Sweet... but not so nice

In spite of all the recent, ongoing political drama, I'm going to lighten things up in this blog. This post is a bit personal, and in the girl-talk arena, so guys- read at your own risk. I'm going to talk about the taboo subject of hair removal.

Women are very well groomed here, which you would hope for in a region where women are blessed (or cursed) with thick, dark hair. Hair removal is as much a cultural obsession as it is a hygienic and religious responsibility. So it seems like lately, outside of the Morsi debates, this has become my other favorite topic of conversation amongst friends and females. My roommate might even say that I've become obsessed.

Where men are covered with lots of untamed body hair, women are completely without; With the exception of their eyebrows and the hair on their heads. In the West, we don't really have strict limitations on what can stay and what must go. Having been blessed and cursed with dark, thick hair, I've been obsessed with grooming from a young age as well. I've tried every kind from plucking, threading, bleaching, waxing, laser-ing, you name it, I've done it. Part of what I loved about living in Astoria, the most ethnically diverse neighborhood in the world, were the plethora of hair removal options there were, thanks to my fellow Greek, Arab, Indian, Eastern European, etc., residents.

But typically, the one thing I've always overlooked is arm hair. I don't think I know of a single friend who removes her arm hair, and I also don't think I ever noticed if a girl friend has it. I certainly never paid attention to the fine hairs on my forearms. Who cares, right?

Well, Egyptians do. They think it's gross. Just like we would think it would be gross to see a women without her legs or armpits shaved. Arm hair falls into that same category. And after a few conversations, I started to feel really self conscious about it. Egyptian women will say things like, "Oh yeah, we know foreigners don't remove their arm hair, it's fine..." But some women will instead say, "We think it's gross... and don't you too?" My family has never said anything to me about it. But after my blond roommate mentioned that someone said her nonexistent, blond arm hair was gross, I thought well, shit, mine's dark, so it must then be really gross!

I started to worry. Do I get excused for being a foreigner? Or do people see my arms and think ewwww, gross!? Do my students see it and think so too? Will guys get turned off by the sight of it? For the first time in my life, I started paying attention to it, and everyday it seemed to be getting worse, uglier, really unattractive. I started checking the arms of every Egyptian woman: all bald. I began thinking about all the people I've been meeting, all the social situations I'm in. The short sleeve shirts, the bare arms... has it been noticed? Are appetites being ruined over the sight of my arms?

So finally today I couldn't let it go any further. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. I walked into a salon and asked for a waxing. Instead of waxing, I was introduced to a new method of hair removal, known here as sweet. What it is is an all natural concoction of sugar, water, and lemon juice, cooked into a caramel. The caramel is then smeared onto the area and ripped off, and that same piece is just re-used over and over again. You can find the standard wax and cloth strips in some salons, but you'll find sweet everywhere. It's even considered healthier and better for your skin because it's natural.

Waxing is never a pleasant experience in itself, but this sweet stuff is torture. Just the smearing-on is painful enough because she's pulling sticky caramel onto your skin to grab onto the hair, and then she is in this constant motion of smearing and ripping that seems to last an eternity. And arms are pretty sensitive. How many of us have techniques at ripping off bandaids quickly to minimize the pain? Well, this is like ripping off 100 bandaids in sequence.

The first arm hurt like hell. By the time she was done, my arm felt and looked like it was severely sunburned: it was red, swollen and hot, with a serious stinging feeling. So when she moved onto the other arm, I lost it. It was so painful that tears were just pouring down my face. I couldn't control it and she said, "If you're crying over this, what would you do if you had a lot of hair? Some women have it much worse than you!" I was told that this was especially awful because it was the first time, and next time should be much easier. I've had plenty of waxings before, but this was just a whole new definition of horrible. It's been hours since I had it done, and my arms are still burning, red, and hot. But I do have to say though, they feel sooooo soft. They've never felt like this before!

So was it worth it? That's to be determined. Will I go back? That's also to be determined. We females seriously got the short end of the stick here. We have to put up with so much pain and bullshit in our lives. Next time I see a guy with a bandaid on his arm, I swear to God, I'm going to rip it off ever so slowly and enjoy every second of watching him squirm.

Morsi Protest - Tahrir Square

Things have only become more heated here in response to Morsi's recent self-declaration as the supreme leader of Egypt. There have been countless protests, reactions, marches and arguments held both for and against the President.

Some have been accusing the Muslim Brotherhood as having an ulterior motive, a hidden agenda through all of this. They don't believe that the MB or Morsi care about Egypt, but rather, they are seeking control of Egypt for the sake of their Nation of Islam. This is not hard to believe when you wonder how the hell a man could have the gall to make himself higher than any authority in this country (by definition, a dictator, or pharaoh as many are calling him) when just a year ago the whole world witnessed Egyptians overthrowing the dictator they'd been living under for 30 years!!

In response, Morsi claims that his intentions are honest, and for the sake of the re-trials, but now that he's seen the peoples' reactions, he's even been backing down, or taking back some of what he's said. The MB was expected to be in Tahrir to counter the opposition's protests, but they then decided to change their location to the other side of the Nile, near Cairo University. Ultimately, they decided to cancel their protest entirely, most likely to prevent clashes.

