Dear Syria,

I am sorry I left without saying goodbye. I was in such a hurry packing my belongings I'm afraid we didn't have the chance to properly say goodbye to each other.

When I first arrive on that hot, August morning, I never thought Syria would be someplace I'd consider home. Of course, there were times when you drove me majnoona with your crazy drivers, littered streets, and smokers everywhere, but there was always more of you to love than not.

I loved peaceful Friday mornings with only the street cleaners and cats to keep me company of my way to church. I loved your late-night restaurants with hommus and shishas. I loved your lemon and mint, that just can't be duplilcated in America no matter how many times I try. I loved your ancient sights and soukes. I loved your Old City with its confusing, maze of alleys and streets that felt as comfortable as our own hometowns. I loved your shop keepers who would simply say, "Bookra" if they didn't have proper change for your 1000 note. I loved your beautiful homes with marble floors, hidden behind ugly facades of dirty stucco and wires. But most of all, I loved your people. People who greeted me each morning with a "Saba el khair" never once showing any disdain about my Americanese. People who would always help a car full of crazy foreigners find their way around, even getting on a motorcycle and leading the way. People who always offered what they had to eat, even though you made much more than them. Friends who were always willing to help us talk to someone on the phone when our limited Arabic just wasn't enough. People who became seems less like friends and more like family.

So Syria, consider this my proper farewell. I would like to say, "See you again soon", but I don't think that will happen. Take care of your people, they are your greatest natural resource. I miss the life I left behind there, and I miss my friends.

Love,
Channin

Run, Forest, Run

This weekend Megan and I ran in the Terry Fox Run. It was the first 5 K I've actually run. We were some of the few who actually showed up in something besides skin-tight jeans and manicured nails. They even stopped traffic in one round-about. I don't think they've ever seen women RUN before. It's a sad day when we're the first women to cross the finish line!

Luck O the Irish

"I guess having an Irish alter-ego has paid off, " commented Shannon O'Shea at the ISMAC Irish Night on Friday in Damascus, Syria. O'Shea was the lucky winner of a gen-u-wine pearl necklace and earrings at the event. Initally, she accused the Irish have possessing anti-American sentiments after she repeatedly failed to win the bottle of Bailey, the bottle of whiskey, and the Guiness stout, but later recanted, and feigned drunk-induced amnesi,a after she won the beautiful strand of grey pearls. Her Irish friends were simpathetic and forgiving of this state of being, and even offered to let her dress up as a wee leprechaun for Halloween!

A Blog-at Last

I have been very bad about blogging since I got back. It has been a wild and crazy year, and I just forget to do it.

Last night some of my fellow teachers, students, and parents were in a fashion show for a local store. We signed up thinking it would be a small, easy thing, but it turned out to be a much bigger ordeal than we expected! We found out that the president's wife attended last year! It turned out to be quite fun, and it was held at the Danish Institute which is housed in a beautiful, old Arabic home in the Old City. Afterwards we walked to one of our favorite restaurants and enjoyed delicious food and a bottle of wine. It's what supermodels do, you know!

The two months are filled with activities, like St. Andrew's Ball, the Marine Ball, Irish Night, Skool/Disco Night, Halloween, and birthday parties, so I should have plenty to report back about. I will definitely try to write more than once a month!

The Lord Said To Noah......

I just didn't realize that we would have to build the arky-arky in my housey-housey. My (brilliant) neighbors above me are completely refurbishing their apartment. What the construction workers have not discovered are a few little phenomena called gravity and water damage. I came home on Friday to discover the 6th flood of the year in my spare room, dining room, hallway, and utility room. By this point I'd had enough and called in the troops-aka Mr. and Mrs. Gates. They were kind enough to come over and survey the damage, get someone in to clean it up, and order someone to come the next day to start cleaning up my garden. My garden is filled with fallen debris (this would be gravity at work) from the construction. Not only does it makes a huge mess, but it clogs the drains as well. So when the city shuts the water off for the day, and the workers forget to turn the taps off, and all the water gushes into my house and garden, it all sits there, ready for my to find some hickory barky-barky.

