Happy Thanksgiving

We had a traditional Thanksgiving Day Feast!!!! Turkey (I had a leg - my favorite), Mashed Potatoes & Gravy, Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potato Casserole, Homemade Cranberry Sauce, Corn...a nice glass of homemade wine...and Apple Pie & Pumpkin Pie a la mode...we followed up the meal with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and the Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Now I am packing for my Oman trip. I leave at 6am. I am thankful that even though I was away from my family I was still able to celebrate Thanksgiving here with friends!

Holiday Spirit

Happy Thanksgiving and Eid Mubarak...



The Christmas Tree is up and decorated in true Holiday Spirit...
Makes me miss home and feel at home simultaneously...







I will be home for Christmas in one month...

Jumeirah Mosque

I also went to the Jumeirah Mosque and sat through a noon prayer, which was very interesting. The building itself has beautiful architecture and is quite peacful and calming.

Desert Camp Entertainment

Here is a picture of the Desert Camp...



There were four entertainment shows at the desert camp.
The first was a belly dancer.



Then there were Turkish Whiriling Dervishes



Then there was an Egyptian dance with sticks (of which I dont have any photos).
And then there was a number that involved musical instruments, two belly dancers, and two people inside a horse costume.

Desert Safari

While in Dubai I went on a Desert Safari that consisted of Dune Bashing, a Camel Ride, and a Barbque. The dune bashing was exhilirating, going up and down the dunes sliding sideways. It was crazy and scary fun...None of the pictures or video really showcased the experience well. Then we stopped for photos.



Then it was time to head over to the camp. First up, was the camel ride. If you have never been around camels, i should start by saying that they make this awful growling/groaning sound. They dont sound pleased to be walking back and forth with loads of strange tourists on their back. And the way that they get up is by putting their back legs up first which means that you fling forward as though you are going to fly right off them. Then when they are up, you realize just how tall they are. It was really cool! Then into the camp for dinner & drinks!

Dubai

Well, I had a great time in Dubai...although, I think that it is a little more hyped up than it actually is...Hands down the most fun that I had was learning how to snowboard. I know what you're thinking who goes to the Middle East to learn how to snowboard? But Dubai has a Ski Park in the Mall of the Emirates. I had a blast, even though I fell on my ass about a hundred times and was in some real pain by the time I left. Not to mention my hardest fall was on my last time down the mountain and I hit my head quite hard (I actually had whiplash). But over the course of four hours I made my way from the practice area all the way to the big slope.

Ski Dubai has 5 runs that vary in difficulty, height and gradient, the longest run being 400 meters with a fall of over 60 meters.

A Day at the Market - Sweets

Of course, the market also has little shops to pick up sweets to take home...



And nuts, which are also a big part of the diet here...these shops are in every market...



Also, there are little shops with very elaborate chocolates that are given as gifts. The picture below is of an example of how the chocolate is packaged and displayed and put out for guests at home...oh, and in case you're wondering these packaged chocolates are really yummy too!!!! (Although, for some reason a lot of the chocolate candy bars - i.e. Snickers - don’t really taste the same as they do back in the states)

A Day at the Market - Fruits & Veggies

The fruits and vegetables are shipped to Kuwait from all over the world. In this picture, most of the items are all packaged up and have tags on them to explain what they are, where they came from, and how much they cost.

A Day at the Market - Meat

Of course, if you prefer a little red meat instead....

A Day at the Market - Fish

Last Saturday I went down to the Market in Fahaheel. I was there working on a project with one of my professors and a fellow student who's father had agreed to show us his fishing business down there. However, we got more than we bargained for because after that he took us for a tour of the local market. I just want to stress what an amazing opportunity this was...We were allowed to take pictures inside the market (which is definitely not normally allowed and he had to deal with the security personnel several times). Therefore, the pictures are generally just of the various foods and no real wide-shots of the whole market. As mentioned in previous posts, you are not really supposed to take photos of people (especially not women and children). Thus, this was a great opportunity for me to show you what a market looks like and give you an idea of the wide array of foods available. Also, this is a market and not a grocery store (which Kuwait has plenty of and you can find brands from all over the world including all the American products from home - just like at the Safeway/Giant/Food Lion down the street).

The fish comes straight off the boat to an auction floor. There the fish is bid on by the various businesses. From there they go to the stalls of the highest bidder. Here is a picture of one of the stalls. Please keep in mind that the building is huge and that there are rows upon rows of these stalls.

Night Out - Church

While aimlessly walking around Kuwait City for about 4 hours, I walked passed the Catholic Church and was particularly amused by this sign...(on a more serious note they have mass in at least like 5 different languages here)



I also want to point out that at 3:30am when I got in the cab to head home there were still several families out in the parks (with little kids playing on the playgrounds) and picnicking on the beach and several very lively soccer games going on...Kuwait is such a nocturnal society....sorry no photos of the nightlife (you are not supposed to take photos of strangers here - especially women and children)

Night Out - Gutrah

Then, I went to Souk Mubarakiya (which is the oldest souk/market in Kuwait) and bought the head gear, called gutrah, to go with the Dishdasha that I bought a month ago. There will be pictures forth coming of me in the entire traditional clothing. However, for the time being you will just have to be satisfied with these two pictures...

Night Out - Book Fair

I went to the book fair...please note the spelling of secret...and yes, that is a book in Arabic about the CIA...



No, but in all seriousness, the Book Fair was huge and there were loads of books there...including this title that I was sure my niece would recognize (although, maybe not so much in Arabic)...

Kuwaiti Dinar - Money

The currency in Kuwait is the Dinar, which the current exchange rate is about 1KD = $3.5 Ouch!!!! It is the highest valued currency in the world. One Dinar breaks down into 1000 fils. The Dinar comes in paper denominations of 20, 10, 5, 1, 1/2, and 1/4. Therefore, 1/2 KD = 500 fils and 1/4 KD = 250 fils. Besides the 1/2 and 1/4 KD denominations, the fils are issued in coins (5, 10, 20, 50, 100). I will bring home some coins (since they are hard to photograph) and they are cheaper. I am not planning on bringing home Kuwaiti Dinars, since at the current exchange rate the amount shown in the pictures (1 of each denomination) is approximately $130. But I thought I would share the photos of the dinar. You will notice that one side is in English and the other side is in Arabic. The money depicts various scenes and monuments just like the US dollar. Also, one can notice the amount of detail and the various anti-counterfeit techniques that have been used. And you should also be able to notice that as the Dinar value decreases so does the size of the paper. And now you can all learn you Arabic Numbers....

ARABIC





ENGLISH

Halloween in Kuwait

My Halloween in Kuwait (or as they referred to it at AUK "Family Fun Night")...apparently some things are universal even if you don’t (cant) technically celebrate Halloween...but who doesn’t love the Addams Family...insert...SNAP SNAP