I held a debate about this whole Morsi issue in class with my English students. The room was split between those wanting Morsi to be removed, and those saying he needs to stay. My personal opinion is that either way, Morsi shouldn't be considered a "leader," he's the test pilot. He's the first man that Egypt ever elected to run the country. This is the first time in the history of Egypt that Egyptians claimed their right to a democracy, and voted. Whether it's Morsi or someone else, the first elected President in this new government couldn't possibly get it right. Not to mention that Egypt has so many issues that need resolution, it will take decades or at least, several 4-year Presidential terms. But the important thing is that armed with their newfound courage and their starvation for democracy, Egyptians should absolutely speak up when they're not seeing their government run the way they want it to. That is exactly what a democracy is- when its citizens have the right and role to speak and influence their government. If they didn't react to Morsi on this level about something so significant, he could slowly and gradually seize power without fearing or suffering any consequences.

Throughout all the years I've spent coming to Egypt, I've always pointed out the obvious problems in the country. I questioned Mubarak, I asked friends and family why they don't speak up or try to change their government, and the response I always got was a passive, 'ehh, this is how it is, it will never change.' I would always leave feeling so frustrated, so disappointed. So when I saw the revolution take place last year, I could not believe my eyes. I remained glued to the TV, laughing and crying. I felt extremely proud and shocked that Egyptians had finally done something so incredible, so life-changing, so world-impacting.

That's why I found it so moving to witness the massive protest held in Tahrir last night. To now be living here, all for the sake of a better, more real-life experience, and to witness hundreds of thousands of Egyptians assemble in the world famous Tahrir Square in active participation of their new roles in their new government... it was just amazing. I had little to say, but I kept smiling and shaking my head in total amazement.

I went with my journalist girl friend and her friends, and had been strongly advised to be on guard as sexual harassment of women has been rampant in the square. We witnessed fights break out in the crowds over women being harassed or abused. In one corner of the square, there's a field hospital set up to treat victims with injuries. Just as we had been crossing it, there was a massive fight, and 2 women had been carried out, over the crowd to the field hospital. The fighting was dragged towards the hospitals, and the doctors had been using flame throwers (a spray bottle and a lighter) to keep the crowds back. It was happening all around us, and I felt disgusted and angered by it. Apparently, during the revolution, some thugs had been paid to harass women as a means of keeping them and other people, out of the square. I told my friend that should anything ever happen to me, I want pictures and stories blasted all over the internet and media. I want everyone to see and to know.

On the ground, it was impossible to get a perspective of the density of the crowd, but it was loud and very crowded. Eventually, we were led to the top floor of an apartment building right on Tahrir Square, where a friend had been broadcasting live news coverage of the protests. She turned out to be a very inspiring girl from England. She'd been previously writing for fashion magazines in London and had a sort of similar, 'What the fuck am I doing here? I need to find something more meaningful,' reality check, to mine. So she eventually made her way over to Cairo and has been covering all the latest activity since the revolution.

The view from that building was just amazing. It offered us a whole new perspective of the protest... And it was massive. Tahrir hadn't been flooded with people like this since the revolution. Every inch, every corner, was covered with people. Marches had been coming through from every road and bridge that led to the square. Tents were sent up in the middle, banners were strewn all around, flags were waving from hands, and painted on faces. From above, we could hear the loud chants from every corner of the square, each group having a different voice.

Many members of my family had been there, but it was so difficult to coordinate, as cell phone coverage was very poor- with so many people in one location using their phones simultaneously, this was to be expected.

I feel so lucky to have been there.

Cairo: A second revolution looming?

Well, it has certainly been an interesting week.

On the anniversary of the protests that occured on Mohamed Mahmoud St. last year, Cairens took to the streets to remember those who passed, while issuing a bold reminder that the people have a voice and many are still unsatisfied with the outcome of the revolution. Protestors gathered on Mohamed Mahmoud St. in Downtown Cairo, and were met with the same kind of police brutality that caused the fatalities last year. Police were reportedly throwing rocks, blocks of concrete and furniture from the tops of buildings, one of them a school, that they had occupied. Protestors were being carried away bloodied and bruised.

Not even 3 days later, President Morsi declares himself the new Dictator of Egypt by granting himself full, legislative and judicial powers, far surpassing all other government bodies in Egypt. His claim is that he's dissatisfied with the Courts' handling of those politicians who were being tried, or dismissed, for their crimes under the Mubarak regime, and that he wishes to seek and issue justice. The country is now divided between those who are calling him out on his bullshit, and those who believe they must respect and submit to the new leader. Groups of protestors are increasing daily in Tahrir Square, with clashes becoming more intense over Morsi's recent activities. And the Courts have declared his decree as illegal and unrecognizable, going so far to accuse him of invalidating his position and authority as President. Those in support of Morsi stormed and set fire to the High Court today in protest, while those against him are chanting "Morsi, leave," in the streets.

In short, it's been a mess. Although these protests have been isolated to certain areas Downtown, the rest of Cairo is operating totally normally. So by no means has chaos broken-out throughout the city. I've even been in the Downtown area a few times this past week, and outside of those concentrated areas, it's all "normal." I use quotations because everyone should still use caution. There's been some propaganda that all foreigners here are spies, so some Egyptians are very suspicious and untrusting of anyone who is/looks like a foreigner.

