Isn't it Easter?

Okay, I (Wendy) am back and confused...
This morning as we were speeding down the road, out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw a big sign in a flower shop window that said "Happy Mothers Day". I thought to myself, "Wow. They're on the ball." (Seeing as Easter is not observed by most people here, Mothers day would be the next... holiday?)
Then I was in the grocery store and there was a huge display with bouquets of roses and a banner that said "Happy Mothers Day" right as you walk in.
As I worked my way through the store I noticed a special display of Arabic treats and a sign all in Arabic. I had never seen these treats for sale there before so, figured since they are celebrating Mohammed's birthday (yesterday) it must have been brought in special for that event. Which by the way is observed as a day off for some.
Then I noticed that Christmas tunes were playing over the speaker. What the?
As I was leaving I noticed in the store beside the grocery store a (few) Easter items.
So I ask... which holiday do I celebrate? What a party!
Speaking of party, my parents came for a visit.! A much anticipated visit. They swung through on their way out of Africa, where my father has a humanitarian project he oversees.
We showed them around our town and the kids school, introduced them to Maneesh (which they liked), even had Tabouleh, Hummus, Fatoosh, and Uhmwahlee. Took a couple of road trips. One to Abu Dhabi. Saw The Palace, rode in a water taxi on the Persian Gulf, laughed at camels, over-ate at Fuddruckers, and saw the amazing Sheikh Zayad Grand Mosque. Where my mom and I donned Abayas.
They were impressed by our beautiful pool, which we had to ourselves in the a.m. And witnessed the attention a blonde, blue eyed, small westerner got... Jonah gets a lot of attention AND treats from the Arabs. A box of cookies, 2 bags of chips, several hair ruffles, and the occasional kiss. Riley and Christopher are chopped liver I guess.
In Dubai, we drove as far as we could on the Palm (man made island in the shape of a palm tree), drove around the construction at the bottom of the Burj (tallest building in the world which will always be under construction in case any one dares to build a higher one then they will be able to go higher and higher and so on), walked around Mall of the Emirates (where the indoor ski hill is), had dinner with the Stewarts (wonderful friends from Red Deer), where we left them tearfully and they stayed until they caught their flight early the next morning. It was sooo very wonderful to have them to ourselves and we felt the void when they were gone. Jonah was the most disappointed to say goodbye (no one to listen to his incessant chattering an more). The next morning I asked him what he liked about having Grandma and Grandpa here and he replied.."they are happy and fun" That sums them up to the tee! What a blessing to have great relatives!
Over and Out to Lunch, Wendy
P.S. I will have Jon post some pictures later.

Christmas Candids

Not much to show from Christmas. We went way overboard, overcompensating for missing all y'all, I guess. Anyway, here are a few candids--it's almost like you're right there with us now!

Makin' cookies:



Boy . . . in booties. Or stocking. Well, behind stocking.



So we got the big boys iPods--an elaborate and secretive procedure since Riley had overtly requested one, and reminded us ad nauseam of his peculiar desire. So I had to persuade him it wasn't happening. In fact, we had agreed on a stocking-only Christmas, so at 2:00 a.m. Christmas morning, Riley snuck a peak expecting to find his new toy, and was disappointed. Mwa-ha-ha!

He was a bit sullen Christmas morning, but put on a brave face. And gave up. Imagine his total chagrin when Christopher, who never asks for anything, fairly backflipped with joy over his gift (it's nice to have one effusive kid in the family):



And then the moment arrived. And there was much rejoicing. Obviously:



We were joined for dinner by L Ylanan, whose wife was on shift at her job in Abu Dhabi, and J Shewell, whose family was and is in Korea. He'll be joining them this week. The camera adds 20 pounds. Shut up.



Filed under "What the?": Ski Dubai. We're going tomorrow morning. It's actually pretty cheap, considering the overhead they must pay.

Ho! Ho! Ho?

[from threesources.com]

Well, it's that time of year: the sun is shining, the pool is a clear, crystal blue, the weather has cooled off just enough that we have only one room requiring air conditioning at night, the flowers are in bloom, and our tans are a medium brown. Yep, it's Christmas in the Arabian peninsula.

