Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Anyone Up for Egypt??

So tomorrow i am going to Egypt, and i am so excited. i remember being in elementary school and studying about egypt; it has always been somewhere i have wanted to go! the only problem is apparently it is one of the grossest cities in the world. i just wanted you all to read an email one of our leaders sent us it reads...

"Sister Allen ran across some information that one of the faculty wives presented to the female students in the past. We hope it will be useful to you as you prepare for Egypt.



Always take tissue with you, most restrooms have none. Don't rely on having to borrow from someone else.

To use a Turkish toilet: Straddle the middle of the hole, and squat. Don't just straddle the front of the hole. It's really not as bad as you imagine it will be. At least there is no dirty toilet seat!

Hand sanitizer is a must, there is often nowhere to wash your hands, no water, or no soap.

You may want to buy a package of baby wipes and carry some with you in a baggy. There are times when hand sanitizer isn't enough, or if you have been sick, to clean yourself with - many uses.

If you walk into a restroom and the floor is wet, roll up your pant legs as far as you can, so that your pants don't get wet when you sit down.

Many of the toilet seats are disgusting – your extra TP can help out here.

Many toilets do not handle toilet paper well. There will be a basket in the stall, and sometimes a sign that asks you to throw your tissue into the basket. If you throw it into the toilet, it just piles up and clogs toilet and makes it unpleasant for those after you. If the toilet is running with a trickle, that often means it doesn't flush.

Carry some small change with you when you can, most restrooms require a tip of some kind. A pound is worth about 20 cents, if you can pay a pound instead of a dollar you will save yourself money. When we visit restroom facilities as a group, we will pay for you.

Many toilets have a dual flusher apparatus. The small part is for smaller “jobs”. The bigger part is to flush a larger “job”. Water is often scarce in some places, so this conserves on water.

Don't hesitate to speak up loudly if someone touches you inappropriately. That is the fastest way to get them to leave you alone. Shout "DON'T TOUCH ME!"

This wasn’t mentioned in the Egypt prep, but an insect repellent can be useful. Many students were harassed by mosquitoes when we stayed at the base of Sinai.

Egypt will be much more pleasant for you if you prepare for the “what if’s”.

Cheers!!!"


so what do you think...Egypt anyone?? hopefully the next post will be a report of how amazing Egypt was and how healthy i am!!! love you all!!!

Friday, September 11, 2009

i miss...

So i have been doing a lot of studying the last couple days, so there is not much to report. i love my classes, i have never read so much in my life. we are taking old testament, ancient near east, modern near east (from a jewish and muslim perspective) hebrew and i think that is all! i am seriously learning so much. the more i learn the more i realize i don't know. it is a very humbling experience. since i have now been here for about a week i have realized the little things i take for granted in the US of A. here are the things i miss...
1. ice
2. being able to talk to my familia at any moment in my life
3. driving acar
4. being an independent human being
5. wearing sundresses
6. my family
7. utah in the fall
8. movies...dont judge me
9. hamburgers...once again don't judge
10. being able to read signs around town
so here are the things i miss! hopefully i will just get used to life without these things for a couple months. we go to egypt next week i seriously cannot wait!!!!!!!!! oh my oh my i love my life!! and i love you all!!!!

Friday, September 4, 2009

It is official. I live in Jerusalem!

hello everyone!!!! first of all i miss you so much! i have now been in Isreal a little over two days, and it has been such a crazy experience! My days are seriously jam-packed with school, tours, studying, and other events around the center. There is so much i can say and so much i have done but i will just highlight the few best parts and stories.

The Grand Tour & All the Smells
On Thursday we got a three and a half hour tour of pretty much the entire city of Jerusalem. We walked from East Jerusalem through the Old City and out West Jerusalem. I do not even have words to describe the places i have seen or the people i have meet. I am not the hugest fan of East Jerusalem, it is a bit too dirty for me, but maybe one day i will explore a little more and come to love it. As the beginning of the paragraph says i will discuss the smells. For anyone who knows me, you KNOW i am funny about smells. I do believe that East Jerusalem is the worst. Everyone litters and just throws trash all over, it is so gross. You can just imaging what the heat, humidity and hundreds of people does to trash accumulated in GIGANTIC piles all over the city. The Old City is not like anything i have ever seen. It is also indescribable. There is so much history and culture in the city, it is unreal!!!!!! the smell remind me of 'Holly Krishna' in Provo. (The Indian festival of colors) It is very potent, and sticks to our clothes. You will walk past a clothing store and smell one smell. Then past a falafel shop for a totally different smell. I am sort of indifferent to the smell in the Old City. (well for the most part) West Jerusalem is like the Time Square of Jerusalem apparently, it has really hip/fun shops and restaurants. This did not smell bad or have any trash, so it may be one of the best places for cleanliness?

Free Earrings
So today we were allowed to walk about the city after 3 pm. My two friends, Steph and Sarah (funny i just realized those are my sisters names!!! i love that), and i went into the old city. We were told the best way to find your way around the old city is to get lost. we did just that. the old city is divided into 4 quarters (the Muslim, the Armenian, the Christian, and the Jewish) We just happened to be walking around the Jewish quarter (which by the way i think may be my favorite...it is so clean and the people are SOO nice). We turned one street and found ourselves in a sort of a maze. When a nice Jewish man asked where we were headed. When we told him the Western Wall he pointed us in the right direction. He then invited us to go into his two stores and look at his jewerly, offering us earrings for 20 shekels. We said we had to run and get to the Wall. The people are very persistent. Steph and Sarah were well on thier way to the Wall when he started asking me where i was from. i tried my hardest to get out of the conversation then he said you know what i like you, you have beautiful eyes. I just said thank you, then he told me he would give me a free pair of earings. He asked me my favorite color, and the next thing i knew i have beautiful green earrings in my hand. He just kept saying free of charge, and i was in a hurry i just thanked him kindly and was on my way. later as i put on the earings i felt bad, i should have at least given him some money! I have been feeling bad all night, i will have to go and find him later to give him some money, maybe i will even buy you some earrings! (whoever is reading this). What do you think?

I am not so smart...
So tonight at dinner i was sitting with three girls: kate, lauren, and jordan. Kate is from Boston, and i was wondering in my mind if she knew the angies. so here it goes the most unintelligent question anyone has EVER asked.......'So kate, how big is the state of Boston?' She looked at me like i was crazy and she said well the state of Massachusetts is blah blah blah!!! i was so embarrassed! really though how dense can i be? just laugh because that is all i could really do!
ok well that is all for now, i am bobbing my head practically asleep as i am typing! Note to Stephanie: i know that there must be THOUSANDS of misspellings and grammer issues in this post but you are just going to have to forgive me! i do not have the energy to go back through it. dont be mad? i love you all and miss you so much!! i wish you could be here with me!