No one really understands what is going on, and where Morsi's sudden decision came from. Did he really think that he was riding so high with the recent ceasefire he orchestrated between Israel and Gaza, that he could get away with such a thing? Did he really believe that he could get away with it? I was never a fan of his, and but I didn't necessarily believe he had a hidden agenda tucked away somewhere. I'm a little shocked by his audacity. Didn't the world just witness Egypt having a revolution to overthrow a "President" and by "President" I mean Dictator? Didn't the world cheer on in their support for democracy in Egypt? How does Morsi think this will fly?

Egyptians love their conspiracy theories as much as they love talking about politics, so I have heard every sort of theory possible on why he's doing this, or what he's trying to do. There are theories about whether or not protesting will be effective this time around, or whether the peoples' voices will be heard at all. We expats are speculating every possible scenario, asking each other if we'll leave if things escalate the way they did last year.

But this is the hot topic that no one can seem to get off the table. I'm hesitating to formulate an opinion too hastily without gathering more information. My students at school are all voicing their opinions, debating the issues in and out of class, and some are even going to or coming from Tahrir Square.

It's an intense and exciting time to be here in Cairo. There are protests scheduled everyday for the next few days, but Tuesday is supposed to be a big one, and it's my day off. I know there are risks, and the Embassy has advised Americans to avoid Downtown, but I can't help myself. I really want to go to witness and participate.

After all, like everyone in the Mugamma says, I'm Egyptian. This is my country too. And if there's one thing I will support anywhere in the world, it's freedom.

the Mugamma - take two

So it's my day off and what better way to start it by going back to the Mugamma to get this visa??

Today it was even more crowded with Syrians and Palestinians seeking refuge here. Really interesting to see that Egypt is considered a refuge for some, and a hell for others, namely the Egyptians.

I came back armed with my father's old IDs, and embarked on this challenging pursuit of transferring my visa. Doesn't sound like it should be too difficult, but this is Egypt. It turned out that they wanted me to fill out citizenship forms since my father is Egyptian, and therefore I am Egyptian, so I wouldn't need a visa to stay in my country. I went through the same cycle of shoving myself up to the windows and having conflicting conversations with workers about which forms to fill out, not wanting citizenship, and just wanting to pay for a visa for my American passport. No. They refused to give me just a visa on the fact that my father is Egyptian. They even shouted at me that either I become a citizen, or I get nothing. And the thing is- even when I go through that whole citizenship form-filling process, every single person at every single window tells me to go in the opposite direction and fill out yet another form, and it is just so exhausting.

There is no system, no organization, everyone makes up these arbitrary requirements, and all the ppl at the windows tell you to seek approval from an officer, and then the officer tells you you don't need what you're looking for, and the ppl at the window say the officers have no idea what they're talking about. Folders and folders of papers everywhere. Everything is written by hand and filed in messy piles on desks behind the windows. It such a mess.

Eventually, a police officer told me to just lie and say that my dad is Lebanese, not Egyptian. That would explain why i have an arabic name and can speak arabic. That actually was working just until a woman recognized me from last week's attempt and viciously called me out in front of everyone. I was called a liar and was denied any help. Her coworker took my father's and grandmother's names and birthdays to search their records to confirm. I had no idea how to get out of my, kind of Lebanese, kind of Egyptian father lie, so I just left. Again.

I swear I'm not going back. If I have to pay an expediter or make some calls to pull some strings, I will. But I am not going back to that hell hole.

This whole experience sickens me and makes me hate Egypt. No wonder egyptians are so angry. I'm just not sure what to do because I want to travel during the holiday break and I won't be able to without the right visa and I can't get the visa without getting my "genseyya". SMH.

The bachelorette life in Cairo.

so i got the apartment!! i moved in last friday and settled in immediately. the two girls have been more than helpful with my move, even lending me sheets and towels until i get myself out to one of the carrefours located on the outskirts of the city to furnish them myself. i've never had roomates and never lived near girls or girlfriends, so this is a really enjoyable experience so far.

we stay up and talk about boys and drama, we have shelves of beauty products stocked in the bathroom, i haven't been to a cafe since friday, and i am really enjoying the luxury of having wifi at home. other luxuries i quite enjoy: having a cleaning lady come once a week, having a masseuse come to the apartment, and let's not forget, having my own space! i finally unpacked my bags and almost forgot that i brought so many clothes.

now I have the super fun task of shopping for accessories and decor. i've been roaming around zamalek, checking out shops and supermarkets. i found this great place called fair trade that sells egyptian-made crafts at amazingly low prices, and bought a great basket for just 20 LE. it's hard work. :-)

the girls are now my friends and we'll be hosting thanksgiving dinner and various other parties at our place. i'm so happy.

...teaching English in Cairo

When I went around my beginner's English class and greeted each student individually last week, "Hello, how are you?" one of my Palestinian students responded, "I'm very sad." When I asked, "Why!?" he said, "Because my country is in fight and my city is in fire." That was the day the fighting broke out in Gaza. Cairo has been on fire about this.

