Karachi, Cairo

Hi everyone,

I'm sorry I have not posted in a while. I was in Pakistan for a wedding (will post pics soon) and now I am in Cairo, my home for the next four months. Cairo is beautiful (relatively) from what I have seen so far (I live smack-dab in the middle of Downtown Cairo--try sleeping in this mess, it's not fun) and the folks at AUC (American University in Cairo) are really nice and extremely helpful. I haven't had a chance to do much since I have been here. I arrived Tuesday morning but I have been feeling like crap, so, I have spent most of my time in bed. I went to the campus clinic this morning and the doc said I have a sinus and lung infection as well as a stomach infection and she prescribed me some antibiotics. It was definetly Karachi that did this to me. Although I love the place and its people, it is very unforgiving when it comes to pollution and bacteria. Then again, I am sure my immune system has taken some abuse from being in five different countries in one month. At any rate, I hope I get better soon, we are having our semester orientation session in Al-Gouna, a beach resort in the Sinai from Sept. 1st-3rd. (Classes start Sept. 5th) Tomorrow we will visit Old Cairo. I think I might start a Flickr site to post all of my pics, there are too many good ones and I would like to share them with you. I hope you are all healthy and having fun with whatever you are doing. I will try to post again soon.

Denise

Amman, Dubai

After a long and sleepless day in Amman, Jordan I am now in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Dubai, it seems, is just one big construction project. A playhouse for the rich with more money than they know what to do with. In fact, new buildings are constructed at such a frequent and high pace that new roads have a hard time catching up. If you live in a new building, chances are that you have to travel on an uneven dirt road--easy on a camel but hell witha car. I haven't been to the heart of Dubai yet (I just got here last night) but I am looking forward to visiting the Burj Al Arab Hotel and the beaches. Tomorrow I plan on going to the Emirates Mall, which is supposed to be one of the biggest, if not the biggest, mall in the world. They even have a few mosques built inside of it. Speaking of Islam, interestingly, I tried to access MySpace.com and it has apparently been blocked by the UAE. Here is the error message I received:

"We apologize, the site you are attempting to visit has been blocked due to its content being inconsistent with the religious, cultural, political and moral values of the United Arab Emirates."

Isn't that incredible??? Wow... Anyway, going back, it's not hard to see why there are so many buildings in Dubai (with excellent air conditioning, by the way)--it's freakin' hot as a mother outside! Very dry and dusty, but nothing like Saudi Arabia, which was completely red as I flew over it on the plane ride here. The plane ride to UAE was an interesting parallel to the plane ride to Israel, only, instead of sitting with 5 or 6 rabbis with their white taliths and black coats I was sitting with Emiratis who wear long white whatchamacallit suits and white headresses with a black headband. Both parties ordered special meals, kosher and hallal, respectively. I don't know, it was just interesting, it behooved me to reflect.

Another observation, the newspapers here are very colorful and printed on a thin, glossy high quality paper. The pictures are dramatic (well, its war between an Arab country and Israel, what can we expect?) and most of the articles read more like op-eds than objective reports. The actual op-eds are a lot more opinionated, however, with titles like "The root of all suffering is the Bush administration" and "What a conspiracy! America does all it can to ensure Israel gets what it wants." There are quite a few crime reports, mostly white collar but some bizzare ones like "Pakistani man charged with filming Filipino woman in toilet" and "Ethiopian housemaid gives birth at Dubai International Airport, dumbs baby in trash can." (Perhaps not so bizzare, after all, these things happen all the time in the US). But most of the paper is filled with business news and stories about the war and what Arab/Muslim countries are doing to relieve the Lebanese people. Just two examples: "Dubai sends 1000 tons of humanitarian aid items to Lebanon" and "Pakistan sends two ambulances." Wow... Thanks, Pakistan.

More later...

Welcome to Tel Aviv

hi everyone. I will be spending my last few days in Israel in Tel Aviv. So far, from what I have seen, Tel Aviv is very modern and has a different "vibe" than that of Jerusalem. I think the best part about being here is that I am close to the beach and I am staying in a very large, beautiful apartment with good friends. It's a highrise with a lovely view and it has all the comforts one could hope for, including an office with internet, a huge kitchen, and satellite tv (which includes Syrian, Lebanese, Egyptian, and Saudi channels). Anyway, it's late and I am tired, I will write more soon, insha'allah.

Denise

p.s. Nasrallah warned Israel that the Hizbullah will strike Tel Aviv soon. Luckily, we have bomb shelters.

The Battle of the Bands

So today, in Bethlehem, Palestinian shopkeepers were playing a new Arabic pop song that praises Hasan Nasrallah and the Hizbollah for killing Jews in Israel. Meanwhile, back in Israel proper, Israelis are watching a YouTube video that praises the IDF in Hebrew and chants about Nasrallah's and the Hizbollah's impending annihilation.

