Thanksgiving in Bahrain

One of the greatest things about living here is that we are consistently having first and last (and some times both) experiences.  Our latest is our trip across the border to Bahrain for Thanksgiving with the Chandlers. 

We chose to go for several reasons, first our district conference was being held there and we felt it would be important to meet more members face to face.  It took place at their international school, which was a very modern and impressive structure.  We listened to talks from President Price as well as Elder Piper (whom we had seen before several years ago in Burley). 

Afterwards we took a field trip to find the Tree of Life (you must google this subject to get a picture and full history).  The unique things about it is that it is over 400 years old, there is no water in the vicinity - thus begging the question how does it survive, and finally some believe it to be the original garden of Eden.

As far as Thanksgiving, our day was spent at the souks where David found a shop that sold old currencies.  Emri bought a 10 dollar bill from Iraq with Saddam Hussein's picture on it.  The ladies needed to visit the mall of course where they purchased some long sought after C-mas decorations and then we ended up at a restaurant named Rics for a traditional thanksgiving meal.  It was delicious to the tongue, but the heart felt a bit empty due to not having the usual group of suspects sitting around the table - we missed our family!  What we did appreciate was the company of the Chandlers and their gracious and humble influence in our lives.  In between bites of turkey and HAM (yes, they had it there) we all shared 3 things we are grateful for. It was very satisfying to hear what everyone said.

All in all a great trip where we were fed both spiritually and physically.

Whirl wind tour

Hello again!  Sorry for the prolonged absence, but we've been caught up in the routine things of life here in the kingdom for the past month or so.  There really wasn't much to report, but then all of a sudden it became fast and furious.  Now that we have a breather, it's time to capture the highlights.

VOLLEYBALL
First: Jayci's volleyball team had a great season.  Their amazing coach (Krishna) was tasked with taking 20 girls of varying abilities and create 3 teams.  The idea was to give all those who tried out an opportunity to play.  She did a masterful job of organizing teams where the girls were matched up by ability thus creating a fun and competitive experience.  There was an end of season tourney where only the "A" team would compete against 16 other teams from all over Saudi Arabia.  Also, these teams had older and bigger girls on them. Our team's tallest girl was Jayci and collectively the 7 players were so scrawny that a good breeze would have knocked them all over.  Needless to say, when they entered the gym, not only were the other teams not impressed, but they wanted to buy them lunch to help fill them out a little.

Long story short, the girls played amazing on the final day of the tournament and ended up winning it.  So in a way, they are national champions and should feel very good about their performance.  It is the first time that a team from Ras Tanura has won this title and people are very proud of them.

Emri also played on the Dhahran International high school team.  They had two strong players, her and a Megan Johnston.  They boarded a plan to a place on the red sea called Kaust.  She and Danielle (her best friend) stayed with a host family and became good friends with their daughter, Megan Harris - from South Africa.  After 2 days of competition, it became quite clear that Emri's team was the class of the field and had little problem with their matches.  In the end they took home the gold.  So, we have three national champions in the Haynie house.  Once again, dad is looking like dead weight.

TRIPS:

SHAYBA

On 10/27/11 we were fortunate enough to be picked (through a lottery) as a family to go to Shayba KSA.  This is a company sponsored trip whereby they commissioned a company plane to take 100 people on a field trip.  This is a very sought after experience because it is located in the empty quarter near the Oman border.  SAco has several wells located there as well as a very nice compound for it's employees.  The reason why people want to go is because of the indescribable sand dunes.  These are the steep and massive mountain ranges of red dunes that you see on documentaries.  They have to be experienced first hand to begin to fathom just how impressive these dunes are.  We were treated to a great lunch and tutorial about Shayba and then spirited off to an incredible vantage point called the upper tent.  From there we went sand surfing and trekking to explore one of the natural wonders of the world.  After our foray into the endless sea of red sand, we came back to an incredible buffet.  We sat on carpet and pillows, gorged on shrimp and heard amazing stories all while sitting under the vast Arabian sky.

YANBU & JEDDAH

10/27/11 Kris and I headed to the West Coast.  We were fortunate enough to hitch a ride on the company jet for a double dip excursion to Yanbu and Jeddah.

People had told us that the Red Sea is the world's best diving area and that Yanbu held some spectacular dives.  Kris and I are not certified, so we opted to snorkel instead.  After some creative planning and a little luck, we were able to visit a spot that had been closed to the general public for several years (thanks to a very nice coast guard officer who made an exception for us). 

