Old Cairo

Yesterday I went on a trip to Old Cairo, or Coptic Cairo. The tour guide had a good sense of humor. First, we went to the Hanging Church. It's one of the oldest churches in Egypt, and it was built over part of the Babylon Fortress. Next we went to the Church of Saint George, and then we visited the Ben Ezra Synagogue. Photos weren't allowed, but some students took them anyway. One of our group leaders, Aisha, got into an argument with the man while we made ourselves scarce. He eventually apologized, but we all felt somewhat awkward. I don't understand why the students didn't just obey the signs in the first place.

I went into a mosque for the first time. The Mosque of Amr was the first one in Africa, but like all of the other religious buildings, it had been rebuilt or expanded several times. I was glad that I had a jacket with a hood to cover my head. Some girls ended up wearing what looked like green Harry Potter robes or green KKK costumes. I really need to invest in a scarf or some sort of wrap to cover my head because I'm not sure how often they wash the green rent-a-cloths.

The tourguide spent awhile going over polygamy in Islam. Honestly, that was a waste of time because I don't think that anyone cares. It's just an alternative lifestyle, and I can see how it benefitted men and women in the past. I would be okay with it if women were free to have four husbands.

Honestly, I didn't care for the buildings. Sure, they're old, but only small pieces of them. Also, whoever attempted to restore the religious buildings had no idea what they were doing. They added modern things to the buildings and made it so obvious. It really ruined it for me because nothing felt historical.