Our Oman experience

We left for Muscat around 9:30 Friday morning, the first day of Eid, a big Muslim holiday. It was supposed to take 5 hours at the most. We had all of the necessary papers for crossing the border between the UAE and Oman, so we went forth confidently, anticipating no delays or hold-ups. We imagined the border to be kind of like a toll both where you stop and show papers out of your window. We thought, worse-case scenario, they'd search our car.

When we were nearing the border we saw some buildings with lots of cars parked and lots of people lined up. There were no signs stating what the station was or indicating that we needed to stop. We didn't want to get out of our car or wait in lines, so we kept going. Woohoo! No one is stopping us – that station doesn't apply to us! Then ten kilometers later we got to another station. This time we thought it wise to ask someone what we needed to do. They told us to park and go by a nearby building, so we did. It was around 1 P.M., and the holiday travel traffic was in full force. The parking lot was packed, and people were driving crazily. We went into the building, which reminded me of any government building back in the States. It was tall and white with columns out front. Inside were marble floors and officers behind glass windows stamping documents. There were people wall-to-wall, and the lines weren't moving at all. Woody got in line while Griffin and I went upstairs to stand in line for Pizza Hut, the only restaurant in there. We were thankful for it, however, because we had forgotten to eat lunch.

Woody finally made it to the window around 3:30, where they told him that we were missing our “exit stamp.” Yep. That station ten kilometers back? That was where we were supposed to get the exit stamp. So the officer told him, “No problem, just drive back only ten kilometers to get it. Then come back here and come right to the front of the line and I'll process you quickly.” So we got back in our car still with high spirits, thinking it wouldn't take long to go back ten klicks to get the exit stamp. But then as soon as we left the parking lot, we hit the bumper-to-bumper standstill traffic.

For those of you who live in Jackson, imagine County Line Road on Christmas Eve Day. Or for our Arlington friends, South Cooper Street during lunch time. It took us two hours to drive ten kilometers. When we were almost at the exit station, Griffin announced that he had to poop. “We're almost there,” we told him. “You'll have to wait until we can go in and find a bathroom.” But he said, “It's an emergency!” We realized that we were going to have to get creative. We were surrounded by conservative Emiratis who surely wouldn't take kindly to us allowing Griffin to poop on the side of the road at the border of their country. So Woody desperately told him to squat down and poop on the rug of the car. I spotted a plastic grocery bag in the back seat and told Griffin that he could poop in that. “No!” he cried, “Daddy told me to poop on the rug!” (I will remember that sentence for the rest of my life, by the way.) So Woody told him to ignore his previous command and go with my idea. So I held the bag open like a toilet, and he squatted down and eliminated the problem.

I thought I was going to vomit. I know that I used to change diapers multiple times a day, but either I've gotten desensitized to it or the oxytocin from nursing was stronger than I gave it credit for or something! It was so bad I started gagging. That will by far be my most memorable parenting moment of Griffin's childhood. Before you have a child, you never in a million years imagine that you'll be holding a bag for your child to poop in on the border between Oman and the UAE.

Finally we reached the exit station, and an officer told us to park in some gravel and go to a little booth and stand in line outside of it. Griffin and I waited in the car. I crocheted; Griffin pretended to drive. Over the course of the hour and a half it took Woody to wait in line, we witnessed a near-accident, which I later learned was caused by us! The officer had told us to park in a place that blocked the flow of traffic. A guard later told Woody that they had been looking everywhere for him to move the car. I was sitting in it with the windows open – they could've just asked me to move it! Something I've noticed in this country is that men sometimes will only talk to the husband and not the wife. Not everyone is like this, but I've witnessed it on several occasions.

So anyway, Woody got to the front of the line and was then told that Griffin and I had to be with him, so he begged the man in line behind him to save his place, ran to get us, and then we ran up to show our faces. With that stamp attained, we drove then ten kilometers back to get our Oman tourist visas. By this time it was around 7 P.M., and there was hardly a line. Finally, after almost seven hours at the border, we got our visas and continued on into Oman.

By this time it was dark, so we couldn't see anything, but it was a relatively easy drive parallel to the coastline. The biggest driving hazard was the men jumping across the street the whole way there. Even close to midnight, Omanis would jump out of nowhere to cross the busy highway on foot. It was stressful for Woody driving after the long day we'd had.

We finally got there around midnight, and we were able to move a sleeping Griffin right into our beautiful room. The bed and breakfast stayed up and waited for us, and they were very helpful and accommodating.

We had a nice stay in Oman. We went to the Corniche in Muscat where I bought some silver earrings that I love and a Pashmina scarf from Kashmir. And back-alley merchant tried his darnedest to swindle us out of ten riyals for a toy for Griffin, but we stood our ground and walked away with the toy for only 3.5 riyals. We also ate some of the best Indian food ever. The drive around the Corniche and back to our b&b was beautiful; a perfect blend of sea, mountains, and beautiful Omani buildings.

All around the city are pictures of the sultan of Oman, Sultan Qaboos. With his grey beard and friendly eyes, he reminded me of Gandolf from Lord of the Rings, helpfully looking over the city through a crystal ball. We sort of fell in love with Qaboos while we were there, not knowing much about him. Woody loves his name. Just the idea that there is a “Sultan Qaboos” in the world makes Woody happy. And I loved his friendly face and colorful pictures all around the city.

On the ride home I read about Qaboos in a travel guide. Since he took rule of Oman via a peaceful coup in 1970, he's made great improvements on the country's economy and education and has modernized it while preserving the Omani culture and traditions. He is a much loved and celebrated sultan. This confirmed our adoration of him.

