The Unexpected

It has been nine days since my trip and yet it seems like it has been months. I miss Egypt. A lot.

It still baffles me that I spent three glorious weeks in the only country I have EVER wanted to visit.  I had financially planned for this trip for nearly two years, but had been preparing for a lifetime. To think that this trip has come and gone makes me sad. I am still mentally and spiritually there, reliving moments daily in my head. I am having  a hard time concentrating on work, on my life, even writing this blog. My thoughts are jumbled. Words aren’t coming to mind. Just pictures.

Speaking of pictures, I took over 14GB worth and I still feel like moments are missing. We didn’t take any pictures of our last few days in Cairo. We were too busy enjoying ourselves and living in the moment that the camera just slipped our minds. Blogging slipped my mind. It took me nearly a week to write a single blog that to me (even now) didn’t come close to capturing my feelings. What I think it may have come down to is that I didn’t feel like I needed to discuss everything because I felt at home; like life in Egypt was just natural for me. I didn’t necessarily feel like I was experiencing anything “new” anymore simply because I was so comfortable. Well, comfortable and that I ran out of adjectives to use to describe everything.

As I continue to reflect on my vacation, I have come to the conclusion that there are few things in my life that have had an effect on me the way Egypt has–being adopted, moving to Santa Cruz, going to Vegas with Nicole and Stacy ;)–as you can see with my selection of events, Egypt was nothing less than life altering. It is hard to believe I finally achieved a life long dream. Some of you may be laughing at the fact that experiencing Egypt and all its glory was a dream of mine, but it truly was. As some of you may or may not know, I wanted to be an archaeologist when I was little. I loved digging and discovering hidden treasures wherever they may lie–gardens, sandbox, beaches, backyards, etc. I can’t remember the exact moment I wanted to go to Egypt, but I do know that it has been an aspiration for most of my life. When studying Ancient Egypt in 6th grade, I was enthralled. At the end of the year we were asked to write a report on something we learned during the school year. I picked Ancient Egypt, specifically Queen Hatshepsut–the best damn transvestite that ever lived. She single-handedly turned my interest in Ancient Egyptian history into a passion. So, when Judy and I made the executive decision to go to Egypt, I knew that I was going to embark on something that would change me in one way or another.

I do feel the need to tell you that the entire time I was in Egypt, I was safe and FELT safe. I think it must be said, “DON’T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU HEAR!” Yes, Egypt is going through a transitional period. And yes, there was even some trouble while I was in Egypt. But again, I never felt unsafe. If anything, I felt very well protected and treated kindly by all. As Americans I know we support democracies and the concept of freedom. But we can’t just say “Yay Egypt! Yay for freedom!” We need to show them support by visiting the country–tourism is one of their main sources of income (maybe the number 1?!). It was heartbreaking (but also kind of cool for us) that we saw very few tourists there. Our hope through this blog is to fuel others desire to visit the country and to actually do it. WHEN you decided to plan your trip, please be sure to use Lady Egypt. They are amazing. For the first time in our lives, Judy and I felt completely at ease–no stress, no worries. They took care of EVERYTHING. They were at our beckon call. I can’t say enough how wonderful they really are and I truly hope some of our readers, if not all, will take the steps necessary to visit this stunningly beautiful place.

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

There are many things I learned about Egyptian culture and history, but most importantly myself. I learned what moves me, what drives me, and what I am passionate about. I learned that kindness is felt cross-culturally and that a smile is universal; I can know a person just by looking into their eyes since the eyes never lie. I finally knew peace, simple, overwhelming peace. Returning to normal life hasn’t been easy. Just as I was beginning to feel settled there, I came home. Of course, I love home. I love California. I love not sitting in traffic (err, Egyptian traffic) and being able to drive wherever I want. I missed my friends and my family. But, I do miss the Egyptian culture, the lifestyle, the food, and the people. I made lifelong connections there and I will forever be grateful for that. I want to return and soon (think my job would let me telecommute from Egypt!?). I know that I am not done with Egypt for I have left a piece of myself there. I completely fell in love with everything Egyptian. I am just so thankful that I was given the opportunity to experience such wonderful emotions and gain important knowledge culturally and historically. I know that this won’t be my last post on this site, so I hope you all stick around. I will have more reflections as time passes and eventually, I will return to Egypt.

I want to take this moment to thank Lady Egypt and specifically Aboudy and Mo for bringing the beauty of Egypt alive for me and Judy. Our experience wouldn’t have been nearly as wonderful without you two. Not only did we feel comfortable with you, we felt like we connected with you both on different levels. Aboudy you taught us SO much, maybe too much?! Our little brains are still on history overload! The fact that we got to spend so much time with you for two weeks and really pick your brain was so great–we got all of our questions answered which isn’t an easy task ESPECIALLY with Judy and her ever-curious mind. Mo, what can I say? You’re amazing! Thank you for taking such great care of us and for managing our tour so well and for taking time out of your schedule to show us the real Egypt. Meeting you both and your colleagues at Lady Egypt has truly changed our lives for the better. That was completely unexpected. But as you would say Mo, “In Egypt, expect the unexpected!”