Breakwater Cove

Today is my last day in Monterey! :( I decided to go to my favorite place in Monterey...Breakwater Cove. I had originally planned on going to the Aquarium, but no one that has gone to the Aquarium has seemed that excited about it, and I didn't really want to go, so I went to Breakwater Cove. Breakwater Cove is known as one of the jewels of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. It has a lot of wildlife due to the kelp forest, ranging from seals to sharks (yes, that is where I kayaked...more on this later). Also, Breakwater Cove is like a FREE Aquarium because it has all the animals and the kelp forest environment, but the animals are wild and not in tanks, which is always a good thing. The water is so clean...the picture on the left shows how clear the water is. This particular area of water was probably about 4 feet deep. The water is cold, so seals and sharks both like the area, although the seals probably enjoy it more when there are not sharks around. I went kayaking through the kelp forest. Thankfully, no one told me before I went that it is considered by many to be the most active part of the "Red Triangle", which encompasses all of Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. What is the "Red Triangle"? Over half all the recorded number of great white shark attacks happen in the Red Triangle because sharks are attracted to this area because of the large seal and sea otter population. The name Red Triangle comes from the massive amount of blood in the water after an attack. One of the most notorious attacks happened at my beloved Spanish Bay, where I was yesterday. To end the shark story, I didn't see any sharks today. However, if I come back next summer, I want to snorkel in Big Sur at Point Lobos. Finally, the picture on the right is what a typical day in Monterey looks like. I will miss Monterey, but I won't be too sad because I know that I will be back next summer!

Spanish Bay at Pebble Beach

Because today was the last day of the summer language program some friends and I decided to celebrate by going to Pebble Beach. By friends, I mean me, Sumaya, Yasmine and Rebecca. Normally I would not go to Pebble Beach because it is WAY out of my price range but Sumaya paid, which was very generous of her. There are three resorts in Pebble Beach: The Lodge, Spanish Bay and Casa Palermo. There are three golf courses: Pebble Beach, Spanish Bay and Spyglass. Today we went to the Spanish Bay Resort. It was very, very nice. We each ordered different desserts and coffee and shared the desserts. It was fantastic. But more than anything, the view from Pebble Beach is unbelievable. I feel like I have travelled a fair amount, but Pebble Beach is the most beautiful area of the world I have ever seen, no contest. Words can't really describe Pebble Beach. The picture at the top of the blog is the view from our table in Spanish Bay. Above and to the right is the Spanish Bay resort. Some might remember my previous post about Asilomar Beach. If you noticed, there was a golf course in the background of the picture, and that is the Spanish Bay golf course. Of course, there is an actual Spanish Bay, just like Monterey Bay. The picture to the left is Spanish Bay. It is on the 17 Mile Drive. When most people think of Pebble Beach, they think of the golf tournament that is held every year and that tournament is on the golf course that ends at the Lodge on Pebble Beach. The terrace of the Lodge looks out over the 18th hole of the Pebble Beach Golf Course. It also overlooks the natural beauty of Point Lobos, a part of Big Sur. The picture to the right is the Lodge. If you think the Lodge is pretty then you can stay at the Resort...if you have $645, and that's only for the garden view. To stay at the Resort rooms showed below on the left, you might have to pay around $1500 a night. This is out of my range, so I will stick to Monterey! In the end, no matter how much you pay, you can still see the same view in Pebble Beach for free and that view is priceless.

*** This post is dedicated to my Grandma because she was the most excited to read it. See you soon! ***

Class Profile

Today was officially the last day of the Summer Language Program. I know that I haven't talked a lot about my classmates so I thought I'd give a profile:

Mohga: teacher, Egyptian, age: 45?

Adrienne: hippy from San Francisco, soon to be professor at the American University in Cairo, former professor at Berkeley, married to Art (Far), age: 36

Art (Far): legal name is Art, people call him Far, I don't know why! married to Adrienne but only to get the benefits, such as the Intensive Arabic Program, at the American University in Cairo, former bike courier in San Francisco, also a hippie

Sara: student from Minnesota, moving temporarily to Italy to be with her fiance

Rebecca: good friend from class, from Maine, goes to school in London, spending the next year at the American University in Cairo

Yasmine: good friend from class, from California/Dubai,UAE (United Arab Emirates), just graduated from University of California at Monterey Bay and is moving to Sacramento

Sumaya: good friend from class, from California/Syria, freelance photographer/editor

Sean: former Peace Corps volunteer, new student at MIIS for the Environmental Policy Program, he is married

James: student at MIIS in the Policy Program

Cie-J: pronounces his name CJ, married and lives in Omaha, age: 26, veteran of the Air Force

That is all there is to know about the people in my class! They are all nice and I am especially sad to leave Yasmine, Rebecca and Sumaya. Also, I was particularly sad to say goodbye to Lama, my tutor. We both almost cried...she has helped me so much and we exchanged email addresses so we can stay in touch. It's bittersweet to end this summer, but I am excited to get home and get ready for Paris!

Istanbul (not Constantinople)

There is a Turkish festival going on in Monterey this weekend so my friend and I decided to see what it was like. It was everything I hoped a Turkish festival would be...and more. I got a cup of Turkish coffee (if you haven't had it, don't) and I also had a Turkish Delight which was very good. I bought a Turkish coin purse that's really pretty and intricately sewn and I also bought an Evil Eye. There was a troupe of Dabke dancers there. Dabke is the traditional folk dance in Turkey, Levantine countries (particularly Palestine) and parts of Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Basically it's where people get in a line and follow the rhythm of Arabic music. The dancers normally wear pretty, traditional clothing and it's really interesting to watch. I learned how to dance Dabke at the Arabic Culture Night...it was actually a lot more difficult than it looked. Arabic music has completely different patterns and beats than Western music so it's hard to get adjusted. The festival was really cool, I wish Dallas had more cultural events like this, or maybe they do and I just don't know about them. Overall, the Turkish festival was great and now I want to go to Istanbul.

Finally!

After four days of grey skies and cool temperatures, the sun finally came out today! It was really a beautiful day in Monterey today...sunny and 64 degrees! I walked downtown and then to the stretch between Cannery Row and Fisherman's Wharf. I like that area the best because the water is calm and pretty and there are always seals hanging around. In the picture on the right you can see some seals and also to the left. Although I am very excited to go home, I'll be sad to leave Monterey. I like living in this area, it's pretty and it's nice to live by the ocean. Because Monterey Bay is a national marine sanctuary, the water is so clean and the wildlife is amazing. The picture on the bottom right shows how green the kelp is and how blue the water is...it's just amazing to see natural beauty like that and people in this area take it for granted, although locals always take their city for granted. Since I'm leaving this Friday, I've started to pack two boxes that I need to ship home because when I came out here, my luggage was too heavy...they didn't charge me at DFW but they told me that when I came back, if my luggage was too heavy again, I would be charged so that's why I have to ship things home. It makes me sad to pack everything! I won't be too sad, though, because I'm certain that I'll be coming back next summer to continue my formal Arabic training. Also, I'm ready for REAL summer weather!

The End

مساء الخير

I have less than one week of class left and I am very excited! I will be home on August 10! I know that I am definitely going to continue studying Arabic on my own and hopefully I will be back here in Monterey next summer doing the Intermediate level. I also might try to pick up some basic Farsi and Urdu since they use the Arabic alphabet. Right now, I am very interested in Pakistan, along with the Middle East. I have no intention of travelling to Pakistan or the Middle East anytime soon, but both areas are very interesting to me. As a side note, the Arabic script above reads: Good evening. The Arabic script below reads: Bye!

مع السلامة