They've since come to class with Palestinian flags and kaffiyas, as they've joined the protests downtown in support of ending the attacks on Gaza, and to pressure Morsi to resolve the situation. All three were smiling yesterday and there was something inside me that felt very proud of them, rather than sorry for them.

Teaching is going so well, so far. Ironically, my favorite class is my night class, which I didn't even want to teach in the first place. But the students have great chemistry together and everyone is a character. The three Palestinian boys are always laughing at my Arabic, and I laugh at their Arabic accents in return. I have a student who is always cracking jokes, one who must be unconscious for most of the class because he always says a completely wrong and random answer, and each of the 5 women in the class have sass. One is a mother of 5 and is married to an American and her kids are all American, so she thought it was about time she learned English. Another works in tourism and we all embarrassed her when she learned the word "boyfriend" and told us she has one. Simple things are so funny, like when i asked the unconscious guy, "Are you a sister?" and he insisted, "Yes, I am a sister!" the class broke out in laughter. We knew he meant he had one, but he didn't get my question.

The best part is that almost all the students will give me a hard time if I don't call on them to participate. So we just spend a great deal laughing and joking around with a tremendous eagerness to learn. It's very refreshing.

During breaks the Palestinian boys buy me coffee or tea. They're actually the best students in the class and bribes for A's aren't necessary. In my morning class, a female student is always bringing me these breadstix snacks that I love. The other teachers joke about how my students spoil me. I happily enjoy it. It's those small gestures of Arab hospitality that I just adore.

Yesterday I was caught up with some minor food poisoning and I actually had to stop in the middle of my first class to vomit, which took the life right out of me and the class. So at night, I told the class we'd skip our break and leave 30 minutes early. Funny thing is, we spent the first half of the class learning about food and the students were asking me to spell things like "macarona bechemel," "foul," "mahshi," "kawera," these are all Egyptian foods that could be translated, but there's no right way to spell them in English, like cappuccino, for example.

I'm enjoying it so much, that I'm going to add more classes next semester. In fact, I'm going to request that all my students in the Level I night class stay together next semester, and that I continue teaching them through the levels. The company's directors are both happy with me, and met with me to discuss progressing with them.

So everything's going well. :-)

the Mugamma: the end of egyptian civilization

the mugamma is the large building that proudly towers over tahrir square. it handles all things bureaucratic in egypt. anytime any kind of paperwork is needed, you go to the mugamma. people are officially born, married, or dead here; and if you want to have any legal or acknowledgable existence in cairo, you eventually have to make your way over to this monstrosity of a building.

after spending all of 10 minutes going through the organized, streamlined, peaceful, US Embassy to collect my new passport, i thought i'd try my luck by heading to the mugamma straight away to have my visa transfered to the new passport. since my visa is in my old, cancelled passport, technically in my new, valid one, i never entered egypt; i'm not here. so when i leave, that will be an issue. if i wanted to open a bank account, the bank would require a resident visa to do so, so for various reasons, this visa is important.

so i thought i'd pop in and get an idea of what i needed in order to get this visa transfered. the perimeter of each floor is lined with people sitting behind plexiglass windows, each labeled with a particular transaction. i would estimate that about 60% of the people who work in this building are completely useless and clueless and have zero professional sense whatsoever. i witnessed police men shouting at anyone who asked questions about the forms; i saw women behind the counters telling someone to shut up and leave her alone and ask somebody else. in the mugamma, there is absolutely no respect for the person; the human being; the civilian. we're all mashed up into one large piece of shit.

in front of the window are dozens of people shoving their way to the front. absolutely no signs of civilization whatsoever. whoever pushes the hardest gets to the front. doesn't matter if you're already there, someone will cut you. even the person behind the window doesn't care if you were there first, they handle whoever is speaking to them. doesn't matter that you're a woman, men are pasted all over you. the only way to survive this chaos is to join them and completely disregard the respectable concepts of waiting in line or having any manners. so you see, this is all a vicious cycle of chaos. act like animals, get treated like shit. get treated like shit, act like an animal.

the first person i spoke to said to go to window #41. i went to window #41. where is your paperwork? i don't know, what paperwork? you have to go to window #46. i go to window #46. i need paperwork to transfer my visa. are you egyptian? no, my father is. talk to this police officer. he tells me to go to another police officer who gives me a form to fill. tells me to go to window #12. i can't read/write arabic, so i go to window #12 with the form and tell her my name. in egypt, you are given a first name, and your middle name is your father's name, followed by his middle and last name. but i have zero evidence of being egyptian besides my name and that i speak arabic. i have no nationality, no ID card, not even my father's old passport. and that's fine because

all i want to do is transfer my egypt visa to my new american passport.

so she writes my name on the paper and tells me to wait. why? i have no idea. she calls me 15 minutes later. you can't fill out this paper because you have no proof you are egyptian. yes, that's what i told you. go to talk to this police officer.

i lose it a little. i have been circling this building for an hour, everyone tells me to talk to a different person, and i just want to put my old visa on my new passport, i will even buy a new visa, i don't care, i don't care about being egyptian!, just tell me where to go to transfer my visa. she looks at me with her eyebrows raised and a snarky expression that i wanted to slap off of her face and says,

