COUSCOUS

I met the first four people of our group today for brunch. We sat for hours at a little cafe at the heart of the city, chatting long after we finished our meal. After touring the city, we were all a bit tired, so we went back to our perspective hotels/hostels/apartments to rest.

We met up later in the evening for dinner at an Arabic-Egyptian restaurant that we happened to find by wandering the back streets near one of our hotels. The Arabic-Egyptian culture combination brings many thoughts to mind, not the least of which is the way women are (mis)treated as second-class citizens in traditional society. Yet even though I may not agree with Arabic patriarchy, I cannot deny that their food is so good -- and cheap. I had a lentil soup (Linsensuppe) with cilantro that was out of this world. Then there was falafel and goat cheese and grilled veggies and, of course, couscous. We had enough food for a feast. I don't think we've tasted much "Austrian" fare yet, but we'll all be going back to COUSCOUS very soon.