Our first

Well, I guess it may have been a little misleading to say "date", however I'm not really sure what else to call it and I think it's cute to call it that. lol

Although I have been here just about 6 months, we finally had our first get together with a couple whose husband is friends with my husband.

Hubby has several friends who are married but we had yet to get together with any of them. It was hardly practical to invite them to our place since we didn't have one, and we couldn't just invite ourselves over to any of their places. Hubby has been pretty busy with work as well.

So, his friend and wife invited us over for iftar, which is the meal we break our fast with every day.

I was excited to get the chance to meet this couple, as I have been hearing about hubby's friend for years. Funnily enough, when talking with the wife later on, she said she has been hearing about my hubby for years too. lol

I was also excited because they lived in what I was told was 6th October, though in reality turned out to be Sheikh Zaid. 6th October is an area that is outside greater Cairo by maybe half hour or so, maybe a little less with no traffic.
Sheikh Zaid is about halfway between Cairo and 6th October. (and I have no idea why they named the place Sheikh Zaid, lol, maybe he donated a bunch of money to the project)

In any case, it was nice to get out of the city and breath some "fresh" air and actually listen to the quiet! It is hard to come by in Cairo, both the fresh air and the quiet. lol

The couple we visited lived on the top floor of their building and had a wonderful large balcony that we spent quite a bit of time on. I loved looking out over the area. In Sheikh Zaid, there are no buildings allowed over 4 stories, which is quite a change from greater Cairo, and allows for an all around view when you are at the top story.

It was also a great view of the smog and pollution that sits over Cairo. Kind of disgusting to think about breathing that air in, and I know they are trying to make changes to help with it, but it isn't happening fast enough.

As to the "date" itself, I think it went really well. I spent most of my time with the wife, and our hubbies hung out together.
Wife spoke English okay though it has been some years since she spoke it. But it was good enough for us to have a conversation.

They have 2 cute kids. The little girl is just 1 1/2 years old and totally adorable.
I love other people's kids. At least those who are well behaved! :D

The night ended well and we are hoping to get together during Eid and go to a mall so wife and I can shop while the men sit at a cafe or something.
And of course I told her they have to come visit once we get our apartment set up.

So, here are some pictures I took on the drive there and once we were there.
As a reminder, you can click on any picture for a bigger view of it.

This is of some date palms. You can see they are full of dates, though I don't know how close to ready the dates are.



And here is a view looking across at the pyramids. They are barely visible through the smog, but you can see them towards the right of the middle.



This is once we got the Sheikh Zaid area. There are different areas within. I thought these apartments looked like they could have been in the States (these are not the apartments where hubby's friend and wife live).



And here is a mosque inside the area. I love seeing mosques with their round domes and tall spires.



Here is a general picture looking from the rooftop of the apartment we were at. I loved looking out. And the street below actually reminded me of being in SF for some reason. I'm not sure if it's the tall skinny apartment buildings and the way the street kind of curves. I'm sure anyone who lived in SF would disagree, but for some reason that's the impression I had.



And the last picture is similar to the above, only it shows the pollution hanging over Cairo in the background. Yuck!



The end!
lol