"oh? did you think you were just going to walk into the mugamma, get your visa, and walk out?"

she was lucky there was plexiglass separating us.

i go to the officer and tell him, i have no proof i'm egyptian and i don't care, i just want a visa on my american passport. he says that he cares because i have an egyptian name, so he is the one who decides whether or not i can get a visa. so i have to go find this other guy in another room who is going to search for my dad's name and his birthday to confirm if i'm egyptian or not.

i get lost trying to find this guy, so i ask another window along the way, what to do. she gives me a new form to fill out and tells me to visit window #6.

i walked the fuck out of the building.

after an hour and a half, i had enough. i'll go back when my dad emails me his 1968 egyptian ID that will suddenly, hopefully, validate my existence so i can get the $15 fucking visa stamped into my new passport.

my new passport, my new relationship

my most prized possession, as i've said countless times, is my old passport. i love it. it means the world to me, no pun intended.

my significant relationship with my old passport has been the longest running in my entire life. we've been together for nearly 10 years. and like most relationships, i maximized all that i could benefit from it. it fulfilled me tremendously, and saw me through some exciting times. together, we traveled to all the inhabited continents around the world; we've seen just about 20 countries together, spoken 5 languages, checked-in on many flights, and flown many, many miles.

but sadly, sometimes relationships run their course. sometimes, after being in a relationship for 10 years, one of you changes. a man may get fat, or go bald; a woman may get fat, or get fat. sometimes you fill up all the pages in the book of your relationship, and there isn't any more room to grow together.

and that's when you get yourself a new relationship; a new book with which to grow, where the pages are empty and waiting for new stories to be told, new histories to be made.

and thus, i've welcomed my new passport with open arms. the american embassy in cairo completed this passport within 5 business days and for less than what i would have paid at the office in nyc!!

now i have to go through the major hassle of going to the Mugamma, cairo's building for all things paperwork and backwards, to get my visa transfered to this new passport. because technically, i'm not here without a visa; i don't exist. ugh, wish me luck.

things are turning around

i just had one of the best days i’ve had in months! it was exactly the kind of day that i came to egypt for.

today began our semester at school, and i met and fell in love with both of my classes. they’re both beginner level classes, so i tend to use arabic about 30% of the time to help the students along. funny thing is, i’m learning at the same time, because they’re often correcting my arabic! we all get a good laugh out of it, but these students are all so eager to learn that it’s actually a fun job to do! they participate and ask questions, and none seem too shy when i put them on the spot.

i lied earlier when i said that i never taught before. i tutored for years when i was in high school and college, and this reminded me so much of that rewarding experience. i feel so satisfied when i give a student the confidence that they are knowledgeable and/or correct, and see them develop on that. it’s a hard balance teaching a new language to adults, without making them feel like children, but i can’t patronize them and speak or teach material too quickly either.

i also gained a tremendous amount of respect for teachers today, because this job does require a lot of energy. you need energy to keep yourself as well as your students motivated. and although there are breaks in between, it does get tiring.

after a great day at work (can’t remember the last time i had one of those!) i went off to zamalek to see an apartment that i just fell in love with! it is located in the heart of everything wonderful in zamalek- so many restaurants and boutiques right on my block! it has a bawab, or doorman, a nice looking lobby, and the apartment itself is exactly what i’m looking for. it’s quiet, it has a living room, dining room table, and my potential-future room has not just a couch but a chair as well, in addition to a dresser and wardrobe closet. there’s wifi- so it would reprieve me of wasting money on taxis and coffees, in my rotating wifi-bumming at cafes activity. the bathroom has a large tub and everything is clean and in good condition. a cleaning lady comes every couple of weeks, and the grocery store down the street delivers for free.

the girls are both german professionals, not students, which i note because sometimes it seems that the only expats in this city are, and they keep the place nice and tidy with a, no boys roaming the apartment at all times, policy. i felt like it was a perfect fit! this is exactly what i’ve been holding out for. i knew that i was going to find a place that would immediately make me feel at home once i saw it, and this is the place. finally! i must have seen about 10 mediocre apartments by now and was starting to feel discouraged! understandably, she needs to meet with the other people who have contacted her about the place, but i am hoping she picks me (she said she liked me the best)! it would just completely revitalize my efforts in coming to egypt!!

i won’t allow myself to get my hopes up (too much). tomorrow i’ll be seeing one more place. but hopefully this weekend i’ll have a new place to call home!! or at least a place to finally FEEL at home.

things are really turning around and i feel so excited!

temporarily off funemployment

I gots me a job!

In my tenacious search for something with which to occupy my time, gain a bit of cultural exchange, and earn a little income, I finally landed myself a job!!

Last week I responded to a listing on Craigslist for native American or English speakers and was asked to come in 2 days later for an interview. I actually showed up at the given address in Dokki, without even knowing the company's name, let alone having researched anything about it. How awkward/arrogant!

