Garbage City!

We went to a town in Cairo called Garabage city today.
Sisters of Charity- part of mother theresa working with orphans and elderly- Egyptian babies are ridiulously cute with beautiful eyes- I think I need to marry an Egyptian so I can have kids that look like them (sluightly kidding ;) ) .

The people sort through and recycle garabage for a living- Though it is impoverished, the jobs are respectable, the society is normal and functioning. A lot more Christians live in the town, than elsewhere around Egypt. This kind of living is diferent from the poverty I saw in India because people work, a city is there, and there is not many lame or ill people seen begging on the streets in Garbage city. They look happy and were very welcoming.

I want to go back there just to visit and get to know the people.

We also went to a Coptic monastery- It was beautiful- ancient looking! We had a 9 yr old girl Neevan hold my and Katelyn's hand the entire way- She was fun and spunky, like every little girl, got upset when i didn't let her carry my backpack- hehe

Visited a textile place as well to use recycled materials.

2. Commitment service tonight- basically the group starting off school commiting to be open etc- it was very nice- Henna on our arms and legs-

3. I am going to start my Tuesday service project tomorrow- I will be visiting prisoners every tuesday - 4 students go here- we have other students in other service projects elsewhere

4. I will be taking belly dancing and Dabka- palestinian dancing for men and women- God willing- Here they say inshallah (both christians and muslims alike).

5. We have amazing weekends lined up for us beyond our travel component to Jordan, syria, turkey, and israel- Including- Mt. sinai, Luxpr pharonic sites, Siwa a desert oasis and sand dunes, and red sea and alexandria- yay!

6. Jesus is faithful- Beloved book of Hosea still my favorite- I am open to what the Lord will teach me this semester- pray as I start arabic etc on Wednesday aye ya! Deut. 10 is wonderful too

6. Pictures will be uploaded once I get a regular schedule going and have time- things are jam packed....

Learning for God's glory only- in CHrist=

K.K.

Oh yea they call me KK here rather than Kristin Ha- I started that...

Gender Issues! Shopping! Nile!

So pictures will be uploaded soon! We have had some interesting interactions regarding gender;

For example: I am adjusting to looking past people, like looking through them rather than drawing attention to myself- its perceived the wrong way to make eye contact with men, it is both confining and empowering - it helps one practice self control and modesty- which is a very valuable skill- I see my power as a woman in a new way- its interesting to work through-



2. Tonight we went to a market- loved the merchants calling out to us- my favorite line tonight was "You have an egyptian woman, so all of this is for free" He called me egyptian (I am the only one in my group with that skin tone of course) so it was an honor, but also hillarious that they mistake me for being sudanese or arab - another line said trying to get us to buy things was "How can I take your money from you- they are great salesmen no joke-

I liked how crowded it was because I could look at more people's faces-

I looked at spices smelled saffron, cardamon, lemon, jasmine, mint teas- the lights and lanterns were hanging throughout the bazaar crowds of people come out at night because it is Ramadan so they fast during the day. Egypt is my kind of town because of the night life. It is like their Christmas season.

3. Tonight we played tourist- some smoked shishassh (hookah) and had a boat cruise down the nile river with egyptian music, pink neon lights, amazing sandwiches and good conversation. moses went down this nile.

4. I am more accustomed to crossing the crazy frogger steets after our scavenger hunt today to get our barrings on the neighborhood
I am more comfortable and used to seeing people with head scarves= while it is modesty, it is also cultural, and fashionable, I could see why they are liked- they are beautiful.

I love it- though I am nervous for academics lol - never enough free time to write in depth- will share more later- forgive my spelling errors....

After 35+ hours of plane/airport time I finally anded into Cairo!! I feel under the weather currently, but its looking up. I slept as much as I could on the planes- Meeting the new group was very exciting, we have some gregarious ones but as time went on, we all got tired and teh conversations lulled. Being in Cairo has been similar to India, in some ways such as teh crazy driving, horns honking, and scenery. Much different though in other ways- I am learning to look in a distance as I walk along. I am really interested to learn about gender etiquette and how to respect and adapt to their customs. Arabic will be an exciting challenege. I wish I could speak it right now, because then I could speak to the girls in the shops who were very friendly- Perhaps media has a role to play in every culture's misconceptions of the world- she asked me if I had been pregnant before wedlock because I was from America lol- here they call it Amreeka-. La'a means No.

I knew I was living in Cairo rather than vacationing, when the shower flooded the bathroom and I had to clean it up Ha! There are 8 girls in my flat(an apartment)! I am rooming with two others. Food is wonderful already. Last night I woke up at 2 after falling asleep before 9. I couldnt sleep for another 3 hrs (12 hour time difference from Hawaii). When i reawoke I realized I had two consecutive dreams about Donkey Kong- random.

Tomorrow we go to a Mosque- we bought headscarves today. I am the only Biology major in this group- I have some catch up to do on things of the middle east- but I am anticipatory of the semester and meeting new people and trying new things. Will write more and it will all make sense once I am fully coherent!

Preparation Underway!

Hi Everyone! Its me Kristin!

I am new to this whole blogging thing, but thought I would attempt to give it a shot for my new adventure in the Middle East where I will be studying abroad!

For those who do not know- I will be dwelling in Cairo, Egypt for some time this Fall semester learning Arabic, politics, religion, and studying about the culture and peoples of the Middle East, all God willing.  This entire trip is God willing. We hope to travel to Israel, Jordan, Turkey, etc....

This may be one of the riskiest and most challenging places I have ever gone to. Be prepared for me to have an intense and emotional reverse culture shock coming back! Ha! :) Perhaps I can give some insight on my perspective as a woman, as a follower of Christ, and as a foreigner in their land. I go wanting to love and learn with an open mind and a heart humbled. 

I like the title of my blog" Krist-in-MiddleEast." It technically means Kristin in the Middle East- but it works such that its "Christ in Middle -East." Where He goes, I am to follow, and He has allowed me to go here.

I hope to keep people posted with events as I can here and there so that even though I am not there in body, I am with you all in spirit. I hope to be real, open, and make it fun  afor you all to read.

I ask that you keep me in prayers from time to time- Our Lord is faithful. I hope I can be faithful- and hopefully being consistent in blogging is one of the ways I can be....school always is busy, you know! So please pardon me beforehand (*giggle)

I leave August 25th....

My writing address will be on my facebook account if anyone attempts to write a letter which is always welcomed, though delivery is not always guaranteed! Ha!

You all mean so much to me, which is why I wanted to include you in this. God bless you!

This is just the beginning....

In service, devotion, gratitude, and obedience to Christ- my Redeemer who has forgiven me and loves me

K.K.

or you can address me as - K.King, Kristeface, Kris, Kristin...Gertrude....your choice