Twister Fun!

Since school has been cancelled until Oct. 7th (and maybe longer....but PLEASE NO!) we have been doing a full curriculum of classes at home, including P.E. We have been looking for indoor activities because, again with the school closed, there is no track or big field of grass to play in. At the commissary one day I noticed a game of Twister and realized that it was a great way to be active inside. We now play about everyday and it is super fun!

Lots to Catch Up on!

Well, we got really busy with the beginning of school and are just now catching our breaths....just in time for school to be cancelled for the next 17 days by the Egyptian government. Like I said before: I miss democracy...and yes, I will miss the newly aquired and never-taken-for-granted quiet time that I HAD. I am excited to have the kids around and find some fun stuff to do. I already looked into Alaska trip, Disney world and cruise around the Meditteranean, but all out of price range for now(Alaska tickets for 6 of us was about $8,000.00!) so we will just have to "settle" for good 'ol Egypt stuff:)

Oh, and we had planned a Israel trip, but had to postpone because of Brent's changing travel plans. He is going to Kuwait for about 10 days, but the timing keeps changing.

We will now go to Israel in early December. I am very excited, especially since I am reading Gerald Lund books about Christ's time in Israel. There is so much history, both spiritual and political, in that area.

So here are some things that happened while I was NOT blogging----sorry about the long dry spell:)

Rebekah became a Young Woman at church.

Sarah's 5th birthday (pictured with Rere, our now famous housekeeper).

All the kids got USA shirts from Grandma House....and send an "I LOVE YOU" message back.

Sarah got bangs, much to my sorrow.

Brent had to qualify to use a pistol (and we thought the "target" was a very interesting, potentially political statement.....lets put it this way: the target looked a lot different when he qualified for pistol in DC.

I went to a wrought-iron store and all their displays had drooping candles in them....hot and no a/c in stores here. So funny!

And finally,After 13 years of marriage, I finally got 17 pictures framed that I have been "collecting". This includes a beautiful print from Gustavus, Alaska that we got as a WEDDING GIFT. I feel so much better about life now:)

Full stomachs and hearts: Iftar Feast

Warning: no pictures....sorry. We didn't even bring camera because we didn't want to be rude to our hosts in any way.

One of the men that work in Brent's lab invited our whole family to his home for the Iftar (break the fast) feast, which occurs every night of Ramadan at sun set (6:30 or so). We didn't know what it would be like, but the man is a kind person and Brent felt like it would be a good thing to go. He met us at a central location and then we followed him through TERRIBLE traffic to his flat, where his wife and 3 daughters had been working all day (and possibly longer) to prepare an amazing feast for us. Only he spoke English, but we were able to communicate ok. Brent knows a lot more Arabic than I do and I was impressed at how much he can speak. We basically ate food from 6:30 until 10:30p. They had all 7 of us sit at their table and use their best dishes (nice china and crystal ) while their daughters ate sitting on the ground around a little table. The food was just incredible! The meal started with a drink of dates that had been pitted and soaked in water overnight. The juice tasted like grahm crackers:) After that, we sat down to about 8 different dishes including: okra in tomato sauce, stuffed grape leaves, green peppers, zukes and eggplant, chicken, pasta in bechemel sauce with a layer of seasoned beef in between, molekhya soup (texture of snot but wonderful flavor), risotto soup, freshly made green olives (WOW), and an assortment of raw veggies. We ate and then they filled out plates again and then we ate more, and they kept filling our plates. Then they served 3 different dessert courses, all followed by a tangerine sodapop chaser! I haven't eaten that much ever before in my life, but I couldn't say no----it was such a gift for them to provide us that much food.
Their apartment/home, in total, was about the size of our livingroom. It was very clean and well taken care of. They had 2 small bedrooms, kitchen, 1 bathroom and a balcony off the bedroom. The 3 daughters shared a bed and one of the rooms. They are not considered poor but probably upper level of the middle class---they had a nice computer, meat with their dinner, and 2 used cars. They didn't have A/C, they didn't have screens on the windows, their small flat looked out on garbage and falling down buildings, they saved everything and reused it (like the styrafoam containers you get when you buy meat or cheese) and didn't take "things" for granted.
They were kind, funny, sharing, and it was such a pleasure to meet them and be invited into their lives. We told them we would love to have them for dinner to our house as well.....I wonder what they will think of our living situation?

