Friday Before Ramadan

Posted on June 27, 2014 by TheJessicaness
Good morning!

Good morning!

I woke up with Sparky’s face in mine. Then he stared off into the distance for a while before getting off the blanket so I could get up and take him out. The two guys in the dining room with me this morning wasted lots of food – pita, muffin, watermelon, cucumber slices. I brought back some bread for me and a boiled egg for the dogs.

taxi driver outdoor lounge near base

taxi driver outdoor lounge near base

I expected a text by seven but didn’t get one until 8:30 when Caleb was getting off work after fixing an issue with the ASW (auxiliary sea water) pump. I picked him up at the roundabout and we headed to American Alley full of fast food, rental cars, and massage parlors. We stopped in ShakeAway – the world’s largest milkshake bar, and ordered a Sooma – frozen yogurt with blueberries, caramel, and crushed hazelnuts. We walked to the end of the street and back and then decided on the Royal Camel Farm in Janabiyah.

Princess Al Jawhara Al-Ibrahim Centre for Molecular Medicine, Genetics & Inherited Disorders

Princess Al Jawhara Al-Ibrahim Centre for Molecular Medicine, Genetics & Inherited Disorders

Admission is free and the rules are simple: keep a safe distance, and don’t hit or feed the camels. There are a hundred or more of them – some tied under shaded awnings, some tied in the sun, and others free to roam between the two in a large pen. We make our way around and as we near some they stand up and extend their necks towards us. We can’t not pet them. Caleb finishes his water and is feeling tired and hot. We agree to go home and let the dogs out – tight leashed near the two, also leashed dogs, playing in the shade.

just standing around

just standing around

We cool down and eat Ramen while watching the last half of Land of the Lost and the last half of Saving Private Ryan before deciding to go to dinner at Muju. Caleb hangs the laundry and we are out the door. I get a baby Guinness shot, a Scarlett O’Hara, a Yellow Bird, and a Bubbles and Blue to prep for the drinking in public I won’t be doing for the next month. Caleb gets tea, orders French fries with green peppercorn sauce (that tastes like beef), and rainbow and fried California sushi rolls.

a modelling camel

a modelling camel

Upon walking to the outside deck I’m invited to sit with the five guys already a few drinks in. We sit down and at some point I applaud their singing and noise. So one guy tells me that he’s just been married to a guy in traditional dress and then shows me a picture of himself in a cute outfit with patent leather high-heel boots on. We overhear some of their conversation – one about a guy having a friend bringing hookers to his house instead of taking them to a hotel, another about the Muppets show selling out, and one trying to imitate an English accent. I couldn’t help but giggle.

food delivery to our left

food delivery to our left

and the cool camels to our right

and the cool camels to our right

After dinner we decide to go swimming. I put on Caleb’s swim trunks and white shirt and a sports bra underneath. We head for the ocean first. Warm, but with sharp rocks. We make our way to the trampoline when the alcohol effect kicks in and I don’t want to be bounced around. We go to the pool and I’m having fun doing laps and splashing Caleb with water until one of the houseboys come to ask what room we are in and when we tell him he lets us know that the pool closed two hours ago.

I want one!

I want one!

We walk around the block to dry off – hiding behind wooden makeshift walls for construction zones to take our clothes off and wring them out. Caleb says he knew about the pool curfew, but before getting out I asked what time it opens and was told it’s open from 7am to 7pm. We should probably take the dogs out before going to sleep but they’re already in bed and we have to be up early in the morning so Caleb can get underway and I can run errands and maybe go to the gym. We are tired of being on lazy vacation status.

Caleb captures the moment before the attempted kiss

Caleb captures the moment before the attempted kiss

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First Duty Day in Bahrain

Posted on June 26, 2014 by TheJessicaness
part of a things to see/do list in Bahrain on a Facebook group page

part of a things to see/do list on Bahrain Family Group Facebook page

Took Caleb to work by 5:45 and made it home without accident – not that much traffic so early. Speaking of, I get a text from Uncle Ed. We got a notification in the mail of two toll road violations within seven minutes of each other. I’m prepared to pay the $200 fine, but once online with the info he gave me, the website says I only owe $5.75 – this time. We had tried logging on with our phones, but once we left California, those thoughts left our minds.

