Sinai Liberation Day

The past two weeks have been close to two of the worst weeks of my teaching career. It would be unprofessional to explain why here, but suffice it to say that a combination of mean teachers, attacking parents and horribly behaved students who have given up like it's already June lead to an unhappy Mademoiselle!

So an email with this message was more than welcome at the end of Wednesday:

Due to Sinai Liberation Day on Sunday, April 25 we will not have school.

Doesn't get much clearer.

Today was a free day - not to be wasted! The only way to describe today is that it felt like one of those perfect mid-July days when you have no where to be and not much important to do. It was a balmy 29C, so after waking up without an alarm clock and reading for an hour, I headed to the gym for a run. Returned home to make banana bread, and then headed to Al Hazar Park for a picnic with my friend Bethany.

Now at home, making dinner and enjoying that I didn't think about school, I did not spend the day cleaning, and I did not waste it in front of the TV.

The other benefit of these 3 day weekends is the 4 day week that follows.

Is this REALLY the last long weekend of the school year???

Escape

More than once this school year we have escaped to the Red Sea. This city lends itself to escape - every so often I have to leave the smog, honking, dog barking and staring. In February it was Ain Soukna, last weekend it was back to Dahab. Usually the only thing on the agenda is sleep, fun, sun and in Dahab some snorkeling. Beautiful!

My Ain Soukna buddies:
















The calmness of Dahab.

















Other than our Easter trip to Dahab life has been quiet and without adventure. With a renewed commitment to be running at the gym again, tutoring a child 2 afternoons a week and an on-line course, it doesn't matter where I am living - I am just busy with life!

Here is my favourite pictures of Ma'adi in Spring, outside the church
















I will leave you with another French class funny, that is still making me smile, days later.

On a recent test, I asked students, "say your nationality." One child wrote:
"Jesus de Beirut."