Hello, my dear readers! What a weekend I have had...this afternoon when I woke up from my post-bus nap, it seemed so surreal in memory. So much to say, so here's hoping I remember everything I wanted to share. Of course, after I had finished writing my first draft of this post (except uploading pictures), Firefox kicked me in the teeth and decided to crash. Rewrite time! As I've mentioned before, this blog is as much for me as it is for you, so you may find some of the details a bit excessive. Feel free to scroll down and skip past the boring parts ;]
On Thursday night after returning home from my all-day field trip with my biblical Israel class, I unpacked my backpack and repacked it with my Egypt necessities -- change of clothes, passport, water, Cariot, books, and so on. My adventures officially began at 12:45 on Friday afternoon when I took off from my internship a bit early and headed over to the central bus station. I made it through security, picked up Charlotte's and my bus tickets, and grabbed a kosher hot dog from a booth, and hunkered down by our gate to wait for Charlotte. She arrived a few minutes later and we chatted and lunched while we waited for our bus to reach the station.
Around 1:50, we boarded our bus! I joked to Charlotte that as I'd left for my internship that morning, I felt so certain I was forgetting something (I later discovered it was my book light), but I figured that since I had cash and my passport, everything else would work out! At that Charlotte's face fell as she realized --
she had forgotten her passport. So at 1:58, two minutes before the departure of the last bus to Eilat until Saturday night, Charlotte walked away from the bus station.
I pulled out my Islam reader as I had intended to spend the bus ride getting some work done, but I couldn't focus, so I napped instead. Then just after 4:00 Charlotte texted me -- she was in a (very expensive) taxi making the five-hour drive to Eilat! Thus reassured, I got my reader back out and read all about the intersections of the Middle East and the West.
We rolled into Eilat sometime between 6:00 and 6:30 and I was greeted by an unhappy surprise. Our tour didn't depart until 9:00 so I'd planned on camping out inside the bus station for a few hours...but it was CLOSED for Shabbat! Fortunately a few people were gathered outside (anyone who has arrived at an Israeli bus station knows that a wide variety of tour guides, hotel workers, and taxi drivers await new arrivals to offer their services), so I just pulled out my reader again and got started on my next reading. Then my attention was drawn as I heard someone nearby mention to someone that he was only here for a few hours, he was waiting for a tour. I interrupted to ask if he was on the same tour as me, and he was! And just like that I had a friend with whom I could pass the time for the next few hours.
Adam, former Australian marketing executive, current world traveler, and future citizen of Toronto, and I chatted about Israeli politics, our mutual love for Palestine, how insanely terrifying we find the Republican candidates for US president, and so on. At 8:00 we were kicked out of the outdoor part of the bus station so they could lock up, so we found a shawarma restaurant that was surprisingly still open. A few minutes later, Charlotte arrived from Jerusalem! Shortly thereafter we were picked up for our tour by Sara, who works for the Israeli branch of Fun Time Tours. She took us to the border, paid our fees, and sent us off into Egypt!
Interestingly, while weapons must be declared before being taken into Egypt, carrying pornography across the border is strictly prohibited.
After we crossed the border, we were greeted by another employee of Fun Time who was there to help us with our customs forms and guide us to our van. He also offered Charlotte the first of three marriage proposals she would receive in the next sixteen hours! We clambered onto a large van where we spent the next seven hours trying to sleep -- at first with limited success. The ride was quite bumpy, so for the first 90 minutes or so, none of us had any luck! But after our first stop, the driver blasted the heat, which created quite a soporific atmosphere and put me to sleep.
Around 7:45AM we were awakened by Ahmed, our tour guide, who took us to where we would have breakfast. We dined on falafel, pitas, and black bean dip. The falafel was different from Israeli falafel -- a little bigger, and crispier. Very delicious :] Thus energized by food, Nescafe, and Coke, we headed over to the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities!
Sadly, cameras were not allowed in the museum, so the only pictures I took were from the courtyard. Right nearby was a former government building that was destroyed during the protests.
The museum was positively stuffed with antiquities -- you could spend a week there and still not see everything! The most exciting moment for me was seeing the Merenptah stele, which contains the first record of "Israelites" in history. I've seen pictures and studied it in my biblical Israel class, so it was amazing to be able to see it up close! On our way out, Charlotte and I learned that we were just meters from Tahrir Square, and so we asked Ahmed if we could drive by on our way to our next stop.
