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After nine years abroad, we’re taking a break
Note: This post was written two weeks ago before we left Kigali, and I am just getting around to posting it now. “I wanna take a break.” This is a favourite phrase of our toddler Ralph. Sometimes he says it when he is upset and wants to be held, and other times when he is shrieking with laughter while being tickled (and then a few … Continue reading After nine years abroad, we’re taking a break
We bought a car and moved to the suburbs: How a summer in Kigali has reshaped our lives
Four months ago, we arrived in Kigali at 3am, and since then we have been regularly asked about our first impressions of the city. In the leadup to the move our conversations focused on the city being green, clean, and quiet, especially compared to Cairo, our previous home of 4 years. Our experience of the city has mostly been as advertised, but what has really … Continue reading We bought a car and moved to the suburbs: How a summer in Kigali has reshaped our lives
More than Malls: What We Liked in Dubai
We visited Dubai for five days in March 2022, and I have already written about the Dubai World Expo and about visiting some of the biggest malls in town. We still had plenty of time to explore other parts of the city, and here are some of the highlights. We left our stroller in Cairo and took the metro almost everywhere We considered bringing the … Continue reading More than Malls: What We Liked in Dubai
Music I discovered in 2022
Last month I was one of the millions of people who eagerly opened their Spotify Wrapped and poured over the results. I could have predicted my top three songs (in the wrong order), and my top artists were also mostly what I expected, although Charli XCX was knocked off last year’s summit all the way down to number four. The past couple of years I … Continue reading Music I discovered in 2022
The Dubai World Expo Pavilion Awards (and other thoughts about past World Expos)
I grew up hearing stories about the 1967 World Expo in Montreal from my Dad, which was held during Canada’s centennial year. He was 11 years old during that summer and he has written about how he spent many days roaming the Expo grounds with his nine-year-old brother. They would get dropped off at the local mall and take a shuttle bus to the Expo, … Continue reading The Dubai World Expo Pavilion Awards (and other thoughts about past World Expos)
All Malls Lead to Dubai
There are few things I find more stressful than crowded shopping malls, and I immediately felt on edge when we entered the massive Mall of Dubai back in March. My sense of direction evaporated and trying to keep track of our location inside one of the world’s biggest malls seemed like a hopeless task. The Dubai Mall has plenty of attractions designed to keep you … Continue reading All Malls Lead to Dubai
Sunrise Squabbling at Karnak Temple
The first time I visited Karnak Temple in Luxor I left feeling a bit underwhelmed. Maybe this was because Karnak was the most-hyped sight among our friends in Cairo, or because it was the hottest day of our trip (28 degrees) and we were already tired from walking and visiting the Luxor Museum and the Mufficiaton Museum on the way. Karnak also was relatively busy … Continue reading Sunrise Squabbling at Karnak Temple
Driving along the agricultural road to visit Beni Hassan and the temples of Abydos and Dendera
At 9 o’clock sharp the receptionist called our room and announced that the police were ready for us. This would usually be a concerning phone call, but we were unfazed after having the police follow us around Minya the previous day. We had hired a driver to bring us from Minya to Abydos with a few stops along the way. As we walked out of … Continue reading Driving along the agricultural road to visit Beni Hassan and the temples of Abydos and Dendera
We Wanted to Casually Stroll through Minya. Instead We Were Followed the Entire Day by Police
“What is your plan for today? The police are asking.” This is how we were greeted by the receptionist of the Grand Aton hotel in Minya. We had just arrived after a three and half hour drive from Cairo, and we explained that we had no real plans other than walking around the town. This was mid-February 2021, and we had finally given up the … Continue reading We Wanted to Casually Stroll through Minya. Instead We Were Followed the Entire Day by Police
The Best Way to Visit Luxor’s West Bank is by Walking
During a trip to Luxor in February 2021, we had allotted two days to visit the Valley of the Kings and the other famous sites on the west bank of the Nile. We were initially planning to hire a taxi for the day, but as I looked at the map trying to decide what sites to visit on the first day, I realized that the … Continue reading The Best Way to Visit Luxor’s West Bank is by Walking
Paul Anderson 