Lstott

The trip to moscow finally arrived! Usually things like this tend to generate lots of hype and then possibly disappoint in the end. There was none of that though because I think I was sceptical of the whole trip from the very beginning. Ok so the background story to Moscow... Back in February when I was playing some pickup soccer at Gezira club, one of the guys asked if I wanted to play in a girls soccer tournament. He said the girls were good players and that I could join them. The next week I hear from one of my egyptian girlfriends that this tournament is huge and that the sponsor (Vodaphone) was paying for the winning teams (girls and guys) to go to Moscow for the UEFA Champions league football final. I was skeptical because ... read more

After months of planning and weeks and days of stressful pre-trip preparations, I finally departed for my first 4 day field trip as the teacher instead of the student! Ever since I arrived in Egypt, I have had the idea of taking the high school students to the Western Desert as part of their PE class. Part of the high school curriculum requires students to learn about physical activity in an alternative environment, as well as look at some basic survival skills and first aid. Back in February, I picked the second week of April as a perfect time to take a break from the routine of school, enjoy the not-too-hot early summer weather and head out for a week in the sand. I sought out a reputable tour company and hotel, researched what other local ... read more

February is ending and this month has definitely had its share of ups and downs. I have gone back and forth with my decisions for next year's plan....the deadline is looming and Im still see sawing daily!! So to get down to my stories of the month... how I ended up at a horse stable Last weekend, on a whim, I agreed to go with Anna to a friend's birthday party. It turned out that the birthday boy was involved with a horse stable out by the Sakara pyramids. The party felt like an opening of a new business and we got a full tour of the stables and what would be the hotel rooms as well as invitations to bring our classes from school! The atmosphere was interesting because it was full of different groups ... read more

Well, I finally get to click on a different country for this blog. I left late wedesday night, more like early early thursday morning (345am) for Athens., Greece. I was so so so tired so the first thing I did was try to find a hostel to check into. After a 30 Euro cab ride (wow sooooo overpriced) I found a great hostel for 14 euro/night!!! I checked in and quickly checked out...face down on the bed I slept for a couple hours, before getting up and starting my day at the more normal hour of 10am. My first impressions of Athens were so much better than I had expected! THe streets are spotless compared to Cairo, there are only a few stray dogs, almost NO catcalls or stares from the men or women and the ... read more

I am sorry that it has been so long since the last blog. Our internet has been on the fritz and as many of you know, mom, bernard and uncle brad have been staying at my place for the last three days. Things have been pretty calm the last few weeks, and I really realized how accustomed I am to everything here when the family came on thursday. I went with Hanni, our housecleaner, rat killer and personal chauffer, to the Cairo airport to pick everyone up at 1130. Dressed in his best suit jacket, Hanni rented a car and came to pick me up. Hanni has a special diplomatic pass into the airport, so he left me at the gates with the crowds and entered to go find everyone. I had shown him pictures of ... read more