GLOBAL SEMESTER
Whitefield, India

October 24, 1994

        Greetings from Whitefield, India. We are happily settled at
the Ecumenical Christian Center and we all love the tropical setting
and five delicious meals a day. Soon we will have to start making
choices rather than eating everything Ms. Poonama otters. This
morning five monkeys were cavorting/frolicking outside our
classroom. The students love feeding bananas to the monkeys who often
have a baby hanging around their waist. We feel totally safe at the
Center and feel no threat from the plague, which is dying out even in
the highly affected areas.

        For a while we doubted if we would ever make it to India
considering the plague threat, flight cancellation by Egypt Air,
prolonged stay in Cairo with a four hour delay in our Egypt Air flight
to Amman, Jordan, causing us to miss our 2 per week flight to
Delhi. After much negotiation at 11 :OOpm, we managed to get Egypt Air
to pay for our hotel rooms and meals until we could get another
flight. Initially we were told the next two flights to India were full
but somehow we managed to get on the flight in three days. Mac worked
hard trying to keep St. Olaf, the ECC and our agent in Delhi informed
of our fluid situation. This was a challenge as faxes cost $30 US for
a page and phone calls $10 per minute. Our hotel was near the airport
and 45 minutes from town so we organized a city tour and a day to
Petra which was fantastic. After a pleasant stopover in Jordan we left
the hotel at 5pm on Wednesday and finally arrived at ECC at 11 :OOpm
the next day. The students were cooperative and positive during our
Odyssey, and we love them. Corky J's luggage was lost between Cairo
and Amman and still hasn't been found but she is coping well.

Love,

Jackie Gimse

(Thanks to Molly & Tomomi for writing the latest update!)


GLOBAL SEMESTER
Student Letter

October 24, 1394
Whitefield, India

Hello all!

        We are now well into our semester of studying around the
world. After three intense weeks of tours and class in Cairo, we had a
day of R and R on the eastern coast of Egypt at the Red Sea. For just
a day we managed to escape the crowded Cairo streets and the all too
familiar Blue Room (locale for our class time) for some sand, sun and
FRESH AIR!

        Culture shock hit us the second we stepped off our plush tour
bus in front of the Cosmopolitan Hotel located in downtown Cairo. Our
senses were overloaded during our first night of exploring with
polluted air, dirty streets, honking horns and masses of people and
cars everywhere. The word "baksheesh" became familiar, constantly
reminding us to tip anyone and everyone who helped us. Women received
extraordinary attention from Egyptian men. How would you parents like
"100,000 camels" or "100 kilos of gold" for your daughter's hand? We
were also fortunate enough to witness an Egyptian wedding ceremony our
first night at the Cosmo; the bright lights, fancy dress and loud
music intrigued us all. They invited us to join in the celebration and
some accepted the offer. We decided to recreate the event for Ann's
wedding next summer.

        Despite some ailments and irregular bowel movements, we had to
start classes. Our first week opened with lectures at the American
University in Cairo on ancient Egyptian history and art given by
Dr. Kent Weeks. That, along with power packed Arabic lessons from
Madame Mona, quickly filled our minds and notebooks with knowledge.

        On Saturday, September 24th, we left on an early flight to
Luxor, an ancient capital city of the Pharonic period. Many people
explored the town while others took a faluka boat down the Nile River
and others enjoyed the hotel swimming pool. Basically, people just
relaxed. The next day we left early in the morning for the West Bank
of the Nile where we saw the mortuary temples of Hatshepsut and Ramses
II. After that we went to the Valley of the Kings where we explored 3
of its 64 tombs. Since the temperature in Luxor can reach 120 degrees
in the early afternoon, we chose to finish the tours early leaving the
late afternoon for shopping, tanning and swimming. The next day we
were awakened by the sound of rain...very unusual for Luxor. The
temperature also dropped 50 degrees so that it was more than
comfortable for the tours of the workmen's tombs of Dier al-Medi, the
mortuary temple of Ramses IV and the Nobels' tombs at Gorna. Because
of the weather and water flooded streets, people soon took advantage
of the time and napped. The rest of our time in Luxor followed a
similar pattern--the mornings were full of hot tours with a guide
calling "Hot chicken soup! Hatshepsut!" to get us to follow him to the
next place, and the afternoons were free time for shopping, exploring
or swimming. Some people discovered a British style pub called the
King's Head where Tomomi celebrated her birthday. The last night most
of the group took a carriage ride to the ritzy Jolleville Hotel, where
we ate the world's best ice cream and watched the red sun drop into
the Nile.