Words cannot describe how beautiful the underwater scenery was.  Between countless numbers and varieties of fish, coupled with a true victory garden of coral it really was mind blowing to try and assimilate all the sea life we saw.  It truly was a world class snorkelingexperience!  We had the whole ocean to ourselves and I felt like I was experiencing the red sea just as inhabitants had 1000s of years ago.  The most exhilarating moment was when I came face to face with a moray eel.  I swear it had the head of a pit bull and chuck full of teeth that compared to any shark mouth around.  I quietly swam away and wished him well.

The next day we did some quick sight seeing and then boarded the second leg of our journey to Jeddah.  It was the best and worst time to be there.  I say that because we happened to be arriving at the same time around 3 million of the Islamic faithful were too.  It was great to see Jeddah come alive with the Hajj (pilgrimage in full swing).  We saw the dedicated Hajj terminal along with several Pilgrims dressed in their white robes.

On our first full day there we hitched a ride with a flight crew from Turkey airlines and stowed away on a private beach.  It was nice, it had tiki huts and refreshment shacks So, when we weren't snorkeling around the perimeter, we kicked back on a lounge chair and cat napped.  The snorkeling was good, but because we had been spoiled in Yanbu, it didn't have quite the same thrill factor.

Day 2 we hired a driver to take us around the city and we see saw a lot of very interesting places.  Old town (balad) had some great original buildings and souks that kept us busy.  We saw a fish market with every kind imaginable species still flopping around.  The turn abouts had some really cools statues, including a 75 foot tall bicycle.  We saw the famous floating mosque as well as a monument dedicated to Eve.  I tried to get in and take pictures but the keepers wouldn't let me stay because I wasn't Muslim.

All in all it was a great trip and very affordable due to the generosity of Aramco and their private fleet.

OMAN  11/4/11

The Haynie family has become good friends with the Decoopmans, mainly due to Emri's pal-ing around with Danielle.  They are a great family and we felt lucky that they chose to go to Oman with us.  We originally got the idea travel there from Randy M.  He showed us some pictures of the country one night and we were hooked.  He loaned us a book and we spent many weeks planning out our agenda.  There is so much you can do there and it takes many trips to see all the different sides of it.  Luckily it is just a short flight away, so we expect to visit it often.



 Upon arriving in Muscat, we noticed right away how clean and organized the city appeared.  There was a real feeling of "pride of ownership".  Our hotel was called the Tiger house and it was something you would see in a kid's Disney movie.  There were tiger statues everywhere and the walls were painted in tiger orange.  It is a converted apartment building, so it was functional and affordable, but certainly wouldn't make the 5 star rating.  Day 1 we tanked up on Crepes at a local seaside eating locale and then headed to Muttrah (old Muscat) for some souk shopping and sight seeing.  The ladies found their favorite vendors and purchased some souvenirs.  Robert and his GPS brought us to different points of interest like the corniche, the kings home, and other unique nooks and crannies.

Day 2 we headed south to see some turtles in Ras al Jinz.  We had plenty of time to make the journey, so we had planned to see some wadis (river beds that wind down from the mountains and deposit in the sea). They are very popular for the locals to go and relax.  Unfortunately, it was Eid and all the country was celebrating, so it was very crowded.  WE attempted to go to Wadi Sudayh, but as we travel up it in a land cruiser, it become impassable do to a rain storm that had hit the week before, so as we were trying to figure out what to do next, a tour guide offered to let us follow her to the next attraction - the Sink Hole by Tiwi. 

This place is is just what it says it is, a big hole with fresh water in the bottom.  We snapped a few photos and then followed our adopted guide to the next stop - Fins Beach.  Here we snorkeled along the rocks and saw a fair variety of fish, although we had to be real careful of the sea urchins.  After a few hours it was time to head further south to turtle land.  We drove to the city of Sur and enjoyed a nice meal at the hotel where the Decoopmans stayed.  Then we headed to our spot called Turtle island resort.  Don't let the name fool you, a resort it wasn't.  Our accommodations were a 4 walled, dirt floor bamboo hut with 3 bunk beds.  After having a good laugh, we secured a local guide to take us to the turtles.  We did this because the regular expedition was full and we needed a plan B.

