Belgium or bust

We've actually enjoyed a real, proper Belgian holiday this summer. When we arrived in Geel, the weather was cool when all of a sudden the heat and humidity arrived and we were wiped out. At night, the clouds burst open and cooled us down with a huge downpour followed by intense thunder and lightening.

Rob and I enjoyed our 8th wedding anniversary (and Belgian independence day) by spending the day in Eindhoven, the Netherlands. We had a lovely day walking around, window shopping, people watching, and eating at delicious restauraunts. My favorite part was tasting olive oils at a store called "Oil & Vinegar" while Rob quite enjoyed watching me buy tunics in an air-conditioned shop. The next night, Rob and I had a grown-ups only night at Tom and Elly's house where we played poker, taste-tested beer, and laughed into the wee hours.

We have taken advantage of the huge 50% summer sales by spending a day in Antwerp to kit out Rob and the kids. We had lunch at one of our favorite Lebanese restaurant. The next day, the kids hung out at the park with Bomma and Bompa. We ended our great relaxing day by driving to the forest where specialty ice cream trucks are parked. We tasted delicious handmade ice creams from goat milk and can't wait until we get to go back.

All of that was great...but nothing so far compares to the awesomeness of teaching Xavier how to ride a bike in an hour. Using the short-cut grass as a race course, Xavi learned in no time. The next day we went to an empty car park and taught him how to use his breaks and start himself. Within another hour, Xavier was dodging Anouk, and riding non-stop laps.

So far we've had a lovely time and it will only get better with trips to Brugges, the beer garden, and London.

my brown eyed girl...

turned four this week! Tuesday was her big day and we celebrated her birthday on Friday 5.15 with way too many kids at our house. In an effort to give the kids more room to play, we told parents to drop the kids and go [read: escape]. 10 kids + my 2 = AAAHHHHHHHHH!!! The playing wasn't the big problem. But it's amazing how thirsty these 12 kids were. They were like camels. And they always wanted to drink at the exact same time!

It didn't matter how exhausted Rob and I were at the end of the two hours. The kids, especially Anouk, had a great time! Want to see the birthday photos?

Also... our www.angelaandrob.com website is finally up and running again. Long time no update. So if you want to see some photos of our adventures, check them out!

the dust storm cometh

Thursday, May 14, 2009

As we walked home from school on Thursday, their was a vortex of dust swirling in the distance. We walked home briskly so we could make sure that the windows were closed and the house was protected from the impending dust storm. We had to run to the store to pick up some supplies for Anouk's birthday party on Friday, so we had no choice to go outside and deal with the dust.

As we arrived at City Centre, we stopped to photograph the dust storm. Yuck.

The first picture is from the parking lot at City Centre.

The second picture is the new apartment across the street. All of that brick was laid during the day. There was no sand on it before 230 pm.

The third picture is night falling on our little ghetto. The haze is repulsive.

The day our world shook!

2.10.09
Well, it truly has been an exciting couple of weeks. We’ve gone from having coffee with the Belgian ambassador to bomb threats. From riding camels in the desert to spending nights up coughing up sand.

I guess I should start at the beginning…

Inauguration Night here in Kuwait was as amazing as it was around the world. I walked into our school auditorium surrounded by about 70 other comrades. From first glance it was a nice turnout. But if you looked closer, it was an amazing turnout, because this Inauguration Party was attended less by Americans and more by Canadians, French, Kuwaiti, Egyptian, Australian, and New Zealanders. The number of American flags waving in the hands of those who weren’t even US citizens was remarkable with such an authentic sense of pride and hope for the next four years. I can’t wait until I get to tell my own kids where I was the day Obama became President.

Days later, Rob and I took a personal day to continue working on the visa process which will earn Xavier and Anouk their Kuwaiti visas. Our first appointment was at the Kenyan embassy where, without question, Xavier’s birth certificate was authenticated as REAL and we were off to a good start. By the time we got to the Belgian embassy, things started to take a bit of a downturn. The Belgian embassy was no longer allowed to authenticate official Belgian documents unless the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Belgium had signed them. Here we go again, we thought. But on our way out the door, the secretary asked us if we’d like to meet the Ambassador. Rob turned down her offer with the thought that he must be too busy to talk some peons like us. With a look of horror on her face I urged Rob to change his mind by saying, “I don’t think you’re supposed to refuse the Ambassador.” So… minutes later we were on our way to his office to drink coffee with him. We spent about 15 minutes with him, talking about Belgium, Kenya, and what we’re doing in Kuwait. As his secretary escorted us out of the embassy we told her that our next appointment was at the fortress they call the US Embassy. She wished us luck and joked that the US Ambassador may be otherwise unable to greet us today. You think?

