Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Joining Hands with Egypt - Day 3

The Des Moines Presbytery's Hunger Action Enabler and Social Ministries Task Force Moderator Nancy Lister-Settle writes of her trip to Egypt, October 11-18, 2011.

It's not all work and no play here in Egypt. On Sunday, TFD Network Coordinator Nabil Sisostres, and his family took us to Ein Sukhna on the Red Sea for a day of relaxation. Rather, as much relaxation as you can have with two 4-year-olds!

Nabil, his wife Safi, mother Nana and twins Simon and Skylen entertained us at their beachside condo. And since Sunday is a work day for most Egyptians, we had the sands nearly exclusively to ourselves.

We walked the shoreline picking up seashells and pieces of coral. We basked in the sun on powdery soft sand. We inspected the jellyfish the kids found. We watched a constant parade of oil tankers on the horizon, heading for the Suez Canal. It was a delight. As the sun went down we celebrated Nabil’s birthday (a day late) with an Arabic birthday song and a trick candle that sent Simon and Skylen into fits of laughter. Safi’s cake was delicious!

The super highway between Cairo and Ein Sukhna is beautiful—in the median are giant Egyptian urns and pharaonic sculptures. The trucks and cars use separate roads. And the speed limit is 10 km/hr faster than any other road in Egypt!

Nabil and Safi thanked us for the day at the beach house—they seldom take the time away from home and work to enjoy it. We assured them that we would be happy to fly in anytime they needed a getaway. They thought I was joking.

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