Update 25

On Sunday, we decided to check out other areas in or near Cairo. We headed for a large park marked on our map...of course Roger got us there...but the park was totally over grown, dilapidated & full of dogs & litter. What a shame!! Where do the almost 20 million people living in Cairo go to enjoy nature & open space?
On our walk back, we went by an enormous pink complex with spacious & manicured gardens. We just got a glimpse of it when the thick medal door opened to let someone out. We asked the guard about the complex and he said, "Police Night Club. For police only." Guess it's a fringe benefit for the policemen here!
Rog had studied the metro system & since Monica (American RE staff member) had invited us to visit her at the refugee community center she & her husband run, we headed there by metro.
The metro was quick, clean & not very crowded on a Sunday afternoon. We rode for about 40 minutes & got off near her center.
Monica had arranged for us to meet her at the only US restaurant around, KFC. It was a bit of a challenge to wade through the bustling market streets of this impoverished area, over the tracks & around a block...but we found it. We enjoyed a KFC meal while we waited. Two of their staff timidly asked for a picture with them. We do stick out as foreigners ...especially in this area.
Monica found us & we all climbed into a TukTuk which took us to their center. Two mattresses & a pile of lumber blocked the door. When we started to move them, a man (probably the one who owned the stuff) came to help.
Their center's goals are to empower the refugees and encourage & build positive relationships between the refugees from all countries. They teach life skills, provide activities & teach English.
We sat in on the English class Monica was teaching. She is a natural—though was only trained as an engineer. She asked for our input so Rog pulled out a balloon & we played a review game that went well. Then she splint the class into 3 groups & each of us spent time practicing reading. I was in my happy place!
I'm amazed that not only did Monica leave the comforts of USA behind but also now lives with her husband & two small children in such a poor area and spends her free time lifting up the refugees there. In her RE office there are many bible quotes about what Jesus says about helping other and the question, "What Would Jesus Do?" She knows and does it wholeheartedly !!
An image I will carry for a long time is of a young boy in torn shorts & no shirt sitting on the tracks fanning a small fire in the cool evening.

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Update 24

We teach around 20 students...mostly 18-23 yr olds...two days a week for 1/1/2 hours each. What a joy! Rog and I bounce the main teaching back & forth and add humor & jabs. We and the students laugh often. We teach Level 3 which means they can converse some with us but between their accent and use of grammar, we strain to understand bu there's progress each time we meet...both in them and us. We've also subbed in Level 1 & Level 8 so we've seen the range. It was good to get that perspective. The course was developed by Cambridge and the teacher's manual is much like many of the ones we've used before but with the ESL (English as Second Language) component added. Rog & I study and plan out the lesson so it flows well. The hour & a half flies by. As the students leave, each stops to shake each of our hands and say thank you teacher.
Did you ever stop to think how lucky we are not only to be born in our rich & bountiful USA...but to have English...our own language...the universal language? It's the language that so many people want and need to learn to be more successful!

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