Into the Desert

Yesterday I went to the campus, and it is really in the middle of the desert. I took the 12:30pm bus, which wasn't a good idea because it was rush hour. It took us an hour and a half to get to the campus. When you got out of the city, the amount of dust in the air was uncomfortable. You could feel it in your nose and throat when you breathed. There is so much construction going on outside the new campus, but it looks like some buildings have been left half-finished. The good thing about bus rides is meeting people.

I got my ID card, some cash, and lunch, but that was about it. The orientation people decided to close up a couple hours early, so I didn't accomplish too much. I'm going back tomorrow morning on the 9:30am bus to take care of a few things. Anyway, the campus is beautiful. Even though only 5,000 students attend it, it's huge! There are a lot of Western food places on campus, but we ate at a pseudo-Egyptian food place. I ate koushary and falafel. It was good, but koushary is a heavy meal.

The bus ride back took another hour and a half, but I didn't mind too much. The bus was larger, so I could see better. Cairo is so interesting. It's dominant colors are brown and grey. It's dirty and polluted and dotted with bright laundry. There are piles of rubble all over the place, but even the shabbiest buildings appear to have air conditioners. It's beautiful in its own sort of way.