Tom in Egypt // توم في مصر

Shift to Experimenthol

2011-02-16T18:21:00.003+02:00

FYI, doing most of my blogging these days here: http://experimenthol.com

Tom is in Egypt, see how he's doing

2011-01-27T23:27:00.000+02:00

Tomorrow could get rough in Egypt, there's a good chance the mobile networks will be cut and a possibility that the internet may cut out. I'm going to be posting regularly on Twitter and Facebook, here's my feed from Twitter: new TWTR.Widget({ version: 2, type: 'profile', rpp: 4, interval: 6000, width: 250, height: 300, theme: { shell: { background: '#333333',

Zuckerman: A wider world, a wider web

2010-07-18T22:11:00.001+03:00

I desperately wish I had time to write about this - maybe next May I'll catch a break. A stunning talk from TED Global last week about social interaction online, and the role of translation and curation in giving us a broader picture of things. Watch it. Just watch it.

What is Meedan?

2010-07-12T19:20:00.000+03:00

Just for those of you who wonder what it is I do in my spare time, here's a nicely written explanation of Meedan by my colleague Mohammad Kayali for the Meedan Blog, translated by yours truly (see, I can still do Arabic!) Is Meedan a news site? Tech related? Or a social network?Many people have questions about what Meedan really is, both as a website and as an organization. Visitors are often

Same old England?

2010-06-27T20:04:00.002+03:00

I'm afraid this post contains expletives. Not about the football, mind. The football scarcely merits comment, except to say I've never seen an English defence made to look so porous. English football fans are notorious around the world for their despicable conduct. For some reason it brings the worst out of us, as a nation. I'm lucky enough only to have witnessed such behaviour on a handful of

Egyptians take to the streets in protest against police brutality

2010-06-27T00:37:00.001+03:00

Here's my latest piece for Meedan on HuffPo, I'm pasting it here in its entirety as I think it's a pretty important event - check out the photo linked below (not the one in the actual post) and on my Facebook. It's good to finally see ElBaradei getting his hands dirty as it were and actually standing alongside Egyptians in protest: judging from the shrill tone of the Gomhoreyya piece below I

World Hold On

2010-06-16T00:40:00.000+03:00

I am still here, in case anyone was worrying. Work is going well, and as ever there's plenty to do - updates for the by now mercilessly neglected Tom in Egypt have thus fallen off the wagon. A few things to check out: The Arab-West Report website is slowly but surely making progress - check out the couple of YouTube videos we have posted along with TopNews items, courtesy of new intern Bill

More "normalization" madness

2010-03-01T23:58:00.001+02:00

Just got home and found a rather annoying story via my Google Reader (I know it's 11:14 pm, I was only chatting this weekend with Son of a Duck about how compulsive Google Reader can become.) Here's the headline: Egypt journalist’s 25 Israel visits stir debate Hussein Serag, photo from AlArabiyya In most countries of the world, journalists stick together to battle against governments for

Baheyya is back

2010-03-01T00:39:00.000+02:00

When time is short (and often when it is not), writing is the first thing to fall off the bandwagon. This week has been fraught with deadlines and extra Meedan shifts to catch up for my "time off" with Lucy, and hence my silence on the ElBaradei return. Happily there are many other, much better qualified bloggers doing some truly sterling work. Via The Arabist (who himself posted one of the best

Meedan goes live!

2010-02-22T20:59:00.001+02:00

Exciting news today - Meedan has taken off its beta wheels and launched an awesome new site. It really is beautiful, you simply have to check it out: For anyone with an interest in Arabic, the Middle East, or even just current affairs, I'd thoroughly encourage you to sign up. Meedan is, and is going to become, a really great place to discuss fascinating subjects and share news stories with

El Baradei returns

2010-02-19T15:54:00.003+02:00

I really wanted to post on this before the event - now it looks like it will have to wait - but Mohammed ElBaradei, Nobel laureate and former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), is set to return to his native Egypt in the next couple of hours. Mohammed ElBaradei courtesy of Flickr user Myglesias There's not really time to explain the full story here, but basically ElBaradei is