Much to my surprise, it was a legitimate company-- an NGO even. I filled out a lengthy application that asked me questions about my previous career, why I'm in Cairo, and why I want this job. Before I knew it, I was spelling out my life's story on paper. I interviewed with the director of the organization who turned out to be a woman about my age, from LA, born to Egyptian parents, and has been living in Cairo for 2 years now. Like me, she spent her summers vacationing here in childhood and could speak both english and arabic. We immediately hit it off and wound up chatting like two longtime girlfriends for the next hour and a half.

By the end of the "interview", I had told her about everything that's happened with me since I quit my job. She knew about my family, my relationship, my need to find an apartment; and I knew about how she met her husband, how and why she created this NGO, and had an invitation to her thanksgiving dinner next week!!

The next day I came in for a new teacher training session where we were asked to give 2 presentations on our teaching styles. Being an engineer, and having never taught anything, let alone something like english, my brain doesn't really function this way, so I was nervous. Since I speak Arabic, I'm being given beginner's English courses, so that i can help them along with arabic, when needed. After speaking English my entire life, it's pretty difficult to break it down back to the basics to teach students from scratch.

My lesson was spending the class talking about food and eating. (I thought of this while I was in a restaurant having dinner.) I brought in some props: a Pepsi, cigarettes, and an apple Schwepps (couldn't find an actual apple). I particularly chose those items for a reason. The Arabic language does not have the letter "P," so instead, they use the letter "B" in its place- creating the notorious Egyptian accent in words like "bebsi" or "abble". I used them to demonstrate the difference in the sounds and spelling. I brought the cigarettes, not only because it is Egypt's national past time, but because in Arabic, you literally say you drink cigarettes, and obviously in English you smoke them... as you do shisha and hashish. :-)

I'm excited and nervous to see how it all turns out. The company provided me with the workbooks and they were flexible with my schedule. So for now, I will be working 3 days a week, 2 classes a day, with a 2 hour break in between to provide some private tutoring.

The other fellow teachers were really friendly and creative, and one joined for a drink afterwards. So now I'm meeting new people. Finallyyyy.

Time to go prep for my class!!

trying to resume a normal life as a female in cairo

i was raised to be a strong, independent person. and through my experiences growing up, i've only become tougher, a little more badass, and i absolutely refuse to accept that there are any differences in the capabilities and freedoms of men and women. just because i was born with ovaries does not mean that i'm less entitled or smart than someone born with say, balls. in fact, i've been told numerous times that i have pretty big balls myself, so...

it is annoying beyond imagination that as a woman in cairo, i always need to be "looked after." i'm discouraged from going and staying out late, taking taxis, living on my own, etc. but there's also reasoning behind that. sexual harrassment is rampant here in egypt. there was even a great article about this in the NY Times.

while i do dress a little more conservatively here than i do at home, i still wear "normal" clothes. no burqa, no headscarf, none of that. and for the record, most young women dress the way we do. they are just as trendy and fashionable as any of us westerners are. but there's not a single day that i go out that someone doesn't hiss, honk or make a comment to me. i just ignore them all. i once had my breast grabbed walking through downtown cairo, and some girlfriends had been grabbed and/or sexually assaulted in taxis or worse, given the, you're going to hell because you're not covered, speech by a self-riteous man. most of the women have noted that things have become much worse since the revolution, some even blaming the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood is now in power. sometimes it's an excuse that you're so exposed, you're practically asking to be assaulted. fucking animals, really, if men can't control themselves, they are no different than dogs and animals. but anyway, i digress...

so as i am still trying to stabilize myself here, i venture out into the city and spend about 90% of my time here alone and i don't think twice about it. this is what i'm used to, this is how i've always lived. i work alone, i sit alone, i drink alone, i eat alone. big deal?

but the other day while i was sitting in a restaurant having a shwarma, you guessed it- alone, i kept getting stares from the other male patrons. i just returned equally rude, can i fucking help you?, stares. yes, i'm a woman and i'm sitting in this restaurant alone. i'm not a prostitute.

i just want a damn shwarma.

but then i started to try to understand that their daughters probably never venture out alone. they absolutely do go out, but most likely it's in the company of others. i almost never see a local, egyptian girl by herself anywhere. so these men are just not accustomed to seeing this. there's nothing wrong with the fact that i am having a sandwich by myself, but it's probably just strange for them. they can be excused for their ignorance, their inexperience, but they can't be excused for their double standards, and they most certainly can't be excused for any actions in response to this.

so just fuck off and leave me and all the other women in cairo alone. shokran.

a day in the life...

so what do i do with my days here? not much.

i've been in cairo for just over 2 weeks now, although it feels much longer. there's something about this city that makes a day feel like two, and no one is really sure what it is. my american friend and i were having this conversation the other day over one of our wifi dates.

maybe the days last longer because you always seem to be caught in a traffic jam no matter where you are or what time it is. maybe it's just the pace of life. families stay up late, and on the weekends, wake up late. if they go out, it's not usually before 4pm, after they've rested, eaten lunch, and taken their time getting ready. no one is ever really in any sort of rush. if something doesn't get done today, it just doesn't get done today. and not much is a priority. especially for my unemployed self. everyday i'm faced with 3 very simple priorities: what to wear, where i am going for wifi, and finding a non-career focussed job. this is a complete 180 from my lifestyle in nyc, where my daily to-do list was tens of items long and my metrocard got over-exercised daily at turnstiles all over the city.

