As a follow up on Cara's earlier post on our desert expedition, I'd like to talk a bit more about the nitty-gritty of the science!

Whales don't walk, silly!

Wadi al-Hitan (Valley of the Whales) is one of the major paleontological sites in the world for understanding the evolution of whales & their migration 40 million years ago from land into the ocean.

But Justin, I thought that life started in the oceans, then moved to land... why would whales go backward?

Well, yeah, life did start in the oceans, but mammals evolved on land, breathing air. First little rat-like things while the dinosaurs were around, which later evolved into the diversity of mammals we know today (and the ones that we knew earlier in the 20th century that are now extinct). But then there are all of the ocean mammals... whales, dolphins, manatees, seals... they must have evolved from land-based mammals.

Whales don't walk, silly! How could they do that with fins? -Lara

First, I have to apologize to the friends and family for neglecting my blogging responsibilities :) I've no real excuses, except perhaps that I've been working... on websites, as a substitute teacher, as a volunteer teacher, and on fellowship proposals for next year. So, without further ado...

There is a KFC around the corner from our flat where I sneak off for chicken sometimes (usually nights when Cara is studying late at the university). Though I try to avoid the likes of KFC, Pizza Hut, and McDonald's in favor of fuul, tamiya, and koshari, this KFC is different. I knew what to expect when I first went looking for it over a month ago because my mom tipped me off to it. She had heard about it from a co-worker in Budapest! What would make such a lowly KFC so popular?

It is entirely staffed by hearing impaired persons.

Ramadan has ended. For the past few days, we've been in the middle of the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr, three days of festivities celebrating the breaking of the fast. Many people compare its significance with that of Christmas in the United States, but it seems to me that a more reasonable comparison (in terms of cultural significance) would be to say that it is like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter rolled up into one, taking the religious significance of Easter, the food of Thanksgiving and the gifts of Christmas and the family focus of all three.

The night before the end of Ramadan, I met up with our friends Tim, Abigail, and a few others for drinks near the main commercial drag downtown. Walking down Talat Harb, Tim and I had to swerve our way through gobs of people buying clothes from all the sales at the shops.

Jsut bought a package at the store. I think its related to the apple, but Cara disagrees. She says that it's fibrous, starchy, crunchy like an apple, with a slight sweetness and the aftertaste of a potato.

Any ideas?

The other night, I met Cara at the US Embassy to catch a bus to the Citadel for an Iftar hosted by the Fulbright office. In addition to wonderful food, an incredible view, and good company, we also were treated to a contemporary-traditional puppet show and shadow theatre (of which I understood zilch), and some incredible Sufi dancing. Sufi dancing (aka whirling dervishes) is the signature of mystical sect of Sunni Islam. The dance is meant to bring the audience, through the dancers, closer to the creator. So there is lots of symbolism in the dance, for example, with the right arm raised toward the heavens and the left arm toward the earth, etc. Pictures below :) We also took some video, which I will clean up and post before long, too.