Reverse Culture Shock

My life as an expat has challenged me in so many ways and has helped shape me into a better person. When they tell you that you have really high highs and really low lows as an expat... well that's exactly true. These experiences also help to reiterate the importance of family and friends.

I have survived grading and then conferences with parents after. This is another situation where things you have learned in college come in handy and other things were just sheerly and utterly a waste of time. Two key words come to mind when I think about this: documentation and evidence. It is always a good idea to have examples ready to show as to why they received the grade that they did. The grading system in Kuwait at our school is very different to what I have known my whole life. Growing up, an A was the top grade and an F was the bottom grade. In Kuwait, they go B, D, C, and then E. The B stands for beginning, the D stands for development, the C stands for competent, and the E stands for exceeding expectations. Anyways, grading was a lot harder than I had expected it to be. It is really subjective, and I wanted to do my best to show an accurate assessment based on performance.  After I went through this, I finally understand the significance of rubrics.  I thought my assessment professor in college was just on drugs. She might have actually been on drugs... but yeah, she rarely made sense. I believe that parents ultimately want to know that you care about their child, which I truly do.

I know that most teachers out there really do care for their students. There are exceptions of course, but in general, most teachers really do care. When I heard about the devastation in Sandy Brook, CT, I was just sick. I saw a lot of statuses on FaceBook about it, but I don't have cable so I wasn't sure what the heck was going on. I had called my mom, and we were both just sick about it. The next day, I looked at my students and I just felt so happy to be their teacher. They are so young, and creative, and just innocent and genuine humans. We actually drove by the exit to the town a couple days ago. It was just sad. I wish there was a deeper word than sad, but  an experience like this hits every one pretty hard.

The grading results, and a three week long sickness in a still not-yet (and noisy) apartment situation added up to probably one of my lowest lows while in Kuwait. I joined some co workers at our superintendents home for a nice dinner on a Wednesday. Their house was HUGE, seriously.. so huge. They had a fantastic meal for us. It included rice, lamb, bread and hummus, and so much more! After the dinner was over, I got showered up and was about to fall asleep when I heard a ton of really loud Arab men walking in a out of the room next to mine. They then proceded to play extremely loud music until 1 am or so. Now, here is a perfect example of how well the communication is in Kuwait- if any happens at all. I did not have any clue that the co- worker in the room next to mine had moved out. It was surprising even though I said nothing would really surprise me in Kuwait anymore. Not to mention the construction that goes off every morning right outside my window at about 5 am. Speaking of the construction, it has been just fascinating to watch. I don't think they have any set plans prior to building a building here. My best guess is that after it is completed, people bid on them or something. Which is probably the delay in our apartments. Anyways, expats from like Iran, Egypt, and other places of the sort do the construction. It has a pretty high fatality rate. Once you observe the "standards" you will understand why. They build scaffolding with wooden 2 by 4's and work on those. To sum up my "ultimate low" in Kuwait I would have to say that looking back on it, it's not so bad. I had tremendous support from friends, colleagues, and family. I am proud to work with the people that I do, and to work for the people I do. I feel like I got really lucky at AIS and I understand what they meant at orientation when they said you will miss your AIS family.

I wanted to mention a little bit about some cultural experiences that I have had in the time before winter break came. Some friends and I went to the old souk (souk mabarakia) to do some last minute Christmas shopping. While we were there we saw a boy, probably older than my grade one students, pee right outside in the middle of people in a space where the bottom of the palm trees are. We all did a double take and then realized that it was really happening. We also decided to eat dinner at the souk. It was in the center, sort of. There were lots of tables and when they seat you they put down a plastic sheet for the table cloth. Then, when they go to bus the tables all they have to do is take off the plastic. We got bread and hummus, and lemon mints. It's a very popular drink over there. You wouldn't think the combination of lemon and mint would be good, but it's fantastic. They use fresh mints and fresh everything. So yummy. At souks like this, you get to barter. It is really fun.

I made the journey all the way from Kuwait to East Hampton, Connecticut for winter break. It was a long trip. One thing that I just love about traveling, especially on airplanes is that you never know who you will sit next to. You also don't know the adventure ahead of you (delays, cancellations, etc.). We took a 747 from Kuwait to London, Heathrow. It was a really really big plane. We flew British Airways. This airline is fantastic, they served free alcohol! You never see that on planes anymore. Their food was.. well it was airplane food but it was a lot better than other airlines in my opinion. Anyways, I sat next to a teaching couple from another school in Kuwait. They were eccentric, but not unbearable. When I got to London, I was just kind of following the crowd to my next terminal and going with my "gut." On a whim I decided to just double check with the receptionist if I was in the right place or not. They told me that my flight had been cancelled about ten minutes ago. Wow.. luck! So, they got me switched quickly to another flight and back to the old terminal I went. I got to go to security twice. This was WAY more than I went through in Kuwait. Ironic? Anyways, London is a three hour difference than Kuwait, so I was tired. It was also a 6 hour flight. This is probable why I failed to take out my liquids and computer the first round through security. The second time, I got it right. :) On the flight from London to Chicago, I sat next to a really pleasant gay man. I don't even know his name. We chatted and it was just nice. Also, I had the best seat in the house. I was in the very back of the plane where they only have two seats on the side row instead of three. I had extra leg room and a direct route to the bathroom. When I got to Chicago, I saw someone I knew from Kuwait.. small world eh? I also got an early Christmas present. I somehow managed to get a free hotel room and meal vouchers for my layover. Sweet! Anyhow, from Chicago over to CT, I sat next to this interesting fellow. I am pretty sure, even considering it was early in the morning, that he was pretty drunk. At least he was able to engage somewhat in a conversation and then he slept so it was nice.