Happy and Sad, Kazikhstan and Ramadan

Kids are all officially in school now.....and I am at home alone. First morning when they all got on the bus, I sat on the floor in the dark and listened to the quiet.....then I started to cry. But, then I stopped crying and got a LOT done in a short amount of time:) They are all doing great and enjoying school. Elisabeth is sure she got the nicest teacher in the whole school. Sarah and Emma are becoming so grown up and can make their own lunches. Rebekah and Josh are both in the middle school now and are able to "hang out" during breaks and tried out for the MS drama production together. I am planning my schedule for the year and am hoping they call me to sub at the school a couple of days a week. Also, I hope I can finally finish my one (and only) quilt and catch up on the scrapbooks.....and get a lot of great exercise in:)

Here is a picture of the first day:

Brent got back from his trip to Kazikhstan last week and this time he took lots of pictures. Here are some:

Ramadan started on Saturday, August 22nd. It is really interesting how this changes the day to day life here. The muslim people fast from sun up to sun down, so basically they reverse their schedule of life. They eat all night, then sleep in and do very little all day, then RACE home at sun down to the iftar (break fast) meal with their families. We went to mall on Saturday and most of the stores were closed. A lot of the places are closed most of day and open later in the evening. Funniest thing of all that I have seen is how completely dead the streets are at about 6 pm (normally rush hour) because everyone is eating:) Now, I could go into a deep analysis of the cultural vs. the spiritual ways of fasting for Ramadan and how some people really are devoted to the true Islamic reason for the fast and others do it because society has forced them.....but I won't. I will however includea couple of pictures---Ramadan lanterns (it is a time of celebration and not unhappiness---one child told me they "LOVED Ramadan--they get gifts, eat sweets, and don't have to go to bed!") and one of something I found written on an electrical box down the road:

Spain pictures at last

Along the port in Barcelona.


One (of many) of Gaudi's structures in Barcelona.



My favorite shop:) Homemade pastries of all kinds. The meringue was really wow.



The street fair in Barcelona (note the gargoyles and amazing "bridge" in the nearby cathedral).


The temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Madrid, Spain.


An example of the amazing architecture in Madrid.


The meat section of the local grocery store in Madrid. I think they eat a lot of ham (jamon)!


Statue of a Spanish conquistador in the Plaza Mayor at dusk in Madrid.

Amiee's Spanish Adventure

Let me start by saying that it takes a special balance to combine a temple pilgrimage with a shopping/tourism adventure. Justine Klena (friend and neighbor from Pullman, who is now a friend and neighbor in Maadi and the only person who I could convince to take this trip with me) and I managed to pull it off rather nicely I think:)
Let me also say that I spoke Arabic instead of Spanish for the first day in Spain. And I spoke Spanish instead of Arabic for the first day back in Egypt!

