Egypt

We had a great time in Cairo and Alexandria and made it to Ethiopia right before the coup. Some of our new friends in Egypt were urging us to stay until June 30, when the 'second revolution' was planned, but we decided that it would be best to watch the events unfold from the safety of another country.

Tensions were running high when we were there and we (accidentally) got to witness a few demonstrations taking place. There was still plenty of evidence to be seen from the first Egyptian revolution and it was really interesting to talk to people about how things have changed over the last 5 years.

I wish that we had more time to explore, but we had a fantastic time visiting the pyramids at Giza, watching Sufi dancers perform in Cairo, seeing the amphitheater, Citadel and library in Alexandria and eating delicious food everywhere we went. I think that I could live on falafel and shawarma.

Here are just a few highlights....

The Citadel in Alexandria

The ladies

 

Aubrey and me at a mosque in Cairo

 

Just kissing the Sphinx 

Giza!!!

COS

We've almost made it! Here's our group pic at Peace Corps' Close of Service Conference. I'll be back home at the end of September!!! Yahooooo!

Travel Update

We made it to and from Cairo unscathed. Glad to get out before the real demonstrations started. We're finishing up our tour of Ethiopia and will be back in Entebbe on the 3rd. I have some great pics of the pyramids in Cairo, the churches and castles in Ethiopia and other general awesomeness. We've had a great trip and I've really enjoyed seeing the vastly different cultures in Egypt and Ethiopia. I'm looking forward to getting home, where all the PCVs will celebrate the 4th of July together in Ft. Portal, followed by my cohort's COS conference in Jinja. I'll know my departure date in two weeks! Crazy how fast time flies. I should be back in Pajule, drilling a borehole by the 13th... pics to come then!

Leaving, on a jet plane

But don't worry, I know when I'll be back again. Heading to Cairo now and will be there until the 22rd (we're staying at the Australian hotel if you need me). Then off to Addis Ababa where we'll stay with a FSO family until June 25 when we'll drive to Bahir Dar and then Gondar. We'll fly from Gondar to Lalibela on the 28th and back to Addis on the 30th. I'll be without phone or internet but will post when I can!

Eggxiety

I look forward to the day that I can crack an egg without severe dread.

What is there to fear, you might ask.... and, well, you probably don't want to know. Let's just say that I prefer to have my eggs regulated... or at least glanced over by someone who knows if the egg was laid this century, and/or whether or not it had the potential to be hatched...

... I think I'm off omlettes again for awhile.

Ssssssssssss...

Today I was told that it's entirely possible for a woman to have twins, except that one of the 'babies' may be a snake. This is actually the third or fourth time that this topic has come up in Uganda, and I've been reassured by all involved that it's true. Even a midwife has confirmed this 'fact,' although she said that she hasn't seen it in person, yet.

I asked if this meant that the father was really a snake. No one laughed. I was told that this 'usually' happens when someone has cursed you, so beware.

If you have a snake baby, you're supposed to feed the snake when it comes around, and let it go about freely. It won't hurt you, and you're supposed to treat it like any other child.  Now you know what to do in case this happens to you.


In other news, my house is currently overrun with teeny, tiny frogs. Weird. They're pretty cute... but Ugandans seem to be afraid of them, which makes me wonder if I should be afraid of them too... I think I'll let them stay as long as they stay out of my drinking water and eat the malaria-carrying mosquitoes. "Live and let live!"

This Week, on Peace Corps Uganda...

• Started the return to village life with my computer being stolen from the bus. Thanks to my good friends in Kitgum, I have a loaner laptop for the time being. For some reason, internet has become significantly slower since I got back... like, dial-up/email loading only in html slow.
• As a result of the internet situation, I've watched the entire first season of 'Homeland' in a mere 4 days. Safe to say I'm hooked.
• Had a beer with my landlord to celebrate the fact that I'm alive. He'd called me while I was in Jinja to confirm that I was among the living. Apparently, there's a rumor going around Pader town that 'Aber got ill and died.' Glad to dispel this rumor and enjoy my free 'glad you're still alive' beer. Weird to say the least.
• I've been spending lots of quality time with my namesake, Lamaro Erin Shalyn. She's perfect. I took her to church last Sunday for what ended up being a 5 hour mass, all in Acholi. It was some sort of holiday, which involved fish and eggs and fire... although I haven't the least idea what it all meant. Important thing is, the baby got blessed by the Priest and that's what we came for. I think I'll plan to sleep in this Sunday.
• Today I fell in the mud. Again. In front of a lot of people.... who pretended that they didn't see me, and politely turned around to laugh. Thankfully, a nice lady sorting her corn offered me a basin of water to wash my muddy hands and legs. I hope this chronic mud-puddle wallowing I've been doing here doesn't follow me back to America. Super embarrassing and inconvenient. Especially when I have to handwash all my muddy clothes and shoes :(
• The veggies in my garden are starting to come in. My radishes are too spicy, but they're still a nice change. I think that my turnips are ready but can't tell and haven't had the patience to google turnip recipes, so I haven't picked them yet. Something ate all of my cucumbers but spared my baby watermelons. It's nice to have the collard greens and quail grass spinach back for something healthy and green to eat. My cilantro finally came in (this is my 3rd attempt at growing it) although it's struggling. I had enough today to make a good black bean/corn salsa that I wrapped in homemade tortillas. YUM!
• Tomorrow we'll have our quarterly board meeting for PTU and Friday I'll do the monthly mat collection with the women's group. Both 'programs' will be all-day events. This weekend I plan to tackle the mountain of dirty clothes I've accumulated during my travels and do a deep clean of the house.
• It's less than 2 weeks until we take off for Cairo and Ethiopia. It'll be a nice change from Uganda and my last trip out of the country until AMERICA! It'll be a challenge to pack for the range of weather we may experience (from 60 degrees in Ethiopia to 120 degrees in Egypt in one backpack!?!). When we get back from vacation, I'll attend my COS (Close of Service) conference where I'll find out my departure date. Crazy that this adventure is coming to an end!