Alexandria

May 28, 2010 - 10:55pm
We spent the day in Alexandria, which is north of Cairo, on the Mediterranean Sea. The drive there took a little over 2 hours, and on the way we stopped at the Lion Village for fatir, which consisted of giant filo dough wedges served with honey and cream cheese. The food was awesome, but the atmosphere was a little strange - it was like a real-life Rainforest Cafe.

There were the tables, the women making the fatir, and then there were animal cages around the perimeter. There were some zoo animals like lions, monkeys, and ostriches that were in cages. Next to these, however, were cages with chickens, rabbits, deer, and dogs! There were many different dog breeds, and they were all over the place. Some of them were tied up individually, and some were in cages with a few of each breed. They were definitely domesticated, and accepted petting happily. Some of the bigger dogs were leaping out of their pens, only to be roughly dumped back in by some of the children working there. There was a german shepherd who jumped in and out by himself a few times. When the dogs got loose, the lions all started roaring, which made the dogs go crazy barking. It was just a wild place!

This lion seemed pretty happy with his lot.

Dogs in pens.

Fatir.

Did I mention the pufferfish lamps?

The animals seemed healthier overall than they did at the Giza Zoo, and the whole place was shaded and the cages were bigger overall. Not that the Lion Village was treating the animals well - but they definitely weren't guilty of the same stuff that was happening at the Giza Zoo. The animals were also in cages that were shorter, so you could touch (or be touched by) them. It was definitely a weird little cultural experience.

Alexandria, on the other hand, was beautiful! It was much cooler than Cairo because there was a strong sea breeze. The air was salty and moist, which felt so weird for Egypt. We were dropped off by the bus at a fort at the end of the Corniche (the road that went along the ocean). We spent hours walking from there along the Corniche to the new library, where we all met at 4:30 for a tour.

Fishermen on the wharf - look how long his (definitely handmade) fishing pole was! 

Snoozing. You can see the library in the distance, it's the big silver circular building.

Families enjoying the beach.

The view down a side street.


























We stopped for lunch at the Fish Market restaurant. We all had to go up to the fish case to pick our fish, which were arranged on ice with the heads and tails still attached. I chose sole and had it fried - it came with the head and tail still on! It wasn't very big so I was able to eat it quickly, plus it was cheap. It was so good, and was definitely fresh! The fish came with all the "salads" we're so used to now - pita, hommus, tahina, baba ganoush, etc.

We walked some more, and passed the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. There's a lot of Roman ruins in Alexandria, which I'd like to see if I ever went back. There's a lot of history to the place, but it was overwhelming to try to see too much at once, as we were walking to the library. When we finally got there, we stopped for gelato, which was definitely welcome after the long walk.

The library was incredible! It featured numerous permanent exhibits and museums and a planetarium, along with the massive reading room and stacks. They had an impressive supercomputer and an "expresso" machine that could print books on-site. The architecture was beautiful, and was designed for optimal environmental standards and comfort for people reading and visiting. The library was full of modern art, too. What a place!

The exterior of the library.

The planetarium.

The architecture was so modern, and was wholly different than that of the rest of the city.

Inside an exhibit about the life of late Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. The exhibit also displayed the suit he was wearing during his assassination. This part of the library reminded me of the JFK library/museum.

The windows of the main reading room were designed like "eyes with eyelashes," as our guide told us. They provide the library with its main source of light in the daytime, and the "lashes" cut out glare and protect the stacks from bleaching. The room itself was wedge-shaped with multiple open floors, and this ceiling covered the whole room diagonally.

The reading room. The slits in the wall are reminiscent of the scroll-holes in the ancient library, plus they absorb sound.

The columns were taken from the ancient Egyptian style, meant to look like papyrus buds. The black stone is "the most expensive and rare granite" from Zimbabwe. They really spared no expense with this new library.


















We were there until 6, then rode the bus back to Cairo. It was a really long bus ride, 2+ hours at least. I tried to sleep, but it was no use. We got back around 9, and a few of us went to Dido's, where I had pesto pasta again. The waiter barely understood us, even when we pointed at the menu, and there was loud American rap music blaring. It was quite a place. Cultural experiences are all over the place here!

The Citadel, Military Museum, and Oud music

May 28, 2010 - 8:45am
Yesterday, we went to the Citadel of Salah al-Din for a photo shoot during class. Within the Citadel, we saw the mosque of Muhammad Ali. It's a huge place, and it's on top of a hill (which is near the hill of Al-Ashar park, where we saw the sunset). The mosque was so impressive. It was massive, and was so gorgeous inside. The mosque's inner part, where the quttab (the niche that points to Mecca) is, was elaborately decorated and the ceiling was high and ornate. There were circular lights and chandeliers strung around in circles. The chandeliers were catching the breeze from outside and were making quiet twinkling noises, which added to the sense of calmness about the place.

