Thursday, June 10

The week has gone quickly. Time has gotten away from us. It was our first week of finals, and we haven't been working too hard this week. We go in at 7:30 and finish by 2:30. Not too bad. It's just boring sitting around while the students take their tests.

We're always wondering about the thinking in Egypt. They've been digging up a spot at the end our street for some time now. As we were walking home late tonight, we noticed they were once again working on digging the hole. The length of time isn't the odd thing. We do that in America as well. The funny thing is that there's always a group of men just hanging out and talking around the hole.

This is a common thing in Egypt. There's always a group of men around. If people get in an accident, a group of strangers gathers to resolve the conflict. Our students do this also. If there's a problem between them, they all gather around to solve the problem. Everything is so community oriented.

Another interesting difference - the other day we came home from school to find a man and his son making mattresses in our driveway. The beds here are really just homemade mattresses placed on boards on a frame. We miss our bed and comforters! Box springs are not used here. Forget PosturePedic or Serta, etc. The Egyptian brand of mattress is homemade and handsewn. Yet another example of how you can get any service straight to your home.

Joe and I are excited because we might actually be getting our work visas on Sunday. We've thought we were getting them several times this year, but every time we end up having to wait or needing another document. Things can be very bureaucratic here. We'll see how many hours we spend in "Mogamma", the central government office building. There are always people pushing to the windows (forget lines), and they typically send you from window to window getting stamps, forms, etc. We pretty much think they just don't feel like working at that particular window. The funny thing is that nothing and I mean nothing, is computerized. I can't imagine how they can control the visas and passports of so many people without a single computer. Everything is handwritten. Egypt still uses carbon paper. The thing is that if they computerized, a lot of people would be out of work. They even have jobs for people to sell tea and soda at the government building. Many things are kept the way they are because of the need for jobs. Joe and I always want to shout, "There's a better way to do this!"

We spent three hours at the veterinarian last night just to get Leia some flea medicine. They don't give appointments (everyone would probably be late anyway). Instead, you take a number and then wait for hours for the vet to see you. Aggravating! We get upset if we wait for a half hour in the States. We have learned patience! It will be interesting to see if our perspective on the pace of life has changed when we return.