A Fragmented Post (a bit of)

I got my nose pierced today! (my mum hates it)

Tomorrow is Eid!

Oh and check this out:

I know it doesn't show properly but, I am on Gala Darling's LINK PAGE!!! WOW? I mean, seriously, it surprises me-- every time I see myself linked on ANY blog, I just feel...special. I know, I am silly.

Oh I have to mention one very important thing! You know "Operation Beautiful"? Well, the other day, I found a post-it at City Stars, on the bathroom door, and the lady who tends to the bathroom told me take it...because I am beautiful. That's what she said. I hugged her.

Can you see it properly? "Smile because you ARE beautiful"

That incident had made my day.

Last week was also fun times on my best friend's roof:

That's her in the dress. And I am in the pale yellow thingy :)

I am so excited about tomorrow! I can't sleep (it's 4:30 am)! What we do is: A WHOLE LOT OF US (family, friends, friends of friends...etc) meet up at 6 am (after having taken nice, long warm showers) and go to pray "Salat el Eid" then we head to Korba for breakfast! AHH!

One magical thing from today:

An onion ring at Burger King :)

Nice Assignment (aka showing off the beautiful city I belong to)

So the assignment was to make a list of your favorite places. I love making lists, and i am very emotional when it comes to favorite places of mine!! It is in these places that I have known happiness, excitment, depression, caffiene and sugar rushes, love, friendship, belonging...music and beauty.

• Korba, Heliopolis, Cairo, Egypt. Here is a flickr set of old Korba, a hundred years ago. And here it is today, early morning, when it is still empty. Cairo, as you may all know, is an extremely crowded city. *takes mental note of taking pictures of her drive home*

link here

Down that street, is my favorite cafe; Harris...where the interiors are wooden and the waiters friendly.Go here to watch all the faces of Korba; festivals and such.

• Zamalek, Cairo, Egypt

here

That is a picture of what you see when we take a Felucca down the Nile.. Zamalek is a very peaceful, serene neighbourhood that has this very laidback, yet confident, chic aura about it. I just love walking down its streets in silence. Another Zamalek picture.

• Diwan bookstore; I think it is the wooden interiors that have the effect on me....that of ease and peace. That, of course, in addition to the sense of belonging I get when surrounded books. To the extent that, one day, when I get married, that's where I want my wedding photoshoot to be.

here

• Parts of old Cairo that Mohammed takes me to. Seheimy house, Harawy House....etc. Aren't they just beautiful?

here and more

• Ain ElSukhna, Egypt. I don't think there is anything more beautiful than the Red Sea reflecting the sun; whether rising or setting..with it's low tides.

here

• As corny and cheesy as it may sound, the arms that make me feel at home; Mohammed's and my little brother's...I would never be able to put into words my love for them. They really do mean the world to me.
• Our house when it's calm on a Friday morning, when my dad is here (he works in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia)
• A relatively speeding car, during the afternoon, with the wind in my hair.
• My best friend's very lived in living room!

Enough for now, right? It's just that I am extremely bored at work. Alone. Again. I thank thee for bearing with me!
Anyway, please make a list of your favorite places and show them to me! And if you have any writing prompts...or just creativity prompts, pass them on?

A tribute to: An Inspirational Home

I decided against blogging negatively and so, my last post as deleted.
I am not angry.
I am not angry.
I am not angry.
I found this site today and it sort of made me happy again: CUPCAKES!

Why I felt down:

1. I am not going home tomorrow (still stuck in Jeddah for booking mess ups)
2. I failed two subjects after having literally studied my eyes out of focus. One this term, and one last term.

How I got over it: 

1. Thinking about all the happy times in retrospect.
2. Collecting recipes.
3. All my other grades are good! A+, A, A, B, and the ...ermm F...this term.

Now, I am in serious need of inspiration, and back home, Cairo, there are a number of places that leave me inspired, endlessly.

1. Korba, Heliopolis. Just walking around Korba, down Baghdad street, with the sun shining. And when the weather is too hot stopping for raspberry and yogurt icecream, or Nutella icecream at Manderine Kwaidar. Also, Harris Cafe with their amazing pastas and salads. Great coffee! It's a tiny place with removable ceiling! Well, not literally, sometimes they open it and you can look directly at the sky. Then comes my most favored of all Cilantro Cafes;the Korba branch! For having welcomed me on weekday mornings and making my day for serving my "Cappuccino, tall, skimmed milk". What else is there to love about Korba? Starbucks! The sweetest of all Cairo's Starbucks branches! God, I miss Korba. And all the smiles, and laughs and tears this place has witnessed.
2. Zamalek. As you can tell, I have a thing for walking. Walking around Zamalek! 26th of July street and stopping at Diwan Bookstore*( where I get my Moleskines) which has such an intriguing aroma about it, with the wooden floors and interiors (I also have a thing for wooden interiors) and then after buying some goodies, stopping at the only nonsmoking Cilantro branch which also has amazing wooden interiors. Now this could be the only place in the world smaller than Harris, Korba. THE PLACE IS TINY! It's split in half, vertically. Nothing could cheer me up more than a walk around Zamalek, and stopping at random stores with hidden treasures and watching the Nile. Memories, oh, memories. Not forgetting to mention that, Zamalek is home of the Sawy Culturewheel.
3. Azhar Park (site) there is simply nothing more to say. This place is magical.
4. Falouka rides, The Nile. You need to experience that to know what it feels like. A great feeling that could be yet again intensified in the presence of good company.

Now, there's one more place left, yet I won't include that in the list since it is not in Cairo.
Alexandria.
"Mermaid of the Mediterranean", cruising down Alexandrian streets is like doing so a century ago, when pretty things mattered, when pretty things existed. And the view I get from our place there, too. A truly inspirational experience.

If you ever questioned why I love home so much, and why I am this home sick. Now that's why.
* their Heliopolis Branch is just as amazing, a lot bigger too.