Muscat musings

Wow it's been ages since I last wrote, I have no idea where the time has gone. So here's a quick update of what's been going on, if I can remember...

I went to UK for Easter week as my new college had a holiday. It was a relief to see dad so well, with little after effects of the strokes. He is so lucky. He told me by phone yesterday that he know longer needs to see the consultant, so it really is good news. It was nice being back in the UK and seeing the spring flowers and to experience nice spring weather, complete with showers. I spent most of the week doing nothing, I think as a result of the stressful 3 months preceding it. However, I did see Carole, who I miss a lot, and is always the first person I catch up with.

Returning from UK I was expecting to have a firm offer for a training job here in Muscat, I was supposed to receive details by 15th. But despite calling, sending emails and sms the company never got back to me... not even after I spoke to the GM who said he was in a meeting and would call me back, but never called. How rude is that? If they had decided not to recruit anyone, or not to recruit me, that would've been fine as long as they had told me. Ok rant over.

What else? Went to a conference with my colleagues on EFL teaching, which was very inspiring. Unfortunately not to teach, but to start studying again myself as I got several ideas for my PhD topic, however as I have a mortgage and renovations to do to flat I guess I can't afford it. Although maybe I could do a diploma or something?

I've done a few cultural things including 2 exhibitions currently running here in Muscat, however was unable to see a touring exhibition from Dubai that included a Picasso as it was only on for 2 days mid-week and I couldn't get there due to work. Yesterday, I saw the exhibition I:Woman and a friend of mine, Ahmed al-Shukaili, had some of his photos exhibited. Some friends and I went to the newly renovated Al Bustan Palace to listen to the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra play a Spanish inspired musical programme. The orchestra has improved a great deal, and it was a real pleasure to hear them. Afterwards we went to the beach bar to chill out and chat under in th moonlight.

Finally, I stopped drinking before flying to UK as I've been feeling so lousy (non-specific blahness) to see if my health improved. After four weeks abstinence from alcohol, I wasn't feeling any better so I shared a bottle of very nice Prosecco with good friends, had a nice meal and helped a friend celebrate her completion of her master's. Then, I felt better! As another friend had suggested, it's the first drink which makes you feel healthier :D

Detoxing & de-friending?

After writing my last blog I thought I really must detox, so naturally I spent that evening eating up the crisps & biscuits in my house. After all, they don't sit quietly in the cupboard and the only way I can cut them out from my diet, is not to have them in the house, and throwing them out is just wasteful! Obviously, J has to be cut out too, I know that, but my head has never ruled my heart where he is concerned. Just for a while, as I do not want to lose him as a friend because he is a lovely person, but I must regain perspective and hopefully some sense as far as he's concerned. I need to regain me instead of being part of an "us".

On another track, what a strange life I lead. Why do I say that? Well, I need to renew my passport, not because it's expiring, but because I'm almost out of pages. So today I was looking through the form and I need someone to co-sign, and that someone has to be a British citizen and has known me over two years. Therein lays the problem. Now, many of my friends are Italian, Australian, French etc and those that are British either are not currently around Muscat or have not known me two years. It doesn't take much to realise how transitory friends & acquaintances are in the expat world. People who come into our lives, share a portion of it, then move on, are the norm. Those people may or may not keep contact with us, especially with social devices like facebook at our disposal.

Like detoxing the body of excesses of modern life, do us expats need &/or want to keep in touch with these people? Once you move to a new country or even continent is it expedient to keep contact? Now, facebook & sites like it in some ways are a get-out as you can keep people in your friend's list, you can kid yourself you are still in contact, but really is sending a "hi" via their wall keeping in touch? Isn't it more honest to de-friend these people who you will never meet again? Obviously, for those of you who do not frequent the expat world you do not have this same problem of transitory friends, however what about that couple you met on holiday 10 years ago and send a Christmas card to? Or worse, there's that spotty guy from junior school who contacted you through Friends Reunited that you had and have nothing in common? Do you really need/want these people in your life? Will I be going through my facebook friend list or my email contacts and de-friending ex-friends? NO, because I hope one day someone will decide to get on a plane to revisit this old friend, or invite me to see them, or just reminisce about past times. Sentimental? Maybe, but I hope you my friends will continue to keep in touch even when time and distance physically parts us.

Petanque, parties & pigging out

Keeping perspective & a smile since I left our home a week & half ago has been tough. All boxes are now unpacked, although some contents have just been thrown into cupboards to sort out later. On Thursday eve I held House Warming II: the sequel, on my rooftop terrace as the weather is just perfect to be outside in the evenings. The party was a success, and I met several new people. After, J and I sat chatting for hours under the starlit Muscat sky. Yes I know, who asks their ex to their house warming just days after they've moved out? Sad people like me, who despite things not working out between us still wants to maintain a friendship. However, like a bad girly movie when there was not any contact in the following days - and why should there be? After all we are not together now- I found comfort pigging out on biscuits & crisps and bad girly movies on tv. Pathetic!