New additions to the wall of fame

2010-02-15T22:29:00.000+02:00

For those of you who haven't already checked out my blog roll, have a look at these new additions: Qifa Nabki - A Lebanese political blog (awesome comment on Lebanese politics) Emad Maher's Photoblog - beautiful, beautiful photos from Alexandria Hummus Nation - A humourous take on Lebanese affairs Al-Masri Al-Yum - From the creators of Boursa Exchange, a Cairo food blog with a genius title

Guests, work and some Huffington Post

2010-02-15T21:56:00.000+02:00

With February rushing headlong into March, it's about time to return to Tom in Egypt once again. I've been back for close to six weeks now, and it's been a happily busy and chaotic spell in a colder-than-usual Cairo. As soon as I arrived back from Luxor and managed to squeeze the money I was owed out of the various delightful publishing houses I used to work for, I began work in earnest at the

Kolena Laila, Ana Laila

2009-12-28T23:47:00.000+02:00

Statistics statistics statistics. Here are a few for you, about the situation of women in Egypt (from Human Rights Watch): In 2000, the last year for which statistics are available, an estimated 56 percent of adult Egyptian women were illiterate as compared to 33 percent of adult men.1 Women’s health and lives continue to be jeopardized in Egypt by harmful customary practices such as female

Hutch up and let it snow

2009-12-27T23:01:00.001+02:00

Merry Christmas one and all! I'm writing from Manchester Airport (where there is, predictably, no free wireless) on my way home to Egypt. Delayed again. It's been a fabulous week-and-a-half of fantastic food, good wine (finally) and – most importantly - thoroughly excellent company. My first couple of days involved trying to catch up with some old friends, who were on fine form as always. I

Snow in Saddleworth

2009-12-20T13:44:00.000+02:00

A few photos (on the camera phone) of snow falling in our garden, Saddleworth. Pretty eh?

Festivity and festive-ness

2009-12-18T13:27:00.001+02:00

For those of you who are technologically astute, and have no qualms with following me on that most often pilloried of fiends Twitter, you will have noticed that but days before my homecoming I "tweeted": Home in 4 days, I dearly hope Blighty is suitably festive. (For my American audience, "Blighty" is how us Brits tenderly refer to Britain when given occasion.) Well, it appears that someone,

On the way home

2009-12-15T03:13:00.000+02:00

To think it's been six months and five days since I arrived again. It hardly seems possible. Lots has happened, plenty been learned, and - I feel - a fair amount achieved. As my writing has dried up of late, I'm sure I have plenty to fill you in on. Alas, now is not the time. It's almost 3am, and Cairo airport is pleasingly quiet. Perhaps all the flying I've been doing in the last 2 years has

Happy Turkey, Sheep and Cow Day!

2009-11-27T17:58:00.001+02:00

Seasonal greetings from Cairo: "Happy Thanksgiving" to those Americans amongst you (yes yes, for yesterday I know), "Eid Mubarak" to my Muslim readers, and a mixture of the two for those who are lucky enough to be both! This year Thanksgiving and Eid al-Adha have fallen in the same week, so there are plenty of festivities and a nice couple of days off work. I have to confess to being something

The Genius of Orham Pamuk

2009-11-23T00:04:00.001+02:00

I like reading. Slowly, deliberately, thoughtfully. Fiction, more often than not, although that's something that is steadily changing as I learn to greater appreciate the subtleties of travel writing and memoir. Last summer in Tucson, during one of my many visits to the Aladdin's cave of used books and CDs that is Bookman's whilst waiting for Andrea to finish her physiotherapist appointment, I

Rioting in Zamalek

2009-11-20T12:22:00.003+02:00

It appears that the title of my last post was wistfully inaccurate. I've only just seen this and spoken to Clarabelle (a Zamalek resident), so I'm perhaps not best placed to comment at the moment, except to say that this has shocked me almost to the point of disbelief. Here are some pictures from Khaled Zohny's Facebook page (apologies in advance for any copyright infringement): This,

"Achievement brings its own anti-climax"

2009-11-19T16:18:00.000+02:00

You could hear the party going on in Boursa from streets away. Hundreds upon hundreds of people in eager anticipation of Egypt's return to the international football elite and the chance to see their side in action against the world's best. An hour before the match, there wasn't a spare seat to be found and the noise was simply deafening - typical football songs through mixed with chants with a

Tel3aboo meen?

