A Mommy Morning

What to do with a 3 day weekend....

Hop over to Bahrain for a movie, meal, and play? (Dang, Ethan's passport is in the renewal process.)

Add an extra day and live it up in Dubai? (Nope, no rooms available for our family size using Marriott points.)

Stay home and do nothing (Heck no, we just gotta get outta here.)

We settled on this....
Stay overnight in DHA with some of our favorite people, eat Chris' homemade Chocolate Cheese Cake, Cycle 100 miles, and have a MOMMY SHOPPING MORNING OUT!

After our Friday obligations instead of driving back to camp we camped out at the Reynold's home (so gracious of them). It was so fun to stay the night and actually hang out with our friends there and let the kids run wild. We stayed up late talking and then Chris got up at 5 AM to do a century ride with some DHA cycling buddies.

I however, got the kiddies up and over to a babysitter bright and early and went out with 4 other ladies to hit the souks and other antique shops that carry the most amazing Eastern/Asian and Middle Eastern wears. There are several shops all my big city friends frequent and find beautiful and unique jewelry, furniture, and clothes. Most of them are very well known in these shops so it was nice to have a driver and tour guide and no kids for the morning.

Just before noon prayer closes everything down for the afternoon we spent some time at Desert Designs. This amazing shop has so many items, mostly antique or refurbished of Middle Eastern design. I have loved many of the pieces in my friends' homes and hoped to one day own something of my own. I called Chris to check on his ride status and told him I'd seen some pieces I liked but wasn't really planning on purchasing anything. He was surprised and assured me that it was OK if I found something either way. Only moments after I hung up I changed my mind and decided to get this lovely cabinet. I had seen several people looking at it and discussing purchasing it. When they walked away without talking to a sales person I took my opportunity to buy this beaut before anyone else did. Apparently it had just come in today and unbeknown to me another lady in my group fell in love with it too but wasn't ready to commit.

Since they won't deliver out here I have to wait for Chris to bring it home in the next several weeks. Until then it will sit in my friends living room until it makes it's way to it's new home. Where I can admire it every time I walk down the hall.

The Secrets of Al Hasa: Amiriyah & Mullah House

Our next stop was a beautiful architectural piece of art built in the old Islamic fashion.

Amiriyah was the first school built in Al Hasa (again we would have driven right by had we been on our own as it's located in the commercial district).

Many princes, country decision makers, scholars, and writers were among the first graduates.

Today it hosted a new generation.

When our tour guide picked up this piece of wood and asked us what we thought it was for, of course I said for beatings and line writing. I was only half right...it was for writing on.

The inner courtyard has been beautifully cared for and each school room displays different items such as: type writers, school books, ink wells, etc. I was surprised that they didn't care if you touched or picked up the items displayed. Of course, there were some things behind glass as well.

And again the ceilings were covered with palm leaf thatching and date palm trunks.



Not far from the school in the Kut district is the Mullah House. Now, not having grown up under a ruling King or Kings it has taken us some getting use to how much they pay homage to them here in the Middle East. In some countries, not in KSA, every other billboard shows their picture and graces us with their achievements. But they do throughout show immense respect when they speak of their Kings especially those who have passed. All I know is that when the last one here died everyone in Aramco got an extra bit of cash in their check.

This house is where King Abdul Aziz stayed for three days after he regained Al Ahsa in 1913. I have yet entered an off camp Saudi home and have often wondered what it's like behind those high walls. This visit at least gave us a taste of what it use to look like. This picture was taken from and inner courtyard surrounded by rooms on both floors.

These cupboards were used for date storage.

An interesting infant cradle was in the small woman's sitting room. Adjacent to this is the men's much larger sitting room.

This kitchen was tiny! It did not seem adequate for a house this size.

Some of the traditional dishes from this area are:
Kabsa - Rice with meat, fish, chicken, or shrimp, onion, tomato, oil, cinnamon, cloves, black dried lemon, and other spices.
Mabzoul - Rice, tomatoes, yellow lentils, oil, salt, and spices
Qalba - Sheep meat, chickpeas, onion, tomato, and spices
Jareesh - Grounded grain, meat, tomatoes, butter, and sweet and hot spices.
Bread - Different types of bread are baked for different meals.
Lastly you would not be at a traditional Al Hasa meal if dates are not served and are often start the meal.

Ethan's favorite room was the weapon room as he pointed out all his favorites to me. Someone wise had previously attached these to the walls. By this time of the day the boys were used to picking up and handling what every they saw displayed.

Colorful textiles are mainly used in woman's fashions. Men often just wear the traditional white or gray Thobe, seen in the middle, with the Gutra on their head. Darra'a are the colorful dresses and Bokhniq (shawl) are the long glittering head coverings. But of course if in public these would be covered with an Daffa (Abaya) and a Milfa' a black piece of cloth wrapped around the head. And of course we can't forget the black piece of cloth to veil (to add mystery:) that cover the face called Boshiyah.

More to come....

The Secrets of Al Hasa: Camel Market & Old Fort

Although Al Hasa is only 45 minutes away we've never had a great desire to explore the city even though we'd heard there area few points of interest. It isn't the cleanest of places and driving there is always risky but when we really NEED something we can generally find it. When the SAEA organized a "Secrets of Al Hasa" trip we decided we might as well see what there is to see and do it all in one long day because if we ever set out on our own we'd surely get lost and come home in frustration.

AND I'M SO GLAD WE DID!

Yes it was a long day but we left on time and remained on schedule the whole day. The snacks and meals were provided in a timely fashion. The company was great (it's always nice to have friends along especially when their kiddos are the same age). And the police escort through the city made for a smooth voyage.

Our first stop was the Camel Market.