When I first arrived in Chicago, I was experiencing a little reverse culture shock. It helps point out the things that I might not normally notice. For example: cold weather, snow, safe roads and road lights, people driving in their own lanes, signs that are in English, not being the only white person around, using US currency, eating bacon and drinking real drinks, going to an uncensored movie, driving, hearing music in most places, Christmas presents and family, ease of texting and calling friends, cooking and baking, Christmas trees, tv and commercials in English, oh gosh and so much more. If you combine all of these things with jet lag, then you will understand why at times I was either just baffled or unbelievable tired. My body has finally adjusted to the time difference. I am absolutely loving my time with my family. Today, is my dads birthday. It's nice to be around family at times like this. I got an alto saxophone from my sister and her husband! I can't wait to go back and play with the Desert Catz! I also got some neat scuba gear and some other little things. It was really fun giving my gifts from Kuwait. People really loved them.

Well, this is all for now. I wanted to get a post in before December was over! I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas (or happy holidays) and let's bring in the new year with happiness! :) 

Rumor Has It

There are a couple of things I forgot to mention in my last post. There was a cat in my classroom, a real and living street cat. It was quite interesting and one of those things you think, "only in Kuwait." I got to school that morning, and I saw that a bunch of things were knocked off my shelf and it just reeked of cat pee. I think cat pee smell is worse here because the feral males aren't nutered. The first time I realized this, I thought that they had something stuck to it's butt. Anyways, my TA helped locate where it marked its territory, and the maids helped to clean it up. We go on about our day, and just as I was getting ready to show a short video clip, my TA rearragned the blinds to make it darker and it was behind the shelf! It had been there most of the day and we never even knew it! I just had the kids go outside and they got the cat out. It was interesting to say the least. Also, I've experienced my first thunderstorm here. It's small things like the weather that a person doesn't realize how it affects them until it's different.  It has started to get cooler and rainy sometimes. I noticed how much better I felt once I actually saw some clouds in the sky too. It's nice to finally have some relief from the heat. Another thing I fogot to mention last time is that I have been playing in a Jazz group called the Desert Cats. I only brought my clarinet with me, but there is a jazz clarinet solo I play called "Moonlight Serenade." I have been enjoying playing music for fun again. By the way, if anyone reading this happens to know of a cheap and used but workable alto saxaphone, I would be interested. :)

I also took advantage of my basic human right to vote. This was my first experience at the U.S. Embassy. It might seem strange for me to say this, but it felt really good knowing I was on American soil. It is very different looking at politics from my point of view here. I felt out of the loop, even despite my efforts to watch the debates and such. I feel very strongly about certain parts of this culture here, both in good ways and bad. I just hope my country doesn't end up too much like here. Well, that's just an opinion from a 23 year old white female girl living in the middle east as a first year teacher.

A lot has happened since my last post. On Sunday, the 11th of november, Kuwait was celebrating the establishment of the constitution and had a fantastic fireworks display. They spent over 4 million USD on fireworks for that evening. The show lasted 64 minutes, as they broke a world record. It's pretty cool to be able to say that I witnessed something that went into the Guinness Book of World Records. About a little over a week before they happened, I heard a rumor about this event. However, no one knew of where or when or if. Then, about a couple days before the event, I found out more information. That's how things work here, you hear about it in different versions from different people and maybe it will be true. Of course, this is the night where I leave my camera at home! It is something that I could try my best to describe every detail, and still no one would understand unless they were there. Anyways, leave it to me to analyze a fireworks show. At first, we were going to go to a rooftop to watch but decided last minute to walk there. It was quite a walk too, but ended up to be so worth it! They had lights, music, videos, parachutes, airplanes, and it all took place along the gulf and the Kuwait Towers. It spanned over so much distance that even if I turned my head all the way to one side and all the way to the other, I still didn't see everything. To me, it felt almost eery at times. I felt like the amount of money and the size was supposed to parallel the government in some way. To sum it up quickly, money equals power. This was truly one of the most surreal, beautiful, and utterly unexplainable events in my life. Check out the link for amazing pictures and videos. :)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2231223/Celebrating-golden-jubilee-Kuwait-style-Gulf-state-spends-10million-biggest-firework-display-time.html

The show happened on Saturday, which was a school night. By the time we got home we were so tired. I got up the next morning and showered and was getting ready for school, when I get a phone call telling me that school was cancelled! The Amir decided that all schools in Kuwait needed another day, just because of the celebration. I wasn't upset about it at all! It totally felt like a snow day.  Seriously, the best surprise ever.

I decided to join a choir group called the Ahmadi Music Group. They are the group we watched that one night at the British Embassy. It's one of those things that I need in my life to keep me sane. We are singing Christmas music! I love that thing about music that you know you are a part of a group. There are people from all over the world, basically reading and interpreting the universal language of music.

I finally received my civil ID. It's one of those things that they give you false hope for. At least the ID really did come eventually. Still waiting on an apartment. There are so many different rumors flying around that I am not sure what to believe. I'm about to tell inshallah what's up! Anyways, the exciting thing about having my civil ID now it that I was able to sign up for a phone plan and I got an Iphone!! It's something that is important to me. I have an unlimited data plan, so anywhere and anytime, I can contact my family and friends.

Last weekend, the Gaelic Football team from Kuwait a.k.a. the Kuwait Harps went to Bahrain to play in a Middle Eastern Gaelic Football Tournament. It was a short flight, and we were able to quickly check in and grab some food. Our hotel was really nice. We stayed at The Holiday Inn Express. It had a very clean and modern feel to it. We were on the 16th floor and had a fantastic view. We had to indulge on the freedoms of adult beverages as well. A couple friends and I went to the souk on Thursday. Wow, it was neat. They had anything and everything. When we walked down a bit farther, there was this interesting sort of covered walkway. They had paintings that were clearly describing some kind of unrest and then at the bottom where it didn't quite cover, you could see graffiti. The Mosque near there still had some evidence of the same things. We think it may have been from the protests. It is still the middle east, but vastly different from Kuwait. It's much cleaner there, and as a woman, there are a ton more stares and more negative and uncomfortable attention. I thought it would be worse in Kuwait, but it surprisingly wasn't. Maybe they are more used to expats. The next day was our tournament. There were a ton of people there, I was surprised. Irish people are so fun and crazy! They had food all day, and drinks too.. most importantly- they had pork! My team lost both games, but the 'A' women's team made it all the way to finals! It was impressive as it's the first time Kuwait has sent women's teams to any tournament. The next day, some friends and I went to an old fort just near the airport. It was really old, and interesting. Overall, a fantastic and short getaway.

