Sunny El-Minya

It was hot.
We arrived after 4 hours on a train with intermittent air-con and a somewhat liberal view of the arrival time... but it arrived and the seats were comfy.

The station was hot and muggy.
We met Evette on the station platform while Samia was inside speaking to the ticket office. After a quick hello and a chat about life we caught a taxi to the boat. I think all the locals were a bit surprised to see two westerners with full backpacks walking down to the river but at that stage my mind was full of the image of a nice quiet bed. At least for that night only I didn't notice the noise, the heat or the mosquitos. Just blissfully peaceful sleep.

The patio was sunbaked, glimmering in the heat.
Breakfast was interesting... After several attempts I managed to find something that I could eat. Over the course of the next few days Samia and ourselves sorted out the schedule, talked about the classes and even managed to persuade the police that we didn't need a bodyguard! Strangest letter I've ever written.

The city was a furnace, beyond hope or reason.
Out first lessons went smoothly or so I'd like to believe. It was quite scary to be back in front of a class again after a year on university lectures. There's something about all those eyes looking at you that can be a bit off-putting. But Samia was happy and it seems that neither me or Daniel are going to get kicked out so all in all I'm calling it a success.

The night was on fire, the rocks radiating heat like the final days of the world.
Last night the Egyptians decided that they would be extra loud. A boat parked outside my room and turned up the dial on the volume control. Word had been getting around the mosquito community about my arm and last night was happy hour. The fan in my room was fighting a losing battle against the heat. And yet depsite all of this I got the best night sleep since coming to Egypt.

Minya was hot.
Minya was Awesome.