Guestbook

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We added a guestbook. We've been noticing that we've been getting a lot of hits from all around the world, places like Spain, Uruguay, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, The Bahamas, Virgin Islands, Italy and Switzerland, just how we like it. We see your visits and appreciate the company. :) So get to know our new friends, we've put in a guestbook.  Tell us about who you are, where you're from and what you think about our adventures. We'd love to hear from you. 

Shopping in Cairo

The other day Shezena and I went out to run some errands on a sunny Egyptian afternoon. While we were out it was time to pray Magrib. We were by the mall so we followed our fellow belivers to the masjid in the mall. I know, too cool!!!                                                                                             

       

The next day all of us except Dad, who was at his Quran class, went to the souks. It is an outdoor market place. The souks are in an alleyway between buildings. It is like a maze. There are always a lot of people there. The Egyptians go to the souks to get anything and everything. Anything from shampoo to jewelry to clothes to the freshest chicken you will ever get because it is still walking around. If you look at the wrong time you might see exactly how you get a halal chicken firsthand, blood and all. We went to get two chickens and the boy took two chickens out of the cages to halal them. As we are walking home holding the bag with chicken the body heat can be felt next to you. A couple of hours later those two chickens were on our dinner plates with some rice and fried bananas (we could not find plantains). Those chickens have never seen the inside of a refrigerator. In the souks there are a lot of places to pray but most of them are for men only. When we were at the souks it was time to pray Magrib. We had to ask a lady to show us a place where sisters could pray. Instead of just telling us she walked with us back the way she came past a few men's masjids to get to one that had a ladies' prayer area. Once again, it is so neat seeing other women who wear hijab. In the souks there are several stores that sell scarves and jilbabs. Back in Florida the closest place to shop for jilbabs was two hours away, now it is just a ten minute walk. I know, we are blessed!

What happens when you overload the family vehicle

We see these kinds of donkey carts everywhere here, even in 

places you'd think a donkey cart could not possibly go. These 

guys helping in the white are police officers.

My first few days in Masr (Egypt)

Some of the things I initially noticed in Egypt are there are masjids everywhere, this is very beautiful. This is why I wanted to come to here with my family. The driving is terrible, in my opinion just about everyone should have their driving licenses taken away and made to go to driving school. Traffic laws are not laws but a mere suggestion. Crossing the street is like running the gauntlet. The cars predate the pharaohs. If the cars were being held together by duct tape in would be ok, but instead they are being held together by cheap scotch tape. Trash is everywhere. To say they have a littering problem is like saying the Egyptians obey the traffic laws.

There are plenty of opportunities to give charity, this is good for me as well as the one receiving, the reason I came here is the pleasure of Allah.
For all of the differences that make me miss home there are some very good reasons to stay here for a long time. I here the Azan five times a day from multiple directions. When I go to the masjid for any prayer there are multiple rows of people. In the States at the masjid if it is not Jummah or Ramadan there only a few people there. When people find out I am here for Islam and want to seek knowledge for my family and my self the help is endless. Some examples are people will stop what they are doing and help me find someone to teach us, they would take me to schools where children and adults (men and women, separate of course) are taught. It is very expensive, about 20 Egyptians pounds a month per person, that is less than $4.00. Sometimes it seems that people are competing to see who will help me find the Islamic knowledge. Not only are they interested in our education, but they want to make sure I know where to find the best fruits, vegetables, meats and any other items we may need.
On the streets you will see people sitting and reciting the Quran, walking and making zikir, it appears that Islam is on the minds and hearts of the people, it is beautiful. Ramadan is approaching and the place is being decorated for it, they see it as something that should be celebrated not as a burden. These lights are really Ramadan lights not Christmas lights in disguise.
The unsafe road conditions and trash of Egypt does not compete with the Islam that can be found here. Everyone is welcome to come and visit us here.