If Sultan Qaboos weren't reason enough to love Oman, the country is out-of-this world beautiful. We left the sea at our backs when we left Muscat, and we drove deeper into the Al Hajar Mountains. You can see a wide array of minerals in the mountain and cliff faces: copper, iron, rose quartz, and so many others that I'm unqualified to guess at. I wished I'd had my geologist friends with me to shared in my excitement and identify what we were seeing. These geological wonders were also apparent on the beach by our bed & breakfast. Abundant were sea-smoothed stones in every color I've ever seen on the earth. Rosy pink, deep green, true black, jasper red, and cool grey. I typically love collecting shells when we go to the beach, but they were boring compared to these stones. Each one I saw was more unique and vibrant than the last. I did collect a few, but I wanted to leave Oman in Oman, so I resisted my urge to make a coffee table out of them.

Alongside the colorful mountains we saw lots of long-haired mountain goats and several camels. We've seen camel crossing signs in the UAE but had never seen a camel crossing at one. However, during this trip we saw camels crossing at several points, sometimes back and forth across the road indecisively.

We made our way through the Hajars toward Nizwa, one of the oldest cities in Oman. Most everything was closed for Eid, so we just drove around the city center and then headed up to Hoota Cave. This was a beautiful country drive. It took us out of traffic and down winding mountain roads. Unfortunately, when we got to the cave, it was two hours until the next tour through the cave itself, so we just walked around the museum instead. Fortunately, there was a buffet; we were all starving. If you ever go to Hoota Cave, eat at the buffet. It's a little on the pricier side at 5 riyals per person (and I think this was discounted from 8 riyals due to the holiday), but it was a fantastic buffet. I think it was Omani food. We don't know exactly what Omani food is because foods from other cultures such as Indian and Lebanese are prevalent there. However, the dishes were similar to Emirati cuisine with some differences and dishes I hadn't seen before, so it felt authentic.

After Hoota we went down to Bahla because we heard there were castle ruins that were interesting to see. I expected a guided tour much like at Hoota Cave. We spotted what looked like a castle, so we parked in a lot and walked up to it. Inside the “rooms” were rubble and trash. There was part of the castle with scaffolding that was being renovated (part of Qaboos's initiative). We climbed up a muddy path and found a pillar of smoke and pungent smell. Then I looked in one of the “rooms” of the castle and saw a family living in there! They came out and talked to us and said they didn't mind us looking around. They explained that they were roasting goat to celebrate Eid. They all spoke English, and there were little girls dressed in pink who flashed heart-melting smiles.

(Sorry the pictures aren't in order and are all together rather than placed appropriately in the text.  I'm having trouble moving them.)

The fire pit where they were roasting the goat.

Standing in front of the castle ruins.

 Woody and Griffin at the top.

 On our drive to Mettrah (near the Corniche).

 The toy that we bargained for.  You can see that it was worth it.

View near the Corniche. 

Our B&B: L'Espace 

Beach in front of b&b 

Souq where we bought toy

Our room

our room

Woody relaxing in our room

climbing to the top of the castle with Griffin

The Hajar Mountains

Bahla castle ruins

Hajar Mountains

camel that crossed twice :)

Then we climbed up to the courtyard of the castle and found some men and boys. Griffin played with the boys a bit (although I wouldn't let him walk along the wall like they were). And Woody talked to the men and learned a bit about the city. There is a crumbling wall around the city that, the men told him, stretches twelve kilometers around.

We hated to leave, as this was our least-touristy experience so far in Oman, but it was late afternoon and we still had several hours to drive home to Dubai. It was a good thing we left when we did, too, because right after we arrived in Al Ain in Dubai it rained, which accounts for some of the 2 inches of rain that the UAE gets each year.

We made it home just after dark, exhausted but grateful to have discovered Oman. We have plans to go back to Bahla again as well as the southern ports of Oman, Salalah if we're up for the drive. At least this time we'll know enough not to cross a border on a busy holiday. Woody and I agree, however, that although it took us fourteen hours to get to Muscat from Dubai on Friday, it was worth it. Oman fills the holes that Dubai leaves in our hearts. Dubai has bad traffic; Oman isn't quite as bustling. Emiratis keep to themselves, whereas Omanis are friendlier and more prevalent in the culture (working in businesses, etc). Dubai's air is polluted; Oman provides crisp country air. Above all, Oman is beautiful in a way that can't quite be described.  

My first Dubai street run

Today I did something for the first time here; I ran the streets!  Most of you know that I love running outside through neighborhoods and cities.  I'm not a fan of tracks or treadmills.  I prefer to feel like I'm traveling when I run.  Before today the last time I ran the streets was in Texas in early August.  I was nervous about running here because I didn't expect there to be sidewalks or traffic lights for pedestrians, I thought the traffic would be too bad, and I wasn't sure how people would react to a woman running alone in spandex.  (My shoulders and knees were covered, of course.)

However, this morning I did it out of necessity because Woody had an early meeting and we have only the one car, so he dropped off Griffin and me early, and I had to find a way back home from Griffin's school.  I've had my fill of taxis, so I thought it might be a good opportunity to try running the streets.

I knew it would be hot, so I wore my hat and carried water.  I also had my phone in case I needed to call a cab or a friend for help for whatever reason.  However, it wasn't much hotter than Texas, so I didn't need much water, and I didn't need my phone, but I'm glad I had it because I got this picture of myself running home:

Running the streets here is a lot like running them in Arlington, Texas.  Most of the way was paved with wide sidewalks, and intersections had crosswalks and walk lights/signs.  Because of this, the traffic really didn't affect me.  In the few places where there weren't sidewalks, there were wide shoulders, so I still didn't have to run in traffic.

One of my fears was that I was afraid I would stick out too much since I really haven't seen any women running around here.  I stuck out as much as I stick out when I run back in the States, which, yes, is kind of a lot.  A person running in the heat is going to be noticed because, come on, it's kind of a crazy thing to do.  :)  So yes, people in their cars stared some, and I got one honk.  But I got honked at and stared at a lot more back home.  It's one of the things you get used to as a runner.  In fact, I forgot how much I missed it.  I have a bit of performer in me (hence my profession as teacher), and it satisfies that need a little.

