Turkey Day Travel

Sara at Wife-Mommy-Woman is hosting this week's Blog Roundup on one of my favorite topics - Thanksgiving travel. 

Late November is perhaps the time of year when, no matter where I am or what I'm doing, I start getting pangs of homesickness.  So much so that I've only spent three and a half Thanksgivings away from my immediate family.  My freshman year in college, I went to my aunt and uncle's house in VA for a wonderful weekend with family and friends and food.  My junior year in college, I spent Thanksgiving in a literature class at the Sofitel Hotel in Khon Kaen, Thailand.  We didn't get classes canceled, but we did have class while eating a buffet lunch that included turkey.  Three years ago I loaded my suitcases full of pumpkin pie filling, french fried onions, cream of mushroom soup, and cranberry sauce and flew to Oxford, England, where one of my best friends and I made a traditional American turkey dinner for her flatmates and classmates.  Last year was the half year. 

I was living in DC and was all set to spend Thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle's house again, with most of the extended family.  Which is always a fun time.  Except that I knew that all three of my brothers and all the assorted nieces/nephews would be gathering at home in NH, for the first time in forever.  I hadn't planned to go home because missing work on the Friday after would mean losing per diem for that day, and I didn't want to deal with that.  But Wednesday morning of Thanksgiving week, I woke up feeling like I wanted to go home.  So I started thinking.  I decided it would be rude to miss Thanksgiving dinner with my extended family in VA (I really wanted to see all the cousins et al), but since my brothers wouldn't all be there until Friday, I might be able to do both.  What's a 500 mile drive each way when it's holidays at home??  So, feeling a bit crazy, I called my above-mentioned friend (also living in DC and from the same home town), and she agreed to join me.  We planned to leave after dinner on Thursday, drive through the night, and then head back Sunday.  Crazy, indeed.  The best part?  We didn't tell our families.  I had a really hard time not telling my parents (especially as I tried to figure out where everyone was sleeping while on the phone with my mom), but I managed. 

Thursday morning I packed everything up before heading over to my aunt and uncle's.  Hattie got really worried when I pulled out suitcases, thinking she'd be left behind, so I left the suitcases in the apartment while I went to VA.  Thanksgiving was, as always, a lot of fun.  When all the aunts and uncles and cousins and Grandma get together, we tend to reminisce and laugh hysterically most of the time.  Lots of good senses of humor.  I felt badly leaving so soon after a delicious dinner, but everyone understood.  (They're used to my crazy ideas by now, but I promised to email when I got home to let them know I made it safely.)  A quick stop at home to pick up the luggage and Hattie, a quick stop in MD to pick up L, and we were off!  We left about 8:30 pm and made great time almost all the way.  The only traffic we encountered was getting onto the GW Bridge in NYC.  We switched off driving and caffeinated well and reached our hometown at about 4:30am.  We made awesome time, in other words.

I dropped L off at her house (making sure she made it inside before I took off, as we weren't sure the doors would be open) and headed home.  My plan was to bed down in the kids' room (some of the only open space at that time of night).  About an hour later, my six year-old niece woke up and found me on the floor next to her.  She gave me a big hug and then ran into my brother's room, where my three year-old nephew had snuck into at some point during the night, yelling "Aunt Sadie's here!"  My brother of course didn't believe her and did a double take when I popped my head around the door.  My nephew woke up at about that point, so I got another big hug and then went into the living room to watch cartoons with the kids.  I tried to nap in a chair, but that was futile.  After another hour, my father woke up.  He walked downstairs, saw me, and smiled brightly.  Cue another big hug.  My mother woke up a bit later.  I was in the kitchen with my brothers and the kids, and Mom was still a bit sleepy.  She gave everyone good morning hugs and kisses and only noticed me as she went to hug me and realized I technically shouldn't be there.  The surprise visit home was a huge success - the surprised looks on everyone's faces was well worth the long drive and lack of sleep. 