Well, our US Embassy experience was as bad as it has been in every country where I had to deal with an Embassy so I will avoid writing about it now. Needless to say, we need to start from the beginning with all of our US documents.

Now… fast forward to this weekend. A couple of weeks ago we got an email about a day at a Bedouin camp with dancing, cultural lessons, camel rides, and a traditional lunch. A camel? Hell yeah! I’ve kept the kids hopeful about seeing a camel for 5 months, it was time for me to make good on my promise. So this Saturday, we were on our way. We met at the A.W.A.R.E. (Advocates of Western-Arab RElations) center and were shocked to see four gigantic busses loading hundreds of people. Our dream of an intimate afternoon in the desert was shattered with the quick calculation that 400+ of our new best friends would be joining us.

In a nutshell, the adventure was a bit of a bust. Not that we’re upset that we went, but we were expecting a lot of traditional Bedouin things. Traditional camps, food, dancing, people, cultural lessons, etc. And what we got was a lot of what the Kuwaitis do when they live in their spring camp. (Spring camp is the time between January and March, when all government-owned desert land is opened up and people are allowed to squat temporarily on the land. They put up a nice white tent, plug in their generators, park their Ferrari outside, hook up the satellite, and spend long weekends out in the dessert where kids play outside on ATV’s and in the sand dunes.) It’s the oddest thing I’ve ever seen in my life, but I am happy that my kids DID get to see a camel. Xavier rode by himself and oddly enough, Anouk was brave enough too. As responsible adults, we wouldn’t let her go 6-feet into the air by herself so her new boyfriend, Mr. Jason, jumped aboard and protected her should she make the 6-foot fall. After a non-traditional lunch of Indian and Italian food, we loaded in the car and were glad to have had the experience. We returned home tanner than when we arrived, but a quick shower returned us to our regular color.

The next day, Sunday, our life got flipped upside down. While out to break with my students, my Principal came over to tell me that there was a bomb scare and 10 minutes from then, the kids would line up as if it was a fire drill and we would proceed from there. After a ridiculously chaotic fire drill, the elementary school was led passed dozens of police, military, and other oddly official people. When we reached the auditorium, our Principal got on the loud speaker and announced to the students that the fire drill was such a success that they were being rewarded with a showing of “Charlotte’s Web.” The kids were stoked until the first group had to go to the bathroom. While escorting a group to the bathroom, the questions started: “Ms. Angela, how come those mean-looking dogs are there?” or “Miss, do you know what that sign says? [referring to the yellow police-tape] “it says, bomb team.” OH GREAT!! Within 30 minutes, rumors, gossip, and fear had run through the auditorium. Parents were rushing in to pull their kids out of school within 10 minutes of us arriving—how did they find out so quick? Man, we have a SERIOUS gossip trail here. And then there were poor Xavier and Anouk—innocently sitting by their friends trying to watch “Charlotte’s Web.” Rob pulled them out when the HS was evacuated and I stayed on for another hour until all of my kids were picked up. After closing the school and the days events being confirmed a hoax, we were unsure as to whether or not to send the kids on Monday. But, like good hopeful employees, we dutifully went to work with kids in toe.

School started normally at 7:45 am. At 9:10 am I was on my way to Xavier’s classroom to give him his asthma medicine. When I arrived in the nurse’s office, a High School student told me that the nurse wasn’t there because she was busy tending to issues with the high school kids who were evacuated because a bomb was found in the boys bathroom. AWESOME! I tried to casually walk Xavier back to class when I saw three middle and high school teachers running feverishly to their kids’. It was the hysterical mother with tears streaming down her face while she was talking on her cell phone that convinced me something REALLY serious was going on. I quickly took Xavier and Anouk out of class and walked them home. On my way, I spoke to my Principal who said, “Do what you need to, but get back here soon.” I ran the kids home and I kept saying, “I love you”, not knowing what was going to happen next. I got back to school and within three minutes of being in my classroom, I was lining my kids up for an immediate evacuation off the school campus. Our staging ground ended up being in the middle of a disgusting sand trap full of old couches, boats, fridges, and demolished cars—yup, we called parents to pick their kids up from the middle of a police station where tragic car wrecks go to die. That’s uplifting.

Anyway… I got my parents called and my students home in record time, just to be told that the bomb was a hoax and we were to return to school for a working afternoon.
Needless to say, we are exhausted (both emotionally and physically) and are frustrated (both as parents and professionals). It’s been a long week and I hope tomorrow is better.

To read a Kuwaiti Blog’s take on the story, our stupidity, and the DRAMA that is AIS, click here.

Where the Streets Have No Name…

We’ve been busy since our return to Kuwait. We’ve been putting the finishing touches on our apartment—framing art, murals on the kids play room, and organizing our storage areas—fun stuff that we should have done four months ago, but that we’re doing now, in our beautiful new blue building!