My only real complaint about running here was that I have to run in capri pants.  Back home I ran in short shorts in weather as cold as 50 degrees (that was my tights/shorts cut-off temp).  But running in 90+ degrees in hot black capris is just hot.  It would be so much more tolerable in shorts.  But hey, it is what it is, and at least I can run, and at least I can wear short sleeves.

So now that I know I can run easily outside here, I feel like got a piece of myself back.  And I also now have a lot of work to do.  I realized how out of shape my lungs are after today.  Running inside on a mill is somehow different for the lungs than running outside.  It's hard to explain, but I feel like my lungs are out of shape, so now I'll have to start planning training runs outside to get back in shape!

Updates and goofy parent scene

I guess I haven't been posting as much lately.  Not much to report, really.  I started an online class, so I've been busy with that.  I had my final interview for the teaching job at the university.  I will teach two sections of a beginning composition class starting Nov 13.  It's great because I'll only have to be there three days a week, four hours a day.

I've been a little sick with sinus troubles for the past week.  So I've been a little down because I haven't been able to get out or exercise as much.  I hope this is over soon so that I can get back to my routine.

Tomorrow I'm going to a knitting group - really looking forward to that.  And I think we're going to try to buy more things for the house to make it a little homier.  We've had the bare essentials, but not much more, so hopefully that will help me through the last month before my job starts.

Griffin's doing great in school.  He's grown so much in so many ways in just a month.  He's doing really well with reading and writing.  His teachers are so good with him.  We couldn't have asked for a better school for him right now.

Last week was family week in his class.  They talked about families, drew pictures of their families, etc.  The teacher invited parents in to talk about families.  Woody and I were so excited about getting to participate in Griffin's class that were were the first ones to speak (at 8:00 Monday morning).  In fact, we were so excited that I think we lost sight of what we were supposed to talk about because once we got in front of all those four-year-olds, we found ourselves putting on our goofy sunglasses, sharing our favorite numbers and colors (and asking the class what theirs were), and talking about how good chocolate is.  Woody really wanted our visit to help Griffin make friends, so he asked the class in an enthusiastic voice, "Do you like Griffin?!"  The whole class shouted, "Yeah!"  Griffin beamed.  Then, as if that weren't enough to win them over, Woody asked them if they wanted to see his dance.  So he prompted me to sing (in a terribly unprepared deadpan voice) "You are my Sunshine," as he did his goofiest dance for the kids.  (If you haven't seen Woody's All Creature Great and Small theme song-inspired dance, he sticks his belly out and rhythmically bends at the knees while letting his arms flop from side to side, swinging from the shoulder joint.)  The kids loved it, laughing and clapping along.  Then, I swear just to pick on us, the teacher asked us to do it again.

Afterward Woody told me that his goal was for Griffin's classmates to see how cool his parents were so that they would like Griffin even more.  It must've worked because tonight Griffin was talking about his three best friends.  His teacher also told me that she has to separate him from his friends so he can get his work done.  :)  

And now  Griffin's classmates recognize me when they see me in the hallway.  I'm the goofy "You are my Sunshine" lady in sunglasses whose favorite number is 5.

Boredom

I am currently not working. We have a lady who cleans our house, so I don't have much to do there. I don't have a car, so I can't run errands. Woody's in charge of paying bills now, so I don't have to stress about money every month. I am the most bored I've been since childhood.

For those of you who are calling me names under your breath, don't worry, this won't last long. For this very reason I accepted two classes online which will start this weekend, and in a month I'll be swamped with teaching a new class for a new institution.

It's just that this is a weird sensation. The last four months have been consumed by moving out of a country and into a new one on top of working, child-rearing, etc. Before that I was working three part-time jobs in between taking care of Griffin and the house. And before that were years of work, lots of school, travel, etc. It's been a very, very long time since I've been bored like this.

For the first time ever I'm discovering games. Now I get what the Farmville Facebook craze was all about. My version is City of Wonder. And today I played Words with Friends for the first time. I can't believe I was out of the loop for this long! It should be a crime to exclude such a large percentage of society from this cultural phenomenon. I'm playing virtual scrabble with an old high school friend known as Gidget whom I haven't seen or talked to in fifteen years. We are interacting in each other's lives again, but in a very strange, non-practical way. I love it!

So I hope you'll all be patient with me as you endure my too-frequently-updated Facebook status and constant pleas to join in on virtual games. It won't be long before I'm too busy to worry about allies and marketplaces in my City of Wonder or that “qat” is a real word that can utilize the ten-point “Q” without also having a “U.” 

Couch and job coming soon!

Today I got my official offer and contract from Zayed University.  I'll go in Monday to sign the contract, and then I don't know when I'll actually start teaching or the times or classes I'll be teaching.  I have to admit that I kind of like this "fly by the seat of my pants" teaching!  I'm used to knowing what classes I'll teach months in advance.  I'm the kind of person who starts planning way ahead.  This not knowing is actually better for me because I can't stress about it yet.

I honestly thought that I'd start teaching right after we got to Dubai, but it hasn't worked out for various reasons, and I must say that I'm glad.  I've had to focus on adjusting to the time change, getting Griffin started in school, and getting moved into our villa.  Last week, I wasn't mentally ready, but this week I've started to feel bored and hungry for more social interaction.  The timing is perfect.  Now I'll start meeting more people and will have something to do in the evenings while Woody's working and after Griffin goes to bed.

Only one more day until we get our couch!  Saturday our couch, Griffin's car bed, our dining table, and nightstands will be delivered!  We've been without a couch for a week, which wouldn't be a big deal if our place were carpeted, but the floors are tile, so sitting around on the floor is uncomfortable for us all and hell for my slipped disk.  Also, I didn't realize how important the couch is for mine and Griffin's relationship.  When I weaned him from nursing years ago, I did it by transitioning into couch cuddling time.  Even now, every morning he wants to wake up and go to the couch to cuddle.  Since we don't have one at home right now, he's been wanting to sit and cuddle on the couches in the lobby at his school.  !  Fortunately, just one more day until we have a couch.