I napped a little bit, had another round of hugs when my older brother and oldest nephew arrived a bit later and had a great day hanging out.  Thanksgiving is always around birthdays - my mom's and my nephew's - so that was another impetus to go home.  My nephew's third birthday was that day, so we had a fun family dinner and party for him that night, complete with turkey cupcakes!  Hattie was happy to be home as well, enjoying being able to go outside without a leash and chaperone, and she lapped up the extra attention.  She was a phenomenal car traveler - just happy to be going somewhere with me.  We would stop every few hours for her to relieve herself and stretch, but she was always content just to sleep in her bed in the backseat. 

Saturday I went into town to visit friends and colleagues, making my usual rounds.  Lots more surprised faces and hugs.  All around, a perfect November weekend in NH.  L and I started back to DC early on Sunday, taking a slightly circuitous route through NJ so as to miss some of the traffic on I-95.  This allowed us to stop at my favorite Italian deli and bakery in Raritan to get sandwiches and cannolis!  We of course hit traffic on 95 from the MD border to 495, but it was doable.  We just turned on the Christmas music and reveled in our weekend.  L's family had been as surprised and happy as mine, and she made the family/friends rounds all weekend as well. 

So this year I of course thought about surprising the family again, but the logistics were a little more complicated.  Things like needing a ride home from the airport and having a bed for three weeks.  That sort of thing.  So I made plans early, got decent flights at a decent price, and secured almost three weeks off with only six days of work missed by stringing together lots of Saudi and U.S. holidays.  I got home late last Wednesday night and have been enjoying the cooler weather and family scene.  My mom and I went to Texas this past weekend (blog post on that coming), and now I'm looking forward to a busy couple of weeks with lots of family, friends, and food :-).  So for me, more often than not, traveling for Thanksgiving is well worth the expense and hassle.  Whether from 500 or 6,000 miles away.  (We'll see if I'm still saying that the 27th-28th as I travel back to Saudi with a bajillion other holiday travelers...)

UAB (for lack of a clever title)

Since I don't blog about work here and these days my life is all work all the time, I haven't had a lot of meaningful input for blogs.  I know I still owe a Cairo blog.  It may or may not happen, realistically.  I'm on vacation starting after next week, so we'll see how bored I get.  My work event for tonight was canceled, and I'm about done repacking (more on that later on), and dinner was easy to procure (shwarma from the on-compound restaurant), so I have a little bit of extra time before bed.  So I'll participate in this week's State Department Blog Round-Up, the theme of which is "what I wished I packed in my UAB."

Honestly, I don't know.  Because I don't yet have my UAB.  For a myriad of reasons. 

I arrived in country almost three months ago.  It took a month to get my residency permit, which was the first step before I could apply for my customs exemption.  Which I didn't do right away.  Because.  Shortly after moving into my permanent housing, I discovered that I was not moving into an empty place.  Oh no.  I won't go into the sordid details, but it became painfully clear (literally) that the media-darling pests of the moment in the US are resident in my apartment.  Ew.  It's a horrifically long story, but I am still waiting for a solution.  It has not been the greatest two+ months.  But next week my apartment and all of my belongings will be sanitized, all soft furniture (including mattresses) will be replaced, and hopefully my roommates will be history.  Meanwhile all of my belongings that have been heat-treated are in bags inside boxes so they stay pest-free, and the remaining belongings are awaiting heat treatment.  So I am basically completely packed up, except for a few clothes and necessities. 

In the middle of all this, my UAB arrived.  I heard last week that it had cleared customs and is ready for delivery, along with half of my HHE (but the boring half, not the fun half with my kitchen stuff, books, and decorations).  I refuse to have it delivered until my apartment is sanitized, for obvious reasons.  So while it should have only been two months without UAB, it'll be three+.  Add to that the fact I'm going on vacation right after the apartment gets sanitized, so I really won't have my UAB until the end of the month. 

