While I was home in the States, I would try to study Arabic here and there. I even bought the Medina University Arabic Textbooks in a futile attempt to teach myself Arabic, they caught dust on my bookshelf for a very long time. The only successful study of Arabic was actually through trying to memorize passages of the Quran where I would be forced to listen and break down the words to forge connections in my mind with the rhythm and meanings of the verses. Other than this, my time was never productive in trying to learn Arabic. In the back of my mind I felt that I wouldn’t ever acheive much by self-study or without proper books, teachers and most importantly focus.

Half of this is correct. I didn’t benefit because of lack of focus, however, vocabulary is something that I could have easily picked up. This isn’t regret, but rather if you find yourself in a similar circumstance, don’t wait until you are in an Arabic study program to learn simple vocabulary. Make flash cards or learn a couple new words each day. They will add up and it will give you alot of background. There will still be plenty of vocabulary waiting for you on the other side, but you’ll be ready for it because you’ve already built up some.

 Another thing that I’ve learned here is that bad study habits don’t magically turn into good study habits in another country. They stay bad study habits. So instead of hoping you’ll suddenly be a good student when you’re learning a very difficult new language, start by being a good student AND having good study habits in other subjects. Implement as many studying techniques as you can, and find out what are the most effective techniques for you. When you know these, you’ll be able to get down to study Arabic 3ala tool (right away).

Bad habit: blogging the night before an exam

Chivalry resurrected

So far everything about the Taxis here have been tinged with a bit of shock, betrayal and caution. However, there have a been a few very good experiences.

We were returning from the International Book fair, I believe it was the final day, (correct me if I’m wrong Alia) and we were waiting to get a taxi back home. From previous experiences we knew that it was a terribly busy time, and most taxis did not want to go in our direction. We told taxi after taxi our destination, ready to agree to a ridiculous fare however, no one wanted to go in our direction. The dim remants of the sun’s light had faded and the blanket of night began to settle in on us. We continued to try with each taxi, walking further and further back along the road to ask before the other people waiting for a taxi. The piles of books began to feel like mountains and my feet were pulsating and throbbing from a long day of walking and bargaining through the book fair.

A young man heard where we were going and it was on the way to his place. He offered to share his taxi with us, and the taxi driver agreed because he would be able to charge the man for the further destination. Semi-hesitant, but relieved we took the taxi. The young man opened the door as we sat and closed it. Sitting down finally in the cab, I looked over at Alia and we shared a moment of serene joy. He calmly sat up front, without making any conversation with us and explained to the driver that he would stop along the way to drop us off. He stopped on a main road near our place and opened the door of the taxi for us. He instructed us that it would be easy to get home from there in a taxi (it was), and when I asked how much the taxi driver wanted, he said, “You are my guests.”

He gained nothing from this brief encounter, and that we felt chivalry and courtesy are not dead because men like him exist.

Top Ten Golden Rules for Black and White Taxis

10. Go with your instincts, they are usually right.  

9. Wear a wedding band/ring.

8. Agree on a price and destination before the journey begins.

7. Keep your change (fare) ready to hand over as soon as the ride is over.

6. Keep quiet, for two reasons: so he doesn’t know you’re agnabi and so he doesn’t get comfortable with you.

5. Sit in the back!

4. Have a travel buddy after Maghrib even if it a very short distance and you’ve done it before alone.

3. If something happens and you can’t think of what to do…scream. In Cairo, people everywhere will jump and run across busy intersections to come “save your life.”

2. Carry pepper spray or a small can of hairspray and have it ready.

1. Say your adhkar for EVERYTHING!

The now.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KuKCda-cFew&feature=related

Listening to him and doing homework and having a headache…

So close…

Setting a good connection to calling home is an important part of your stay here in Egypt, especially if you are staying for an extended period of time. We initially tried Vonage, but out of the 6 months we’ve been here, it has only been functional for one. Various reasons such as moving around, and currently a possible problem with our router have been interfering with our connection. Skype works well, however, my parents aren’t very computer savvy and its not convenient to call them that way. However, when trying to load credit onto a skype account from overseas, it seems to be a problem. Partially because of safety blocks set up and verification through a US mobile number being impossible here. So, I downloaded yahoo, after a few years…heh, and now it is possible for me to call my family, doctor, former professors and friends in the states for just a penny! YAY! The sound quality is also quite good, Alhamdulillah.

So as I was speaking to my mom today and I commented on how close I am to Saudi Arabia; Mecca and Medina in particular…. She jokingly questioned, can you hear the adhans of Mecca and Medina from there?

Sometimes it feels like it. =)

Making the cut…

Am I cut out for this…

…going half way around the world, to live by myself and no matter how much I need my mom sometimes, I can’t get a hold of her, a hug from her.

…confiiding in noone by Allah because you realize its value and cannot do that with others.

…working diligently each day on something so strange that you can hardly relate it to anything you’ve ever done before. 

…forgetting about Taco Bell and bean burritos for a year?

Somehow I didn’t know it would be this difficult. In some strange way, I really felt by coming all the way here, I would magically acquire the language as I did with Urdu when I was 10. It doesn’t work that way when you’re 23. You have to memorize and revise and WORK on making sentences the right way. I thought the hard part was coming here. It’s not…the hard part is getting up every morning, doing your homework, revising your notes, studying hard, practicing on your own, memorizing the words, memorizing the grammar, remembering and retaining everything as 98% of it is new and unfamiliar, and not taking the weekends off. I thought by choosing the best institute, the best teacher, being here for a long time, etc…all these would make it easy and, hey, maybe even simple to learn Arabic. It’s definitely given me the best climate to learn Arabic in, but it doesn’t decrease the amount of continuous effort that has to be made. This is why people don’t like change or the unfamiliar, it is hard, and strange, and our minds have to really reshape and reconfigure themselves to make room for change. So with a new language we are not only changing our perceptions but the very language and method of communication by which these perceptions take place.

