Lazy Tuesday afternoon...

As you may know, the work week in Cairo, and probably the Middle East at large, is a little different than the way we do it in the West. This is, of course, due to the fact that Friday is Islam's holy day, as opposed to Sunday. As a result, the Muslim weekend is composed of Friday and Saturday, with the work week beginning on Sunday and going until Thursday. It's taken a little getting used to. I've literally had to think, OK, Monday now equals Tuesday, and Thursday now equals Friday.

Anywho, the folks at AUC apparently feel like more than 2 days of class in a row is just too much, and, as a result, we have every Tuesday off. I used mine to get some laundry done, and then I did what I do best: wander about the city aimlessly.

When you're 6'3, 200, and in decent shape, you're afforded certain privileges: you can see over crowds, reach tucked away things, and get all the girls (so I've been told). Additionally, you can stroll around a foreign city at ease, despite the fact that you look as out of place as Pat Buchanan in a gay bar. Personally, meandering around all by my lonesome is one of my favorite things to do, for a few reasons: I don't get slowed down by others, I can go where I want to go, and I get a chance to interact with my surroundings and use my Arabic.

Today, I headed west, off Zamalek, across the Nile, and into Mohandessin. I really didn't have any objective in mind. If I saw something interesting, I headed towards it. I saw some cool mosques, walked through some residential areas, and navigated my way through a street crowded with produce vendors. I took a few pictures so you could get an idea of what the neighborhood was like, as well as the traffic. Click here for those. Additionally, I doubled the size of my stray cat album. I also saw some amusing sights, including a guy riding a bicycle while balancing a ten foot-long board laden with bread on his head. Crazy Egyptians.  

Perhaps one of the most enjoyable aspects of the excursion was crossing the street multiple times. Sounds a little weird, but bear with me. If you paid attention to what I said yesterday, you'd know that Cairo traffic is chaotic. There are no stop signs, stop lights, or crosswalks. If you want to cross a busy street, here's the philosophy you have to adopt: Just Do It. You're going to have to step in front of some fast moving cars. You're going to have to weave through traffic, occasionally standing in the middle of the road while cars zoom by you on either side. It's a bit of an adrenaline rush, and I have to say that I'm quite good at it, perhaps even a natural. In addition to my pending "Driving in Cairo" video, I'll be sure to make a "Crossing the Street in Cairo" documentary.

After a few hours of wandering, I ate lunch at a koshari place and bought a think slab of flat Egyptian bread for 25 piasters (5 cents). I then started making my way back to Zamalek. Along the way, I had some interesting conversations, including one with a guy who has a sister in Arizona, as well as a man outside of the Pakistani embassy who spoke Spanish fluently. I spoke with him for a while, and it was interesting to see how my Spanish and Arabic mixed.

Anyway, I got back, did some homework, and that's how my Tuesday went. Classes for the next two days, and then the weekend. I could get used to this day-off-in-the-middle-of-the-week thing.