Quotables

There have been so many amazing quotes since I've been here that I had to take the time and write some down.

This one is from the guy who handed me my horse at the Pyramids. He passed me the reins, looks up at me with a big smile and said,
            "Nice to see you, my name is (something in Arabic), my American name; Michael Jordan!"

The second one would have to be when I played Monopoly with some Egyptian teenagers. I believe this one is more of an accent issue than a word issue, but still just as funny.
Passing out the money, one kid was explaining the rules and I would comment on how it was either the same or different in the English version. We started playing and I was trying to play like I normally would but had to go back to the beginning for some reason or another. I was fighting this rule when I suddenly hear;
            "No, this is the Egyptian virgin, not American!" Just to make sure I heard right, I asked. "What?" I had heard right. :)

The next one is from this awesome tour guide who led us through the Mountain Church. He just had such an great and humble spirit. And he really wanted us to know the history behind the miracle of this mountain, not just get us to buy something or give him money.
          "There are three words the same in English, French and Arabic. Amen, Hallelujah, and....Coca Cola!"
I think this quote is my favorite so far. And it's 100% true.

The last one is also the most recent. I was on a photography trip through downtown Cairo and we went to a touristy area where it was an open market. We were walking through the shops and browsing (I bought some small items, nothing crazy) then I heard a seller say;

         "Excuse me, how can I take your money?" 

I kept on walking, but I nearly stumbled after hearing this question. I immediately had to laugh, but I was also thinking, 'Did he really just say that? Who taught him that it was acceptable to say that sentence?' I told the Egyptian friends I was with and they laughed about it but didn't really believe me until we walked back through and he said it again! This time another guy heard it as well and just about fell over laughing. I would never EVER buy something from a person who asked me that. Wow. Really, this one takes the cake. 

      I really got a serious amount of attention walking through that place. I think that the seller just saw me and figured I was an easy target. Ugh, pushy salesmen with no people skills was the majority of the sellers in there. But like my friends said, "Welcome to Egypt!"

*I would post a picture here, but it's getting quite late and the pictures from this day are still on the memory card in my camera. I'll try to get some of them up soon.