Bernie Grafe

Up-Date From the Cairo Trenches

Week 3 and 4. I’m still alive and so are my students! We are beginning to find a balance, though it’s wobbly at times… I’ve never been a yeller and I have trouble looking at their big doe-eyes and not believing they are sorry… Mistake number 1! So I’m trying new tactics (ie, threats and rewards) to see if we can get them hooked and keep them…..

On a much happier note we had our very first visitors! Lisa “the Tout Slayer” Kelly and Billy “Mick Dundee” Doucette! They arrived on Friday October 22 and stayed at Casa BernHaley until Tuesday morning. We had an excellent time with them (and we hope they enjoyed their stay with us). Bernie was in his happy place cooking and entertaining… We had dinner at our place Friday night (steak cooked on the new Hibachi grill) and lots of wine and laughs. Our friend Wael joined us. He’d made the trip to the airport with the nephew of a friend of his to pick up our guests… Hamed (the nephew) is an ex-rally car driver. Experience that comes in handy on Cairo streets! At dinner we decided on an early start the next day for sunrise ride at the pyramids…

When I say early, I mean 4:30, and when I say ride, I’m talking camel’s!!! Finally the long sought after ‘Bernie on a Camel’ photo… a collector’s item because I’m pretty sure it will never happen again!

We met the camel guys in this dodgy little back lot off an alley-way near the entrance to the pyramids. Billy, being the bravest of us, took the first camel brought out to us. A very BIG male they told us was called Michael Jackson. Billy soon had MJ under control to the extent the guides passed over the reigns and told him to lead. Our 3 remaining camels were tethered together and led by a guide on horseback. So off we rode through the streets of Cairo and out into the desert. My camel, hereafter known as ‘Trottie’, took every opportunity he could to run… and when a camel runs, the rider achieves actual lift-off. After an hour, we should have had a pyramid view, but the day was hazy when we reached the look-out point for tea. We sat and rested our aching parts for a bit, then it was back in the saddle. The guide had a little change up in store for us… I was now to ride Lisa’s camel, Moses. Lisa was riding Bernie’s camel that he’d appropriately named Chewbacca. Bernie had Trottie. Now something else that should be added here is that there is something about a camel saddle that seems to leave it leaning a little to one side. When I got on Trottie, the saddle was tilted a little to the right. By the time Bernie got on Trottie the saddle was more than a little off centre. The whole trip back consisted of the camel drover trying to trot the camels and Bernie yelling, “Whoa, whoa whoa.” Or the drover  yelling, “Mister, Mister lean to the left!” And Bernie responding with,”The saddle is going right, my ass is in the saddle, I CAN’T GO LEFT!”. We all got back in almost one piece, Bernie being convinced he left large pieces of his butt and thighs behind, but even so it was a great morning!

The infamous Trottie!

We followed camel riding with a trip to the Pyramids. Of course, we picked the busiest possible time. On that Saturday, 6000 people from the Cairo area were at the Pyramids participating in “The Race for the Cure”. Though the energy and enthusiasm was amazing, the crowds were EVERYWHERE, and we waded through pink  and white shirts all around the Giza plateau. Though we tried to escape the crush at the end of the race, our best efforts still left us in traffic for 30 minutes.

From there we went to the Citadel, an old fort and Mosque perched above the city. Billy made friends with the other tourists and earned his nickname by telling them he was, “Here ‘til Tuesday and maybe I’ll see you around!”. We took them to smoke sheesha at our favourite Lebanese restaurant, for a very short float in a felucca on the Nile (fickle Nile breeze decided to desert us… no pun intended), and for a long back alley search of the streets of Maadi looking for a famous Thai restaurant… Which we have since tried and it is REALLY good! Sorry Lisa and Billy!

Then as I went off to be a slave to the youth of Egypt, Bernie continued to entertain. I got many vicarious laughs listening to the stories of their adventures in the tourist traps of Cairo. Bernie bartering (and breaking seats) in Cairo cab and fighting with sellers of fake antiquities, and Billy and Lisa’s adventures on their own were laugh out loud funny! We missed them when they left, and can’t wait to hear stories of their adventures in Jordan and Israel.

