Alvarado Street

Most days here in Monterey are overcast and around 50. Lately it's been very smoky because of the forest fires in Big Sur. But this morning was a rare, beautiful day!

Alvarado Street is the main "drag" here in Monterey. It's a nice, tree lined, peaceful street. In the picture above is an old movie theatre that's been in Monterey since 1902! (Actually I made that up, I'm not sure if it's an old movie theatre or if it's been there since 1902, but they show movies there now and it's old).

So, there you have it, Alvarado Street, one of the main tourist attractions in this small town.

All that I want

In case anybody is wondering what Molly wants for her birthday, this would be the perfect gift!

So here's the deal on Arabic dictionaries: To use an Arabic dictionary, you have to find the root of the word and then alphabetically look up the root. At the moment, I only have an Arabic to English dictionary, which means that I can only look up Arabic words I don't know. If I want to look up what an English word in Arabic would be, I use my electronic dictionary that my Saudi friend gave me. However, electronic dictionaries are not always comprehensive, which is why I would like this dictionary. The problem is that this dictionary is around $80. Birthday gift?

Haunt me everyday

I'll warn my reader that this post is not like any I have ever posted before. It's a tribute to someone I have never met and will never meet.

I've grown close to my Arabic professor, Rana. She taught for three years at the Defense Language Institute which is also here in Monterey. She told me today about a student she had at DLI. This student was a hard worker and passionate about Arabic. In fact, he was so focused that instead of being at the DLI for the normal year and a half for the program, he was sent to Iraq after only 6 months to use his Arabic as a linguist. He was barely in Iraq when he was shot and killed.

I am haunted by his story. It's not that he was killed. I'm fully aware that too many Americans have already died in Iraq, but it hits too close to home. I could imagine him having Rana as a teacher. I could imagine him struggling to learn the 10 Measures of the Arabic Verb, of listening to hours upon hours of Al-Jazeera, and dreaming of a life as a translator, only to have his life ended so quickly by a single bullet.

I don't even know his name, but I know that for as long as I continue to learn Arabic, I will never forget him.

Carmel

I visited Carmel last summer with my mom and both of us left the city with a feeling of apathy. A friend in my class this summer wanted to see the city so I thought I'd give Carmel another chance. It was more pleasant than I remember it being, and the beach was particularly nice. What makes the beach so nice is that there are spectacular views of both Pebble Beach and Point Lobos, which is the northern most point of Big Sur. I don't know if I'll go back, but I'm glad I gave the city another chance.

What a day to be alive

Seven peacekeepers were killed in Darfur today.

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/07/09/darfur.peacekeepers/index.html

No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main...
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.
- John Donne

Happy 4th of July!

The 4th of July could not have come at a better time this year! After three intensive weeks of Arabic, we finally got a four day week, thanks to the 4th of July. I celebrated by going to a barbecue with friends and enjoying beautiful fireworks over the Bay.

There are forest fires close by, specifically in Big Sur, and I see the smoke rising in the sky everyday, but I'm not too concerned because nobody in Monterey is, so if the locals aren't concerned, why should I be?