I talked with Dad and Caroline on Facebook until 7:30 when I got hungry and went to breakfast. I had a pancake with syrup, apple-stuffed croissant, three pieces of watermelon, a plain muffin, some peach-apricot yogurt, and a cup of coffee with milk in it. I took two slices of bread for a PBJ later. We bought a loaf and forgot to refrigerate it and it molded before we could open the bag.

The dogs poo’d before Caleb went to work and again when I walked them after breakfast. They are back to a healthy diet – maybe too much food, but I can’t wait till their bigger water bowl arrives so I don’t have to keep seeing an empty bowl. I do fill it after walks and at meal time so they are only being dehydrated in the shaded air-conditioned room between then.

orange protective coat on a Chevy in The Dragon Hotel parking lot

orange protective coat on a Chevy in The Dragon Hotel parking lot

I got a reminder about the cross-stitch and crochet event at the library happening at 10am. I thought about going (they supply everything), but then I figured I would be safer here – my houseboy agrees. He lives here and only leaves to go to church and the grocery store. I’m not that paranoid of Molotov cocktails and flaming tires, and I was hoping to use it as an opportunity to meet people, but they probably live close to base and I’ve had excellent luck with meeting my neighbors so far. If I feel like getting out I can just walk around my new neighborhood.

I got a message from Caleb letting me know his new ship’s email that he will have for the next two years. I talk to the folks in Arizona again before they go to bed. Caroline tells me she’s looking forward to a post to read at lunch. I’m quick to knock out three before she wakes. I was getting ingredients out to make some dinner – Ramen, sun-dried tomatoes, and baby asparagus that I unwrapped even though I saw how gray and squishy it was – hoping to save some (like half of the cherries yesterday), but it was a lost cause and I took it to the trash can outside.

I watched a movie about a father who worked too hard and was losing his wife until an escaped convict asked for his lawyer services to prove her innocence. Then I moved to the dining table to finish another post with VH1 on in the background for noise and company while I wait for pictures to upload. I had some coconut Ritter Sport and talked to Caleb on Facebook when he went on watch at 10pm. As soon as I hit publish I’m making preparations for bed.

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Another Week, Another Accident

Posted on June 25, 2014 by TheJessicaness
a car in the dirt lot by base

a car in the dirt lot by base

When I picked up Caleb yesterday he told me about the confrontation with Senior about him being late, so he was determined to get there early this morning. When I woke he should’ve gotten started sooner, but we were out the door by 5:30. I dropped him off and when I came back from walking the dogs I met a guy at the top of the stairs that’s been in the navy for 22 years. His wife retired as a senior chief and this is his sixth tour out here – he translates Arabic.

We talked about his kids and their childhood dog and about how much this island has changed in 20 years until his ride came. He doesn’t have a car yet, only been here a few days, and is waiting on his golf clubs to arrive and possibly his wife who has been over here four times before. Maybe I should’ve asked for a name or a command, but maybe I’ll see him around and if his wife ever shows I can invite her to the wife club.

At breakfast, either school is out or there is a traveling team. I’m eating in a room full of adolescent boys and luckily only one of them forgot to put a shirt on this morning – ok around the pool, not what I want hanging over my bread and fruit. They’re out of sausage so I grab an egg each for the dogs. I check my email and it tells me I should’ve called Linda, the current resident of our future place, to schedule a move-in date. I shouldn’t have to do that, but I figure I will go by there and see what’s up.

second damaged rental car

second damaged rental car

I left the house at 8:22 and almost changed my mind halfway there thinking I could just wait on an email or a proper phone number to call, but started to enjoy the walk with the breeze. I turned down the street and passed by a house when a lady came out from behind her car and complimented me on how cute I look (in my blue/green/white dress with little white shirt over it) and from there the conversation carried for twenty minutes. Kim invited me to her water aerobics class and looks forward to seeing me around. She’s lived here for six years and loves it. I think we will get along fine.

I ring the bell at Linda’s and hear her poodles inside. She opens the door and invites me in. Their shoes were taken off outside but I remove mine promptly inside the door. I’m greeted by three shades of brown fuzz. We sit on the couch for a bit, then move outside so I can see the porch that they built and talk about the neighbors (one used to have a lion cub), then move back inside and meet the boys when they wake up around 11am. They just finished school and are enjoying the break. It’s sad that she’s leaving. We get along so well. They spent three years in Japan and two years here and know there will be a culture shock when they return to the States next week.