Since then, we haven’t been idle. We’ve been working (Bernie substituting and tutoring), me at my usual grind with a big bottle of vodka at my side… On that note, we’ve also found a beer and wine delivery place that we have put on speed-dial… Bernie catered the food for a friend/colleague’s Halloween party and we’ve held a few dinner parties. Yesterday a good friend brought over an LCD projector and we ended up with a roomful of fans for our “House” marathon. We ordered in food and Bernie made nachos… as well as the contributions of our guests!

Next week I’m heading for a desert leadership camp with my students and Bernie gets to come in as my substitute with the kids who opted out… I don’t know how he’ll survive without me, but something tells me I’m coming home to cigar smoke, stale beer and a stray poker chip sticking out of one of our many dead plants!

Hope all’s well back home,… missing everyone terribly!

xoMe

Week Two Blues

My turn to post something! First thing that needs to be said is  thank-you to all of our devoted readers (this means you Cousin  Ike!!) who’ve been reminding us to get something up and leaving us messages on our posts… It certainly makes us feel more connected and less homesick!

It’s been two weeks of ‘work’, back in the classroom and dealing with kids again! Bernie as you’ve been hearing has worked pretty much as steadily  in the school as I have! My class is great, I have 14 Grade 8′s in my homeroom and teach Language Arts, Social Studies and Health (Hygiene here I come!) to the other Grade 8 class (also of 14). Their teacher handles the Math, Science and P.E. for both classes. Most of my students are Egytian/Arabic who are thinking ahead to Canadian Universities. Kids are pretty typical wherever you go and 13 is a hard age, no matter where you grow up, so I’ve already been dealing with the bullying and discipline issues and relationship issues and emotional issues that make this such an interesting and challenging age to teach! I’ve also picked out the future politicians and poets from the groups… and the ones who it’ll either be them or me who crack before June!

Speaking of which, I had an I-just-need-to-go-home-and-drink-heavily day last week. I’ve also been assigned a Grade 5 Science class because I have ‘more prep time’ then the other elementary teachers, so to make it fair I now have much less than everyone else… with the additional prep and 3 extra teaching periods, plus the marking and reporting… Let’s just say that last period on a Thursday after dealing with a day of teenage hormones and finding out your French teacher (the only break you have that day) is not coming in as you are walking your class into her room for there 11:30 class, is not when you want to try to do an experiment with ice and 9 year-olds who think they know more than you do about everything, and are so convinced that school ends at 2:30 (you have them until 2:40 and school’s over at 3) that two of them have grabbed their bag and are trying to run down the hall. Add to that that the teacher isn’t returning at 2:40 to take over and you are supposed to be with your Grade 8′s, now add to that frantic calls to locate the teacher and get back to your room to find that your Grade 8 class has pretty much trashed the classroom with garbage, scattered books and spilt water. Finish it off with the lock on your door having been snapped by someone at some point in the afternoon. Bernie had to practical carry my limp and weeping body to the bus. Thank-you Lord (and Absolut) for Duty-Free-Passion Fruit Vodka….

Other than that major day of drama, I’m finding my groove back in the classroom. Like riding a bicycle I guess. We had a parent-curriculum night on Tuesday and its funny how quickly the ability to ‘work a room’ comes back to you!

On the home front, Bernie has developed a really killer beef-curry recipe that I’m loving right now! I don’t ask where the meat comes from… he does his excursions down to road 7 with the other hunter-gatherers while I stay home and think about doing the dishes. Is this that ‘domestic’ thingy that I’ve heard about? We’ve also been trying to decide where to spend Christmas… Bernie leaning toward some where with snow, my way of dealing with being away from home is somewhere non-Christian so its just another day… We’ll see where we end up! We have a week coming up in November and have been discussing doing some desert camping with a Bedoin tribe our friend Wael knows. I’m looking forward to it; and diving when we are a little more established in the flat.

For those of you giving us grief, I know we don’t have pictures of the flat up yet, but we are giving Skype tours to those signed up!!!

Missing everyone a lot! Especially Nate on his birthday today!

