A group of my students fresh off of the bus and eager to begin their day at the beach
Bridge crossing the sea at the Ein Al Soukna beach
Another view of the beach
Helen (2nd from left) and me (4th from left) with some of our students enjoying the view of the Red Sea
A jellyfish some of the kids were trying to catch
Close up of a jellyfish; it looks like a giant tongue
Samar and Emmie, two of my girls
Me (on left) and Mrs. Maha (4th from left) with a bunch of the girls getting ready to dance
Helen & I getting our groves on
Dancing with Menna, one of my students
Dance off with Mrs. Maha
In mid-November it was time for our first field trip with the school. The youngest children spent the day at a local farm, the children in the middle grades spent the day at an amusement park, and the oldest students, (including mine), got to take an all day field trip to Ein al Soukna, a little beach town about an hour and a half outside of Cairo. The students were all very excited to have a day at the beach, and they were even more thrilled when they found out I was coming with them. It isn't necessary for all of the teachers to attend the field trips, so many of them chose to have an extra day off instead of accompanying the students for the day. I, however, wanted the chance to get to know my students a little better outside of school and I couldn't wait to spend a day at the sea.
The buses were supposed to leave the school at 6:30 on the morning of the field trip, but in typical Egyptian style, they didn't actually leave until 8:00. There were 3 buses total, 1 for each class of students who were going, (Prep 1, 2 & 3), which held about 150 students total. I was hoping to get a little reading done on the bus ride there, but the students were completely wound up and they were not going to let me sit in quiet. There was a microphone on the bus, so they used it to amplify the sounds of the songs they had playing from their cell phones, and they danced and sang and carried on the whole way there. Their energy was contagious, however, and I couldn't help but smile at them.
Ein al Soukna is a small little town on the Red Sea that only consists of a few hotels and restaurants. Our field trip that day was at one of the hotels, and the field trip included access to the hotel's beach and swimming pools, lunch at their buffet, and a DJ and dancing for the students in the evening. When we arrived at the hotel, all of the female teachers had to accompany the female students to the changing area so that they could put on their swim suits, and the male teachers went with the male students. After everyone had changed, we went to the hotel beach and the students started swimming right away. The beach was right on the Red Sea and it was so beautiful; I was very happy to be seaside once again.
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Mhairi teaches Prep 1, but she wasn't there with her students that day because she wanted the day off instead, so Helen and I were the only English teachers there. The students really wanted us to swim with them, but I didn't think it was appropriate to be in a bikini around my 15 year old boys, so Helen and I spent most of the day watching the students swim, reading, and relaxing in the sun.
It was a wonderful day and I had so much fun watching my students swim and goof around with each other. A few of Mhairi's students got stung by a group of jellyfish because they were kept trying to catch them with their hands. Duh. There was a bridge that stretched from the beach to the sea wall, and at one point some of my students started screaming and yelling, "Ms. Sarah, Ms, Sarah...come quick!!!" I ran as fast as I could to where they were because I thought someone was hurt or drowning or something, but when I got to them they pointed at the sea and said, "Look, Ms. Sarah! Dolphins”! There were 3 dolphins that were jumping playfully in the water just a couple of hundred feet from where my students were swimming. I couldn't believe it! They stuck their little heads out of the water and smiled at us, splashed around a little, and then swam off.
After sunset, it was time for the DJ and dancing, and Helen and I went with the other female teachers & students to get changed for the evening. We had one large suite with 2 bathrooms and 2 bedrooms where the girls could take showers and get dressed. There were about seventy five 12-15 year old girls trying to primp and get ready all at the same time, and by the time they were done, I thought I was going to lose my mind! They were blasting music, laughing and talking hysterically about the boys, and they had curling irons and hair straighteners plugged into every single outlet. Helen and I decided to just sit out on the patio and wait for them to get ready because it was so noisy inside of the rooms I felt like I was behind the scenes at a teenage diva fashion show. I couldn't help but smile at how excited they were though, and I understood at that moment how my sister's and I probably drove our mom crazy when we were that age.
An hour and a half later, the girls were finally ready and we walked over to find the boys. The DJ was set up on a large patio area that was right outside of hotel's main restaurant. The boys had all changed as well, and they were waiting nervously around the dance area for the girls to arrive. I laughed when I saw them; they really are such good kids, and they get so happy whenever they get to wear their normal clothes around each other because they can only wear their uniforms when they are at school. In Egyptian culture it is taboo for girls and guys to dance with each other in public, whether they are teenagers or adults. If older girls want to go out dancing for the evening they can, but only with a group of girls. It is normal at weddings and other occasions where dancing is involved for the women to do line dances or group dances together, and for the men to do group dances as well. You will never see a couple slow dancing together or anything like that.
