back in the USSR

This past week was full of excellent cultural experiences. On Monday I went with a group of about 16 friends to Peking, a Chinese restaurant in Zamalek, to celebrate the Chinese New Year (it's the Year of the Ox, which is totally my sign, so I think that means it's my lucky year or something). Then on Tuesday we went to see Aida at the Cairo Opera House. Since it wasn't sold out, we got moved to really good seats in front. For those unfamiliar with Aida, it's incredibly appropriate to see it here since it takes place in Egypt. The sets and costumes were great, and while I am not usually an opera person, I enjoyed it a great deal. It was nice to do something classy with my friends, and it's always fun to have an excuse to get all dressed up.

On Friday I went with some friends to the Cairo International Book Fair, which is spread out through a few different exhibition halls at the Cairo convention center in Heliopolis. There are displays from major publishers and bookstores from around the Arab world, and other countries like Spain, France, Italy and Greece also had booths. I wasn't about to buy a ton of Arabic books (my reading level is not that great), but I did want to pick up some children's books. That is much more appropriate. After debating between enticing titles like "Maggie And The Cat" and "There Is A Ghost In My House," I opted for "How Great Is The Summer?" which I am excited to start reading. I also got a translated version of "Little Miss Giggles," which is part of a series I am sure many of you remember fondly. I wanted the "Little Miss Sunshine" one, but they were out. Sad! I was also tempted by an Arabic copy of "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," but ultimately decided against it.

The other excellent part of the book fair was the massive used book tent, where the different stalls had stacks of magazines in every language going back decades (Cosmo in Spanish from 1998, Glamour in German from 2005, Foreign Affairs or National Geographic from pretty much any year conceivable, etc.), old comics like Batman and Superman in Arabic, huge collections of well-worn English paperback novels, etc. There is no real logic in the way things were arranged, so it was pretty much a browsing situation. I love book fairs, so this was my favorite part. Below are some photos of the book fair, including a photo of my number one find in the used book area (which I did not buy): Lonely Planet U.S.S.R., publication date 1989. I know, it's awesome.

More book fair -- some of the stalls were outside.

Me reading Harry Potter in Arabic.

Lonely Planet U.S.S.R. Note how it says "travel survival kit" in the top right. This is clearly the most awesome thing I found at the book fair.