I was up Sunday morning and back to work as usual. I had two observations of teachers who had to show their implementation of Daily 5. The made a show of it and the senior leadership team loved it. I counted the day a success. I caught up on the work I had missed from being gone the previous week, which really wasn’t a ton, surprisingly.
After school the English teachers were asked to come to the Heritage Village that our Arabic teachers built in space between the boys’ and girls’ school. The Arabic Head of Faculty is the person who told my EMTs all about how life was before the UAE existed. Not all of the English teachers showed up, but those who did thoroughly enjoyed the presentation.
I got home and quickly left to pick up Claire and then scooted over to Brighton to get Jack. Once I was home Mandy came to get me so we could go get Jordanian Dinar for our trip. We also went to the mall to try to find some jeans for me, and we needed rain jackets because the forecast in Jordan had rain on Thursday, the day we planned to go to the Dead Sea. While we were shopping, Stuart and the kids went to rugby training. I returned home just before they did, took a shower, and got some sandwiches ready for them. I then took Millie to bed, but let Jack stay up for a bit and watch Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe.
When Millie and I got upstairs I noticed she had shorter bangs than she had in the morning. I asked her if she cut her bangs at school. She burst into tears and said, ‘I don’t know who cut my bangs’. After about 20 minutes of questioning from me, and her continuing to say she didn’t see the person who cut her hair, I finally let it go and let her go to bed, but not before I told her she must never cut her hair…..again. After Stuart told her goodnight he said she admitted to him that she actually did cut it herself. Special!
Monday morning I was back to my walking routine with Lara. At school we had the girls’ National Day celebration, of which I did not attend. As I am sitting in my office, I realize that the professional development the principal had asked me to give to the new teachers was actually the time she would be evaluating me. Hello! Get ready! Pay attention! So, although I knew what I was teaching them, I may have spent about an hour getting more prepared than I initially was. Once school was over, one of our Vice Principals called me and asked me to come into the principal’s office. She said we needed to talk about letting the teachers go early because it was National Day week and they needed to be rewarded for their hard work this week. That was fine by me, and we rescheduled my formal observation for Wednesday morning. Although there should have been children in school on Wednesday morning, we knew there wouldn’t be, so we knew I could do my professional development then.
During the day on Monday, we received an email about the National Day celebration at Brighton College. It basically said that there would be no regular school day and all the students, in order to attend the events of the day, would need an adult with them. They were not allowed on campus until 10 am. Of course this did not set well with me as Stuart and I were supposed to be at our own schools conducting celebrations. Although Stuart could take the kids to his school on Tuesday, I didn’t want them to be disappointed by not letting them go to their school’s National Day celebration. It didn’t seem fair, the position we had just been put in. So I decided to take an emergency day and my principal agreed to it.
After school, because we were able to leave earlier than normal, I went to the grocery store and then headed home before heading out again to pick up Jack from school. I spoke to another parent who was frustrated about the National Day schedule as well. Her daughter was to be singing in the program and couldn’t because both parents had to work. In the end, I told the mom to just bring her to our house and she could go with us. Why not!
Once we were all home, we went to pick up the Land Rover from our mechanic. On my way home I stopped in at Rochelle's to give her some clothes. I was going to go in for a cuppa, but the kids were acting obnoxious, so I decided we needed to get home, bathed, eat and get to bed.
Once we were home the kids got clean and had dinner. They watched a movie and then were off to bed. I sang Millie a song when I put her to bed, but instead of a song, Jack asked me if 'we could just talk'. It was so cute. He wanted me to tell him about when I was a little kid. Then he asked me about when he was a little kid. These precious moments are what life's all about. I know they will end at some stage, so I want to take advantage of them as long as I can. Once the kids were in bed, I made dinner for Stuart and myself, which we ate when he returned from rugby.
I didn't go to school on Tuesday. I had to take an emergency day because of National Day at the kids' school. It ended up that the mother I spoke to the previous day, decided to take me up on my offer and bring her daughter to our house so she could go with us to the celebration. I was very happy to help out.