Me in my Gaelic gear!

Now that we are back to reality, lesson planning and grading is in full swing. I felt the repercussions of having less time to prepare. It was worth it though! Some friends and I went to the shark souk the other night, which is a really nice mall near the gulf and towards the downtown area. As we were talking over dinner, we realized that all of us fit the chart of culture shock closely. We are beginning to get to that 'acceptance' phase. We better be ready for another downward swing. haha.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to meeting family in Connecticut over Christmas. I've been listening to a lot of Christmas music and have already began the mental preparation of the fact that I will be freezing the whole time. Thank goodness my parents are brining my winter coat! Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and miss you all!

cross emotions everywhere

So much happens in even one day. I haven't had a chance to complete a post in a while and my mind is going crazy with everything I want to talk about. First off, there truly comes a point in culture shock when you start to view things differently. Everything isn't new anymore and routines have been established. Part of me still feels like I'm visiting or on vacation. It sure would be nice to be in an apartment (still no apartment by the way). It does not feel like it's November! The temperature here has dropped by ten degrees or so.. Which believe it or not.. Makes a huge difference. It's so strange to think that it's snowing back home. Living in Kuwait has challeneged me in so many ways. Mentally, physically, emotionally, and all other ways a person can be challenged.

There have been so many times that I find myself in deep contemplation. It's not about only school stuff anymore. Yes, I still think about school a ridiculous amount, but I am often wondering questions about the culture. For example, I am wondering about the Islamic religion and exactly how significant of a role it plays in society here. I know it's huge and many laws are driven from the religion if not all of them, but I can't help but ask myself how it works. People have less rights than I ever could understand, but yet things are okay. My guess and please understand it's merely my opinion, but I am thinking it has to do with money. People are safe and secure if they have the security of money. Right now, looking in at it from a girl who grew up in the mid west, I want to know why more people don't speak against it. Anyways.. it's just thoughts. Also, everything is backwards in Kuwait. There is about 3 million people here and of the 3 million, 2 million of them are expats. So, a significant amount of the population is expats. I will tell you though, this country does not suit to an expat's lifestyle. For example, an expat here will either need to get a car or rely on taxi's. You need a civil ID to go through that process, (and I do not have mine yet.. ehshallah) so right now I am relying on taxi's or bumming rides. Public transportation is rare here. There are buses that go to places, but I do not see them often.

I've been thinking about home and all the weather my friends and family are experiencing, I'm so happy I decided to visit my family over the break. There truly is no greater thing than family. Anyways... I just wanted to thank everyone for putting up with me over the past summer while I was preparing for my adventure to Kuwait. I am absolutely sure that I wasn't the most fun person to be around. I felt so excited for what felt like for so long and I just wanted to get here. I was also incredibly stressed about everything I needed to do for my visa. I know now that I've met lots of people here, that it was totally normal to be stressed and anxious like I was. So again, thanks for being patient with me and for finding ways to invest in my adventures by learning and showing me a tremendous amount of support. I love and miss you all.

I'd like to recall and reflect on the past couple of weeks. I've been camping in the desert, survived my first three way conferences, took and trip to Failaka Island, celebrated birthdays on rooftops, played Gaelic football, babysat kitties, met my future cat, ate steaks (yes, plural), went to the British embassy for a music concert on a school night, gotten paid, had professional development on the PYP, rearranged my classroom completely, is hoping to conqure the possible explosion of a newly introduced Norweigan Rat population, learned about protests, halloween at school, went to the old souk and much more! By the way, these things are in no particular order. I want to share everything with you, but just know it's not in sequential order.

Desert camping:
This was something that you would see in the movies. It did not seem like real life and that I was living it and experiencing it. A bunch of people on the gaelic football team took a bus together to get to the desert. It was about an hour in a half drive. When we were about 50 kilometers away from the Iraqi border, we turned off onto a sandy road. The directions told us that we should go under a "gate" so we went under what looked like a "gate." Then, we pulled up next to a structure. This structure used to be a functional building, however it was destructed in the war. The building was still in the same shape as it was after destruction. Parts of the wall is still in rubble, and there were several wires hanging from the ceiling. Oh, let's not forget that there was sand EVERYWHERE. There were no bathrooms, and we stayed in tents. They brought in a DJ and some BBQ grills, accompanied by some beverages. We sat on blankets or chairs and danced. It was so surreal. One of the girls who came with us had a huge spider walk through her legs while she was using the "restroom." We didn't see any camels out there though. When we were waiting for our bus driver to return after a rough night himself haha, we got everything packed up. Then, we were ready to go and found out our bus was stuck in the sand! We ended up getting it out though.

Our bus in the desert

Three way conferences:
These went really well. I did not need the amount of anxiety that I was working up for these conferences. Sometimes we forget that in general, parents want the same things for their children. They want to know how they are doing. We had a full day of teaching on Tuesday, and began the first night of conferences after school. Some of us went to Blimpies down the street and scarfed some dinner before our long night. The next day, we had conferences from 9- 12. Of course our school decided to make the scheduling all electronic this year, and we found out a little over a week before conferences began. Talk about being flexible. To add to this new system, Eid Marbarak (an Islamic holiday where they sacrifice lambs and sheep) directly followed conferences. Many people travel during the Eid break, so I felt pretty lucky to have all but two show up. The ministery decided that we needed more time for the break other than just the Thursday after conferences and the weekend. So, after the school approved this, we got Sunday and Monday off as well. Trust me, I did not complain. :)