What have I missed the most, and what am I glad is arriving in my UAB soon, though?  That's easy!  My bedding - down comforter, comfy pillows, high TC sheets and duvet cover.  Hangers!  (My housekeeper leaves me a note every time she comes that I need more hangers.  But I have TONS coming and can't justify buying more right now.)  I think my iPod sound system is in there; if not, I should have put that in!  I think I threw in enough toiletries to get me through until HHE arrives; would do that again.  A few essential kitchen gadgets.  Really important photos in frames, ones I wanted right away.  A few decorative items to make the place feel like home.  I've resisted looking at my pack-out list to see what else, because I want it to be like Christmas when it finally gets here. 

All of the things I've ordered since arrival are sitting in boxes in my office; I don't dare bring anything else home until the place is clean and pest-free.  Those are things like throw pillows, a couple pairs of shoes, another comforter I bought on sale (I love comfy bedding), a knife set, a couple of board games, clothes, etc.  Plus my gorgeous new mosaic mirror (featured on our Consulate Facebook page, if you want to take a look) and some hand-woven baskets. 

I actually think I did a pretty good job of organizing my UAB.  It weighed in at 214 pounds without the packing materials - for the first time in my life I estimated packing correctly!  It's got some awesome stuff in it.  So I look forward to receiving it.  And not having roommates.  One more week.  I hope.  I really really hope.

Think Pink!

In case you're living under a rock and didn't notice, October is breast cancer awareness month.  Those of us who (usually) live in the U.S. know of some of the amazing campaigns to raise awareness and funds to fight this disease.  In the past few years, pink has come to be so much more than a color.  I didn't expect that to be the case as much in Saudi Arabia.  Boy did I underestimate the women here! 

(This month, a member of the Foreign Service family was diagnosed with breast cancer.  She's a prominent blogger and active member of the community, and, while I don't personally know her, my heart goes out to her and her family.  Another reminder that nobody is immune.)

Several weeks ago I started to get wind of a big event to be held in Jeddah in honor of breast cancer awareness month.  The basic idea behind the event was to assemble enough women to form the world's largest human awareness ribbon.  (Apparently, a group in Germany currently holds the record with more than 3,500 participants for an AIDS ribbon a few years ago.)  The organizers originally set the bar low and said they were hoping for 2,000 participants (less than the record). 

I started getting daily emails about the event, saw numerous news articles about it, picked up flyers in stores, and heard about it from dozens of people.  So of course I decided to go.  I organized a group of colleagues and friends to join me, and everywhere I've gone for the last few weeks people have said they'd be there too. 

Between Facebook, word of mouth, and an extensive marketing campaign, the event was the talk of the town.  Other organizations joined in too.  Universities held lectures for the public on breast cancer information, hospitals sponsored free screenings and discounts on mammograms, and pink merchandise sprang up in stores.  This being my first October in the Kingdom, I don't know if this is normal.  But it's certainly impressive. 

The event is for women only and to be held in the Ministry of Education's stadium.  The sponsors, Avon Beauty Arabia and a local breast cancer awareness foundation, would distribute pink headscarves for the picture.  Other than time, date, and place, that was all the information available.  So none of us knew what to expect going into today...

This afternoon started with a community day at the American school, complete with a USG vs school faculty softball game, a budding tradition.  The school won.  Easily.  But it was a fun afternoon with a great barbecue and lots of merriment.  Three buses full of women left from there to go to the breast cancer event.  I went with three colleagues, with the intention of meeting the rest there.

As soon as we got close to the stadium, the traffic was intense.  Women of course can't drive, so every woman there had to be brought by a man, an interesting phenomenon on its own.  We had been encouraged to wear pink (under the abaya for most, which could come off once inside), and all of us dutifully did so! 

