The pyramids sure are great...

... I'll have to go back another day to take my time and explore and maybe get on a camel and see the museum, but this morning we went out honestly for a few photo opps... sporting my purple polo and khakis completely intentionally... miss my fellow panthers....

Tomorrow all of staff returns, today was the last day of new faculty orientation. What a blessing this week has been, time to adjust, settle in (at least the baggage I have), get my bearings, and most importantly, get to know the other new staff members. We have one week now of planning and preparing in our classrooms before the students come next Sunday, Aug 15 for the first day of school. Ramadan starts Wednesday this week as well, that should be an eye opening experience.

I haven't quite figured out exactly where I am in Maadi...

...so I decided to go for a walk this evening. I set out equipped with my handy dandy book of maps, my cell phone, my arabic cheat sheet, and less than ideal sandals...and 2 hours, lots of wrong turns later, I showered off all the dirt and grime I had collected on the streets. I made my way to road nine, a big shopping district where you can get on the subway system that runs all throughout Cairo. At one point, I ran into the same darling little park in the center of a midan (roundabout) with lit up lanterns in the trees. Getting lost isn't all bad. I am getting really darn good at Arabic numbers now, and I quite enjoyed the little park I found (too bad I don't remember how to get back to it.. yet).

(PS--for those of you worried about the fact this photo was taken at night, the streets are actually really incredibly safe and I asked around the school to make sure it would be alright...just have to use common street smarts about you as you would anywhere..)

#10A Road 251 Apt 6

My home sweet home. It's really ridiculous and incredible how nice the flats are here for residence. I'm living with Penny in her single-person appartment with 3 bedrooms, two bathrooms, full kitchen, dining room, living room, AND balcony. Rough eh?

Here are a few photos of our place.. I honestly don't know how much rent is, the school pays for it, but my limited expenses to contribute to for the maid (cleaning, ironing etc), utilities, air conditioning, clean water... will amount to no more than $100 per month for this incredible living situation literally 3 minutes walk from school.

PS> I CAN GET SNAIL MAIL HERE IN CAIRO!!! Send me love and letters to the school:

Miss Amy Martens: Middle School
Cairo American College
PO Box 39
Maadi-Cairo-Egypt

Pretty please and thank you in advance!

Class of 2010

...in more ways than one....

Part of my welcoming package at CAC was a monogrammed class of 2010 polo. In CAC, incoming teachers come in classes, just as we consider the peers we graduate with in the US. The incoming classes form tight bonds through this orientation process, and though much of what I am absorbing is not fully processed, the group has been exceptionally wonderful about considering me part of their group. So I'm part of the class of 2010 at UNI and CAC. These people are so insanely fascinating, my travels are put *to*shame* just introducing myself to them. I am spending time with people an average of 10 years my senior and married who have lived in 5+ countries, been there and done the Peace Corps, know what it is to transplant their family every 2-5 years in a country speaking a new foreign language... They come to Cairo, CAC provides fully furnished housing, and spend their first week buying appliances, hiring maids, settings up cell phones and establishing bank accounts. They probably think I am really quiet and untalkative as all I can seem to do is sit and soak in their stories, occasionally interjecting questions in a wonderstruck voice.

I got to spend time with Neil Crouch today, he will be my cooperating teacher for the second half of my placement, in the high school. He has already returned to school and is busy cleaning the dust from the art in his room and display cases. This is Neil's fifth year at CAC, and I learned today that he is one of SEVEN art teachers (k12). I knew this school had a good art program, but honestly, 7 teachers? This is going to be great! He and I had a good chat this afternoon, and hung a piece of artwork on main campus. Campus is currently under major construction; I'll set out to take photos tomorrow to give you a feel for my school grounds, but lets just say it's a great experience to be able to hang art outside; without fear of snow or rain damage.

I ate at Fusion resturant on the Nile tonight at sunset. I'm headed to the Pyramids this weekend and a falucca ride on the river. Pinch me. I can't believe this is real :)

I love hearing a familiar cell phone ringtone in Maadi

...it reminds me of home, and reminds me of how truly small this world is.