Failaka Island:
On Thursday, the first full day of our Eid vacation, a bunch of us took a trip with the school to Failaka Island. Before we went, we were thinking we were going to walk onto a resort like area. This was not the case. Failaka Island is very interesting to say the least. It looks almost completely deserted. There were people there, I am not sure if they lived there or not, but I'm thinking if people live there than it's the people who work in the small shops. When we first got there, we chilled on the beach area for a while. It was so nice. Then, we ate lunch that was included in our tickets. It had lamb, rice, pita bread, french fries, really good desserts and more! Some of us decided to pay a grand total of 1 KD each (3.53 USD) for a bus tour of the Island lol. This was so cool and fascinating. The first place we stopped was the war "museum." We got to look at big tankers and other tools and vehicles that they used and were destructed in the war. It was left untouched. They just put them all in a fenced in area so that we could look around. Then, we got to visit the camel farm. I had been wanting to see a camel here since I got here! We put our hands out so that the camel could kiss us. Their mouths feel so strange. It's like almost microfiber sticky like with lots of ramdon length hairs in the mix. If you have ever seen a camel, you would know that they spit and they sit with their joints backwards. We got back into the bus and boy, do they stink! It is a very potent smell that you don't notice as much when you are in the open air. When we were driving around, there were bullet holes everywhere in the deserted buildings. If you didn't know that the military came in after and now uses them for shooting practice (like me), than you have the impression that either everyone that lived there died or saw they had to clean up so they just left.

Rose and I when we got to Failaka

The Beach!!

Me chilling at the beach :D

Big tanker at the "war museum"

war museum

camel farm

:D

Birthdays on rooftops:
A good friend of ours from South Africa had us over to celebrate her birthday. Then, we were invited to one of the rooftops of one of the buildings that the school owns. It was nice up there. You could see so far and it wasn't too hot at night time. This was another occasion where I felt like I was living in a movie.

Gaelic Football:
If you are like me, then you never heard of this sport before. It's like a combination of rugby, soccer, basketball, and volleyball. There are some challenging rules, but it's pretty fun. You don't kick the ball like you do in soccer. You can kick pass or kick it in to score. You can only take four steps before you either need to drible it or kick it back up to yourself. You must roate between the two, so for example, you can not dribble the ball more than one time. There are 10 players at a time including net. There are 7 minute halfs so it goes pretty quickly. I really enjoy the people on the team. We will be going to Bahrain (ticket already booked) in a couple weekends for a tournament.

The Gaelic crowd!

The table top at school where we practice

sweet bruise

it get's dirty (me after a practice).. and that's NOT a tan line haha

Babysat kitties and met Germo:
My friend who was traveling to Oman over the Eid asked if I could look over her and her fiancee's kitties while they were gone. They have three cats. Two of them are from Kuwait and the other one, her and her finace got from South Africa where they are from. It was so nice of them to open their home to me. It was the first time that I got pretty bummed that I don't have my apartment yet. It felt so homey and it was great to have animals around. They all have such personalitites. Also during Eid, I got to meet Germo. My activities director's husband unfortunately developed allergies to cats, and so they wont be able to keep him anymore. Fortunately for me, I get to have Germo! He is an Arabian Mau and is about 5 years old. He's fat and has a fantastic personality. He plays fetch and everything! I can't wait to have him.

Ate steaks:
I can not tell you how much I miss good, red meat. There is so much chicken and lamb everywhere but sometimes a girl needs a steak! Sarah and I went out a couple times to fulfill this need. It was wonderful. I have been having strange cravings for certain foods that I miss back home. I feel like I could eat a steak and potatoes every day!

British Embassy:
There is a music group here called the Ahmadi Music Group, (which I am hoping to get into someday) that played a concert on a Wednesday. A friend of ours who plays in the group now, was able to get us free tickets! This was a school night, and I was proud of us staying up "late." I always love the British Embassy. We will go there again tonight for a BBQ and beveraged night :D. It's just one of those things that you really look forward to.

Payday.. happy eid murburak!:
Second paycheck.. whoooo! We were lucky enough to get paid before our long break (EID) which is an Islamic holiday. It's always a good feeling getting paid regularly. This is so different than college.

PD on the PYP and new look to my classroom:
We had two full days of PYP training. It was nice to not have to do the preparing, but get to learn from others. It was so, so mentally draining and energizing at the same time. AIS is an IBO world school which means it's curriculum is IB curriculum. The high school is called Diploma Years Programme, the middle school is called the Middle Years Programme, and the elementary is called the Primary Years Programme. IB curriculum is student-led and student-driven as well as guided by the teacher. It's fun, and as a teacher it can seem risky at times because you never know where it may be taken. It takes an overwhelming amount of time and preparation, and it is always well worth it. Both nights of the training, I literally woke up several times throughout the night because I was dreaming up how to organize my binders and dreaming up lessons that I could do with my students. We were all feeling so much more clarity, but at the same time we ended feeling like we had way more questions than before. My TA was nice enough to arrange my classroom over the training so that now I have my school computer at my teachers desk. It just feels better now.

Rats and protests:
There was and article a friend posted about the increased number of Norwegian Rats causing a possible epidemic in Kuwait by 2014. http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/10/14/norwegian-rats-invade-kuwait/

However after looking into another article:...http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/10/24/sharp-increase-in-number-of-rats/ I feel the situation is some what in between lol. You either get all or nothing here in Kuwait it seems. They are also not in my area, so no worries yet. As far as protests are concerned, the school keeps us informed and we just don't do anything stupid, like go to the area where they are happening.

Halloween at school:
We celebrated Halloween on November 1st because it was the last Thursday of the month and so we were told we could either dress down or come in Halloween dress. Everyone got really in to it, it was pretty cool. My students were so stinkin' cute. I need to bring more Halloween attire with me next year! I asked my students' parents on Tuesday if they could bring treats or candy for our Halloween Celebration and I have honestly never seen so much candy and sweets at one place at one time. I felt sick seeing so much. Every classroom had enough to feed the entire elementary!

Old souk:
Last night, I went with some friends to the old souk in down town Kuwait. I have been wanting to go since I came here. It was awesome! You can barter there, and it goes on forever. We went into a little shop that sells persain rugs. They are very famous, and I had no idea how much thought goes into one single rug. They also spend so many days on each rug. Sometimes weeks and sometimes months. This is their job, I understand, but it feels like it would take me years to complete something like that. They also use different materials, like the neck of the lamb, or just lamb wool or sheep.

Well that's all for now, I am happy that I finally got to write everything that I have  been meaning to for a while. I hope that everyone back home is doing great and enjoying the cold and distinct change of weather!

