My eyes definitely popped open this week...I still have the privilege of a driver at my disposal and on the way to work, in one of those 3-lane roundabouts (we call them traffic circles in the US), we had a minor accident when a native in an SUV decided that he needed to make a right turn from the interior-most left lane of the roundabout at the last second and smacked into us, in the middle lane, and we were not turning right. We took the next right out of the roundabout and parked behind the offending SUV and waited - me for a replacement driver to take me to work and the driver for the police to see how his lot would be cast, despite not being at fault.
I received my Resident Permit (RP) the same day, a real triumph given the pace of the office agenda and all the off-site testing an applicant must undergo - - a medical test, blood-typing at a separate location and a fingerprinting exercise - - all conducted with separate facilities for men and women. The RP allows one to bank online, obtain a liquor permit (required to purchase beer, wine and liquor at a store way out of town), and facilitates other modern, mostly digital conveniences. I am told that I now have 7 days to get my national driver's license despite holding current US and International driver's licenses. I don't know the consequences but the RP has an issue date and if I am in a vehicular mishap when I start driving one of the organization's pool cars, I am likely in deep sh*t.
After reading a little tidbit in the local paper this morning about a couple's fate for conceiving a child out of wedlock, I am slightly concerned about testing the rules. The couple, a Pakistani man (21) and a Filipina woman (34), had extramarital relations in late 2007 that resulted in a child last year. The hospital reported this matter to the police and the couple were prosecuted for illicit relations and were convicted; they will both receive 100 lashes and face deportation despite producing papers at the trial that they intend to marry. I can't figure out if this is a case of making a draconian example of guest workers with little social leverage or if the lashings will actually take place. I don't think an ex-pat is subject to lashings for driving without a valid local license but perhaps I'll now bug my handler to feed me into the driver's license process.
For me, the end of Ramadan and Eid Al Fitr meant that hotel bars reopened, weekday traffic got hideous, and the tea and coffee people resumed their duties at the office. I didn't realize that a door at the end of our hallway was actually a kitchen and last Sunday, when "normal" resumed, there was a fleet of people in black and white uniforms preparing tea and coffee in porcelain cups and saucers, delivering it all morning on doily-covered trays. Despite anticipating full enjoyment of this perk, I don't much care for it and I am instead the one that asks for hot water to make my own green tea. Our small team will move to another office in a few weeks and I am reworking the kitchen amenities there with the facilities guy to ensure we have brewed coffee (leaded and unleaded) at the new spot.
When I am overseas, I take great interest in the Coca Cola product. In Latin America, for example, the Coke is made with sugar, not high-fructose corn syrup, and tastes much better. Here, the calories are called "energy" and there are only 42 per serving, with a 330 ml can holding 3 servings, also made with sugar. I love the Arabic spelling, reading right to left "Coca Cola":
The locals and assimilated ex-Pats claim that the glorious weather has now set in ...it's only 99 degrees right now (noon) and the rest of the week is forecast to be 90-95 with lows in the 70's. I guess they are referring to the 20-degree swing and how the downward temps are felt soon after dusk. With the a/c blasting all the time, it's hard to appreciate the subtle difference but I have started to enjoy sleeping with the window open, which also means I really hear the pre-dawn call to prayer... no need for an alarm clock.
Posts