Living in a Muslim Country

When the Athan is called from our masjid, Dad, Ameer, and Siraj make wudu and walk to the masjid. It is about a five or ten minute walk from our apartment to the masjid. I love waking up and hearing the Athan. If I leave my bedroom windows open I can hear many Athans being called simultaneously. Now we never have to wonder if it is time to pray because we will hear several Athans and Akhamets called.
When we are out and it is time to pray it is so easy to walk to the nearest masjid and pray. There is no having to worry about where or what time to pray anymore. It is common to see men praying outside. I feel so blessed to live here. Men wear thobes and kufies and women wear hijab and niqab. A lot of the men here have a mark on their forehead from praying. I saw a man with a pink thobe on. That is something I have never seen in the US. For the most part the scarves I see women wearing are very bright and colorful. We will also see people dressed like how people in the States are dressed. When we greet people it is with Salam. Even the non-Muslims will say Asalamwalakum, Alhumdullilah, Mashallah, and other phrases of the sort.

My Host Family

My Allah bless them and grant them Jannah. My original plan was to come to Egypt with everyone and rent a hotel until we found an apartment. We have been prepared to stay in a hotel for a month until we found a place. Allah is so merciful, there was a brother in the masjid, Salih that I regularly see during Isha, he is from Egypt. When he found out I was going to there, he inquired of my plans, I told him what they were generally but he wanted more details, so I told him. He told me "NO". I am thinking to myself I don’t need any negative thoughts for our journey, but then he told me he has a brother, Dr. Geith, that will help me. Everything is from Allah. Through his brother and his family my initial contact with Egypt was so so much easier.
I spoke to his brother a few times on the phone, he gave me useful advice and counsel on my move to Egypt, He was leaving from NY to Egypt on July 22 (Shezena’s birthday) and told me if I travel with him he would show me around and help with living arrangements. I stayed in there home, they prepared an extra room for me with my own entrance and bathroom, it was very nice. Let me clarify I only met him on the airplane and he and his family opened themselves to me. May Allah be pleased with them and forgive their sins. The doctor’s son, Ahmed showed me around the area and helped me find an apartment, this was done with the best of care. Not only did they help me find an apartment I am now seeing some patients in his office with the help of my wonderful wife.

Our Apartment

We live on fourth floor but the locals call it the third. The ground floor is zero, not one. It has five bedrooms and three bathrooms. The floor is tile, the ceiling has crown molding, there are ceiling fans in three of the bedrooms, and the kitchen counters are granite. We have a stove and a washing machine. The north and south bedrooms each have two windows on different walls. All the rooms are bigger than in most American houses. In the bathrooms there are more hot/cold knobs than there are faucets. Better too many than not enough, right?
The stairs and stairwell walls are granite and the elevator has no inner door. That means that while the elevator is moving you can reach out touch the stationary wall as you rush past. Don’t worry, everyone still has all their fingers and toes.

Our First Quran Class!

Mom, Shezena, Anissa, and I all went to our first Quran class this morning! This is the whole reason we came to Egypt, so we can study Quran and Islam. We have officially started today. We only went over 2 surahs but it felt like so many more. Before we went to this class I thought I knew these surahs, I was wrong. It sounded nothing like how I say it but that is why we are here. The first one was not so bad but I did not even recognize the second one until we said it several times. It is almost like we have to completely learn it again. The class is about a block from our apartment so it takes less than five minutes to walk there. Our teacher is a very patient nikabi who reads beautifuly. Inshallah, one day soon I will read like her.