The Mosque of Muhammad Ali.

The mosque was enormous!

The lights inside the mosque.

The ceiling was so ornate, and was lit in places with colored lights.

There was significant evidence of restoration efforts.

























There was some intense haze yesterday - the weather report read "sun and sand." When the wind picked up a little, the sand was pretty rough on our eyes and equipment. The view from the Citadel was pretty dismal, as a result. On a good day, you can see the Pyramids at Giza from the Citadel. Still, it was an amazing experience to be there and photograph the place. So relaxing!

Also in the Citadel complex was a military museum, which was so very Egyptian! We paid 1 LE to bring our cameras in. It was full of models of weapons, buildings and automobiles - some of which didn't look very professional or legit. There were some cool paintings and dioramas of war scenes and rulers, and examples of weaponry and military uniforms hung on mannequins. There were sections of the museum for all the important military and political happenings, which was cool to see as a sort of walk-through timeline. The building itself was like a palace (it may have actually been one). The museum had a roped pathway that led you along hallways and up and down stairs. It was one line, and you had to go through to the end - at which there was a portrait of the current President of Egypt. Outside the museum were old airplanes and tanks. Rob commented that, being Egypt, these probably weren't even fully decommissioned. They were impressive, though.

"No entery."

A statue in the museum.

There were some pretty creepy mannequins there.

























We headed back to the hotel, and Rob and I went to Alex Top for koshary. The fluids guys have had Alex Top koshary for most of their meals this past week, so we figured we'd try it, too. I hadn't had koshary since Luxor, and it was nice to have real Egyptian food again. A lot of the food here is American or European, so it's easy to be lazy about what we eat.

At 7:30, we went to the Culture Wheel to see Oud music. The show started at 8:30, and I got a good amount of it on video. All the speaking was in Arabic only, and people were laughing at jokes we didn't understand. The crowd was definitely engaged in the music, and would clap along when the tempo increased. It was a good show, but it went on for so long! After about an hour and a half, we decided to leave - only to learn later that there was an intermission after we left! Outside the Culture Wheel there was a craft fair going on, which Alexis and I visited after the show.

Oud music at the Culture Wheel.

Bab Zwelia, take 2

May 26, 2010 - 12:15am (May 27)
For class today, we went back to the Bab Zwelia marketplace, this time with all the photo girls, Rob, Denis, Cynthia and Abduh! We climbed the minarets of Bab Zwelia (which were placed on top of an already existing wall. They went up so high!). The climb to the top of the wall was enough for me!

One of the minarets of Bab Zwelia.

The view from the towers that support the minarets.

The tent-maker's market.

Rubble as seen from above.

























We explored the market again - it was much less crowded this time because it was so early in the morning still. It was nice to see the market at a different time. In our wanderings (taking photos, of course), we passed a vendor in the tent-maker's section who sold these nice quilted pieces. I bought a red paisley purse from him for 10 LE (less than $2), which was definitely hand made (and quite handy, since I neglected to bring a small purse with me to Egypt!). I hope to stumble upon (or create some) more good deals before I leave. I haven't been actively shopping, because a good portion of the souvenir stuff is just so tacky, cheesy, and not even Egyptian made. When I see something worth buying, I snag it, though! You never know if it'll be there again, especially at the suq.

Bab Zwelia as seen from the street.

Beans and lentils.

Down a side street.

Getting ready for the day.

Walking the streets of the marketplace.

Apparently this guy makes legendary foul.

They ripped up the street for construction, but it's still business as usual.

At 11:30, we piled into the vans - but not before seeing some open-air butcher shops lining the street. Maddie posed for a photo with a camel butcher(!) and I almost lost my lunch looking at the carcasses hung for all to see on butcher hooks. That's one thing about Egypt that I definitely won't miss. I will definitely miss a lot of things about Egypt, though, especially its people. They're really good-natured as a whole, and welcoming of us to their country.

We came back to the hotel, and Rob, Avery and I went to Euro Deli for lunch. The sandwiches were so cute, each slice was open-faced with a little dab of mustard. It was a good, simple lunch.

At 2:30 we headed to Arabic, our second class (of three). Rob didn't come this time, and I think as a result Hasnaa didn't feel as pressured to keep us on track. We taught Hasnaa how to play hangman, which we did with Arabic words (for us) and English words (for her). She did tell us a few interesting things about life for an Egyptian woman, which was good to hear. Hasnaa is so far the only Egyptian woman I've really had contact with, and its interesting to learn the role of women in this society. She's 26, and still lives at home. She can't date, and will only move out when she marries. She was unclear on how the courtship-for-marriage thing works, but what she did tell us was eye-opening. It was a fun class overall, and it was nice to not be pressured to focus when we were all so fried.

