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