PETRA!

Two days in Petra, Jordan. What fun!

Jordan in a nutshell.

It's hard to not rush through some postings on Jordan, as we have now returned from Uganda. To top it off, our Internet continues to act sketchy, with Blogger much more difficult to navigate than before.
Never fear, updates continue...
10 days in Jordan was amazing. Our two-day side trip (more on that in another forum) made the 8 days in Jordan very busy as we still had so much to see! Petra, Madaba, the site of Jesus' baptism, Harod's Castle (where Salome danced and John the Baptist was beheaded), Karak Castle, an overnight in Wadi Rum- amazing deserts and camping with the Bedouin), The Red Sea, the Dead Sea, a Turkish bath... We were busy!

We celebrated Christmas early, with things like Ziploc containers and Reese's as unwrapped gifts. But oh so appreciated! I think I speak for everyone when I say it was an awesome trip. And exhausting!

Moses! (Jordan revisited)

The view from Mt. Nebo, where Moses saw the promised land. (You see that? That's Israel, folks.)

Back in the saddle...

We're back in Khartoum, the internet is working, and we have one day until we're back at work! wow! What a month! Happy Holidays to everyone. There will be many postings in the next few days as I try to share photos and stories from two great trips- Jordan and Uganda!
Happy New Year.
(The flights coming home were calm. In case anyone was even a fraction as worried as we were!)

Airport Insanity

Oh, it was such a good plan. 24 hours at home to dump stuff, do laundry, and hit the road again. We went to the airport at 1:00 am for a 4:00 am flight to Nairobi, where we would connect to Kampala, Uganda. There was the usual mass of people outside. When they (finally) announce the flight, everyone waiting and pushing outside is slowly funneled through two ID checks. So far, so good, after a line for security, and a line to pay export tax, we finally are in another line to actually check in.
Which is where we stood for the next 2 hours. Not moving. No announcement. We soon understood that all check-ins were being done manually. So one person was moving between the counters, okaying each boarding pass issued. Slow moving, to say the least. It was chaos, and people were starting to get upset, slowly realizing something was wrong.
It seems that they just issued tickets (manually) until they got close to full, knowing that they were many seats overbooked. Once they got close to capacity, the manager told all workers to STOP working and wait. After several more minutes (and now people are beginning to yell…), the manager finally pulled together the remaining 30 passengers in the lines. “People, we have a problem. We are overbooked. There are only eight seats left. We need to decide how to solve this.”
Immediately, people start pushing and yelling. In a true Lord of the Flies moment, it actually became people pleading their cases, with the manager the judge. A mother-in-law had died. UN aid workers whose visas were set to expire. UN workers going to Liberia, to which there is only one flight a week. I have never experienced anything like it.
In the end, the manager selected eight people. By then, we had removed ourselves from the pushing mob that followed his every step. I couldn’t make up a good enough story quick enough.
It seems that this was the result of carryover from yesterday, when the same thing happened. As those left passengers were guaranteed space on our flight, more people were pushed off. And the same will be true tomorrow, when we will become priority. The manager collected all of our tickets (which we very hesitantly handed over), and sent us on our way.
In the end, we spent 4 hours in the airport. They pushed us all outside, trying to put us into a big van to go to a hotel. Nobody listened when we respectfully told them that we didn’t need a hotel, just a ride to our house.
So how did it all end? It seems that when you yell, people listen. Emily finally found the manager and made it very clear that we were to be given a taxi to our house and a taxi to pick us up to come back to the airport tomorrow. And that’s when he actually listened. And smiled at us. After she yelled. Bizarre.
In the end, we lose a day in Uganda. But we should be confirmed on both of our flights that leave at the same night tonight. And we each receive a $500 voucher for Kenya Air or Duty Free. And we have to go through the process all over again tonight.
Don’t fly Kenya Air, folks.

The Dead Sea

We enjoyed the Dead Sea with the locals (see the local camel?).

An early Christmas in Madaba

Let the gift-giving begin! Jax and Phyllis were delighted by their Sudanese housedresses. Sequined. Aren't they cute?

Our first stop in Jordan

We had to get a few things out of the way before my parents arrived. After 5 months in Africa, this meant MECCA MALL! Caribou Coffee! Real shopping! It was a bit overwhelming. Wow.

Still no photos

I'm trying hard to post pictures, but it looks like those might have to wait.

An update: We made it exactly 7 hours at home before breaking into the Reese's. Not bad!

Thanks to my mom, dad and grandma for bringing those things one should simply not have to live without-
Crystal Light, Ziploc containers, Reese's and BACON!

Laundry!

I'll end up playing a lot of catch up on this thing. We are home in Khartoum for 19 hours before our flight to Uganda. We arrived at 6 am after being up all night at the airport. These 19 hours will be spent napping. Lining up all our fun, new things delivered to us by my parents and grandmother (!!!!), laundry, and packing. Uy! And then we have a whole another vacation! This is nonsense!

Jordan was amazing. For some reason, right now, blogger doesn't like the idea of me adding pictures. I will keep trying to post a few in the next few hours. We'll see how successful I am. (In the meantime, I'm going to go admire all my Reese's peanut butter cups!)