More about Egypt

The cars have no restrictions as to how many people can get in. We (a family of eight) pile into a taxi made for five people including the driver. That’s nine people in one car. In some buses the only way to get more people on is to put them on the roof. I have not seen that yet but continue to be surprised everyday. Before the buses are even stopped people will start getting out. The bus will start moving if someone is only halfway in. Oh, and the buses will stop to let people on and off in the middle of a busy roundabout. The roundabouts go both directions. People will stop in the roundabout and put their car in reverse while still in the middle of the roundabout. The taxi drivers are friendly and want to chat even though we can’t understand them and they can’t understand us, they try and so do we. A ten minute taxi ride will cost about ten pounds or two American dollars. We have seen people pushing car quite a few times. We have even seen men pushing a bus. At night the locals do not drive with their headlights on. There is constant honking. Not the long honk we hear in the US but quick short ‘get out of my way before I run you over’ beeps. Men hold hands with other men and men will link arms with other men. I had never seen that in public before. There are water coolers with one cup on top. You are supposed to use the cup to take a drink and put the cup back for the next person to use. Needless to say, we have yet to drink from any of those cups. The sidewalks start and end with no rhyme or reason so we have to walk on the street a lot. The cars will get uncomfortably close, uncomfortable at first anyways. Crossing the street is really just a game of chicken. We have to hold on to the children very tightly while we cross the street.

Our first days in Egypt

I thought we would blend right in but we don’t. I thought it would at least be better than in the States but it’s not. The locals know we are not one of them. We heard "Welcome to Cairo" quite a few times.
Mom, Shezena, Ayoub, and I went out to buy some milk. That was an adventure. We could not find the right store to get the milk with the cream on top. We ended up buying milk from a bag. There were two shopkeepers who were trying to ask us where we are from and why we are here. One of them spoke limited English but was trying mightily to understand what we were saying.
We were told that us ladies should not smile at strange men but I am finding that quite difficult. It’s not that I am going around smiling at strange men but it happens.

Cairo to home (together again)

We landed safely in Egypt Friday, August 1st around 12:30pm local time. At baggage claim we hired a man to get our 14 suitcases off the carousel and into the car for $6 plus a tip. Outside of baggage claim we saw Daddy. Alhumdullilah, our family is back together again! By the time we got out of baggage claim Dad had already finished Jummah. Two men loaded our suitcases on top of the van and tied them down.
On the way home we saw so many masjids. There were men praying under trees, there were taxis packed to the absolute max, there were stray dogs in the street, there were cats everywhere, there were men with shotguns slung across their back (either police or military, not sure yet), there were people dodging cars to cross the street, it was so different than my beautiful Florida. One thing that is the same - it’s hot.
When we arrived home the taxi driver and the Bowab took all the suitcases off the roof and whatever carry ons we left in the van out. A woman brought the bags up to our 3rd floor apartment. I think she is the Bowab’s daughter. For those of you who don’t know, the Bowab is the building’s doorman. He will bring up groceries and whatever else you may be carrying for a tip.

JFK to Cairo

Once we actually got on the plane Mom, Shezena, and I were all on our phones calling and texting people our last goodbye while still in the US. The crew shut the door and off we were to Egypt. The flight was not too bad. The kids got a little antsy so they went for a walk around the plane every chance they got.
We prayed Magrib, Isha, and Fajr while in the air I thought it was really neat to see other people praying on the plane. We were already facing the right direction because we were headed East. Some men went to the front of the plane to stand up and pray.
The plane had mostly Egyptians and a few tourists. Most of the women were wearing hijab. Usually, the only hijabis on board are my mom, my sister, and me.

WPB to JFK

Our two uncles came to load their van with all our 21 bags and take us to the airport. They also, of course, did the last minute weight check for us at home and the airport.

In New York, Auntie Zalisha, Auntie Zan, and Yusuf were there at the airport at 2 am to get the 7 of us, our 7 carry ons, and our 14 suitcases. We (5 ladies) had to get 700 lbs of luggage off the carousel, on the cart, to the car, and in their 2 vans. Did I mention there were no men?

The next morning Auntie Zalisha made us a delicious breakfast with bake. We visited for a while then off to the airport again this time for a 9 ½ hour flight. Uncle Amo, Auntie Zalisha, Auntie Zan, Sharif, and Dean took us to the airport again in 2 vans. Uncle Amo and Sharif took everything out of the van. Everyone who came to the airport stayed with us until the security check. They were so helpful. They waited on the horribly long line with us, they pushed the 3 carts, they watched the kids, Uncle Amo weighed all the bags, and they even spoke to the woman behind the counter for us. If they hadn’t stayed to help there might have been some crying and I am not talking about the children.