Anyway, most of the girls got out on the dance floor right away and started dancing together, while most of the boys just stood around and giggled and watched, although a few of the boys did get out and do a few line dances. I couldn't believe how good most of the girls could dance; they all had great rhythm and really got into the music. My students wanted me to dance with them, so they kept pulling me out on the dance floor and begging me to dance. I refused at first, but the DJ was playing really good music, so it wasn't long before I was shakin' my own groove thang. The DJ played a lot of Arabic music, so I was doing traditional raqs sharki, (oriental/belly dance), moves, just like my girls were. When they saw that I could dance like them, their mouths dropped open in amazement and they said, "Oh my God! Ms. Sarah!! You can really dance!" They all thought it was SO awesome that I knew Egyptian style dance, and they all started shrieking with amazement and taking pictures of me dancing. They all surrounded me and made me dance in the middle of them, which is very typical in Middle Eastern culture. Eventually the boys started coming up to us, because they wanted to see what all of the commotion was about, and when they saw me dancing they started shouting in encouragement. I got embarrassed that they were making such a fuss over me, so I left the dance floor after the song had finished and got something to drink at the restaurant.
When I came back out, Mrs. Maha, one of the women who works in accounting at the school and has a daughter in Mhairi's class, pulled me out on the dance floor with her and said, "Honey, you can dance; you're coming out here with me!" Mrs. Maha is a wonderful woman; she's very large and jovial, and she is always smiling. I couldn't say no to her invitation to dance because that would be seen as very rude of me, so I went back out and started dancing with her. Within seconds the students had surrounded us in a circle and were whistling and clapping and for us to keep dancing. After we had danced one song, I went to leave again, but I was stopped by the DJ who had come out onto the dance floor. He asked Mrs. Maha and I what our names were and after we told him, he started saying something very rapidly in Arabic into his microphone, and the students went crazy! They started shouting and screaming and jumping up and down and I had no idea what was happening. "What is going on?" I asked Mrs. Maha. She laughed and said, "The DJ has just announced that there is going to be a dance-off." "Oh, great," I replied, "that will be fun to watch." "No, Sarah," she said, "the dance-off is just between you and me. The DJ wants to see who can dance raqs sharki better, an Egyptian or an American." "Oh, no!" I said, "I don't want to, Ms. Maha." Then my students started pleading with me, "Come onnnnn, Ms. Sarah! Do it! You're soooo good! Come onnnn! You can win!" Two seconds later, I didn't have a choice in the matter, because the DJ had started the song, and Mrs. Maha and I were in the middle of the dance floor surrounded by a circle of 150 students clapping and whistling and yelling, "Ms. Sarah! Ms. Sarah!" in encouragement. So, I just went with it and gave it all I had. When the song was over, all of the students rushed up to us and started hugging us and dancing with us. The DJ never announced the winner, but I said the award should go to Mrs. Maha because she is a phenomenal dancer and the woman can really shake it.
The students and I had such a great time on the field trip and it really brought us closer together. I also got to know some of the students who are not in my grade and some of the other teachers from the school better too. I became somewhat of a celebrity at the school after that day because word travelled fast that there is an American teacher who has the heart and soul of an Egyptian dancer. The Egyptian people really like it when foreigners take an interest in their language and their culture, and many of the students and staff at the school were thrilled to find out that I know and listen to a lot of their music, and they also admire the fact that I am serious about learning Arabic and adapting to their culture.
It was a wonderful day and I had so much fun watching my students swim and goof around with each other. A few of Mhairi's students got stung by a group of jellyfish because they were kept trying to catch them with their hands. Duh. There was a bridge that stretched from the beach to the sea wall, and at one point some of my students started screaming and yelling, "Ms. Sarah, Ms, Sarah...come quick!!!" I ran as fast as I could to where they were because I thought someone was hurt or drowning or something, but when I got to them they pointed at the sea and said, "Look, Ms. Sarah! Dolphins”! There were 3 dolphins that were jumping playfully in the water just a couple of hundred feet from where my students were swimming. I couldn't believe it! They stuck their little heads out of the water and smiled at us, splashed around a little, and then swam off.
