so it’s been a long time, i shouldn’t have left you, without an e-mail to check through (this is a play on rap lyrics for those not in the know)
…but time goes on and before you know it, you arent even in the holy land anymore (you in this case are me)…
you are in fact in maine… which is where i am as well… coincidentally… i left israel about a week ago and spent a great week in NYC and now im visiting the family before moving back to LA shortly…
since i left you (when i left you i was in dahab in the sinai peninsula) much has gone on, as i hope it has for you as well…. at this point, seeing as the trip is over, i dont feel like rehashing too much but i will give some highlights and then some reflections that is what people seem to be interested in hearing since ive gotten back…
in the last month of the trip, the best part came after realizing that i didnt care about traveling anymore… i let go of all expectations of what i “should” do and ended up having the best travel time i have yet had… i think this is because with no expectations, i had the time to connect with people which led to developing relationships which are the thing it feels like we’re all after in the first place…
i was lucky enough to meet and stay with several egyptian friends and families and to really experience the culture there… for the first time while travelling, i really tried to learn the language… just basic phrases and so on, but to really use them day to day… the effect this had was IMMENSE.. i cant overstate it… if ever someone looked at me funny, id just smile and say “salaam” and they would immediately want to talk to me and be my best friend… it was incredible… i learned so much from that experience, that by trying to learn another’s culture, WAY MORE DOORS get opened… WAAAAAAY more…
anyway, another of my favorite things about egypt was the call to prayer, which is called “allah akbar” (God is great) and is repeated 5 times per day… i personally feel like having prayer so embedded in a culture is an amazing practice… i dont think it would work so well in the states, but it was truly beautiful to see…
some of my favorite things while still in egypt were staying in a nubian village at the house of a friend i made near aswan… taking a 3-day felucca (sailboat) ride up the nile from aswan to luxor… seeing the pyramids of course… seeing a sufi dance performance and then a darbuka (hand percussion) performance where the drummers battled on rhythms… that was incredible…
and of course, the CITY OF CAIRO! i was awed by cairo… over 20 million people in what feels like total chaos (balagan for hebrew speakers) and NO STOP LIGHTS… crossing major streets is like an extreme sport… i loved it.. a lot of people dont enjoy egypt because of the intense hustle that goes on there… people are constantly trying to figure out how to get your money… i used this as an opportunity to try to hustle hustlers and try to figure out the patterns they use to milk you dry… this was sometimes frustrating, sometimes rewarding, but almost always entertaining… i went to morocco 5 years ago and got hustled so hard that i was determined to learn to hold my own, which i feel i certainly did this time…
i discovered by far my favorite juice that i have ever had which is fresh-squeezed/pressed sugar cane juice (called assir assab in arabic) and is not only ridiculously tasty but also quite good for you, both your energy level and your stomach/digestion… i probably drank at least 4 of these per day… and at a whopping 8 cents each, i felt justified… 
i also got to spend a few days with an egyptian popper (dancer) and his friend and this was an incredible experience to connect through a passion with someone from a totally different culture… i was treated so well and shown such hospitality and was able to ask so many questions (he spoke english) about arab culture and politics and religion… it was really really special…
he also got me to try almost every kind of egyptian food that there is… and the food is GOOOOOOOOOD and so cheap… im talking 8 different dishes for $1.50 kind of cheap… and im not kidding.. this actually is what i paid in alexandria for 8 dishes…
funny egypt fact: almost EVERY GUY i met was named either mohammed, ahmed, or sayed… in aswan, a nubian gave me the name abdullah, which means “slave to allah”.. i went by abdullah about half the time in egypt because no one understand “Brit”
so then i had a week left in israel which was equally amazing… reconnecting with all of my friends there after not seeing them for a month and having 4 days of Shabbat (which is all party all the time) and 3 days of Purim.. Purim is a Jewish holiday where you are REQUIRED to get so drunk that you cant tell the difference between good and bad… the point being that you connect with the One that is beyond either good or bad… it was 3 days because of the Jerusalem clause… it is celebrated one day everywhere except Jerusalem and then another day in Jerusalem so we made the most of it to say the least
my final night was the end of a Shabbat and we ended up in Zion Square in Jerusalem which is like 3rd St. in LA or Times Square in NYC with about 20 of us parading through the street singing and dancing for a good 2 or 3 hours.. by the end when my wonderful friends carried me on their shoulders to a cab, there were a good 100 people around us watching and clapping… i got so into dancing that i came VERY VERY VERY close to missing my plane…
so that’s that…
in terms of what i take from the trip it was very clear to me when the first person asked… it came right out..
“Follow Your Bliss” …a wonderful, succinct quote and lesson from Joseph Campbell… i witnessed over and over and over how by doing that, by surrendering (btw Muslim means “one who has surrendered”), life creates miracles… it’s basically a formula as far as i can tell… so i encourage each and all of you to do exactly that because the joy and growth it brings into your life is beyond compare… non-pareil for the french speakers
so im headed to do just that and move back to LA and really go for it… study dance and acting and focus on performing, choreographing, and street performing… i am very excited and have complete faith that everything will happen exactly as it should
much love to you all……. and dont think im stopping here… after ive been in LA for a while ill write again and update…
oh yah, and ill take this time YET AGAIN to encourage you all to send me and your other friends group e-mails as well… i think if i was getting an e-mail from a different person everyday about their life, exciting or mundane, i would be happier and the world might be a better, more connected place
MUAH
brit
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