Observations

Just some thoughts from this week:
1. Heliopolis (where I live) is sooo far from everywhere!
2. Fatima, my host mother, has a cunning plan to stop me from leaving Cairo, which is to fatten me up so much that I will not be able to fit in the airplane seat going back.
3. Cairo is at its best between 11pm and 3am.
4. Hosny Mubarak (the Egpytian President) will forever look about 55 with dark black hair and sunglasses, even though he is really 78yrs old and greying. (This is how he is shown on the Ministry of Social Solidarity!) p.s. what do they do in there?!
5. Egyptians love to talk about the 1973 war against Israel and how it has been omitted from some history books in the West
6. I now know what it is like to be a goldfish in a bowl. Try using any public transport/walking anywhere in Cairo as a foreign woman.
7. My digestive tract will never be the same again
8. My feet wil never be the same again after all the mosquito bites and literally being burnt from underneath because of the hot cement. No joke, my sandals got so hot today just walking on the street that I have blisters.
9. Egyptian red wine = not great
10. Journalism is becoming an appealing career option. Travel the world and write about what you see...what a life.

Work this week was fairly non existent because I have finished the franchise package and given it to Mr. Mamoun to review. He was vacationing this past week and left without giving me a new project, hence I have finished two books this week. "Reading Lolita in Tehran" by Azar Nafisi and "Veronica Decides to Die" by Paul Coelho. I have also started researching for an article about the political clout of the EU versus the U.S. and what the future holds for both in light of their past actions and the imminent leadership transitions.
Akanksha and I managed to fit in a few social events into our evenings this past week, which is no mean feat considering the ordeal required to get from home to downtown. This trip requires a cab to the metro (dispute over the fare) and then the metro to downtown (ignore the constant staring/impossible to find the cabin for women only) and then a cab to wherever (another debate about the fare). Plus, getting back is tricky as it is not advisable to take most public transport after 11pm, right at the time most events are starting here, but also after the curfew for Egyptian girls. However, there was a 4th of July party with Americans, Egyptians, Aussies, and Indians. No fireworks, but we had burgers and apple pie and beer! Also we made it to Cairo Jazz Club one night which was a real treat. The group playing was not pure/blues jazz persay but the singer had a nice voice and it was a change of scene from the usual coffeehouse and sheesha. The crowd was about half Caireans and half foreigners and at one point there were even a few people dancing and swaying to the music. I do feel most of the places I've been socializing lately have been in more traditional, subdued, Egyptian settings. By this I mean to say there are few women, especially unveiled ones, no alcohol, and certainly no dancing. So, there was something comforting about being in this atmosphere with young people in varied attire, chatting and having a drink or two. It is one of the few places that I have been able to blend in and this was relaxing in a strange way, something more familiar. Not that I would trade where I am for anything, this is a phenomenal experience, but I do at times need a freer, more contemporary atmosphere and a glass of wine!