Speaking of barky-barky...you should have heard my new, Bulgarian neighbor yell at the building Super! She had tried to call him hours before when the leaking first started, but he wouldn't answer his phone (because it was Friday). Her Arabic is really good, but let's just say, you didn't really need to know Arabic to understand her. Let's hope I never get on her bad side!!

Is There a Doctor (Kevorkian) in the House

I haven't written much lately, but I have been keeping myself pretty well entertained. This past weekend we got invited to a dinner at the Armenian club. My friend, Sylvia, and her husband are very active in the Armenian community here, so it was fun to see a little splice of her life outside DCS. They had great food and music, and we were greeted at the door by shots of whiskey. The downside was all the smoke.

So you might ask...why did I mention Dr. Kevorkian? Well, he is one of the best known Armenian doctors in the world! We just don't recommend you take your children to him.

I'm Still Here

I haven't had much time to post lately, but I'm doing fine. I had a BBQ at my house last night. I pulled out all the flamigo themed items. The new BBQ works wonders-at least that's what my friend, John (the grill master) told me!! It was hot as blazes, even at 10:00 at night, so when the number dwindled, we moved inside for AC and Trivial Pursuit. Let's just say, I hope that we aren't the only hope for the future of the world! We started rooting for other teams just so we could finally end the game. At 1:00 am we all just gave up!

It is Ramadan now, so lot of people are fasting here. It doesn't effect me too much except the shoot a cannon off about 4:00 to wake people up to eat and prayer before the fast begins. Since we don't fast, Olga has interpreted this cannon to be her wake up call to get up and find live cockroaches to bring to Channin in bed. Three times now I've had to strip my bed at 4 ish in search of the beast. These puppies are huge!

After Ramadan is finished, we have a 4-5 day break. I think I will stay in Syria and visit some of the sights. A woman I met last summer at a Special Ed convention might come and visit. She lives in Doha, Qatar. It'd be fun to show someone around and maybe see some new sights.

Hope all is well in the US of A. Miss all of you!

Scarey Lives!

As some of you remember, I was kind enough to offer a REALLY sweet cat to any takers. "Scarey Cat" might have a few issues, but she must also have about 90 lives! Megan called me last night to report that Scarey was outside her door eating a can of Friskies. We really can't believe she lived through the summer without Megan feeding her, with the city culling the cats, and with all the summer heat. She's amazing. And....still up for adoption! We figure if she is tough enough to survive this long, we are going to have the vet take her and heal whatever she has, give her a bath, and let her live in Megan's garden. Long live Scarey Cat!!!!!

Feels Like Home

It's hard to believe that one year ago I set down in this strange, foreign land called Syria full of nerves, great expectations, and lot of excitement. It was so different coming in this time. While still suffering from jet-lag, Tylenol PM withdrawal and severe ear ache, it felt more comfortable and familiar. Someone from the US embassy met me at the plane, so I had not problems getting through customs. What a blessing!

It was so nice to get back to my own house and cats. Olga was so happy to see me. She stalked me for a few days, but now we have found a nice, happy balance in our relationship. Thankfully cats don't hold grudges because I'm sure she could make my life hell!

I was a little upset that I was leaving the day the Olympics started, but I found four channels that were showing them. Did you know that table tennis is the most popular Olympic sport in China!? Forest would like like (that's Forest, Forest Gump). I personally don't think air rifle is a sport unless you're a redneck, but that's just personal opinion, feel free to argue!

Our elementary school is opening a week late because our new school is not finished yet. As my good friend Gomer Pyle always said, "Surprise, surprise, surprise". The men have been working around the clock to get it done, but it's just too big of a project to finish in the time they had. It is so much bigger than I expected, and will be very nice for elementary.

I will try to figure out why people can't comment, so hang tight for you commenting-type people!!