Dinner tonight was at Cafe Tobasco, which I've been hearing about for days from other students here, and finally decided to try. Tim, Alexis and Laura (all fluid mechanics kids) came with me. I had pesto pasta, which was really good! The atmosphere was quiet and relaxed, the music was good, and the seats were pretty couch-like. The service was slow, but that's just how Egypt is. You have to be very patient here.

Exploring Zamalek

May 25, 2010 - 12:00am (May 26)
We planned on shooting again today, and visiting that market again during class. Instead, we ended up having a normal day in the classroom (our only one this week!).

After class, we grabbed lunch together at Hardee's then a few of us went on a little photo shoot around Zamalek, once again. We met up again with Tim, the wedding photographer, after Meg had some camera problems. While she, Tim, and Rob remedied that situation, Maddie, Avery and I went exploring. I wasn't quite prepared for a long excursion, so I ended up getting a little dehydrated, which made me pretty exhausted before too long. I felt like a nuisance, asking to go back, so I stuck it out for a while. It turned out we were all pretty tired by the time we got back. It was hard to shoot around Zamalek, because every third building is an embassy of some sort, and you can't photograph embassies.

A mosque on Zamalek.

No poop zone!

An old house.

"Foreigners" sometimes have to pay way more for parks than Egyptians do.

There's lots of old stuff on Zamalek.

We got dinner at a place on the corner called Pottery Cafe. There was free wi-fi there, so the four of us (Meg, Maddie, me and Avery) sat at a table battleship-style with our laptops, finishing papers, editing photos, and surfing the Web. I ordered a veggie pizza which was really good (it had corn, olives, mushrooms, peppers, onions - all good things!). The atmosphere of the place was really relaxed, and it was full of locals smoking shisha. I smell a little from it, but it was a relaxing experience overall. When I ordered my pizza, the waiter said something along the lines of, "but I thought angels didn't need to eat." I thought he said something completely different, because of his accent. I asked him to repeat it so many times, then felt like a total idiot when I finally got it. Whoops.

Downtown and Bab Zwelia, take 1

May 24, 2010 - 2:00am (May 25)
I'm still up because I just finished writing my third snap writing assignment (the one about the Fatimids, Mamluks and Ottomans). I have to finish my second book review sometime tomorrow, too. I'm just so busy, where does all the time go? Plus, with all the shooting I've been doing, I'll be editing photos until my eyes fall out!

We spent class today on a shooting excursion downtown with Denis. I focused on architecture, and I think I got some pretty good shots. At noon, we stopped in a coffee shop that had some pretty incredible milkshakes. We also got to visit the Gates of Heaven synagogue, which was mentioned in The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit, which we had to read for class. We were able to go inside, but weren't allowed to photograph. The building was totally unlike its neighbors, and it was beautiful inside. Because we're Americans, we were invited to go inside (as a gesture of good-will to Jews), but I guess it's pretty impossible for a non-Jewish Egyptian to go inside, much less even stop to look at the building. People are so paranoid here regarding the Jewish population. Egypt is outwardly showing its support of Jewish people by restoring the synagogues (where Cairo's 100-or-so Jews still practice), but it's still definitely evident how they feel about Israel. They're walking a political tightrope.

Buildings downtown.

A hidden spot.

The famous Miami cinema downtown.

An American coffee shop.

Delicious milkshakes!


























Rob and I grabbed lunch, then met up with a photographer who is Egyptian-American and is living here for a while working as a wedding photographer. His name was Tim, and he seemed really cool (and so American). He made me feel a lot better about my lowly Rebel DSLR camera. I switched to my fixed lens per Rob's suggestion, and now I feel pretty dumb for using the kit lens as long as I did - apparently my fixed lens is way better than I thought it was, and I'm having way more fun shooting with it (though it doesn't zoom, which is tough sometimes).

An amazing shop on Zamalek, near where we had lunch.

























After the meeting, Rob, Victoria and I went back to the Khan and took more photos, this time at the tent-makers market near Bab Zwelia. This was definitely a market for Egyptians, not tourists. I had fun with my fixed lens, and I'm definitely satisfied with the shots I got. I'm playing with depth of field more now, and the fixed lens just means I have to be more creative with my compositions because I can't zoom. We stayed at the market for a while (it was so busy - everyone was buying food for dinner). We got home pretty late, and then I had to do my snap writing. Such is life!

The tent-makers market had some beautiful fabrics...

...and camels, too!

An election banner.

Dinner comes fresh in the marketplace.

Even the displays meant for fellow Egyptians are arranged with care.