Today Griffin and I made muffins for the first time since we left Texas.  I used to make muffins all the time, so I guess it's a real mark of home for us.  Yesterday I bought a mixing bowl, whisk, and muffin pan so that we could have homemade muffins.  It really cheered Griffin up, and he starting talking more positively about living in Dubai after that.  I think that after we get a couch (and hopefully eventually a pet of some sort), he won't miss Texas as much.

Woody works nights from 1 - 10.  It's harder than we thought because he and Griffin only get to see each other briefly in the mornings and on the weekends.  Also, when I start teaching, I'll teach in the morning, so I will only get to see Woody on the weekends, too.  It's looking like, however, he'll have a good chance to switch to working days early next year.  Fingers crossed for that!

I swam today, and I'm tired from it.  Also, I'm getting up to run with friends at 6 tomorrow morning (my first outdoor run in Dubai), so I should get to sleep now.  Goodnight, everyone.

The best way to describe the mall scene in Dubai:

Updates and moved into villa!

We moved into our villa a couple of days ago, and we've been crazy busy ever since getting things we need to live in it.  Our couch and table won't be delivered for a week, so we've basically been sitting on blankets on the floor.  We've been eating on a cardboard box on the floor until Robbie and Judy gave us a table and chairs to use! We'll use them outside when we get our dining room table.  It's soo nice to be able to sit and type at a table!

Here's the outside of the villa (and our rental car):

Here's the view of downstairs from the front door:

Entry bath:  (No, I don't know why there are two sinks.  I can't imagine guests standing side-by-side washing their hands.)

Living room, no furniture yet:

The first morning that we moved in, we took Griffin upstairs and showed him his room.  Then we brought up lots of goodies we had bought for him at Ikea like trains, a road mat, chalkboard easel, etc.  I wish I had a better pic, but here's him right after this:

Griffin loves our new place.  There are neighbor kids for him to play with, a nice pool, and we all have plenty of space.  It's also much closer to his school.  Speaking of school, he still likes it, and we like his teacher.  She's vegetarian, so she's given me good ideas for packing his lunch.  He also has swimming lessons once a week, and we're thinking of putting him in karate one afternoon a week.

Here's a picture that Griffin drew and painted of himself at school:

Things are moving along with me teaching at the same university where Woody works.  I should know more about when I'll start and what I'll teach in the next couple of days.

Those of you who know me on FB know that I just got my hair cut really short.  Ever since we left Texas, it's been just a dry, tangly mess. Plus, it's hot here.  After going to the salon in the hotel where we were staying and getting turned down from my appointments twice, I went to a place a friend recommended and had a great experience.

Right after that, I went to pick Griffin up from school.  I was worried that he wouldn't recognize me, and it did take him longer than usual to come to me.  He stared at me with his mouth open.  Then when I saw him and he gave me a kiss he said it was good.  Later, however, he told me Daddy wouldn't like it because girls have long hair, and boys have short hair.

Also, since I can upload pictures easily now, here are some older ones some of you may have missed:

Griffin excitedly putting his socks on the first day of school:

Griffin getting ready to go to his first day of school in his uniform.  Being his goofy self:

Here's a picture of his school:

This is Woody's (and soon to be my) work - Zayed University:

That's all I have energy to do now.  I'll post updates again as soon as I can.  Love to all!

Fear less

When we told people back in the U.S. that we were moving to Dubai, some responded with fear that we would be putting ourselves in a dangerous situation. Some people thought that Dubai was actually in Iraq or another war-torn area. Other people, I think, just thought that all of the Middle East must be dangerous for Americans.

This morning as Woody and I floated in the clear salty bath tub-esque water of the Persian Gulf (referred to here as the Arabian Gulf), gazing at the luxurious Burj al Arab, we laughed about how ridiculous those responses of fear seem now.

We feel so much safer in Dubai than we ever did back home. I never worry that someone is about to mug me or steal something from me, and I generally feel safe wherever I go. Also, life is pretty cushy, to be honest. We can do just about anything we want to do and be just about anywhere we want to be in the city. Of course, like any place, Dubai has its problems, too (like labor inequality and dangerous traffic). However, terrorism and war are not among them.

It's understandable to fear that which we do not know. It's also understandable given the messages spread by the news in the U.S. However, Dubai is just a busy city full of people from other places working and living to the best of our ability. Fortunately, we were able to leave the fear that's cultivated by American media in America.

Being attended to

One of the hardest cultural differences to get used to here so far has been how present workers are out in public. I have never been so watched, attended to, greeted, and accommodated in all my life. For those of us who aren't used to it, it can be pretty damn irritating.

This morning in the gym, for instance, the gym attendant thought the weight bench was in my way (which it wasn't) as I was doing the chest press on a ball, so he came and moved it a few feet over. One day in a grocery store an attendant was staring at me, watching me choose crayons for Griffin. I finally asked him to tell me where I could get freezer packs for lunchboxes (because I was going there next), and he actually went and got several options and brought them to me.

In restaurants waiters have stood over us for ten minutes at a time, talking to Griffin and telling him to eat his dinner; at hotels doormen have told me exactly where to sit and that I shouldn't hold my bags too long; gym attendants follow me to the treadmill offering water and towels, baristas have remembered my drink order after having only ordered the drink once before; and bartenders have brought wireless credit card machines to my table so that I can push whether I want to pay in dirhams or dollars.

Those of you who know Woody and me know that we're pretty private, even bordering on the anti-social at times. It's gotten to the point where we've scouted out all of the routes in the hotel that allow us to avoid talking to people. And we outright avoid stores where people follow us around or stand over us.