Next plan of attack—finish report cards. Without a school-wide grading scheme or computer program, we had 5 days from arrival to complete our report cards and have them ready for printing. Our fourth grade team collaborated greatly and were praised over and over again by our Principal and Vice Principal (there’s a first time for everything!) Rob’s story is not so pleasant so we’ll save that news for another day.

The last thing on our to-do list was the purchase of a new-to-us car! We have officially crossed that item off our list. After a rather interesting few days of car shopping which requires the assistance of multiple people speaking a plethora of languages, Rob and I agreed to come in way under budget and buy a decent looking [read: ugly], well-running (for a 10-year-old), Pajero SUV with extra seats in the back for guests (yup, we’re talking to you family!) We knew it was the car for us when we walked up to it and it had a huge “X” hanging from it’s rear-view mirror.

So our holy day (Friday) was spent doing errands without overpaying taxis. We drove to the airport to pick up Anouk’s car seat (which didn’t make it from Belgium when we did). From there, we went to the largest mall in Kuwait, called the Avenues. It’s the mall that currently has 11 busy Starbucks. It’s the mall where they are currently adding another wing with, I’m sure, at least 5 more coffee stops! The Avenues mall houses IKEA and our favorite grocery store—Carrefour. Since we didn’t have to fit our belongings into the back of an extra-large taxi—we went crazy! Two carts and $200 later we had filled the back of our new-to-us car with loads of stuff. It was as if we were at Costco, stockpiling the way we did.

We bought 12 wine-size bottles of grape juice and have been passing them around to friends in the building. During every meal, we’ve been pressuring the kids to drink the grape juice so we have enough empty bottles to work with. Yup, our brew kits came into the country without issue, so Rob will begin brewing soon.

On our way back from the Avenues mall, our trunk was too full for a stop at the plant souk to bring some beautiful greenery into our apartment. Well, that and the blinking red light on our dash, helped us put an end to our outing. Though the gas gauge said ½ full, the red light was definitely scaring us to find a gas station. And go figure—Kuwaitis live off the oil in this darn country, but when you need a gas station, there isn’t a thing in sight. After a few hairy minutes, the car crept into the gas station. After loading the car with 84 liters of gas, Rob handed over 5.5 KD (about $20/15 Euros). It was such a wonderful moment for us, that we couldn’t help but photograph it for posterity. At that price, we plan on getting lost in the desert next weekend on a quest for some camels. Wish us luck!

Between the car, the beautiful apartment, and the brew—we’re starting to carve out a nitch for ourselves. But don’t get me wrong, it’s a VERY temporary nitch!

turn that frown upside down

Written 11/10, forgot to upload to the website.

After nearly 4 months of lame excuses, today the excitement started. We went to ACE/True Value Hardware and picked out paint colors for our beautiful new place in the gorgeous new blue building. OUR BUILDING! It stands out like a clean, fresh beacon in our dirty, old, Iranian ghetto (in the middle of Kuwait). The smell of paint and wood finish permeate every nook and cranny of the building and is a welcome reprieve because it means our new place is nearly finished.

As we start to prepare our new house for our impending move, there is still sadness. As we plan and prepare, we notice that our new location has windows facing away from the neighboring mosque. This means--no call to prayers. The call to prayers have become like an inviting friend... a peaceful sound that I have recently began turning back into at 4 a.m. (and using in lieu of an alarm clock). I will miss them when they are gone.

Though I will miss them, there is a new beautiful sound in my life... and that is the sound of my little Xavier reading his sight word books (see the YouTube video on the right to hear him).

I look forward to telling you great things about our new move! Happy days are here again!

a lot of catching up to do...

written on September 26...

No excuses. I haven't blogged in way too long. Though I'm sick (with what they call the Kuwaiti crud), tired, and distracted by the lazy life that exists during Ramadan, I have no excuses for my tardiness.

So let me start at the beginning.

Ramadan: It's the time of year that Muslims honor the Qur'an being revealed to the prophet Mohammed. This always occurs during the ninth month (of the Islamic calendar) and is determined by the cycle of the new moon. During Ramadan, Muslims are diligent about praying and fast during the daylight hours. The idea is that fasting will teach people to be patient, cooperation, humility, and sacrifice. It is the job of Muslims to seek forgiveness for past sins and work towards good deeds in the present. What this really means is--life stops for a whole month!  Schools and business open late, close early, then open after Iftar and life begins at 8pm. 

Our take on Ramadan: Rob and I are so done with Ramadan. By the time we are home from school, stores are closed. You can't get any work done between 3.00 and 7.30 pm. And since our kids are asleep by 8.00, we're in a lot! We can't wait for Eid (the celebration that marks the end of Ramadan) because life should get back to normal. That means, grocery shopping and errands during the day. Drinking water or grabbing a snack during the day is OK. Just three more days!