Ah, how the old traditions warm our already warm hearts: hummus cakes on Christmas Eve, shawarma-on-a-stick for Christmas dinner, date pies, date jellies, date ice cream, the sounds of chanting and rousing anti-Western sermons drifting over from the mosque; it really is the most wonderful time of the year!


[by Brian McMorrow, goworldtravel.com]

What's fun is seeing how the Emiratis "get into" the Christmas spirit--in superficial ways, of course. The draping of lights corresponds with the National Day celebrated on Dec. 2 this year, and Eid al Adha, which is in full sway at present, so they'll just leave all the deco up through Christmas. Apparently some Emiratis buy Christmas trees and exchange gifts, but this is just another reason to party, not a chance to honor the birth of Christ: prophet he may be in the Muslim worldview, but not the prophet.

Every mall and most stores, however, do something to signal their business savvy and cash in on the expat appetite for things Christmasy. There are full-on displays, including a tree that straddles the escalator in a mall in Dubai, and is at least 50 ft. high. You hear Christmas music playing almost everywhere--but the secular stuff, not hymns, unless the stores are owned by non-muslims. Nativity scenes are available as well, but these aren't displayed prominently.


[from dubaithoughts.blogspot.com]

The upshot is that, while Jon still has to work on the 24th, 25th, and 26th (only for a couple of hours on Christmas, thank goodness), we are left unmolested in our celebrations. We've decorated modestly, and tried to connect with traditions from home. We have been reading Christmas stories in the evening, hosted a branch potluck yesterday where we compared cultural and family traditions, hope to find a service opportunity for next week, and plan a full-on Christmas dinner with the works (minus ham, which is available, but costs a tail and a snout) and two "bachelors" for company (J. Shewell, whose family is in Korea, and L, Ylanan, whose spouse works in Abu Dhabi). We'll even manage to get some skiing in: at Mall of the Emirates in Dubai, which has an indoor ski hill and snow park (environmentalists, avert your eyes).

So we'll miss you, and maybe even the snow (but not much), but look forward to our own little Christmas here in this strange place 3 hours by plane from where Christ was born. Alright, so it's a weak connection but hey, we take what we can get. We'll be thinking of all of you in your wind and snow-blasted homes, gathering around fireplaces, surrounded by loved ones, and up to your eyeballs in wassail and pumpkin pie. We hope you'll think of us over here in our sun-baked villa, gathered around the Wii, surrounded by tolerant indifference, and up to our eyeballs in mirinda and pistacchio ice cream.

Our collective love and best wishes to you all: Merry Christmas, and God bless you, every one!

And now individual greetings.

Riley: I miss the snow! Merry Christmas.
Christopher: I miss you, and Merry Christmas!
Jonah: Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Happy Christmas! Melikilukilake!
Wendy: Thinking of you brings you nearer to us. We have such happy memories of Christmas at home. Here's hoping we get to experience it again. (And now she's fighting back the tears.)
Jon: Auguri di Natale. Vi vogliamo tutti molto bene! Eid Mubarak!



And something fun to leave you with: a little SCT . . . P!

Late Friday, Eyes are Itchy and Sore, . . .

(kinda like the red sands of the Arabian desert, only not so gritty. Trivia: the sand changes hue several times between here and Abu Dhabi: this shot is just outside of Al Ain, but the closer you get to the coast, the more tan the shade. 20 points to the person who can figure out why.)



. . . and I don't remember what I promised to blog about and am too lazy to check. Updates: curtains are in, nearly all hemmed. Wendy plans to take some interior shots this week during the daylight hours. Back garden is in better shape: we did some trimming there and in the front, and raked away the detritus. I transplanted our banana plants and one palm, and so far they seem to be managing. Cross your fingers.

Eid wasn't as insane as we thought it would be: only three major accidents, including a late-Ramadan one that Lance, Justin, and I came upon during our quick trip to Abu Dhabi: guy had plunged off of an overpass and ended up sideways behind a guardrail perpendicular to the overpass alongside the highway. Impressive bit of driving, that. Could have been very, very bad if he'd landed on the highway itself. A marvel and a wonder.

Also forayed into Dubai this week: not very far, mind you, and only to Ace Hardware and Ikea (exotic, aren't we?),



but it was apparently a good traffic day, and we made it home in one piece. Here's the proof:



Merv's a handsome fella, i'nt he?