Miss you all! <3
Tiffany in Kuwait

Why do you do it?

Oh yeah, I should probably write about all those protests... Or lack there of. I know some happened here in Kuwait, but were stopped early. I'll tell ya though, it's not wise to make an entire culture or group angry. Understand it, then put forth and educated opinion. During one of our weekly staff meetings, our superintendent ensured us that we will be fine. No worries though, I feel safe here and if there is ever a time when I am unsure, then I just say I'm from Canada. I've got enough friends here from Canada that I could get by. Eh? :D

I think I mentioned that Kuwait is 55% expats. There's another contradiction. I am an expat, so in the majority in that category, BUT I am defiantly in the minority when it comes to race. It's a very different perspective. I am white, and I am in the minority. I can't tell everyone's intent, but, a lot of people seem curious mostly. There are a few who seem angry or unwelcoming, but in general, people are just curious. I've met several people here who are unbelievably kind, and some who are not so kind.

Anyways, I wanted to write an update about my weekend as well! A few of us from our school went to the British Embassy on Friday night. It was so much fun, I truly loved every single second of it. I felt just simply content all evening. They served dinner, and it was fancy because it was a masquerade ball. It was fun to get all dressed up and ready to go out. Then, we got to order drinks. I'm talking real drinks from real bottles. It was fantastic. I could feel myself coming back to sanity even after the first taste. We danced the night away and met a ton of teachers from other schools there.

Today is the start of week 6 of teaching. I woke up this morning so excited that it is a three day week with the kids. I am ready to have a break. We will have professional development those days on the PYP programme, and IB learner profiles, but no kids. I am also excited to get the training on what we are teaching and hopefully get a better understanding of it. Each team, or grade levels have PYP meetings as well as the PD (professional development) days, and ours it tomorrow from 8- 11. It's three hours long. They bring in supply teachers for us, so we will have to write sub plans during those times. There are some days where I feel like I am finally getting the management down, and then others where I feel like I've never taught a day in my life. Some of the students are so challenging, but I just love it. I love teaching all subjects, but I think my favorite thing to do is read with them and writing. Some of my students are so creative.

Tomorrow, I will go with some friends to see if I can begin playing in their Jazz Band. I am so excited to play music for fun again. I am also thinking of playing drop in ball hockey on Thursdays. On Friday's, I will be starting up with gaelic football. It's like a mix between volleyball, soccer, and basketball. I hope it's fun. Anyways, the people who are in it are awesome. We already booked a flight to Bahrain in November. This is when the gaelic football team has their tournament. It is a good thing to be involved with because they are very social. So, even if I decide not to play in the tournament, it's still going to be a blast. It's fun because we will play with other people from different schools. In two weekends from now, a bunch of us are going out into the desert. Some will be playing paintball and some will be going for the BBQ and camping. That's me... BBQ and camping! Can't wait! :D I have been contacting people for scuba diving, but haven't gotten a hold of anyone yet. We are trying to decide what we will do over EID. There is talk that the break might be extended because it falls on Thursday and then the weekend. It's all up to what the ministry decides. Two flights booked makes me pretty excited. One for Bahrain, and one to Connecticut over winter break. It's so nice to have friends that love traveling as much as I do!

I found this poem on one of my friends Facebook page. She is in Indonesia right now teaching! I thought it was an excellent description of "why."

"'Why do you do it?' friends often ask, perplexed, 

Brows raised, minds sorely vexed. 

'The world out there is dangerous! 

Aren't you scared? Why do this? 

You need steady work, a house, two cars! 

You have only a motorbike, and sleep under stars!' 

Dear friend, if you must ask, you cannot know 

This curiosity that drives me so. 

To you it is hidden; in me rises unbidden! 

But one day the world I'll have ridden 

By iron steed, then perhaps this need 

Will have vanished, finally vanquished! 

That day will find me on deathbed, 

With no regrets for the life I led. 

Will you be able to say the same? 

Or will you despair a life worn plain? 

I will stake my Himalayan memories 

Against your estate of a thousand trees. 

Pit my Thai sunset 

Against your private jet. 

Weigh my horse rides at sunrise 

To your Italian suits and ties. 

I'll rejoice in friends before I go, 

Not the figures of my stock portfolio. 

And, amazingly, there are more like me; 

They reject slavery, and are truly free. 

They took the chance we all had, 

And honestly it makes me sad 

That you didn't. 

You thought you couldn't... 

What? 

Live without the luxuries 

Of all our modern amenities? 

You choose the bonds of mortgage, but claim to be free, 

Wasting a lifetime absorbed by TV. 

Why watch it? but live it! 

One life's all you get! 

Don't put off 'til morrow and continue to borrow 

The lives of strangers; 'tis the greatest of dangers 

To the soul 

Which grows old 

Before its time. 

Hercules, Columbus, 

Guevara, Odysseus, 

Champlain, Agamemnon, 

The list goes on... 

What have they in common? 

Regardless man or god, 

The soil of continents they trod, 

Not in search of gold but adventure! 

Not growing old 'cause they ventured 

Far from safety; but far be it from me 

To Judge

The pitiless pity us

With souls black pitted

Pray! save it for those less spirited.

For us... our horizons are unlimited.

-- James Richmond

Hope everyone else had a great weekend! Mas salama!

It's called a WHAT?!?... A salary??

Hello Everyone,

TGIT... Thank god it's Thursday tomorrow! What a week! There have been some high highs and some pretty low lows. I can't seem to get school off my mind. EVER. Sometimes I feel like I am doing great, and other times I feel like I am doing terrible. Oh well.. I am sure that comes with the nature of being a first year teacher in a new country.

I've been thinking the past several days on my walks to and from school about contradictions in Kuwait. For example:

Our school is implementing Ipad's (school wide), but we have no smart technology.

Many stores sell condoms, but it's illegal to say "girlfriend" or "boyfriend." Although, I suppose a married couple could use those...

There are NO stop signs here, but people drive VERY expensive vehicles. (Even with one of the most dangerous highways in the world)

hmmm...

