Monday, November 24

The drive down to El Minya was about 5 hours on a small bus. To our surprise, we were even more popular than we ever imagined! We had our own personal security detail. The first guy looked like he could work for the president! Half way down we picked up a total of 3...count them 3 trucks of soldiers to escort us to Upper Egypt. (lights and sirens were a bonus) As anticipated, we made it without incident...other than the crazy driving and the sirens.

We had dinner last night at the hotel and then got up this a.m. and headed to the community which is about 1 hour from our hotel. The scenery changed dramatically from big city to desert to small village. And I mean small.

We were most definitely on display! Our mode of transport, load of security, dress and overall coloring/hair type made us super stars! The men were all wearing the traditional galabeya and the women were in dresses. Kids wore pretty much whatever they could get their hands on. Our blond hair, especially the women, made our team a huge hit!

We started out by visiting with the local partner of HFH. They gave us the history and work that they are currently doing. They talked about how HFH has made a difference in the community offering new homes as well as work for many of the local men. We then went down to visit a nursery school and greeted 100 little kids. They sang 3 songs for us. One was Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes. We only know this because they did the motions. We handed out little gifts to them afterward and they were thrilled!

We then gathered up our gear and headed to our houses. We were split into two groups. One group worked on wood roofing 2 different homes and the others moved limestone blocks (yes, they are as heavy as you think they are) and sifted sand. It was dusty work, but very rewarding to see the amount that was moved in such a short time.

Just before we left we were served hot tea by the owner of one of the houses. It was super strong and super sweet. Got a nice little buzz from that.