They took us out at 9pm and we were able to see 1 mother turtle making her way back to sea after she had buried her eggs.  The guide had a bucket of little turtles that he released and we got to watch them follow the moonlight out to the ocean.  We felt a little cheated due to only seeing one turtle, but the guide said that the full moon makes the turtles hesitant to come ashore.  I wasn't convinced about his story until the next morning when a overheard someone saying that they went to the "official" site and they didn't see any.

The next morning we headed back to Sur and visited the boat building factory.  It was amazing to see these large fishing boat being built by hand the same way it's been done over the centuries.  Rumour has it that this exact location played a part in Lehi's voyage.

On our way back north we stopped off at Wadi Sadwa.  It was absolutely amazing!  It was an hour hike filled with adventure at every turn.  We saw palm oasis', standing pools of fresh water as well as grotto with a waterfall (you had to swim underwater to reach it).  It was definitely the scenic high point of the trip.  After several hours there, we returned back to the Tiger house for a good night sleep.

Our final (half) day there was spent exploring different sections of Muscat.  We saw Shangri-la resort (VERY NICE), tried to go dolphin watching but it didn't work out, and of course visited the local mall (we didn't need a GPS for that, the ladies seemed to sniff it out by themselves).

All in all a great trip.  The people were very friendly and positive.  The country had a nice energy, immaculate surroundings and abayas were not necessary.  We look forward to coming back soon.










   

Road trip to Riyadh

According to our master travel plan, it was time to visit Riyadh (the capital of Saudi Arabia).  We wanted to go there soon while it still sounded exciting and worth the effort.  We knew that this was not going to be one of our more glamorous trips, but we felt it was going to be very valuable growth experience to go for many reasons such as 1) can we be daring enough to travel on unknown roads in the middle of the desert 2) are we brave enough to go to the heart of CONSERVATIVE Islam during Ramadan and live to tell about it, 3) will we be able to adjust to the unknown surprises that await? etc. 

I think we were all feeling a bit of stress, but no one wanted to admit it to others so we put on a brave face and jumped into the car. 

Long story short, the 4 hour drive to Riyadh was fairly uneventful other than the; VERY primitive rest stops,

cars travel around 125mph (no kidding),

and a few camels resting alongside the freeway under palms trees.

The GPS has been a Godsend because it has given us the confidence to go and see many things, however there are still a few nuances we are still adjusting to.  For example it will say "keep to the left" what it means is to exit to the left.  It took us a couple of missed exits to figure this out, but by the end we were getting around like natives.

Our first impression of Riyadh as we drove into the city was pure amazement.  This relatively young city has to have one of the most diverse architectural landscapes of any city I've been to so far.  It's an architect's dream between friendly building codes and available money for brick and mortar masterpieces. 

 

Once we arrived to our hotel, we took a quick nap, ate some snacks (remember we can't eat in public yet until sundown) and then headed out to see the Mazmack palace.  This is a very important site in the Saudi history because a revolutionary battle for the city took place here.  I'll spare you the details here (please google it), but it was an impressive place. 

The added bonus was that a very large souq (outdoor street shopping) was close by so Emri found her some cool sandals and Kris bought a brass vase (looks like an erne).

About that time, we decided we were hungry so we found a Johnny Rockets and feasted on hamburgers and lemonades.  There were curtains around our stall, they take the family seating area very seriously here.  There is absolutely no mixed seating in restaurants, if you are a solo woman or with your husband/family you are asked to eat in a covered booth.

We then headed back to our hotel which was within walking distance of the Kingdom Tower.  This was very fortuitous because the less we needed to drive the better (crazy drivers everywhere).  We went to the tower paid 6 dollars each to ride the 2 elevators (99 floors) to the sky walk on top. 

The view is absolutely amazing and gave a good perspective of the city where 5 million people live. 

After the ride down, there is a 3 level mall with all the high end stores.  Level 2 is interesting because it is for women only, they call it Ladies Kingdom".  On this floor females don't have to wear their head dress (scarves, masks, etc) and not have the eyes of the men on them.

Day 2

Our plan was to see the national museum in the morning and then check out the Old Dariya ruins.  Unfortunately with Holiday Eid Iftar (to celebrate the end of Ramadan) going on the times were different so we weren't able to get in. 

After a route recalculation we went to Dariya.  This was the original Saudi capital that was eventually destroyed by the Ottoman empire (please Google it).  There were some cool old structures as well as side streets that made some great pictures.

All this sightseeing made us tired and hungry, so after a nap we found the nearest Applebys (notice the curtains again) and pretended we were in America. 

