Apartments, Aussies & Alcohol

I know I promised photos and I will deliver but unfortunately not this time. However it has been a few weeks since my last post so I thought I might just fill you in on what's been happening in Old Kuwait town!

Firstly I moved to the apartment which will be my home for the next 2 years. Thankfully it's a magnificent place! It is a brand new building and in a nice clean area (well clean in Kuwait terms any ways). It certainly doesn't smell as bad as the area I was in before and the streets are less congested with rubbish, (it is still socially acceptable to litter here in Kuwait). Any hoo back to the apartment on the 8th floor that has a fantastic view of the city and lovely brand new everything from toilets to knives & forks. I have moved in with Madlena who is a new instructor at The Little Gym, she is from Bulgaria and I have learnt that just about all national dishes from Bulgaria include Cucumber and Tomatoes!

I am also lucky that my fab new home is only a short walk to work and now that the weather is settling into a very pleasant Autumn I am happy to wonder to and from work with out having to think about risking my life on the Ring Roads! Also I have come accustomed to the stares and attention from the ever palpable Arab men so I feel much more comfortable walking about! Other than moving further news from Kuwait is that I found some friends hahaha! This is always good news!

I actually meet Steve through the Lonely Planet website when I was searching for information about Kuwait before I moved here. He also offered to help me get settled by introducing me to some people when I arrived. Thankfully Steve was not some weird creepy freak from the internet and instead a wonderful friendly Aussie. Along with his equally lovely girlfriend Sherry who is American they hosted a BBQ at their amazing apartment that over looks Golf road and the ocean. They invited some of the Aussies that they have meet here in Kuwait so I was able to meet and talk with lots of other mad Aussies who have moved to the Middle East. Most of whom have been here for at least 2 years, but a few for longer 5-7 years! They all had some wonderful information and tips about living here and it was great to hear about their experiences. I also had my first alcoholic drink in a month......ok not one but quite a few hahaha! As you all know it is illegal to consume alcohol here in Kuwait. So this means that there are no bars, no bottle shops, and no legal way to buy or drink alcohol. Most ex pats have their ways around this but it's not really easy especially when all you want is a glass of good red wine!! Surprisingly after a month of not even a drop of booze I actually didn't suffer to serverly the next day!

My social coordinators Steve and Sherry also invited me out for dinner last night where I had the pleasure to meet Jaiver an American who has just arrived in Kuwait after 22 months working in Iraq! As well as a Dina and Tarq a Kuwaiti couple. Well actually Tarq is from Jordan but grew up in America and Dina has been living in Kuwait for most of her life after having to flee Palestineine. We had a fantastic night and I was spellbound by even more fascinatinging stories. Everyone I meet is so interesting I could talk to them all night. However it was not a late night as we all had work today and had come to the end of Sherry's lovely home made wine, which mind you rivals many cheap cask wines in Oz!.

Work is going really well and now that Ramadan is FINALLY coming to an end we should be really busy next month. I say finally as I am looking forward to being able to go out for a coffee at lunch time or being able to eat on the run to and from work. We actually get a public holiday to celebrate the end of Ramadan it is called EID and most business close down for one or two days, we are still waiting to hear if we get two days! I would like to use the opportunity to either go to Dubai or Bahrain but due to the fact that I am still waiting for my Residency visa to be approved I can not leave the country until after 3 months. So I will spend it here in fantastic Kuwait. Maybe I will use the time to get out and get some pictures for you all :) Till then....