2009-11-18T17:21:00.000+02:00

Back in Cairo after a great time in Karachi, and the football fever that was ubiquitous on my leaving has only intensified on my return. Sunday night witnessed a huge game here in Cairo, one that I sadly missed, with Egypt scraping the 2-0 win they needed against Algeria, forcing a play-off in a neutral venue. That game is tonight, and right now the tension and excitement here are tangible.

Twittering away from Pakistan

2009-11-10T11:18:00.006+02:00

Here's my plan for keeping updated regularly from Pakistan. I should be able to update the below feed via mobile phone, so check back here and there should be at least daily updates displayed. Welcome to the wonderful world of Twitter. new TWTR.Widget({ version: 2, type: 'profile', rpp: 10, interval: 6000, width: 'auto', height: 300, theme: { shell: { background: '

Not before time....

2009-11-08T13:25:00.000+02:00

As I've written many, many times before on this blog; Once you stop writing, even for a week or two, it gets very difficult to get back into it. The longer you leave it, the longer the list of things you have to write about gets. It becomes a daunting task. Without further ado... First things first, and with updates demanded from parents, grandparents and even members of the Twitterati: The

Civilización y barbarie

2009-09-26T13:19:00.000+02:00

Egypt has surprised me on a fairly regular basis over the time I’ve lived here. Rarely, though, have I been left in such a state of near-disbelief after hearing a story as I presently am after reading of the ordeals of a fellow Manchester student, Sarah, and her friend Katie – just arrived in Egypt making the same journey to Alex as I did a little over two years ago. Only a few weeks ago we

Tough life for bloggers in Egypt

2009-09-21T17:33:00.001+02:00

My piece today on Bikya Masr announcing the launch of a new legal paper by the ANHRI. Just reading the title, and writing it on my own blog, makes me think about the difference between bloggers and "bloggers" as previously commented on in the Travis Randall article. I, of course, do not include myself as a blogger as I am discussing in the piece. Life can be tough for bloggers in Egypt. The

Eid Mubarak!

2009-09-20T15:00:00.000+02:00

I just wanted to take a quick opportunity to say Eid Mubarak to Tom in Egypt readers! Yesterday was the last day of Ramadan and today is the first, and biggest day of Eid al-Fitr celebrations. I won't go into the religious traditions of the celebration, Wikipedia has a thorough entry on the feast that's worth a read if you're interested, but it suffices to say that it's a very big deal here in

New pieces on Bikya (including AUC cancelling classes)

2009-09-16T15:38:00.000+02:00

Here are links to a couple of new pieces I've written and had published on Bikya Masr. Egypt: Kefaya distances itself from Gamal supporter (15/09/2009) CAIRO: Egypt’s Kefaya opposition movement has distanced itself from remarks made by founding member, Dr. Hany Anan. Speaking on Egyptian television channel O-TV last week, Anan stated that he would support Gamal Mubarak, the son and likely

Housekeeping and a facelift

2009-09-13T17:02:00.000+02:00

A few weeks have gone by since my last proper (or improper?) entry, so I'm sure I have lots to tell you. Where were we? Ah yes, on the train from Alex to Cairo. The week following my return to Cairo was filled with copy editing all over the city and interspersed with Meedan shifts and the start of some exciting online community development work there. It also saw the start of Ramadan, which is a

Bibi comes to town

2009-09-12T17:11:00.000+02:00

Here's a piece published today on Bikya Masr. I'll carry on pasting stuff into here, but I'd really recommend you have a look over at BM - particularly if you're interested in current affairs in Egypt.Bibi comes to townIt’s been a busy couple of days for Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman. Last week he held talks with Khaled Meshaal, the exiled leader of Hamas, where apparent progress was

If I’m an international rugby player, Travis Randall must be a blogger and activist

2009-09-09T17:43:00.000+02:00

Here's a post published today on Bikya Masr, about an American refused entry at Cairo airport last week.When I tell people I’m an international rugby player, they take a second glance. “Surely not?” I see flash across their eyes as they assess my less than athletic physique. I’m no Jonah Lomu, but it’s true. Well, sort of. I’ve played rugby for an international team? Well, sort of. I’ve played

