Saudi Arabia: Land of Sand

Assalamu Alaikum,

So, I finally moved to Saudi Arabia and am reunited with J. A lot of things here are much different from what I expected. I have been here for almost three weeks now and have pretty much fully settled in.

To start, it is HOT. Today, being not one of the extremely hot days, is around 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Thankfully, we have central air conditioning with six units just for our house! My day usually begins with me waking up and realizing J has overslept and is late for work. I hurriedly wake him up and also get ready myself. Then I head outside just a few feet from our door where our compound bus waits. This bus takes all of the women from the compounds out daily. There is a set schedule, and each day is a different place. For example, Saturday's are Dhahran Mall. It runs five days a week, and seeing as how we live in such a small compound, everyone knows each other, and so we usually go shopping together.

I will write more later.......... :D

Peace,

Amna

Stavanger

Assalamu Alaikum,

About three days have passed since we arrived in Stavanger. I remember why I fell in love with this town the first time I came here. Everything is just so beautiful and charming. Even when all is covered with snow.

So, on Monday, J and I ventured out in search of food. I had heard of a place called Saken er Biff, a steakhouse near the harbor and wanted to try it. The name, I believe, is a pun or play on words. It means "the subject is steak", or it can also mean "everything is alright." Pretty interesting, right? Anyways, we went down to the harbor in search of this place, but then ended up going into Restaurant Mexico. This place is always extremely crowded and they have live music playing which you can hear all across the harbor. Fortunately, on Monday, it was quiet and not too full of people. We ordered an appetizer to share and then I got the mixed fajitas and chose chicken and steak. J got the Mexicana Hamburguesa. All in all, the food was pretty good, and the service was, as usual in Norway, mediocre. One of our servers was nice, while the other was rude and ditsy and had no clue what she was doing. The first two pictures are of my fajitas, condiments, and sides; the third is of J's dinner.
On Tuesday, after dinner, we walked around near the lake and the pond. It is so interesting to see how different things look because of cold or warm weather. The lake is almost fully frozen over. It seems to be about one fourth of its actual size, and the rest is ice; this forces all the ducks and swans to gather in the middle, making it seem overpopulated. That reminds me of something impressive about this place. Last time we were here, we decided we would take some bread at breakfast time and go down to the lake and feed the ducks, and if we got lucky, the swans. When we got there, we realized it would not be necessary, as there was a HUGE mountain of bread in the corner of the lake. Everyday, the bakeries and stores give their leftover bread to the ducks. Which also explains why they all seem so fat.

Another interesting tidbit about Norway; drivers will ALWAYS stop for pedestrians. I always wondered why they were unusually nice and began braking yards ahead of any pedestrians crossing. Apparently, if you hit a pedestrian here, you get taken straight to prison, no questions asked. I think it is a good thing, especially compared to places such as Saudi Arabia, where I was nearly run over by a police van.

Inverurie--> Stavanger

Assalamu Alaikum,

So, today we woke up exceptionally early for a weekend. I finished doing laundry and packed our suitcases and woke up J. He had been up most of the night watching the All -Star Game. That is one thing he misses dearly; basketball.

We headed to the Aberdeen airport and made it with enough time to grab a huge breakfast at The Food Hub. It was a pretty nice area and they had a variety of foods, and it was not very expensive. After that, we headed to our gate, and made it just in time as they called up the passengers. We saw the plane and cracked up. Not only was it ancient, it was also tiny. A little bit bigger than the one we took initially from London, but still pretty small. And, the funniest part; the stairs to board the plane were held down with a rope tied straight to the propeller and wing. We wanted to take a picture of it, but thought better of it, especially since we were the first two people to board the plane.

After a short flight that ended in clapping from a pack of rowdy, young Americans, we reached Stavanger. I was glad to get away from them, as they seemed to be noisy everywhere they went. They totally fit the stereotype that most of the world has of us. Yuck.
We took a taxi to our hotel, and on the way we started looking around at all the familiar places. Unfortunately, things look extremely different when snow is involved, so we could hardly distinguish anything on the outskirts of the town. But, after we got into town, things started to look the same, and there was hardly any snow still intact. The lake from last time is right across our hotel this time. The hotel is a lot bigger, and the staff seems a lot more friendly and helpful.

J is snoring like a motorboat and I am getting pretty tired from lack of sleep last night. I will post again soon.