The program was nice but not worth the emergency day. Since it was the kids' first National Day Celebration at Brighton I thought it was worthwhile, but I did warn them that they would not be going next year. Meriana, the little girl who went with us, was singing in the opening ceremony. I ended up picking up Cathy to go with us. It was a nice day out for all of us, but we did leave the school just after noon. We would have left earlier but Jack had an incident with a 100 dirham bill. He had asked me for some money and the only bill I had was a 100 dirham bill (worth about $27). I told him to put it in his pocket and I would expect change, something I think is written in the parent book. When we started to leave, here was the conversation:
Jack: Mama, remember that 100 dirhams you gave me?
Me: Yes.
Jack: Well, I was buying something at that table over there and a boy named Omar (which happens to be the same boy Eleanor traded Jack in for) grabbed it and ripped it in half.
Me: Okay, so where is it now?
Jack: I threw it in the bin.
Me: What? Okay, which bin? We are going to get it.
Jack: Well, I didn’t actually throw it in the bin. I threw it in the bushes by the front of the school.
Me: (After a lot of ranting about how it is still worth a lot and why would he think that throwing it away was ok, and blah, blah, blah) Did you have both halves?
Jack: Yes, I threw both of them right there. (pointing to an area in the bushes where I could see one half of the bill)
Me: Well, look for the other half.
Jack: (He sat on the bench with no intention of looking for the other half, which later made total sense.)
Me: Jack, we are not leaving here until you find my money.
I sat next to him and started asking more questions. I finally asked him where Omar was. He didn’t know, but said “I think he is around here, but Mama, don’t say anything to him.” This is where my son and I differ. He is so much like Stuart and absolutely hates conflict. However, we are trying to teach him that he needs to be assertive and stand up for himself when he is being done wrong.
Of course, we were walking toward the soccer pitch when a boy came up to Jack to say ‘hi’. I said, “Jack, where is Omar.” Jack slyly pointed to the boy next to him. Now, Mama Bear tries to keep calm in situations like this because I wouldn’t want anyone attacking Jack and accusing him of something without knowing the entire story. So, I said, “Hi, Omar! I’m Jack’s mom. Jack said that you were around when he was trying to buy something and that you grabbed his 100 dirham note and ripped it in half. Is that true?”
Omar, all smiles because apparently I was too friendly with him, said, “Yes, I did.”
“Well, Omar, there are a few things about that situation that bother me. First, that was my money you ripped, not Jack’s. Secondly, you shouldn’t be touching things that don’t belong to you. And lastly, do you know where the other half of the note is? Jack said he threw both halves in the bushes but we can’t find the other half.”
Omar said, “I will look for it,” again, he was a bit chirpy for my taste, considering he had just ripped my money. At any rate, he shuffled down to the other end of the bushes and came back with the other half. What a surprise! I can only assume that he had it all along and got a little nervous when I confronted him about it. Jack was off the hook, and I learned a lesson about giving money to an 8-year-old. The following morning Jack confirmed that Omar had the other half in his pocket, which meant that Jack lied to me when he told me he threw both halves in the bushes. Oi Vey!
Once the money mystery was over, we went to eat at McDonalds for lunch, certainly not my favorite so a latte was my 'lunch'. We then returned to our house. Meriana'smum and dad came to our house to pick her up. She was off to Abu Dhabi for skating while her mum stayed for a couple of cups of tea. We had a very nice chat and found out we have a lot in common.
Stuart and the kids went on to rugby which meant I felt obligated to cook supper for the kids rather than offer them a crummy sandwich when they got home, so alfredo pasta it was. They got home around 7 and ate, then it was baths and bed. After the kids were in bed, the construction they started weeks ago in front of our place, continued with a loud machine starting to pound down the ground so they could relay the bricks. This all revved up around 8:30 pm. Stuart went outside, yelled at the guy and told him we had sleeping kids, and the guy walked away from his machine, never to return. It is the way things go here. Workers do whatever they can without confrontation. When someone says it’s not okay, then they stop what they are doing. It’s crazy!
Pumpkin was no longer in heat by Tuesday evening. We heard her meow twice in the evening. So the good news is, she is ready for her operation on Sunday. Thank goodness!Stuart and I watched some television and then it was off to bed. I was getting very excited about my trip to Jordan, with Mandy.