It's almost as if everywhere you go, you think wtf? Is it or it isn't? Real, not real? Possible, not possible? One piece of advice from an expat who has been here over a month now: Let nothing surprise you and assume nothing. Well, one thing I know for sure it that it's nice to survive that 'hump' until the first paycheck. Now, I feel like I have money... well because I do for the first time. I don't have to make that 2,000 some odd dollars last an entire semester anymore. I just need to make it last for a month. Weird. The first major purchase I spent my newly earned salary on was a T.V., and then a ticket to my sister's in CT over winter break. Still no updates on the apartment situation (enshallah).

p.s. EMBASSY party this weekend!! I will update after :D

Tiffany

The heat's gettin' to me

Ever have one of those dreams where you know you're still dreaming and frantically you wake up and think, "where the h*^l am I?" It's like a dream within a dream. This is what happens all the time to an expat.

I remember them talking at orientation that the school sort of becomes your second home. I thought, "geeze, I know it's open 24 hours, but how much time could a person REALLY spend there." I totally get this now. I eat, sleep, and dream things about school. This darn profession is always on my mind. I've heard that researchers have done studies that actually show how men can literally be thinking about nothing! They really do have it better than us women. That would be such a relief!

Anyways, I saw some stuff I forgot to mention on my last post. I survived my first parent night. Not too big of a deal, but I'll tell ya right now that being an RA was one of the best decisions I could have ever made. Some parents were really challenging, and it was nice to have some skills ready to deal with them in a calm and professional way. Also, the heat must really be getting to me because I didn't even think to mention how extreme it is here on my section of 'things that are wrong with the country and culture.' LOL

So much happens in such little time. It's crazy to think that next week, it will be October already! I have been in Kuwait for one month exactly on the 24th of Sept. I am amazed by how fast things have gone already. I just feel like there is always something to look forward to. We are thinking about going to Dubai soon, and there are embassy parties all the time. Always something to look ahead at, and not worrying about what's behind us.

I made it through week three and four of teaching with not too many bumps in the road. I have some challenging students, but I almost love them for that. I love all of my students. It just amazes me how creative they can be sometimes. Week four, however was a little different of a story than week three. I got really sick, and had to leave early on Monday. I had some amazing co-workers come by to check on me, brought me food, and took me in to the clinic. Apparently  I am officially and expat not that I have gotten sick here. I learned how to write sub plans real quick. The art of winging it myself is very different than writing in detail the art of someone else winging it. It's so nice to know that there are people here who will always be there for me if I need it.

Last weekend, a group of us went on a  yacht trip to Kubbar Island. It was everything that I needed! There were about 20 to 25 of us on board. Most of us were from our school, but there were people from another school and some Kuwaitis too. It took about two in a half hours for us to get to the island. It was so nice to be outside, eat lots of food, and listen to great music with great people. It is so beautiful there. There is sand everywhere and the water is pretty clear. The currents were REALLY strong that day, though. I really miss my good scuba mask, and I will definitely have my parents bring that for me at Christmas when we go on our family vacation to the Florida Keys.

A group of us enjoying our time even before we left the dock!

They say that owning fish as pets has proven to reduce your stress level. I imagine that this trip had this affect on me.

Beautiful sunset <3

Unfortunately, on our walk home after our amazing day, we had some idiots yell out thier window at us, "B****, I'm gonna put my d*** in your a**." Wow... just wow. Last weekend, Sarah and I also went to the Avenues Mall. It was so darn busy here that it took an hour each way to get there and back. Our taxi driver on the way home almost got us in a wreck. I literally closed my eyes and waited for the car to hit us. Luckily, the lady driving the car decided to slow down in the nick of time. Then, she proceded to yell across an elderly woman dressed in a hijab, to our taxi driver. She then chucked a full bottle of water at him, again, across the woman in the passengers seat. All of this yelling was in Arabic, but we still had a pretty good idea of what it was about.

Today, Sarah and I went to the Avenues Mall again. As we were ready to go, and just about to grab a taxi, some jerk PURPOSELY drives through a big puddle and totally splashed us. It was just like what you see in the movies. And yes, there are puddles in Kuwait. Not often, and probably mostly cat pee, but yes they exist here. Today is also the 'holy' day, so if you're running low on loud speaker sermons, then Kuwait is the place to be! Anyways, it was such a good day (minus the jerk and puddle) and we both got things that we had been wanting to get for a while. I think it's really important to do fun things on the weekends. This way, we can stay sane for the work week.

I really love writing these blog posts about my experiences here. When times get tough, it's really nice to be able to look back at the really good times, and it's nice to look back at the challenging times too. Oh, I tried Sarah's wine last week. It was delicious. Also, I am going to start brewing my own wine soon! I will keep you posted. Well, I miss you all back home and I hope everything is going really well! I am so, so sorry that this post took FOREVER!

Check Facebook for more pics! :D

Survival Mode 101

So far, my time teaching here can be completely summed up with two words. Survival mode. Just like anything in life, when you throw a bunch of new things at it, some things take a while to fully understand. All that talk about spending long hours after school and on the weekends, and how hard the first year is... well, all that talk is certainly true. Oh yeah, and that HUGE learning curve.. also true.

I've been able to barely keep my head afloat in this new gig. Things will get better, though. If I think it, then I tend to have more hope that it will come true. My students are so stinkin cute, it's so hard to ever get mad at them. I don't remember which staff member said it, but this really is a good looking culture.

My Classroom On The First Day

Anyways, aside from school stuff, I have heard that there is a point in culture shock that a person starts to notice all the stuff that is wrong with it. I've definitely reached this. To begin, ALL THE DUST! The wind was really strong this weekend, and I could feel the dust hitting me. It was hard to breathe, and I felt like there was a semi- permanent layer of dust all over my skin. This wasn't even a sand storm!

It is really dirty here. The trashes are always over flowing, and you can smell them from a couple of meters away. To add to that, you will see cats lurking in almost every trash dumpster, or pile of trash that you come across. These cats are feral, meaning they are wild. It doesn't matter that they are wild or hanging out in trash, a person's heart just can't help but break when seeing them.