Cool Cousins

We put the fun in dysFUNctual!

Well, after a year of talking about it, Moe and I finally made it to the top of Gunsight-along with Sara, Mitch, Pat, Kimberly, Taylor, and Christopher. The view was beautiful from 8,342 feet!

Despite the fact that Maureen and company did not bless us with their presence, I had a fun week with the cousins. We a great time picnicking at Anthony (where we climbed Gunsight), singing karaoke, eating at "the Mexican restaurant", playing kickball and Apples to Apples, and just enjoying each other's company. Sammye and Pat claimed the top honors at bowling, but we're not sure who won kickball (we were equally bad).

Baker seems dull without the crowd, but we can do it all again next year...in Greece (the country)!

High on a Hill

That would be a location, not state of being! Challey, Laura and I had a wonderful time in Europe. We did a whirlwind tour of Germany and Austria. Some of the highlights were Rothenburg where Laura broke the heart of our good German-Italian friend, Marco (Polo), Fussen where Challey got to yoddle in the Alps (insert Sound of Music soundtrack here), and watching the EuroCup semifinals in Salzburg, "DEUSCHlaaannnd, DEUSCHLAND" in the pouring rain. Laura and I fell in love with beautiful Hallstatt, Austria, Challey and I drank a liter of beer each at the Haufbrauhause in Munich-they were bigger than our heads, and even managed to walk back to hotel on our own accord. Brodst!

Masalmi Syria-Guten Tag Germany

Today is the last day of the 2007-2008 school year at DCS. I will spend the next few days shopping, packing, getting my hair done, and generally being slovenly before I head to Frankfurt where I'll meet Challey.

We'll try to keep blog some while we hit Europe. If not, we'll just toast to all our friends and family who aren't there! See you all in July!

Stork Arrives in Damascus

Look what I found on my back garden on Friday! One of my regulars, "Creepy Cat" was out guarding this baby from the other mish-mosh who wanders in from time to time. The mother never came to claim this baby, so I rescued it from the cobwebs and ants.

I'm trying to find a foster home over the summer, then keep her for myself. She is so tiny right now she can't eat or go potty by herself. Her favorite place is right under my chin. Anyone want to come to Damascus and adopt her?!

International Gala

This weekend we attended the International Gala at the Four Seasons Hotel here in Damascus. It was great fun dressing up and treating ourselves to an evening of fine dining, tasty champagne, and dancing. Do you recognize any of these beautiful people? Their hair is Syrian, but they look distinctly American!! Megan is in maroon, Evelyn is in red. I think you know the women in black.

A Little R & R

We just got back from a long weekend in Lebanon. Megan and I booked ourselves into a resort in Byblos, which is 37 km outside Beirut, and spent four days relaxing. Our biggest stressors were where to eat and if we wanted to sunbathe on the beach or poolside. We did some quick shopping on our way through Beirut, got Spunky from the cute vet and groomer, then headed home in our 1985 Chevrolet Caprice.

Today was a half day, and the PTA had a teacher appreciation luncheon. We had food from all over the world, so it was the most amazing potluck I've ever been to. I ate so much; I couldn't even try the desserts. So sad!

Sorry disappoint the fans, but there will be no photos of me in my swimsuit.

Mama's Don't Let Your Babies...

Last Thursday we had International Day at DCS. Being from Iowa, Megan and I thought it'd be a good idea to dress up as farmers. Since Syria is lacking in Goodwills, we couldn't find overalls. We would have represented Iowa better, but didn't think it would be appropriate to dress up as unwed, high school dropout mothers. I did Eastern Oregon proud, though,and we went with the cowboy theme. It was a great celebration with booths from all over the world giving out traditional foods, showing off crafts, clothing, goods. I tried to convince the Italians that they should give away their leather purses, but they just laughed!

