The first thing I want to write is about my Awesome Arabic lessons.
For those who are anticipating the wild egyptian adventures and stories about incredible people i met, your wait will prolong a lil longer.
My first lesson was at this place called the nile school or something very close to that. It was interesting rather than helpful.
we started with arabic alphabets which i've learnt more than 10 years ago. and saying that somehow makes me feel old. thus explaining the unhelpful bit of the lesson.
it was incredibly interesting because there were people from all over the world.
there were russians, about 6 of them.
a New Zealander.
Two British. Pakistani British.
I am the only Malaysian.
The two Pakistani looked about my age, maybe 1 or 2 years older but one has 3 kids, another has one. mmhmm married with kids.
Both were wearing burqa, and if you do not know what burqa is,it's hijab plus a piece of cloth that covers your face.
One of them, said she's been a muslim for quite some time but after her marriage and having a child, she got lazy. She can't even read the Quran, she has somehow very little knowledge of Islam, and just realised that she needed to start now. Yet she has already worn the Burqa.
I know this for a fact that not all people in Burqa are pious, or have extremely deep knowledge about Islam, but not many share the same knowledge, so here i am telling you, do not judge a book by its cover.
The New Zealander was so passionate about Islam which is not a surprise.
One thing that really interests me is when she said, she reads the Quran, and finds it amazing that what is said in the Quran is really happening around us today. which is incredibly true.
Like the fall of many western banks recently, Believe me or not,it is stated in the Quran, you just have to to read and understand it properly. i've yet to open the Quran and look. No worries, I will write more about this for those who are somehow in disbelief.
The Russians don't speak even a word of English so it was rather difficult to communicate with them. Most of them wore Burqa, but as they flipped it over their heads, they took out their pocket mirror and glanced at it every 5 minutes. Nevertheless,They were really beautiful people.
That's not even a quarter of the interesting people I met here.
I wouldn't compare myself to the boy in "into the wild" as I'm not lost nor am I looking for something I'm absolutely clueless about. But I would say it's a journey "into the rough" as there are many interesting things and people I learn from whilst living it roughly. ROUGHLY YES. Don't believe me? wait and see.
it's a true adventure and I'm glad it will still be for quite some time. From notoriously reckless drivers to beautiful mosques surrounded by brown dillapidated buildings. LOVE
p/s- whaddaya know, i did talk about people rather than my lesson.gawrshh
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4 comments:
so it is true that mega building project such as burj al arab dubai that is sky rocketing high as stated in the quran is what happening today and we are coming to an end .. how far will that be until another tower is built competing with each other .. gawsh! have fun there the weather must be icing hot! ;D
in some countries, burqa has become part of their mores, their culture.. and some time ago when taliban ruled afghanistan, they made it obligatory for women to wear burqas and if they didn't, they would get beaten out on the streets of their own house.. so, like you said, women wearing burqa are not necessarily pious, so to speak.
haha, and russians... you see beautiful women here everyday, either looking at their reflections in the mirror or touching up their make up every second. and surprisingly, i met a few russian muslims before.. 2 girls a few years younger than i am and an old lady.
anyway, i'm really interested in your travels.. tell us more about them!
just wondering though, what's the purpose of your travelling to egypt and london?
such a long comment. hope you don't really mind, hehe.
rashaad: it's actually kinda chilly here cos it's fall. they have 4 seasons here. only in the afternoons, the sun is scorching hot, but the wind is very the chilled..and yes the Quran is sorta like the prophecy, and that is an understatement..
Farah:omg thanks, you just added clarified the things i wanted to write but was worried it'd get too long. and you're right, it's more of a practice most of the time. DOnt worry, i'm here for a long time,there will be more adventures.
i actually decided to come to egypt cause i wanted to learn arabic. my sister is in her final year now(medic), so i thought why nott.plus it's not like learning in malaysia, people here converse the language, so it'll be easier/faster for me to grasp arabic.i'll write more details soon :) thanks for the lovely feedback
you just clarified**
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