it's Sabbath here
Today - Friday - is the weekend. Big prayer time now for most folks. Also, my favorite falafel (breakfast) place was closed, so I feel a bit disoriented.
OK, it's not only in mosques with the separation of men and women – I think I just went into the wrong room here at the internet café. It's all good – I was escorted to the correct place. And now the keeper of the computers has put on "Hotel California" for me. Which is quite a different reception than usual … while people here are quite pleasant to me as a person, that I am American is definitely a strike against me. I've taken to saying, "Yes, I am American, but I am not Bush – nor do I support him." I'm not sure I'm a typical American and should be representing, but I think I'm more typical than him so it's good to present another side.
I've been very busy with hanging out. Mahmoud is letting me invade his life and everybody from his dentist to his 4-year-old nephew is taking care of me. I got women time yesterday and that was nice – his brother's wife's sister, an English teacher, invited me over for lunch and I stayed for many hours – culminating in a trip out of town to her parents' house and meeting several of the 8 daughters and 2 sons. The day before that we spent with the dentist friend who drove us out in the hills and stole fresh grapes for me (he insisted the field is his friend's). And always the men in the stationery store, especially Mamoon who spends time and effort teaching me Arabic. Which is a very, very slow process since I just don’t have any exposure before. Poor Youssef (the nephew) – he tries so hard to communicate with me, repeating over and over, more slowly, more loudly. Fortunately his older siblings understand that I'm just very slow.
Yikes, I just saw the time and have to go picked up by Mahmoud's brother's family for yummy mensaf. Hopefully I'll be able to come back and upload pics soon. And hopefully I don't break any more furniture – yesterday the couch I was sitting on collapsed! They insisted it's been broken for years and does that regularly, but I still now have the reputation of the house-destroyer. I think I'm relegated to the floor now.
OK, it's not only in mosques with the separation of men and women – I think I just went into the wrong room here at the internet café. It's all good – I was escorted to the correct place. And now the keeper of the computers has put on "Hotel California" for me. Which is quite a different reception than usual … while people here are quite pleasant to me as a person, that I am American is definitely a strike against me. I've taken to saying, "Yes, I am American, but I am not Bush – nor do I support him." I'm not sure I'm a typical American and should be representing, but I think I'm more typical than him so it's good to present another side.
I've been very busy with hanging out. Mahmoud is letting me invade his life and everybody from his dentist to his 4-year-old nephew is taking care of me. I got women time yesterday and that was nice – his brother's wife's sister, an English teacher, invited me over for lunch and I stayed for many hours – culminating in a trip out of town to her parents' house and meeting several of the 8 daughters and 2 sons. The day before that we spent with the dentist friend who drove us out in the hills and stole fresh grapes for me (he insisted the field is his friend's). And always the men in the stationery store, especially Mamoon who spends time and effort teaching me Arabic. Which is a very, very slow process since I just don’t have any exposure before. Poor Youssef (the nephew) – he tries so hard to communicate with me, repeating over and over, more slowly, more loudly. Fortunately his older siblings understand that I'm just very slow.
Yikes, I just saw the time and have to go picked up by Mahmoud's brother's family for yummy mensaf. Hopefully I'll be able to come back and upload pics soon. And hopefully I don't break any more furniture – yesterday the couch I was sitting on collapsed! They insisted it's been broken for years and does that regularly, but I still now have the reputation of the house-destroyer. I think I'm relegated to the floor now.
posted by NOLA at 2:54 AM
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