Hello and Goodbye Shawarma Man

After 2.5 years I finally met the Shawarma Man all my DHA friends talk about, while out for one last night of shopping and eating in Khobar with the Reynolds and Dillies.

I'm sorry we met just as my Exit Visa is being processed for my departure. Shawarmas are the fast food of the Middle East. The ones I've eaten on camp have not been Blog worthy.

But this stacked chicken meat on a skewer grilled all day to perfection was DIFFERENT. Honestly this was not a place I would have stopped if my friends had not sworn they were some of the best in Khobar. Just looking at the place made me wonder how much time I would be spending in the bathroom the next day. They promised they've eaten here regularly without consequence so we went for it.

I love and will miss this Chicken Shawarma wrapped in flat bread with tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, and garlic sauce (they also add soggy fries which I tossed) almost as much as Graham will miss his little buddy O* from nursery. For the last several months it has just been these two cutie pies.

The next afternoon we gathered with 60+ of our closest friends in Dhahran to eat Sourdough Waffles with oodles of toppings like homemade buttermilk and apple cinnamon syrups and say our goodbyes.

Moving on is so bitter sweet. We love the friends we have made and the community we've lived in but we do feel it is a good time to move on. It isn't all that unlikely to cross paths with many of these people again as church and oil connections make this world seem so very small.

One person Ethan is sure to miss will be his special buddy Rusty M. They first bonded when Rusty would sub Ethan's class in Primary for his wife.

Ethan really loves Rusty and was showing him his homemade kites on Friday. Unbeknownst to Ethan Rusty just happens to be a kite enthusiast and went home to gather everything they needed to make REAL miniature kites.

They spent the entire afternoon teaching Ethan and perfecting the method. I am not sure who was more delighted with the out come.

I just want to make one more huge shout out to say THANK YOU to all those that have hosted and fed our family every Friday before our two hour journey home.