Gurgiyan: a children's celebration to mark the halfway point of Ramadan. Kids dress up in ethnic costumes (mostly Arabic) and knock on people's door (much like our Halloween). In lieu of "trick-of-treat" children sing a little Arabic tune which earns them sweet treats. In America, "trick-or-treat" earns a couple bite-size Snickers or a set of jelly vampire teeth. Here, a Gurgiyan song earns you a bag full of candy. 

Our take on Gurgiyan: With a few girlfriends in toe, we spent the weekend before the big day going Gurgiyan dress shopping. This was harder than we expected because Gurgiyan is really just a kids day. But, when you're a teacher, it's kind of expected that you participate. Xavier's dishdasha (the long, white men's robe that is matched with a variety of scarf-like head dresses, held to the head by a black band) and Anouk's dress (which has a name that I cannot remember) were easy to find. 

Gurgiyan is the total opposite of Ramadan. It's full of indulgence and abundance--which all take form as little sweets. Yes, CANDY! Holy crap. I've never seen this much candy in my life. I think our little threesome (Xavier, Anouk, and I--since Rob is part of the high school and they don't celebrate) brought home over 4 lbs. of candy. After unwrapping toys, gifts, treasure boxes, and candy, I kept a stash for the kids and returned copious amounts to our respective classrooms as student rewards after Ramadan.

 The one aspect to keep from  Gurgiyan is the costuming. Kids dress in ethnic clothing (mostly Arabic) and look adorable. In addition, we adults get to learn a lot about the costuming from different Arab states, so it's a lesson for me too!

Iftar: During Ramadan, iftar is the time of night when a family meets together to break their fast. Iftar occurs after the Maghrib (sunset) prayers (and for us non-Muslims are irrerevrently referred to as the "call to eat" prayers).  As the prayers begin, families all over the Arab world break fast with a date (or two) and a drink of water. The families then make their way to the mosque for their Maghrib prayers (the fourth set of prayers for the day). Once this is completed, the iftar begins and families begin their evening feast which often lasts for hours. Because people have not eaten all day, their stomach's cannot handle much food. For this reason, most iftar celebrations include a lavish display of food and is eaten into the wee hours of the morning.

Our take on Iftar: Our school holds a fancy iftar dinner at a hotel every year. We couldn't make it because we were a family full of sickies. So I was incredibly excited when an Arabic and Islamic teacher, at the school, personally invited me to the Religion staff's iftar at our school. As I walked up to the high school canteen area (an area near our school's indoor gym and the school mosque), the ceiling was lined with student-made lanterns (or fanous as they are called in Arabic) and a table was all laid with beautiful colored papers, bowls of dates, and glasses of water. About a hundred students, teachers, and parents milled around this table waiting to hear the Maghrib. As the prayers rang loud from the distance, the mass flocked swiftly to the table to grab a date and a glass of water. I was stunned how gentle everyone was. After two or three dates, the group migrated to the mosque while us non-Muslims quietly waited for the iftar to begin. 

About 10 minutes later, the Muslim group returned from the mosque and the iftar began with a decadent display of food. The food was amazing. The most delicious chicken in a mildly spicy gravy with spices I've never heard of or tasted before was my favorite (but since then, I've since forgotten the name of the chicken loveliness). This and about 10 other beautiful meat dishes were complimented with at least 50 sides: from salads to breads, rice dishes to cold vegetable platters-- it was a feast for sure.

The iftar was followed by a lecture, in the school's mosque, by a world-renowned theologian. The lecture was intended to educate people on the holy month of Ramadan but quickly evolved into a comparison between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (with a strong focus on the latter as superior). It was interesting though a little preachy. 

The most interesting thing he said, in a way of discussing radicals like Osama bin Laden, was that there is a distinct difference between Arabs and Muslims. He said that most Muslims are just Muslims because their parents are. This theologian called this type of Muslim: an Arab. He said that Islam is a chosen religion and you must believe and practice the religion, which, in it's simplest form is a religion based on love, respect, and cleanliness (of body and soul). He said Arabs fight, are disrespectful to others, and do not keep themselves or their communities clean. He said that when he walks around Kuwait (and even our school) he notices more Arabs than Muslims. 

So that's it. That's what we've been up to during the holy month. Not much, but a lot of cultural learning has happened. My next post will be soon... inshallah (god willing). Inshallah is how everything gets done here: "your apartment will be ready soon [pregnant pause], inshallah." "This medicine should make you better [a brief pause], inshallah." "Your civil ID will be here by the end of the week [giggle, giggle], inshallah."

So again... my next post will be soon [with a little grimmace] inshallah.