Now I have to give some credit to the organizers for their attempts at organization.  They booked the stadium, got the word out, had enough headscarves, and made the VERY smart move of drawing a ribbon outline on the field.  However, I'm convinced they underestimated the turnout.  And since all the local police and security agencies are male, it was all volunteers with little crowd management experience.  We immediately got into a frighteningly tight crowd, everyone clamoring to get inside.  I figured out from muffled megaphone announcements that we had to register and get tickets at one table (despite having pre-registered), so I made my way in to do that for my group.  After catching back up with them, the crowd started surging to the left again, this time to pick up the pink scarves.  Again, knowing it was easier for one to maneuver than four, I tried to get to the table.  I have honestly never been quite that crushed in a crowd.  It started to get a little claustrophobic and frightening.  I made it to the table, where the overwhelmed volunteers were working as hard as they could.  I waited my turn (though I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who did), grabbed the swag, and made it back to my group.  We were then able to enter the stadium area, where the crowd thinned out and dispersed.  We found the rest of our colleagues and tried to figure out our next move.

The other major problem with the organization was the lack of communication.  We followed the crowd into the stadium seating, where thousands were already gathered.  When we sat down and regrouped, though, we realized there was no access to the field from there.  The few people we asked had no idea what was going to happen or when.  There were all kinds of rumors going around, and even the organizers seemed hazy on the details.  We sat for about 40 minutes, posed for some pictures with a couple of media outlets, and marveled at the crowd.  One of the rumors was that over 7,000 women had pre-registered, which meant the turnout could be even higher.  I believe it, looking at that crowd.

We finally figured out that there in fact was no field access, so we made our way to the other side where a very small sign indicated 'ribbon entrance.'  The volunteers at the gate told us it would be another hour until things got started.  So we took a seat on the nearby curb and camped out.  As we sat there and waited and marveled, the crowds kept getting bigger and bigger.  After another 30 minutes the volunteers were called to the field.  I think the VIPs (including a couple royals) must have entered too, but it was hard to tell since there was no communication and seemingly mass chaos.  We finally went over and asked again and were told that everyone would be entering the field in clumps of 50, so that the Guinness Records people could count and record the participants.  7,000+ women, 50 at a time, every group taking 10+ minutes.  You do the math.  We'd already been there 2+ hours, and it would be hours before we even got inside.  The place was a sea of pink and black.  Even though it was just women, most people kept their abayas on.  I have no idea how they did it.  I didn't even bring mine with me (I seldom wear it these days, anyway).  But almost everyone put their new pink scarves on.  Most over their black scarves and abayas. 

Sitting there and watching the crowd, my colleagues mostly came to the same conclusion:  it was time to leave.  I originally decided to stay, with another woman, to participate in the actual ribbon.  But as we waited for the car and I started processing the sheer number of people (7,000+)  vs the number of exits (1) vs the number of security personnel (0), I changed my mind.  I felt guilty about leaving, so I asked my colleague, a security officer, to tell me that it was a security risk to stay.  Which it was.  So she did, laughing at me all the while.  The chances of stampede, a crush injury, and/or a major traffic accident as everyone left at the same time was pretty high.  So I left with the group.  A few people stayed.  They texted me two hours later to say they'd made it onto the field.  Not to say the ribbon was assembled, just that they'd made it in.  I made a good decision. 

Leaving early was difficult enough.  We snuck out an emergency exit so as not to battle the crowd again.  The guys manning the door from the other side weren't too pleased, but we pushed through anyway.  I do have to give them kudos for having an ambulance and emergency medical personnel there.  And health professionals had handed out flyers on staying hydrated, crowd control, and maintaining a healthy temperature in the heat.  Amazingly, the heat wasn't a factor in our leaving.  The weather is indeed cooling slightly, and tonight, with a mild breeze, it was bearable.  (The internet tells me it's only 81 with 79% humidity right now, so four hours ago it must have only been a cool 90 degrees or so!)  Outside, hundreds of cars and men milled around (the drivers and husbands of all the women inside).  Quite an interesting contradiction to what we'd just left. 

