We were all wondering when it would happen, when I would step out of my comfort bubble of Abe and venture out alone. Baby steps. Last night I left the apartment by myself, walked the 4 or so blocks to catch a cab, and directed the driver to a restaurant where I met up with some of my classmates from Qasid. I even crossed a 4-lane road by myself! All things considered, it went well. Some little kids threw olives in my general direction after I walked past (at least I knew not to take it personally -- those little scoundrels delight in pelting every person and car that dares to pass them; I once saw them hit a taxi with a lemon! The driver rolled down his window and insisted that he knew their fathers and he would tell on them), and I got a good number of whistles from passing shebab, but nothing threatening.
Made it to Bab Al-Yeman (the Yemeni Door, or the Door of Yemen) unscathed and enjoyed beans, meat, and veggies eaten with enormous pieces of flatbread served in something resembling a laundry basket. Even better, the organizer of this event, one of my classmates, is Turkish and doesn't speak English, so we all made a valiant effort to speak exclusively in Arabic. In the end it was probably about 60/40 Arabic to English, but that's a big improvement for us. In our attempts to keep the conversation going we kind of let grammar and pronunciation go, and I couldn't help but imagine what a spectacle we were for everyone else there -- 6 foreigners yelling at each other in toddler-level Arabic with the thickest, shittiest American accents you've ever heard, and apparently enjoying it.
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