We lost track of the time talking about dogs, food, family, culture, and kindness. I drink .75 litres of water and am offered a ride home in the heat at noon, but enjoy the walk back. I might meet someone else. I have to hold my hat on in the wind and can feel the sun on my unsunscreened arms. I have time to eat some lunch (saving the leftovers for dinner tonight), walk and feed dogs, and hang up laundry from two days ago before I head to base to go by housing and then pick up Caleb.

international Lays

international Lay’s at Alosra

At housing they tell me that I need the other form back first and that I can come in on the 30th for the other one. Caleb hasn’t texted me yet and the lady set me up for a 3:30 appt. to meet Muhammad at the Dragon to get the paper back. I was in the turn lane by the Grand Mosque and stopped when I wasn’t sure if I would be out of the intersection before the light turned red. I got hit by a Range Rover. I jumped out, took a picture of the license plate, and then talked with the lady. She was nicely dressed and the damage didn’t look too bad, but I told her I had to report it since it was a rental.

She told me to turn right across lanes of traffic (that were stopped) and then I followed her erratic driving to the police station near the Exhibition Center. She explained everything, signed the paper, then we went and looked at the damage, came back in, paid BD6 and I was free to go. She said she tried to stop but her high heel slipped off the brake. The officer, seeing my record, told me that I could get a replacement rental, continue to drive this one, or take a taxi next time.

She hit me at 2:30 and I had already texted Muhammad to let him know I was going to be late. I was able to find my way to base after a few wrong turns – giving me a small tour of a new part of the island. Lucky for me that this place is so easy to recognize. At an intersection I looked to my left and the older sister pulled the younger one from the window and they thought this was hilarious. We kept this up until the light changed – three girls and their dad and me – and then the two lanes turn into one on the turn without warning, but it was all good and they waved to me as I took an exit.

neat video, thanks NPR!

neat video, thanks NPR!

By this time Caleb had gotten my messages and shared the news with the guys. I got to base and made copies of the police report at the Inn & Suites that I would find out I don’t need since Caleb’s chain of command can’t read them. I waited in the shade outside base for him and then we went to the rental place. Shakeel recognised us and the green sheet of paper I was holding. He saw the damage and was glad to hear me say that we would continue driving it as he didn’t have the other car back from the shop yet. Shakeel let us know that he owes us BD12 and then we left.

We stop by Alosra for q-tips and milk and leave with chocolate bars and bags of nuts too. I bought the doggies some chew bones and dinner for us was the leftovers I saved. We walk the dogs and a guy from the front desk gives us our pre-contract. I thank Muhammad later for still coming through even though I couldn’t make it. Now I can return it on the 30th when I fill out the new one.

We had cherries for dessert and watched part of one of the Saw series before Caleb went to bed. I will stay up reading articles and watching YouTube videos before fighting sleep myself. Today was an adventure, just as the last two weeks have been. Caleb has duty tomorrow so it will be my first night alone here. Ramadan should start Saturday, then he gets underway for three or four days – which in safe news will have me off the roads.

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Caleb’s Birthday In Bahrain

Posted on June 24, 2014 by TheJessicaness

 

birthday berry butt gelato

birthday berry butt gelato

5:15 came early again this morning, so I went back to sleep. Caleb woke me up and walked the dogs while I got ready. He grabbed his bag of work stuff to put in his locker on the boat and we got on the road. I dropped him off on the corner and when I got home he let me know that he still hadn’t been picked up for work yet. I wished him a Happy Birthday and he tells me that the duty vans just went to the hotels this morning. It took an hour for him to get picked up, so tomorrow I will drop him off at a hotel so he doesn’t have to deal with that again.

I published a post and then took the dogs out after lunch. Making our way across the parking lot a dad stops his SUV so his wife and four sons can see the dogs. He tried asking me something, but I couldn’t understand – to pet, to take picture? We get to the grass and a car stops to ask if they are for sale – after Sparky just peed all over his own leg – maybe I should’ve named a price, but I said no too quickly. He asked about even for a day and drove off when a truck neared. Then where we turn around a blue Hummer passed and began to back up. I turned around and pulled the dogs with me. If they aren’t for sale, than they aren’t for stealing either.

one of the many rides inside Seef Mall

one of the many rides inside Seef Mall

Up the stairs and the dogs’ fan club is waiting. The man’s sons have their hands and phone cameras ready. It’s windy out and my hair is in my face. I hold Sparky and pet him, but when a hand comes near he growls, so I hold him closer and pet Piggy. They pose with their hands on her while someone else takes the picture. I make their day and maybe an older brother or random guy too that comes upstairs in time to see the action and take a picture. Men are less likely to mess with a woman in a bikini or tight running gear than one covering her knees and elbows while walking dogs.