        Upon our return to Cairo from Luxor, we were awed by lectures
on modern Egyptian history and the Coptic Church given by Dr. John
Swanson. A bus tour of the city showed us how Cairo has developed in
the past centuries and opened our eyes to different socioeconomic life
styles. Any misconceptions of the Islamic religion were cleared up for
us in lectures and readings on the Koran and Islamic principles. The
art component of the trip continued with lectures from
Prof. Gimse. Student scholars did their best giving their reports at
the sights of the ancient pyramids, sphinx and tombs. Long-winded tour
guides often took the spotlight, but student reports gave needed
variety.

        When not bombarded with endless scads of knowledge,, the group
found ways to enjoy life in Cairo. Some played basketball with
students at the AUC to satisfy the desire for physical activity. It
not only burned off steam, but also was a great means of meeting other
students. Others chose to avoid the lack of clean air outside and
conquered the stairs of the Cosmo daily. When time permitted, groups
ventured into the unknown realm of taxis which took them, if they were
lucky, to museums, the symphony, the outdoor bazaar and the Cairo Zoo
- which is a story of its own. Let's just say that a large group of
Americans in the Cairo Zoo on a Muslim day off attracted more
attention than the animals. Among the gawkers and salesmen of Cairo,
we did manage to find some sincerity in AUC students. Many of us were
fortunate enough to have Thanksgiving Dinner a month early when one
student kindly invited the group to his home. We enjoyed an evening of
good food and conversation with an Egyptian family and students who
were eager is answer all of our questions. It ended in a sing-a-long
with tunes from both cultures.

        What's left to mention you might ask? Only our favorite
pastime...the search for food. We all can say we tried our hardest to
experience local culinary treats in a foreign country, and we did,
sometimes. Most like the inexpensive, yet satisfying, pasta dish of
koshari. Falaffels and siscal (Egyptian refried beans) were other
favorites. But most of us had a hard time turning down the familiars:
Pizza Hut, KFC and Arby's. Roy's, a hotel restaurant near by, offered
everything from nachos and tacos to cheeseburgers and fries. Everyone
will also admit to falling victim to Baskin Robbins' 31 flavors and
the many choices of ice cream easily accessible at the AUC
cafeteria. We suggested that instead of Prof. Gimse teaching a course
on comparative art of the world, we should study the comparative ice
creams.

        Leaving Cairo was an adventure. Egypt Air was not flying to
India, so we were rerouted through Jordan on Royal Jordanian Air to
New Delhi. Well, the plane to Delhi left without us. We ended up with
a three day stay in Amman, a beautiful, prosperous, clean and cool
country after Cairo. We spent a day at Petra, the "rosered city"
carved into sandstone cliffs around the 1st Century B.C. Remember when
Indy finds the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?
That's Petra, but it's much more beautiful in life than on the
screen. Some people spent the free day in Jordan wandering around
Amman while others ventured to the Dead Sea. Sonja and Kari
K. received a first-class Cur of Jordan with the family of Sonja's
sister's boyfriend, and, and Molly celebrated her 22nd.

        Our day-long layover in New Delhi was full of fascinating
sights and jetlag. We slept in the lobby of a 5-star hotel, visited
the enormous lotus-shaped Bahai Temple and lingered in a craft and
folk art museum. It was a relief to finally arrive at the ECC a little
more than 100 hours after we left Cairo - our transit time was longer
than the Gulf War! We are enjoying the clean air, beautiful flowers
and monkeys here in India. We're all looking forward to hearing from
you.

Love,

The Global Semester