Free to a Good Home

Meet Scary Cat...Poster kitty for why you should follow Bob Barkers orders and spay and neuter your pets! This poor baby lives outside of Megan's apartment. She'd live in Megan's apartment if she could, but for obvious reasons is not allowed in. We even spiked her soft food with antibiotics in hopes of getting rid of whatever ails her, but to no avail. We've thought of putting her down, but (surprisingly) she doesn't seem to be in pain. Drooling and mange is not a crime!

Return from SPRING BREAK

Today is our first day back to school after spring break. Luckily, Thursday is Syria's National Day, so we only have a four-day week!

I went to Jordan and Megan, and her friend Scott. We hit the Dead Sea (still haven't swum in it), then headed down to Aqaba. After a very dramatic evening of trying to find a hotel after the place we stayed failed to book our reservation, we enjoyed lounging on the beach of the Red Sea. Megan and I took a glass-bottom boat to see the coral reefs. We decided we are definitely snorkeling next time, but it was a little too chilly when we went out.

We headed to Wadi Rum (and Coke) and stayed at the camp there. We took a nice, three-hour jeep tour of the area, and Megan and I climbed on one of the rock arches.

We headed to Petra where we visited friends, visited the sites, ate dinner and camped out in an old Nabaetean tomb, hiked a lot, and enjoyed the wonderful weather. I stayed a few days more than Megan to visit Ghassab.

Spring Break!!

I am leaving for my (blessed) spring break early Friday morning. Megan's friend, Scott, is making his first trip outside the US, and we are taking him to Jordan. We're going to spend a few days at the Red Sea, Wadi Rum (yes Moe, I'll bring some Coke for my rum) and Petra. I hope to do some snorkeling at the Red Sea, but sitting on the beach will be OK too. Will write when I get back!

Easter Weekend

I had a very nice Easter weekend. We had our Good Friday church service where we did a play. It wasn't intended to be funny, but with Megan and I as Judas and Peter and our friend, Sri, as our Indian Jesus, it amused the congregation. As soon as church was over, we headed out to Lebanon. We had a great time, mostly shopping and eating, and can't wait to go back.

Yesterday we had an Easter service, then went out to eat. The weather is nice and warm now, so we sat on the patio and enjoyed our lunch (almost smoke free). The waiter told us that he missed us, so either we don't go there enough now or we used to go there way too much!!

Only two weeks, and it's SPRING BREAK. We are heading to Jordan (again) and plan on camping in Wadi Rum and hitting the beach in Aqaba (the Red Sea). I plan on using as little brain power as possible.

Burnin' Down the House

Last night I was boiling some chicken to feed to my cats, but went to sleep and forgot about it. I woke up about 11:30 to find my entire house filled with smoke. It was so bad in the kitchen that I had to soak a towel with water and crawl in on my hands and knees. I blasted the exhaust fan and my ceiling fans, opened every door and window, and started waving the towel around like a crazy woman. Finally at 12:30 I figured I'd just let it air out naturally. I had to sleep on the floor of my bedroom next to the sliding glass door in order to avoid the terrible stench and to get fresh air. Luckily, my cats (who were locked in the kitchen) escaped to the garden, and seem to be doing OK. At first I couldn't find them, and I was pretty sure they'd died from the smoke.

This morning all the smoke had cleared, but my house smells like a tire factory. My clothes are tinged with that smell and I can't get the smell or taste to go away. I am lucky, however, that I did wake up. I could have easily died of smoke inhalation. Today I am asking the school to buy a smoke alarm (not a common thing in Syrian households), and I have a new appreciation for firefighters!!

High Tea

Megan, Lynn, Channin, Chereylene, Evelyn, and Sylvia enjoying high tea at the Four Seasons.

A Night With Mr. M

Last night, Nora, one of our parents here at DCS, invited a group of teachers to her friend's place for dinner and music. Her friend, "Mr. M" was being visited by his Italian, profession friend. As you can see by the picture, he has a beautiful house with his original artwork and floor to ceiling bookshelves. The food was fantastic (they served mashed potatoes!!) and Albert (the guy in the blue shirt) got out the guitar and played for us. We sang and drank wine until the wee hours, and are now all exhausted, hungover and trying to be nice to small children. It was a wonderful night, definitely worth the rough morning.

