Only in Egypt

If you are newly engaged or married in Alexandria, the place to go is the pier. The night we went was a Thursday (equivalent to Saturday in America) so there were a lot of weddings. We saw at least 5 wedding parties strutting their stuff, showing their dresses and having their day documented by a photographer. After the walk, they drove away in their decorated cars with people cheering and honking for them. I found this practice a little amusing because there were so many of them in a small area doing the same thing—walking the pier, stopping for ice cream, taking pictures and driving away. I guess it’s their way of showing their dresses since weddings here are a little different—there’s not usually a walk down the aisle or standing in front of a bunch of people reciting vows.

The side of this building was actually a really good backdrop for pictures, I will have to go back and get a shot of the whole thing

Last week Mariam and I went to Karim’s school to finish his enrollment papers and as we were waiting for the headmaster I heard a voice over a loud speaker. I asked Mariam if it was a school announcement or something, she said no, it is a guy selling potatoes. People like this, farmers, come from the country to sell their produce on horse/donkey/mule drawn carts and use loud speakers as their form of advertisement. Mariam translated the message as the guy saying he had the best potatoes at the best price and that he had other stuff too. I wanted a video of this but was inside, but later I found a similar cart and guy selling gas tanks for use in the home, usually stoves. I’m not sure if these guys were farmers or just merchants though.

Apartment buildings in Egypt are not really designed with the occupants in mind—it’s all about getting the most building in the smallest amount of space (or so it seems). Our building has four apartments per floor so to give air circulation and window access on two sides of the apartment the builders created a light/air shaft in the middle. One side of the building opens to the outside (one window in living room and two access points to balcony in dining room and bedroom) while the other windows (one in master bedroom, one in bathroom, and one in kitchen) open to the light/air shaft. It is difficult to explain/capture the idea without really seeing it but here are some pictures

This picture was taken from the stairwell outside our door

The floor of the light/air shaft is sometimes used for storage. People leave things with no fear of them being stolen or damaged. I’ve seen some with bikes, furniture, and other large items. People also keep their shoes outside of the door, although living on the ground level is probably a little more risky because there is a potential for more traffic. In fact Ahmed had a pair of expensive running shoes stolen when he was in college—still a painful memory.

Here is a picture of the mango juice from the stand, it is freshly squeezed and given in a glass that we drink in the street and they wash and reuse in the juice stand. The kids gets unique to-go ‘cups’, something Karim really enjoys. So much so that he refuses to drink from the glass, he must have his juice to-go

And Karim with his juice in the entrance of our building. A lantern and other decorations still hanging from Ramadan celebrations

That is all for now, I’m sure I will have more to add to this category…

Karim’s First Day of School

We have been looking for a good school to enroll Karim since he was about 2. None of the schools in our area in Maryland were what I wanted—either they were too expensive or not the right environment. Before leaving for Egypt we decided to try a school here and were able to find the perfect fit. The Delta Language School is inexpensive, at least by American standards, it is a bit pricey relative to the Egyptian pound. We took Karim a couple times to tour the school and he really loved it, but today was the day to leave him there alone. He did really well, he didn’t cry. He wanted me to stay but after we left we watched him from the window outside and he seemed to adjust right away. I went to pick him up 5 hours later and he was so happy to see me. I don’t think I’ve ever left him that long with someone he doesn’t know.

All his teachers are really nice and they speak enough English that we are able to communicate. His head teacher’s name is Miss Ranya. Today they had an English lesson and learned “What is your name?”, “I’m Karim”. Of course these are things Karim already knows but they will learn other subjects, and I’m sure Karim learned a lot more during his day other than what was taught by the teachers. He will continue going everyday except Friday and Saturday (the weekend in Egypt and other Muslim countries) from 7:30 – 12:45.

I thought it would be fun to take to my niece and nephew to pick up Karim since they were getting out of school at the same time I was leaving. I let them lead me to the school and we got lost because they thought Karim went to a different school. Luckily we found our way back and arrived on time to pick him up.

