Leaving the Mediterranean

It’s here…closing off bits of my life in Egypt and looking forward. But oh my goodness it is rough.  Change hurts. 

This morning I boarded my train, leaving behind the Mediterranean city of Alexandria for the last time, bound for my home in Cairo. Alexandria is a  quaint city of six million people and is built along the Mediterranean Sea…a calming effect after the intensity of Cairo, a city of over twenty five million.  

Alexandria, Egypt

This fall, life has remained pretty hectic as I have been traveling between my two jobs, one in Alexandria and the other in Cairo.  It's certainly true to say that the train quickly became my second home...I know it, the stations, and some of the workers well. It blows me away that even that after all this time, I still get butterflies at what I witness as I gaze through the train windows. Some people have described it as like riding through a National Geographic magazine set into live motion…and that’s completely accurate in its description.


Now I know that when most people think of Egypt, they think of miles of desert…and that is true…to a point. But that’s not Egypt anymore than Hollywood depicts life in America. My train ride through the Delta consists of quite a lush abundance of countryside adorned in vibrant shades of green. We have beautiful glimpses of canals, rivers, and fields of crops. Typical sights I see on a weekly basis from the train would be: families working in the fields, villages bustling with donkey carts, face veiled women carrying large trays of bread on their heads, children riding donkeys down the dirt rodes along the canal, busy fruit markets, women washing clothes in the river…or just sitting under a tree visiting with one another, men and children canoeing through the canal...etc. It's difficult to get these shots because the train is moving quickly...but can you picture it?

I was just trying to get a quick shot from the train of the animals. 
Suddenly this woman walked into my picture. But I am glad she showed up...nice effect. 

I can’t help but find myself with a huge cheesy grin on my face, each time! I sit there, sipping my tea and thinking…WOW. Simplicity. I crave this. Now I know there is a scary dark side to life in the Delta as well, but that’s not the point of this blog entry…so I am not going to go there…I am hoping to focus on some of its charms. They are truly magical, and I appreciate this side of Egypt. Cairo lacks these elements, but certainly has its treasures as well.  

This morning as I was standing on the platform, waiting with a crowd of people for our train to arrive, I witnessed a gentle side of Egypt. Community. I have stated this before…Egypt could give America some lessons in how to live in community.

It’s pretty common to see women from the villages balancing large bags and tin pots on their heads while moving quickly to get all their items from one side of the tracks to the other, before the next train arrives. These women are fierce…strong…and determined. They have a system and they know what works. Watching these women in action contrasts severely from city girls in Egypt.  Women from the middle and upper classes in the cities tend to be more delicate. Village women are strong...crafty...resourceful. 

Once the train pulls away it’s like watching a relay counting down..."Ready? Set? GO!”. Several women appear with piles of bags and only a few moments to get these items safely transferred to the other side. Even young children are trained to move these huge bundles by adjusting them to balance evenly on their backs and keeping very focused in helping their mothers complete the task.

As these women were carrying items on their heads, trying not to trip on the tracks, some men came to help them retrieve the stuff in order to hurry the process along. Strangely, these women didn’t seem the least bit frightened that the train would suddenly appear, but these men were sort of freaking out, it was sweet. :) 
                                 

I was standing next to a family who appeared to be Sudanese, and we were all watching the race before us. Suddenly, all our heads turned to the right. Our attention was drawn to one of the bags dropped next to us, because it started moving…then the next one moved…WHAT?! So we looked closely and could see a duck was inside one of the small netted bags. Oh dear. Then, we noticed rabbits in the other bag.  The third bag was solid white, so we couldn't see inside, but it was bopping all over the platform...full of some mysterious little creatures.. I had to block the American mindset of animal rights from surfacing…these were pretty horrible conditions for these animals. But this isn’t America. There is no such thing as animal rights in Egypt. Just the night before, an Egyptian friend of mine was explaining that very thing to me...and he hates that about his country. 

Suddenly a man was shouting at a woman to hurry and jump up onto the platform…because the train was on its way. More men joined in... “The train is coming! Get up here!!”…but the pace of this woman did not increase. My heart rate rose.  “I can’t bear it if she gets hit” I thought. It was an intense minute.  She finally made her way onto the platform looking at us all like, “chill”.   HA! It was sorta funny to see her prove all those men wrong.


The reason this scenario caught my attention as so sweet, was to see men who were clearly from a higher class from these women, step out and offer a helping hand. Class distinction and the nasty treatment of the lower classes in this country is one of the things I have struggled with intensely. I can’t bear to see it. Witnessing first hand how the Sudanese refugees are also treated by Egyptians is enough to make you want to throw up. But it’s not just refugees treated horribly…it’s Egyptians against Egyptians. Honestly, it is a disgusting part of this society. And no, it is not something foreigners can address. It’s an internal issue on a national level. But don’t get me wrong…not all Egyptians behave this way. However, many do. I would say that unfortunately, it has become an acceptable thing to do. Think about this for a sec. This country is full of people who claim to love and respect God (Muslims and Christians), yet continually treat others this way. It's so sad. 

Now you can understand why this morning’s extravaganza on the train tracks was all the more beautiful to witness. I am thankful for the ways I am being reminded of how this country constantly surprises me...even til the very end. 

Please enjoy some shots taken of life in Alexandria...as well as the work I was involved with there:

                                                

Just another day

                                               

                           

Because Alexandria is on the Sea, it gets rain. But the streets
are not properly equipped to handle the water and they flood.

Due to the flooding (notice the bottoms of my jeans) , our home school group was cancelled this day.
So Lindsey and I decided to find other ways to entertain ourselves... :)

                                   

Field trip and fun cuddle time

Each week I did a variation of trainings with the mamas one day, and then evaluated the kids on teh other day. In this pic I am with a few of the moms.

Weekly evaluations

My weekly baby hit!



Saying Goodbye