On a different note, last Saturday I got a cry for help from a friend who needed a third person to play petanque in a competition that eve. Having never played, but having watched the Spanish version in Avila, I instantly agreed and a few hours later saw the 3 of us lose respectfully to a French team. I threw a couple of ok shots, so didn't let the team down toooooo badly, I think. It was really good fun and a different way to spend an evening. Unfortunately, for me, the third player was available for the next match on Monday, so my newly aquired expertise was not needed.

Well, for us here in Muscat it's the weekend again and I've started it with a hangover from too many daiquiries. Early yesterday evening, I met a man about a job with his training company and things look quite promising, although details like hours and pay where not discussed. I left the meeting feeling quite happy as he'd loved my cv & experience, and even if I don't end up working for him it's nice to get that pat-on-a-back. What's more I can see that I do not have to teach English, which I've currently returned to in order to pay the mortgage. Yeah! So, I called a friend & we went to the Mexican, had a few too many cocktails and I'm now nursing a fuzzy head. My poor body - crisps, biscuits & bad movies when sad, lots of alcohol when happy. Maybe I should start a detox before I visit mum & dad at Easter?

A little perspective

I was reading The Airing of Grievances on Stephanie Says yesterday (stefanie-says.blogspot.com), which was a list of moans, followed swiftly by reasons to be grateful. I realised that I'd spent half the day moaning about small stuff, when I should be grateful for so much. Obviously, my attempts to follows Oprah's daily thankful lists has failed, but I shall start again with things I am thankful for this morning.

1. Dad is on the mend and still here.
2. I will see both mum & dad in a month when I am fortunate enough to fly home for a week.
3. I have a job, which pays my mortgage, rent, living & enough to pay for modernising the apartment.
4. I have great friends both here in Oman & in Europe that I can rely on.
5. The sun is shining & it is going to be a beautiful day.

What more can I ask for?

Thank you Stephanie for adding some perspective.
Sx

Missing moments

It's been a strange year so far, and I've realised I posted about the flat without mentioning the month preceding it... Of course I've also got to add the last couple of weeks too.

To start at the end, I went to UK for a couple of days stopover with my parents. Arriving late it was not until the next morning that I found out that my dad had suffered not one but two mini-strokes in the last few weeks. That signalled the start of the longest week I have had in a long time. The following evening he had another mini-stroke and so Saturday saw dad and I at the walkin clinic, then it was upto Colchester General for the afternoon. There was talk of him being admitted, which he didn't want, but after a long day I took him home. big mistake. Just 10mins into the footie the next day I had to call 999 I followed the ambulance in the car and it was only after I couldn't get parked and then locate dad that I got scared and the emotions escaped. Naturally dad was admitted and later that eve I left, reluctantly, to go and try and calm mum. He seemed ok when mum & I went to visit him the next day, complaining of missing his tea as he was taken for a scan, but then the following day... Had to keep optimistic for mum, but was very worried as dad had seemed confused, ill, & so old. However that was the low point and by Thurs we were waiting for the ok for him to be released. I flew back to Oman, with doubts & guilt, on Saturday and a few days later he returned home. Still feel I should have stayed longer: what a horrible feeling guilt is!

Anyway onto happier things! December started with mum's visit here in Oman. She arrived on Thursday morning off a night flight and by the eve was at the St Andrew's Ball, hosted by the Caledonian Society Oman. She had a few turns on the dance floor, as did J & I. my dress was a casualty of a fast dance as the shoestring strap snapped oops. As it was Eid, I didn't work most of her visit and got to do several day trips out, although not to the beach due to the nasty red tide, which was lingering on Muscat's shoreline. One day was spent up near Sohar at an Omani colleague's house participating in traditional Eid feast. I hadn't realised just how important our host was until he took us to his village and the whole village turned out to shake his hand and greet him. From this very Omani traditional festival later in the week we celebrated Christmas by going to a Christmas Carol concert by the Muscat Singers. It was lovely to have mum out here.

