We're Home! Well. back in Cairo :)
The last week or so at the Sea was beautiful but HOT. The humidity was excruciating, and our house didn't have AC. We all decided it would be best to come home early, and excited we were! The compound we were in is occupied by the elite. Everyone has the best of everything. Everyone has "help." What few of them had ever seen was me. My boss was bombarded by questions about me. It was strange for us both. Everyone wanted to know where I was from, where did she get me? Was I french? What do I do? How much do I cost? People here are nosey and they form their opinions fast and aren't quick to change them. It got old quickly. Even though I couldn't understand the arabic, after my boss had told me she was being bugged about it I noticed the stares, the hushed tones, and the words "professional nanny governess". We made a joke of it and it really bonded us both. A blessing in disguise :)
The drive from North Shore to Cairo is about 3 hours. Most of the time I read while the children slept and my boss talked with the driver about Syria(that conversation makes me shiver). When we were closer to home we hit traffic and I was able to get a better glimpse of where i'm at. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures, so you'll have to use your imagination. Take a look:
Driving down a road that's 3 lanes in each direction it feels kind of like driving on Route 8 when you're headed towards Akron at 5 o clock. But what is etched in my mind is not the cars or the traffic so much as the people I saw on the streets. It's busy, it's highway, yet there is a completely veiled woman with a child, who couldn't be much older than 3, sitting on the crumbling wall that's meant to be a median. She throws an empty bottle to the other side of the road just in time to knock on our window in attempts to sell us whatever goods she had that day. We move a few more miles and I see a donkey wandering from its owners to graze over the pile of trash. Out of the corner of my eye I see movement between the cab of a truck and the trailer it's pulling. Two boys, probably around age 13, had been walking in the 110 degree weather and decided to hitch a ride by standing on the truck. They eventually hopped off and walked their way through the impatient vehicles to the other side of the road. Getting closer to our house I see frail body of a stray cat searching for food and roaming the dusty trash filled streets.
I could never truly put into words what I see. A photo could never do it justice. I guess I just wanted to point out that it's not all gorgeous beaches and villas here.
Ramadan starts tomorrow! I am so excited to see this tradition play out. Ramadan is a month in Islam where they fast from sun up to sun down. No eating, drinking, smoking. They don't consume anything. I will be the only one in the house not fasting. "Let your light shine.." takes on a new meaning for me in the next 30 days! I've been thinking and praying a lot about it, and I plan on spending my next day off fasting and in prayer for the family I work for specifically. Please keep me in prayer as I follow the Lord's plan for me in this way.
Things with the kids are progressing. Now that we're home I think we'll have more of a routine and establish rules and a system so that we can enjoy our time more. Every thing has been a whirlwind, but I feel our trip bonded us all a lot. I'm so thankful for that. I love doing puzzles and working on math worksheets with K, and tickling and playing tickle monster with my little guy :)
I'll leave you with a little story..
A typical afternoon in the beach house consisted of me taking my break while A took a nap. On this particular day, my boss had forgotten to get me the monitor and she had it with her. So, about 10 minutes after I put A to bed I went in to check on him. It was quiet and I wanted to make sure he was asleep. I walked into the bedroom and my jaw dropped. A looked at me, pointed to his closet and said "change?" He had climbed from his crib, grabbed the jar of cream and rubbed it over his entire body. His hair, face, clothes, legs, and feet were covered in thick white cream and there were little white hand prints all over the room. "yes, buddy, let's get you changed and back in bed" THAT is my two year old folks and that is why this blog is called "Adventures in Cairo" ;)
Amanda Troyan, CPN from the USA ;)
The last week or so at the Sea was beautiful but HOT. The humidity was excruciating, and our house didn't have AC. We all decided it would be best to come home early, and excited we were! The compound we were in is occupied by the elite. Everyone has the best of everything. Everyone has "help." What few of them had ever seen was me. My boss was bombarded by questions about me. It was strange for us both. Everyone wanted to know where I was from, where did she get me? Was I french? What do I do? How much do I cost? People here are nosey and they form their opinions fast and aren't quick to change them. It got old quickly. Even though I couldn't understand the arabic, after my boss had told me she was being bugged about it I noticed the stares, the hushed tones, and the words "professional nanny governess". We made a joke of it and it really bonded us both. A blessing in disguise :)
The drive from North Shore to Cairo is about 3 hours. Most of the time I read while the children slept and my boss talked with the driver about Syria(that conversation makes me shiver). When we were closer to home we hit traffic and I was able to get a better glimpse of where i'm at. Unfortunately, I don't have pictures, so you'll have to use your imagination. Take a look:
Driving down a road that's 3 lanes in each direction it feels kind of like driving on Route 8 when you're headed towards Akron at 5 o clock. But what is etched in my mind is not the cars or the traffic so much as the people I saw on the streets. It's busy, it's highway, yet there is a completely veiled woman with a child, who couldn't be much older than 3, sitting on the crumbling wall that's meant to be a median. She throws an empty bottle to the other side of the road just in time to knock on our window in attempts to sell us whatever goods she had that day. We move a few more miles and I see a donkey wandering from its owners to graze over the pile of trash. Out of the corner of my eye I see movement between the cab of a truck and the trailer it's pulling. Two boys, probably around age 13, had been walking in the 110 degree weather and decided to hitch a ride by standing on the truck. They eventually hopped off and walked their way through the impatient vehicles to the other side of the road. Getting closer to our house I see frail body of a stray cat searching for food and roaming the dusty trash filled streets.
I could never truly put into words what I see. A photo could never do it justice. I guess I just wanted to point out that it's not all gorgeous beaches and villas here.
Ramadan starts tomorrow! I am so excited to see this tradition play out. Ramadan is a month in Islam where they fast from sun up to sun down. No eating, drinking, smoking. They don't consume anything. I will be the only one in the house not fasting. "Let your light shine.." takes on a new meaning for me in the next 30 days! I've been thinking and praying a lot about it, and I plan on spending my next day off fasting and in prayer for the family I work for specifically. Please keep me in prayer as I follow the Lord's plan for me in this way.
Things with the kids are progressing. Now that we're home I think we'll have more of a routine and establish rules and a system so that we can enjoy our time more. Every thing has been a whirlwind, but I feel our trip bonded us all a lot. I'm so thankful for that. I love doing puzzles and working on math worksheets with K, and tickling and playing tickle monster with my little guy :)
I'll leave you with a little story..
A typical afternoon in the beach house consisted of me taking my break while A took a nap. On this particular day, my boss had forgotten to get me the monitor and she had it with her. So, about 10 minutes after I put A to bed I went in to check on him. It was quiet and I wanted to make sure he was asleep. I walked into the bedroom and my jaw dropped. A looked at me, pointed to his closet and said "change?" He had climbed from his crib, grabbed the jar of cream and rubbed it over his entire body. His hair, face, clothes, legs, and feet were covered in thick white cream and there were little white hand prints all over the room. "yes, buddy, let's get you changed and back in bed" THAT is my two year old folks and that is why this blog is called "Adventures in Cairo" ;)
Amanda Troyan, CPN from the USA ;)
Love the way you write and your perspective. I'm really interested to see how this whole experience grows you as a person!
ReplyDeleteWhere can I get one of you? ;) Excited for our chat!
ReplyDelete