Bernie and Amanda

Check out the Media Section… 3 New Galleries added. Sakkara Fun, Ain Soukna and 7th St. Market.

Enjoy.

So, with Sai, his cousin Pak, Mike and Leah we went off for a day trip to some sights in around Cairo.

To start, we hit Memphis, the oldest capital of Egypt. There was not that much to see here other then the gigantic Ramses statue.

Then we were off to the great pyramid at Sakkara. One of the earliest pyramids dedicated to Snefru and co.

Then a quick drive over to the Black, Red and Bent Pyramid. The Red Pyramid we could actually enter. After a hard walk up the side of the pyramid, we descended into the Pyramid. A 3 x 3 tunnel, 45 degress down for 150 feet. Was tough on the legs going in. After the tunnel ended, a giant perfectly formed Triangle inside the pyramid. Followed by 3 more tunnels and three more giganticly formed triangles inside. The air was very acidic, and I quickly had to get out. The walk back up the tunnel was by far the most physical thing i have had to do in a very long time.

Everyones thighs were sore for 4 days afterword, and we could all barely walk up or down stairs lol.

2 new albums added !!

Desert Camping and Fun Times around Cairo !

Back in November of 2009, we had a holiday for EID in Egypt. Few colleagues and ourselves decided we would head off for an adventure into the west of Egypt and go Desert Camping. Egypt is famous for many deserts, the 2 we were to visit were the Black and White Desert’s. The crew was formed, our friends Wael, Agnes, Neil, Kerry, Ryan and Meghan, and I.

We left Cairo early in the morning to start our adventure. We had an amazing driver, maybe even a little too crazy that drove us from Cairo to Baharia in 4 hours. (Usually 6).

Upon arrival we were holed up in a little Bedouin house in Baharia while our cooks and guides assembled the 4 wheel drive trucks. After a quick breakfast we were off to get some last minute supplies. All loaded up, we then made our way to this natural spring resevoir. The water was unbelievably amazing. You could barely keep your hand inside the water for fear of it burning.

From there we made our way into the Oasis. Lush vegetation in the middle of the desert. Date palms and a myriad of other trees surrounded us as we drove through. We made a quick pit stop for pictures and exploration.

From the Oasis we made our way to a salt water lake in the middle of the desert. The lake was considered a dead lake, as the salinization levels were too deadly for anything to survive in.

Nice group photo:

From the dead lake it was off to the rest area. Bedouin style tents, pillows and blankets are the typical style of rest area in the Middle East. Since there is rarely ever any rain, these lounges are setup for travellers to eat and rest.

After some well deserved relaxation and lunch, we were off to explore the Black Desert. The desert gets its name from the volcanic rock that covers the desert floor. Black stone litters the entire  landscape, giving the illusion that the ground is charred black. High up on one of the mountains resides an old British Look Out station. We climbed the summit and took some time to explore. The station was crudely put together. The place was excellent vantage point to get a panoramic view of the desert.

After some 4 x 4 fun in the desert we made our way to night 1 of desert camping. While the cooks and guides set upon creating our elaborate camp, we took some time to walk around, stretch and even play a little frisbee in the dark. The crew setup a great fire and provided us with some drums. We banged out a few tunes and were welcomed by some real Bedouin musicians that played local tunes on drums and flutes into the late night. After being entertained, we all retired to the tents, looking forward to another fun filled day.

We quickly broke camp and made our way into the Black Desert again. With our 4×4 tracks all over the dunes we had a blast. The guides took turns scaring us as we went hurdling over the dunes. Some of the girls were not that impressed. For me and Ryan, we had the times of our lives.

We then made our way to this gigantic dune. I can not remember the name of it now, but it is quite famous in the Black Desert. After a steep hike up, all of us took time to relax before we decided to body surf all the way down. What was amazing is that miraculously I found 2 cell phones in the sand. Funny thing, they were both Wael’s they had fallen out of his pockets on his trip down.

To clean up, we stopped off at another hot spring bath. Apparently there are dozens of them all over the place. What was funny, was that when we first took a look at the murky, rust filled water, we were turned off by the idea of going in with our naked skin. Our opinions quickly changed when the owner unleashed the valves on the piping and the entire make shift bath tub was rinsed out in a heart beat with this beautiful crystalline spring water.

After a nice bath, few drinks and a good meal, we were off to the white desert. We may have taken a little more time in the tub then needed because we just barely caught the sundown to setup camp.

After a good nights rest, we were surprised by an equally good sunrise.

After breakfast we decided to explore around the area and snapped alot of great pics of the Dali’esque surroundings:

After driving and exploring a lot of different sites, we made our way to Crystal Mountain. An entire mountain made of crystal. We filled our pockets and watched the sun down for the last time in the desert.

What an amazing trip.

We are back from our whirlwind dervishly delightful adventure in Morocco.

Updates will follow in the next couple of days. Tons of photos ! Alexandria, White Desert and Morocco.

In the meantime, good news !

A teacher has left the school, opening up a position for 6 weeks. So it looks like I will be taking over gr. 9 Math, gr.10 Business Intelligence, the computer lab and school website. Crossing my fingers to extend to the end of the year as the computer teacher.

In the meantime, a few extra websites to tantalize the eyes:

my teaching aid site  : Mr Bernie

my botball team : BOT BALL

I was lucky enough to get invited on a class trip with the Grade 11 Social Studies class. Ms. Kelly, 14 students and I trekked out to Fayoum to visit an eco-lodge there. 3hrs outside of Cairo, Fayoum and Tunis border the Kharoun lake. A salt lake, infected with years of inbound over nitrated farm water.  The eco-lodge, founded by artists, poets, and novelists in the 60′s screams hippie commune revitalized into marketable lodgings to eccentrics and born again “go-greens”. The students had a great time speaking with local fisherman, farmers and a pottery artisan. One of the students was nice of enough to snap a few pics of the this guys mug, here attached below.

