May 20, 2003
Cairo

All of my missgivings and doubts about this trip were totally erased yesterday. I had one of the most incredible times of my life !! This was just such the right thing for me to do. I was afraid that I wouldn't like Cairo but it turns out to be just insane enough for me to love it. I met up with Anjie and Liz at our hotel and we went horsebackriding around the pyramids yesterday. We got taken to a guy's stable that he calls Desert Storm. I think it is a joke. Anyhow, it's a stable and a perfume shop and he served us lunch, dinner, and all the tea and cold hibiscus tea called karkade. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world as you can tell from this picture. I kept saying to Anjie and Liz yesterday that I totally cannot believe I am here. I have wanted to come here since I was in 6th grade so it is really a dream come true. There are so many things I want to do and paint, that I keep having to remind myself I have plenty of time - 3 months !!!!

After visiting the pyramids we went to Saqqara, the oldest pyramids in Egypt. They were actually much more interesting than the Giza pyramids, full of hieroglyphs inside whereas Giza had none that I could see. The inside of the Giza pyramids was rather disappointing actually, no art, antiquities or anything, just kinda small and cramped. But the insides of the Saqqara pyramids were just beautiful !! Giza pix and Saqqara pix

I asked Mohammed, the stable owner if he would hire me on as a stable hand in exchange for being able to race the horses around the pyramids everyday. He said maybe and asked what I could do. I said I can paint and dance. I tried to explain what fire dancing was to him but I think it's hard for people to understand it without seeing it. I want to fire dance by the pyramids !! Mohammed said he might be able to hook me up with an apprentiseship with an Egyptian artist. That would be so cool. He also told me I could buy a horse for $100. Can you believe that ??? I have always wanted my own horse !!!! I think I am really going to like this place. What if I don't want to go home ????