My worse nightmare come true

Six months ago, I helped a man who showed up on my back porch spurting blood from a severe cut on his wrist. Crazy kid's hand went right through a glass window pane (accident, of course). Only after tightly wrapping him up with a very adorable green hand towel, (one of two that I bought from an Anthropologie gift certificate I had) and only after I was covered in his blood, did he mention he was HIV positive. Little late for latex gloves buddy. After a visit from the paramedics and a quick trip to the ER, said injured man was stitched up and good to go after a few hours. I, on the other hand, unknowingly had 6 more months to go.

I had no clue where to go from there, what to do, who to call. I couldn't really think about much except:
1. Oh no! "I'm HIV positive". Three words I never thought I would hear, ever!
2. Do I have any open wounds or cuts? (not completely far fetched since I've sawed, pierced, and impaled my hands and fingers making jewelry more times than I can count)
3. Does Buffalo Exchange take back blouses with bio hazards?

The point of this blog post is to help other average Joes like me who aren't super heroes by day, don't work in the occupational health care field, and who have no idea what to do, AT ALL.  That being said, if you are a doctor, nurse, military medic, firefighter, EMT, or other first responder or someone in the health profession, this isn't really for you. You already know what plan of action to take and usually have the immediate resources to implement that plan.

First things first:
1. Go immediately to an ER, 24 hr care clinic or doctor. Tell them you have been exposed to HIV. Tell them the type of exposure i.e.needle prick, mucous membrane, etc.

2. Have your blood drawn for an HIV test BEFORE you ever take any prescribed anti virals (if you even need them) and have a witness. You will need proof that you were HIV NEG before you ever take any pills. This is for your insurance. They don't like people with HIV because the treatment is expensive and they will question why all of a sudden you are taking very pricey and potent anti virals.

3. Introduce a post exposure prophylactic into your bloodstream as soon as possible. It's been said that introducing this within 4 hours decrease your chances 10 fold! My skin to skin exposure was technically VERY, VERY low risk, but I still did everything I was told because A. I was scared and B. I wanted to take every precaution I could possibly take because I was scared. Be prepared to pay $$$. My 30 day supply of Combivir, an anti-viral so powerful that I had to be tested 2 weeks into and and 2 weeks after finishing the dose to make sure I still had liver and kidney function, was $1000 and made me feel like a complete zombie. It was a miserable month.

4. If you don't know the person who exposed you, get the basic info: name, address of the person and their doctor's info, etc. That may not be possible in many cases, but definitely ask him or her what his or her viral load is. Someone with full blown AIDS has more toxic blood levels than someone who barely has any identifiable antibodies (only enough for a positive diagnosis).

These are the basics. This article is very handy if you'd like to read more about it. It's for health care professionals but the principles still apply.
http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/healthy/safety/work/004.html

The last six months have been an adventure to say the least.  I've undergone, 1 Clorox bath (sounds very mid evil, doesn't it?), 4 HIV and Hepatitis C blood draws, paid 4 co-pays, waited anxiously for test results 4 separate times, paid $$ in lab fees, made one HIV counseling session, cancelled that counseling session, received a thank you note (but no dish towel), had 4 meals with my mom and dad after tests, and
best of all, met my own first responder who thoughtfully brought me a slew of dish towels on our 2nd date.

I am so relieved this is officially all over, glad I didn't faint on that poor guy in need, and that I hopefully never have to do anything like this again. I'll leave it to our very brave medical and health care professionals and first responders who do this type of thing everyday! And, you may be wondering why I put this little tid bit on my travel blog...sometimes, adventures do not necessarily happen overseas, but in our own backyards.

mean streets of cairo-driving guide

love the contrast-diesel vs mule and cart

i still can't decide what's worse, istanbul or cairo. is it possible that one could be more dangerous than the other and why would you want to win that competition? yet, even with all their urban indy 500, bumper car style driving, the incidence of accidents seems remarkably low. after 3 weeks of heart palpitating riding, i can honestly say i'm shocked that it doesn't claim more lives.

cairo is a honker's heaven. if you are heavy handed, you will love driving here. (p.s. i don't recommend that tourists actually rent cars. u will die) the first few days back in the states, i was actually going through withdrawal. it's kind of like those times you think you hear you cell phone ringing but it's really not. nope, still no missed calls. ah, the society we've become! attached to our mobiles, that's another blog! i was haunted by phantom beep beeps for 48 hours straight.