I do realize that most of the places we've frequented in our first month here have been service-orientated places like hotels and restaurants. However, it happens in stores elsewhere in the city, too. This isn't a tipping culture, so I'm continuously baffled about why people behave like this. Maybe when I'm here longer, I'll understand better. If you live in Dubai and have any insight into this, I would love to hear it, so please feel free to leave a comment below.

Random updates

I spent all of my writing energy on my teaching philosophy statement that the university requested so they can hire me, so this post will be more to update everyone on the events of the week rather than an themed essay.

I did finally hear from the university.  The boss thought that HR had already contacted me and started the paperwork process, but they were busy with beginning of the year stuff.  So now we're in motion, and I have to provide them with some documents and then get the official pay rate offer.  Sounds like I could begin teaching next week at the earliest.  However, I still don't know what I'll be teaching or what time, so specifics are still up in the air.

Also, they're moving along with the villa.  It has been painted and some repairs have been made.  We had it painted turquoise, and we love how it turned out!  Now they have to finish up some things and clean it.  It's looking like Thursday or Friday of this week for our move-in date.  We're oh so ready.

Woody's half-way through his first official week of work with his night schedule (1 - 10 PM).  Griffin and I miss him in the evenings, but we're making it work.  And there may be potential for moving to days at some point in the future.

Tomorrow morning Woody and I are going to go to the beach before he has to go to work!  Griffin will be in school, and Woody doesn't work until 1, and I'm not working yet, so we're going to make the most of our time.  We're only 10 - 15 minutes away from a very nice beach.  I may not be able to run outside as often or as easily here as I did in Texas, but something Dubai has that Arlington doesn't have are beautiful beaches and wonderfully salty gulf water.  So I'm going to make it a point to go to the beach and play in the water as much as possible.  I'm hoping to eventually learn to paddleboard so I can get a regular workout in at the beach.

Griffin is settling in at school.  It's amazing how good the routine is for him.  He already seems more independent and confident.  Also, his writing and cutting interest and skills are improving exponentially.  He also already has a best friend that he talks about, Ewan.  Apparently he and Ewan fight over who gets to have red as their favorite color.  

Overall, we're doing great and are enjoying what Dubai has to offer.  The next phase will be about moving into our place and me starting work.  We're so busy that the time is flying by.  Crazy to think we're halfway through Sept already.

Mississippi friends in Dubai

By some amazing fluke, we happened to know people here from Mississippi. I went to grad school with Robbie and Judy, a spunky married couple who had just returned from serving in the Peace Corps in China. I only knew them for about a year while we were in the same program, and Robbie and I worked in the Honors College together, but I always thought they were fun and interesting and wished I had gotten to know them better.

I was shocked when I realized that Woody had an interview at the same university where they work in Dubai. They sent us numerous emails detailing life in Dubai and working at Zayed University, so when Woody was offered the job, we felt fortunate to have insider info with which to make our decision.

Another coincidence is that Robbie, Judy, and I are all runners. Running is a huge part of my life, so I wanted to be sure that I could keep it up here. They assured me that there is a lively running culture here with frequent races. So far I've just been running in our hotel gym on the treadmill, but once the weather cools down and we move into our villa, it should be easier to get outside to run. Judy and I run at about the same pace, and we're neighbors in the same compound, so running together should be pretty convenient.

Woody and I had no idea that we'd be living in the same compound as Robbie and Judy. Our first day in Dubai we were taken by bus with the other new hires to see the villas that a couple of us would be moving into. After we toured the villa we were standing outside waiting for the rest of the group. Out of the corner of my eye I saw movement from a distance. I glanced up and saw this couple walking toward me down the dusty street. As their faces shifted into focus, I slowly started to I realize that it was Robbie and Judy. I was so utterly shocked to see them just appear in this random sandy villa in Mirdif, Dubai, that it was almost as if the heat made halos around their heads and they moved in slow motion toward us, the sand-colored backdrop behind them (Hallucinations are a breeze when you've not had much sleep.). I realized at that moment how weird it was that the last time I saw them was eight years ago in green Mississippi, and now we happen to be neighbors in the same compound in the United Arab Emirates. This is definitely one of the most notable coincidences of my life.

Apparently, Robbie and Judy knew we'd be placed in their villas, so they came looking for us when they saw the ZU bus, but I had no idea, so when I saw them, I couldn't figure out how they'd found us. After we hugged hello and introduced them to Griffin, they took us back to their villa and we caught up.

Since that day, we've seen them often, and they have made our experience here warm and positive. They've introduced us to some great people, and Judy and I have already tried a new sport together. (Yesterday we attempted surfing!) We have plans to learn to paddle board and run a half marathon this year. I feel so fortunate that we already have friends here with whom we share something in common. Zorba the Greek said that the more you see, the bigger the world gets, but sometimes it turns out to be delightfully tiny.

Aubree's three rules for taxi etiquette in Dubai

Okay, so I know I've been here less than a month, but I've taken a lot of cabs to get Griffin back and forth from school.  These are the most important aspects of using cabs here that I've learned (the hard way) so far:

1. If you have called a cab specifically, that cab will wait for you and not give anyone else a ride. Therefore, if you find another cab before the one you ordered arrives, you must call and cancel the booking.
   I waited on a cab for thirty minutes with a cranky four-year old and heavy bags of groceries, so I hopped in the first cab that came, not knowing it wasn't the one that was called. Before we got out of the parking lot, my phone rang, and an angry cab driver on the other end was berating me for getting in another cab. He was following my cab and pulled up beside us, glaring at me while he yelled through the phone at me. So I got out with Griffin and all his bags and got into his cab. He was angry at me the whole time, asking why I was in Dubai and how long I'd been there while he repeated taxi etiquette to me. The next day a much nicer cab driver confirmed this rule of etiquette.  1a. If you find a taxi driver you like, get his number.  You can call him specifically when you need a ride.

