Medina Souq

Boston Time: 3:00 PM 30 May
Aleppo Time: 10:00 PM 30 May

An early evening in Aleppo brought Andrea, Stephanie, Christina and I to Medina Souq, where we traversed the winding alleys of the market looking for silver, scarves and soaps. The confused look in our American eyes sparked a young merchant to ask if we were tourists and to invite us to his shop for a look and some tea “for hospitality.”

Mahmoud makes Andrea custom pearl earings.

His small shop displayed silver bangles, beaded jewelry and silk scarves as we drank flower tea with sugar and he offered to make custom earrings and necklaces if we found none to our liking. After about an hour, he led us down a maze of streets to his uncle’s antique shop where Andrea and Christina were hoping to find a few small daggers. Waddah, Mahmoud’s uncle offered us tea,“for hospitality,” and ensured us the “student price” throughout his shop, a gallery of art-antiques, folklore and oriental souvenirs.

We sat drinking the tea with cinnamon on a small couch with two other tourists. Learning they were from France, I quickly pointed out Andrea, our French extraordinaire, in part to end the awkward silence separating our two groups. They have been on vacation for three years! Isabelle and Bruno have been riding their bikes all over Europe and the surrounding region and don’t plan on going home until they are “tired.” Bruno foresaw another 10 years of riding; 3 years in Asia and then they hope to see the Americas. I told them when they were in the states they should head to Harris Cyclery if they need any fixing and Andrea invited them to stay at her home in the Berkshires. They update pictures to their own blog every 15 days.

Mahmoud, Me, Isabelle, Waddah, Bruno, Christina, and Stephanie at Waddah's shop (l to r)

After a long while at Waddah’s, as he continued to attempt a sale with Andrea, as we attempted to leave. She was clear in her decision of “no” but eventually made the purchase, cracking under the pressure. Tired and spent (both literally and figuratively) we needed Mahmoud to lead us out of the market towards the direction of our hotel. As we walked, he was questioned by men in uniform—shop owners are not supposed to walk with tourists or shout at them, because the tourism police don’t want foreigners to feel harassed. On the way back to our hotel, we stopped to peak some famous Syrian soaps, made here in Aleppo of laurel and olive oil, and then in a small shop for some sweets.

Welcome to Syria

Boston Time: 1:22 PM 25 May
Damascus Time: 8:22 PM 25 May

“If you don’t have a past, you’ll never have a future.”

On our first full day in Syria, our guide, Osama, educated us a bit on Syria’s cultural history with a tour of the National Museum. There we saw many old Syrian and Islamic artifacts including carved tablets, Roman statues, iron jewelry and ancient clay cookie cutters, to name a few. One exhibit was a very old synagogue dated from the 2nd century CE. While synagogues and mosques are free of imagery that could be considered idolatry, this synagogue was special and rare because its walls and ceilings were completely covered in frescos of Scriptural scenes. Osama pointed out one wall’s painting of the Jewish woman Esther, whom Osama said is the woman depicted in Starbuck’s logo (due to the companies Zionist leadership.)

We also visited the shrine of Salahuddin at the Umayyad Mosque, the Azem Palace, the Christian section of Old Damascus, and the adjoining market place where you can find the most delicious falafel wrap sandwich you will ever eat. The tiny stand is adorned with lettuce and other fresh vegetation and looks like it belongs in that painting where the man’s face is made of fruits and vegetables. The falafel men behind the window partner the donut shaped falafel with a glorious combination of fresh fruits and veggies including lettuce, tomatoes, sliced lemon, and mint, tied together in a fresh pita. For 25 Syrian Lire, or less than 50 cents, it is the most lovely fast meal you might ever find. For my first one, it simply smelled so amazing and felt so clean and fresh, I didn’t even consider that maybe I should be a bit careful with the vegetables, etc. It was quickly devoured and we returned the next day. Delicious.

Another big deal here in the Middle East, or at least Egypt and Syria is fresh fruit. After our 25 SL meal, I had a fresh squeezed orange juice for 150 SL. Another flavor that cannot be missed is cantaloupe juice! I cannot wait to go to Haymarket after my return home to stack up on the melon and attempt to recreate the refreshing green drink.

Taxicab Confessions

Boston Time: 4:56 PM 19 May

Cairo Time: 11:56 PM 19 May

 

Most of the cab drivers I have encountered have not been fluent enough in English, or humorous enough to withstand my Arabic, to have any sort of conversation. It also does not help that I have not yet learned the address of our hotel in either language.  Today I learned how to say “turn left” but promptly forgot after stepping out of the taxicab. 

Jean, 43, who drove us to the zoo, was born in Egypt. He has been driving a taxi in Cairo for two years and acknowledged the polar driving styles of Egyptian and American drivers, as he merged with buses, honked, and avoided fearless pedestrians.

He lived in Sacramento, California for eight years as a cashier and doing accounting for an Indian casino. He has two boys, 6 and 9, who were born while Jean and his wife, who is from Morocco still lived in the States. “California was very interesting,” he said. “Not expensive, different from New York.” 

When asked about how well he does driving his cab and making a living in Cairo, he did not give a unique response.  “Here? Now? One job is not enough,” said Jean who has a second job doing accounting of government taxes when he is not driving his cab. 