Here are a few picture from his first day

So serious. My sisters in law tell me that Ahmed was the same way. Going to school was a serious matter and no time for laughing :)

In the classroom, Miss Ranya in the background

Sitting at his desk

From outside the window, he looks really sad but right after this I saw him smile at his teacher

After we picked him up, I didn’t get a shot of his first reaction, maybe tomorrow

First Week in Egypt

Last night marked the one week point since arriving in Egypt last Tuesday. We finally are getting into a normal sleep pattern. Before last night the kids had been going to bed around 2-3am and waking around noon (the normal time according to EST) but last night they slept before 10 and we all woke up at our normal times.

I have adapted quickly to the change of pace in Egypt. At home I was used to things being very quiet (except for the normal kids noises). But here there is a lot of family interaction, not to mention the non-stop activity in the streets. I’m pretty comfortable with the traffic now. Driving in Egypt is a little chaotic, but the drivers seem to understand some type of protocol that is followed making for relatively safe roads. I'm not too great at crossing big streets but I’m getting there. There are no crosswalks or pedestrian lights, or right of way for that matter. You just have to go and dodge all the cars (normal speed in these areas is very slow due to the high volume of pedestrians, so it’s pretty safe).

I have found car seats and strollers to be pretty much useless here. We don’t have a car so we either walk or take the bus and the sidewalks and stores/markets are not designed for easy stroller access, so I’ve found it best to just leave it all behind. When I wanted to use the car seats on the airplane, everyone looked at me like I was crazy and it took me 20 minutes to explain to the crew what they were and their function.

The flight was pretty easy. It was 10 hours, not counting our 3 hour drive to NY and 5 hours waiting in the airport because the flight was delayed. We arrived in Cairo around noon the next day and were greeted by Mohamed, Mariam and Ahmed (Ahmed’s brother, sister and nephew). We then took a van from Cairo to Alexandria—another 4 hours. I enjoyed seeing Cairo but it got dark before we left the city so I didn’t get to see much, I look forward to going back, but not for a while. Here are a few of the pictures over the last week, I will post more later and some on facebook.

Karim and his cousin Ahmed in the van from Cairo to Alexandria

Cairo

Roqaya and Ahmed’s Uncle Saleh

Me and baby Hashim (nephew)

Karim and Uncle Mohamed (his favorite person I think, because he looks just like Baba)

Roqaya and her cousin Habibah (they are one year apart but almost the same size)

Having some ice cream by the pier in Alexandria (with the yellow car, Karim’s second favorite thing)

The Mediterranean is in the background, but it was dark

Our special dinner on Friday—barbequed fish, crabs, and salad—delicious!

Karim waiting impatiently at his school before seeing the headmaster on Monday

Karim and his Uncle Mohamed having some sugar cane juice—the juice stands are everywhere, like Starbucks in America, and they’re always packed. So far we’ve had sugar cane juice and mango juice, both were very good

The market where we went to buy Karim’s shoes and bag for school. It was hard to get a good shot because it was dark, but it was packed with people and cars and shops

Rules in Egypt are very different, there are no real laws for driving and no one uses car seats—most cars don’t have seat belts. We let Karim ‘drive’ down the small street where our apartment is, just like my dad used to do with us :)

This is the front of out building. Egyptians don’t put a lot into outward appearance, most buildings are brown like this with minimal design. The inside looks much better than the outside. I saw some buildings that looked fancy from the outside but was told the apartments inside were no good.

Ok, that’s all for now…

Big Changes

wow, it’s been awhile since I’ve visited my blog, things have been a little crazy around here lately so I guess that’s probably part of it. The kids are doing well and maturing everyday. Karim’s vocabulary is perpetually increasing and it’s really exciting to see him learning and becoming a big boy. He will be 3 Sept. 28th and we plan to enroll him in preschool soon after that. He is finally fully potty trained, but the funny thing is that I think it was more an issue of me not knowing what to do rather than of him not being ready. We went cold turkey, no more diapers over a week ago and so far, so good.

Roqaya had her first birthday August 12, it’s amazing how fast that year went. She loves watching her brother and learning new things—like sliding down the stairs on her belly, she goes really fast. Here are some recent pictures from our Picasa gallery.