En shallah. I've come to the decision that 'en shallah' or 'okay, sure' means never or don't hold your breath. Hence, why I am still in a temporary living situation.

It is very obvious that my students rarely receive discipline at home. They always say 'miss,' and sometimes snap their fingers at you, just as they would do to their maids. I always say the same things, "sit down, raise your hand, and wait quietly please." In addition to that, I've got a couple of parents who are challenging and one of the teacher's that comes into my room has been challenging to work with as well.

I don't know how to work the laundry machines or stoves here. I put my clothes in, pushed a button and they came out smelling good. I have tried multiple things for the stove but no luck. I am also a little afraid of lighting it myself, doing it wrong, and singeing off my eyebrows. I'll let ya know if I ever figure out this tricky thing!

I am surprised I haven't been in, or seen a car crash. I have gotten used to doing a full 360 before attempting to cross any street when I am walking. Also, people honk and stare like they've never seen a westerner before. I mean, thanks for all the attention, but enough's enough.

I've been here for over three weeks, almost a month and I can not for the life of me figure out the whole call to prayer thing. My friend Chantel and I were walking to school one day and we were talking about how we thought we would see people dropping everything and praying when that thing goes off. Hasn't happened yet. Actually, thinking about it more, I can't really figure out Kuwait in general. It's so intriguing, and I want to learn more all the time. I am just fascinated by the clear division of social and economic class. Kuwaiti's are the richest and in turn have the highest 'wasta' or power. Then, you have maids and workers who attain the lowest 'wasta' and it's really sad to see that part of it.

Some updates on some fun outings with friends:

Life just got sweeter? YOU BET!

We enjoy eating out and ordering in a lot. Last week, we ordered in from 6alabot or (talabot). THIS SITE IS AWESOME! It is reasonably cheap to order and pretty much any place in Kuwait delivers. You can even have juice or ice cream delivered! On Saturday (our Sunday), we had a late lunch at The Chocolate Bar. Yes, this is a restaurant.. they must have known I was coming here! Later, we ate at one of our favorite Indian restaurants. There is no doubt that I am beginning to take food as seriously as they do here. Also, we went shopping and after a long week of teaching, it just seems to soothe the soul :).

proof :)

Caroline and me enjoying our pretend alcoholic drinks

Chantel and Sarah

On Thursday, our TGIT (thank god it's thursday) day, the school took a couple of buses to the Friday Market and plank souk. A souk is basically like a specialized shop. So, there are plant souks, furniture souks, pretty much anything souks. I think I will thoroughly enjoy going back to the Friday Market, of course when I have an apartment to fill up. It's a great place to practice on those bartering skills. :)

A very small glimpse of the Friday Market

Me at the Friday Market

After we got to explore the Friday Market, some of us went to the plant souk near by. They have anything and everything. Different people offer different deals, another great place to do some bartering. Also, seeing green and a lot of it really lifted the spirits. It felt like when you see the sun in Aberdeen finally on a winter's day. A person doesn't know what they've got until it's gone.

plants from the souk

friends enjoying a night out

A little update on the apartment situation:

Well.. en shallah. I feel like I will wake up one day and they will say, "okay you're moving tonight."

a little view on my walk to the school from my second temporary apartment

blue building= second temporary apartment

Some friends and I are going to start planning trips soon. I can't wait to see where we decide to go! Something to look forward to, that's for sure. 

For my friends and family, I miss you a lot and hope everything is going great! 

xoxo 

Tiffany

molding young minds

I figured I would get a post on here about my very first, first day and week of my teaching career. Our school week here goes from Sunday- Thursday. This takes a little bit to get used to. On Thursday, we kept saying, "I'm so glad it's Friday.. I mean.. Thursday!" We also have a schedule that goes on a 6 day rotation. So, we really need to pay attention what day we are on. We had our first day on September 4th which was a Tuesday. I was so nervous and excited all at the same time to start and meet the kids.

There's a lot of factors that go in to play with all these "firsts."

• This is my first time living in a new country
• This is my first time teaching my own class
• This is definitely my first time learning how to say so many Arabic names
• This is my first time having a TA
• This is my first time teaching under an IB program 

Let's see, living in a new country is pretty exciting, most of the time. There are still a lot of things I haven't seen or done here yet so I still feel like I'm traveling and being a tourist. At the same time, I know it's not just a "trip." Also, I am living in another "temporary" building. It's a building that is owned by the Hyatt and is just down the street from it, and it has a fridge, microwave, tv, internet, etc. I get to live with my friend Chantel too, which is pretty awesome. I am still yearning for that settling in feeling, though. 

My first day of school was... well it's over haha. I will be honest with you, I came to school not fully knowing every thing that I was going to teach that day. I spent many nights before school started waking up in the middle of the night still trying to dream up how I was going to set up my expectations and what to do with the kids. It's very stressful. It doesn't help that everything is goes by the meaning of en shallah here. For example, they switched our email, so for a while there we were getting important emails on both the new email and the old email. It also takes time getting to know where things are at and how to use them. All goes with the nature of being a newbee .

Just a little side note about my class... I got here and I had no idea what resources, what materials, etc. were in my classroom. So, in order for me to function here.. I had to get organized and get a slight feel for what I have available to me. I have very little experience with IB teaching, but I understand the general outline of it. It's inquiry... just always think inquiry and you've got it! It doesn't mean that you can't direct teach, but we have the freedom to decide what we teach and how we will teach it. This way we can figure out what the students are interested in, and decide what lessons we want to teach during what times and how we will teach them. It was overwhelming realizing this. There is a plethora of resources and lesson ideas, but it's all us. We also decide when to teach the subjects during the day. It sure feels like a lot right now, but I know it will get better. 

Luckily, my TA has been here in Kuwait and at AIS for a long time. She helped me practice some of the names before they got here. Like Jana I thought would sound just like it looks.. Jana, but it's actually said like Jenna. Lot's of little things to remember. 

All in all, my first day and first week went pretty well. I was surprised how much better the second day was than the first. Of course, the first day there were a few kids who were so nervous (even more than I was) and they cried for a bit. Things like that, you just got to deal with as it comes. So, I am hoping that it continues to get better and better each day. Next week, we have a full week... ahhh. Five days of teaching in a row!