i've included a short video, just a quick slice of what driving is like everyday in cairo. if i'm honest, it doesn't really do it justice, but will give you a general idea to the chaos. i shot this while waiting for our driver to swoop us up from the Khan, a massive network of market stalls selling everything from spices to diapers, to tourists trinkets, to 14th century intaglio rings. the call to prayer commences in the background.

i'm too lazy to really write this out, so i'll bid you farewell with my scribbles jotted down in regards to cairo's mean streets:

always broken down // cars from 50's-60 70 // horn obsessed // honks for every maneuver // no stop lights // no real law enforcement // crazy, congested, chaotic traffic // cars going every which way// ppl on motorcycles holding infants, girls sit side saddle, no one with helmets // ppl hanging out of buses // everything is old as dirt // horse and carts on the freeway right next to diesel trucks piled high with commercial commodities // ppl who just stop in the middle of a lane // nuts // cyclists and pedestrians clearly have death wish

cognitive thoughts + random happenings of the week(s)

technically this is outlet for everything travel but today i'm going venture off topic a bit to talk about another kind of journey...a trip into my so called life! never fear, i haven't forgotten about the other 3-5 mediocre posts in my queue regarding egypt and jordan and promise to deliver those soon to my adoring, blog following public pronto!

i see dead people at this point.

i recently competed in my very first triathlon. you know, swim. bike. run. according to wikipedia, triathlons may have gotten their start in France in the early 1900's. that's pretty neat! in fact, there is supposedly one on the books for a "les trois sports" which featured running, cycling, and canoeing in 1902. i'd totally take canoeing over swimming any day. legs flailing about, crazy arm punches to the cabeza. the swim portion in open water can all very be very traumatizing. ironman is synonymous with triathlon, in fact it's probably the first picture that comes to mind when one thinks of the tri sport. when i think ironman, i think death, judgement day, sharks, insanity. after a 400 meter swim (that I never actually swam before the day of the race), a 14 mile cycle (on a bike i borrowed the day before), a 3.1 mile run, it's safe to say, A. it would be wise to train harder next time B. i would like new legs. i am so proud of my friends who both placed in the top 3 of their age groups. they even got a plaque! suffice it to say, i have a new found respect for competitors in les trois sports especially the 75 year old grandma who was kicking A and taking names,  running in front of ME! way to go lady, you're more awesome than awesome!

now for a random interlude--
things that ruffle my feathers:

1. toilet paper installed on the under. there is a purpose to the over people. so gobs of tp aren't mopping the bathroom tiles!

2. starbursts. they are one of my favorite candies of all time and even though i did market research for them and sent them said research, they still fail to give the people what they want! what they demand! why aren't you making single flavor packs??!@# nobody likes the yellows or the oranges and when I pay 89 cents to buy a packet, I am already disappointed since I'll only get 4 pieces of the good flavors! waste!

3. people who care more about what you are wearing that what you actually have to say or contribute. after bar hopping for a friend's bday, i made my way to meet my best bud at a winding down company- oriented dinner party. keep in mind, i was just downing a pint of beer at a place where 1/2 of the patio is devoted to corn hole and where a guy with bagpipes belted out happy birthday for all of Washington to hear. i realize that i was not appropriately dressed for a stuffy dinner party (jean skirt and 3/4 length blouse), but it was finishing up, and i was told to come before heading to the next spot. at said dinner party, i held my own and contributed to the conversation, even though all they wanted to talk about was basically how smart they all were. we get it, you are consultants. you make a lot of money and you spend 1000 hours of your boring existence of a life working on differential math equations to net cost savings and yield  exponential returns on investments for your clients. bla bla bla. you make jokes about how people don't know what a V look up is on Excel. Are you kidding me? That's supposed to be funny? Why don't you all learn how to be more well rounded individuals,  adapt to all kinds of people, and actually check out Tosh.0 for humor pointers,  instead of making the topic of conversation post party about whether or not i was wearing my skippies. Pathetic. Lame!

