I was nativeeee. But then they became really 'native' and wanted to walk home, and the American in me came out as I said umm... Taxi!!!!!
All in all, its been a whirlwind couple of days, and tomorrow we climb Mt. Sinai. Only in Egypt. :)
Missing Kathyyyy like whoa!
PS - im trying to upload a video of a little girl dancing to tabla on the boat, hope it works!

HIBA