Wish me luck! 

mas salamma 

en shallah

Greetings!

Let's see... last time I talked about food, school, hotel, and shopping mostly. I believe at least all of those topics will be covered again with this post :). Life is so great and chill. Very social.. which is nice.

Well, I'll start with the topic of food. I'd say I'm starting with the best topic but everything here is good! Anyways, on Wednesday evening we got to go to the palms restaurant and experience some traditional arabic food. It was fantastic! It seems like a place where you would go to have a wedding reception. We had lamb and chicken with lamb kabob, also hummus and pita bread and a dessert. I am not sure what the dessert is called but it was like a custard with raspberry topping. I enjoyed it. Then, we went to a little hut type thing where a man was playing an instrument and we had traditional arabic coffee with a date. I will try my darnest to never pass up a free meal!

Speaking of meals again, since there are a few of us staying at the hotel, our elementary principal and his wife invited us to dinner Thursday evening. They have such an amazing apartment! They have really tall windows in their living room and it has a great view of the gulf! They made us bbq chicken and burgers with corn and fries. It was really nice to sit down and have a meal with a family.

There are all kinds of really small restaurants. There is a great iranian bread place, schwarma, and pizza places right near the school. I am sure there are many others.. but I've tried all these ones so far.. it's cheap and good food. A schwarma is like chickpeas or chicken or anything really wrapped in a pita bread. Also, most of these places deliver :).

The currency here is called Kuwaiti Dinar. It goes in 1, 5, 10 and 20. Each dinar costs approximately 3.53 US dollars. There is change here too.. its called fils. They aren't too important here.. you can't buy very much with them. Oh, and they also have 1/4 dinar, 1/3 dinar, and 1/2 dinar. It's not too difficult to get the hang of. All of the bills are different sizes too, the bigger the amount, the bigger the bill.

When we want to take a taxi, we can negotiate the price. I am a true haggler.. or barterer or whatever you call in your own corner of the world. It is important to tell them the location and price before you get in. I haven't heard of anyone actually going off the meters yet. Yesterday, was my first taxi experience. I laughed because we took a car and five of us rode together in the same taxi. It was a little squished.. but it saved money! Also, if we were going to wreck.. it's nice to have us all together lol. Driving here is nuts, absolutely nuts.

School, school is a work in progress. En shallah.. which means "God willing." So, when God wills it to happen... anything to happen, it will. A great example: my apartment. en shallah. :) We are thinking it will be a much longer situation than a shorter one. Anyways, going back to talking about school, it's basically a construction zone everywhere. They made quite a few changes. They rebuilt the library.. it's not finished yet of course haha but it will be a great facility when it's finished. They expanded the pre-k, kg1 and kg2 classrooms. Their safety standards are not at all the same as western standards. Oh, by the way.. people from the US or Canada are known as "westerners" here. Anyways, men will be working on wooden structures tied together by ropes. There are wires and things all over the place.. it's just different here.

Another thing about school that I did not expect was finding out that I will have a full time TA (teacher's assistant). She is very nice, and much older than I am. I have never had a TA before.. let alone had a real teaching career, so it's a bit intimidating. I am happy that she is knowledgable and can tell me the flow of things. Also, it's nice to have someone doing your bulletins and cleaning and things like that. I am hoping all will go well.. like with being on the same page and everything.

The students come on the 4th.. which is only a couple of days away! I can not wait to meet them! I don't fully understand the structure of how I am supposed to teach with the IB program, but I think once I get the hang of it, it will be so much fun. Lots and lots of freedom as a teacher. I stayed pretty late yesterday dreaming up how I will continue to set up my classroom, and I plan to spend a great deal of time there tomorrow. It doesn't seem like anyone will get too worked up about much here.

We have been invited to dinner tonight by the Al Sabwah (sp?) family. They are the royal family here in Kuwait. The family tree is HUGE. Anyways, some members of this family founded our school. I think one of them is a working dentist. During our orientation, they mentioned a lot of influential Kuwaitis who have had a positive and successful impact on Kuwait. These people are dentists, engineers, innovative people who make their ideas happen. They said that a huge percentage of these people had a strong western influence. I thought that was pretty cool. We were told to dress up nice for this dinner, and I am thinking.. actually I am very confident that the food will be delicious. They really do love their food here.

Yesterday, I went with some friends to visit the Avenues Mall once again. During our orientation, we watched this youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PYFgRs1xvY&feature=related (at the bottom there is a link). I thought it was really neat. You can also see the diversity of people, and clothing, and everything in this video. Some of us wanted internet right away and they have these things called a biscut. It's a portal wifi device. It works on anything that has wifi capabilities. I had to get one! I can use it in my iphone, my mac, or my soon to be ipad from the school. I will have internet anywhere and anytime. Our school is going ipad wide this year.. so in about a month or so, every one of my students will have an ipad. Should be pretty cool and interesting. I also bought some new dressy sandals and a watch. I am discovering it's impossible to find a clock anywhere and it's annoying to have to rely on my phone.

Sometimes, around rush hour.. which starts pretty late here, I will just hear what seems like hundreds of vehicles honking their horns. The first time I heard this, I didn't believe it. One thing that I have actually gotten used to is the call to prayer. I couldn't even tell you the specific times it goes off. There is a prayer time application on my cheap samsung phone haha, so I could find out there. It's just a man singing in arabic that projects outside everywhere. It is considered rude if you play music during this time, so if you ever come and visit, don't play music during the call to prayer.

So.. again with Kuwait being a dry country and all, there are definately ways around it. We were invited to a returner teacher's apartment for a "party." We went there expecting to have coffee and play board games or something. This was not at all the case. They brew date rum, which is made from the date fruit or home brew wine and things, or smuggle it in. There were a ton of people there and we had a great time!

I've met a lot of great people here, and there is a group of us who want to travel together during the breaks! There are just so many places near here that I want to get to. Anything will be fun. I am excited to keep enjoying life and see what happens next!

cheers!
mas sallama!
see ya later!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PYFgRs1xvY&feature=related