Sailing to Edfu

July 29th, 2008

Salaam Alykom…today is July 29th, the halfway landmark of our trip. We began sailing to Edfu at 4:00 am during our trip to the world of snoozes, snores, and sleepy satisfaction. When we awoke, the buffet breakfast on board simply expanded from corner to corner with breads, fruits, and cheeses. Afterwards, we split into groups that either went for cooking lessons or Arabic lessons. Those of us who started with the Arabic lessons learned a variety of words ranging from “ana khywaisa” (I am good (f)) to “gameel awi” (very beautiful). As we finished laughing at our multiple mispronunciations, it was time for the one-on-one session with Mary Jean Eisenhower. We sat in a circle and individually answered a set of questions Ms. Eisenhower posed including “who are your friends…what can’t you live without…what is your passion…what advice would you give to Ms. Eisenhower?”. From this discussion, we learned more about ourselves and everyone than we knew before. Ms. Eisenhower enlightened the same vital fact about each of us: we are our own best friends, and we depend on others to bring out unique qualities in each one of us. Some of the pieces of advice that we shared with Ms. Eisenhower reiterated in similar statements of how it is better to drink tea versus coffee, how it is important to share what you learn with others, and how it is important to live your life to the fullest. We all came together through sharing knowledge, stories, and passions. Then, we marched directly towards our human instinct which was calling us through different aromas and flavors. Later, we switched groups and went to do cooking lessons. The Egyptian cooking lessons included the delightful and delectable dishes of Baba Ghanoush, Okra, and Om Ali Pastry. We finished savoring our last bites of the impeccable dishes, and left our eating workout for a mental workout.

Split into teams and armed with a single sheet of listed items, we competed to win not only glory but also our lives as we struggled to safely reach our mother spaceship from a foreign planet. (In case you are confused, this was from an problem-solving game called “Moon Expedition!”) After the winners were announced, we parted our ways to spend our free time in ways such as sunbathing or sleeping or drinking tea. The next stop was the Edfu Temple: the largest, most completely preserved Pharaonic-albeit Greek-built- temple in Egypt and the amazing Temple of Horus at Edfu. We all were simply blown away by the multiple columns, statues of Horus, and remains of colors found in various niches around the temple. Horus, omniscient throughout the temple, was the hawk-headed god, and the earliest state god of Egypt, who was closely connected with the king. Coming back from the wind and the warmth of the Temple, we gladly slumped into our chairs to enjoy yet another extraordinary buffet. Secretly, we tiptoed to the lounge to practice for the next day’s history test; we simultaneously whispered the secret passwords and entered a battlefield equipped only with the past history lessons that we previously learned which had actually made it through the intricate canals neatly situated in our brain. Through the game, we all relearned important facts of Egyptian history and revisited the ancient times. Sleepily, we trudged back to our rooms, and we peacefully slept knowing we would ace the History test.

-Tanushree Mondkar (La Canada, California USA Delegate)