It's Tuesday, which means we've been here one whole week. I can't think of too many updates other than I'm STILL fighting jet lag and Travis went back to work. We've met some lovely people who have ensured that we won't go hungry by inviting us for dinner almost every night :) This is quite nice since figuring out what and how to cook with a kitchen only equipped with a few pots and pans has been challenging.
Last night I finally slept 6 consecutive hours, and it felt glorious. Hopefully over the next couple days we'll start sleeping normally again.
It was really nice have Travis home for nearly 3 weeks, but it's also good to start getting in a routine. I'm loving that he's working 'normal' hours instead of turnaround hours--leaving at 5:30 am is so much more reasonable than 4:30!
I can already feel that our pace of life has slowed, and it's such a refreshing change of pace from our hectic lives in Houston. Of course being able to look out our back window to a beach and palm trees might have something to do with it :) I love that there are lots of birds that hang out in our backyard and on our patio. Lucy loves watching for them and exclaims "BIRDIE!" when she sees one. We've also taken her down the pier by our house to feed bread heels to the fish. These are things we just couldn't see or do on a daily basis in the middle of Houston! Travis is taking advantage of having a running path right outside our backyard that leads to the rec center. He's been able to work out or run almost every day! I'm looking forward to enjoying this amenity once baby comes and the weather cools off a little. For now I would rather stay inside. Because even though it seems to be about the same hot that Houston was, it's still really hot.
The agenda for this week includes my first OB appointment tomorrow in the big city of Khobar. I'm also going to attempt to make chicken stock for the first time since that's one thing you can't find here. Travis is looking forward to the weekly basketball game tonight and I hope I can stay awake past 8:30. Hopefully our air shipment will arrive this week too!
A few quirks we've encountered: You can buy eggs in cartons of 6 or 18, but not 12. You can buy cokes individually or in a pack of 24. I found hot taco seasoning but not mild. There's something smelly in the air in the evenings, but I haven't noticed it during the day.
Since we are currently in the Ramadan season, we haven't ventured out as much as we normally would. Very few places are open at all during the day besides the grocery store. I haven't minded staying in the house focused on recovering from jet lag though. We did go to Chili's for dinner a couple nights ago--This was my first experience to enter the 'family' side of a restaurant. The booths all had curtains you could draw closed and we couldn't see anyone else who was there eating. Definitely made for a more intimate dining experience than I'm used to in chili's! Instead of chips and salsa, we were served dates and a fried empanada looking thing that was intended for "breaking fast". Lucy enjoyed the empanada (or whatever it was) and then the waiter heard us talking about how much she loved fries so he brought her a plate of fries! Yes Babka, that's all she ate for dinner. There was a tv in the dining room, but instead of being tuned to sports it was tuned to a camera in the kitchen! I guess that's one way to make the cooks accountable for correctly preparing your food! We also learned that wait staff here is generally afraid to be too intrusive so you have to ask if you need something.
FCC friends, Lucy LOVES looking at the memory book you gave us. She brings it to me several times a day saying "Picture book! Read!" and we go through and name everyone in it. I can't always make it through with dry eyes but that's because we can feel your love and prayers, and it helps us feel not so far away from you!
Overall it's a pretty good life here, and we're looking forward to being over jet lag, getting more settled, and seeing more of what Saudi has to offer. If you want to know anything specific feel free to post a question in the comments or email us!
Last night I finally slept 6 consecutive hours, and it felt glorious. Hopefully over the next couple days we'll start sleeping normally again.
It was really nice have Travis home for nearly 3 weeks, but it's also good to start getting in a routine. I'm loving that he's working 'normal' hours instead of turnaround hours--leaving at 5:30 am is so much more reasonable than 4:30!
I can already feel that our pace of life has slowed, and it's such a refreshing change of pace from our hectic lives in Houston. Of course being able to look out our back window to a beach and palm trees might have something to do with it :) I love that there are lots of birds that hang out in our backyard and on our patio. Lucy loves watching for them and exclaims "BIRDIE!" when she sees one. We've also taken her down the pier by our house to feed bread heels to the fish. These are things we just couldn't see or do on a daily basis in the middle of Houston! Travis is taking advantage of having a running path right outside our backyard that leads to the rec center. He's been able to work out or run almost every day! I'm looking forward to enjoying this amenity once baby comes and the weather cools off a little. For now I would rather stay inside. Because even though it seems to be about the same hot that Houston was, it's still really hot.
The agenda for this week includes my first OB appointment tomorrow in the big city of Khobar. I'm also going to attempt to make chicken stock for the first time since that's one thing you can't find here. Travis is looking forward to the weekly basketball game tonight and I hope I can stay awake past 8:30. Hopefully our air shipment will arrive this week too!
A few quirks we've encountered: You can buy eggs in cartons of 6 or 18, but not 12. You can buy cokes individually or in a pack of 24. I found hot taco seasoning but not mild. There's something smelly in the air in the evenings, but I haven't noticed it during the day.
Since we are currently in the Ramadan season, we haven't ventured out as much as we normally would. Very few places are open at all during the day besides the grocery store. I haven't minded staying in the house focused on recovering from jet lag though. We did go to Chili's for dinner a couple nights ago--This was my first experience to enter the 'family' side of a restaurant. The booths all had curtains you could draw closed and we couldn't see anyone else who was there eating. Definitely made for a more intimate dining experience than I'm used to in chili's! Instead of chips and salsa, we were served dates and a fried empanada looking thing that was intended for "breaking fast". Lucy enjoyed the empanada (or whatever it was) and then the waiter heard us talking about how much she loved fries so he brought her a plate of fries! Yes Babka, that's all she ate for dinner. There was a tv in the dining room, but instead of being tuned to sports it was tuned to a camera in the kitchen! I guess that's one way to make the cooks accountable for correctly preparing your food! We also learned that wait staff here is generally afraid to be too intrusive so you have to ask if you need something.
FCC friends, Lucy LOVES looking at the memory book you gave us. She brings it to me several times a day saying "Picture book! Read!" and we go through and name everyone in it. I can't always make it through with dry eyes but that's because we can feel your love and prayers, and it helps us feel not so far away from you!
Overall it's a pretty good life here, and we're looking forward to being over jet lag, getting more settled, and seeing more of what Saudi has to offer. If you want to know anything specific feel free to post a question in the comments or email us!
Good stuff! I have a question--if you went into the 'family side' of a restaurant, what is the other side? Is it all men? I'm presuming that it is all or most restaurants, and not just Chili's.
ReplyDeleteYes, I think all restaurants have a men only side and a family side. Hopefully I don't ever accidentally confuse the two!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this blog.... My boyfriend and I well soon to be husband will be moving there shortly... He just accepted offer for Sipchem... This is the first site I have checked out that has actually given me information I was looking for....You have made me feel much more at ease for the upcoming trip... Thank you Krissy from Deer Park, Texas
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