"The sea is high again today, with a thrilling flush of wind."

This is going to be me in less than 48 hours. About 45 to be exact. Lunging toward the ocean. Actually, the Mediterranean, not the Atlantic. Obviously. Because...I am heading to Alexandria for the weekend and I am elated. And yes, this is in fact Shea, one of my dogs two days before I departed at Minot Beach in Scituate during a farewell romp. He's a lousy swimmer but he appears excited. And the quote's the opener of the Alexandria Quartet, which I began reading, along with Mahfouz's trilogy. The quote's bland but it's simplicity refreshing.

I haven't the faintest idea what I will blog of tomorrow. My excitement right now was propelled by the fact it is officially the weekend on Thursday afternoon. And after a very intense, but very satisfying and wonderful week of Arabic, the weekend is much welcomed. Tomorrow will consist of the routine Friday morning breakfast at Tabasco, and then I am on a mission to find a bathing suit which will not invite the wrath of Alexandria. Women swim at the beaches in Alexandria completed clothed, even with a veil. Guys and kids can wear whatever, but Arab women hop into the waves in street clothes. The resort I am staying at has a "private beach" so I don't quite know what the dresscode is there, as it is part of Sidi Bishr, the main beach strip downtown. I may feel kind of skanky in a J.Crew two-piece.

Whatever the case, I think I can relax within the confines of the hotel, newly renovated, very nice. I am taking the high-speed train into Alex Saturday morning, which I have been told is a gorgeous route. The high-speed train costs about 17 USD roundtrip, although the Egyptian government will only allow foreigners to travel on certain trains, and only in first class. The train situation is great in how inexpensive it is, and yet the restrictions imposed on foreigners seem not of security but entrepreneurial motives. That's like a lot of things here though.

For our recent talk of Egyptian politics, an old Newsweek article (not the genre to typically be retained) was in fact retained from two years past from school. It's "Muhammad Atta's Neighborhood," chronicling Cairo's fundamentalist underbelly from which the ringleader of 9/11 was born.