Weekend at the AUC Desert Development Center

We spent this past weekend at the American University in Cairo Desert Development Center (DDC). It’s a type of research farm run by the university northwest of Cairo (about 2 ½ hours drive). It was a trip organized by our homeschooling group, and about seven families participated. At DDC we got to take long walks in the orange groves, learn about their work, pet animals, hang out with other homeschooling families, and most of all enjoy a bit of fresh air and a break from the city and our busy life.

We also got to see the cows, and help milk them. I wish we could have milked enough to take home with us, but with the large group, this wasn’t possible. We were however able to buy milk later, but it had been milked using the machines, and having seen the place and the way it was set up, we’re afraid to drink it raw. The boys walked through the milking hall where the cows were hooked up to the machines. As soon as a cow went poop, a guy would run up and rinse the floor off. The problem was that he had no control over the hose, and the cow, the machine, as well as the boys, got sprayed with cow manure. I could almost see the individual listeria/e-coli/salmonella bacteria making their way into our milk. In any case; we bought some milk, and even boiled, it’s still very tasty. Courtney is going to make cheese out of it.

While we were standing among the cows and the calves, watching the calves nurse from the cows, the majestic steers standing in another field, William looked at me and asked, in all sincerity, “Which ones are more blessed, the cows or the steer?” Where does he get it?

On Friday evening, after dinner, there was a bon fire in an open field behind the farm. We walked over using our flash lights, and as soon as we got to the bonfire, the boys got their sticks out and started roasting [charring] marshmallows as if they had never done anything else. I can’t remember that we’ve ever done this before, but as soon as we got there, the boys instinctively knew what to do and how. William was so excited he wasn’t quiet even for a second, alternating commentary, questions, and loud discussions, with little shrieks of joy. After about 10 minutes of everyone watching (and listening to) him with an amused air, one parent commented “So, William, are you having any fun yet?” He had got the longest stick of all the kids, and had so many marshmallows, he eventually stopped asking for more. For those of you who know William, you realize how unusual this is! After filling up on sugar, the boys enjoyed the bon fire and the starry sky with their friends. Courtney & I hung out with other homeschooling parents, and looked at the stars together. It was a great night.

The boys enjoyed being able to pick oranges right off the trees to eat, and I thought they watched with interest as the men were grafting citrus trees. They had great fun visiting the animals and playing in the hay. The games, crafts, and especially the piñata were awesome. What they enjoyed the most though, was simply playing in the forest with the other kids. They all helped build a fort together, made masks out of large pieces of bark, collected spears, and played games for hours on end. They always came out of the forest happy, excited, exhausted, and very, very dirty!

It was a good weekend.