You wouldn't believe me

Wow, today is full of so many memories. there's no way to record it all. especially since i'll forget everything by the time my head hits the pillow. mcdonalds has free wifi here. so i'm using a friend's computer after my dinner of falafal and mc'd's treat. Today we had a free day to explore cairo, but if we wanted to participate, there were set times to go to specific places. this is what the day included:

9:30am- Egyptian Museum!! THere is way too much to see and not enough labels and signs to explain what you're seeing. Things i was impressed by: The mass amount of treasure and findings from King Tut's tomb. I saw the two inner coffins and headmask. I'll see his actual body when we later go to the valley of the kings. we had to pay extra to see actual mummies.. like RAMSES II. Umm, i'm not sure but i've heard this is the ramses of the Bible that let the people go. Can someone help me out with that info? Also, there is the intruiging story of Pharoah Akanat. I'm seriously interested in finding out about this monotheist pharoah.

12:00 Zabalin (garbage city)- This is one of the single most unique experiences of my life. I didn't think i could still be shocked by anyone's living conditions, but i wasn't even aware that life like this exists. There is no trash disposal system set up in Cairo. The trash is collected by the Copts. The Coptic Christians live in a "city" filled with Cairo's trash because they make their living by sorting it and recycling it. trash filled the streets, walkways, stairways of buildings, and roofs of buidings. we rode in taxi's to the church that they secretly built up in the side of the rock wall next to the city. One year during ramadan they blasted dynamite in the rock every time the canon was shot to end the fast, so no one knew it was happening because the blasts happened simultaneously. the church is crazy. i actually understood the arabic on the draped fabric and paintings. "ana iltariq wa ilhuq wa ilhaqiqa". something to that effect, which means "I am the way, the law, and the truth." Either i don't remember what i saw, or its translated differently. Also, "alMessih qam" means "Christ arose." I was proud of myself for figuring that out cuz we only have learned that the verb "qam" means to stand up...

anyway, there is too much to say and i dont have time. people living in trash. the smell was overpowering and they live in it all of their lives. flies everywhere, mixed with trash and street vendors and playing children.

3:30 I went to the zoo. this was fun/interesting. animals not treated well. i got to pet and "ride" a teenage lion for 20 egyptian pounds. poor lion. i wasn't sure i wanted to be the one to help treat the lion in such a way, you'll see it in my face in the pictures i post. i also got surrounded by lots of arabs to take pictures and laugh and talk. its strange that we speak arabic, its fun for them. it was a good speaking experience. the rest of our american friends grew impatient but my friend liz and i were having a good time with the natives.

5:00pm a dip in the pool! the lifeguard was egyptian and he wanted to see if i could tread water without hands for a minute straight. i said, "a minute?? i'll go 5. 5 minutes!" so i did, he was impressed and said i was in good shape. riiiiight.

ok more later. peace out (and IN the middle east)