Keep on keepin' on

It was, not surprisingly, another super busy day in Cairo. Thankfully it also ended up being one of our shortest, which I know everyone appreciated. Once the students wrapped up their mini-presentations this morning, Yasser and Adel explained the schedule for the day. Yasser had a list of monuments the groups still needed to see in order to complete their geography projects. Adel had a route that could get us to almost all of them on foot, assuming we packed enough water and snacks that we wouldn't have to break to find a place for lunch. We moved along at a pretty good clip throughout the day. I think we hit at least four mosques, two more restored houses, one house that technically wasn't even open to the public yet because it hasn't been finished, and a few more market streets. To make up for not having lunch, someone - I don't know who, exactly; Yasser and Adel are good at finding helpful locals - picked up about eight boxes of individually wrapped cookies and snack cakes for everyone to try throughout the day. They made a point of buying Egyptian snacks - no hoho's or twinkies here! I snagged up the Egyptian equivalent of a fig newton and some wafer cookies like the ones you can buy at home that come in packs of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry, only these were orange. (I know. You're surprised. An orange-flavored snack for Danielle. May wonders never cease.) I, of course, took a picture before I demolished them, so there is evidence of their delicious existence. Spread out over the course of the day with three bottles of water, plus lots of sitting because going into a few of the locations was optional, those snacks made skipping out on lunch not such a bad thing. Because we didn't have to slow down for lunch, I think we were back to the hotel by 5:15 with dinner at 6:30 - the earliest we've eaten dinner this whole trip.

After dinner I hit the streets around the hotel in search of gifts and souvenirs with 5 of the other "adults" on the trip, Lynn, Brent, Nathan, Joe and Tricia, while the students gave their larger presentations to their classmates and faculty. Those who went with me knew I hadn't had as much time as I'd needed at Khan, so they helped me in my search for jewelry and scarves and other similar touristy gifts. Turned out that the shops around the hotel were geared more towards the locals. The jewelry and things were lovely, but they looked like jewelry you could get anywhere. Nothing really screamed, "Look at me! I'm from somewhere interesting!" I mean, they don't really need to scream it, but I was hoping for at least a murmur. No such luck.

However. About that mystery free day in Cairo: as it so happens, that free day isn't until the last day of the entire trip. Meaning a large group of us can head back to Khan for a late afternoon and I don't have to scramble to buy and then lug around ten people's worth of souvenirs to Sinai, Sharm, and Alexandria in the meantime. And that really sounds like the best plan to me!

I don't know what the next hotel is going to be like, so I'll give you the run down in case internet isn't easily available. Tomorrow morning we leave the hotel by 7:15am - ouch! - to make our way towards Mt. Sinai and St. Katherine's Monastery. It's something like a five hour drive, so I'll be catching up then on the sleep I'm not getting now. (That makes it ok, right? Right!) They've already told us we only get two potty stops. Lynn clearly knows where our collective priorities lie. We'll tour the monastery first, I believe, which I'm really looking forward to. As much as I've loved experiencing Islamic Cairo, I'm still a Catholic girl at heart, regardless of how infrequently I manage to drag my butt to church. As a minor change in plans, we'll then begin our hike up Mt. Sinai in the afternoon, in order to reach the summit for sundown, rather than sunrise. The peak won't be quite so cold this way and the views will be just as spectacular. This way, we'll be able to hike back down and get some sleep in a new hotel for the night, and make our way to Sharm in the morning. According to the original itinerary, we would be hiking Sinai starting at 1am and then driving to Sharm immediately afterward. And we thought we weren't getting enough sleep in Cairo! Heck no, that wasn't going to work out. This is now the second schedule change I am unquestionably happy to hear about, and all in one day!

After saying goodbye to Sinai that morning, we'll head back on the bus towards Sharm el Sheik. We'll visit Ras Mohamed National Park, take a boat ride across some portion of the Red Sea, and then go either snorkeling or scuba diving among the reefs there. They supposedly rival the Great Barrier Reefs around Australia. As some of you know, I passed on a trip there when I was younger. This is soo much better! Now where are those dorky, mid 90s, underwater, disposal cameras when you need one? I can't recall if we're in Sharm for one night or two. Either way, we move on to Alexandria from that point, and I believe it will be by train. Which will be awesome! I'm going to feel like Harry Potter. Can't wait. Where's my Hogwarts letter? I'm sure I can find a robe and a cat in no time around here, and I'm fairly certain I saw a magic carpet at the show last night, so who needs a broomstick? I think Alexandria speaks for itself, but I'll add my two cents before I head to bed: Lots. Of. Books! Like, eight MILLION books! Think about it. If I refuse to come home from Egypt, I already know why and I haven't even seen the place yet except in pictures. Aside from books, the facility also houses several specialty libraries, art galleries, museums, exhibitions, and research facilities. I'm giddy with excitement and it's days away. Can't freaking wait! Ah!!

. . . Ok. I'm fine. No need to panic. I'll try not to embarrass myself too badly, I promise. After that little outburst, I think it's time to call it a night. Time for sleep (aka, a nap) then more sleep (aka sleep) on the bus to Sinai. Update again when I can!