Monday, December 6, 2010

Back to the Homeland...

I've been living in Saudi for almost 4 months now and I'd say I've done a damn good job of adjusting. All my friends here have been surprised at how quickly I've adjusted and how much I actually like it here. But it is about time I paid a visit back to the homeland...I miss the crowds, the traffic, the chaos, the car horns, the food, and most of all my crazy relatives.  Everything here is sooo...organized. It's almost like being back in the States (well, with a few exceptions). So it will be nice to be back in Damascus and get a change of pace, cause over there, you just dont stop. Let me fill you in on what happens when you come in to Damascus for a visit:
  •  With Al and I, we've got my mom's family, my dad's family, and his mom and dad's families that all want to see us. Numerically speaking, thats like 400 people that we have to make time to visit. Now we usually only get a short amount of time being in town (in this case 3 weeks) so seeing hundreds of people in 21 days....like I said, non stop.
  • Not only does everyone want to see us, they want to EAT with us. In Damascus, a visit doesn't count if you haven't shared 4 appetizers, two types of salad, 3 entrees, dessert, fruit, coffee, and tea together. So even if we went to my aunt's house for a short visit and some coffee, we've automatically obligated ourselves to another visit for lunch or dinner since we did not partake in a massive feast on our first visit.
  • And even if we did come and gain 4 pounds in one sitting with them, there's the question "so when are you guys coming over again?". Yep, even when you have a limited amount of time, they still don't accept only one visit.
I know that this is all done by our families out of love. Syrians in particular show their love and hospitality by always wanting to take care of you and feeding you until you cry uncle. It really is nice to be catered to like that, but sometimes it is tiring to get pulled in all sorts of directions so time management is key on vacations like this.

This time around, Al and I are going to Damascus particularly for his sister's engagement party. So add another family (his sister's new in-laws) into the picture described above, and you get 100% pure, Arabic chaos. I'm stressed but excited at the same time. I thrive in chaos and being busy all the time. It's going to wear me out, but I'm willing to accept this since I'm going to be eating massive quantities of the best food in the world and zipping around to see people that I've dearly missed these past few months.


I'm leaving this Thursday and will be back on Dec. 30, so I thought I'd post this update before I leave since my internet time will be severely limited while I'm there. Also, mark your calendars cause I've officially booked my flight to Nashville and will be there from Feb. 18- June 26....woohoo!!! So much time, so much food to eat! Seriously, why does everything I talk about always end up being about food in some way?? 


Anyways, until my return to Saudi, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year's!!

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