Hello everybody. This first entry will be fairly short since I don't have much time, but I'll try to keep it updated.
I arrived in Cairo on August 27 at 3:30 PM after leaving Omaha, Nebraska on August 26 at 6:00 AM. It was surprisingly a painless trip and I was able to sleep quite a bit. We were greeted at the airport by the director of the program and the two interns and were shuffled through customs and onto a large tour bus. They showed us around Cairo and took us to our apartments, which are amazing. We live in a middle class neighborhood in our own apartments, I share an apartment with five other guys. It's really awesome to get the experience of living amongst a different group of people in such an unhindered way. I can already tell that there will be an awesome community among the members of the program and we will struggle through a number of very difficult issues. I'm extremely excited to begin this semester and see what lays ahead!
Things I've already done in only two days of being in Cairo: Walked around the neighborhood talking to random children and practiced my marginal Arabic, went to an open air market, saw the Pyramids from a distance, attended a service at a local Mosque, and took a ride on a boat on the Nile River (which is a short walk from our apartments).
I'm having a great time, but there are numerous challenges ahead. Please keep me in your prayers!
Jonathan
