Post Wedding Blog

We made it to the wedding right around 10:45 pm.  We of course thought that we would be late in our arrival.  Well, we were one of the first.  We met people as they slowly strolled in over the next couple of hours.  The bride and groom arrived around 12:45 am and then dinner served around 1 am.  Dinner was buffet style.  An aggressive first come, first serve sort of style with separate tables for men and women.  There seemed to be no shame in pushing others aside to get to kabobs.  

I rather enjoyed the evening.  I was able to meet a few people, and one woman that I hope to call and get to know.

Wedding Invite for tomorrow Night!

I was very excited to come home Wednesday evening and find a wedding invitation waiting for me.  I went to a wedding here back in 2003, but not since.  It will be on Saturday, tomorrow which means I had to get expedited tailor service for fancy clothes.  Evening activities will begin at 9pm, dinner at 10 pm and something else (I don't know what) is at 11 pm.  This is all "Insha Allah" which is printed on the invitation.  This means "If the Lord wills".  I will Insha Allah post a blog after the event too.

Multiple Choice Quiz (from J)

Where does this man come from?

A. England

B. France

C. Russia

D Middle East

E. Northern Pakistan

F. Western Pakistan

G.  China

H.  U.S.

I think you all know the right answer.  This list contains all the places people have thought I was from.  A few of them I understand, but the China guess caused me to give the man  a strange face.  Overall, it is pretty nice to keep people confused.  It allows me to stay under the radar a bit and keeps all the over zealous lovers of western culture and people away!!!!  My European friend with blonde hair and trendy glasses gets a lot more stares and requests from random people.

Convenience

On the streets people sell all sorts of things:  kleenex, towels, flowers, coconuts, anything you might possibly need (including monkeys)!! Tonite as I walked on the street a woman approached me selling colostomy bags.  I began laughing and wasn't able to ask the price.  (FYI: they did appear to be new)

The Doorman

Before we came here we told people we would have a doorman at our new home.  It seemed by people's reactions they had assumptions by what we meant by doorman.  Maybe a man with top hat and tails waiting at our beck and call.

Here a doorman is not really a luxury, but a necessity.  Our landlord required us to hire one (he shares the cost), and we do find him especially helpful because we don't know the language or how things work yet.  Not only does he answer the door at our front gate (future post), he also pays our bills, runs errands, does odds and ends, etc.  Our doorman is the brother of our American friend's doorman.  They are both from an area in the mountains in the north.  Back in 2005 their house was destroyed by the earthquake.  We hope to visit his village sometime in the future.

"Which one do you like? The blue one . . . or the other blue one?"

I clipped this photo from the local newspaper.  

Special Treats

About once a week we go out to eat for a special treat, mostly Western.  Some of our favorites:

• Nando's:  Portuguese eatery with incredible chicken.  The hummus is fabulous too.
• Arizona Grill:  American food.  
• Costa Coffee:  We've tried to recreate our "study in a coffee shop" atmosphere from back home, but it hasn't been as successful as we like. But its a 5 minute walk from our house so it nice for Joe to go get a cup of Jo every once in a while. 
• Salt 'n Peppa:  Local food buffet.  When we're in the mood for local food.  Right on the ocean!
• And some familiars: McDonalds, Pizza Hut, and KFC.

Hopefully we will keep trying to venture out to some of the hot spots

No More Baked Goodies

My neighbor and I have been passing back and forth food.  A couple of times around 9 pm (their time for eating dinner) a small dish of their dinner will show up at my house.  Usually VERY spicy, but delicious.  I in turn have been taking over baked goodies-- banana bread, cookies and yesterday, muffins.  But yesterday she kindly asked me if my food was halal.  I asked her what are haram items that I may not know about that I could have put in the muffins.  She said "pig meat and alcohol".  I assured her that neither of these were in the muffins.  I asked her where one might find these items here in the city.  She said you can't.  I understand that if any of these products were used in my kitchen at any time, any of the food that I made would be haram.  My kitchen would be considered halal since I do not use any of these products in my kitchen.  I told her she didn't need to eat the muffins if she was worried.

After 9 weeks

1. We can know hold a *very* basic conversation with 150 million more people on the earth
2. We eat more fruits and veggies because they are much cheaper here and the guy who sells veggies stops in front of our house everyday at 12:30.
3. We have new and different challenges to figure out and trust God for.
4. We have more appreciation for family, friends and things back home.
5. We have new friends from various places (Pakistan, Canada, UK)
6. We are thankful to be here.

My Home Person

Here there are different ways to show respect to people.  One is by not calling them by name.  

I asked my language teacher about what to call Joe when I am with a local female friend.  I asked if it is best to refer to him as "my husband" as opposed to "Joe".  (I know for Joe in most situations as he talks to local men he will not say my name in their presence but only refer to me as "my wife".).  The teacher said that saying "my husband" is good.  He did tell us that another option that village people use is to not even use "my husband", but "mera ghar wala".  The translation being "my home person".   Joe and I both had a chuckle that we can officially call each other "my homie".

Every Man's Home is His Castle . . .

. . . As can be seen by the moat that is in front of our house.  

A month ago a pipe broke up our street causing a river of sewage to run in front of our home.  Thankfully we live on the second floor and a wall that surrounds our building keeps the smell from wafting up to our place.  Amazingly some of the local men who work for our neighbors in their homes sit outside close to this green sludge.  It doesn't seem to bother them.  The scarf that I wear to cover my hair comes in very handy to cover my nose when I walk by.