Cairo- Day 3

*Read with caution
*This story includes trash, #2 talk, and vomit..... if you have a weak stomach or any precondition or distaste for stories with said topics.... this post is not for you


Woke to a bit of nervous excitement about the days plan.
We were traveling into the heart of the Zabaleen community to speak with the co-founder of Spirit of Youth, as organization that teaches via the "Learn and Earn" method.
They help the community children by teaching them language, math, literature, computers, art, drama, as well as teaching them what kind of materials to look for, how to sort them, and prepare them for resale.

Our meeting was scheduled for 10am.
We got up a bit late and scarfed down the usual "crosscunt" breakfast. I started to become aware of being "backed up" since we arrived. My thoughts were that being backed up was from better than having "Pharaoh's Revenge" (aka Cairo Diahrea).
Lauren and Carrie did the usual, made faces of disgust and cursed my bowels.
*Lauren more so than Carrie

We went back upstairs, gathered our things, and headed out for a cab.
The cab driver was a shady one.
I could kinda tell that from the moment we got in but also because of the look he gave me in the rear view mirror when we told him where we wanted to go.
Mokattam.
The home of the Zabaleen.
The Trash City.

After about 40 minutes of driving, there it was. Based at the foot of the mountains. A mountain in itself. A mountain of garbage.
As we drove in, the nerves of being there seemed to quickly fade, even if we were driving through some of the most atrocious conditions I have ever seen. We saw dogs chewing goat carcasses on the side of the road, trucks piled 25 feet high with bags of garbage, and a sour smell wafted all around the car (although not nearly as bad as I had expected).

We arrived at the Spirit of Youth center and as expected, the cab driver ripped us off. 80 pounds for a 30 pound ride. But whatever, we were there and greeted with a smile and handshakes.

He brought us inside the school and we gathered around a small table and talked for a good hour.
The man is brilliant and an extremely elegant speaker.
He told us about the community, how the organization started, what the goals were, about his trip to meet Obama this coming March, where he saw his people heading in the future, the backhanded approach by the government in the slaughtering of the Zabaleen's pigs, and many more things.
He had such an air about him that made us all very comfortable. We smoked and laughed and listened with amazement at the knowledge he shared with us.
He also left us with a load more contacts that can help us with the film and optimistic minds about what we will be able to achieve.

We started to walk up the mountain with our sights set on the monestary that sits atop the community but we got sidetracked.
A man came out of his little "shop" and demanded we sit down for a glass of tea. If it were possible to decline without be rude, we would have. And we tried. Believe me, we tried.
But sure enough the 3 of us sat around his small table and braced ourselves for what we knew would be a death sentence for our stomachs. Nile River tea.
As we sat there, children began to come down the streets. They were all wearing backpacks so we assume that school had just let out and they were making their way home. They were instantly drawn to us. At first just asking our names and shaking our hands. Then the excitement grew and soon we were surrounded by 30+ children all fighting for our attention. When the cameras came out, it was like we were magicians. They begged for their photos to be taken and at times got a bit rowdy. But they were all so lovely and friendly and we wanted to stay with them all day.
I so wish the my internet connection here was strong enough to upload photos because there are priceless ones.
Carrie was able to upload this short video that she shot on her flipcam.

After about 30 or so minutes of playing with them, we bid the man farewell and started back up the mountain.
The place is incredible.
Elaborate murals carved into the side of the rock, giant archways with Arabic writing, quotes about Jesus everywhere.... and then the view.
We climbed over an eye level brick wall and down on to a cliff overlooking the entire Zabaleen community.
WOW.
Describing it in words is quite difficult.
Again, I wish that I could upload photos.
But my best description would be hell on earth. Children playing in trash, women bared handed rummaging through waste, goats on rooftops, kids eating while sitting waste deep in rubbish, mountains of garbage EVERYWHERE...... and it goes on for as far as the eye can see.
Lauren snapped away with her camera as I shot for about an hour.
Got some great footage for the film.
Finally we were making some real deal progress. Something to show for the months of reading we did.

We walked back down the mountain and out to the street to catch a cab.
I'm really getting used to the insane driving that is Cairo streets. If we aren't swerving through cars, seeing accidents, hearing horns, creating our own laws.... I think something is wrong haha.
We made a quick stop at a place called GAD to get falafel and this insane Egyptian dessert (drenched in milk, sugar, syrup, and god knows what else) and then roofed it back to the hotel drained of energy and still excited by the days events.
We sat on the balcony and had a feast. I would soon realize that I may have overdone it with the amount of falafel that I shoveled down my throat.
Lauren passed out for a nap as I captured the days footage.
Then I went and joined Carrie to watch "Turtle: The Incredible Journey". Man, what a piece of cinematography that film is.
I found my eyes getting quite heavy and definitely dozed off a few times while watching it but woke up toward the end when Lauren came in to join us.
When I got up, I had some itchy mosquito bites on my hands and felt a bit shaky and weak and slightly nauseous.
We were going to head out to visit an old friend of Lauren's so I went and took an ice cold shower and convinced myself that I felt alright.

We jumped in a cab and drove for about 30 minutes to his house.
When we got there I started to feel quite strange. My stomach was bubbling and my head was cold but my blood felt like it was boiling,
I thought the Pharaoh was ready for his revenge.
***This will be unsettling for some, but I will keep it as PG / Family Friendly as possible
I went in the bathroom and sat down, prepared for the worst.... to my surprise, it was surely not the Revenge.
BUT.... I did have a dilemma to deal with.
When I finally found the toilet paper, there was only 2 squares left. I had to get inventive and split the plies to make 4 super thin pieces.
Business got handled and I was out of there laughing and ready to have a good time with everyone.
But then my stomach did a Killer Whale style roll and screamed for evacuation.
I ran into the bathroom and started to puke.
I puked for a good 40 minutes.
If I had 3 pounds of falafel in my stomach going into the night, I would leave it all behind plus more.
My throat was on fire and it just kept coming in waves.
Finally, I felt semi-ok and we got outta there.
The cab ride home was at what felt like light speed and we were back at the hotel in under 15 minutes.

Instead of laying down and going to bed like any sensible person who just puked their brains out, Carrie and I stayed up til around 2am watching the footage from earlier in the day.

Today I woke up feeling a bit better. Still a bit out of sorts but much better than last night.

Maybe hitting up the pyramids tonight.
For now, research and planning... and relaxing.

Mom, don't worry. I am going to be fine.
xo