The entire experience was just amazing, Waking up early, traversing the back end streets of Giza, and watching the sunrise in the desert with the backdrop of the pyramids. All awhile, gyrating uncontrollably on the back of a beast of burden. I aptly named my camel Chewbacca as the entire time the poor creature would turn to me and snarl like good ole Chewwy.

Me and that camel had some good times and bad. I feel like I left a little piece of myself behind that day. More specifically, a precious piece of my ass cheek. Sure, I felt a little violate, but I am sure it was mutual between Chewwy and I. The joke around the table for a few days after was “Bernie had camel butt, and Chewwy had Bernie back!”

Hi All.

We have updated the contact page to include some mailing information !

More Updates soon:

1. My Version of the Camel Rides

2. Gallery of Bill and Lisa’s visit

3. Latino Night !

4. White Desert Camping

Today was such an awesome day. Miss. Kerry, one of the JK teachers, had to go back to Canada for a wedding. So, badda bing, badda boom, Bernie Grafe is now, the JKC supply teacher for a week.

Today was my first day, and lets just say, that it was awesome. Kerry and I had sat down previously and sketched all her lesson plans, but I was never prepared for the amazing experience I got today. 16 little people all excited at their first day of school ever. Thankfully, my assistant Ibera, and the monitor Mona, were there with me ready to help begin these little tykes journeys into school life.

We met all the parents and kids in the field and the chaos ensued. The tough part was parents with multiple children trying to leave them with different teachers. My assistants were chasing kids all over the place. As part of a group effort, the teachers also had to prepare a little care package for the parents. I was not amused when I became aware of my participating in said event, but complied. Everyone was very amused when I purchased my ziploc bags, cotton balls, tea and tissue. All four items went together with a little poem about how the cotton ball was like their childs soft hand, and the tissue was to wipe the tears, and the tea was to relax with later. Bleh…

So, we got all the kids together, and my strategy was to separate the kids from their parents in the field, because once we got to the class room I wanted to establish that they could not cry there and be home sick. Well this failed miserably. A lot of the parents eagerly followed the children to the class and defiantly video tapped them from the back windows. I had a few heavy hitting criers that could not let go, and the parents having some presence just prolonged the transition into the classroom environment. I finally had to be really insistent that the parents leave, boarding on being rude. Sure enough, once gone, the kids quickly began to model the other children and settled into a regular non-crying mood. As well, some of the kids helped in the comforting of some of the other kids. It was actually really nice to watch the sincerity in some of the kids.

The day was great, and the kids were so excited. We started off with routines on how to be quiet, where their cubbies were, and where their desks were. The assistants were great to work with, as some of the kids had been in Pre-K with them. As far as bathroom issues and the like, the assistants took care of that too. The day was filled with play, reading and song. We also took a trip to the yard, where I helped a few of them play on the swings. It was really moving to see that I was actually teaching kids how to swing, and they were so excited at when they got higher and higher.

Oh, and Mahmoud, did bite another kid. I changed his name to save the innocent, but it was the drama of the day.

After an amazing day, I am wiped, and off to make a very lazy dinner. Frozen food to the rescue !

Good morning all! Well, good morning for me, 3 am for you.  Last night I enjoyed some killer steaks from the 7th street market. When we were looking for a flat, we met Waey-el (Why-l). He acted as our agent in finding a place to live. Since then, we have stayed in close contact with him and he has shown us the ins and outs of Cairo living. More specifically, he is guiding us into the way locals live versus ex-pats. We have been finding all the great markets, restaurants and shops at regular price, versus foreigner price. This is going a long way to the budget ! The best place Waey-El showed us was the 7th street market. Imagine Indiana Jones style outdoor desert vendors yelling into the street selling their wares. Well, this is it. Fresh fruit, vegetables, herbs, nuts, fish, chicken and beef. Cages full of pigeons and chickens, waiting for you to choose their fate. Fish, all caught that morning, and for 1 pound (20 cents) a young boy will fillet it for you any way you like.

The red meat was the best. Goats, lambs and cows, slaughtered that morning, hanging from hooks outside butcheries waiting for you to walk up. A few gestures and pointing out the piece you want, and the butcher goes to work cutting off the portions you desire. And to make sure you really get to know your food, the head of said animal is sitting at a small table a short distance off. Tail, hide, entrails, heart, ears, or any piece you want is offered at a reasonable rate. 45 pounds later, I was walking away with 5 New York strips. Thats roughly $1.75 a steak.

The great thing is the place feels so alive. So many people milling about and shopping. Vendors showing you how fresh their products are and very eager for you to sample them. And on many corners, a little open air restaurant… One night Waey-El, Paule  and I sat down for a meal that consisted of 4 pieces of quarter chicken, 2 plates of fatoush (Egyptian cucumber and tomato salad), 1 plate of baked eggplant, 4 plates of rice, 1 plate of baked beans, 1 plate of hummus type dish, 1 plate of pickled cucumbers, and 1 plate of something I didnt recognize but throughly enjoyed, and the bill came out to 47 pounds. Roughly 10 bucks, so $2.50 a person. Most places that tend to cater towards ex-pats and tourists typically charge 75-80 pounds a person to eat.

So last time I went down, I took a fellow teacher named Ryan down to the market and we tooled around.  I was able to get a kilo of limes, a handful of fresh mint, a handful of fresh dill, a bag of raisans, a bag of mangos, 5 steaks, a filleted red snapper, and a kilo of tomatoes for 67 pounds, or roughly 12 dollars.

I love the 7th street market.