Very willing to answer our questions about his life, Jean proved to be a caring individual. “When you go in the zoo, don’t touch the animals…They may be dirty,” he warned us.

But Jean’s caring disposition was not limited to hosting tourists or other clientele. Jean felt obliged to return to Cairo to care for his mother who is 89 years old. “I have a green card [from the United States], but I am waiting for my mother. She is very sick.”

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!!!

Boston Time: 1:43 PM 10 May
Cairo Time: 8:43 PM 10 May

Dear Mom,

I am so happy I brought my lonely planet guidebook. I used to think the guides were cumbersome and more hassle than they’re worth—most likely because you like to acquire several (note: 12) and read them aloud in the back seat of the car like on our recent trip to San Francisco. But Mom, I love to read my guidebook and sometimes I even read it out loud.

Everywhere we go and each attraction we see, I make sure to find the corresponding blurb within the 572 pages of information that travels with me constantly, always in my bag and by my side. Most of the time I have tried to remember to circle or highlight every blurb. This way, I can check them off my list and you can go through later and see where I have been and what I have explored while you were missing me all this time. ☺

This weekend we went to Luxor in the Nile Valley via sleeper train, but I didn’t sleep (most likely because it was bumpy.) Luxor is a small city and different from Cairo for sure. Our tour guide, Nermeen, told us that the Egyptian government is trying to turn the city into what is essentially an open-air museum. It would be full of ancient temples, monuments and tourist attractions. Tourism is a very large part, if not the largest fraction, of the country’s economic livelihood.

This is evident in the way the locals treat and approach tourists, especially Americans. They cater to us and make sure we are happy so that we will “go home and tell your friends how great Egypt was.” On the other hand, they are also extremely forward and upfront about offering their services and wanting our money. It can be incredibly annoying, scary and very sad.

Yesterday, Christina, John and I gave into the proposal of one of the drivers of the many horse drawn carriages. The drivers are relentless to the point of harassment in getting us and other tourists to pay them for rides. Christina and John wanted to interview the driver for an article they are writing so that is why we decided to actually say “yes.” But our driver told us of how the tourism season has been very bad lately and they are making no money and he needs a second job but there aren’t any available. While we were on the carriage, two very small children, four and six years old at most, held onto it’s sides and ran along side us. They kept grabbing at our feet and putting their hands to their mouths, begging for food and asking for money.

lonely planet warns of the constant approaches of merchants and peddlers, and comments on the slowly collapsing economy and the “abysmally low” living standards, but that in no way prepares one for what goes on when walking the sidewalks in Luxor. The guidebook also warns of the swarms of foreign tourists that flock to Egypt, but they just aren’t here in the usual masses. Blame the US or world economy and terrorist attacks—they just aren’t here, and Carlene says they were definitely not here in January when she was previewing our trip, when it should have been even more busy than it would normally be now. It is definitely the developing 3rd world.

Walking like an Egyptian at the Temple of Hatshepsut.

Moving onto a lighter note, I am also experiencing the remains of the amazingly rich ancient Pharaonic Egypt and “the underworld” and am witnessing the death and rebirth of the sun everyday. The ancient Egyptian peoples’ concept of resurrection was greatly influenced by the sun god, Raa. They worshipped the sun, which was (still is!) born in the East and died in the West every single day. Because of this, they built their temples on the East Bank of the Nile, and dug the final resting places of their Pharaohs, tombs, on the West Bank. While in Luxor, we got to see to both.

There is so much to tell you and I hope I remember all the details to bore you with when I return home on June 19th. There are a few though that I will share with you now because it is Mother’s Day and I thought you would appreciate them. Specifically, we saw the obelisk of Hatshepsut, the queen who ruled as Pharaoh, at Amun Temple on the East Bank. The next day, we went to the dazzling Memorial Temple of Hatshepsut, which sits direcly behind the Valley of the Kings on the other side of the mountain, which holds the Kings’ tombs (and hers.) Hatshepsut wore the classic men’s Pharaonic dress and false beard and ruled for 15 yrs of peace. Her stepson, Tuthmosis III, really didn’t like her though so when she died and he became Pharaoh, he erased her name and face whenever possible.

Sitting in the sand dam of Hatshepsut's Obelisk

The tombs at the Valley of the Kings were very intense. We got lucky with the weather and it wasn’t that hot, but it was still really hot and sweaty and stale after walking up rickety stairs and then 1290235 (not literally) steps down inside the desert mountains. I saw King Tut’s nasty old mummified toes and head—very cool and worth the extra 50 LE.

The Luxor and Karnak temples were also really special. I wasn’t feeling well but when we got there I perked right up. It’s just amazing and hard to describe how big and OLD these stones are and how hard it must have been to build them. I took lots of pictures and everyone is sharing their pictures as well, so don’t worry I will have more to tell and show you later!

I don’t even know what to say and I am also getting a little tired of typing, but I will be online soon and maybe you will be too. I get homesick online but then I make sure to talk with friends after wards to get myself back in happy Egypt-mode. Everyone here is super nice and I’m still glad I came.

Let’s see if the pictures work now…

I love you! Happy Mother’s Day from Cairo!

<3 Nor