Say yes to Krak

I went on another embassy-sponsored trip this weekend. It would have been great except the bus was very bouncy and smelled of benzine and the road was very curvy. Add those all together, and you get a great case of motion sickness! I sat in the front seat with the garbage bin between my feet.

When I wasn't trying on the verge of vomiting, the trip was fun. The Krak de Chevalier is one of the world's best preserved Crusader castle. It was the headquarters of the Hopitallers.

Among it's many great structural features, it host one of the oldest indoor plumbing systems! I didn't try it out, but I have a good picture of Megan demonstrating how to use a squat toilet!! To save her a little dignity, I won't post that picture!Publish Post

We also made a quick trip to Ma'loula, a Christian village near Damascus. It is one of the few places where Aramaic is still spoken. That's the language Jesus spoke, if you didn't already know! A woman at the church said the Lord's Prayer to us in Aramaic, which was really cool. St. Sergus is one of the oldest churches in the world, and has been carbon-dated about to 295-325. Our stop there was very quick, so I plan on going back and spending more time.

Strange Comments

If you see strange comments on here, please don't click on them. It's just Spammers. I changed my settings, so hopefully this will help eliminate them!!

Marqab Castle near Tartouse; Megan and me inside the castle

It Takes a Tourist to Entertain a Village

An event-filled weekend. Thursday night I hosted a Bunko Night for our church. There were 16 people there which is a perfect, four-table Bunko group. Everyone had fun, prizes were handed out, we ate, laughed, and everyone went home. Well, almost everyone. As the evening waned on, we started to realized that Grace (an older, slightly special Iraqi woman) seemed to be making herself at home. Grace lives in Bludon which is a good 45 minutes from Damascus, and she really had no plans to go home. Finally, Chris (one of the elders) asked if she could spend the night, and I couldn't say no. All went well except Grace decided to take a "bano", but she couldn't really get into my tub, so when I went to go to the bathroom at 11:00, my bathroom had about 2 inches of water on it!! Luckily I have drains, so I opened those up, got the squeagy out, and drained my bathroom. My friends at church decided that keeping Grace cancelled any sins that might send me to hell. I am now carte blanche!!

On Friday night we went to Megan's to watch Sweeney Todd. It was her birthday, so we brought gifts of scanky underwear (musical hearts) and a rababa. Now we can play a duet at church (sans undies).

Yesterday, Chris (same Chris as mentioned above) invited Megan and I to go visit some castles with him and Sri-another guy from church. We had quite the adventure. Chris likes to take the road less travelled, so we were winding through small, rural villages asking for directions in our limited Arabic. We'd ask the way to Tartouse, they'd point the way, and we'd head off in the opposite direction. In one tiny village we passed the same group of guys 3 times. Two times we went down a "road" that ended at some houses with a bunch of chickens. The locals were so nice and came out to direct Chris as he reversed out. Then they wished us good luck as we (again) headed down the wrong road. We decided that we were the most excited thing to happen to that village in quite a while!!

Today, back to the grind. I caught the cold all my kids had last week, so I'm going to try not to be Miss Viola Swamp!

I Owe My Soul to the Extra Market Store

It's difficult to determine if Syria has good customer service or not because it's avery bi polar industry. One on hand, a clerk might follow you around, pulling out items of various colors and sizes at your slightest interest, but then leave you waiting for ten minutes at the counter while he talks to his friend on his mobile phone. Here is my latest store experience...