Just 5 days later I was on a plane myself heading to Durban with J, picking his daughters up on route in Abu Dhabi, for 3 1/2 weeks. It was a different holiday as I very much felt an outsider at this family gathering, not because they were not welcoming, far from it, but because many of them hadn't seen each other for such a long time. J made an effort for us to have sometime alone especially on my birthday when we went out looking at art galleries, craft shops etc & then out for a nice dinner in the evening. The holiday highlight for me was the Hluhluwi-imfolozi game park where we spent 2 nights and got to see elephants just 20 metres away. AWESOME! This is what I wrote at the time:

5 Jan. Arrived game reserve & saw giraffe, zebra, and warthog next to road & buffalo & various antelope further away on the way to our lodge! The eve game drive added white rhino to the list. The 5am game drive next day resulted in baby white rhino pics & a rhino in mud SO close you couldn't use a zoom lens. As eating breakie, J spotted elephant across the valley and we jumped in the car, abandoning breakie, in search of them. There were 2 in a bush giving tantalising glimpses of ears, tails, and lots of dust as they bathed. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they moved & we got great views of these magnificient creatures.

The rhinos were also amazing, but slightly worrying when we were on a bush walk and ended up down-wind of a white rhino & her young, especially when our guide, Samora, headed us into the bush to circle around and get away from her.

Other great African moments: seeing hippos in St Lucia, a helicopter 'flip' along the coast, seeing Zulu dancers & drummers, and hiking in the Drakensberg mountains. Only traveled in Kwazulu-Natal region so got a great excuse to return to South Africa one day. Cape Town high on to-go-list.

I'm now back in Oman, start a new job Saturday & also on Saturday have to move out of J's when my flat is vacated by my lodger. Going to be a tough week ahead.
Sx

OMG what have I done?

Arriving in Orsomarso in bitterly cold winter sun in mid-January with the newly collected keys for the apartment was scary. Opening the door to "my" new house there, after stopping to take a couple of cheesy photos was not something I thought would even happen after the long drawn out process started back in May. The purchase had finally gone through on the 19^th December, but despite several attempt to call Italy for news before our flight to South Africa I could not get through. It was not until Saturday evening that I finally got a call through to find out I was now the owner of a little bit of Italy.

After walking around and several exclamations I was left with the feeling of "what have I done?". This feeling has come and gone over the 3 weeks especially after days & days of torrential rain. I was seriously concerned I would get cut off as the level of Fiume Argentina (the local river) overflowed in places across the road, and water poured down the hillsides. Following swiftly after the rain, SNOW, albeit on the hilltops around and causing the temperature to fall a bit more. Luckily, the flat has an ancient wood-burning stove, which after straightening the chimney meant the lounge wasn't filled with smoke on the 2^nd night. It's lit now as I desperately attempt to dry the woodwork I painted in order to do the 2^nd coat tomorrow. Normally, the paint is touch dry in 3 hrs, and repaintable after 24, so says the tin, however it also says at 20°C. As the temperature in the village is hovering around 9 in the daytime, 2½ days later it's still tacky. With the lounge door being a lockable main door, it needs to be dry so I can lockup when I leave on Wednesday, hence the panic.

Going back a bit... I had a heart attack on getting the quote to remove the excess furniture. The flat was sold furnished, but contained enough for a troupe of circus performers to stay a month in summer on furniture last renewed sometime in the 60s. The argument was that the municipal dump cost an arm-&-a-leg to deposit waste – no wonder there is so much dumped at the sides of the roads, unsightly as it seems – combined with the fact that a truck cannot be parked outside the house. It's about 5 minutes down to the square. The men would have to lug units, chairs, wardrobes etc down to their van. To be fair they slaved up & down the hill in pouring rain (who said Italians don't work in the rain???) finishing 3 hours after they arrived. The flat looked vast devoid of most of its furniture. The previous day had seen Lesley & I on a mammoth day out to Naples and after crawling through traffic we eventually arrived at Ikea. It was scary driving my hire car as I'd been upgraded from a little Ka type to a Ford Focus Estate and for some reason the Napolese seem to think there has to be a minimum of 3 lanes of cars in every stretch of duel-carriageway. Another heart attack occurred as I blithely signed the slip of my visa card, and going blind, squinted at the total and I was a whopping... well at least 200€ more than I expected. The drive back was horrendous through driving rain, although luckily not much traffic, and my Ikea haul spent the night in the car rather than get ruined in the rain.

The miniscule narrow bathroom has not been as horrendous to use as thought. As a wet room it functions if you squeeze next to the bidet in order to shower, but is a nightmare if you go to the toilet shortly after as you have to walk pass the bidet and shower head, on the wet floor, to reach the, sensibly placed, toilet. My first quote to reorder and extend slightly this miniscule room brought tears to my eyes and thoughts of 'maybe later'. The second was from a Rumanian builder, whose work I've seen and is ok, but was such a chauvinist towards me I was on the idea of never employing him. He marched around my place, with a nice Italian man, not listening to what I want, but reading a sheet from the estate agent about things. Well, nice as the agent is: 1 he is so busy I'm surprised he knows what I want: and 2 I have only had the terrace quoted for work in the distant future and my priority is the bathroom, kitchen and electrics, as well as anything else the crops up seeming important. Furthermore, 3 my ideas for the place have changed since I last viewed it in September.