I'm sad I didn't officially take part in forming the world's largest human awareness ribbon.  I have little doubt they accomplished the task tonight.  But for safety reasons, it just didn't make sense to stay.  And as I walked up to my apartment, I ran into my neighbor, who told me she'd just come from the event as well.  I think a whole lot of people left on seeing the reality.  But I'm glad I went.  I wish the organizers had planned for the huge crowd, and I hope nobody got hurt tonight.  But it is such a great idea and a great cause, and the fact that women here are seemingly informed and proactive about breast cancer is awesome.  Lots of kudos to the sponsors and organizers.  There are some lessons to learn, but that doesn't take away from the effort and vision to put on such a massive interactive awareness campaign.  Way to go Jeddah!

(Here are a few photos from the very beginning.  As it got dark it was harder to take photos.  Please note that the stadium shots are from very early on in the night and are a mere fraction of the crowd.)

Busy Busy!

It seems I've been remiss about posting blog updates lately.  Part of my absence can be explained by not having home internet for a week (a very long week!), but most of it is due to a very busy few weeks at work.  When I first arrived, during Ramadan, things were much calmer.  Now we're firmly in the swing of a normal schedule, which I love because it keeps me busy.  However, it also means I spend most of my precious free time sleeping. 

There are some exciting events on the horizon, including a trip home to NH, which I'll post about once they're complete.  A highlight of the last couple of weeks was a day trip to Taif, a city tucked in the mountains about two hours drive from Jeddah. 

Taif has long been a popular vacation destination for Saudis, including the royal family, in large part because its weather is so much better than most of the rest of the country.  As soon as you ascend Al Wada mountain, the humidity eases and the temperature drops considerably.  Taif is known in particular for its agriculture and tourism industries.  It grows roses that are pressed into essential oils and coveted across the world.  I hope to return in the spring for the Rose Festival. 

Taif was a nice break from Jeddah (particularly the cooler weather!), but it was really the drive there that I want to comment on.  On the way out of Jeddah, you drive along the Mecca Road.  After about 30 minutes you start to see signs dividing the highway into two sections - one for Muslims Only and one for Non-Muslims.  We turned off right before the checkpoint into Mecca.  The authorities check the IDs of all visitors to ensure that only Muslims enter the holy city of Mecca.  I'd heard about these road signs for a long time, so it was exciting to finally see them.  As soon as we were outside the city limits, the road narrow to two lanes.  And almost instantaneously, it was a whole other world.  We were in the desert, surrounded by sloping hills, scrub brush, and desert scenes.  Jeddah is very flat and green, so the contrast was startling.  My favorite part of the change in scenery was the appearance of camels!  Hundreds of camels were grazing on either side of the road, with only cursory attempts to fence them off the road.  (Camels are a very dangerous road hazard here; they have similar physical characteristics to moose in that they have long legs and bulky bodies that can fall in just the right way to crush a car.)  We were speeding through without any chance to take pictures, so next time!

About 60km before getting to Taif, we started ascending Al Hada mountain.  A new road was constructed just a few years ago to allow cars to drive up the 6000+ foot mountain on a winding 35km road.  It's in very good condition and has decent barriers.  The drive is long, winding, and a bit nervewracking, but the view was spectacular!  We didn't see any of the mountain's resident baboons on the way up, though they were out in force when we drove down again.  (Again, no pictures.)  Taif city is a very pleasant place, with more of a small town feel than Jeddah, even though more than .5 million people live there.  It's relatively lush with agricultural projects.  I will definitely return!

(At the top of the mountain is the hotel from which the Kuwaiti government operated during the Gulf War.  We stopped for a rest break - quite a historic site!)

On the cat front, the kittens have discovered the joys of shredding paper.  I now have to keep napkins, paper towels, and bathroom tissue out of sight or risk coming home to find a mess.   (And wouldn't you know, just as I wrote that, I heard a thump.  I went into the bathroom to find both cats in the bathtub, ready to attack the toilet paper I'd hidden under a towel.  *Sigh*)  For beings that dislike water, they spend an awful lot of time in the bathtub...