After sunset, it was time for the DJ and dancing, and Helen and I went with the other female teachers & students to get changed for the evening. We had one large suite with 2 bathrooms and 2 bedrooms where the girls could take showers and get dressed. There were about seventy five 12-15 year old girls trying to primp and get ready all at the same time, and by the time they were done, I thought I was going to lose my mind! They were blasting music, laughing and talking hysterically about the boys, and they had curling irons and hair straighteners plugged into every single outlet. Helen and I decided to just sit out on the patio and wait for them to get ready because it was so noisy inside of the rooms I felt like I was behind the scenes at a teenage diva fashion show. I couldn't help but smile at how excited they were though, and I understood at that moment how my sister's and I probably drove our mom crazy when we were that age.
An hour and a half later, the girls were finally ready and we walked over to find the boys. The DJ was set up on a large patio area that was right outside of hotel's main restaurant. The boys had all changed as well, and they were waiting nervously around the dance area for the girls to arrive. I laughed when I saw them; they really are such good kids, and they get so happy whenever they get to wear their normal clothes around each other because they can only wear their uniforms when they are at school. In Egyptian culture it is taboo for girls and guys to dance with each other in public, whether they are teenagers or adults. If older girls want to go out dancing for the evening they can, but only with a group of girls. It is normal at weddings and other occasions where dancing is involved for the women to do line dances or group dances together, and for the men to do group dances as well. You will never see a couple slow dancing together or anything like that.
Anyway, most of the girls got out on the dance floor right away and started dancing together, while most of the boys just stood around and giggled and watched, although a few of the boys did get out and do a few line dances. I couldn't believe how good most of the girls could dance; they all had great rhythm and really got into the music. My students wanted me to dance with them, so they kept pulling me out on the dance floor and begging me to dance. I refused at first, but the DJ was playing really good music, so it wasn't long before I was shakin' my own groove thang. The DJ played a lot of Arabic music, so I was doing traditional raqs sharki, (oriental/belly dance), moves, just like my girls were. When they saw that I could dance like them, their mouths dropped open in amazement and they said, "Oh my God! Ms. Sarah!! You can really dance!" They all thought it was SO awesome that I knew Egyptian style dance, and they all started shrieking with amazement and taking pictures of me dancing. They all surrounded me and made me dance in the middle of them, which is very typical in Middle Eastern culture. Eventually the boys started coming up to us, because they wanted to see what all of the commotion was about, and when they saw me dancing they started shouting in encouragement. I got embarrassed that they were making such a fuss over me, so I left the dance floor after the song had finished and got something to drink at the restaurant.
When I came back out, Mrs. Maha, one of the women who works in accounting at the school and has a daughter in Mhairi's class, pulled me out on the dance floor with her and said, "Honey, you can dance; you're coming out here with me!" Mrs. Maha is a wonderful woman; she's very large and jovial, and she is always smiling. I couldn't say no to her invitation to dance because that would be seen as very rude of me, so I went back out and started dancing with her. Within seconds the students had surrounded us in a circle and were whistling and clapping and for us to keep dancing. After we had danced one song, I went to leave again, but I was stopped by the DJ who had come out onto the dance floor. He asked Mrs. Maha and I what our names were and after we told him, he started saying something very rapidly in Arabic into his microphone, and the students went crazy! They started shouting and screaming and jumping up and down and I had no idea what was happening. "What is going on?" I asked Mrs. Maha. She laughed and said, "The DJ has just announced that there is going to be a dance-off." "Oh, great," I replied, "that will be fun to watch." "No, Sarah," she said, "the dance-off is just between you and me. The DJ wants to see who can dance raqs sharki better, an Egyptian or an American." "Oh, no!" I said, "I don't want to, Ms. Maha." Then my students started pleading with me, "Come onnnnn, Ms. Sarah! Do it! You're soooo good! Come onnnn! You can win!" Two seconds later, I didn't have a choice in the matter, because the DJ had started the song, and Mrs. Maha and I were in the middle of the dance floor surrounded by a circle of 150 students clapping and whistling and yelling, "Ms. Sarah! Ms. Sarah!" in encouragement. So, I just went with it and gave it all I had. When the song was over, all of the students rushed up to us and started hugging us and dancing with us. The DJ never announced the winner, but I said the award should go to Mrs. Maha because she is a phenomenal dancer and the woman can really shake it.
The students and I had such a great time on the field trip and it really brought us closer together. I also got to know some of the students who are not in my grade and some of the other teachers from the school better too. I became somewhat of a celebrity at the school after that day because word travelled fast that there is an American teacher who has the heart and soul of an Egyptian dancer. The Egyptian people really like it when foreigners take an interest in their language and their culture, and many of the students and staff at the school were thrilled to find out that I know and listen to a lot of their music, and they also admire the fact that I am serious about learning Arabic and adapting to their culture.