4. injured birds. am i supposed to help them? they are birds that desecrate all over my vehicle and make my porch look disgusting,  but they make me feel bad when their legs are broken.

what's in store: I've started greek school again. I know, it all looks russian to me. I will be winding down with business (zoe klutch and isabella dean) as I seem to spend more than I bring in. I'll still make stuff but only to sell on my online store and will take customs on a case by case basis with upfront payments. I think it's time to call it quits on that. J.U.M.P will become more of a priority in the upcoming months. I still want to get a coffee table book together and bring awareness to the young women in cairo that are trying to make a difference in their own lives!

luxor in a nutshell-part 1

Day 1-Tour Extravaganza

So sue us, we were tired and opted out of the suggested early wake up call.  Tony met us at the hotel at 8am which if you are going to the valley of the kings, is WAY to late. Trust me on this.  Skip your continental breakfast and get a move on it. You DO NOT want to be in the Valley when all 304 tour buses unload and wait in line with all those sweaty people, underground.  No central AC down there.  Back to Little Tones.  He looked like he just came out of an episode of the crocodile hunter. Khaki from head to toe. Not sure about his choice in pants however.  Really, corduroy in the dead of summer??!@# A step up from the wool clad Eqyptian soldiers but still a poor choice. I hope they were moisture wicking for his sake.  We toured  A LOT of places with Tony this day in addition to the VOTK, in fact, I am exhausted just thinking about it, so I will try to stick to the highlights.

Break on through to the other side-To get to the valley of the kings you have to cross from east bank to the west. Total contrast from the modest hustle and bustle of taxi traffic near Winter Palace. The West Bank looks like something out of ancient times magazine. Comprised entirely of fertile lands, mules, farmers, tall green stalks, thatched roofs, ox and plow. Holy cow! The Nile serves as the dividing line where green meets desert.

Alas, after a scenic drive, we made it to the Valley of the Kings. I am embarrassed to say I did not really have an idea to what this was (even though the name is pretty self explanatory) before our arrival to Egypt.  For those inquiring minds who care to know, The Valley of the Kings is a network of 63 underground tombs.  For over 500 years, this has been the primary burial grounds of pharaohs and royalty.  VOTK is a world heritage site and an archeological dream. As recent as 2008, two more tomb entrances have been discovered. Neat huh??  No photo taking is allowed here, so mental images will have to suffice.  Trip advisor has a great picture depicting the valley. Here you can see one of the many tomb entrances.  http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/2e/2b/c7/valley-of-the-kings.jpg  Your ticket will gain you entrance into 3 tombs.  They are rotated throughout the year so no one tomb is bombarded with masses of tourists and their perspiration. It's a preservation thing.  You can also buy a separate ticket to enter King Tut's tomb which by comparison to the others, is very shallow, narrow, and small and is the only tomb out of the lot in which it's original occupant still lays.  Throughout the years, tomb raiders have wrecked havoc on this place and the only visible treasure left is the writing on the wall.  Amazing to think that painted drawings and patterns have lasted the test of time.  They still look as vivid as the day they were painted on.  Beware of hawkers here as well.  To be honest, I am surprised there weren't some actually stationed within the tombs to try to sell you postcard pictures.  It's absurd.

Tony the guide and me-Carter House

After making our escape from VOTK hawkers, we made our way to the newly opened Carter House.  So newly opened, that NOBODY knew about it and we toured it all by ourselves. It was a nice change of pace given the amount of people we just left behind at the VOTK.  Howard Carter was an English bloke obsessed with Egypt. He was an archeologist and an Egyptologist most notable for his discovery of King Tut's tomb in the VOTK in 1922.  His home with original clothes, drawings, radios, etc was transformed into a museum. Cool to go to but something you can skip if you'd rather see anything else. How many homes of English men do you really care to tour? Unless David Beckham or Bear Grylls is having me over for tea and a showing, I'd say I met my quota.

Up until this point, Tony had far exceeded my expectations. He was an excellent guide.  Extremely well versed in the places he took us too. I was less than thrilled however, when he dropped us off at an alabaster shop.  Otherwise known as tourist trap central. Guides partner with these shops in hopes for a commission on pieces you buy.  It's really quite the show getting you involved in the whole alabaster pot making trinket world. Wow, did I really just travel all this way, sweating my buns off in this heat because women have to be covered to the nines, to check out alabaster figurines?? I was not happy to say the least and Tony's performance points went down by 1000.