The madness of a minority

2009-08-31T13:57:00.000+02:00

This morning as I browsed through the feed of the people I follow on Twitter, I was saddened to stumble across this: @monaeltahawy "got my 1st death threat. Someone angry at my Wash Post oped on Yale + Danish cartoons. His email has been passed onto the law enforcement."Mona is a well known and respected writer and speaker on Arab and Muslim issues whose articles are published in English and

A journey from Alex to Cairo

2009-08-22T16:23:00.000+02:00

The train from Alex to Cairo is usually a very pleasant affair. By far the best way to get between the two cities, the gas powered Turbine train can make the 208km journey in just under two and a half hours, whilst passengers in both first and second class enjoy wide reclining seats and powerful air conditioning. At 35 LE for second class and 50 LE for first class, the train provides an

Back on the beach in Dahab

2009-08-16T12:29:00.000+03:00

After spending a few quiet days outside Nuweiba on a beautiful sandy beach (Softbeach, last post), we decided that it was really getting a little too warm to be sleeping without AC and headed to Dahab - Sharm's slightly less tacky and quiter little sister an hour or so up the coast. Dahab is a wonderful little town. Yes it's touristy and yes some things are a little more expensive than they would

A new apartment and a working holiday

2009-08-10T15:45:00.000+03:00

For the first time since arriving in Egypt, I now have reliable access to wireless in my place of residence. Gone are the days of sharing a cable so worn that it has to be combined with a screwdriver to connect to my laptop. Andrea and I have, after much to-ing and fro-ing over the decision, moved to a new apartment. Charming as the old place was, the noise from the "samkaree" on the street below

One blog entry to order

2009-07-26T21:52:00.000+03:00

Mum’s turned the screws again re: the lack of blog entries, so here we go. It’s been a busy couple of weeks here in Cairo, which after the lazy first few weeks I spent here makes a nice change! I’ve been flitting around Cairo looking for more work and good experience with some success – I’m now copy editing for two publishers and a total of 6 magazines (after a recount) – as well as working

One month in....

2009-07-08T13:53:00.000+03:00

It's been an exciting, busy, tiring, stressful, fun, chaotic, excellent first month back here in Egypt. Four weeks have flown by and I feel like I've been here forever, and as a result of my ever increasingly busy schedule I've not posted an update for a little while. After spending a little while sitting on my hands, cleaning the flat and generally not doing very much - much needed after a busy

On the balcony watching bread

2009-06-22T15:48:00.000+03:00

One benefit of all this sitting and waiting for people to respond to emails or to call back is that I have a lot of time to read, write and wander the streets.Sat out on the balcony, I try to make sense of the complex process of buying and selling government subsidised bread that is taking place outside the wooden shack on the street below. It's relatively quiet right now, with only 15 or so men,

Bring on the USA

2009-06-19T16:07:00.000+03:00

Just a quick post today, in honour of Egypt's masterful mauling of Italy last night. Watched the game with the CASA kids in Gad (budget kebab and kofta chain) Maadi, the place went crazy at the final whistle after an outrageously tense final 15 mins, where Hadari kept Egypt's hopes alive. With performances like that against Brazil and Italy, should have no problem brushing aside the US and

Back Online

2009-06-18T14:10:00.000+03:00

Great news: at long last we have in-flat internet! It's not an ideal situation (running a 30ft cable from the landlord's flat through our window) but the exhausting routine of trekking around 4 or 5 internet and wireless-capable cafés is finally over. This also means that I can once again return to Tom in Egypt, as for the past few days whenever I've been near an internet connection I've been

Apartment pictures

2009-06-15T14:42:00.000+03:00

Here are some photos of our place, though I'm not sure they really do it justice.Also, some housekeeping. If you're viewing this site on Internet Explorer then you won't be enjoying TomInEgypt in all its glory. Who knows why but IE pushes everything on my sidebar to the very bottom of the page. This is the most important of many reasons to switch to Firefox or Chrome ASAP! If you have a Gmail

The best part of going to Carrefour...

2009-06-13T16:34:00.000+03:00

..is leaving, and the view of the beautifully lit Citadel by night on the way home. I’d naively forgotten the nature of the Carrefour beast and was actually looking forward to the trip in the taxi on the way there. Initial excitement fast evaporated as I saw the ant-like hordes entering the mall and flocking towards the hypermarché. After an exhausting hour or so hunting for things for the flat

Going Downtown

2009-06-13T16:32:00.001+03:00

Nouredin = Hero. Two long afternoons trailing round in mid-afternoon heat finally paid off as we found an excellent little flat 10 minutes walk from Andrea’s bus stop that is excellently air conditioned and generally very homely. It’s in a really great part of town that is very Egyptian – we live in front of a subsidised bread stand and above a makeshift coffee shop – but that is also not too

The First Few Days...

