Trip to Aswan, Egypt for No Strings Puppet Workshop
November 22-December 4, 2025
Why am I in Aswan, Egypt?
I am doing a puppet workshop with No Strings Intl. for aid workers who are working in Sudan. My role in the workhshop is to teach aid workers and teachers how to use puppets and puppetry. They in turn will impart these skills to other aid workers and also to teach kids how to use puppets for a variety of reasons mainly having to do with communicating health messages.
Will I get to tour sites in Egypt like the Pyramids?
No. I am going to be busy and working the whole time I’m here, and then I have to head back to LA to continue with my job and responsibilities at Spectral Motion.
How is it going so far?
Great, we had our first day of the workshop on Sunday, Nov. 23 and it went really well. There are 25 participants in the class but we had enough training puppets and I got people up on their feet and using puppets. It was fun, but I’m very jetlagged.
Travel
Layover in New York. I got to New York from LA at 1AM Friday Moring, so I booked a hotel near the airport. This was the first time I’ve stepped foot in New York since I moved from there in 2018.
November 23, 2025, Running along the Nile.
My travel from Los Angeles to Aswan took over 48 hours. Long layover in New York and Cairo, plus my flight from Cairo to Aswan had to divert to Luxor, refuel and then make a second, successful attempt at landing in Aswan. I arrived late on the 22 of November, got to my hotel ordered room service, ate and crashed. Then I got up around 5AM and looked for a route on the map to do a 5KM run.
I had no idea what I would discover, but there was a long path along the Nile. Lots of Tour boats docked along side the piers waiting to be filled with tourists for days-long excursions up the Nile. Most of the people on my flight from Cairo were with a tour group who were going to to do a 4 day boat trip.
My run was nice, except for being a little worried about the ferral dogs. I did have one scary moment where a bunch of dogs were coming at me and barking. I did not like that, and I’m worried about going out and running again because I just don’t want my calves to be a meal for some crazy street dogs. But at least I can say I’ve run in Egypt and along the NIle.