I almost forgot about one of the coolest temples we went to.  It was the last stop on this tour. This one is not to be missed. Hatshepsut (aka. Hot Chicken Soup) was a modern woman built far before her time. She was a successful pharaoh reigning longer than any other woman. Hatshepsut's tomb is massive, artfully designed by a famous architect, Ineni.  Definitely give this place two mini thumbs up. Must see. Learn about her before you go, you will be even more impressed.

Hatshepsut's Tomb

one of many paintings within the temple

That's it for today kids. After a nice pasta lunch poolside, we laid low for the rest of the day. Check out Part 2 for day 2 and 3 of our Luxor experience- 6am tour of karnak (amazing), luxor temple, luxor museum, karnak night light show. day 3, leisurely, read by pool, almost called US Embassy when mom went missing, lunch, walk around before fly back to Cairo.

low down dirty shame!

there is a joke and it goes like this:

Q: what do you call someone who speaks two languages?
A. bilingual

Q: what do you call someone who speaks 3 languages?
A: trilingual

Q: what do you call someone who speaks one language?
A: AMERICAN

What a pity. What a shame. Tragedy that most of the 365 million Americans can only parlez vous en Englais. Both my parents speak foreign languages. By today's standards they aren't super common or super useful, but they are foreign languages nonetheless. My dad, a son of  Greek immigrants from Chios, Greece and Constantinople, Turkey speaks Greek AND Japanese.  My mother, speaks Norwegian. Pretty good for a white girl from Houston right? Do you think they bothered to teach a word of any of these tongues to my brother and me while growing up? Big fat no. Disadvantage. For years, I've been bitter about this, seeing my comrades growing up bilingual without having to lift a finger.  It wasn't til I became a quasi adult that I realized this among many other things in my life is up to me.  Own your own destiny.  Quit blaming others for your failings.  At the age of 26/27 when your brain is way past that "sponge" stage my brother and I signed up for Greek lessons at the church.  How embarrassing not to be able to speak with your own family???!!!!@#$$%  I love my parents no question.   But I don't love the fact that they didn't share their knowledge.  Basic skills that could make a huge difference later on.  When applying for a job with Sotheby's in London early in March 2010, I was immediately disqualified because I was not fluent in another EU language.  How do I know this? They told me so.  No lie.

My point...listen. observe. fine tune yourself. discipline your  nogen to learn something new even if you don't already know it or it seems hard.  keep your eyes, ears, and brain open.  alert. soak it in.

While in Cairo, I tried to pick up as much Arabic as I could, even if it was just fragmented words. Here is what I learned in three weeks time:

Marhabbah - hello/welcome
Maasalaamah -Goodbye
Sabah al khair - good morning
Inshallah -If Allah wishes
Naam - yes
yammen- right
ala tool- straight
fatouta- slang for little guy
shukrun- thank you
afwan- your welcome
jellah- let's go, come on
maya kabir- large water
laa- no

If you are into Islamic Art or the Arabic Alphabet, this shop on etsy makes some really fun artistic prints. I was thinking about getting one for myself.  I was also thinking about getting one of these great language shower curtains from urban outfitters. You know, so I can "wash and learn"

holy pyramids

mohammed and his peugeot 504 

would you believe it?! mother is finally feeling better, weak from days of being unable to eat, but good enough to tour the giza pyramids with me. mohammed, forever faithful and always on time, is waiting for us in his classic taxi typical of cairo. a vintage station wagon, painted in white and black. no ac but working roll down windows and punch locks, tattered interior, and ornery seatbelts.  most of the dashboards in cairo are also lined with some sort of shag carpeting or other furry substaince that may at one time have belonged to an animal. i noticed mohammed had his secured with push pins and in one particular spot, his bribe money was covertly tucked away.

it has always been fascinating to me to compare in person the objects that i've seen in history books. sometimes, they are epic disappointments. the mona lisa, in my opinion was a huge let down. about the size of a stamp (not really but for exaggeration's sake). not the grandiose picture i dreamed it was. FAIL. on the other hand, leo's "david" was brilliant. truly a masterpiece. a fusion of raw talent and design.  def one of my favorite sculptures. needless to say, i was worried about how the pyramids would stack up. would they live up to the hype?