Yesterday morning I went to the Extra Mart on my way to school. I got three cans of club soda and a diet Pepsi totaling 100 SP. I only had a 1,000 SP bill, and the clerk didn't have change (they NEVER have change in Syria), so he told me to come back after school when they had money in the till. I went in after aerobics class and bought a few more things equaling 225 SP. I told the clerk to add 100 SP more on because I owed 100 from the morning. He was all confused, called his friend from across the street (who doesn't work at the store) and I explained to his friend. He doesn't understand, so he calls his friend. Soon I'm arguing with three men that I really do owe them money! It wasn't a language issue, they just wouldn't figure out why I wanted to pay the money in the evening when I "borrowed" it in the morning! And to add to the whole sitation, the two friends who were called in were both standing in the store smoking!

The joys of living overseas. To quote my favortite 80s sitcom starring Nancy McKeon, "You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and then you have, "SING WITH ME, "The Facts of Life, the Fact of Life".....Ah, if only George Clooney would deliver groceries to my house.

Happy Birthday Riley!!

Our Sweetest Valentine's present ever turns the big o-7 today!! I hope that you have lots of fun! I love and miss you.....Auntie

In the News

My first bombing.....and I slept right through it! As some of you may have heard on the news, there was a bombing two nights ago here in Damascus. It was in an area about 5 miles from me, called Kafer Soseh. It was targeted at a senior Hezbollah operative. He was killed, and one bystander was injured. The US Embassay announced that it is unaware of any threats to American in Syria.

Today marks the third anniversary of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri. Several Lebanese leaders are holding a large rally in Martyr's Square Beirut (just in case any of you martyrs are looking for a place to hang out on this Valentine's Day ), so large crowds are expected there. And we all know where large crowds of pissed off people go, usually violence follows. A group of people from DCS planned a ski trip to Lebanon this weekend, but strong encouragement from the Embassy, they are staying home.

So this weekend, I'm staying close to home, opening up the 20 left over mini boxes of Nerds, and watching Dr. Phil. If I get real crazy, I might dump the Nerds in water and pretend it's Kool-Aide.

A Day in the Life of an International Teacher

Today is one of the days my maid comes, so I try to stay at school until she leaves. I know, boo-hoo. I do hate being at home, eating BonBons and watching Oprah while a woman the size of Jeanette irons my clothes!

Sunday-Back to School after a fun weekend. Habibi is back from the vet. She's a new woman!!

Monday-We only have 12 play practices left before our elementary play AristoCats. Pretty scarey. We have about, well, one really talented student and maybe 4 more who aren't bad. That leaves us with 20 would can't tell left from right or step on a beat. I hope we have really cute costumes!!

Tuesday-Megan and I skip out 7th period prep to hit the commisary at the American Embassy. They have the nerve to run out of Fresh Step kitty litter. Don't they have a book about how to potty train cats?!

Wednesday- I came up with a grand idea (if I don't say so myself) to have a bake sale at the play. The procedes are going towards getting our school cats fixed! The students have named them Spot, Honey, and Larry, but if we don't intervene quickly will be adding a few more Curly and Moes than we will know what to do with. Of course, the world WOULD be a better place with at least a few more Moes!

Thursday-TGIT! They have a live band at The Bunker, so we'll probably go out. Nothing says, "Be My Valentine" like a few G&Ts and dancing to live 80s music in a room full of chain-smoking Brits!

And this my friends, is the wild and crazy life I lead in Syria!

Bosra Trip

On Friday I went on a group tour to Shahba and Bosra, two historic sites here in Syria. I'm not a big fan of group activities, but it was a lot of fun.

Shehba is the birthplace of the Emperor Philip the Arabian who reigned in Rome from 244 to 149 BC-the only Arab to rule Rome. It has a some ruins and a little museum with amazing mosiacs. It also has the biggest Druze population in Syria. Druze began as a sect of Shi'a Islam. Some Druze consider themselves Muslim, but others don't. They are a very secretive group-they don't intermarry and you can't convert. The women wear white, crocheted shalls and the men have long beards and turbins. They seem to be the Islamic version of the Amish! There are Druze communities all over the world, and my tour book said you can check them out at www.druze.com!