i usually wake up around 11am and by the time i'm dressed and ready, it's 2 or 3pm. i've by now strategically located about 7 cafes with free wifi surrounding me. i have them all on rotation now based on the day, if or where i'll be going out later, or whether or not i'm hungry. i also factor in things like the cost for the taxi and traffic too. there's a cafe that serves delicious, but expensive food, and everyone who goes there is beautiful. there's another that serves crappy food, but is located adjacent to a fantastic schwarma shop that is so delicious and cheap, so i load up on sustenance there and take my time sipping on an overpriced coffee while i bum the wifi at the cafe. i now know the waiters, they know my order, and it never seems to be an issue that i sit for hours on end, never ordering more than just a couple of coffees or teas.

so for the most part, i spend my days writing my book, getting caught up on current events, with friends/family, and doing the job and apartment search. i don't need a job, but i want one. i want something simple, like teaching english, somewhere nearby, and i only want to make enough money to pay my rent. first time in my life that i don't care about how much money i'm making. the reality is that cairo is such a cheap city to live in that it's not putting much of a dent into my savings, but still, i can only take the idle life for so long. so i just want something to keep me busy and to earn some petty cash.

later i'll try to meet with some friends in either zamalek, downtown, or mohandesin for a drink. sometimes we have weirdos give us their numbers and we laugh them off. a lot of times we make fun of the broken english egyptian men try to seduce us with... we are pretty sure karma will get us and we won't find ourselves husbands. not to mention that every guy in cairo seems to be 25. what happens after 25? where do all the 25+ year old men go? sometimes i eavesdrop on every other english conversation taking place around me. and sometimes i ask the cute american or british guys for a light even though mine is right next to my pack of cigarettes. i eventually make my way back home around 1am and write until i fall asleep at 3am. then start the cycle all over again.

people keep asking me why i'm here. why would an intelligent, independent female with a stable career leave nyc for cairo? i have no real purpose in being here other than the fact that i want to be. and maybe things have been a little siderailed with the whole getting closer to my family thing, but it's not going to affect my choice in staying. i'm here for myself.

hopefully myself will soon find a job and a place to call home temporarily. yalla ba2a!

no prescription necessary

one interesting discovery i have made here in egypt is the lack of prescription that is necessary to purchase most drugs at the pharmacy. that isn’t to say that there isn’t any control on any of the drugs-- narcotics, pain killers, and the more “serious” drugs are by doctor’s prescription only, but most are not controlled at all. you can go to any pharmacy, request the drug by name, and it’s yours.

this has its advantages and obvious disadvantages. drugs can be more easily abused or wrongly self-prescribed. sometimes here it seems that if someone is feeling the slightest bit sick, they march their self down to the pharmacy and start requesting antibiotics or who knows what else, to treat it. but those drugs may not even be the necessary treatment for that illness at all. one afternoon i was cramped over with a stomach ache, and my relatives were quick to start naming various drugs to pick up at the pharmacy for it. guys, i ate our housekeeper’s terrible cooking and i’m a little bloated. it’s all good.

over-prescription and over-use of drugs just like antibiotics is blamed for causing diseases, bacteria, and infections to have become resistant to the once more powerful medicines. we are finding it more difficult to fight common infections that are now resistant to our normal treatment methods. and in the US, we are also so quick to approve and administer new drugs when we don’t always know what the actual side effects are-- or will be. how often do we hear that the drug everyone was raving about 5-10 years ago is now causing all these law-suit-requiring side effects?

however simultaneously, it is not always necessary to have to go to a doctor to tell you your infection requires a treatment of antibiotics. if you cut your finger and it is oozing out green goo, you have an infection; get antibiotics. and if for example, you choose to take contraception, do you really always need to go to the doctor to renew that prescription annually? or to even take it to begin with? especially in the US where doctor visits are insanely expensive without insurance, obtaining something as essential to many women as birth control, could cost as much as $600+. (that is forgetting about planned parenthood or medicare, etc). it’s really not that complicated, a pharmacist should be able to administer it to women, just like plan b is non-prescription and administered. i understand the need to be checked out and advised by a doctor, but i don’t believe it’s completely necessary, and although women may not be able to afford a doctor’s visit, that should not prevent them from their choice to control. but let me not ramble about my passion for women’s rights regarding contraception.

when you have an illness and don’t necessarily need to see a doctor to prescribe your medical solution, you should be able to ask the pharmacist. they do go through an extensive amount of medical training to have their jobs. the flaw in this is that the pharmacist has an incentive to sell you whatever drugs you request: his/her business.

my first experience at a pharmacy here was this past week when i walked in, totally stressed and overwhelmed by some personal family drama, and in my moment of weakness, requested alprazolam- known here as prazolam. my dear friend, xanax. i wasn’t even sure they would sell it to me without a prescription, so i kept a straight face and tried to look neither stressed nor insecure. i was asked which dosage, i chose the higher one, and i paid all of $1.20 or 8 LE, for a box of 20 pills. he even gave me his card in case i needed more later or even better, delivery. i walked out feeling as if i’d just gotten away with committing a crime. $1.20? what!? did i just go in there and buy some xanax!? it certainly helped to calm me down and all, but i’m not sure that it was necessary. i can’t stand those nyc housewives who get stressed and “need a xanax” to cope.