mom + sphinx + pyramids

indeed they did. imagine driving down I-10 on your way to the office and seeing the pyramids of giza out of your rear view. it was so surreal to be surrounded by 20 million honking cars, sprawling new developments, hoards of civilization all up in your face, and then adjacent, in stark contrast, these ancient wonders of the world.

mohammed slipped some egyptian pounds from under his secret carpet-covered, dashboard stash to a guard dressed in a cool wool uniform and dropped us off. for the next few hours we walked in amazement. these are truly sites to behold. drink it up and drink it in. the hard selling of trinket vendors was terribly annoying however, and really takes away from the experience. you can barely walk a step without someone asking you to buy something, shoving it in your face, begging you to "have a look".  americans are seen as walking cash dispensaries. the school kids also hound you for pictures of themselves and of you. it was endearing at first, but towards the end you just want to look at the sphinx in peace, you know? i was impressed with their english, but after they asked "how you are?", "what your name is?", that was pretty much the extent of the conversation. it seemed like every one of them had a cell phone. they snapped away and loved seeing the playback of their freshly taken photo instantly on our digital camera screen. crazy the stuff we take for granted.

solar boat

we sought refuge from the piercing sun and the "in your personal space" vendors slash school children, at the solar boat (you had to pay to get in here). the solar boat was a funerary boat found in the 4th of 5 boat pits in 1954. The boat is 143 feet long and 19 1/2 feet wide with an estimated displacement of more than 45 tons. Hundreds of pieces of shaped wood comprise the hull which was held together with rope. Since wet wood swells and rope shrinks, the boat would become water tight in water, making caulking unnecessary. The boat had six pairs of long oars, one pair by the stern post serving as rudder oars. pretty fantastic given that it was constructed in approx 2600 BC!

after an exhausting morning of touring, mohammed kindly dropped us at the Mena House, formerly a palace, to have an amazing lunch. this place is grand. opulent gold-colored islamic-inspired mosaics line the ceilings. they have just added a new area complete with a sparkling, gigantor pool. i wanted to jump right in and join the leisure society of the scantily clad. we treated ourselves to gourmet burgers and fries before heading back to maadi to pack and catch our plane for luxor.

facebook

j.u.m.p now has a facebook page. please join it, tell others about it, and use it as a link for global ideas and photos.

http://www.facebook.com/jumpproject

the j.u.m.p list | top 50

The jump list is now up and is organized by country. If you are traveling abroad soon, definitely check the list before you go to see if you will be near any of the j.u.m.p sites.  If you are abroad and have a jump shot that is not on the list send it in anyway, it will most likely go in the next series.

DETAILS:
*have fun, meet new people, be creative!

*ideally pictures should include multiple people, of different ages, races, backgrounds, etc but if it is just you, that is fine too. however, the more the merrier, as the premise of j.u.m.p is about meeting new friends and bonding through the activity.

*be respectful of the site itself and mindful of other tourists, locals, guests. do not disrupt any activities, prayers, group tours, or break through any protective barriers to get a shot.

Please email your unedited, original picture (MUST BE HIGH RESOLUTION) AND any written participant permissions to: kristi@isabelladean.com

the fine print: 

j.u.m.p reserves the right to edit the picture as we see fit and to meet the needs of our book 

photographer will receive credit for photo taken

this book is meant to be fun. obtain permission written/verbally from others in your picture

