I was just checking out some of my old blog posts and all I can say is, what a difference a 20 months can make. LOL!! I can laugh now, but them, whew....
The posts from 2008 are about me preparing to move here, my apprehensions and my excitement for a new adventure. At the end of 2008 (December 28th) I made a video of me waiting for my driver to take me to the airport, and 20 hours later my arrival in Saudi Arabia. Then 2009 hits and my new adventure has filled me with irritation and a bad case (for me) of culture shock. Most of my posts in those early days were mostly of me b*tchin' and whinin' about what they didn't have, what I couldn't do, and why the eff did I come here, etc. etc.
A person who is now a friend of mine told me how she saw me when I first got here at the commissary in Dhahran (where we lived when I first got here) and she was gonna come up to me and introduce herself, but then I turned around and she saw the look on my face. I had this look that made her stop in her tracks. She thought, "okay, she looks angry and irritated," so she decided not to dare coming over to speak to me. :( And, if you've read those earlier posts; I was angry and irritated, for a variety of reasons. LMAO. What a difference a year makes. What a difference it makes once you get into the groove of the environment, start to meet new people who eventually become friends, and you get out of your self imposed shell.
All I can say is, I'm so glad I'm far from where I was at then. I can laugh now, but I have no problems admitting to you I was doing some crying then. Gawd!!
If you want to check out those posts from my first days, you can start here: January 2009
2 comments:
Hi, my name is Michelle. I just moved here (to Dammam/Dhahran/Khobar...it's all surprisingly close, I've noticed) two and a half days ago. Also just ran across your blog and this post. I guess I'm in "the Early Days" but without any of the anger and irritation so far. Mostly just wondering what to do besides sit at home...
It's probably hard since everything's winding down for almost-end-of-Ramadan celebrations... but, suggestions?
Hello Michelle,
Thanks for stopping by my blog.
Following is the link to an article I wrote for Expat Arrivals; it should answer some of your questions.
http://www.expatarrivals.com/saudi-arabia/women-in-saudi-arabia
The only thing you can do about Ramadan is to just wait it out. It's over in a few days.
Welcome to the Sand Pit!!
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