2009-06-11T12:56:00.000+03:00

After taking a couple of days to enjoy Cairo and kosharee the exhausting search for an apartment is now well and truly on. As previously mentioned, the dirty Americans at the AUC have swine flu (although there are now some unconfirmed rumours on Twitter that there has been a first Egyptian infected) and her classes were cancelled until Monday, which means she can help look for a place. We visited

Returning to Egypt

2009-06-09T13:37:00.000+03:00

This update is being written from Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport – an oddly designed bike wheel shaped place with a landing runway so far from the terminal I could swear we were in France – which, yet again, has no free WiFi access. Astonishing. The journey thus far has been pleasant enough and I had enjoyed a long morning with my family before I set off buying last minute essentials such as

Packing up and moving on

2009-06-05T13:37:00.000+03:00

With just three days until I leave, the time has come for me to pack up my belongings and my memories from my student life here in Manchester. Trying to fit a life into 20kg of suitcase is outrageously tricky and there's something very surreal about sorting things in order of importance, usefulness and weight. As you pack you have to remain almost as an outsider looking in on your life, objective

Blog Roll

2009-05-26T20:39:00.004+03:00

Here are sites and blogs I read regularly and would recommend to anyone, particularly those interested in Egypt or the Middle East. Bikya Masr - breaking through the clutter of Egyptian news SON OF A DUCK - an orientalist's observations in Egypt The Arabist - a website on Arab politics and culture Syria News Wire - fresh, independent news from the streets of Damascus and beyond Informed

About Tom "El-Rumi" Trewinnard

2009-05-11T01:52:00.006+03:00

Tom Trewinnard is a graduate of the University of Manchester (Middle Eastern and Modern European Languages) currently living in Cairo, working as English Language Editor of the Arab-West Report, Meedan.net content producer, contributor to Bikya Masr, freelance copy editor, and English teacher. "El Rumi" refers not to the poet but to the pepper, my stature apparently suffering by comparison to

Home at last...

2008-06-01T15:53:00.001+03:00

So, here endeth my Egyptian blogging adventure. A journey that started 9 months and 25 posts ago has come to its end. Where to go from here?I arrived back in the UK safe and sound, being picked up by Kit and Elli and whisked to the nearest pub for some pork and some proper beer. This week has worked out really nicely; I got to spend last weekend with Kit and Elli, the week with my family and my

A Rushed Goodbye

2008-05-25T16:54:00.000+03:00

Sat in Grand Cafe, I’m watching the sun set over Bahari for the last time. My Egyptian adventure is finally coming to an end, this is the final Egyptian update of the blog. At the moment it’s hard to imagine that the year is already over, that I will be in London this time tomorrow, and that I don’t know when I will return here. It’s a question often asked amongst the students living here, do

Just give me coffee and TV

2008-05-11T15:11:00.000+03:00

Over a month has gone by since my last effort, I’ve travelled between three continents and I’m now back where I finally started. Writing has been tough, partly because of the travelling, partly because the last thing I wanted to do in Tucson was write, partly because since I finally got back I’ve been spending most of my free time in Alex on the beach. I know I’ve said this before, but once you

A White Mughal

2008-03-28T13:13:00.000+02:00

Sat in Lahore airport using the free internet (anyone reading from European airport take note) to write my final update before I'm back in Karachi. Now I know this could mean an unprecedented 3 updates in 5 days, but what can I say? You have to give the people what they want... Mughal decoration in Lahore fortI left you after wandering round "old" Karachi, and after writing the last entry

All is not quiet on the Eastern Front

2008-03-26T15:09:00.000+02:00

So, after Michael's latest extended bumper edition I'm going to try and keep it brief and succinct. More about my first few days in Karachi when I get back there on Friday (update due on Saturday), for now it's going to be about Lahore.What a city. We arrived this morning on the 8 o'clock flight and checked into the luxury of the Pearl Continental (Google it, you'll see what I mean. No more 10

The Last of the International Playboys...