photo must be the work of the photographer and no one else 

no copyrighted material 

SITE	CITY	COUNTRY	CONTINENT
sydney opera house	sydney	australia	australia
christ the redeemer	rio	brazil	SA
angkor wat		cambodia	asia
moai	easter islands	chile	SA
great wall of china		china	asia
potala palace		china	asia
citadel	cairo	egypt	africa
karnak temple	luxor	egypt	africa
luxor temple	luxor	egypt	africa
pyramids of giza	giza	egypt	africa
eiffer tower	paris	france	europe
l'arc de triumph	paris	france	europe
notre dame	paris	france	europe
palace of versailles	versailles	france	europe
berlin wall	berlin	germany	europe
newschwanstein		germany	europe
acropolis	athens	greece	europe
taj mahal		india	asia
guiness factory	dublin	ireland	europe
trinity college	dublin	ireland	europe
colosseum	rome	italy	europe
leaning tower of pisa	pisa	italy	europe
st. peters	rome	italy	europe
the duomo	florence	italy	europe
kiyomizu-dera		japan	asia
petra	petra	jordan	asia
timbuktu		mail
chichen itza		mexico	NA
mount everest		nepal	asia
machu picchu		peru	SA
kremlin	moscow	russia	asia
red square	moscow	russia	asia
alhambra	granada	spain	europe
la sagrada familia	barcelona	spain	europe
valley of the fallen		spain	europe
shwedagon pagoda		thailand	asia
hagia sophia	istanbul	turkey	europe
big ben	london	UK	europe
buckingham palace	london	UK	europe
stonehenge		UK	europe
alamo	san antonio	US	NA
bay bridge	san fransico	US	NA
grand canyon		US	NA
hollywood sign	los angeles	US	NA
las vegas strip		US	NA
mount rushmore	south dakota	US	NA
statue of liberty	new york	US	NA
white house	washington dc	US	NA
victoria falls		zimbabwe	africa
mount fiji		japan	asia

j.u.m.p !

JUMPING
to
UNITE
MULTICULTURAL
PARTIES

Landscape shots while no doubt picturesque, are dull with a capital D. After a while, they become a monotonous blur. There is nothing worse than an entire album full of the same snow-covered mountain range taken from 12 different angles on 12 different settings. It's a mountain-I get it!

I had a glorious idea (some disagree on the glorious-ness of this idea) on my last trip abroad to Egypt/Jordan, a place where for the first time, I realized there is just no fitting in. My skin coloring was different, I didn't don a veil, or speak arabic. How can I portray all this fabulous scenery without it turning out like those dull landscapes I mentioned before, and make some friends from other cultures along the way? JUMPING of course!

From that day on, j.u.m.p was born. I'm looking to do a travelogue of sorts that features "action" shots in front of globally recognizable sites and monuments. The intent is to bring people together through the act of jumping. It's an activity that most ppl can do (does not apply to those who are mobility restricted) and it doesn't matter your age, sex, race. It breaks the barriers of language and socio-economic status and most of all, it's fun. For most everyone!

WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU, WHY PARTICIPATE:

• make new friends, have fun, spice up your photo album

• give back to those who need it (a % from the sale of this book will go back to the young women and girls who work and train at the recycling center in garbage city, a slum of Cairo) more info about garbage city here

• another opportunity to get your photos/name out there. all pictures will receive full photo credit

oh the places we'll go.

marhaba (welcome) to luxor!

Felucca on the Nile at sunset

If you are pressed for time, and you can only go to one place in all of Egypt, this is it. I know, I know, I just a made a big stink about the pyramids of giza, which should be on your bucket list, but Luxor is the jam. For those of you who are wondering what the h Luxor has to offer. Let me tell you...Valley of the Kings, Luxor Temple, Karnak, felucca rides down the Nile, Carter house, Hot Chicken Soup Temple and more!

All that said, one of it's biggest cons and I mean BIG, HUGE, fat con is the extreme pesterization and hard sells. I thought the pyramids were bad, Luxor is 1000 times worse. Forget a peaceful walk ANYWHERE. You will be hounded like there is no tomorrow. And I mean, these guys will follow you down the street.  Besides giving me my third stress induced fever blister in all my life, it gave me an opportunity to practice my Greek and my mother her Norwegian. When they don't think you are American, they leave you alone. ***SIDE NOTE on annoyance***Please realize that Egypt is a developing nation aka poor. These guys are there from sunup to sundown and may never even get a single taxi fare. So yes, the pestering is annoying, but I know they do it so they can feed themselves and their families.