Anyway, I still owe a posting on Cairo, and I want to write about education in Saudi, a sector I've been dealing with considerably lately.  Some very interesting observations.  Hopefully this week I'll be able to write at least one of those, although it is shaping up to be another very busy week...  (That's okay, I have a trip to NH, and a side trip to TX to see Lyle Lovett, coming up very soon!)

Happy Weekend!  (Or almost weekend for those of you not working in the Muslim world.)

The Hardest Part

About serving overseas is, without a doubt, missing the milestones that continue to happen even when you're not there.  Birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, births, deaths, and the myriad other events.  It's hard enough not to be there for the day to day, but missing those once-in-a-lifetime moments leaves me with a sense of guilt, longing, sadness, and frustration.

I'm feeling this acutely today for two reasons.  The first is that the rest of my siblings are all at my parents' house this weekend, something that happens once or twice a year if we're lucky.  I am feeling okay about this one, because I am headed back to the US for a visit next month and will more than likely be able to see all my brothers and their families.  But I still wish I could be spending the long weekend with all of them.  Fall is one of my favorite times in New England, and there's something about the season that makes me want to curl up and watch football, eat comfort food, and hang out with family and friends.

The second one is harder.  Today, one of my very good friends is getting married.  I had held out hope until just a few weeks ago that I'd make it home for this wedding, but it just wasn't to be.  And even though B and her fiancé understand and accept why I can't be there, I still really WANT to be there.  I want to share their special day and celebrate the amazing couple that they are.  So I'm sort of wallowing in my own sadness about this one, even though I'd seen it coming a year ago.  So B&O, all the best wishes to you on this beautiful autumn day.  I love you guys!  Congratulations!

(Note:  I have definitely reached the trough of the cultural adjustment cycle, which is not a fun time even when you know what's happening and why and how to get past it.  It's not as bad as it has been in past sojourns abroad, but I still have my moments.  Like today.)

So.  It's time to stop feeling sorry for myself and move on.  Luckily I have a fun, busy week ahead of me to keep me occupied.  Plus two very playful kittens who don't allow wallowing.  I do have to say, though, that I have no idea how I ever survived living abroad before without home internet access, Skype, APO, and Netflix streaming...  Things have gotten much easier in just a few years.  (B, how far we've come from our little Lemon Tree Cottage and SATC marathons with the best of Cape Town delivery services!)

The post in which I rave about my housekeeper...

I really will get around to a long post about Cairo, but for now I need to talk about something else. 

I have never been much for household chores.  My parents tried for years to get me to help out around the house, clean my room, empty the dishwasher, pick blueberries, etc. - all to no avail.  (Mom, here's where you can insert something about this being the understatement of all time.)  I absolutely loathe cleaning and often genuinely don't notice if something needs to be cleaned.  Vacuuming is one of my greatest downfalls.  Houseplants wilt at the thought of me taking care of them.  With the one exception being the orchid I nurtured somehow kept alive despite forgetting to water it for weeks (months) at a time for a year and a half.  It didn't die in the end, either.  I couldn't bring it with me to Saudi and so passed it along to a friend/neighbor.  Cleaning (and gardening for that matter) are not my strong suits.  A friend and I once lived in a furnished house for about three months before realizing there was a 5' potted tree in our dining room.  And it was discovered then only because it started dying and its dried leaves fell on the floor.  And even then my roommate noticed it, not me.  When it comes to household chores, I'm blissfully unaware. 

All last year in DC I had weekly housekeeping by a rotation of overworked and busy women.  It was such a relief to come home on Mondays to a clean apartment, a gleaming kitchen, freshly laundered linens and towels, and a confused dog.  (For some reason many of the housekeeping staff thought Hattie's chewed, ratty stuffed toys were mine, and they consistently ended up placed neatly among the pillows on my bed.) 