Here's the soon-to-be new Tower of Babel I mean world's tallest structure in perspective.



Pic of the week: our first camels! Wendy's on the stick, as usual.



Moo? Mmmmm. Camel milk. . . .

Weather's turned cold: 35-37 degrees during the day, and a downright chilly 20 at night. Brrr. Might have to turn off the a/c if this keeps up. Wendy says while she misses autumn, she'll settle for spring in reverse: everything is in bloom here. Very strange. We're hoping our little garden blossoms before long.

Kids' turn will have to wait a week: sorry. Thanks for the questions. We'll queue them up. And while we're on that subject, all you silent skulkers out there need to make some noise. Let us know you're reading and what you think. Let us know what you'd like to know about as well. Sorry it's not hi-larious tonight: taxing week. I'll make sure to commit a faux-pas or two this week so I have something humorous to recount.

Salaam.

Eid Mubarak!

That is, Happy Eid!

For those of you playing at home, Eid al Fitr (or Eidul fittr, depending on who's transliterating)--pronounced alternately "eed" and "eyed"--is the roughly week-long celebration of the end of Ramadan. I get three days off work, and the kids get the whole week off school, but from the sounds of it most westerners either flee the country or hunker down in their homes waiting for the smoke to clear, because after 3+ weeks of fasting during the daylight hours, dem Arabs settle in to par-tay! It's like Italy at new years, from the sounds of it. Or the red mile after a Flames win during playoffs. Or Auschwitz after the Russians showed up. Well, maybe not like Auschwitz. Maybe more like Red Square after Stalin had finished a speech and the security forces prompted applause, only they're not commies and they don't need prompting.

Or maybe not like any of these things: we'll fill you in next week. But we can imagine that it will involve stupid human tricks in high-powered, fast-moving suvs, consumption of gobs of dates and date by-products, shopping, nose-touching, the occasional high-five, and gridlocked traffic from dawn to dusk.

Anyway, Eid Mubarak!



Here at Roundabout, we keep our promises. We promised to talk about misrules of the road and Arabian soaps.



Road's easy:



1) Roundabouts aplenty, driven at 2x20.
2) Don't ever leave the roundabout in the same lane in which you entered it: drivers who enter in the left lane, which is intended for those meaning to turn "left" (180 degrees), should exit in the middle lane, preferrably one turn early, and without signalling; drivers who enter in the middle lane, which is meant for those going "through" the roundabout, should exit in the right-hand lane (see additional rules for left-hand turners, and apply accordingly); drivers who enter in the right-hand lane, intended for those planning to turn right as soon as possible, should go like stink or die a horrible death crushed under the belly of a leviathan Nissan Patrol or Armada, or they should cut across to the middle or left-hand lane and gesture wildly when greeted by the klaxoning hordes careening wildly behind them.
3) Park wherever you can, even if this involves enabling the four-wheel drive.
4) Never wait in line to make a u-turn when you can cut in front of 40 other vehicles.
5) Always yield to Emiratis, especially when they come barrelling up behind you at 3 times the legal limit and flash their headlights several times in succession.
6) Speed limits are minimums, not maximums.
7) Taxis should stop without warning at least once on every block.
8) Headlights are optional.

Arabian soaps are just too darn precious to really capture. Let's just say they explode all stereotypes. The makeup is awful, the acting melodramatic, the plotlines convoluted to the point of indecipherability--Fatima gives a picture of herself to her brother Salid, who, weak and addled from fasting, gives it to a friend, which now makes here a vassal to the friend and a blight on her family's honour, but the friend is recruited by a radical imam for martyrdom, which enrages the conservative but loving patriarch, who shouts passionately and at length and ends up holding his daughter tenderly while she weeps in gratitude for her father's forgiveness, etc.--but they have that same earnest, dewy-eyed vacuity of the American brand. That's entertainment.



Actually, we have no idea what the soaps are about. They're in Arabic.

Next time: Eid update, and a few observations about intercultural relations in the workplace.