Stay well!

xoxoMe

Now Mahmoud, biting is not allowed !

Today was such an awesome day. One of the largest selling features that was pitched to Haley during the contract negogiation phase with the school was that her significant other; me; was to be offered supply teaching work at the school. What I had not realized was how soon it would all come to being. 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. Haley 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 !

7th Street Market

Good morning all! Well, good morning for me, 3 am for you.  Last night Haley and 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, Haley 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.

… A word or two from me!

I’m getting a little flack from my fans about me not writing as much or      as often as I should… So I’m adding my two cents worth here!

First it must be said (and not just because of the constant reminding      from my house-hubby) that Bernie has been adapting beautifully to the markets and gas stoves here! He’s picking produce and buying fish from the vendors like a pro… I’m benefitting from his talents in mustard chicken ala Egypt, our version of taco night with a salsa Bernie’s been perfecting, and grilled red-snapper with ginger rice! We also found a fresh mint/cilantro vendor so our cucumber salads are getting pretty yummy! If you’re all REALLY lucky he’ll tell you about the fresh meat market and what he got to watch in his early morning adventure on Road 7.

As for me, we are still waiting for actual classes to start. October 4th is still being touted as the start date and I’m really hoping its true. You’ve never seen anything to rival a school full of board frustrated teachers… and trust me you don’t want to!!!

As for our travels, I don’t have much to add… we did have a fabulous time  on our trip to Jordan and Israel, and floating around in the Dead Sea was unbelievable… I couldn’t get my … ‘frontal floatation devices’… under the water no matter how hard I tried! We did all the typical tourist stunt stuff like floating around reading the paper and coating ourselves in gallons of mud as ‘monsters from the deeps’… It was like climbing into a warm slightly slimy bath, and if even a drop touched your lips, it was the most bitter vile taste imaginable!  Bernie did an excellent job of describing our days and the most memorable of our experiences… The detailed make-my-sisters-laugh versions are better over beer and cheesies (yes Sonia, the organic ones) in Sonia or Tracey’s kitchen!

Missing everyone like crazy!!!!

xo/H

Finally, the story on why Donkey Sex can be Hazardous to Your Health.

So, finally, I am able to sit in a place with reliable enough internet to make a post about our trip to Jordan and Israel. I know it has been a long time waiting, but I hope it is worth it. Get prepared for a very long post.  The trip consisted of myself, Haley, Lindsay, Barb and Clarke. Our traveling companions are all teachers at the school Haley is teaching at.

Clarke arranged for a van to take us to the airport, and the Jordanian 5, herein known as the J5 made their way to the airport. After a flawless checkin and boarding, we were in the air, off to the land of Jordan. We landed late at night, and the airport was relatively empty. After a few jokes around the H1N1 sign, we made our way to customs and paid or 5 Dinar for our entry visas. The exchange rate is roughly 100 US to 70 Dinar.  After a little haggling with taxi drivers, we ended up hopping onto a local bus and made our way into the capital city of Amman. We were dropped off at a local bus station where a swarm of taxi drivers honed into us. After more haggling, we ended up in this rundown green van scooting off to the Landmark Hotel. Amman is such a beautiful and modern city. In comparison to Cairo and Egypt, Amman is modern glory. Albeit the streets are still littered with military police toting automatic weapons. We were also shocked to find that Amman has street signs, and when there are 3 lanes assigned for motor vehicles, it is not merely a suggestion, it is an obeyed rule.

Once there, we were entertained by the local festivities celebrating the birthday of a local princess. We decided that it may be hazardous to our health to even attempt to crash the party, so instead, we gleefully watched from the room windows above as party goers enjoyed mounds of food and wine. Armed with shady directions from the concierge, we ventured into the city looking for food. After what felt like a long walk uphill both ways, the daunted J5 returned to the hotel for room service instead. We sat and began to plan our next day and it was decided that instead of taking local transportation down to Petra, we would rent a car. After some moderate success, Ali from Diplomat Car Rental agreed to our terms of rental !

