A New Mindset.

After the first week of Global was definitely a vacation, we are now settling into a more academic atmosphere. Mainly our mornings consist of bus or walking tours and sightseeing to various mosques, parts of Cairo, and the AUC campus located in the suburbs. Lectures follow in the afternoons usually lasting two to four hours, on topics ranging from Ancient Egyptian History to Modern Political Theory of Egypt to Art. For the most part the lectures are very entertaining and everyday I learn something entirely new; and almost all the professors are exceptionally good at lectures so it's not a chore to try and follow their organization.

Cairo is amazing and has so drastically changed so many of my values and beliefs and outlooks on life. People here are so welcoming and hospitable; I am going to cry when I come back to the States and see Arabs and Muslims portrayed in our propagandist media as killers and devils - I look forward to being able to educate Americans on how nice these people are. Many have invited us in for Eftar and tea when we are just walking by on the streets! Everywhere we go Egyptians are saying "Welcome to Egypt" - and not shopkeepers trying to sell us something, but REAL people on the streets! Like you'd ever get that in America? HA!

Like the Bible and Torah the Koran has a set of commandments including "Thou shall not kill" and tells its readers to abstain from drinking and smoking. People here are way more religious than the States, and it is not uncommon to see many people reading their Koran on the streets, subway, or at a Shesha bar. We have been going to a Shesha (Hooka) bar on the roof of this building almost every night now and are becoming good friends with the owners (Ismail and Ali). We are going to try and do Eftar (the breaking of the fast during Ramadan) with them soon. Talking with them has enlightened me (and many others on the trip) in ways we never expected to be touched. We have discussed politics, economics, government, religion, and what it means to be alive. It has just further reinstated my view on life that we need to take full advantage of every opportunity God presents us with and live every day to the fullest. A popular saying here is "el-Sha Allah" which means "If God Wills." How appropriate...

Talking further with Ismail and Ali we have gained deep insight into Egyptian culture and way of life. Ali's idea to deal with Jurusalem is to make it a holy city, like the Vatican, and give it to the UN. Then all - Palestinians, Israelites, Jews, Muslims, Christians, etc. - people can use it and there would be no wars needed to be fought over it...how insightful. I continue to be impressed and surprised at how literally everyone can separate American Policy (which they hate) from Americans (who they love). I believe I will continue to find this in the coming months, as it was also true in Geneva and Paris. These people despise Islamic Extremists just as much as we do, and want peace just as much as we do. At the end of the day, whether Muslim, Jew, or Christian, we truly are all the same...

Tomorrow we leave for the Pyramids and the Sphinx, and on Monday we depart for Luxor and Aswan; I am so excited!

CM