When I lived in Thailand a number of years ago, I had someone do my laundry (wash, dry, iron, fold; door-to-door service) for the small sum of $5 a month.  I thought that was luxury (especially since my roommate was slightly OCD and cleaned the room 2-3 times daily, thus relieving me of any responsibility).  But both of these together pale in comparison to the gem of a housekeeper I've found here.

So it's on this backdrop that I will rave about my newly hired housekeeper.  Some people are wary of hiring domestic help.  I have no such qualms.  It was always in the back of my mind as a bidding strategy, but I have now elevated it to a top priority.  (Translation:  I will bid more competitively for posts where domestic help is widely available, acceptable, and affordable.)

This particular woman was referred to me by a departing colleague, billed as a combination housekeeper/cat sitter.  My colleague told me she trusted S completely with her home and her cats, and that was quite a good reference.  So I got in touch with S, she came by for a visit and immediately took to my cats, and it was a match!  For logistical/scheduling reasons, S started last week while I was in Cairo.  She normally is slated to come twice a week, but when I'm away she'll come by each day to look after the cats. 

I came home yesterday to a masterpiece.  I hadn't yet truly unpacked from moving in (more on that later, once things are settled on that front), and I still had boxes and piles and even a suitcase lying around.  I left S a note telling her to ignore these piles.  She ignored me.  Wow.  Everything is unpacked, put away (logically and with great care), and my apartment is spotless and gleaming.  Plus, my cats couldn't be happier.  Sure, they were excited to cuddle and trip me when I returned, but it was obvious they had barely noticed my absence.  My house is fully stocked with cleaning materials, with receipts and exact change from the money I'd left for this purpose.  My kitchen had been organized, my bathroom, the cat's room, my room.  I was stunned and excited. 

But it gets better.

I passed S coming in as I was headed to work today (her regular day to clean).  I told her how fabulous a job she'd done and that I'd just messed everything up by partly unpacking.  I felt guilty and told her to just ignore my piles of clothes and half-empty suitcases.  She told me she would. 

Needless to say, I got home tonight to find an apartment even more spotless and glowing than yesterday.  I don't know how she did it.  My foyer is cleared out (it was previously full of boxes of dog toys); she noticed that these boxes didn't really need to be unpacked just yet.  My laundry is all done - not just my dirty laundry, but ALL my laundry.  Whether it was clean or dirty before, it is now all clean, dry, ironed, and folded.  And the drawers are organized.  Plus S noticed my washer and dryer aren't functioning properly (I hadn't noticed).  So she called maintenance; they're already half done fixing them.  My suitcases are unpacked and put away, as is everything else.  My shoes have been put away in the closet; my purses are neatly displayed on shelves in the closet.  The few household decor items I had with me in suitcases are displayed. 

What is so amazing to me is that, with only a couple exceptions, everything is put away exactly where I'd envisioned putting it.  Not only is S a magnificent woman and housekeeper and cat wrangler, she's a mind reader.  I've hit the jackpot.  I'm also very glad I agreed to a slightly higher salary than some of my colleagues pay their housekeepers, because she's worth every penny.  And much more. 

So I'm just wandering around tonight in awe.  It's a great feeling.  And I'm spoiled for life.  S is more than I could have ever hoped for in a housekeeper.  And I just had to share (gloat?).  So thanks for listening.

Cairo Teaser

I just got home from Cairo a couple of hours ago (amazing and wonderful trip) and am working on a blog about my adventures. That will take a little while, as I have other pressing matters (like unpacking and going to work tomorrow), but I wanted to post a few photos in advance...  (these are out of order and uncaptioned, because I still am not good with the pic-adding feature of this editor.) 

A Childhood Dream Come True

The week after Eid has, predictably, been extremely busy.  Between hosting an amazing music performance (see previous post) and a quick trip to Riyadh (where I got to see many good friends and colleagues and meet some new ones), sleep has been hard to come by.  I wouldn't trade it for anything, though, and I've now had two straight decent nights of sleep. 

