A little clarification is in order, I blame it on delirium

There's no de-Nile (hahaha, punny right?!?), I'm in Egypt!!

Looking onto the Nile, right after arriving to the hotel on Friday

My room and over 150lbs of luggage!

Okay, first impressions are not always the most accurate, especially when I am delirious from a serious lack of sleep. For instance, when I said that the streets are not very crowded, I was completely mistaken. I based that statement of an observation of the streets in the late afternoon. So in actuality, the streets are not crowded right before and during each night’s iftar (feast to break the fast), because starting about 10pm the streets am swarming with terrible drivers who have an obsession with honking their horns. The honking continues late into the night and is in full force again in the morning. Crossing the street is dangerous; think New York City traffic and rude taxi drivers, then multiply by the largest number you can think of.
I also need to clarify why Muslims stay inside during the day. Most are avoiding the heat and fatigue due to not eating, but many are praying and reading the Quran. Today on the street, I saw many men reciting verses while sitting in shade on street corners. I did not see very many women out and about, most likely because they are inside preparing for the iftar.

Ramadan is a major religious holiday for Muslims and it is important that as a non-Muslim I respect that. During the day I was walking through the streets drinking a bottle of water. I am borderline sick (Mom, don’t freak out; I will be fine) from dehydration, and therefore have been trying to drink as much water as possible. Walking down the street with water, though, is just as much of an anomaly as being a blonde American woman in Cairo because NO ONE is drinking or eating during the day. In a way I felt disrespectful, so I am going to try to drink in doors for the next few weeks. I would prefer not to attract any more attention than necessary.

Standing out on the streets did serve useful today in some ways. A few of us were wondering around in search of some basic needs like hangers, a laundry bag, detergent, and alarm clock (I fried mine within 5 minutes last night, apparently I needed to use a power converter with my travel size alarm clock). We stopped to ask a store keeper where to find hangers. An Egyptian gentleman swept in the save the man from our broken fusha (Modern Standard Arabic; MSA is useless on the streets which is why we start colloquial classes tomorrow) and help us in our search for clothes hangers. We weaved through traffic, alleys, markets, and stores as we tried to speak with Ishmael in Arabic. He was very patient with us and encouraged us to keep trying even though most locals don’t understand us yet. Ishmael also invited us to break fast with some of his friends. Yeah for being damsels in distress today!! We gathered the rest of our group and returned to eat with him and the food was delicious. The people were very hospitable and welcoming. My favorite part of the actual meal was the hibiscus juice. It was extremely sweet, but a little tangy at the same time… kind of like me… just kidding: )

Leaving the iftar this evening I became overwhelmed with disappointment at the fact that we spoke English at dinner. One of the main reasons I came to Egypt was too improve my Arabic, both formally at a university and on the streets. I keep forgetting it is only my first full day here and that there is plenty of time for me to improve. The most defeating thing I can do is give up before I even have a fighting chance to get better at communicating. I am told that it will come much easier than I think, and we start Arabic class tomorrow, so I will find out sooner than later.

In every way, I am really excited about this year. At times I panic and think I am in over my head, but after a deep breath and a humble acknowledgement that patience comes from the Spirit alone, I realize this is where I am meant to be. Faithfulness is a choice and trust an even bigger one. Part of my journey this year will include allowing the Rock to be my only Fortress. Tomorrow is my birthday so I think tonight is a good time to dedicate my next year to being in His will and resting in the fact that He will always lead the way.

One day at a time is all I ask for…..