To end for now on positives: Egidio & Michela, www.cirellicase.it/index_eng.htm have been very supportive, especially Michela with her great English & Egidio with his ready smile, not only in setting up my bill payments saving lots of hassle, but also doing additional things over and beyond such as talking to my neighbour by phone due to a problem with my roof. oops. Michela has also had the trouble of giving me some Italian lessons & getting rid os my Spanish pronunciation on everything lol. Lesly & Brian have been fantastic too - providing company, food, heat when it all gets too much and overall great support and friendship. It will be a pleasure to be here with people like them here. Finally, my neighbour Lucia, who I cannot understand a word she says - apparently very broad dialect provided a first... She gave me some fresh brocoli & oranges. Later that day, I went to cook the brocoli, on taking it out of the fridge discovered snails crawling up the salad compartment. How fresh is that???

Sx

PS The pic is the view from the lounge.

Camping adventure

Turtle sunrise 2, originally uploaded by travelingsuep.

Last weekend was the holiday to celebrate National day for us here in Oman. After having run into an old Nizwa friend, Annette, the previous weekend J & I then joined her and 10 others on a camping trip. Having left Muscat early on Wednesday we met at Mintarib on the edge of the Wahiba Sands aka Sharqiya. Small world, not knowing who was going apart from Annette we saw a friend of J's at the meeting point who was also camping with us. After a briefing from guides, fuelling up, deflating tyres, and toilet stops, six 4x4s, including our guides in the lead vehicle, drove 2 ks down a graded track, pass a camel convoy, and straight into the desert. We very quickly left civilisation behind and had our first cars stuck in the sand soon afterwards.

Having bought a new camera in the summer ready for SA at Christmas I had the perfect excuse to snap away at the dunes, sand, dunes, and more sand... by the end of the weekend the total was 257 photos taken of which I've posted 36 people pics on Facebook and another 20 on my flickr site. The turtle pic above is one of the flickr pics.

We spent all day in the desert driving across to the coast, with everyone, the guides included, being stuck at least once. We set up camp at the end of the sand dunes, overlooking the sea, with a steep slide down to the beach. Very beautiful!!! J & I slid down at daybreak and were lucky enough to watch dolphins very close to shore as the sun rose and we strolled along the beach. Back up at the campsite we had a traditional English breakfast and packed up ready for the second day of the adventure.

Soon after breaking camp we turned down on to the beach: J was not happy about this for HSE reasons, something about getting stuck in soft sand, tides and no exit points; whilst I wasn't happy as I try to act in an environmentally sensitive manner, which driving on beaches certainly is not. That said we had great fun, especially as the guides were like puppies chasing the gulls up into the air - great photos. Along that coast you certainly see the poverty that some Omanis live in. The fishing villages were little more than tin shacks a few meters away from the sea. Young boys ran along shouting to the cars asking for food, which was sad. Also, due to the red tide that has affected Oman the last few weeks, there were dead turtles, dead fish, along with more rubbish than normal, which had been washed ashore.

Back on the hardtop (tarmac road), some of the group played Frisbee on the new road as the guides reinflated tyres, and then it was along the road towards Ras-al-Jinz. One car left us to head back to Muscat, followed soon after by the guides having finished their job. After a few wrong turns and a tea stop, we reached the cliff top overlooking our intended destination. Unfortunately, it was at this point Emily had a tyre blow out on the gravel and when the tyre was changed, and following a text from her boyfriend saying the spare wasn't good, she decided to head back. Almost immediately, another car left on seeing the steep path down to the beach. So then, we were five of us in 2 vehicles.

We set up camp and J laid a huge bonfire; later we sat, chatted, drank, and ate dinner beside it. At the first camp the starlit sky had been amazing as there was no light pollution, but despite nearby towns, at this camp the sky was still beautiful. Jose, as a visitor to Oman got up in the middle of the night to patrol the beach and look for turtles laying their eggs on the beach. The rest of us waited until daybreak and then spent an hour watching the turtle (pic above) finish covering her nest and then return to the sea. Seeing one of these huge majestic creatures in daybreak was magical and so much more rewarding than when we had seen turtles by torchlight, which is not the way you should watch them, as they get disturbed. Then, sadly after breakfast and a quick dip, it was time to head back to Muscat and the adventure was over. Sx