Ok so back to what's good about Luxor. Number one. Winter Palace Hotel. Stay there. It's glorious. It's part of the Sofitel Hotel Chain so you know its good.  It has hosted various celebs throughout the years and even was the site of the announcement of the discovery of King Tut's tomb by Howard Carter in 1922.  The location is within walking distance to grab a dinner cruise on the Nile, head to the Luxor Museum and Temple. Oh and it's simply beautiful! For those of you less concerned with it's historical value, read on for what you really want to know about...THE POOL!  Phenomenal. Comprised of two parts-one for lap swimming and the other for taking leisurely dips. Would you believe i FORGOT to pack my swimsuit. OI! Dummy. I was livid! Do you think I can just go to a store in Luxor and buy a spare?? I can see there being a Just Add Water in conservative, covered up Luxor! ***SIDE NOTE about DRESS***Luxor is way more conservative then Cairo. While you can get away with more flesh bearing items within the confines of the hotel, you WILL look like an idiot walking around in your shorts, skirts, sleeveless shirts on the outside.  You will scream rude foreigner, look disrespectful, and attract unwanted attention.

front patio of Winter Palace Hotel

pool!

Day 3-Saturday March 27th

health stats-mother 0, diarrhea 3. still out of commission, my cousin graciously accompanied me to the Egyptian Museum. it really just looks like a mansion instead of what we think of as a sprawling museum, but painted in an earthy, yet bright, clay color. you have to pass through two separate metal detectors with guards before you reach the ticket stand. i'm not sure the purpose of all the security actually, as my belt was the cause of them going off, but it didn't seem to bother them in the least. never even checked. whatever is more lax than lax would be my word to describe security here.  once inside, i was shocked to see all these ancient artifacts out in the wide open, unprotected. the museum is old and in bad shape with little or no concern for all these wonders inside. there were also columns and statues in the front lawn just open to the elements! crazy! no regard for these treasures. i wonder how many items have been stolen out of the dinky display cases as it's not hard to untie the string securing them in place.

i was really only interested in 3 rooms, king tut's, the jewelry room, and the mummy room. quick tip, if you still have your college id, use it. i saved over 60 pounds this way and only got questioned once! the mummy room is incredible! about 10-12 mummies still in their tattered linen wrappings housed in temperature-controlled glass cases. it's remarkable to see so many features intact, teeth, toenails with polish, hair, etc. if you only have time to go to one room, this one is it. i'm glad i only stuck with the aforementioned rooms, as the rest of the museum tends to become a blur of rocks. worth a visit though. before leaving, make sure to check out the pond directly in front of the main entrance. you'll find rare blue lotus lilies that were once used by ancient egyptians as a psychoactive drug.

after the museum, we headed to the marriott for lunch. doesn't sound very egyptian, right? the marriott downtown is actually a former palace built for french royalty coming in town for the opening of the suez canal. it's stunning- wood carvings galore, detailed cutouts, gold gilded stairways leading to massive receptions rooms, floors covered in white marble, and a picturesque outdoor courtyard with perfectly groomed grounds and fountains. this is where we enjoyed an nontraditional, traditional egyptian lentil soup and a chicken quesadilla. not to shabby.

ok on to day 3. mom still sick so my cousin and i hop in the car with mohammed (her driver in case you missed earlier posts) and headed to garbage city. this place is a dump! literally. garbage city is a slum of cairo and you'll never be the same after seeing this place. our welcoming committee besides the stench of decaying rubbish was a boney dog, rummaging among the trash for food. as a dog lover, it was really difficult to see this little guy literally starving to death. we spent the next 20 minutes or so driving down the windy streets ( you can't get out and walk around here). i tried to take pictures from Mohammed's classic Peugeot 504 so you could get somewhat of an idea of what this place is like, but no image would ever do this place justice. trash is everywhere, mounds and heaps piled higher than the eye can see. kids play in it and help sort the papers and plastics. it's absolutely filthy here. totally disgusting. donkeys look like they are on their last leg, have open soars, and are attached to carts that pull cabbage or produce or trash, all of them teeming with flies. i imagine a lot of world health organizations would have a field day with this place.  just imagine people actually live here, among the garbage, they breath in this stuff everyday.

oddly enough, if you make your way up the hill, you will find complete contrast. the streets for the most part are clean for garbage city standards. in fact, i saw a young boy actually sweeping them. there is a beautiful coptic church carved out of the side of this hill nestled among many carved religious images. i'm amazed and in awe when i think about this structure. it's stunning, even for the non believer.

