Arrval

After two orientations, three plane rides and other transitions, I have finally arrived at my host family. I arrived Saturday night around 8 pm after my host father had picked me up from my orientation. We took a cab to Giza from Cairo. Once you cross the Nile from Cairo, you are in Giza. It was neat to see all the apartments, beautiful mosques, and crazy streets. It was all very captivating. My host family has an apartment on the 5th floor. It is very nice and very spacious. The whole family is extremely hospitable and welcoming. They have made me feel very comfortable and safe. Because of Ramadan, we stay up very late. It is nice to be able to talk with my host family though. The sights and sounds of this place are amazing. I look forward to the adventures to come in the next 5 months.

Getting Ready

I started this blog, so I can record my trip and others can share in my experience. Back in April I found out that I had received a scholarship from NSLI-Y ( National Security Language Initiative for Youth). This program is designed to promote the understanding of lesser known languages and cultures. My language choice was Arabic and the program placed me in Egypt. I know hardly any arabic, but I look forward to the challenge of learning it. I will be leaving on August 26th. We have an orientaion in Washington DC and then we leave for Egypt on the 27th. I will arrive in Cairo on the 28th. We have an orientaion there and then we will be with our host families. I have talked to my host family. They are located in Giza. They seem like very nice people. Because they are traveling right now I will be staying with another host family for the first month. I do not know any information on them, I am am sure they are also very nice since they are opening their home to me. I am very excited about learning a new culture and language. There were will be lots of interesting things to learn and beautiful places to see. I know I will miss my family and friends greatly, but the opporutunitites and experiences will be well worth it.