Bosra is an ancient city dating back to 1334 BC. Bosra (referred to in the Bible) became one of the leading Nabatean cities before being made the capital of the Province of Arabia by its Roman conquerors (106 AD). It was a major commerce for caravans, with several market places and fine buildings, until the fall of the Roman Empire. Early Bosra was Christian, but it has it's link to Islam r According to tradition, thMuhammad's had a conversation here with a Nestorian monk named Bahira, who is said to have prophecized of his nephew.

Bosra was the first city in Syria to become Muslim. The minarets on the mosque are the oldest, still standing, in whole of Islam. Bosra was on the way to Mecca, so many people stopped their on their pilgramage. Prosperity lasted until the 17th century when the region was became unsafe and the pilgrims began to take a less dangerous route further west.

Eat a Good Breakfast!

It's that time of year-when parents around the world leave the Choco Sugar Puffios in the cupboard and make their children wholesome breakfasts with at least 2 of the major food groups. Yes my friends, it's time for the Iowa Test of Basic Skills!!

I cannot believe we are still torturing small, innocent (wink-wink) students with this test. I mean, WE took the ITBS when we were in school. Of course, it didn't seem so strange since we really were from Iowa, but you have to do some explaining to a bunch of kids from Syria and beyond who don't even know Iowa is a state. Well, you may have to explain that to some of the kids in Iowa too!

So now I have been handed the torch of wisdom from my great foreteachers, and I have bubbled in my pledge (with a sharp number 2 pencil) to monitor, encourage, but never help my students in this rite of passge. So to you I say, "Make sure you eat a good breakfast, and get a good night's sleep".

I should say goodbye with..
a. I'm outta here
b. So long
c. Ciao
d. none of the above

To Bahrain and Back

This past weekend, Megan and I went to a teacher's conference in the lovely, island nation of Bahrain. Our first incling that it was going to be a joyous trip for us is when we say Seattle's Best in the airport. Let me tell you, it's a far cry from the Damascus airport where men sit and smoke under the no smoking signs, where everything is post-communist gray, and people have no idea that lining up does not involve shoving yourself infront of the person in front of you! One of my greatest moments was when we arrived in Bahrain, I went to get some money exchanged. One of the Syrian men who'd shoved in front of us at the ticket counter in Syria walked right past me in line and up to the counter. The man at the counter told him to go to the back of the line. He had to repeat himself several time because the man had no idea what he was talking about!! Victory.

The other highlights of Bahrian...Pizza Hut, Chili's, Toys R Us, shopping malls, and English. When we weren't in the conference, we definitely went overboard. We just don't have those things here in Syria, so it was like a day at Disneyland for us. Besides those attractions, I am not sure what Bahrain has to offer (unless you're looking for a second or third wife).

Our first hotel turned out to be a bit dodgey. The first night we had rock-hard beds, so we asked to be moved. They put us in a nice, big room with OK beds, so we thought we could overlook the somewhat suspisios Filiino women hanging out with the Arab men in the lobby. Well, about midnight I woke up to Ricky Martin turned techno blaring from below me. Turns out our nice room was directly above the night club. About that time we hear "Giggle, giggle, giggle, ah, Muhammed where you going?" in the hallway. I just about lost it. We packed our stuff and moved to another room where we got a few hours of sleep without Ricky or the hookers. The next day we decided to suck it up and pay more money for the Crown Plaza. For what we paid there, you know I took every shampoo and shower cap I could get my hands on!!

With our shopping bags full of Splenda and butter spray, we headed home. I wouldn't say we were exactally thrilled to see the Damascusian airport, but it was good to be hback where we know people will smoke in all undesignated areas, where lines consist of pushing a prodding, and where Chili's is just a way to describe the weather. Home.

I did, however, learn to say, "I was here first" in Arabic!!