Peace.
Amna

Inverurie

Assalamu Alaikum,

I have decided to blog more often. Especially since I have been traveling so much and always forget to document all my interesting experiences.

First of all, I cannot believe our stay in Inverurie is almost over! It is unbelievable. Upon our arrival, the days seemed to drag on; we could hardly wait for the next day, let alone a few months. But, then as life went on and we got used to living here time just flew right by us. Last night, J and I were talking about how we will really miss Inverurie and our bungalow here. It seems the two city slickers have fallen in love with this itty bitty town. Here is a picture of the town centre that I took the first month.

This week went by pretty quick. Wednesday we had dinner out with the plant manager and a few other co-workers of J's. I hada really good time and met a few nice people. The best part was when the PM and his wife gave me a huge orchid plant. I was extremely surprised and happy. Its a purple orchid and is a bit larger than my first orchid plant. I am currently emailing the US Department of Agriculture to figure out how to bring it home with me.

Tomorrow, we are going to Stavanger, Norway. I went there in September, so I think I will remember almost everything... we shall see.
I must run and pack now, so I will post more later. I think I should begin posting shorter, more frequent entries.

Cheers!! <--Scottish for bye.
Peace.
-Amna

Small Town Life

Assalamu Alaikum

It is now the end of January. Time has gone by pretty fast the last few weeks. We are still living in Inverurie and have gotten used to the slow paced life here. Of course, we will never get UN-used to the fast life in Houston.

Everything changed for the better 2 weeks ago when J got a car. Firstly, it is a brand new 2009 Peugeot and smells new. After that, we became a little more mobile, going into Aberdeen two to three times a week. And, it helped with our grocery trips because now we can go as much as we want, whenever we want, without the inconvenience of a running meter on a taxi.

Saturday night was the Burn's Night celebration and J's work had a party. It was an interesting experience, to say the least. The majority of the men wore kilts. Before this, neither J nor I had any idea how intricate the whole kilt deal is. One of the guys at our table, not an SLB employee, but a spouse of one, explained the whole deal to us. And then I researched it a bit, too. So here is what I learned; you have the kilt, which is the skirt part. It can be made of any number of wool qualities which in turn, affects the price. Then, it can be pleated or not. And, the pleating can be in different ways. After that, you have the special shoes and hose, these are like knee high and almost always white. On the side of one of the hose is a small dagger in a silver and black case. That was quite a surprise when he pulled it out to show us. On top is the shirt, which is very similar to a white shirt you would wear with a tuxedo, and over that is a coat which closely resembles a tuxedo if it is a formal kilt. The most interesting part for me was the little pouch or purse that hangs inside of the coat and over the top of the kilt. It is similar to a clasp purse and is made of fur, with three extra balls of fur decorating the front. These are made from a variety of animals; usually rabbit and mink.

They served Haggis at the party, but thankfully we were late by quite some time, and missed the first course. Haggis is a Scottish delicacy; here is a basic description from the always convenient Wikipedia. "There are many recipes, most of which have in common the following ingredients: sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach for approximately three hours." And, yes, it is served in the stomach.

Afterwards, they had the dance part, and there was a singer with his musician. They were alright, and as one of the songs started, I instantly recognized Lonestar's "Amazed." But, unfortunately, it was followed by a horrible rendition of the song. The guy could sing well enough, but his extremely thick Scottish accent just totally killed it.

On to other topics.... I have noticed pretty rotten service here in the UK. The wait staff do not seem to care how long they make the customer wait. Sometimes, it can take up to 30 minutes to get your bill. The other night, we went to Frankie's & Benny's in Aberdeen. I am not going to lie; the food was delicious (apart from my steak which was too hard to cut or chew). But, throughout most of the meal, our cups were empty and we had no water for almost an hour. Also, our waitress would walk by many many times, right past us and into the bar, without checking on us. But, after living here for a month or two, in J's case, we are somewhat used to it. Still angers us though. We met a man, who was extremely nice, and even he was saying that nothing beats the service we have in America, especially in the South. He had apparently been to FL and CA.

Well, I guess it is time to get a start on the day; its 9:20 AM.

Peace.

Where do I even start?????

Assalamu Alaikum,

Wow. More than an entire year has gone by! I can't believe I haven't posted in so long. Well, a quick summary of the second half of 2007...