Now for the big news—the kids and I will be traveling to Egypt at the end of this month. Yes, a 12 hour flight with two kids—I’m not really looking forward to that part but hopefully it won’t be too bad. We will arrive in Cairo the next day where we will meet my sister-in-law for the first time. She will travel with us to our final destination in Alexandria, on the Mediterranean coast, west of the Nile delta. We will then get the opportunity to meet the rest of our family members living in Alexandria—two other sisters-in-law and brother-in-law and his wife, numerous nieces and nephews as well as many extended family members. We plan on making time to visit the pyramids in Cairo and Luxor, and any other must-see tourist sites.

I’m really excited to have this opportunity to meet our family members and experience a new culture. Ahmed, unfortunately, will not be able to join us this time because he is unable to take such a lengthy vacation away from school. He just started his master’s program this month so he’ll have plenty to keep him busy while we’re gone.

After verifying that the kids have all the shots needed for travel (and they did) I realized that I needed to catch up on boosters. I went two weeks ago to get Hep.A and Tetanus, not I know why the kids cry when I take them for their shots, it really hurt! Well actually, the Tetanus wasn’t that bad, but the Hep.A made my arm feel like it was going to fall off, then, from the pain or something, I fainted and had to stay with the nurses until I felt well enough to go home. The Dr. recommended that I get another round of the Hep. A, but now I’m a little nervous that I will have a similar reaction.

We got our passports and visas all ready to go so we won’t have to stop at customs in Cairo. We also have loaded up on tons of gifts for Ahmed’s siblings and their kids. I’m not sure how I’m going to manage all the luggage, but with the help of the flight attendants, we’ll get it figured out.

I will probably be more regular with my blog during our trip so I can keep track of our adventures while sharing with others at the same time, so stay tuned…

First Step

Roqaya took her first step today. She's been practicing standing by herself for about a week which she doesn't get to do much because Karim really likes to push her down anytime he sees her standing. I meant to write about her 9 month check up so I will just add that it in now...she is 20 lbs and 30 in. she is in the 50th% for weight and 75th% for height. Her favorite activity lately is to stand on my lap and pull my hair. She cries if I don't let her but I can only stand it for about 3 seconds.  She had 4 little teeth and does not handle teething very well, Karim didn't seem to be bothered by it at all.  Now that the weather is nice, all Karim wants to do is ride his bike, he only gets off to name off all the brands of the parked cars--he's getting pretty good and knows most of them.  He calls all Land Rovers "Auntie L car", he is just hilarious sometimes

Roqaya is 6 months old

She is actually 6 months and one week but she had her 6 month check up today so I thought I would share her stats.  She now weighs 17 lbs 10 oz. and I definitely feel that in my back when carrying around her car seat...speaking of which her new car seat is in the mail, she is moving up to the big car seat and out of her carrier because she's getting too big for it.  She is 28.1 inches, which explains why she doesn't fit in her car seat anymore, her feet are dangling over the edge.  She is in the 75% for both height and weight.  She got some shots which she really didn't like but she stopped crying once she saw baba and Karim in the waiting room.  She started eating her big girl food, she really likes to get her mouth full and covered and then blow raspberries.  She also really enjoys sharing an apple with Karim, she can't bite it but just sucking on it makes her happy, maybe she just wants to be like Karim.  She's getting better at crawling, she still hasn't made it up on hands and knees, she mostly does an army crawl, but she's gotten more efficient with that since last week..  She doesn't have any teeth yet, but that's totally fine with me, she can hold off on those for as long as she wants.

Karim will be 2 1/2 at the end of March.  He's still not potty trained, he just doesn't seem to mind.  I've been reading about the training in one day technique, it's a little intense but it may be worth a shot.  He stayed in the waiting room with baba this time so I didn't get a chance to weigh and measure him, but he's growing nicely.  He really likes playing with his soccer ball lately, he's always going through little phases of things he likes so we'll see how long this one lasts, for now it's fun.

Well, that's pretty much all for now, we'll have another check up in 3 months...

 

You Fell Over

Roqaya has been practicing her sitting up skills, she's getting pretty good but every once and a while she falls over, so sometimes I say to her 'oh you fell over :('.  Well, Karim picked up on this so if he sees her sitting nicely he goes to her, pushes her over and says, 'oh you fell over'.  I try not to laugh so as to not reinforce this but it's just too funny, Roqaya doesn't seem to mind either, she usually laughs at him too.