(closed for Prayer!)

We caught our second wind and decided to find another souq.  Unfortunately due to the heavy holiday traffic and a bit of fatigue we weren't able to find it so we back to the hotel.

An important learning for us concerning hotels is that when they say a room has 2 double beds, it's not the same arrangement as in the states. Here it means 2 single size beds specifically designed for married couples who don't want to share the same bed. This meant that we had to be creative as far as bed assignments, but we managed and everyone got there beauty sleep.

Day 3

Ramadan officially ended today, which meant we could eat breakfast in public.  With that positive news we thought we would visit the museum and then have brunch before we headed back home.  But alas, the museum again had different hours from what we were told the day before and so we couldn't get in (maybe next time).

With little else to do, we got some food for the road and made the 4 hour drive back.  I think we all felt a sense of relief as we pulled into the camp, but also proud of ourselves that we made the trip.  We definitely faced some fears and worked through them.  We are gaining confidence and more comfort being in a foreign land, but careful not to let our guard down.

All our love.

From Castles to Krispie Kreams

Ever since we tried to find the Tarut Castle a few weeks ago (and failed), I became more determined to circle back and accomplish the mission - and today we did thanks to our GPS.  I love this little box, it's amazing the confidence and excitement it creates to go and explore, especially now that we have learned how to find and enter coordinates.

At high noon we took off in search for the castle and before we knew it we had arrived.  It afforded some cool views, but unfortunately is is confined behind a chain linked fence so it prohibited our up close inspection.  As we were heading back, a 20 something Saudi in a nice car said that he could let us in to kick around.  I was skeptical at first because there was a sign that clearly said to stay out, but he said that he had a key (and permission) to get in, so we decided to follow him.  As you can see we got some cool pics and if you want to learn more about it just google "Tarut Castle".

Tarut is an island and it has some pretty amazing views of harbours, mosques and very upscale homes.  We sorta got lost on purpose to explore what the island has to offer.  There was a cornice with a park like setting that I'm sure in the cooler months would be full with families enjoying the day. 

On the way out we stopped at a gas station to fill up and as we were paying the attendant (which by the way everything here is full service) he handed us two small boxes of tissues. Not sure why, but I guess it is seen as a corporate gesture of appreciation. - unusual but nice.

From there we went and explored the city of Dammam, it is big and commercial.  Lots of stores and wide streets to explore.  We'll have to go back and spend more time actually going into the shops as everyone here  says they have a favorite place to buy everything from prom dresses to sofas.

After driving back into Khobar and picking up some paint and doughnuts, we went to the Dhahran camp to visit some families that have children Emri and Jayci's age.  They were the Randals (the dad was from Rupert) and the Johnstons.  We had pizza, dahl, krispie kreams and home made ice cream.  Not bad for being in the middle of Saudi Arabia.   

I am on vacation now for the next few weeks and we have a couple of options for activities to keep us busy.  Along with some excursions, we will be doing some home fix up projects to help it feel more like home, we will keep you posted...

Bahrain 2 - the sequel

If you've been following along from the beginning, you'll remember that my second month here I went with Peter to Bahrain to visit some important places - their mosque and the museum.  Well yesterday, the whole family and I (plus Jennifer) went back there again. 

It was a great adventure and well worth the trip.  At the grand mosque we were assigned a great guide, and to top it off all the women had the unique experience of wearing abayas (see pics) during the tour.  We learned some fascinating things about the mosque as well as Islam.  We were treated to a "back stage" rehearsal and translation of their call to prayer.  It certainly left a positive impression of the Muslim in all of our minds.

 

Afterwards we went to the museum and learned more about the history of the region as well as the specifics of the ancients Bahrainians. 

 After these two stops, the ladies had 2 things on their mind; 1-Lunch and 2 - Shopping.  We decided to eat lunch at the mall, but because it is Ramadan, nothing opens up until after sunset set.  Luckily, Carrefour (a supermarket chain) inside the mall remained open so we picked up some essentials and then set out to find an inconspicuous place to eat - the far corner of the underground parking lot (see pic). 

Then the shopping marathon began (just shoot me now), but I survived just fine.  We even fit in a movie (Larry Crown), Krishna was bummed because there wasn't any popcorn yet.

These are some cool pics Emri took of down town buildings.  I really like the one with propellers.

All in all a fun and fulfilling day!