The next morning we enjoyed a lovely breakfast at the Hotel and got our rental car.  Off we went, Clarke behind the wheel, and me in the passenger seat overwhelmed with maps, charts and brochures. With me as the faithful guide, we made our way to Madaba. Madaba is an ancient city known primarily for its mosaic reliefs. The oldest being an ancient mosaic map of the Middle East etched into the floor of a Byzantine Church.

After a little shop browsing, we made our way back to the vehicle, and headed for Mt. Nebo. After a short drive through the Jordan country side, we made our way to the top of Mt. Nebo.  Religious groups believe that the sanctuary on top of the mountain is the place Moses finally looked upon the land of Israel and died. The sanctuary has plenty of beautiful mosaics and religious icons dating back to the time of Moses, throughout the Roman occupation to modern donations sent there by the Popes of Rome.  One of the central relics is an ancient iron-rod cross.

Once the shock and awe wore off, we made our through the switchbacks of the Jordan mountains. The views were absolutely spectacular. I respect and give credit to the awe of the Grand Canyon, but the Jordan mountains just put them to shame. The 1000 foot drop offs, the insane road conditions, and Clarke’s steel nerves made for a very exciting drive.  We quickly transitioned from the grandeur of mountainside to the beauty of the Dead Sea. We drove along the coast for quite awhile until we decided to head back to the mainland in search of food. Looking at our map, I decided a good place would be a town called Karak. Karak is a mountainside fortress originally designed as a lookout for the forces of Saladin during the Crusades.

Lonely Planet as our only guide, indicated that there was an interesting restaurant up near the castle. Driving into town, through the switchbacks, we saw two donkies in the distance.

DONKEY STORY INCOMING…

As the donkies became more noticeable, it was evident that one was trying to mount the other. The female; the ‘mountee’; was none too impressed with her companions intentions, and in defence, was kicking ferouciously into the male’s face. As we were making jokes about the poor guys reward for being a little amourous, the donkies were making their way down the mountainside. And we were getting closer to them. Before we knew it, the two estranged lovers were bounding into the highway, and Clarke pulled off this amazing manuever that saved us, the vehicle and the donkeys from colliding. The truck behind us was not so lucky as it had to skid off onto the shoulder to avoid striking the lovers. Hence forth, the story will be known as ” how donkey sex can be hazardous to your health”.

Ok, back on track. So we make our way to this restaurant and a local comes up to us and suggests  that we give him money to purchase entry tickets to the castle as the ticket booth will be closing soon, and that if we get them now, we can still see the castle after dinner.  After a few love proposals to Lindsay, the man bounded off with our 5 Dinar. After an amazing meal of bedouin style chicken and curried rice, we met with our friend and he took us to the castle. We were soon disappointed to find that our friend was wrong and we could not tour the castle. This is why in our pictures, there are some from the outside, none on the inside. After a little arguing with tourist police, we were able to get our money back after our friend yelled, “Inspector F@#er” at the police offfice door. Inspector F***er will always be a term to make us laugh.

Now armed with full bellies, and the desire to get to our destination (Petra!!!) and with Clarke behind the steering wheel, we made our way to Petra. The car ride was fairly un-eventful, except for the sheep herders hogging the road, and trying to get a grope on Haley through the car window.  Finally we got into Petra, our new destination, Movenpik Petra. We find our way to the hotel, park the car, load our luggage into the lobby, only to find that we are at the wrong hotel. Who would have thought that in a small town like Petra, there would be 2 Movenpiks. Greedy buggers establishing 2 ! So, after a few more twists and turns, and with the help of the dodgy directions from the weasely concierge (seeing a pattern), we finally get to our destination. Some food and a few pints, and it was an early night to rest up for tomorrow. All in all, quite an amazing day… Madaba, Mt. Nebo, Dead Sea, Karak and now Petra.

