An Update and Explanation for my Twenty Days of Blogging Silence

I had good intentions of updating this thing frequently (and by frequently I was thinking once or twice a week). So, I am now behind. Here are my excuses: The internet has been real spotty throughout Egypt for the last week and a half or so. Also, I spent a little time in the hospital and splayed out on the couch staving off intense pain caused by kidney stones with a little Egyptian powder I have lovingly taken to calling "The Fuzz." I always thought I was quite lucid, but my friends here tell me otherwise. But, the internet is back up and, though there were moments of doubt, I have won the battle against my kidneys.

The day I ended up in the hospital actually started out pretty fantastically. My friends, Katka and Judy, and I actually spent several hours at the Library of Alexandria. What an incredible and beautiful place. There are several museums on the lower levels of the library, and this is actually where we spent most of our time. I saw a mummy--not just the encasing tomb, but the linens as they were wrapped around and around a body. It provoked feelings that I cannot really name, but will say that it is quite amazing to stand a foot away from the actual body of an individual who lived so long ago.

On account of my hospital visit and subsequent pain, I missed a couple days of teaching and so I still have two more classes to teach under observation before I receive my certificate. I should finish everything up in the next couple days as I begin my internship. In the meantime, I wanted to share a picture of everyone in my certificate group. Starting on the front and left we have Nevien, one of our teachers and an awesome girl. Then there is me and my roommate, Channan, who is from England. Mustafa is hunched over and the guy on the far right is Mohamed, our driver. Both of them are from Alexandria. In the back and from the left are Khaled, the director here and another one of our teachers. Then there is Erik who has also lived in Alaska. Islam, from Dubai, is next. (And I will just add that he was a great friend and I adore him). And lastly, almost hidden by our Egyptians, is Judy, also from Alaska. We were a fun group, but now, only Erik, Channan, and I remain for the internship and Arabic language study. But, in the classic words of Vonnegut, "So it goes."