The Cairo Museum. The pyramids of Giza. The majestic Nile. These are images that one thinks of when reflecting on the ancient land of Egypt. Egypt truly is an amazing and breathtaking county (and not just because of the beauty). There is eons of history there, centuries upon centuries of stories buried in the sand. The people number as one of the oldest races and civilizations in the world that are still in existence. Living there for my study abroad was a great experience for my 19 year-old self.
Over the past week as I have been preparing my last bits of documents for my TEFL journey, I've been thinking about Cairo and how desperately I want to go there again. At the end of that extremely hot summer (NOTE: No joke! The Middle East is a hot place, but that summer broke the records for the hottest summers in Egypt, Israel, and Jordan.), I was ready to come home. It was long and sometimes harrowing experience for someone who had never left the country before. If you gave me a plane ticket today though, I would be right there again. A part of my heart will always be there. It is poetic that the country that I dreamed of going to my whole life was Egypt, and I was blessed to have that be the first country I went to. And not only went but lived. I wouldn't trade a second of that summer. I lived among the people and got off of the beaten path. Sure, I saw the pyramids, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, and other other touristy places. But that will never compare to living among and with the Egyptians in Ma'adi. You know what would be a fun dream job? Have me travel and write guidebooks and whatnot. I would LOVE IT!
I thought I would give you a taste of my Cairo residency in some pictures. A little walk down a literal memory lane.
This is a common sight in Cairo. Piles upon piles of stinky rubbish. Garbage. Trash! I saw men get up in the morning an go outside and burn the piles. Woo, that was a smell to behold. Add that to the dust and the pollution smell, it was ripe. And see that rooster hanging out, too? Very common to see cats, dogs, horses, donkeys, chickens, etc. Everywhere. Alive and dead. Hence:
Over the past week as I have been preparing my last bits of documents for my TEFL journey, I've been thinking about Cairo and how desperately I want to go there again. At the end of that extremely hot summer (NOTE: No joke! The Middle East is a hot place, but that summer broke the records for the hottest summers in Egypt, Israel, and Jordan.), I was ready to come home. It was long and sometimes harrowing experience for someone who had never left the country before. If you gave me a plane ticket today though, I would be right there again. A part of my heart will always be there. It is poetic that the country that I dreamed of going to my whole life was Egypt, and I was blessed to have that be the first country I went to. And not only went but lived. I wouldn't trade a second of that summer. I lived among the people and got off of the beaten path. Sure, I saw the pyramids, Luxor, Aswan, Abu Simbel, and other other touristy places. But that will never compare to living among and with the Egyptians in Ma'adi. You know what would be a fun dream job? Have me travel and write guidebooks and whatnot. I would LOVE IT!
I thought I would give you a taste of my Cairo residency in some pictures. A little walk down a literal memory lane.
This is a common sight in Cairo. Piles upon piles of stinky rubbish. Garbage. Trash! I saw men get up in the morning an go outside and burn the piles. Woo, that was a smell to behold. Add that to the dust and the pollution smell, it was ripe. And see that rooster hanging out, too? Very common to see cats, dogs, horses, donkeys, chickens, etc. Everywhere. Alive and dead. Hence:
Do you see it? Keep looking, it might take a minute. Under the horse's back right hoof. It is standing on a paper and a dead cat. Yep, that was parts of Cairo for you.
This alleyway was a daily jaunt for us on our way from our flat to the institute. We did the same things with our laundry--hung it outside. It never was quite clean that whole summer.
It was always interesting to see the difference between the skyline and then the actual street view. The graffiti was always an interesting sight.
Or seeing a guy chilling in the middle of the day. I don't blame them. It was SOOOOOOO hot that even our professor told us to schedule a nap.
This was also another favourite of mine: that man sleeping in the previous picture, these are his goats that he herded in the middle of Ma'adi by the metro tracks.
We lived up the road from the Ugandan Embassy. Trust me, it sounds a lot posher that it actually was. The guards would be hanging out in front of the gates with their AK-47s, just chilling in the sun. They were nice. Not talkative, but nice.
But despite all of the rubbish, dust, pollution, and smells, there are places to see like this:
If you ever have the chance, go to the Middle. Be with the people. Learn their stories. They will take you places that you would never imagine existed.
[NOTE: All pictures are exclusively owned by innovative marbles. Do not use, publish, copy, or distribute without express consent of the owner.]
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