2008-03-22T15:14:00.000+02:00

is how my AS-Level politics teacher described me with dismay as he wrote my dismal attendance on my mid-term monitoring, referring to trips to Barcelona, Iceland, France and New York. Incredibly fortunate as I have been to travel in my 21 years, the next couple of weeks are going to be the fullest embodiment of this title. Yesterday (I think) I left Alexandria on the airport bus at 12.00 noon,

Being and Becoming 21

2008-03-17T17:18:00.001+02:00

Being 21 allows me to:Adopt a child. Supervise a learner driver if you have held, and still hold, a full licence for that type of car for at least three years. You can apply for a provisional licence to drive a large passenger vehicle. Obtain a flight navigator’s licence, a flight engineer’s licence or an airline transport pilot’

Cider and Women

2008-03-09T17:19:00.000+02:00

So, as the more observant amongst you may have noticed, my latest update has been somewhat delayed. The last couple of weeks have been long and exhausting and the hardest I’ve had in Egypt, but in order to tell the full story I have to go way, way back to Some Time Before Christmas and introduce you to someone who, until now, has only had fleeting references in this blog (for reasons I with

It Never Rains but it Pours

2008-02-18T16:01:00.000+02:00

Sat in my lounge I am well wrapped up, fully dressed, in my sleeping bag wearing an "Ice Cap" as they're known over here - a beanie to the rest of the world. I have no idea how it is this cold here. The wind is literally whistling through my flat making my music barely audible. I remember a few weeks ago sitting on a beach in Sharm on the 3rd of January, and now I don't even want to go outside.

بص, شوف, مصر عملت أيه

2008-02-10T15:19:00.000+02:00

So, about two weeks later than expected, here's the word from Egypt (Present in red):As you may remember from my last post, I was about to embark on my first trip to the Suez Canal. Here's what I wrote to update my blog whilst I was there. It might sound crazy - I certainly didn't believe it - but when I got back from Ismailia Egypt was in the midst of an internet blackout after an unwitting

No One Sleeps in Alexandria

2008-01-25T16:35:00.000+02:00

3 exams down and one to go, I'm back at Porto to use the internet and in a desperate and ultimately unsuccessful attempt to watch Spurs vs. United in the cup - BBC says 1-1 at half time. The first 3 exams all went fairly well although they were much harder than the last set, I'm confident about the Egyptian oral tomorrow though and then we have a week off (odd only two weeks after our winter

The Circus Comes to Town

2008-01-04T15:28:00.000+02:00

Yes, the long awaited, eagerly anticipated visit of my family has drawn to a close. They arrived on the 20th of last month in the ever hectic madness of Cairo where I waited with open arms and a big taxi to transport them to the understated luxury of the Delta Pyramids Hotel. So understated was the luxury, in fact, that to the less observant of us the hotel may have appeared somewhat shabby and

Backwards Compatibility

2008-01-03T18:44:00.000+02:00

There is a new update imminent, I have it all typed out and perfectly ready however the computers in this internet cafe (Cyber as they're known here) are not as high tech and up-to-date as mine and can therefore not read my beautifully crafted prose. Good things come to those who wait.Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, watch this space!Tx

No news is good news...

2007-12-16T18:41:00.000+02:00

Painfully aware that I have long since lost my routine of blogging and that I have broken promises of news written for all to see only a few paragraphs below, I have decided to return to the fold with an end-of-term Christmas cracker. Sadly the drama will be neither thrilling nor intense, it’s just going to be a longer than usual episode. I don’t really have an good excuses as to why it’s been

The Stubborn Lady of Pompey's Pillar

2007-11-03T20:53:00.000+02:00

Today, after many weeks of making little effort to see the few sights Alexandria has to offer, a few of us ventured out to Kom Ashuqafa to see the Roman catacombs (discovered, incidentally, by a donkey which fell through the land above into them) which were built in the second century AD. The landmark is located in one of the poorest areas of Alexandria, and perhaps the poorest area of Egypt I

All Quiet on the Egyptian Front

2007-10-29T23:56:00.000+02:00

Back from Dahab after a long and uncomfortable journey on a minibus with a shouty policeman and a driver who had never been to and had no idea where Alex was. 9 hours of unadulterated fun. Once again I feel I must apologise for the lack of photos. I'm all too aware that I'm getting textually heavy and after some criticism about my style (mainly from my own dearest mother) I would have liked to