   I have the number of my favorite cab driver, Happy, in my phone, and I will now call on him anytime I need to go somewhere.  He told me just to give him fifteen minutes or so to get to where I need him.  He will make picking Griffin up from school so much easier now.

2. Know how to get to where you want to go, but be open if the driver suggests a more efficient route.
   This may be naive of me (I've only been here three weeks, after all), but taxi drivers seem pretty honest. I haven't had anyone yet add miles to my journey to drive up my fare. Driving here is challenging, and these drivers are contracted to work twelve hour days, seven days a week for five years. Therefore, if a driver claims to know a better way, I'll let him give it a shot.
3. Don't overtip
   When we first arrived in Dubai, Woody and I thought that we were expected to give everyone big tips. So we grossly over-tipped everyone we came in contact with that first week. Then a friend told us that this isn't a tipping culture. Even at restaurants, for instance, there's no place to include a tip on the credit card receipt. It's okay to tip if you appreciate what someone has done for you, but a small tip (a few dirhams) goes a long way, and if you tip too much, it's inappropriate.  

The friend maker

Thanks to Montessori school, the Y, and our many friends and neighbors back in Texas, Griffin has become an excellent friend-maker. Here's his strategy: when he sees another child that he wants to play with he says, “Hi I'm Griffin. What's your name? Do you want to be my friend?” Children of all ages respond really well to this. In Griffin's past life in Texas, it led to him making friends and keeping them. Every time he saw that child at school, the Y, or in our neighborhood, he had a friend to play with.

Griffin has found that children all over the world respond well to this. Those who speak English, that is. He soon learned that if a child doesn't respond when he offers his friendship, it's because he doesn't speak English. After getting rejected by non-English speaking children a few times, Griffin started asking me “Mommy, does that boy speak English?” first.

One morning we were in the hotel restaurant, and there was a boy he wanted to play with. He approached the boy and asked his name; when the boy said nothing, Griffin ran up to me whining, “Mommy, he doesn't speak English.” A few moments later, however, the boy came up to Griffin with a spy car that shoots torpedoes. They instantly became best buddies, playing side-by-side with the car like they'd been friends since birth. They managed to work out sharing the car and invented countless games while not once communicating in the same language. They bonded through their shared love for cars.

Unfortunately, language barriers have not been the only challenge for Griffin in making friends. Like I mentioned earlier, in the past he made his introduction, and then every time he saw that child, he had a friend. The problem here so far has been that all the friends he's made have been in airports, malls, and hotels: places where people are transient and don't return. Poor Griffin has introduced himself to countless children whom he will never see again. We looked for the spy car boy the next two mornings in the hotel restaurant, but his family had already checked out.

The most touching instance was when we were in a big mall near our hotel. We were walking in the mall, headed back to the room, and a girl around nine or ten years old ran by us. Griffin ran after her yelling, “Hey! What's your name?!” She came to a sudden halt and spun around, looking surprised, and said, “Aisha.” Then Griffin said, “Do you want to be my friend?” She smiled and said, “yes.” Griffin was so delighted that he jumped up and down. But then it hit us all that we all had to continue toward our destinations. We were heading back to the hotel, and Aisha appeared to be joining her parents in a shop. To my surprise, Griffin was so happy that she had agreed to be his friend, he didn't seem to care that we had to part ways. He did ask me later, however, if she could come over for a playdate. I had to explain to him that I didn't know her parents.

This type of thing has happened several times a day for the last three weeks. It came to a head late last week when he broke down on the floor genuinely sobbing that he didn't have any friends here. In desperation, I searched the room for the business card of the dad of a boy that Woody and Griffin had met at the hotel pool. I emailed the dad (a stranger to me), and asked if his wife could get in touch with me to arrange a playdate. The dad responded promptly and politely, but several days have passed, and the mom hasn't called.

Fortunately, Griffin started school this week, so he'll see his friends every day. I don't think he realizes this yet because this morning in the taxi ride to school he told me he needed some friends. When I said, “you'll see your friends at school,” he seemed a little confused.

It won't take long before we establish a routine here, and soon he will have friends and neighbors that he can count on seeing regularly. Woody and I know that it just takes time to get reestablished after moving, and we're trying to teach this to Griffin. If he's anything like his parents, his wanderlust will motivate him to move many times throughout his life. I'm proud of him for his social perseverance, and I admit that I might have a thing or two to learn from him.

This is the story of how we got here

We boarded the plane in Jackson around five o'clock Tuesday evening. We flew overnight and all slept a little. Where I was sitting, an air vent was blasting on me but was too high to reach, so I didn't sleep well because I was so cold. When shifting weight around in the suitcases in the airport in Jackson, I had pulled out the warm merino sweater I had knitted a couple of years ago because there wasn't room for it I the suitcase, and I was so glad to have it on the plane. That was what enabled me to get the couple of hours' sleep that I did. Once the sun started rising (around one Texas time!) trying to sleep was a lost cause. That was the first time I had ever actually witnessed losing time because we were flying east as the sun was rising. It was quite an eerie feeling.

We landed around eleven in the morning Amsterdam time, so when we entered the airport I had gotten about two hours of sleep, and Woody and Griffin had only gotten five or six, at the most. Walking through the airport with such little sleep in a foreign country and on the way to an even more foreign country was like being in a dream. My senses and body didn't work quite right; I felt slow and confused by simple things.

For instance, I stood in line in the ladies' bathroom waiting for a stall. I was at the front of the line for a while because I didn't see an open door to go into. Then I heard, “Hallo? Hallo?” coming from the attendant, and I realized that there was an open stall that I had overlooked. Everyone in line behind me waited patiently.

Eventually, we found a cozy table near a coffee shop and anchored ourselves there until it was time for our flight to Dubai. Before that, however, I did manage to buy some nice chocolate and spend $18 on one Hot Wheel car for Griffin ($.97 back home).