Its not easy, its not always fun (it can get downright boring), and some days you’re just sick. This is not discouragement from coming to Egypt or studying Arabic because from the rest of the blog inshaAllah you’ll see all the rewards outweigh the struggles, however, this is a reality check. The 6 month mark has passed us by so quickly, but I’m still wondering if I’ll really “make the cut.”

A Quiet Friday morning

Cairo is one of the most densley populated and insomniac cities in the world. At almost every moment of everyday, there is a bustling humm of life around you. Most days as we exit the apartment with a thermos of chai in hand, pulling our sweaters closely towards us, we stop briefly in the hallway to do a mirror check. Not out of vanity, but that the only mirrors we have at home are very very small. A sister should double check to see everything is in position and covered. We say salaams to our bawab who dutifully, like all the other doormen/women in Cairo, washes the owner’s car to a beautiful sparkingling clean. By the looks of their cars, they don’t look like they are driving in one of the dustiest and polluted cities ever.

We pass by the multitudes of students coming from every direction towards the school in front of our house. School buses blare by with their morning load of kids. The vegetable, fruit stands are open. I throw a worried gaze over to a window on the 5th story of a nearby building, where a man used to sing out the window. We think he was a little crazy, but since he’s been gone we’ve been worried about how he is doing. He’s still not there, but the noises buzz and humm like clockwork. The “bekeeya” and other random guys with carts call out for their merchandise and goods. The taxis honk as they pick up passengers, the minibus conductors are zooming through the streets selling their destinations: Akhir shari3,Akhir shari3,Akhir shari3,Akhir shari3333333 (end of the road). There are so many things going on that it can be sensory overload, especially for the hazy-eyed student who woke up 20 minutes ago from 3 hours of sleep.

Despite this there are a few moments and places in Cairo which are serene. As I went to my tutoring session today in Heliopolis, I realized I had arrived early: Friday morning in a Heliopolis suburb…with 20 minutes to spare. It was beautifully calm. Each apartment building lined its gates with trees, bushes, and vines. A few sparse birds here and there and the distant muffled traffic almost transported me to a different place. I had my cup of tea and walked down the street taking in the bright sunshine peering through the tall buildings and trees creating a canopy above me. There was no fear walking through this unknown street or seeing these unknown people.

Three young boys and one older man came out from an apartment to a small blue car parked on the side of the street. Two boys held plastic containers and a small thing made of wood. The third boy carried posters with him. They reminded of my younger brother’s projects for his school’s technology association. They were always building and preparing things for their competitions and shows. I wondered if they too were headed to something like that and reaffirmed that we’re really not so different from each other.

My walk had led me back to building 15 and I stood outside for a moment taking in the scene. The masjid across the narrow street was built in 1974. It was small, but I thought about when I could go inside it. Climbing up the steps to begin my morning, I gently pushed open the building door, and turned on a few of the hallway lights, quietly I climbed up the steps realizing the importance of a quiet Friday morning in Cairo.

Heliopolopolis

I had a tutoring session in Heliopolis today. It is a bright sunny day, and Alhamdulillah it makes me feel like I’m a part of Cairo and the people’s lives here. It’s a place where you find a nice little place for yourself and you can fit in. Although it is greatly due to the environment of Muslims and Islam here, I know that even if it wasn’t for that…there’s so much to love about it. Then when I came home, Shahd was waiting to greet me with her glittery hair clips and mismatching corduroy dress.

Happy

Since I haven’t been posting much on the blog, I will try to have a happy a day (as long as I have net access) inshaAllah. So today, Ustadh Mohamad came into the classroom to observe my teacher and I. It was quiet as I copied down the notes as the lesson had just ended. He spoke to her a great deal about nahw, then turned the questioning to me. He GRILLED me, sometimes you know all these parts and descriptions of a word (the ‘araab -grammar) of it, but you don’t know what the questioner wants you to say. So I stumbled over my answers but eventually made it clear I knew what he was talking about. It doesn’t help that he was talking loudly and impatiently, questioning bi-shida (forcefully). The happy is that Alhamdulillah I made it through that and I’ve had one more exposure to him, so maybe now I won’t be as nervous when we have to do our oral exam with him.

Tip: Don’t try to get a TaZo Chai Latte (Starbucks) in Egypt…they don’t know what it is and they’ll give you Early Grey or something.

Pakistanis going to Egypt

I really need my Pakistani Passport holders to know this before traveling to Egypt.

1. Get your visa before you leave your home country (US, UK , PK)

2. Upon arriving in Egypt go to the Mugamma to “register” yourself within the first week. Otherwise you will get hit with a 40$ (300 ginnay) fine.

3. If you need to get your tourist visa extended, don’t bother to go unless you have a letter of permission or reason from some institution. Pakistanis CANNOT stay in Egypt for more than 3 months without some letter stating they should.

4. Don’t bother telling them you’re really from America/ UK/ Australia etc. It doesn’t matter, they don’t care. You have a pakistani passport, so to them you’re just Pakistani.