Middle East

Kind vs. Nice

During Holy Week in Jerusalem, I was discussing the failures and successes of the Catholic church and my difficulty in finding a new church community with our friar-to-be friend Erik one day in the Petra Hostel lobby. “I just don’t have a lot in common with the people I find at a church,” I said. [...]

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MOT

Seven years ago, on a scuba diving excursion in Mexico with my family, far before my husband Boudreaux and I were even engaged, we ran into a fellow American on the boat. He said to Boudreaux: “You’re a MOT, right?”And Boudreaux’s like: “What?” And the guys’ like: “Member of the Tribe” And Boudreaux’s like: “What?” [...]

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What’s Your Greatest Fear?

I once heard a friend of mine relay a conversation he’d had with his wife: Husband: Honey, what’s your greatest fear? Wife: Well, I think it would be that if one of us died and little Sally had to grow up with just one parent. Husband: Oh, I see. Wife: What’s your greatest fear? Husband: [...]

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A Fave ‘Graph From Egypt

Gotta love this shot of Michael up top–a satisfied smirk on his face as a Boticelli-like chic dreamweaves into the air and a drunk Londoner gives a giggle. They almost look superimposed.

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Skipping the Sudan

We’d planned on it. Swapped passports in Israel and avoided stamps in Jordan to be sure they’d let us in. Astonished fellow backpackers with our overland plans. Explained how we’d avoid Darfur and Juba. Researched the visa situation. Found the cost of a ferry along the river Nile from Aswan to Wadi Halfa. But in [...]

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Mud Bath

I grew up on the banks of the Mississippi River. Turtles perched on the stump we used to measure the water, ducklings dawdled on our bonfire-ashed beach and boats always waved as they went by. We swam off the dock, slithered between the fish and sandbagged during the floods. But the river’s real character was [...]

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City of the Dead

Some call it the Northern Cemetery, Bab el Nasr or the Cemetery of the Great. Those in a hurry might say: el’arafa, meaning simply “cemetery”. We were tourists so we called it City of the Dead, which just didn’t translate. But we were no longer in tour-bus territory. As usual, as education decreases, hospitality increases, [...]

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Donna, Steve & Stella

Of course, we still managed to have a good time in Egypt. Especially once my parents, Steve and Donna, arrived. Me a Mom at the Dahab Hostel. . . Yes, the Dahab. But we snagged an especially sweet spot with the retro-church-hall-charming kind of just-barely-above-ground bar culture which saves Egypt from itself, letting American University [...]

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Heroes from Egypt

Michael is the photographer in the family and as you’ve likely noticed, I am more about documentation. But occasionally, I take some “heroes”. Thousands of miles from Tennessee, but might be mistaken for Memphis circa ’65. Headscarf in motion, stripes and streetlights above the Nile.

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Pyramids

Although there exist over 100 Egyptian pyramids, the three Giza structures, made of limestone, with the Sphyinx reigning amidst, remain the most famous. The Pyramids are a full-on Monet. From far away, pretty cool. See above! You can see their swagger and hear their sexy voice say: “I’m not sure how to tell you this, [...]

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