Maasara

So we have now moved into an apartment in a Christian family's complex in Maasara, this is a lower class neighborhood off the metro. I walk to and from the metro to get to work every day. This family insists that we're home every day at 10 PM, its a little stressful because Egypt does not run on that kind of a time line, or really any time line. An hour late is perfectly normal, an extra half hour to hang out when you need to meet someone in ten minutes is also the norm I'm discovering.

This family we're living with speaks only arabic. We've been able to communicate a lot considering, but its still pretty stressful, especially when they try to clean our apartment and feed us constantly. I know that seems amazing, and it is, but also we just our craving a little American privacy maybe. They insist that we are their sisters.

The family consists of a mother, a father, two daughters (Gigi who is in her twenties and pregnant and Sarah who is 16 and knows some English and takes us everywhere), one daughter in law, one granddaughter who is 2ish and another on the way, a neice of some sort who is 5 and her mother, and some other random man we can't figure out. They mostly live across the hall and check on us constantly and control the lock on the door to the building. A little overbearing, but sweet.

Some highlights:
1. being able to communicate with Gigi that she had high blood pressure and wanted us to pray for her and that we of course would, with almost absolutely no spoken language

2. seeing sheep grazing in the garbage pile in the middle of the main street every morning and ducks sitting on the sidewalk

3. succesfully riding a mini bus

4. seeing children playing hot lava tag and hide and seek in the street

5. getting my tomatoes for free from the nice old tomato man

6. being able to navigate the metro competently

7. taking a shower in a tiny plastic tub with a faucet two feet off the ground

8. washing my clothes with dish soap in the same tub and cooking myself a meal from pasta cheese and garlic, communicating this to my host family in arabic, and being told I was very clever.

9. My little student Nada coming up to me and saying, "miss Kristina, can we have homework?"

10. Discussing the upcoming U.S. election with my adult Egyptian students


So anyway, life is pretty ridiculous right now but I am surviving and loving it, by the grace of God