Only a few tents remain -- most of the protesters have cleared out at this point. It was so exciting to see the site that has occupied the attention of the news for months now! We also stopped at a bridge over the Nile River to take a few quick pictures. In case you were wondering, it's safe to swim in -- no crocodiles in it these days ;] Once again, it was thrilling to see such an important historical and cultural site!
After that we went to a papyrus shop, where we learned how papyrus was made, and Charlotte received her next two marriage proposals. One gentleman offered her a thousand camels for her hand in marriage! Fortunately she was able to use these connections to swing us a sweet deal :D
Next up was the moment I had been waiting for -- an afternoon at the pyramids and the Sphinx.
SO SPECTACULAR. We had to constantly remind ourselves that it was really happening!
Adam also got several comments from street vendors in the area that he must be a very rich man to be able to afford two beautiful wives. Oh man :P
The three of us got to climb onto the first pyramid...
...visit inside the ruins of two of the smaller surrounding pyramids...
(picture to follow when Charlotte puts hers online!)
...took pictures where we looked like giants...
...and finally we drove off a bit to somewhere with a gorgeous view of all three of the great pyramids.
The we headed over to the Sphinx!
Again -- simply incredible. Still can hardly believe I was there.
After that we had lunch at a buffet along with some interesting conversation with Ahmed about the current situation in Egypt. Because of all the political insanity, tourism is down, and residents of Egypt have been blocked from visiting a lot of places. The waiter who brought us our drinks may want to travel the world just as much as I do -- but I was born into circumstances that accommodate my desire to do so. I simultaneously felt extremely lucky and blessed and also overly privileged, because why should I deserve this more than anyone else?
Our last stop all together was to a famous Egyptian perfume shop. I bought a few amazing essential oils -- a couple of perfumes (lotus flower and papyrus), a nice sandalwood/eucalyptus massage oil, and an amazing mint oil that, when a few drops are added to a mug of warm water and you inhale the steam, it will instantly clear your sinuses. Totally amazing!
At last, it was time for our group to separate as we left Ahmed and Adam in Cairo. Ahmed was off to lunch with his mother, and Adam's in Egypt for the next ten days before flying to India for a month. We exchanged contact info and hugs before waving goodbye! Then Charlotte and I passed the hours of driving across the Sinai with chatting, reading, and napping. We also glimpsed what I later learned was a partial lunar eclipse -- a sliver of orangey-red moon over the Sinai desert. Incredible. Finally we arrived back at the border and said goodbye to our driver and Sinai guide and crossed back into Israel.
Oh Egypt. It was so sad to leave you. We WILL see you again! Sara picked us up and deposited us back at the bus station (and we had a fabulous life chat along the way) where Charlotte napped and I read Lord of the Rings until 12:50AM when we hopped on a (very cold) bus to Tel Aviv. After five hours of driving, we took a bus from Tel Aviv to the Jerusalem bus station, and then to the kfar. I got to my apartment at 7:30, quickly checked my e-mail, and then rolled over and napped until noon.
At that point I had to drag myself out of bed and I warmed up some chili, got dressed, and headed to three very sleepy hours of class. (Charlotte and I discussed how glad we were that our Hebrew class didn't have the supplemental lesson most classes had today from 8:30 to 12:30 because there's no way we would have made it!) After quickly eating dinner, finishing up Hebrew homework, and quickly reviewing for tomorrow's quiz, it's time to crash. Hebrew tomorrow morning, then a low-key afternoon of laundry and homework -- 325 more pages of reading for the semester, so I'm hoping to finish this week!
The near future is looking like lots of reading, catching up on sleep, and class. But all work and no play makes Grace a dull girl, so I've started planning my last few Middle Eastern adventures. My one class for this Thursday was cancelled, so I'm going to try and spend the day at AISJ helping them with the last-minute prep for their Christmas play. If they don't need me, then I'm still hoping to go watch them perform! Friday will be my last day with the kids. This Saturday, Arielle and I will be taking a tour (again with Green Olive!) of Nablus, Sebastia, and Jenin. Then just three days later (nine days from today), M&D will arrive, and adventures will abound! After they leave I'll spend eight days studying, taking finals, and writing papers before (Arielle, I know you disagree, but it's happening!) flying back to CA.
I can't believe my time here is concluding so quickly. But rather than dwell on the past or future, I'm doing my best to enjoy my present! Stay tuned for more :]
