1. A construction update....still happening. They are fixing something with the sewer, which apparently meant they had to rip up the entire street...Rachel suggested maybe the forgot where they had to dig. Because it has to do with the sewer things don't smell to great at street level so I'm thankful to be 8 floors up. The ridiculous work hours have become sporadic but it seems some of them work best at 3am.
2. In my next life I will be a computer software technician. With the launch of the computer contest with a new version of the game, Aswan has become the test site and I've spent the past week fielding questions about error messages and anything else that someone thinks isn't working properly. "Why?", is a question I'd like never to hear from older than 5 years old, more than once in a day.
3. Even Egypt can be a small world. Out for dinner in Cairo after returning from Turkey I met, or I guess re-met, Eric, who runs a tour company in Egypt and arranged my felucca trip with my parents. He brought a group through Aswan last weekend so I had drinks with them on Thursday night, and then went across to the west bank for dinner with them on Friday. Yay, for a social life in Aswan!
4. Hot and sunny is normally all I have to say about the weather, but last week in the space of two minutes the weather went from calm clear skies to gale force winds and dusty. Dust storms are normal around this time of the year but normally they arrive gradually. I think I've finally gotten rid of most of the dust.
5. I had to sweep up a dead bird yesterday...a baby one. While I was in Turkey some little birds made a nest in the hole above the door to my balcony. I've tried to avoid going out there too much since I wouldn't want to be responsible for the parents abandoning their nest, but after all the dust I went out to sweep yesterday. I couldn't tell what it was at first but then I noticed it had a beak and tiny wings. I'm thinking it fell from the nest because it didn't even have feathers yet so it's not like it was trying to fly. There are still babies in the next though because the parents keep flying back and forth with stuff in their mouths, so I'm steering clear of the area for a little while longer so I don't cause any more death.
6. I've started running in the mornings. Since I did invest in new running shoes before I left, I figured I should put them to use. I've had great intentions for a while now but last week I finally acted on them. I also uncovered a plot by some of my colleagues to have me bring a little more of Egypt home with me than I intended...the kind that might result in needing clothes of a slightly bigger size. You can't go to someone's house here without eating, and while I'm comfortable enough by now to refuse seconds and thirds, the words "oil" and "fried" are good descriptors of many foods here. And I just feel better in general afterwards, even if I have to get up a bit earlier.
That's all for now...tune in to next week's update for exciting stories including walks along the nile, and all you needed to know about sewer repairs in the middle east
1 comment:
are you running at the hotel or are you creating an unsual spectical on the street? Dad's suggesting you start walking more in your hiking boots to get your feet used to wearing them before the adventure on the Island begins.
Your update was great - too bad about the baby bird.
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