There are many things I like about Egypt. There are cats all over the streets in Cairo. We saw a tiny baby cat. It is gray and white. A pipe broke and we had a flood in our house. We live in an apartment. We have a friend on floor one. Her name is Zayna and she is ten. We have a school bigger than ours in the USA. For PE we have swimming. There are trash trucks everywhere. It was just a little truck with trash bags piled to the top. We have a Red Sea in Cairo and there are boats like clear boats, banana boats, motor boats and especially white boats.
They have air conditioners too. It is different because they are a rectangle. They have delivery motorcycles. There is a box in the back where they put the food. They have belly dancing too. I am having a great time in Egypt. THE END.
By Zayna
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Biking, local market and day palace
I went on my second bike ride in Cairo yesterday. We routinely ride on a highway for at least two miles both ways. That one is a little scary as we are riding on the actual highway like a car not on the shoulder (those are for the crazy taxi buses that stop whenever they want). But kind of fun at the same time. It is only on Friday morning so the streets are not crowded. If this was a week day I would never dream of riding on the Ring Road. We also routinely ride through water puddles. The bo-abs (the guardians of the apartments) are responsible for daily washings of the cars that belong to the apartments in their respective buildings. This leaves alot of water puddles on the streets for me to bike through. We come back polka dotted from the mud/water sprays....at least we are hoping it is only water...heehee!
I rode through sand, gravel, a broken light bulb and I have been chased by one dog pack. The dogs seem to chase us for sport and only stay in their imaginary walls. They will not bite or attack, just chasing us down for fun. I pass alot of kids on the road sides that cheer you on and say "Hello, hello, hello!"". I have never felt like a super athlete until I biked in Cairo. Every one cheers you on from the cars to the semis to the kids on the street. I really feel like Lance or at least someone semi-famous! Yesterday we were stopped for a snack/regrouping break and two young guys pulled over and asked to take pictures with us. I really felt like a celebrity.
The people are very kind and I never feel threatned or unsafe in the city. Maybe nervous because I don't know where I am going, but I never feel unsafe. All in all, I am thrilled to be riding and wish I could be doing it more. The people riding are fantastic. There are several teachers and many people from the oil industry. That seems to bring the most expats to our world in Maadi. On our rides, I met people from Hungary, Italy, France, Canada, Japan, Italy and the US. How cool is that???
We traveled to Katamiya yesterday and it was lovely. They have a modern clubhouse/golf/swimming club. The kids had fun swimming and we met some great people. It was nice to be in a clean environment away from the hubbub and pollution of the city. We biked there in the morning and the view was quite different from the road. The homes are 3 stories high and have elaborate and sometimes gaudy facades. I hear you can get much more for your money in these areas, but you do not have the convenience of living in Maadi. Everything is here and is in walking distance. The bike rides all start from here and so do the running groups. The school is close by and most shops that you need are here also.
Zayna and I took a tour with our Arabic teacher to the local suq on road 7. There were rows upon rows of fruits, vegetables, spices, bread, large spotted ducks with red beaks, pigeons and rabbits. We drank fresh sugar cane juic and fresh coconut juice. It was about $.30 and you pay an extra ten cents to have the man wash the glass well in front of you. Then you get a glass of fresh juice and return the cup when you are done. Zayna got a natural sponge that was about one foot long and cost about a dollar and a quarter. I bought the most wonderful cinnamon for $.75. The man scooped it out of a wooden drawer and put it in a bag for me. I also bought a large bag of sesame seeds for entire $.75. There was some great fish and some shrimp, but the fish was the best. The shrimp was flown in from Vietnam as this is not the right season for it here.
Zayna and I also went to a prince's day palace in Zamalek. It's now a pottery museum. To me the palace was more interesting than the pottery. There was fantastic islamic art carvings and ornate tiles all over the walls. There was a trough of stone around the walls to hold cold water. This acted as natural air conditioning. There was a 30 foot stone dining room table that had a built up trough to keep hot water in. The food was then placed on top and it kept it warm. Next door was the real palace that was bought out and converted into a Marriot. I wondered if the guests staying there knew that the lobby was an old palace! Then we went to a pottery school were we watched pottery being made every step of the way. They were truly artists! One man had a dream and did not want to let this fantastic art die, so he created the school. Children often start learning the trade at the age of ten. We have so many things that are computer/factory made or that are made in China, it was nice to see people using their hands! The potter also spun the wheel with his foot by kicking another wheel underneath the other on the ground! It was all very interesting. All for now.....-Dawn
I rode through sand, gravel, a broken light bulb and I have been chased by one dog pack. The dogs seem to chase us for sport and only stay in their imaginary walls. They will not bite or attack, just chasing us down for fun. I pass alot of kids on the road sides that cheer you on and say "Hello, hello, hello!"". I have never felt like a super athlete until I biked in Cairo. Every one cheers you on from the cars to the semis to the kids on the street. I really feel like Lance or at least someone semi-famous! Yesterday we were stopped for a snack/regrouping break and two young guys pulled over and asked to take pictures with us. I really felt like a celebrity.
The people are very kind and I never feel threatned or unsafe in the city. Maybe nervous because I don't know where I am going, but I never feel unsafe. All in all, I am thrilled to be riding and wish I could be doing it more. The people riding are fantastic. There are several teachers and many people from the oil industry. That seems to bring the most expats to our world in Maadi. On our rides, I met people from Hungary, Italy, France, Canada, Japan, Italy and the US. How cool is that???
We traveled to Katamiya yesterday and it was lovely. They have a modern clubhouse/golf/swimming club. The kids had fun swimming and we met some great people. It was nice to be in a clean environment away from the hubbub and pollution of the city. We biked there in the morning and the view was quite different from the road. The homes are 3 stories high and have elaborate and sometimes gaudy facades. I hear you can get much more for your money in these areas, but you do not have the convenience of living in Maadi. Everything is here and is in walking distance. The bike rides all start from here and so do the running groups. The school is close by and most shops that you need are here also.
Zayna and I took a tour with our Arabic teacher to the local suq on road 7. There were rows upon rows of fruits, vegetables, spices, bread, large spotted ducks with red beaks, pigeons and rabbits. We drank fresh sugar cane juic and fresh coconut juice. It was about $.30 and you pay an extra ten cents to have the man wash the glass well in front of you. Then you get a glass of fresh juice and return the cup when you are done. Zayna got a natural sponge that was about one foot long and cost about a dollar and a quarter. I bought the most wonderful cinnamon for $.75. The man scooped it out of a wooden drawer and put it in a bag for me. I also bought a large bag of sesame seeds for entire $.75. There was some great fish and some shrimp, but the fish was the best. The shrimp was flown in from Vietnam as this is not the right season for it here.
Zayna and I also went to a prince's day palace in Zamalek. It's now a pottery museum. To me the palace was more interesting than the pottery. There was fantastic islamic art carvings and ornate tiles all over the walls. There was a trough of stone around the walls to hold cold water. This acted as natural air conditioning. There was a 30 foot stone dining room table that had a built up trough to keep hot water in. The food was then placed on top and it kept it warm. Next door was the real palace that was bought out and converted into a Marriot. I wondered if the guests staying there knew that the lobby was an old palace! Then we went to a pottery school were we watched pottery being made every step of the way. They were truly artists! One man had a dream and did not want to let this fantastic art die, so he created the school. Children often start learning the trade at the age of ten. We have so many things that are computer/factory made or that are made in China, it was nice to see people using their hands! The potter also spun the wheel with his foot by kicking another wheel underneath the other on the ground! It was all very interesting. All for now.....-Dawn
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