I don't have a copy of the Palestinian song, but here is the YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?search=nasrallah&v=9WxQcWNHmAo

Israel-Lebanon Crisis

Well, I wish I could say more about the war situation and I wish I the answers on how to solve this puzzle the West calls the Middle East. I've had several heated discussions and debates with friends, classmates and roommates. There are a lot of differing opinions here in Israel, it would be wrong for me to say there is a consensus. I think the conversation I had the other night with my friend Arik probably sticks out the most in my mind. Arik is 28 years old, he served 4 years in the military (is on reserve) and he travelled for 2 years. His grandparents are from Germany, they survived the Holocaust, although many of his great aunts and uncles perished. After I criticized Israel for their institutional discrimination against Arab-Israelis and their policies over Palestinian issues, he put it very bluntly, "Look, first Jews. First we have to take care of the Jews, and as soon as we can be sure that Israel is not in danger of being destroyed, and as soon as we can be sure there will not be another Holocaust, we can take care of others, including Palestinians." He compared the Arab threat against Israel to a person looking down the barrel of a gun being pointed at him by someone determined to shoot. He has all but two choices: either he kills the threat or he will die. Israel's military policy clearly reflects an "us or them" situation, among other things. Many have argued that the current campaign in Lebanon will not solve anything in the long run and will in fact make things worse. Which brings me to two questions: when a nation (any nation) knows nothing but death and war, can we still expect it to behave rationally? And secondly, will opposing Arab states and non-state radical Islamist groups ever recognize Israel's "right to exist" and therefore allow both parties to engage in civil discourse?

Today, I saw lots of gory pictures of the death and destruction in Qana, Lebanon. Tens of children gray, dusty, crushed, bloody and lifeless. Countless little bodies wrapped in plastic and tied... Again, I wish I had answers.

Dead Sea, Masada and more...

This first picture is a picture of us floating in the Dead Sea (pictures are out of order, we went to Masada in the morning and stopped over at Ein Gedi then this beach in the afternoon). I did not expect the floating effect at all. It was such an amazing experience. The sea is completely dead, unless some bacteria manage to survive in those conditions somehow. I got some water on my lip and tasted it, it was pretty gross. Another gross thing: a friend of mine told me not to pee because your private place starts burning like crazy. I didn't pee, but I have to admit, I was still a tad bit uncomfortable, uhh, down there. I can't explain it...errr... Anyway, in the background, you can kind of make out the mountains in Jordan. It was a gorgeous morning and I had a great time.

This is me atop the Masada. The hike up there was something else--I must be out of shape or something because I was literally the last person in my group to make it to the top. Even our armed bodyguard, Uzi, was ahead of me.
The sunrise over the Dead Sea--a view from the Masada. It was truly amazing.
Here's another view of the Masada.
And finally, a picture of Myself, Lars, and Matt. We took this at Aroma Cafe, a very popular HU hang out. They have salads, sandwiches, iced coffee, and other treats, as well as wireless internet. You can't really tell from this picture, but there is also heavy security there with a baracade going around the patio.

Last Day of Classes at Hebrew U

Wow, what an amazing and intense four weeks it has been. I'm left a little closer to understanding the Middle East, its past and present, and without leaning on prophecy, perhaps some idea of where it may be heading in the future. I am no expert on the Middle East and all of its facets, of course, but I now have a framework from which to work from. Ultimately, I think that is all an education really gives you. Even doctors, I think, do not memorize all the latin and medical jargon they learn throughout medical school, but they can see the bigger picture and, as doctors, are expected to know where to look when details are needed and should provide answers (in my case, opinions) when a question arises.

In the Emergence of the Modern Middle East course, our professor left us with a somewhat bleak picture of the region, which, according to him, is mostly contributed to four major predicaments that currently face the region. (From the last page of my notes) First, economic stagnation, which has had the most dominant affect on the Middle East, has been accompanied by social frustration and is one major factor contributing to the radicalization of Islamic political movements. Second, the Middle East has grown increasingly weak in the Global System. With the exception of Turkey, Iran, and Israel, the rest of the Middle Eastern states have become non-factors, especially within movements like Al Qaeda, who no longer need the states in their violent campaigns against the Western world. Third is political instability. The Middle East is plagued by an unpredictable future and leaders that many regard as illegitamate, and this has led to many political upheavals. Lastly, there is vast ideological confusion, and many question whether the Middle East is heading toward something contructive or destructive.

Anyway, I think we're all breathing a collective sigh of relief now that classes are over and done with. Most people have left the building and, I'm suspecting, are either off to Tel Aviv or Eilat. (I overheard someone say something about going to Petra, Jordan). I think I might bum around the computer for a while and maybe grab a shawarma and salad for 18 shekels down at the Frank Sinatra cafeteria. I have one more term paper due, but our professor was kind enough to let us email it to her within two weeks. That was really sweet of her...I stayed up all night last night writing a paper for my main course. I wrote about the June War of 1967 (also known as the Six Day War) and the effects it had on the region and why it is considered a "watershed event". I wish I had had more time to write it. Oh well, I did my best.

Missing you all,

Denise

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