at first, i thought it was funny. i felt like a badass. i was asking friends back home for requests: name some good drugs to go get my hands on. what else can i buy? but see, that is abuse, and that’s how it begins. this site shows some alarming statistics. we fear addiction and abuse of cocaine or heroine, but look at all the abuse of prescription meds.

in sharp contrast to this recent experience with xanax, three years ago when i was preparing for a business trip to australia, despite all my love for flying, i felt overwhelmed by the upcoming 30-hour journey there. 30 total hours to get to Cairns from NYC. 30 total hours confined to a tiny little seat. flying over land; over the pacific ocean... i was absolutely excited, but i was starting to freak out. so prior to leaving, i talked to my doctor about this anxiety, and asked, “am i allowed to ask you for a prescription for xanax for this?” and she looked at me with a twisted brow, “umm yes. i’m a doctor, how else would you get the prescription?”

and i’m the kind of person who doesn’t even take tylenol when i have a headache. i hate taking medication unless it is absolutely necessary, and i avoid them as much as is logically and healthily possible. and while i do have my own prescription of this anxiety reducing medication, something about the experience didn't feel right. a little ironic that i'm complaining about a greater freedom here than i have at home, right?

so the more consideration i give to this system, the more i am opposed to it. it benefits me here while i’m uninsured and broke, but it is unsafe and unhealthy. there is seriously an overabundance of pharmacies that exist in cairo. i’d imagine that you could pharmacy-hop and accumulate a massive quantity of drugs if you wanted to. who or what is to stop you?

The US Embassy in Cairo

While I was still here in September, protests broke out outside the US embassy and in Tahrir Square over a pathetic anti-Islamic video that deserved no recognition at all. Everyone looked bad. The media played it off like Cairo was up in flames and Egyptians were furious over the video. In Libya, the American ambassador was killed. Here, all the other Egyptians shouted at the protestors through the television, wondering what the hell the American embassies have to do with this guy's video.

The truth is the protests were small, held by a bunch of ignorant people with nothing else to do on their Friday afternoon, Friday being like our Saturday in Egypt, a day off. So thanks to a bunch of dopes, Egyptians, Arabs and Muslims looked like savages yet again.

I can't tell you how many emails I had to write about how business was going on normally in Cairo around that few block radius. No one else cared about the video except the few assembled in garden city. I haven't even seen it.

That all said, I just revisited the embassy for the first time after the protests to find it even more threatening a fort than when I went with my dad in August. Security is heightened and the streets are lined with tanks and trucks filled with officers. I tried sneaking photos and got into trouble. I couldn't even stand on the sidewalk and drink my water while i waited before entering. I had to wait across the street.

The building itself is already surrounded with a 10' high wall to begin with, but it is now wrapped with barbed wire. And all the streets surrounding the embassy (which is also in close proximity to the UK and Canadian embassies as well) are blocked, guarded, and wrapped in barbed wire. It's really sad and pathetic when I think about it. Especially since this is supposed to be my safe haven when I'm away from home. This is where I come to be saved, rescued, guided, supported while living abroad. And it feels nothing like that.

Entering is a pain in the ass because you have to have an appointment that takes weeks to get, then to get through security, you have to go across the street and "store" your electronics because they cannot enter. He placed my things in an envelope, gave me a number, and when I returned, accused me of lying because my belongings didn't correspond with the number I was given... I handled that one well.

When i came in and had my turn at the counter, it was like visiting a bank. Agents are protected behind windows of bullet proof glass, and we communicated through microphones. Are we Americans that badass?

But i have to say, they were extremely helpful and informative. The passport renewal process was extremely easy and I was able to hold onto my old passport until the new one comes in in exactly 2 weeks time (amazingly fast)! I even was able to order it with extra pages at no extra charge since I travel so much. And voting is just as easy too. I was really happy to see how many people were there to vote. Gobama!! They answered all my questions, i literally came with a checklist, and provided me with loads of print outs and information.

Sadly though, the visa process for Egyptians to visit the US isn't ameliorated by my American citizenship status. So lets say hypothetically, if I had a boyfriend and I wanted him to visit NYC, the only way of really improving his chances of getting a visa to visit is if I marry him, or at least intend to within 3 months of arriving on a fiancé visa. The other option is for him to apply for a visa normally and hope he gets it. But it is not easy by any means. (You know, the whole, we're afraid he'll try to stay thing). If he doesn't get it, he can always try again... But it seems really ridiculous to me that you could pay $140 for the application and still get rejected. And if you want to try again, you pay again. This is like a different kind of gambling. It's all very strange and foreign to me, but this is what many other citizens from many other nations have to go through to travel.

So I say, I'm very grateful and proud to be American. My passport is my most prized possession. And if you have an American passport and you don't exercise your amazing privilege to travel and see the world, shame on you. There are plenty of people who would literally risk their lives for the rights we are merely born with. Egypt just had a revolution and people lost lives and limbs for the sake of having the freedom and power to vote.

Be American. Vote and travel.