on our way down the windy, rubbish lined streets we made a quick stop to the recycling plant that employs young women who craft upcycled goods like rugs, pillow covers, purses, and stationary to name a few. they have 2 retail stores within the somewhat professional space with many innovative and clever items and the money goes to sustain their community and their families. 2 mini thumbs up!

everyone needs to see a slum like this, it really will make you appreciate the wonderful life, moreover all the opportunities we have in the united states. we are so lucky.

ok very last stop...i know i'm exhausted too. al-azhar park in islamic cairo is a a tourist's dream, mainly because most of it's 74 acres are teeming with locals, not camera toting tourists. it's a colorful park with rolling flower-lined hills, gorgeous views of the citadel, and water pools galore. azza famy is a famous egyptian jewelry designer and apparently her sister designed all of the beautiful brass? cutout lanterns housed within the lakeside cafe. a must see in my book. don't be put off by the 1960's like admission area with 2 lines, one for men, the other for women. or by the fact that there is a special price for foreigners.

Day 1-Thurs March 25

our first day started on very little sleep. we had croissants and coffee on billie fay's rooftop deck and were accompanied by the rising sun and over 90 potted plants and trees. billie fay gave us an aerial tour of the neighbor she lives in and pointed out the many consulates and embassies that are near by, Israeli, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan. after breakfast, we headed out for the day to check out the area and do some shopping. our first stop was this great silver shop, with old and eclectic bangles, rings, and silver bead components. i was in heaven and plan on stocking up right before we leave. everything here is SO cheap. $1.50-3.00 for all of those beautiful wraps. the most expensive thing i bought was a huge handmade, artisan silver ring from an art gallery co-op that houses artists from the local university. it was $30. before stopping for something to eat, we headed to road 7 (prob not the most appetizing spot) to check out the local market. there were many street vendors and stands with everything from veggies (not sure how fresh) to apparel. there was trash and filth everywhere and no one seems to mind. produce is something left to be desired, eggs out in the hot sun covered with feces, bunnies in crates with pigeons resting on top of them waiting to be fried up. goats a few feet away waiting for the same fate. every animal looked disheveled and unhealthy but i guess if they kill it on the spot and whip it up in a pita, at least you know it's fresh. the meat market was the most disturbing. men cutting carcasses outside, unrefrigerated meat melting in the sun's rays, alley cats and dogs feasting off scraps. believe it or not, shortly after that and perusing some more shops, we enjoyed tahini, babaganoush, and yogurt dip with pitas outside at a cozy little restaurant called el sid. billie fay's driver, mohammed picked us up and drove us to our next destination. it was a long day for all of us, mother and me especially. we had one last stop, the duty free market where we wait for bf's roommate, tim, to meet us so we could purchase wine. when we got home, we sat around the comfy living room, had proseco and almost all of us enjoyed a fabulous pasta dish dinner tim created. mother, however got very ill, throwing up after her first glass of proseco and continued throwing up out of both ends for a few hours.

Egypt Bound!

nightmare to say the least. mother’s hatred for frankfurt airport wasn't unfounded. that place is a labyrinth of confusion. upon arrival from IAH, you are left to wonder about a maze of hallways with no discernable info desk in sight. once you finally reach the transit area to wait for your connecting flight, you'll be lucky to find a place to rest your weary travel bones. this was evident when we were kicked out of 2 separate gates trying to get some zzzzzzzzzzs. each time we finally drifted off, we were aroused by an unfriendly german/english intercom announcement to leave the secure waiting area. we took refuge in a small cafe in terminal B named after the famous german poet johann goethe where we waited out our layover (and subsequent delay) snacked on cold sandwiches and muesli and some hot beverages. our 3 hour delay turned into over 8 hours, involved a plane from denver that was late AND had a technical problem, a plane from japan that also had a technical problem and finally our 3rd plane that had a technical problem but while we were in the air. we landed promptly after finally taking off and were welcomed by a committee of fire engines, ambulances and other emergency personal as our landing gear had become stuck. after burning quite a bit of rubber, we landed safely and waited another 2.5 hours or so while the problem was being fixed and concerned passengers were voluntarily leaving the aircraft. we finally made it cairo where nabil was waiting for us, scooped our luggage and us up and arrived to my cousin's apartment around 3am.