Caleb texts me that he’s off work and will meet me behind security on base. When I get there he’s telling two guys how they should use their 45 days of TLA (travel money) and stay in the hotel before signing their lease to move in. We go to the NEX to find him a new pair of flip-flops, ones that won’t leave blisters on his feet. We end up getting another pair for him to wear in the shower on-board. I have more trouble finding something, so we decide to go to Lulu’s where the boxes for the shoes aren’t necessarily under the display. I look at the men’s section in both stores with no luck.

they even have bumper cars in Seef Mall

they even have bumper cars in Seef Mall

We were going to go to the City Centre Mall, but tried going in the delivery entrance and passed the parking entrance on our way to Seef Mall. We wandered around with me trying on all kinds of shoes – women’s, men’s, and all sizes. Turns out I’m a size ten here with the heat making my feet swell or they have different sizing, or both. We go into Payless ShoeSource and instead of finding sandals I find a pair of flats with owls on them. Caleb lets me get them – and even the guy behind the counter asks if they are ok with him.

We walk into a random shoe store and I see a pair that I think I will like. They are brown on the bottom with a teal top. I put one on and then the other. I think that if I don’t like them I can always get something else – they are only $40 – who am I kidding. Growing up that would be two pairs of shoes – one for my birthday (that coincided with the start of school) and the other for Christmas because Grandma was buying. I just thought they were $40. Turns out they were BD40, but Caleb didn’t tell me until we had receipt in hand because he didn’t feel like going through another 20 stores where he saw so many options.

cardboard and packing tap on a moving van

cardboard and packing tap on a moving van

Now that we both had two pairs of new shoes we could go enjoy his birthday dinner. We headed to Señor Paco’s – a Mexican restaurant in Adliya where the scenery, hot sauce, and drinks make up for the mediocre veggies and beans. We’re seated in a corner and feeling romantic. There’s a large party gathering in the back. My nose is running with the salsa and I’ve finished my first margarita. The second one, peach flavoured, arrives at the same time five girls do. They sit next to us and order pitchers as I take bites of my food. We filled up on two bowls of chips. Caleb orders tea and gets a mini-pitcher of simple syrup to sweeten it with.

He offers to drive, but I take the wheel. We are headed to base. If we can find that, we can find home, and he’s hoping to buy some Kahlua and Sprite to make me a Mind Eraser when we get home. The liquor store closed at 8pm, 13 minutes before we got there. We are standing in front of the car, I’ve unlocked it, and am pushing the little silver button to get the key part out of the fob when the whole thing slips from my hands, hits the ground very close to a drain, and then bounces into the dark unknown.

Trust Tower, Diplomatic Area

Trust Tower, Diplomatic Area

 

First instinct – scream on the inside. Second – state options: we could get a taxi or just sleep in the car. Luckily as my panic starts to set in the guy that helped us park earlier is here to inquire on our needs. I say key and point to the hole. He runs across the lot, grabs a large metal pole, and pries part of the drain up. With the flashlight on my phone I was able to see the key stuck two feet below in a pile of muck. I go to the base and get through three sets of security and inside the building without showing my ID to ask for a wire hanger. They tell me to go to a store near the KFC on American Alley.

I’m on my way back to the car when I’m abruptly met by Caleb dangling our key in his hand. Then he asks if I have any money on me to give to the two guys that stopped to help us. I know they didn’t have to and they put so much effort into it. I’m glad he thought of it too. I have BD1 and $2 in my wallet – a close split. The key part may still work, but the auto lock/unlock doesn’t. I’m about to freak out again. “How am I going to get into a car without pressing a button to unlock it?!” Perhaps you could put the key in the hole. I’m so grateful for Caleb’s calm response.

the entrance to the courtyard of Señor Paco's

the entrance to the courtyard of Señor Paco’s

Once happily in the car we talk about how long it’s been since I’ve had to manually unlock a car – at least seven years. I feel bad for the rental company. We may not have broken the key part off like the other renters did with the spare, but we’ve broken the fob in another way. Going home is neat. The last time we were out this late I was in the back seat of Master Chief’s car going to the airport to get the dogs. This time I can enjoy the lights: advertising on the bridge, missing on passing cars, and reflecting on the water.

