ArabicPod101 Newbie Series S2 Curriculum 

When going to an Arabic country and especially Egypt, you will find a big difference in the prices offered to foreigners and the prices offered to Egyptians or even Arabic people. This is because of the different living standards we have. What might seem like a lot here can be normal or even good for foreigners. Some people may think they are being robbed or being treated dishonestly, but that is not the case. It's just viewed differently.

Most hotels will ask you to pay in foreign currency, euros or dollars. Very few three- or four-star hotels or hostels will give you the price in Egyptian pounds. They do this to help tourists better judge the price and make a good decision. It is not a problem if you only have Egyptian pounds; they will give you the equivalent in that currency and tell you the price in your own as well. It's sometimes better to have a travel agency help you find a hotel that matches your budget and meets your needs.

That's why we wait after we say "yes," to hear the number, or to hear "No, sorry, I don't have it."

We also use "Do you have a phone or a cell phone number? It depends on the person speaking, but in case you ever encounter this situation, remember, "Do you have a phone?" is asking for your number!

Do you remember how to say it in Arabic?

Not to worry, they will all be general questions!

In most cases, you may have to leave tips, if you want to. But when you buy from the fruit stand or a man in the street, it's different, so no tip should be paid, It's a quick service, and the man will charge you what he thinks is okay for him!

الحـِـساب
الباقي

Going to a restaurant and enjoying delicious Arabic food sounds wonderful, doesn't it? Just be sure to choose a good place to eat. People's advice on this matter is very important as well. If you have an allergy, make sure and ask whether the food contains this item or not, as Arabs use nearly everything while making food.

After enjoying a delicious meal in any Egyptian restaurant and paying the check, it's expected to leave tips; the trick is, how much and how to make sure it's the right amount, so here is how it goes!

Arabic people are known to be very friendly, so sometimes, if you use words showing that you're not doing so well or that something is wrong, people won't just ask a small "what's wrong," but will mostly insist on knowing and trying to help. It might insult them if you don't tell them; it could mean you don't trust them. Privacy is well respected here, but human relations are also very important. If you don't want to say what's really wrong, you can say something like "I couldn't sleep very well," "I ate something that wasn't fresh," and so on, but never take it personally when people ask and insist on knowing what's bothering you; it's just our nature!

Egypt's school system consists of state schools and private schools. The difference is that in state schools, there are forty-five to sixty students in each class, and in private schools, there are between twenty and thirty (no more than thirty-five). The class size also depends on how good and expensive the school is. So the more expensive the school is, the fewer students per class. The more expensive schools offer better education and more languages. But not to worry, guys! Your Arabic classes will always have fewer students, because very few people study it. So you will probably get one tutor with five or six students in a class, which is good, because Arabic is not so easy and you will need as much quality time as possible to practice.

Exams are always a fun topic to talk about-everyone loves a good exam, right? What happens here is that students take a certain number of hours for a class, and just before the exam, those hours are increased. It's probably the same in other places-before the exam, you need to study a bit more. This is especially true when learning Arabic because Arabic is more difficult. When you're studying for an exam, as you go over the material again, it's really a lot of fun, and you will always discover something new and interesting.

Bear in mind that although people may move your things around, they don't intend to steal them. They just pick them up and put them in another place because it seems a more convenient place at the time. It's not thievery, just moving them around. So when you come back, expect your things in another, slightly different place.

Putting your things on a chair is not a good idea, as there will always be someone who wants to sit down. On a table is also not a good idea, because people will tend to use the table, so they will just move your things to empty a place for themselves. The best thing to do is put your things on a bookcase, or put them inside a desk or a bag, and leave it around! Don't worry, nothing will happen to them; it's just going to save you a lot of time looking later on.

El-zahma is a word you will always hear; it literally means "overcrowding" or "crowdedness," but we use it as an adjective as well to describe any place that is over packed, busy, or teeming with people. It's a great word. We can say "the streets are zahma," "the people are zahma," "the restaurants are zahma," "the train is zahma," as Cairo is incredibly busy city, with over twenty-eight million people. The city itself is not very big, considering we have that many people in it; it should be much larger, and it's not! So if you think of the number of people that are in one place all together at the same time, the number of people per square meter, it will be a very high ratio. You need to get used to a lot of cars, a lot of people, a lot of zahma!

It also means you need to know your directions very well, because you won't know where you're going most of the time. And when people give you directions, they will do it in a very strange way that might make you feel dizzy just hearing it. It's better to get directions for where you're going beforehand, as a lot of times people don't know the street names or where they are. But you learn, and it's fun to get lost and try to find your way; you can discover a lot of treasures by getting lost in Cairo. Plus, people are extremely friendly and helpful, so if you just ask for their help, they will help you and even take you to the place you're going to, even if it's not on their way. They will make sure you get there okay; it's as if you became their personal responsibility. People might also ask you where you're going even if you don't ask for directions; it's an Egyptian habit.

When going somewhere and getting lost, you will be asking people for directions. People will describe the place using a strange form, by saying "it" a lot, and as a result, you will either hear -o or -ha at the end of the place expression. It takes time to get used to it, as it's not common in English and many other languages, but in Arabic, we use it quite a lot.