Ramadan (orama)

First things first: Al Ain Branch was organized today. The SP came to our home last night and called Lance Ylanan as BP, yours truly as his counsellor, and Justin Shewell as the EQP. Today, in Abu Dhabi, the branch was organized and all the necessaries taken care of. Over the coming weeks we will build the branch under Lance's direction and hopefully lay the groundwork for something great and enduring. Here's the man (sideways: sometimes Mac is on crack):



Second things second: I promised some commentary on shopping, and as it has to do with the subject of Ramadan, I'll spare a minute for it. They love them some shopping here. We have two major malls in Al Ain (a comparably small city): one of them is actually right next door to our complex. There are western shops--Spring, Aldo, Gap, even Radio Shack!--and some more European shops--Carrefour (French Walmart), for instance. The true pleasures are the Arabian shops that sell abayas (the womens' cloak and head scarf) and dishdashas (the mens' traditional long tunic and headress), incense, gaudy furniture, hefty knicknackery, mobile phones, and dates of all kinds. There are literally shops everywhere here, in malls, shopping centres, and on side streets. There are tailors for "gents" and "ladies," hair "saloons" (again segregated), banks for every occasion, "souks" (outdoor markets for everything under the sun), and probably some deep, dark places we have yet to discover.

Speaking of abayas: these are increasingly decorated. The objective is of course modesty, but the abaya is a flimsy black covering that often accentuates physiognomy (thought sensually, not provocatively), and underneath the women apparently wear the latest in designer clothes according to their tastes. We wondered at first why all these high-fashion chains had shops here, but they are always busy. It isn't out of the ordinary to see a group of women in full veil (only the eyes exposed) picking out jeans, dresses, blouses, etc. They have Victoria's Secret here, for instance, though it isn't pornographic in its display. Not that I, you know, pay any attention. Ahem.

Incense burns everywhere in the malls. Each mall has a prayer room for men and another for women, if not an all-out mosque. There are places for kids to play ("Action Zone" and "Foton World"), food courts (KFC, McDonalds, Herfy's--a Saudi KFC, Subway, and lots of Lebanese and Italian places, too). There's even a Ponderosa Steakhouse in the mall near us: our new favourite place for a pre-fast buffet: international, delicious, and all for about 30 cdn.

I'd love to post pictures, but you must understand that it's hard to take shots when one is driving for one's life on the streets. Not really wise to pull over and step out for an ideal shot.

Ramadan: the Holy Month has a couple of purposes. First is to celebrate the blessings given by Allah, and second is to engender sympathy and generosity for and toward the less fortunate.

Here's the skinny: Ramadan begins with the first sighting of the crescent moon. This year that was Sept. 13, though apparently each of the GCC countries has its own chief astrologer and bottle washer. Anyway, it lasts for 30 or 31 days and consists of a daily fast and a nightly feast. Muslims fast from sunup to sundown--4:30-18:30ish--closing their fast with the Iftar prayer and feast. Most things close between 1 and 7 if they open at all before 7, and then stay open until after midnight. The objective is to allow muslims to rest during the heat of the day and return to work only once they have broken their fast. Many will feast on and off all night, some making the rounds of friends and family for various meals--like speed-dating, I'm told--and so the incidence of accidents rises sharply during the holy month. Tired drivers in a hurry.

Sayings: "Ramadan Kareem" (as in Abdul-Jabar) one sees everywhere, and my students tell me it means "generosity for Ramadan" (by the way: Rah-mah-dahn, with the emphasis on the final syllable). In stores it means "special offer" or discount--the stores' way of spreading the wealth by spreading the savings. One student told me it is customary for teachers to forgive late assignments or absences during this period: uh-huh. "Ramadan Mubarak" (Moo-bah-rahk, with the emphasis on the second syllable) is the general greeting, kind of like "Happy Christmas." There are others, but I've yet to learn their meanings.

At the end of Ramadan we have the "Eid" holidays: there's little Eid and big Eid, and the kids, for instance, get a week off school, as will I. This will come in just over two weeks, and we can't wait. Need a breather.

More later in the week. Sorry. Had some funny stuff, but we're all peaked and need to rest our heads. Kids' turn will have to wait. And no brilliant poems in the offing.

Next time: homosociality, Arabian nights, and the great carpet caper (in three languages!). All of this, of course, insh'Allah.