And we're off...

Later I'll explain the misery that is travel out of Khartoum Airport. We're set to be there at 3 am, though our flight isn't until 6. They insist on silliness like this.

Em and I will have a day in Jordan before my parents and grandma arrive for 10 fun-filled days. We've heard great things. Like, not only is it beautiful- but developed!- with restaurants and shops and the like! Enough to work entertainment-starved girls like ourselves into a tizzy.

These posts will slow down, as I won't have much access/time to do it.
Happy Holidays!

D I Y

Em and I have often talked about how resourceful (for lack of better word) we are here. We buy oats and have learned to make our own granola, adding dried fruit and nuts (bought in bulk). We make our own fresh applesauce. We aren't relying on mixes or jars nearly as much as we would in the States.
We aren't necessarily cooking more, but we are learning to make things that we would have just bought at the store back home. These are things that are available here, but for prices that we certainly aren't willing to pay. It feels good.
Another choice example of this newfound self-reliance is cat food. We make our own. The photograph shows what happens when I spend an evening making 3 1/2 weeks of cat food for the freezer. What fun!

What Eid means to me...

Let us briefly return to this Eid conversation...
Eid was called, meaning that the important Muslim man announced that the moon was in the right place. This morning, we left the house for what we thought would be a its-a-holiday-therefore-the-streets-are-quiet walk to meet friends for brunch. Walking through our neighborhood, we quickly figured out how Muslim families are celebrating the first day of the feast.Sheep were baaaaing from the backs of trucks and tuk-tuks, being carted all around town. And then, once they reached their destination- bam! Sheep were strung up all over the place! From trees in front of their houses, in doorways... The butchers were a madhouse!
We side-stepped sheep heads in plastic bags, horns sticking out, on the side of the road. Men walking, swinging small axes. We were hopscotching to avoid the blood-stained sand on our path.

This is unbelievable!

Island Party!

The most common type of party around these parts is the 'Goodbye Party'. There is always someone leaving, as most people sign on for a much shorter time than two years. And an island theme! Besides the painful excuse for many people to walk around in bikinis, it was just the usual good time. And we got to hang out with our cat sitter! See above photo.... Thanks, Arne, for taking our cat!

halas!

School has finished! Break time!

Now two days to do laundry, make cat food and freeze it, and relax before meeting the family.
(We all know there is no relaxing then!)

Only two more days of Khartoum!

Off to an island-themed party this evening. But I don't think all this sand actually fools anybody!

Another Thanksgiving!

Another friend invited us to celebrate Thanskgiving today. That's two weekends in a row! Her husband works for the embassy, meaning it was another right-on, two-turkey feast! It was amazing. And desserts! Pies, pumpkin rolls, cobbler. (see the aftermath below)
While being completely, absolutely too much food, it was also a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. And with only one more day of work until holiday break, nobody was at all stressed to have to go to school in the morning.

Yet another party...

We had our work holiday party this weekend. Our director had his roof decked out with lights and tables and bar. Everyone brought food as well as a gift for the white elephant gift exchange. I think everyone was fearful of the potential for disaster- mixing a joke of a game like 'white elephant gift exchange' with several different nationalities of teachers. But in the end, it was a blast! Everyone had a lot of fun. I stole myself a big, smelly candle. Em was a little less fortunate, bringing home a pink and white floral table cloth. (Brought as a serious gift? A gag? Nobody knows...)
The night ended with a dance party, shut down by the fear of the cops coming. (It seems that all music must be finished at 11 pm here.) In the end, it was great to reconnect with colleagues, enjoying each others' company before we all part for the long break.

Peanuts! Get your peanuts!

So while at the souk, I got a little bored by Emily and Audrey's 35 minute haggle for a basket. I found myself wandering a bit, fascinated by the peanut guys. There was a peanut sorter, a measurer and a grinder. Phase one of the peanut process involved this nice man sorting out the baby bits of nut by swishing them around in the pan. Phase two involved the second guy harassing passersby to make a purchase. Phase three was the optional grinding of the peanuts into peanut butter. While I didn't buy (no need to fill the cupboards as you head to vacation), I watched them long enough that I was comfortable to ask for a photograph.

The Souk

We went to the souk yesterday morning, looking for some Christmas gifts, etc... After a while, we needed a snack. Thankfully, there is the perfect souk-shopping snack! Fresh juice and tamaiaa. You point to the fruit, and this nice man will either blend it or press it- your pick. There are no cups- just tin bowls which he fills with the juice, a big ole spoonful of sugar, and chunks of ice. Sometimes you get a spoon. Sometimes you don't. Depending on availability.
Right next to the juice guy is the tamaiaa guy. For 25 US cents, you get a falafel sandwich with a small dollop of spicy sauce. Yum.

P*A*R*T*Y at the Ugandan Ambassador's...

Our friend Timothy invited four of us to a party last night. We didn't get many details in advance, only that it was an 'end of the year' celebration at the home of the Ugandan Ambassador. Can't say no to that, can you?

