Old Friends, New Experiences

Just yesterday we had one of those international lifestyle "blast from the past". Shawna and Mike arrived on an early flight from Jordan and spent the day with us before boarding a night flight to Oman. It had been a long time - maybe eight years - since we had seen them (and our little Amalia had never met them before) and we tried to pack the day with as much tourist experience as possible. 

But first, a home breakfast (also giving the girls enough time to wake up before heading out). Once the breakfast in the house was enjoyed and the girls up and ready, it was off to Bastakiya (the old part of town), the Textile Souq and the canal for a meander in the shops and a snack along the water. From there it was a visit to the Downtown and Burj Khalifa area in a rather quiet mid-day stroll, followed by an afternoon stroll on an ever-popular Kite Beach (complete with sushi meal and yummy desert) before the return to the airport and an positively emotional goodbye. 

But in there, in the spaces between the views and the photos, there was the essence of the visit. The stories and friendship. The "bringing you up to speed" conversations focusing on the past eight years. The reconnections that make our life so much more meaningful and complete. And, with the day now complete, we have one more shared experience - filled with stories and memories of its own - to add to the ever growing repertoire of international friendships. 

Mike and Shawna passed the test for the girls too. Friendly (as always), curious, supportive and patient they were the perfect guests in a day of trying to pretend we know the city while trying to ensure that children are happy and engaged. It was a marvelous day. Thank you Shawna and Mike, for popping over!  How wonderful to know that you're in the region and that, hopefully soon, we will reconnect (in Oman?)!  Big big smiles and appreciation for your visit!

Christmas 2018. Small Crowd But Lots of Love.

After last year's extended family extravaganza we knew this year was going to be a rather solemn affair.  Still we went out and got the tree, bought the presents (in shifts since mommy had to leave town to go to Bogota to be with her family), wrapped them and, bit by bit, filled the tree. In the end the girls were happy as can be with their presents, including a fist time that the girls individually determined what they were going to purchase for each other (that is, without adult guidance). By the time December 24 came around we were able to piece together a semblance of a holiday tradition. The presents were opened, appreciation and excitement shared, hugs all around (of course) and a beautiful series of exchanges - both in terms of presents and in terms of human connections - was the essence of the experience. Love all around!

As a bit of a bonus for our little family unit, Nats was around this time around and, in the absense of extended family that was present last year, she took part in the mini-festivities!  It was great having her share in the opening of the presents as well!  Happy Holidays everyone!

Baking (Cookies & Meals) for Christmas

When we found out that mommy would have to head out for the holidays we had to come up with a Plan B. After all, mommy is typically the social coordinator and such extended holiday seasons are almost entirely domain from an organizational level. We had a few things set up - like the trip to Musandam - but the little things hadn't taken care of themselves just yet. Daddy was, in so many ways, out of his league. So what does one do?  They find friends!  

Other families in the neighborhood who were staying around jumped in and offered their time and energy to support holiday experiences. One was a wonderful Christmas dinner at our neighbors' Adam, Anna and their daughters Ava and Nyla. It was the type of event that revolves around being together, meeting one another and sharing memories and fun. 

Another family that jumped in was Daena and Gabe, with their daughters Anna and Audrey who had indicated an interest in making Christmas cookies with us. So when we invited them over they arrived to share the celebrations with us. For nearly four hours and girls works to make the dough, do the mixing, make the little balls and squish them onto the pan before waiting for them to be cooked and cool off. Then, happily, they added the frosting and decorations!  A big success for all!  The many cookies were spilit with each family taking a good number to eat or share. 

And with such a success already in the books from the day before, the girls and daddy decided to find a recipe that was within their ability level to make a Christmas Eve meal. The choice: Baked Ziti!  The girls and daddy found the recipe, went through the cupboards, made the shopping list, headed out to shop for the things, returned to make the ziti and (admittedly with the help of a much more experience Nats) were able to come up with a great meal! 

Yummy times in our house!  Oh, and Merry Christmas! :-) 

Musandam People & Place

 As much as the waters around Musandam impressed us, the town did it's fair share of that as well. What first seemed like a town with little to offer (as one drives through one doesn't immediately see much), Khasab soon started to show its face to us. Apart from its port, Khasab is also home to a small but cute fortress where one can poke their head around and see both architectural and cultural details that make Oman a special place. 

There was also the search of food which which, after a few options we passed up on, took us to a small, family owned Iranian-Omani restaurant named Wadi Qada. We never did get the name of the young owner who bent over backwards to give us a culinary history of the food offered in his restaurant, a personal inter-national story of his family as well as an overview of the region. Most importantly he was a model representative of both the town and country. The food was excellent (made that much bit more flavorful by the explanations provided) and consumed happily. And, at the end, we indulged in some traditional Omani tea, served with a small honey sugar stick. Apparently one places the stick in the cup, pours the hot water and uses the stick to stir until the sweetness is sufficient. As far as the girls were concerned it was also a great bonus to have a sugary candy (the left over in the stick) afterwards too!  

 The hotel staff too were wonderfully friendly and service oriented. Add the view to the sea immediately in front of us from the hotel and we had pretty much the perfect holiday. The only slightly-less-than-ideal was the fact that it was somewhat windy and the water in the lovely pool was cool enough to keep even the most die hard swimmers at bay. Still, the place and the magic of the view, the people and the experience was simply marvelous!  We look forward to sharing this place with mommy in the not-so-distant future as well!

Musandam Water Wows!

Musandam had been one of those places we had heard about ever since we got to Dubai. It was, literally, "on the list" from nearly day one. And yet it took us a good two and a half years to finally make it there. Mommy, unfortunately, was unable to join us as she rushed off to Colombia to be with her family at a difficult time. That left our Abu Dhabi - Dubai family (yup.... Ralph, Anne and Maria have been officially been adopted!) to head out to the east coast of the peninsula to discover the wonders of the "Norway of the Middle East". 

It's quite spectacular, really. The three hour drive begins in the outskirts of Dubai with a rather light colored (and largely developed) sandy landscape. As one drives east the sand color starts to turn a more robust rust color and, with a smattering of roaming camels, becomes more impressive. As the border approaches so do the mountain ranges that separate Oman from the UAE. As one leaves the UAE at the border it is amazing what a sudden change takes place. The big roads of the UAE are replaced by seaside winding roads along small villages with a backdrop of amazing rocky mountains. One side beautiful blue. The other side a sudden drop of beige (with a goat here and there for good measure). Amazing!

We spent three days in Musandam and have promised to return (with mommy this time!). The waters were a beautiful blue-turned-green inside the fjord areas. The dolphins seem to be waiting for the visitors to arrive and the families (the baby dolphins are cute as can be!) are happy to pop up and visit with the boats. On our return we were fortunate to be the only boat (it was a slow day, we were told) and the captain (a very friendly Bangladeshi named Muhammad) decided to "go fast" allowing the dolphins to use the displacement of the boat to do their own surfing... all a mere meter or two from the dhow we were on!  The girls (and all of us) were thrilled!