And the Middle East Goes Nuts

Dictator overthrown in Tunisia, internet and cell phone service cut off in Egypt, and riots in Yemen--what the heck is going on?  Apparently there have even been some demonstrations in Jordan, though the Jordanian government is much more stable than the others so it's not something to be concerned about.  All of the regional unrest certainly throws a wrench in some of my plans for the semester.  I was really hoping to go back to Egypt to visit Luxor and Aswan since I wasn't able to go when I was in Egypt last summer.  The even more disappointing thing is that I wanted to go to Lebanon more than anywhere else, but the situation there isn't looking great either.  Everyone I've know who has gone to Beirut absolutely RAVES about it, but I guess that may have to wait for another trip as well. :(

I'm a little worried about all of my friends in Egypt.  I sent an email to my roommate Haidy from last summer, but she hasn't responded and now that they have shut off the internet, it's unlikely that I'll get to hear from her at all.  It's also super weird to see things like this:

Tahrir Square in Cairo
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/01/28/friday_photo_jan29

I was in that exact place only six months ago!  It's hard to believe that such momentous things are happening in a place where I spent two months of my life!

For the moment, I'm in NYC with my favorite Lindsay Simon trying to recover from some bizarre 24-hour bug and in just over 48 hours I will be boarding a plane to Amman!  Fingers crossed that all goes well!