The flight to Dubai was the hardest leg. It was only six hours (short compared to the nine hour flight from Memphis to Amsterdam), but the seats were small and close together, and it was too sunny for Griffin to fall asleep, so we had to entertain him the whole time, and we certainly weren't at our best with such little sleep.

After he broke down crying on the plane, “I want to go home to Texas!” I pulled out my secret weapon. It was a Leapster Explorer (an educational video game player) that my mom had bought for his birthday but we were hiding until the flight. He really enjoyed that, and it kept him busy for several hours on the plane. Also, I let him listen to my mp3 player, which had his favorite songs saved on it.

Finally, we landed in Dubai around eleven o'clock at night. As soon as we could see the city's lights from the air, Griffin said, “Mommy, are we in Dubai?! Is it still my birthday?!” We had told him that he could get new toys for his birthday when we got to Dubai, and he remembered.

We were met in the airport by a woman from a greeting service to walk us through customs and pick up our luggage. She was nice and tried to make conversation with me, but I was exhausted, and it was midnight in Dubai, not to mention how little sleep I'd gotten in the last two days. I just wanted her to stop talking to me and let me daze into space while Griffin ran circles around my legs.

She brought up the wonderful food and how I'll still be able to get my hamburgers in Dubai. Because all Americans love hamburgers, right? Just please stop talking to me, woman. My conversational skills and manners are somewhere over Iceland.

When we stepped outside, it took a few seconds to realize that the sensation I was feeling was heat and humidity. I'm a Southern girl, but I've never felt anything like this. It was like being on another planet. It enveloped me and clung to me almost intimately as I moved.

We finally made it to the hotel where we ordered room service and quickly fell asleep. We left Mississippi at five P.M. Tuesday and arrived in our hotel in Dubai around one thirty A.M. Wednesday: a total of about twenty-two hours of travel. (That's the same amount of time I was in labor with Griffin, come to think of it.) Woody and Griffin acclimated to the time change in just a couple of days. It didn't catch up with me until about a week and a half later; then I had some late mornings.

We've been here for three weeks now, and traveling here is already a foggy memory. The fact that we'll do it all over again when we go home to visit next summer looms over me. Maybe traveling this far is something that people get better at the more they do it. Or maybe that's why they serve free beer and wine on planes.

Mama bear update

When I picked Griffin up from school today, I immediately checked his lunch box, and he had found the lower level of his sandwich box. :) When I asked him about it, he said he had known it was there all along.

It turns out, however, that the fancy trolley bag I bought him is too big to fit in his cubby, so he'll have to use his old backpack after all.   

Mama bear

It hit me yesterday after Griffin was safely in his classroom, and I was free to wander around the school with my thoughts. I had never fought so hard for anything before. I had never cared so much for anything before. Just getting here alone was a two-month-long struggle against everything comfortable, routine, and easy. Then when the school assessed him the first time and incorrectly said that he was completely unschooled and wanted to put him a class with the 3-year-olds, I was awoken. I realized that this was the time that I had to start fighting for my son. So I called the school and demanded a retest, and the next morning at 8:00, he was reassessed and admitted into the 4-year-old class.

Later that day we went to buy uniforms in a tiny room with floor-to-ceiling shorts and shirts cryptically organized and labeled. There were parents and children wall-to-wall, and I had no idea what we needed to buy or what sizes we needed. With the help of a lady in the store, we left two hours later with three pairs of tartan shorts, five white polo shirts, swimming trunks, canvas gym shorts, a green hat (to represent the Balmoral house Griffin was placed in), a swimming cap, two pairs of shoes (one for daily wear and one for athletic), white socks, and navy socks.

The newness of this experience was overwhelming and exhilarating at the same time. I had never bought a school uniform before, let alone in a foreign country. I know nothing about the British school system. How am I supposed to know all of this?! We'll add this to the long list of things I should have been trained on before becoming a mom.

To add to my feeling of getting things accomplished in unknown territory, I was doing all of this running around in taxis. It made me feel very urban and weirdly in control.

Our next stop was the Hyper Panda supermarket to get his lunch box and trolley bag (both with Lightening McQueen on them). I had promised Griffin we would do this today after I sent him to his first morning of school without a snack. The front office had told me that he didn't need any food, so we didn't send any. When I picked him up at eleven o'clock, he was sitting at a table with no food and a perma-frown while all of the other children were snacking happily. When he came to me, he was crying, “Why didn't I have a snack!?” For the rest of his life he'll remember that on his first day of school, he was the only one without a uniform and without a snack. He won't remember all the sacrifices we made to move him to a country where he could get an better education. He won't remember that I fought to get him reassessed so that he could be in a class that was appropriately challenging. He won't remember that we had a mother/son date right after school in which we ate Annie's pretzels and chocolate ice cream with sprinkles. He'll remember that his mommy didn't pack him a snack on his first day of school. And that perfectly summarizes parenthood. You love your child more than anything else in the universe, and you are constantly sorting through choices deciding which course will be better for your child in the short and long run. And it feels like the harder you try, the more you fuck up.

So we got the trolley bag (with wheels that light up!), the lunch box, and everything that goes with it, and all was happy. Then we had to take a shuttle back to the hotel. We waited with our heavy bags of uniforms, shoes, and groceries, and eventually the bellhop escorted us to the shuttle van. Ahh. Our last journey in this very long day. We were comfy and buckled in, and this lady came up and started yelling that she had been waiting for thirty minutes, and why did we get the van. I saw her and one other girl, so I said, “There's room; come on in!” She ungratefully said to me, “Yes, because we have been waiting.” So they moved us to the back of the van, and then they said they wanted to sit in the back, so can we move to the front, then when we moved to the front, it turned out to be five of them instead the two I initially saw. By the time they were all in, there was no seat for Griffin, and I said, “It's not safe! He needs a seat!” The queen bitch said, “No, I am sitting here because I am with child, and it is not safe for me.” So Griffin is standing in the middle with nowhere to sit while all of these ladies are filling up the van. The busboys then quickly escorted us out of the van, took our bags, and put us in another shuttle. I was mad about how rude and ungrateful the women were because I didn't have to invite them in; I was being kind. They were taking their anger for waiting out on us. And again, I had to stand up and fight for Griffin's well-being.