Wednesday I got up to walk, which was really difficult. It's just too early, but I suppose it's good for me. I got to school and at 9 am I had my observation. After everyone left my office, I went around to talk to some of my teachers. There were no students at school, although it was a day they were supposed to be there. We kind of knew we wouldn't have any. Around 11 am we were told we would be able to leave at noon. We went out to the flag to raise it at 11:30 and have a moment of silence for soldiers who have died serving the country. November 30 is noted as Commemoration Day in the UAE.
After that activity, I met with the principal and one of the Vice Principals for feedback from my lesson. They gave me very positive feedback. The only thing they wanted me to do, with one of our teachers who is absent a great deal because of illness, was to help her set up the Daily 5 in her classroom. We also met with two other teachers for observation feedback before leaving for the three day holiday.
On my way home, I called my cell phone carrier to get a data roaming plan for my trip to Jordan. When I got home, I finished packing and put my luggage by the door. Stuart was home shortly after I got home. We talked about final arrangements for the kids for the weekend and made sure Elfvis (our elf on the shelf) was ready to go for December 1. Since I wasn't going to be there for his first few days I worried about his arrival. But Stuart assured me Elfvis would show up without a hitch.
Stuart and the kids were going to the Dubai 7s, an international rugby tournament, on Thursday while I was Jordan. I had told Jack goodbye Wednesday morning and saw Millie for a few minutes when she returned home from school. She and Stuart went to get Jack from soccer. So when they left I waited for Mandy who got to my house just after 3 pm. We were off to the airport.
We arrived and got checked in by 5 pm. I had to get bossy with a gentleman who jumped the queue and needed to be set straight and return to the back of the line. I'm not embarrassed by that, although I know Stuart would have been.
Once we were through security, we went to the Marhaba lounge for some food and drinks, then headed to the gate. When we arrived there was another plane leaving out of the gate, then our plane was next, except it wasn't. It was delayed 2 hours. On a short trip, a delay can put a wrench in your plans, but we were determined to not let it. When we finally got on the flight, it was a no fuss airline, Fly Dubai, which is like Southwest. No food, no drink, no nothing. The flight was a bit uneventful and we both seemed to sleep most of the way.
We arrived about an hour and a half after we were supposed to. My roaming that I had paid for didn't work initially, which aggravated me. Then I realized I had forgotten my phone charger for the car. Boo! We got our rental car and headed toward the hotel. Silly us didn't think of putting in the coordinates for the hotel, so we might have been a bit lost initially. We finally found the hotel around 1 am but needed a few items before we could settle into bed, like coffee, blankets, a new lamp, you know, the basics.
We got up at 6 am in order to get our bags in the car and have breakfast at 7 am. We had to make an early start to get in all the sites we had planned for the day. Breakfast didn't actually start until almost 7:30 am. It's good to know all Arabic countries are punctual.
Once breakfast was complete, we drove to the Citadel in Amman. It was spectacular. We hired a tour guide who had impeccable English skills and was full of information. But as Mandy and I said, we both have difficulty with historical facts and chances are we would forget everything he said by that afternoon.
We were going to try to see the Jordan Museum, but then discussed that if we wanted to spend a few hours at the Dead Sea and make it to Petra by dark, we had better get a move on and skip the museum. The drive to the Dead Sea was beautiful and reminded me a lot of Arizona. Once we were there, we bought a day pass at Movenpick resort. We were told that was the best thing to do. We went down to the Dead Sea to float. Now I had seen some YouTube videos that made the Dead Sea look like a calm body of water. We certainly did not find THAT particular body of water on our visit. I believe the water was much more active because of the previous day's storm, but am not completely sure. But you can bet that nothing was going to stop us from floating in the saltiest body of water, nor having a mud bath there as well. When in Jordan, do as the Jordanians, or maybe it's just the tourists who do these silly things. At any rate, nothing was going to keep us from this adventure.