Adrift on the Red Sea

2007-10-21T17:42:00.000+02:00

Thursday afternoon saw the end of our first real set of exams, which passed without event. Seeing as we had a whopping 10 day break, a group of 8 (it's always 8, but never the same 8) decided the destination of our next jaunt would be the hippy backpacker town of Dahab on the eastern coast of Sinai, and 'tis from there that I write the latest update to the TomInEgypt saga.10 hours overnight on

Better Late than Never

2007-10-08T13:54:00.000+02:00

So, after some chastisement regarding the infrequent of late nature of my postings, I have returned to the fold of TomInEgypt.blogspot.com to bring a clearly long-awaited update to how things are going.Looking back at my last post rugby seemed to be something of a leitmotiv, so an update on the progress of my late blossoming career may be appropriate. After two very different training sessions

3 1/2 Weeks in...

2007-09-23T20:35:00.000+02:00

Maybe I've said this before, but it feels like I've been in Alex for ever! One full week of Uni has flown by, and I've been hugely impressed with the teaching here, if less than enamored with 09.00 starts every day. The schedule also feels fairly intensive at times, but I've already noticed an improvement in my rusty Arabic which has been almost untouched since I finished in Manchester in May.

Dont't Look Back in Anger

2007-09-17T08:37:00.000+02:00

After starting Uni on Monday, we were hit with a fantastically difficult "placement" exam on Wednesday, which left us with a long weekend from Thursday to Sunday, and an ideal opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and head somewhere more exotic: Siwa Oasis.Siwa Old TownSiwa is a 7 hour bus journey from Alex, so we arrived at 11ish after setting of following the aforementioned

The Eye of the Storm

2007-09-09T19:02:00.000+02:00

Wow, I can't believe that it's only been a week since I arrived in Alex, many apologies for a lack of communication - I really didn't want to post without being able to put up a few pics of here and Cairo and the internet has been fairly scarce thus far (at the moment I'm stealing some bandwidth from some unsuspecting neighbour). There are really too many stories to tell, so I'll just give a

هل وصلنا؟ - A quick posting from Alex

2007-09-01T16:52:00.000+03:00

Hello all, we've just arrived in Alex after an excellent two days in Cairo, I have lots to tell and all will follow along with some photos of the journey and Cairo and perhaps some from Alex. Just to say I've arrived safely with everyone and the journey, whilst at times hectic and somewhat stressful, generally passed without incident. And I've spoken some Arabic. More soon, hopefully I'll find a

The Calm Before the Storm

2007-08-29T22:53:00.001+03:00

So, the night before the day that follows. Before I begin, perhaps some context. Last weekend was strange and hard, if not unanticipated, as the metrics of the classic Spice Girls hit “2 become 1” were reversed and I now have one girlfriend fewer than I did this time last week (a present total of 0 before any smart-arse wisecracks :) This may, or may not, explain a slightly more reflective

T-Minus: Just over a week

2007-08-21T20:43:00.000+03:00

Wow London is tiring! 5 days left down here, just booked my return ticket, no first class luxury this time, after a month living the fast life in super-cool clubs and restaurants I've opted for the humble comfort of Economy. The last four weeks have been eye-opening and have certainly given me something to think about re: a career. I've also met some ace people who, fingers crossed, I'll manage

The Next Step

2007-07-29T11:39:00.000+03:00

So I'm reliably informed by my beautiful Facebook Countdown application that it is precisely 31 days 23 hours and 18 minutes until I bid "Adieu" to this green and pleasant land, and it seems like an appropriate time for an update.Last week was OneUp, which was completely amazing in every way, as I'm sure many of you will agree. For those who weren't there/don't know what I'm on about, OneUp is

Welcome!

2007-06-22T18:23:00.000+03:00

Well hello everyone. I know there may be some slight confusion amongst the less bright of you, as Tom is in fact not In Egypt, but In Manchester, however I thought I would take this opportunity (T-Minus 69 days) to: 1) Say "hello" (done) 2) Explain what's going on here (see below) Firstly, can I safely assume we all know what a "Blog" is? See Wikipedia if you're in any doubt. This is my first