We awoke early to a buffet breakfast, checked out, loaded the car up and headed for Petra. After paying our 21 Dinar entry fee, we made our way inside. Lindsay, who is 23, looks very young and was able to fool the ticket agent into believing she was 15 and gained free access. Petra is easily the most beautiful place on Earth. We wound our way down a path hewn from the mountainside. Cobblestones still showing the ruts from wheels of the Roman chariots. Reliefs and alcoves cut from the rock. After about a 3 km walk, we turned the corner, and whamo, through the rock, there was the famous treasury of Petra. The site is truly amazing, and awe inspiring. Now despite the grandeur outside, the interior is quite simple and ordinary. I am guessing during its prime, the interior would have been quite ornate, but otherwise, it is boxy and efficient. The exterior of ALL these buildings is the primary artistic focus.I was shocked as well to find (as you will be when you view the pictures) is that Petra is just not only the Treasury, but there are hundreds of buildings past the Treasury in the Rose city. We walked for hours upon hours crawling all over landscapes carved out of the rock 1000′s of years previous to our interloping.

After all the awe, we made our way back to the car, where it was my turn to drive the roads and highways of Jordan. Clarke, the road warrior veteran, now took the mantle of lead guide and I took the wheel. We made our way out of Petra, gassed the Elantra up, and made our way to the King’s Road. Now, my tour was not as glorious as Clarke’s. I was able to take the straighter route back to Amman. While my 4 companions snoozed, I got the ole girl up to 170 and booted across the poetic landscape of blank black charred highway and the desolate backdrop of rolling sand and desert… That was until the Jordan police pulled me over for a routine traffic stop. All was well, and I got us into the city, navigated through hectic traffic, and got us all to the Toledo hotel for a well deserved rest.

The next morning we made our way to Israel. We talked to our concierge, a good one for a change, and he clued us in on the ins and outs of border crossing. The process is rather complicated, and when we asked why, he advised, “Canada and the USA, they like each other… Here, we like borders”. After a good chuckle, we headed out and arrived a little early. Due to Ramadan, alot of different civil, and regular services are on odd timing. So, after sitting around an hour, the office opened. With no signs, notices or regulations, we finally just stood in line, paid our 5 dinar and boarded a bus that would take us from the Jordan border, through the dead lands, to the Israel border.

For some people who may not know, Israel and Jordan, not friends. In fact, what we did not know was that we were entering into the West Bank, Palestinian occupied territory. You know, the area you hear about on CNN all the time with the bombs and the jihad. So we get to the Allenby border crossing, and I am last of the J5 to walk through, and they decide, Bernie, goatee, interogation time. So a gentleman with an m16 escorts me to a bench, and a young girl comes over and starts in with the questions. Why are you here? What is your purpose of visit? etc. Then she starts in on the details. Where are staying? How long? etc. Well, I had no idea where we were staying, it was some place that is in Hebrew and when you pronounce it, it comes out sounding like  your clearing your throat. So of course the interview takes forever, and they finally call Haley over to grill her too. Another thing about Israel, is that it has mandatory military service. So all the people securing the border are kids 18-21 toting automatic weapons, wearing D&G sunglasses and doing their best badass impression.

We finally get through the border and onto a bus into Jerusalem. Incoming another problem: the bus we take is only allowed to travel in the Palestine occupied area so we are dropped off at the Damascus gate, luggage in tow, no idea where our hotel is. Well, a local must have seen the stunned looks on our faces and offered to walk us to the Jaffa gate where he was going as well. There we were able to find a cab that took us to our hotel. After a quick lunch we made our way back to the old city and joined a Free tour through the city. It was amazing to walk through each quarter of Old Jerusalem: Armenian, Jewish, Muslim and Catholic. Each area had immense history. The Wailing Wall struck you because of the emotion it inspired in the people praying there, and walking the path of the Rose; Jesus’ last foot steps; was moving. All in all, Jerusalem was amazing. I am not very religious, but I was moved spiritually by the sense of history and perseverance of mankind that has maintained and preserved the relics within the walls. We made our way to dinner, and then back to the hotel.

The next day was another trip down historical-religious-iconic-places lane. We made our way on a bus to Bethlehem. This time, we had to

make a border crossing through Palestinian borders into Bethlehem. Once again: Bernie, goatee, interview time. Can you see the trend ! Once inside, we bargained for taxis to Manger Square. Once there, we were impressed by the beauty of The Church of the Nativity. We were surprised that despite the significance of the building it was not really that well maintained, which in the end actually added to its authenticity. Like so many religious places in Israel, even the interior was shared by different Christian sects. The insistence of some sects that things should not be repaired or touched, and others in the use of guilt crosses and colorful lights, it felt like each group was trying to outdo each other with the ornateness of the adornments and icons that in the end only created an air of tackiness.