A Snowy Day in Damascus

We had the rare experience of snow here in Syria! Some of our students had never seen it snow, and they all went crazy. It's a wet, heavy snow that packs into really nice, hard ice balls. They were just flabbergasted when we told them they couldn't throw snowballs. I made up a great story about a kid I knew growing up who lost an eye because someone hit him with a snowball. I heard my students telling all their friends! If you tell them it happened in America, they take it as the gospel truth! Other kids decided to make snow angels first thing in the morning, and are now sitting, cold and wet, in their classes.

Photos

Just wanted to let you know that I've finally put some photos on my Shutterfly. It's taking foreverto download them with our new "upgrades" here at school.

My Wild Birthday Weekend

Can you believe I celebrated my 36th (yes, 36) birthday this weekend?! My friends, Megan, Allison, Chereylene, and I went to Aleppo to celebrate this milestone. Aleppo is Syria's second major city, located in the Northern part of Syria.

On our way we stopped off at one of the best preserved dead cities- Serjilla. It was settled in 473 BC and was quite wealthy, with bath houses, mosaics, churches, etc. It was abandoned in the 7th century when Arabs conquered the area and changed the trading routes. Why anyone would build in this area, I have no idea. I have never seen such rocky terrain in my life. We felt like we were driving on the moon. Although we loved the dead city, our favorite part of Serjilla was driving back to the road, some kids were out in the street playing. One sweet little girl, about 8 years old, was yielding a nice, big rusty axe that she was swinging around! Syria's Lizzy Bordon?! I tried to snap a photo, but I motorcycle drove by just as the camera clicked. Her parents might consider letting her play with Barbies.

The trip to Aleppo is actually quite pretty with "a lot" of trees, fields, and a nice view of the Anti-Lebanon Mountain range. It was nice to see green field and mountains, especially after spending Christmas in arid Jordan.

We loved Aleppo. It was much cleaner and calmer than Damascus. We stayed at a hotel that was converted from two, old, Arabic houses. We stayed in the basement (cellar) rooms because they were much warmer than the other, more drafty rooms. My friends took me out and bought me WAY too many drinks, then we went to a nice (I'm told) Italian restaurant. That part of the night, a little blurry for this girl. I recovered enough the next day to make a trip to the Citadel and Souke. Both were amazing. I could have passed on "Carnage Alley" with the meat (goats, chickens, camel) carcasses and innards hanging about though. I will get pictures on Shutterfly soon. Keep looking.

We rented a car for our trip, and we learned a very valuable lesson about driving after dark in Syria. DON'T DO IT!! I guess it's not against the law to not have tail lights, to drive going the opposite direction, or pass on the shoulder, but don't even try to pass on the left lane when Mr. MachoArabMan want to speed down the road because he'll tailgate you, flash his lights, and kindly blare his horn at you until you move over. It was the most nerve-racking experience of my life.

Next week it's off to Bahrain....

Happy New Year

I had a wonderful time in Jordan. My friend, Megan's, parents came from Iowa, and they had a blast. Her mom is already planning for her next visit. We visited the Dead Sea, Mt. Nebo, Petra, and Wadi Musa. After they returned to Syria, I stayed on in Jordan with Ghassab. We did a lot of hiking, visited the Red Sea in Aqaba, and camped in Wadi Rum for a night. The only bad thing about the trip was that the village where he lives has a lot of dogs and donkeys, and they make A LOT of noise at night. Braying donkeys, not cute at 3:00 a.m. Not to mention, he lives directly across from the mosque, so they blare the call to prayer (the first one starts at 4:30 a.m.)

Last night they blocked off the huge traffic circle by my house, and held a concert. We didn't go to the concert since it was an Arabic singer we weren't much interested in, but we made it for the other activities. There were Cirque Du Sole type performers, hot air balloons, and the most amazing fireworks I have ever seen. They must have gone on for half an hour, and the grand finale was non-stop fireworks for 5 minutes. They shot half of them off right there in the circle and the other half up on the mountain. Megan lived in China for 4 years and said she'd never seen anything that amazing, even there.

Tomorrow we go back to school, so I'm up here trying to do lesson plans. Good times.

Wishing you all a happy 2008!!