We found ourselves in the garden of a beautiful home. It was an interesting set-up.
The music- A mix of Congolese, Ugandan, Christmas and mid-90's Contemporary Christian (a la Amy Grant).
The people- We were the only ones not from Uganda. It seemed a happy mix of Ugandans working in Khartoum, their families and friends. And many staff of the Embassy.
The food- really, really good Ugandan catering.
The speeches- yup. speeches. There were speeches.
The dancing- finally, after hours of sitting and drinking and eating and 'speeching', the dancing started! Emily was wiggling in her seat. The Ambassador saw her and came and whisked her away to dance together! ha! Below, you can see her being whisked away. The woman in all black is the current Ugandan Ambassador to Sudan. Just another random night in Khartoum...

Cookie Monsters!

A good friend hosted a Christmas cookie making party! Everyone soon learned to 'appreciate' my cookies- the ones that didn't quite look perfect...
It's the end of the semester here, and everyone is flying out this week. So, while its really early to be celebrating Christmas, its the only time we have! Most of us will be traveling through the holidays, so it's nice to celebrate the season with friends now...

Holiday! Celebrate!

The season has arrived! With less than a week left until holiday break, our social calenders are sparkling with events. Things to do! In Khartoum!
Dinners and Christmas-cookie-making-parties and more dinners and you gotta sneak in an event at the Ugandan ambassador's house for good measure... (more details on that to follow)
I'm a butterfly, and my wings are a-flutter!

In even more exciting news, we are beginning break a day early! We don't have snow days here, but when the moon moves faster than we thought it would, we do get a day of school called to celebrate Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice).
This is a three-four day festival celebrating the end of Hajj and the sacrifices of Abraham. We'll be here for the first two days, so we will surely see (and smell) animals being slaughtered and the city celebrating.
Because it is dependent on the moon, you can never be completely certain what day it will be called. As we get closer, it seems it will start on Monday- giving us only one day of school next week! Woot woot!

For lack of other news...

I'm doing what every good coach does- celebrating a losing season!
The girls are bringing in junk tomorrow, and we're having a party at lunch!
Hurray!

My body is exhausted. Only 4 1/2 more days of school until break!

KAS International Potluck Dinner!

How cool! Last night was the International Potluck Dinner... Every family brings food, spread over 40 picnic tables, arranged by continent. Many of the Chinese students' parents all work for CNPC, the oil company. So the oil company brought in professional trays with burners and chefs! They made me a mu shu pork wrap to order! YUM! So much good food from all over the world! South African pastries, Tortilla Espanola, Apple crisp. Mmmm boy!

In addition to enjoying the food, I was in charge of coordinating the Parade of Nations. We have over thirty countries represented at our school, and it was up to me to take volunteers and rehearse and get them all ready for the Parade. Every country said a few words and showed up tradional costume. What stress! But so much fun!



Emily did a great job as emcee- the kids were all adorable and fabulous. It was a great night for families and friends of the school.

Softball

We played a KAS v. KICS faculty and staff softball game last weekend. I think in the end, we lost by one or two. But we were definitely the better looking team- with borrowed school sports uniforms! It was a great chance to hang out, talk some smack, and eat some good food.

Thanksgiving!

A good friend hosted Turkey dinner. As Embassy, he has access to all sorts of goodies that we either can't find or can't afford. He even has access to real-time American TV through AFN! Hurray for NYC and the Macy's parade!
The embassy also had the day off (and as the American school- we didn't!) so he could cook all day long! Below are a few photos from our dinner and party.

A familiar face

I enjoy going to the supply closet here. I smile before I even open the cabinet doors. I know what's inside. Even in Khartoum, our closet is full of WAUSAU copy paper! What a nice reminder of family and home- in the silliest place!



(For those not in the know- much of my family lives in Wausau. Wisconsin.)

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Season over

My basketball season has finally come to a close. 1-5.
I'm ready to be done with that, for sure. And I'm excited to be a better coach. I think I could be a good one, but right now I certainly don't feel like it. While the girls loved to play, had fun, and all improved dramatically... I never lit that little fire in their belly so that they actually cared and wanted to win. Gotta work on that. These aren't competitive girls I'm working with. Which is nice. But its also ok to win, and to want something and to work for it.

We'll get there.

For you, Grandma Grace...

I've just returned from the grocery store. It's an expat place, where we pay ridiculous prices for foods that in our past lives we could buy anywhere. for cheap!
I was really excited to see the stockboy arranging frozen Butterball turkeys in the freezer. Hurray! It's that time of year!
I shimmied in for a glance at the price. For your sake, I have done the conversions. The price of one 12.35 lb frozen Butterball turkey? .... .... ... ...
$151.75!!!!!
For that price, I am really happy I have been invited to someone else's Thanksgiving dinner! Ha!

Last stop!

The Royal City of Meroe! Closer to the Nile, we picnicked and had the kids do their last assignment before heading back to Khartoum. We explored the remains of the great temple of Amon, and tried to shelter ourselves from the scorching heat.