As we went deeper into the church, we were immersed in the history and lore. The birthplace of Jesus Christ is quite a sight, as you descend to a sanctuary underneath the main church building, you encounter a place marked in gold where Jesus was supposed to have been born, across from a manger enclosed in a mesh cage that is supposed to be THE manger. A guide had quickly attached himself to us, and guided us through all the history of the area. Oh.. another amazing thing that I forgot to mention about Christian Bethlehem… As far as religious rights go, the Armenians, Greeks, Ethiopians and Catholics all have top billing in the eye of of the Christian god it seems. These 4 groups constantly power struggle over the responsibility of being the top dog. Soooo, every time there is a religious ceremony, or a rite that needs to be performed, all 4 have to have equal representation during said ceremony. For example, we were there during a period that the stone where Jesus was born had to be cleaned. It took forever, because all 4 groups had to work at it.

We then made our way back to Jerusalem to check out the Holocaust museum. After a hectic bus ride over there, and a long walk to the actual site, we were rewarded with an amazing experience. The museum was very modern, and all the displays were well maintained. The displays were  organized, and every item had a description with it. There were a lot of  LCD screens as well throughout the museum with Holocaust survivors retelling their personal experiences during the war. It was moving. I was worried that the messages would be a little heavy handed in the politics of the event but everything was fairly objective, primarily focusing on the facts of events that occured. Rarely, was there political speculation or conjecture associated with the displays. As well, I was worried going in, that there would be a large amount of  sensational and horrific imagery. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the museum designers withheld alot of the graphic imagery.

When we got back to hotel, we were shocked to find that the hotel we had booked along the Dead Sea on the Israel side had contacted us to advise that our reservation was not confirmed, and that we were not booked at the hotel we wanted. They were nice enough to advise of an alternative accomodation at a higher rate though.  Disappointed at the up -sell tactic, we decide to contact resorts on the Jordan side of the Dead Sea. In typical accomadating fashion, the Jordanian resorts were happy to embrace our eager wallets. Once all of our arrangements were made, it was off to bed to start the journey back to Jordan.

The next morning, we boarded the bus, and crusied into the Allenby/King Hussein border. This time, getting across was sort of a breeze. It all came easy this time (except for Haley being taken off with the threat of a strip-search), but we waited around a long time worried that we would not get across if the Jordan border guards took a 7hr break for Ramadan festivities. The other disappointment was the exit Visas from Israel. When you leave many countries they tag you with a fee. Egypt, 10 pounds (2 dollars), Jordan, 5 Dinar (8 dollars) and Israel 163.50 Sheckles (50 dollars). I was pretty disappointed by how much they wanted to charge compared to the other countries.

Once we crossed the border it was a quick cab over to the Marriott hotel for some fun in the sun and some floating in the Dead Sea. The resort was absolutely stunning. 3 pools, all on different tiers of the hotel. 5 different restaurants scattered throughout. We quickly changed and made our way down to the Dead Sea. The resort had placed  earthen jugs filled with mud on the shore. The mud apparently is from the deeper areas of the Dead Sea and is said to have healing and restorative properties. A spa-goers dream. Oh, speaking of deep, did I mention that the Dead Sea is also the lowest place on earth… and is very HOT. So we mudded up and jumped into the Dead Sea. Floating there is amazing. It is like floating in space. You just bob there and need to use all your effort to just remain straight. Otherwise, if you shift in one direction too much, you either end up on your belly or back pretty quickly.

There is not much to add about the resort, other then we relaxed there for another day, enjoying the sun and the pools. With good drinks and good food to end our journey it was a nice way to cap everything off. Previous to that, we had been pretty tired from all the exploring in Petra, Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Our little toes needed a break, and the resort rejuvenated us nicely.