Nevertheless, Griffin and I made it safely back to the hotel where we got settled in for the evening. I washed his uniforms and got him prepped for his first full day of school, which was this morning. We got him up and dressed in his uniform, and he is proud to wear it. I packed his new lunch box complete with coveted thermos and snack. I had even found a cool Lightening McQueen sandwich box with a little tray that sits on top so you can put food on the bottom and top levels. He has a cheese sandwich and Babybel cheese on the bottom level, then on the top are carrots (which he won't eat, but I included so the teachers think I'm a good mom), and pretzels. He hasn't seen his lunch yet, so it will all be a surprise when he opens it.

So this morning he was too excited to eat, but it's okay because he has a snack and lunch, right? Then it occurred to me about twenty minutes after Woody and Griffin left that Griffin doesn't know there are two levels in the sandwich box! He may just see the pretzels and carrots and not get enough to eat!

And again, this is what it is to be a parent. It's a good exercise on succeeding and failing everyday. Good school – check. Right class – check. Uniforms – check. Lunch box, bag, and thermos – check, check, check. Assured nutrition and sustenance for a seven-hour school day – big fat fail. But bright side (because I'm bound to positivity since getting that damn tattoo), he'll learn to eternally search for hidden compartments in everything.

P.S. Sorry about the periods at the beginnings of sentences. Blogger has sensed our move, and everything's in Arabic, including the page layout, which types from right to left.

Today's Wednesday.  Our flight to Dubai leaves Monday at 5 P.M.  We'll have two layovers: a short one in Memphis and then a 3 hour one in Amsterdam, which Griffin calls Hamsterdam.  It will take us 20 hours total travel time (including layovers) to reach our destination. Fortunately, we'll be flying overnight, so hopefully we'll all be able to sleep.  We'll arrive close to midnight the next day, and then Woody will begin work the next day.

We've gotten so much done.  We moved out of the house, found a renter, found homes for our two cats and fish, sold our car (and will sell the truck today or tomorrow), and have appropriated all of the necessary documents we need to get our visas.  I'm amazed that I was able to list all of that in just one sentence.  It felt like it took more work than that.  Moving out of the country in two months' notice is one of the most intense things I've ever done.

We have a little time to breathe now that we're staying with family and the hard work is done.  The only thing we have left to do is sell the truck and get a rental car.  Tomorrow is Griffin's birthday!  We're having a little party at Chuck E Cheese with Griffin's cousin, Lanie.   I can't believe he'll be four.  I don't know many world-traveling four-year-olds.  I know that Griffin will do great.

Speaking of, it's time to fix his breakfast.  Signing off for now.

just relocating

Over the last couple of days Woody and I have been completely exhausted.  The physical demands of moving and the vast array of emotions are starting to take their toll.

One of our cats, Wiki, went to live with some friends last weekend, and I've been kind of in a haze ever since.  Moments before they drove off with the her, the reality of what we're doing hit me.  Not for the first time; it hits me periodically in different ways.  But saying goodbye to one of our cats made it real in a new way.  Part of this change we're choosing  is that we're stripping ourselves of what we identify with - the comforts that make us "us."  In Dubai I won't have Wiki and Hattie to come home to, my best friend to run with, or our wonderful neighbors who touch our lives every day.  We are going across the world with just ourselves and a few material possessions.  We will start from scratch with the tools we've acquired over the years to cultivate our own happiness.

What inspires me is that I know we can do it.  We'll take our bodies to a new place and will be our same happy family in the desert.  We can do this.  We must do this.

Moving along

We had a garage sale yesterday and made enough to recoup the cost of our passports (which we all had to apply for new because I lost mine, Woody's expired, and was Griffin's first).  We had a blast at the garage sale and met people who had had positive experiences with Dubai.  We even learned from a Muslim Russian that we can go to a Mosque and get free excellent Arabic lessons.  Great to know.

Tonight we're watching Swamp People, a documentary TV show about alligator hunters in Louisiana.  I can't think of anything more appropriate to do in our last month of living in the U.S.  I don't want to even think about what I have to do in the next week or month to make this happen by August.  I figure as tasks need to be accomplished, I will be miraculously moved to complete them.

Overall, I'm feeling grateful, positive, and excited.  Now that everyone knows we're leaving, we can just focus on enjoying the people and things in our lives that we'll miss.  My cycle class regulars fall into that category.  Tomorrow night I'm teaching a class that I planned entirely around a CD that Dale (a likable regular) made me.  His songs are great, and I'm very excited about tomorrow night's class.  We also have barbecues and parties lined up with friends in the month of July.

I feel so grateful to Arlington.  This city has been good to us.  We've made many friends that have changed our lives.  I'm sad to leave, but I feel ready for our next phase, as well.

Beginning Stages

It's not even July, and we're not moving until August, but we have begun our transition.  This consists mostly of getting rid of stuff, which we have a disgusting amount of.  As I clean out containers of 15-year-old makeup and empty jewel cases, I realize how badly we need to do this.  We need to teach Griffin that we can let go of old things and ways and adapt to new environments.

Getting rid of almost all of our belongings is invigorating and cleansing.  It's a little hard for Griffin at times because his toys are such a big part of his world.  However, he's getting better at letting go.  (Or perhaps it's that he's getting better at imagining how much better his new toys will be once we get there.)

We're learning about Dubai, and it seems like a nice place.  I do anticipate culture shock, but I figure as long as I keep doing things out and about with Griffin and running, I'll find my own peace there.

Overall, we feel strong and positive about this move.  Woody and I both have moments where we feel overwhelmed by all there is to do, but we still have over a month to do it all in.  We're well on our way.