In May, J went to Moscow for a week. It was our first time apart, so tough, yet manageable since I spent the whole time with my mom, sisters, and N (who was already living with us full-time at this point).

The summer was pretty much event less, from what I can remember. In August, we went on an unforgettable vacation to the little house in Wimberley. That was quite an experience; my first time in such a small town.

The rest of the year pretty much revolved around TDC. Yes, a whole six to eight months. It was a constant for so long that when it ended it felt like a piece of our lives was gone. Yes, unfortunately, it was that crazy. In mid-December the FIL finally bought a house; after weeks of J, me, and him going house-shopping.
At the end of the year, N, my best friend, got married. And, moved all the way to Canada.

And, now for 2008, one of the most eventful and memorable years of my life. The beginning was like any other; apart from the hectic month of January. J and I barely had free time. Day and night we worked on the house. After everyone else would leave, we would still be there, painting, patching, and sanding. Not necessarily in that order. He felt that after all his dad had done for him, it was a way to repay him in a way. Maybe that was what prompted him to ask us to move in. Apart from the obvious reasons he mentioned; I could help around the house, since I already was cooking for them most of the time, and N most likely could not live without us. So, in April, when our lease ended, we moved in. Moving is the single most stressful thing ever. Maybe it wouldn't be so had we prepared a little better. Don't get me wrong; I was packing for days.
I just didn't have the help I needed.

So, we moved to BG. I kind of became a mother to N (which I already was) and O. Or maybe more of a big sister, since I'm only 8 years older than one and 10 the other.
Life went on, with a routine that was getting pretty mundane after some time..and then one night, J came home with an idea/proposal. How would I like to go to Umrah in June.
At first, I was skeptical about going with a random group of people that I did not know too well. But, fortunately, I said yes. WOW. It was THE BEST two weeks of my life. Describing all my experiences would take days, but lets just say I will never forget them. I made friends that, in sha'Allah, I will likely keep for the rest of my life.

In August, we went to Orlando with J's siblings and S (bil's wife). An interesting vacation, but something we both agreed to never do again. In the end, the three of us left early and returned home. J left for OK and then Canada the very next day. He returned after 4 days, during which N and I hung out.

In September, we went to Norway, Ireland, and London (even if for a day). I absolutely fell in love with Norway. We were in a small city called Stavanger, and it was so different from life at home. It was a really nice trip and we had a lot of fun. I learned a bunch of phrases in Norske and managed to have a good time even with J working Monday- Thursday. One of the days, J's manager in Norway took us on a ride in his boat. It was a really awesome experience, even though on the way out, every bounce made you feel like your bones were rattling. I saw some of the bluest, cleanest water ever. And, the mountains and fjords were breathtaking. SubhanAllah.
We even managed to see Pulpit Rock from way down in the ocean. Apart from the fact that Norway is one of the most expensive places in the world, we had a good time.

The next week, we headed to Ireland. Belfast to be exact. It was fun, but the first 2 days were very rainy and wet. We went to the harbor where they built the Titanic, but didn't do the tour. We also visited the Odyssey Center, which is a shopping mall and theater and arcade all together. We took pictures in front of all the famous landmarks, including the Albert Clock Tower..also known as the mini Big Ben.
After that, we stopped in London for a day. We went to visit a cousin of mine that was living as an expat there, and we talked all night. Other than that, I did not really find London that interesting.

During this trip, Hurricane Ike happened to hit Houston. Although we were not home during the devastating hurricane, all we could think about was our family. We were pretty relieved when we managed to get in contact and hear that everyone was doing well. When I returned, things were still destroyed and you could tell the city had been through a lot. Even now, 4 months later, some places have not been able to rebuild completely. And, of course, the government once again, did practically nothing to help. It was not as bad as Katrina in NO, but they could have done so much more.

After that, was Eid, which was a lot of fun. Z, my sister from SC came down with her baby, and the family went out a lot. In November, J left for Scotland. He stayed in Inverurie for two weeks, and then headed to Saudi Arabia. He returned to Scotland, where it had snowed and everything was beautifully blanketed in the soft whiteness. He came back to Houston at the end of November, right after my farewell party. The next few weeks were spent preparing for our move and spending time with friends and family.

In the next post, I will talk about the rest of the year..and the beginning of 2009.

Peace.