The trip started at 9 pm on July 21st. We flew all night and arrived to a deserted Madrid airport. The taxi ride into downtown was expensive, but quick since the roads were deserted as well (VERY unlike Cairo--where you can have a complete traffic jam at midnight!). We were a little nervous when the driver pulled into an alleyway covered in graffiti and told us we had arrived. We both were afraid to get out of the cab! Actually, the hotel turned out to be in a fine part of town and close to all the things we wanted to visit in downtown Madrid, but I guess at 5:30 am the place is kinda dead. We learned quickly that graffiti is kind of like an art form, and is everywhere. Other than that, the temple was absolutely wonderful, the streets were so clean, the water drinkable, the air fresh from the constant gentle breeze as Madrid is on a plateau and the sights amazing. I really like Madrid.
The temple is on a fenced block with the MTC building. I got up early one morning and left Justine sleeping while I road in a taxi to the temple. I couldn't remember how to give directions in Spanish, but my prayer was answered when I saw the angel Moroni through the trees and was able to help the driver find the temple. I saw a bunch of missionaries going into the temple. They greeted me in Spanish and I replied that I didn't speak Spanish well and one quipped, "that's ok, neither do we....yet" in English. I ended up being in a session with them, so it was in English. The celestial room had an amazing ceiling that fit the Spanish style. I also did other work, and it was mostly all in Spanish. It was a very wonderful experience and worth the entire trip all by itself!
I took the city bus back to the hotel, saved me about 20 euro (about 40 dollars) and got to see more of the city on my way.
After walking for hours and seeing all we could in Madrid, Justine and I took an all night train ride to Barcelona, on the northwestern coast. Barcelona was very different in "vibe" from Madrid. I wasn't sure what I thought of it at first (a little more run down and dirty) but after Justine pointed out that it was just a "hippy" town, while Madrid had been very cosmopolitan, I started to understand it and relax. Barcelona was crazy with young people (teen to twenty-ish). There was lots of street music, dread locks everywhere, lots people watching to do, and a great beach---clean and beautiful. The food was more focused on seafood, but similar to Madrid in most ways. The streets smelled of sewer more and we realized that there were air vents all over the ground and that was why. While in Barcelona we saw a loud protest from the Catalayan Indians, fighting for more representation in the government and society in general. We saw a street fair with people dressed up as giants from old times and we saw some wild fashions----80's meets hippy meets Goth. One of the most amazing things was this enormous cathedral designed by Gaudi. It was absolutely incredible and breath-taking.

To summarize Spain: We saw amazing architecture (Roman era and Gaudi in Barcelona) and art (Rembrandt, Picasso, Renoir, Goya, Bosche, etc), ate a lot of great food and did lots of window shopping. We also experienced really cool market places, with colors and smells and sounds that set you in happy awe. The main staples for food in Spain seem to be potatoes and pork, specifically Iberian jamon (ham). We ate crusty bread with ham, pastries (oh how I love Europe!), churros-n-xocolate, delicious olives, seafood paella, wonderful croquettes (the potato/Gorgonzola combo was my favorite) and pastries...oh yeah, I already mentioned those:) We swam in the Mediterranean Sea, laid on the beach all day (and yes, I did get a sunburn), read books, slept in.....and really missed Brent and the kids:) It was wonderful. Thanks to Brent and Rere for making it possible, and thanks for going with me Justine. Oh, and thanks for my high school Spanish teachers because I really used the Spanish and I was surprised at how much I remembered and how fun it was to speak the Spanish language.

Getting on the plane to go back to Cairo was so funny because it wasn't until then that I realized that while in Spain no one was staring at us as we walked down the street, you could wear short-sleeves and shorts and not feel immodest, you could get onto a city bus safely, you could navigate using a map and signs (and not just landmarks, ie...the 2nd mosque with the half moon steeple), and you could assume that things would be done in a certain, taken-for-granted order (like sitting down in a plane, according to seat number) and not even think about it. These are the things that I miss about the USofA. On the other hand, I realized that I think of Egypt as "home" now. I realized that my mind has been opened and I have seen many different ways of thinking and tried to understand them. I also realized that I was glad to be heading back to Cairo and I love the people, especially 6 close to my heart folks:) (and Rere of course). For all the things I miss about the US, there are many things that I love about Egypt and the culture.
Now all I have to do is re-train my brain to say shokran again, instead of gracias.

Love to you all,
Amiee

Rebekah Turns 12!

Rebekah is now 12---seems like just yesterday she was a little thing, crawling around the floor chasing me wherever I went. For her birthday she had a family party and started the day with strawberry crepes. We played around the house and watched a movie with BBQ potato chips. She was super excited about her presents, especially since she is going to enter the YW program at church now. Grandma House made her a special YW Values necklace, which she loves. She also got some great clothes (including a silk dress I bought her in Spain). Her favorite gift is a toss up between the brand new quad scriptures, with tabs, and the complete set of Mormonads. Her room is now plastered with good things:)

We sure love Rebekah and her sweet, kind, righteous heart. We are all glad to have her:)

Also of note: Emma is without her 2 front teeth----pretty funny to hear her talk and see her smile!