Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been writing in the blog but I've been very busy and preoccupied lately. For one, I've been travelling a lot and have been very tired. After going to LA to see my family, I went back to NYC for about a day and then went back on a plane to cross the Atlantic again to see Edouard in Paris. For the time being, Edouard is in Paris waiting for his visa interview with the US Embassy. That's going to take place on Jan. 31st. Unfortunately, during this time he cannot come back into the United States, which is why I went all the way back to that part of the world for Christmas and New Year's- I had not seen him since October 7th!

Anyway, I got back from Paris last Wednesday. I was exhausted from all of the travelling but I still had to do stuff like reestablish my comics buffer, clean the apartment, and do an assortment of other chores around the city.

It was a relatively easy transition for me to be back in New York after being in Egypt for so long. For one, I missed how everything in the United States functions properly (such as showers and electrical outlets). Furthemore, compared to Cairo, New York City is sparkling clean, and it is nice to know that at my next job, I'll actually have a toilet.

That said, it's still jarring to come back here. The standard of living in the United States is much higher, especially compared to rural Egypt. Americans take for granted so many luxuries that simply don't exist for many Egyptians... it's strange, and on some level disturbing, to realize this difference first hand. It's also difficult to move from an environment in which one is living with 8-10 other people to a completely empty apartment. While I do like my privacy (which wasn't too much of a problem in Egypt b/c I had my own room), I made friends with some cool people over there and it's strange not to see them everyday.

Anyway, I'm getting back into some sort of routine here so things are feeling more normal. It's still a little hard without Ed around though.

Jen

Back safely from Egypt. I'll be sure to write about the last 3 weeks there... but for now, I must get ready to go back home to LA!

Jen

Hey everyone! I'm still alive in Egypt!

I was actually in Cairo last Thursday and Friday, which is when this series of sit ins and demonstrations started. I had planned to go to the museum on Friday but this nice Egyptian dude at the front desk (who lived in Southern California for 22 years!) told me not to... that's when he told me about some people attacking the Copts in his neighborhood (Shouba). Other Egyptians told me to avoid downtown as well, so in Zamalek I stayed.

Zamalek is actually quite safe (possibly to due with the fact that numerous embassies are located there), and people have said that it pretty much stayed normal even during January's revolution. This proved to be the case on Friday, and today our field directors went and said that you wouldn't even know there was violence happening downtown.

As for the middle of the desert- things pretty much remain the same so far. It's still pretty quiet and dusty. We even played a round of bocce.

So yes, I'll be in touch- but all is well for now!

Jen

Sorry I've been so bad about keeping you all updated about my adventures in Egypt. Most of the time I've been exhausted, working, or hanging out with the other people on this dig. It's been a pretty good time so far.

This weekend is Eid, which is a Muslim holiday commemorating Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to God. Because of his willingness to follow God, God has Abrhaman kill a ram in place of his son (I think that's the story, anyway) During Eid, one sees a lot of sheep and other animals get slaughtered, which means a ton of blood in the street... with the occasional decapitated head. It's a pretty interesting sight to behold.

Eid also means that we folk at the dig house get an extra day off so we headed to the Fayuum to see some cool waterfalls and an awesome prehistoric whale bone park. If you're ever in Egypt I recommend joining a tour or hiring some guy to drive you out to Wadi el-Hitan to see it- not even for the bones but for the sweet sand dunes and desert structures. It's the kind of place that can't properly be captured on film. You're going to have to go there yourself to appreciate its majesty to the fullest. The hassle to arrange this trip is worth it for sure.

Jen