I have been keeping busy since I last wrote, which is a good thing. Until the last few days, things had been back to normal in that school was in session and I woke up and had some place to go and a routine again. I will write another entry that focuses on the latest news. This entry is strictly on the doings of tourist Anna :) As I mentioned in my last entry I was set to go to City Centre, which is the biggest mall in Bahrain. Everyone talks about it and says it is huge. I don't know what I was expecting actually since I come from the state where the Mall of America is located. Needless to say it was about one fourth the size of the MOA if even that, although it is always fun to walk around malls in other parts of the world. Some shops are the same....like GAP, Claire's and H&M...and some are different. I saw "Life As We Know It" again, which I saw was now on DVD in the States, so I have to laugh. Of course this time I got to watch it with Arabic subtitles on the bottom of the screen, so there.
Sunday, weak student reports were due for the first part of quarter 3. I am thrilled to report that all 49 of my students are passing. Some not by much, but passing nonetheless. I am told this is a big deal...so I feel good about that. The dance I was supposed to chaperone a while back was rescheduled for last Thursday, but on Wednesday, it was decided to cancel it. The worry was not our students, but youth from the outside getting in and creating problems. I know that all the students were disappointed. I was also bummed at not getting to chaperone, but safety is key.
On Ash Wednesday I attended service at the local Anglican Church, St. Christopher's. Besides the Catholic Church it was the only place that had an Ash Wednesday service and I really wanted to attend one. I really enjoyed it and I forgot how close an Anglican service was to a Lutheran one. For sure closer than any other services I have attended while in Bahrain, so that was nice and refreshing. Nothing against the other services, but there is something about what you know and are familiar with. I realised when Lent is over, my adventure in Bahrain will be half over. It really seems crazy how quickly time passes, even with what is going on around you.
I was busy last weekend playing tourist actually and not a moment too soon. I am grateful for all the places I have been able to see and visit and am especially indebted to everyone who drives me to these places. It is difficult not having a car, however I wouldn't want to drive around here anyway. Needless to say I am thankful to everyone who has been Anna's chauffeur. On Friday, I had lunch with Peter and Kathy at the BAPCO buffet. I do really enjoy that place with plenty of choices....some familiar and some not so familiar. I always like to try new things though and have done that a lot since arriving. After lunch we headed off to Al Areen Wildlife Park and Reserve. Basically it is a zoo, but I really enjoyed myself of course took a lot of pictures. Part of the time we walked around looking at animals and the other part we got on a bus and were driven farther out to see other animals. I enjoyed it a lot. That evening I went out with another teacher from school, who is from India, although she has lived in Bahrain for seven years. She took me to a nearby Indian restaurant where I tried some new foods. Some I liked better than others, but again I tried them :) Hanging out with people is really important and I enjoyed the time.
On Saturday, I hung out with another teacher from school, her husband and two twin boys that are four-years-old. She told me if at any time I have had enough of them, to let her know. Of course I am used to being around little ones and really enjoyed myself. It made me miss Skyler, Hunter and Tristan a little more that day though. They were great and we tackled a few things on my "sites to see" list. First stop was the Beit Al Qu'ran Museum. It is basically a museum with different versions of the Qu'ran from all over the world and in different languages. Some dating back to the Fourth Century. Many were hand-decorated and written and are beautifully done. The most fascinating thing was a verse of the Qu'ran which was written on a grain of rice. They had a magnifying glass there to look at it...truly amazing. Alas, no pictures were allowed in the museum, so you will just have to believe me.
After that we went to Arad Fort. Like the Bahrain Fort this was built by the Portuguese although is not as big. It is on the island of Muharraq, just across the bay from Manama. They are currently working on it and updating it for visitors, which apparently they did with the Bahrain Fort awhile back. It is nice to see historic places not neglected as they are so important. The next stop was that where all tourists need to go....Dairy Queen- Grill and Chill. Let me tell you, I walked in and one would think I was back at the Grill and Chill in Minnesota. Exactly the same and even the food was. And the blizzard....delicious. The perfect way to end the day.
The school week on Sunday started off seemingly normal, although we could tell pretty quick that it was not going to be. Students kept arriving until two or three hours after the start time because a lot of roads and bridges were closed and parents had to find alternate routes. Anyway, more info on this I will include in my next entry. I will simply end this one with...and the blizzard was delicious!
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