I’m worried about parking when we get on our street but I’m guessing with it not being a weekend we are luckier than we otherwise might’ve been. We get our most common spot – on the other side of the fountain from our room – and the guard comes over to help me with my door. I could get used to this – a country based on friendly service, and so many people to provide it at all hours. I can even handle the heat, but the humidity will stay on the same list as the wind in Chicago and the mosquitoes in the Everglades – the things I can do without list. Happy Birthday Caleb!

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Keeping the Glass In the Sand

Posted on June 23, 2014 by TheJessicaness
kiwi kit from Alosra - love that spoon!

kiwi kit from Alosra – love that spoon!

I woke and went back to sleep while Caleb took a shower. I didn’t think that would take 30 minutes but he said I looked so peaceful laying there that he let me sleep. We took the dogs out and I saw a grocery bag floating in the wind. It landed in the sand where I picked it up and then walked the length of the grass picking up poo, beer bottles, cigarette packs, and anything else that caught my eye. We have to keep the dogs off the sand – part trash can part parking lot – because of all the broken glass. I don’t want to have to worry about the grass too.

Caleb was concerned about being early yesterday to get pictures of the real condition of the boat before others had a chance to clean it before chief would see it. This morning is more relaxed and I pull into the dirt lot to drop Caleb off. On the way home a lane is blocked off. A second of panic sets in as I think I will have to turn left to lost-ville or park and wait for the road to clear. Traffic begins to merge nicely until three cars roll up beside me. The large truck I’m following lets one in front of him and then I notice that we can go straight from the turn lane.

The other side of traffic is blocked because a dump truck somehow managed to get its trailer to hit the driver’s compartment. Yesterday we passed a car with no trunk. I thought they were putting it on the tow truck, but Caleb says that they only tow the ones that are getting repaired. They will send the wrecking truck to pick up the totalled ones to be driven out to their scrap yard that is a distance out of town.

At the hotel I have a kiwi before going to the buffet to try the muesli with raisins and nut shavings, etc. I grab a boiled egg and piece of chicken sausage for the dogs to share. They were getting used to me being gone and depending on whether I get a job or go to school that might not change. Looking into jobs, I can be an office clerk typing in data. I can type 80 words a minute (on a good day). My other two options are helping with MWR or youth programs which requires me to get a flu shot. All these jobs require a résumé, a spouse form, my passport, Caleb’s orders, a form saying I will work for the government, etc.

the way to breakfast at Yamin Jana

the way to breakfast at Yamin Jana

I get to see the houseboy clean my room. He changes the sheets on the bed, exchanges the towels in the bathroom, cleans the toilets, and gives me more mini-soaps when we have our own. I’m starting a collection that I will leave here. The furniture gets sprayed with lemon cleaner and wiped down, the floor swept and mopped, and the dishes washed. Maybe I do want housekeeping when we find a villa. They can come by 2-3 times a week, and they could do laundry too.

I have cereal for lunch and am posting pictures of Earth Day to Facebook when Caleb lets me know that he’s off work at noon. The Prince Khalifah Bin Salman Causeway is lined with the national flag to honour the visit of the Arab League here to discuss humanitarian efforts. Caleb goes by housing to pick up his water bottle that he forgot there yesterday and meets me at the NEX with a form to order dog food. They have a small selection and only one senior brand, so we order that in large bags. Caleb tells me we can pick them all up at once and we can store them in a closet in bulk.

I publish Day One Towards Alaska. Now that I have constant internet and all the writing done, editing words and pictures shouldn’t take long and I will be updated and moving on to more adventures. I get hungry early and we make spinach and cheese tortellini with green chillies, sun-dried tomatoes, and a white Ragu sauce. I notice that we don’t have a can opener and call room service. They tell me there is one beside the fridge – that’s a bottle opener. Caleb stabs open the chillies, I dump them on dinner, and we are eating when the doorbell rings. They are here to tell us that they would have to take it to the kitchen and bring it back.

Tonight will be a double feature. Caleb is feeling sleepy and I give him the options to walk, swim, read, shop, etc. He chooses the TV. We watch War Horse – a story about a boy and his equestrian friend. Laundry is done and we hang our semi-dry clothes among the furniture in the den and second bedroom so they can dry over night. Then we watch Maid in Manhattan – a match between a maid and a guy running for senator. I know there are better ways to spend our time, but we blame our television indiscretions on being in a new country, not having our stuff yet, jet lag, poor lighting in the hotel, and an overall sense to not accomplish too much in this heat.

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