So I realize we've been a bit MIA with this blog. We've been focused on recovering from jet lag, finding a flat here in Cairo, getting me set up and signed up for coursework with AUC (American University in Cairo), and making all administrative arrangements with Fulbright for the coming year. We've decided on a flat in Dokki which is a neighborhood on the west side of the Nile. Technically our city is Giza on this side, but we still feel like we're in Cairo. It is a more affordable neighborhood than Zamalek (the neighborhood on the island in the Nile, where a bunch of expats live and where I lived while attending AUC last time) and still easily accessible to the AUC downtown campus via the metro. Interestingly, Cairo has a great metro system put in by the French. I'm only two stops from Downtown, and one of the metro station exits at my destination is literally at the corner of the AUC campus. Some more affluent folks tend to advise against taking the metro as it is seen by some as a transportation method for the lower classes. I feel quite comfortable though, taking the metro. The women's car is always far less crowded and very comfortable for me alone. Right now, it's quite hot down in the metro stations. Really, really hot. But, I'm sure it will get better as the weather cools! Hopefully soon good gracious it's hot here. Humid. It's similar to temps in Phoenix, maybe a few degrees cooler. But holy cow it's humid and air conditioning is far less common. Anyways, finding a flat was a daunting task. We originally planned to walk around asking bowabs (doormen of a sort, they and their families live in the bottom of each apartment building, sort of a building manager, errand-man, etc.) whether there were any free flats int he building or in the area. We were moderately successful with this procedure, and holy cow I got plenty of practice with Egyptian Arabic. But we weren't quite happy with what we were finding, and I'm pretty sure as foreigners we were only being shown flats suitable for foreigners aka overpriced and fancier flats. With just the two of us we really only need a one bedroom or studio, but all we were being shown were two bedrooms. Granted, smaller apartments are less common in these middle-class areas as many different famiy members tend to live together with large amounts of people. We decided to swallow pride (and a desire to hold tightly to our money) and hired a broker. She was a hoot, Nelly, our broker. Always on her phone, changing the cassette tape while driving, rooting around in her bag for some piece of paper she desperately needs despite hurtling at breakneck speeds down narrow roads avoiding pedestrians... but she seemed pretty fair in her fee and was recommended to us by Fulbrighters in the past. We decided on a flat that is more expensive than we had hoped, but great for our needs, and only a five minute walk to both the metro station and a great grocery store and a great outdoor fresh fruit/vegetable market. It is a two bedroom, which feels excessive, but...we love this apartment! It's owned by an Egyptian man married to a French woman. They lived here with their two small children (now 13 and 11) until they bought a villa out in 6th of October (a fancy suburb of Cairo) about four years ago. I think that's why the flat is not decorated traditional Egyptian style (although I hate making generalizations about "typical" homes as life is so diverse here in Cairo depending on one's background). The flat is fully furnished, even kitchen supplies with a few plates, a few pots etc. Our landlord grew up in this flat and neighborhood, his mom and sister live in the building across from us (and will be collecting our rent checks for him), and our neighbor is an older woman (probably in her 60s-70s?) that he also grew up with. She was the fencing champion of the country in her day. We're hoping to get to know her better. Our landlord is really accessible and we've already called him with random questions quite a few times. They've said they will invite us over for iftar (breaking of fast during Ramadan) and I would really enjoy that but we'll see if it happens. The bowab lives literally just below our bedroom window and has like 8-10 children, adult children down to a baby. It's fun to hear the kids laughing and playing. I like living around families. Justin is happy with the apartment which is particularly important because he will be working from home remotely on web development projects. I will likely be studying alot here as AUC has moved most of it's campus out to the middle of the desert in New Cairo -- including the library, which used to be my study grounds. Hopefully we'll be making more friends soon and can begin having friends over for dinners, too! We're currently taking a few days between the hectic nervousness of flat-searching and the beginning of my coursework to relax and explore the area. We've not done any touristy stuff. I did it when I was here before, then again when I showed Justin around. We attended a local concert last week, recommended by a graduate of AUC that we met sharing a cab to Zamalek. I wish our friend had been able to make it (she was running errands and got delayed but we decided to go anyways). There were two concerts playing at the same place and I think we went to the wrong one. It was American pop songs performed by a singer and a piano. The set included a single rose sitting on the piano, and soft lighting. It felt like it should be four in the morning at a piano lounge after a crazy night. They played cheesy tacky love songs. Egpytians LOVE love songs. The more dramatic the better. In Arabic and in English. An all time favorite is Celine Dion. Hahaha it was fun to sit in a hall with a bunch of Egyptians singing along to classic American love songs. But I do wonder what the other concert was... hahaha I'm going to post pictures of our apartment below. Enjoy.