From the resort, we headed back to the Toledo hotel in Amman where we relaxed for the night. Boarding the bus again for the airport we headed off to leave Jordan. Waving our goodbye’s, I think all of us fell a little in love with Jordanian land, food and people.

All in all, the trip was quite spectacular. Our travelling companions were a joy to be with, and at the end of the day, Haley and I had a blast. Experiencing the landmarks we saw was a life-altering experience. I have to thank Haley for agreeing to go, as seeing Petra has always been a life-long dream of mine. I would recommend Jordan to anyone ever travelling. The “Danger” of the Middle East is really never felt there, and the people are friendly and accommodating. And, from what I understand of the way all the girls were acting, the men there are easy on the eyes as well. We did not have alot of time, but if were to go back, I would suggest we skip Israel and just focus on Jordan. Visiting the North to see places like Jerash would have been fun. As well as going further south to visit Wadi Rum and Aqqaba.

Peace out !

Media Gallery Updates

Please check out the Media Gallery as we have added some more pictures. A few oldies, including our trip to PEI, Stratford, and my  grandmothers house.

As well…. Jordan and Israel…. finally !!

And Still We Wait!

I’ll let Bernie add the details of our adventures… which I’m sure are coming    soon! We are still waiting to get an Internet hook-up at home, so we are        Internet cafe locked until that happens… Like everything else that people  make sound so simple, it was a lot more difficult then anticipated!

When we came back to no phone, we contacted our Landlady’s daughter (our Landlady herself is in Kuwait with her husband on business)… It took three days to get someone to flip a switch at the phone company… We then find out ’0′ is disabled on our phone so we can’t call out, only receive calls… Finally  we can go to the Internet company office… Closed until 8pm, Ramadan hours! We make a second cab ride to the building and take a number with the other 20 to 50 people waiting outside the office doors. When we sit down with an agent, we find out that the phone is actually in the husband’s name and we need a copy of the bill and his ID!!! We both turn on the charm (Bernie thinks some of my other…er…’assets’ helped), the guy processes us and says that we will be connected within 6 weeks! Could be tomorrow… could be a month from now… So we wait!

I’m looking forward to consistent Skype and phone access like you wouldn’t believe!

Ramadan is over as of two nights ago, it is Eid holiday (like Christmas) so most places are shut, I’m looking forward to finding out what Cairo’s like when life falls into a regular pace of days being days and nights being nights… though who am I kidding… Midnight shopping and banking was kind of trippy! Otherwise, we are waiting for the government to allow the schools to reopen and to find out what effect all this time off is going to have on our teaching days.

We are missing being able to sit down with you all and even just being able to pick up the phone and call like you wouldn’t believe!

Stay tuned for more about our Jordan/Israel adventures… And for those of you brave enough to try, our new home number is 02-2516-5776…

xoxoxH

Falluca Night Updated !

Hi Guys,

Be Sure to check out the Media Section for an Updated Gallery of our night out on a Falluca !

Click Here !

Alive and Well…

… Well yesterday we returned to our flat at about 2pm Cairo time… Perfect time to  make calls home on our new land line! When guess what! The phone is there the  cables there but the line is not activated… That means no Internet at home until its  active as well. We are sitting in a cafe right now… Bernie will be doing a detailed follow-up post, I’m just the teaser… letting everyone know we are back safe and sound!!

School has been further delayed until the first week of October and all the teachers are frustrated , its not the school, its the government and worries about children being affected by H1N1… I feel very anti-bacon right now!!! Who’d have thought it could happen!

On the up-side, our trip to Jordan and Israel was very cool… Bernie finally saw Petra, and I wish I could have captured the look on his face… Bernie will fill in more about Jordan (he may even tell you why donkey sex can be hazardous to your health)… and why we love the Jordanian people!

Israel was an experience. A lot of guns, a lot of military, a lot of bad feelings when you speak to the palestinians (re: jewish Israel) and the Israelis (re: Palestinian peoples). The churches and cities were very interesting… the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem where Jesus was supposedly born, walking in Jerusalem when we toured the old city along the path that Jesus was supposed to have carried the cross. Almost made me wish I was more churchy!  Again, Bernie will give you a little more depth… and pictures will be posted soon!

xo H