Tomorrow I head out across the Red Sea to a place that I've dreamed of visiting since I was very young - Cairo, Egypt!  In my elementary school, we studied Ancient Egypt and the Pharaohs several times through the years, followed by at least once in each high school and college as well.  So, like many of my contemporaries, I have the typical idolization of the history and archaeology of Egypt.  Interestingly, though, after a year spent trying to mentally distance myself from all things Egyptian in an effort not to have my Arabic 'polluted' by the very different and distinct dialect spoken there, I lost a little bit of the magic and wonder I've always had about the place.  Going to Cairo became an inevitable visit rather than a true dream destination like it had been throughout my childhood.  It's the same way you start to take things for granted after awhile when they once seemed wondrous and novel.  Whenever I've moved somewhere and been struck by the beauty or excitement or potential of a place, I've vowed not to take it for granted, but it always ends up happening.  I think this is what happened to Egypt.  (I also think that spending a year learning about a volatile region and talking daily about the comparatively unstable situations in other Middle Eastern countries has desensitized me somewhat, wherein Egypt became a tame alternative to places like Iraq or Yemen.)

So when the opportunity to attend a great conference in Cairo came up, I was excited to go but not overly so.  (Frankly, I was more excited about the prospect of staying in a fancy hotel for a week and getting another stamp in my passport...)  But after spending all of yesterday frantically planning my last-minute trip and much of today getting caught up enough to be able to go, it was time to relax and start planning.  I am bookending two weekends, so I'll end up having a couple of free days to explore.  One of my friends/classmates from my DC training days has graciously agreed to host me for the few nights I'm not on per diem, and I'm thrilled to see her again and compare our first months at post.  So that's a very exciting part of my visit.  But what else to do?  And that's when it hit me.

I'm going to CAIRO!  EGYPT!  A place I have learned and read about from the time I was old enough to remember.  How on earth could I not be stay-up-all-night-in-anticipation, first visit to Disney World, Christmas Eve excited for this!?  So after spending a day thinking, planning, reading, now I am :-).  I have a list of things I want to do/see on this trip (Giza Pyramids, Sphinx, Khan-al-Khalili, Blue Mosque, Nile boat ride, etc.) as well as a backup list of many many other things for the next visit (and there will definitely be a next visit).  There's so much to do and see that I have to accept I can't see it all this week.  The conference also has a couple of activities planned, including a visit to a UNESCO World Heritage site called Valley of the Whales, to which I'm very much looking forward. 

So I'm currently doing laundry, packing, and planning for tomorrow's departure.  The kittens have still not quite gotten over the trauma of me being gone for a few days this week, but they'll be in very capable hands with my housekeeper.  A short two-hour flight tomorrow, and I'll be retracing the paths of the Pharaohs.  Stories and pictures to follow!

Country Music in the Kingdom

I try to keep this blog about my personal life, but I have to add in a quick work-related story.  (This also explains why I haven't had time to blog this week.)  This week the Kingdom's three posts hosted a country music band from the US, Thom Shepherd & the Nashville Songwriters.  Their performance was my first event, and, needless to say, I spent much of the Eid week worrying and planning and what-if-ing.  I was control officer for the band, which involves pre-planning and logistics as well as escorting them and facilitating everything during their stay.  As soon as they arrived at the airport with all their luggage, I breathed a big sigh of relief, and everything went swimmingly from there.  The performance was amazing, and guests, musicians, and our staff all had a wonderful time.  The band has been blogging and taking lots of wonderful photos and video, so please visit their site to learn more (http://jerryv-backtosaudiarabia.blogspot.com).  I of course owe the lion's share of the credit to my amazing colleagues, who also put in countless hours to make this a successful program.  The band is having a similarly great time touring the rest of the Kingdom right now!  So the short version of the story is that I truly have one of the greatest jobs in the world, getting to meet wonderful people like these and contribute to cultural exchange in a myriad of ways.  I've gotten lots of email, phone, and verbal responses to the concert, which have all been overwhelmingly positive and excited.  Here's to many, many more wonderful events!