Please make comments to this post with any lingering questions you might have about preparing for and teaching this summer in Egypt. I have made my own comments with answers to frequently asked questions already. Thanks! -aminah
Please plan to be in Cairo on June 10th. You are welcome to arrive early, but you may need to arrange your own accommodations before the night of June 10th. You can expect to begin at your teaching sites as early as June 14th.
Anything by Nagib Mahfouz, especially the Cairo Trilogy. I liked Sugar Street and have heard great things about Mindaq Alley.
I read Max Rodenbeck's 'Cairo The City Victorious before going, but wished I had read more about contemporary Cairo. I'd reccomend browsing news articles or the Egypt blogs or newspapers (in Program Addendum). If you're interested in politics or the refugee situation, searching the World Bank or UNDP Reports for some heavier reading would also be good.
Also, Deborah Manley and Sahar Abdel Hakim's Traveling Through Egypt is a compilation of travelers' tales from Egypt from the ancient Greeks to modern times. It's a good choice because you can hop around it instead of reading it cover to cover. In included the accounts of Ibn Battuta, Lucy Duff Gordon, or Gustave Flaubert and is interesting for tourists and people who want to live in Egypt alike. Similar to this book but not Egypt-centric is Alan DeBotton's Art of Travel, and it is simply fantastic.
The LE Egypt Pilot Program was launched by Stanford Alum Ahmed Ashraf after meeting the acquaintance of Jon Hill in Cairo during 2006. Jon is the founder of an NGO called Language and Mind Building (LAMB) that serves the community center at Saint Barbara's Church in Mar Girgis (Coptic Cairo). The first round of 5 volunteers taught at Saint Barbara's during summer 2007, facilitated by Kathy Rizzo (American University '08, former LE Indonesia volunteer). The 2007 team conducted extensive program development preparing the way for the 2008 volunteers who will serve in Cairo, Alexandria, and Minia under the supervision of Aminah Teachout (American University '08). Aminah is working towards extending the LE Program to serve refugee communities.
The 2008 Team
Christine DiPietro Daniel Smith Jacob Tower Julie Bailey Samantha Sutton Steve Titchner AmyAminah Teachout
LE Egypt Veteran Volunteers: Kate Dannies, Hiba Arshad, Ken Linnamen, Rachel Linn, Sharon Weintraub, Kathy Rizzo.
4 comments:
When do we need to arrive in Egypt??
Please plan to be in Cairo on June 10th. You are welcome to arrive early, but you may need to arrange your own accommodations before the night of June 10th. You can expect to begin at your teaching sites as early as June 14th.
Where will I be teaching??
Daniel & Steve, you'll be teaching in Minya.
Jacob, Samantha, Christine & Julie, you'll know upon arrival in Cairo whether you will be teaching in Cairo or Alexandria.
What's the weather gonna be like??
What should I pack??
Is there any reading that would be helpful before arriving??
Please review the Country Addendum that I emailed to you for this information. If you still have questions, post a comment on the blog or email me!
What's some good Egypt-related reading?
Anything by Nagib Mahfouz, especially the Cairo Trilogy. I liked Sugar Street and have heard great things about Mindaq Alley.
I read Max Rodenbeck's 'Cairo The City Victorious before going, but wished I had read more about contemporary Cairo. I'd reccomend browsing news articles or the Egypt blogs or newspapers (in Program Addendum). If you're interested in politics or the refugee situation, searching the World Bank or UNDP Reports for some heavier reading would also be good.
Also, Deborah Manley and Sahar Abdel Hakim's Traveling Through Egypt is a compilation of travelers' tales from Egypt from the ancient Greeks to modern times. It's a good choice because you can hop around it instead of reading it cover to cover. In included the accounts of Ibn Battuta, Lucy Duff Gordon, or Gustave Flaubert and is interesting for tourists and people who want to live in Egypt alike. Similar to this book but not Egypt-centric is Alan DeBotton's Art of Travel, and it is simply fantastic.
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