The water was cold and it was difficult to get in. You had to maneuver over these huge boulders in order to get in the water. There was a small walkway that had rails to hold on to, but once you reached the water you almost had to jump out a ways in order to keep from getting smacked on the rocks because the waters were so rough. We did float, but it was a bit worrisome as the waves crashed up around your head. And what fun it was when the salt water went into my eye. Wow! That was not a good sensation.
We got out of the sea and went straight for the mud pot where we proceeded to slather mud all over ourselves. Apparently there are more minerals in the Dead Sea mud than any man-made body scrub. We sat on the salt ridden rocks and let the mud dry. Mandy considered getting back in the sea for another float, but I had cut my ankle on one of the rocks as the waves had tossed me about, and seeing how we had no insurance in Jordan, we decided against another dip.
We used the shower down by the sea and got the majority of the mud off. We then went to the pool area and sat on some loungers to dry off and possibly warm up. Considering it was only about 60 degrees outside, warming up might have been a bit far fetched. After enjoying the view for a spell, we headed up to the main area where we got to use their shower facilities. After we felt somewhat clean, we then had a buffet lunch in their dining room. The day, to that point, was perfect.
After our few hours at the Dead Sea, we drove to Petra. I had taken Stuart's Garmin, which hadn't been updated in a while, which might have caused a bit of a problem. Because I had no charger for my phone I couldn't use it for google maps, which would have been the best. Instead I had to rely on the Garmin, which turned out to be a bit concerning and then ended up ok.
So here was our ride to Petra. We started on a really decent road. The drive was very beautiful, mostly along the Dead Sea until about the last 50 kilometers. That is where everything got a little dodgy. We were instructed, by the Garmin, to turn to the right. Being obedient to the computer, we did just that and shortly discovered that most likely this was a less traveled, back road. It was more narrow and the pavement was not as nice. About 10 kilometers down the road we ran into a major dust storm that caused us to have to slow down to about 30kph. It was crazy. A couple of times I could just barely see the yellow line on my right. I just stayed as close to it as possible and kept creeping along. Mandy, on the other hand, just kept saying 'shit' whenever the stress hit her, which was about every 10 seconds for at least 10 minutes. When the sandstorm was over, we felt we were in the clear and only about 30 kilometers from Petra. Perfect! Or not. We hit a newly paved road a few minutes after the storm, but it was winding into the mountains. Well, my little (and I mean little) rental car was having difficulty getting up the hills. Did I mention we had a manual car? Right! Soon after the new pavement we saw a sign that had been moved aside that said 'Road Closed'. Should we pay attention and turn around? Naw! I'm sure they weren't serious. I mean, look at the beautiful new black top! Oh, but the beautiful new black top ended 15 kilometers before Petra and turned into red dirt. Oh my! I told Mandy we had to turn around, and then she said, as if she had channeled the Dana Telford I knew and loved, 'We are not turning around. We have 15 kilometers to go, and there are cars coming from the Petra direction. So the road can't be closed'. Okay then.
As we drove on, we passed a truck with about 6 men in it. I rolled down the window and asked if the road was closed. Their English wasn't great, but we managed to get out of them that we would be fine and we would run right in to Petra if we kept driving. Oh, and we also managed to get a 'I kiss your mouth' from one of the guys. Needless to say we turned down that particular offer.
We finally arrived in Petra at 5 pm and decided to have a coffee and a rest. The drive was unreal and really quite stressful. By the time we had drank our coffee we were exhausted and decided to call it a day. It had started raining and going out into that weather was not something that appealed to either of us. So, sadly, we were in bed by 7:30 pm and asleep by 8 pm, which meant we were wide awake at 4 am, though we both kept quiet until our alarm went off at 5 am.
Stuart had taken the kids to the Dubai 7s on Thursday because that is he free day. It seems Dad is way more fun than Mom. Just look at what the kids did? And drank? The Vets lost both of their games on Thursday, but would still play on Friday.
Our goal was to be in the archeological site of Petra as it opened at 6. There were only about 6 other people there when we started walking toward the entrance. It was cold, but we were determined. Watch the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and you will see what the first twenty minutes of our walk consisted of. It was high walls of red rock. It was gorgeous and surreal to think that people lived in this lost city. The first unbelievable facade we saw was the Treasury. We could see a glimpse of it as we walked through the passage way of high red rocks. Then when we came to the opening, it was larger than life. It's hard to imagine how these things were actually accomplished so long ago. The carvings must have taken years to do.
