Friday, August 13, 2010 8:00 am

It's the beginning of the weekend for us - Friday is the new Sunday!

Our stress level was reduced somewhat yesterday as our air shipment arrived from Calgary.  We got our second computer (with our wireless router - I can now use the laptop anywhere!), all of our remaining clothes, some books, and most importantly to some, the Wii!!  It feels just like Christmas.

Yesterday the boys went for their orientations at their new school.  The three of them were pretty nervous, and a little shy, but thankfully the school had arranged for "student ambassadors" to give new students tours, and there were a LOT of new students.  Ben and Jacob met their teachers, both of whom seem lovely, and we're just waiting on Nicholas' class placement.  He had to take the Math MAP test, to see where he should be placed...I think he did quite well.  He has firmly established himself as "Nick" at his new school, introducing himself to his principal and counsellor as such.  On Sunday, I will have to put them all on the bus and send them off...I have another medical appointment for my Residence permit.

Our first full day of Ramadan outside of the compound was not so bad.  Traffic is very light, especially in the afternoon, as many people leave work at 1:00 for the day.  We were able to eat lunch in the cafeteria at school (Subway!), but we were asked not to bring any food or drink to others parts of the school out of respect for those who are fasting.  The only issue was the drive home, when it was 39C and we would have loved to have a drink of water.

I'm going to back up a bit and tell you about our arrival.  ExxonMobil had arranged for "Al-Maha service" for us when our plane arrived.  There was a young woman who met us at the terminal (with one of those little signs that had our names on it) and led us into a lounge area.  We gave her our passports and our baggage claim tickets, and then we sat and ate fruit and yogurt while she cleared Customs and arranged to have our baggage collected or us.  This, all while looking out through the glass wall at the throngs (the poor saps) navigating the process themselves.  I read that it costs about 100QR (about 35CAD) per ticket - we are so paying for this when we're traveling on our own!

Breakfast is ready - better run.  Later today we're going to Lulu Hypermarket to buy groceries - another shopping adventure!

Ramadan Kareem!