This is the largest Camel Market in the gulf and is just outside the city of Hofuf.

In addition to camels, other livestock is also sold such as sheep, goats, horses, and donkeys.

Some of the camels were real Divas. Not that they misbehaved but because they wore silver sparkly disco fever type harnesses.

Although the boys were offered a chance to sit atop a smelly dirty camel they thankfully passed on the offer. Instead we waded through the camel dung to have our family picture taken.

Our next stop took us to one of the oldest neighborhoods in Al Ahsa (Note the difference in spelling, it is not a typo. You rarely see a city name spelled the same twice.) In the district of Kut sits the Ibrahim Castle. We've passed this place lost many a times during trips to Hofuf but never knew exactly the significance. It was once part of the city wall built during the Ottoman occupation between 1549 and 1680. The mud, sand, and grass, walls are really impressive to see. They look as though a cannon shot or one good rain storm could take them down but neither of those things have ever happened here.
Some of the ceilings were exposed to show the date tree trunks that are embedded for support.

Inside the walls is the Al Kibba Mosque.

We were allowed to step inside once we removed our shoes. Because of it's dome shape there is no need for a speaker system....the prayers just echo off the walls.

Not far from the Mosque is a trap door that leads to...

this 5 meter by 5 meter dome which was a prison. If you look closely you can see some holes near the top. There are four of them which allowed prisoner to tell the time of day when the sunlight passed through them.

These long corridors were the soldiers barracks.

It was so refreshing to see something well cared for within the city. As it turns out as we continued our tour we discovered there are indeed other sites within the city that are also well taken care of. But honestly from the outside we would have just driven right by if we hadn't had a tour guide and escorts.

Just before sunset we stopped at this mosque. Until recently only ruins of the original Jawatha Mosque stood here. Now this newly redone mosque sits representing the first Mosque, after the Prophet's Mosque in Madena, to hold Friday prayers in this region.

The original was built 1400 years ago by the Bano Abdul Qais people after the converted to Islam.

More Secrets of Al Hasa to come....

A Labor of Love

Growing up building a Gingerbread House each Christmas was a tradition we all looked forward too. I don't remember my mother's gingerbread recipe being particularly tasty but it built a strong house. My best friend Lisa and I would hide the gingerbread house from our brothers so we didn't have to share the candy. They would then seek it out, and usually find it, and hide it from us. We would go back and forth until we found the perfect spot. The last time I remember hiding it was in the guest bathroom under the sink. Now that I think about it I find that pretty disgusting but we were so happy to have all the candy to our selves.

Now this tradition has begun with my own family, minus the hiding part as now I don't care as much for candy. I've tried different recipes and molds but two Christmas' ago my sister Meg came home with a kit from Williams and Sanoma for each of us that I just love. The cookie cutters make a cute little house and the gingerbread is really good to eat. In fact I like it more than the candy.

This Christmas we are staying in camp along with many other families and when I found out exactly who they were and how many I decided the tradition must go on and set the wheels in motion. 3 Days later and several hours of chilling, cutting, rolling, baking, and frosting we had 8 little houses ready to be dressed.

It really was a labor of love but with friends as SWEET as mine I was happy to do it. My friends in the big city always ask me how it is living out here in the middle of literally no where. But if it weren't for this group of gals and some others that are out of town it would be pretty miserable. We work out together, play together, and sometimes commiserate together but they are what make this camp so great.

I was surprised that many of them had never actually made a gingerbread house with their kids. It became a good lesson in team work, as one mother said. The morning was a complete success! Everyone overlooked my, shall we say shabby sheik, designer flaws and sugared up those little abodes as well as their tummies along the way.

And with the kids doing most of the decorating I had no worries about trying to make it look perfect. I did want to make a little shout out for Jana E. who helped my boys while I made sure the treats were all distributed, Christmas music at the right volume, and frosting bags were all functional. When the kids got bored they jumped on the trampoline, dug in the sand, and just had a grand old time. This gave the moms a chance to do a few touch ups on the houses and catch up on a little mommy talk.

Even Graham tried his hand at frosting. After sampling plates of his favorite candies he decided to try his hand at the frosting.

Later we found he had snuck away with a bag of goodies and was secretly indulging in the corner.

All in all I'd say a NEW tradition may have been born.

Tour of Qatar

Last weekend Chris and some buddies ventured to watch the Tour of Qatar. It is one of many training rides for the Tour de France.

A close up of the fort that was a backdrop during race prep.

One of the coolest parts was being so close to the riders and their gear. They actually walked among them as they prepared to ride which you can't do at other rides.

As mechanics or riders discard parts or water bottles etc. they are free for the taking. The group came back with tons of souvenirs.

Qatar is a very small country and is pretty much flat as flat can be.

Between the 5 events, time trials and 123km- 147km races, the riders pretty much covered the entire country.

With very few spectators the gang was up close and personal.

There was some crazy stunt work on display. We will not be showing this picture to E.

One of the finish lines with sensors.

A little night life.

On the way to a fab Indian Restaurant the following was seen.
This is not a picture of a women but a watch out for men in "thobes" crossing.

Readymades? I guess pre-manufactured goods. Hey look their CHEEP too.

The last race ended along the Doha Corniche. Again most of the spectators were westerners.

The legend of cycling Eddy Merckx (lt.). Chris is not a star struck person. When I asked if he spoke with anyone famous he said he didn't really have anything to say to them. He just enjoys the sport itself.

There was one portion of the ride that the Qatar Riding group got to ride on next year the Udhailiyah Cycling Group are going to see if they can join up too.

Chris said he was amazed at the vortex of air that came after all these riders. It was just sucking everything in behind them including garbage.

Sorry for the second hand info....Chris won't blog.