While we were being mesmerized by the awesomeness of this site, I heard a ginger cat meow and come up to my leg. I didn't think much about it until he jumped up on the side of my fleece jacket which I was wearing at the time. It freaked me out! What on earth was this crazy, possible disease infested, cat thinking? I smacked him off, but that didn't discourage him. He walked in and around my legs, and then behind Mandy. The next thing we knew he had hopped up on Mandy's backpack. I so wish we could have taken a picture of either of these freakish events, but there just wasn't enough time to do anything but whack that silly beast.
After the shock of the attack had worn off, we proceeded on through Petra and saw all the sites that were rediscovered in the early 1800s. Our entire time in Petra was about 6 hours, mostly walking but with some donkey assistance. The vastness of this lost city was incredible.
We walked up 850 steps to the Monestary and then rode the donkey down. Omar was our guide and he had a friend who was guiding my donkey. The donkey ride down was scarier than anything. We got off the donkeys at one stage because the rocks were too slick for the donkeys to be safe. When I got off, I fell to the ground because my tennis shoe got stuck in the stirrup. A couple of bruises and a headache later, I was back on that ass and riding on more solid, level ground. We stopped on our way down from the Monastery at Omar's mom's shop and bought a few things. bought things. We had tea by a fire and were able to sit and chat with some local Jordanian women just trying to make a living. And we're pretty sure they over charged us for our items. But we had a great experience and chalked it up to them trying to make a living and hopefully our gullibility helped them in some way.
We left Petra at noon and had a coffee on Tourism Road, a short walk from the entrance to the archeological site. We decided to walk down the road a bit further to a place I had seen on Trip Advisor, called Made in Jordan, attached to a place called Petra Kitchen, where you cook your own meal with a group of people and then have dinner together. We decided we had to do this, so we made reservations for Friday evening.
After a walk around the shops, some lentil soup, and a few purchases, we headed back to the hotel for some rest and relaxation. There was a big evening planned and we wanted to be ready for it.
We arrived just before 6 at the Petra Kitchen and were instructed to put on an apron and get gloves. We were sat around the tables and somewhat introduced to guests as they arrived.
There were 6 people at each preparation table, making different things. My table was in charge of the Baba Ganoush and the Galayat Bandura (a tomato sauce with olive oil, green chilis, and pine nuts). Because we were closest to the stove we were often asked to help mix things or stir things on the stove.
The evening moved at a quick pace and before we knew it all the dishes were ready and dinner was served. We ate and enjoyed each other's company. It was a wonderful evening full of local cuisine and getting to know people from all over the world.
We were back at the hotel around 9:30 pm and in bed by 10:30 pm. We had one more get-up in Jordan, and it had to be early in order to get back to Amman for our flight.
While I was playing Indiana Jones with Mandy, Kayleigh was with the kids at our house and Stuart was at the Dubai 7s playing his heart out. They got into the bowl finals on Friday and would play that match on Saturday at 9 am.
Back in Petra, we were up and on the road at 6:30 am. We had decided we would go to the famous Rainbow Street for the morning. We were a bit disappointed because it's really more of a place for night life so not much was open. However, we managed to have coffee and some breakfast, however undesirable it was. We walked the length of the street and found one shop where I purchased some gifts. We headed toward the airport just after 11 am and were there by noon, buying our duty free Arak, a licorice liquor, and red wine, both made in Jordan. Weird, I know. We also had time for a Starbucks coffee and time to buy a Jordan mug.
Stuart had messaged me to tell me hey had lost their match and he was actually home by 2 pm with the kids. I know he had fun but I assume he will be sore for a few days.
After our Starbucks fix, we went to the gate to wait for our flight, which ended up being 25 minutes late to take off. So arrival was late as well, but all went very smoothly. We were in the car and home by 10 pm. I put a load of laundry in the washer, unpacked my bag, and hit the bed, ready for another wonderful week in the UAE.
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