First impressions of the city/people:
dirty <but beautiful> city, there is certainly a very distinct Cairo smell.....probably not one most people would consider making into a cologne..though, I have noticed an increase of wonderful strong smelling colognes in my travels (probably a cause/effect situation)-especially in the airports

I love the walk from my apartment to the school.. it's short, easy (I haven't even gotten lost!)... there is a picture perfect truck loaded with hand woven baskets signaling my turn down a street with soo many beautiful trees lining the sides, and I pass by a friendly older gentleman who lives two buildings down who is always out reading his paper and says hello without fail.

I can get by without Arabic, but it's paining me to speak English constantly so I'm going to see what I can do about using more Arabic.

This city feels like an iceberg at the moment (in the sense that I have only seen a tiiiiiiny portion of the city but I know it's a masssssive beast once I get past my neighborhood of Maadi, NOT due to the temperatures.. it's HOT.)

Showering at least twice a day is mandatory now.. that's an adjustment to say the least
CAC (my school), is going to be an AMAZING place to student teach. I feel that overused adjective simply does not do it justice; the quality of teachers, the level of work ethic and dedication to being on the leading edge of education in the classroom is unlike anything I have ever seen..

they have opened their eyes to me and embraced me like family :)
Mr. Michael Popinchalk, my principal and supervisor, met me at the airport with a hug, a sun hat, and personal attendants that lead me around all the lines; I didnt have to wait for a visa or go through customs..
Penny (the teacher graciously allowing me to live with her) really is truly supplying my every need right now and treating me like a mother would...
Hoda, the secretary in the middle school and "the lady to know" said when she saw me, you have been here before, I feel like I already know you, you are just like my daughter already
EVERYONE knows who I am."oh, you're AMY!!! I heard about your flight, poor thing, welcome to CAC!"
the old man two buildings down, just cant tell you enough how precious he is...
Met one of my cooperating teachers and his wife, and they immediately insisted I join them for dinner at their house

HAPPY 20th BIRTHDAY TO MY BROTHER TOM!

Today is my brother's birthday. I'm never home for his birthday; kind of a rotten sister..but he knows I love him :) I tried to put a happy birthday note at the bottom of my last post, but it didn't publish nor would it when I edited it twice, so.. he gets his own, because he's that big of a deal.
Love you bro.

60 Hours in Transit

...is a very long time.

I said goodbye to Jesse, Megan, and Jordan at O'hare international airport Saturday before my flight at noon, flew to Charlotte (next to a wonderfully friendly woman named Annette who is an artist in a family of artists from Florida), boarded my overnight-over-the-atlantic-ocean flight at 5:30pm (next to the most worldy-traveled man I have ever met named Willem who is a german engineer who has been on over 1,500 flights in his lifetime), and arrived in Munich Germany at 8:30am Sunday morning. After being informed my 9:30 flight would be delayed, I was then stuck in a long unexpected layover while crews tried to repair the plane that had engine troubles. 4 Hours later I was informed they would not be able to fix the plane and we would have to rebook at the service desk. There was a mad rush to the line, I luckily got in the front half and *only* had to wait 1 1/2 hours, just to find out there would be no more chances to get to Cairo that night. Luftansa airlines booked me a room at the Shariton near the airport; so I went to grab my luggage, unpack a fresh outfit, and recheck my bags for my flights the next day. I enjoyed the hotel; I was a "preferred special guest" and had a really really nice room and meals paid for which I enjoyed with the company of an engineer I met from Florida (oddly, from Tampa as well as Annette the artist; small world). The next morning I got up, and headed back to Munich airport and left for Istanbul.. yes Turkey.. at 8:45am. I arrived in Istanbul and caught my connector to Cairo on Egyptair flight at 12:30. Arrived in Cairo, finally, at 4pm. My bags however, stayed in Istanbul. Where they still are, over 24 hours later. But at this point, after 60 hours of being in transit, luggage is a very minor detail, and luckily for me, my roomate, Penny, had clothes I could borrow until my bags come.. soon.. insha'allah..........