Friday, October 16, 2015
Nothing Beats Good Old Southern Hospitality in Kuwait
Ok so for the first few days of traveling back and forth to school on the van my colleagues and I have laughed about this sign that reads: The Southern Restaurant. We made quite a few jokes about what type of cuisine they could possibly be serving there in the middle of Mahboula Kuwait. Finally one day our Superintendent suggested that he would treat us if we came up with a date and a time so that we could all go and check it out. Needless to say for a free meal we came up with a date and time pretty quickly. So off we all went walking one evening approximately 3 blocks down our busy street to try this restaurant we had been mocking for days. When we stepped inside, the atmosphere was nice. The place was very clean and moderately decorated with mason jars, quilts and coffee mugs printed with a stencil of the USA. They had American country music playing in the background and we were promptly greeted by a young Asian woman. dressed in black with a clean white apron. She took our drink orders as we perused the menu. Wow, I was shocked to see chicken and waffles, NC barbecue chicken sliders, country fried chicken, baked macaroni and cheese, collard greens, fried hush puppies, sloppy joe sliders, meatloaf and even peach cobbler! We were all floored! We laughed about our misjudgment and the fact that we couldn't decide on what home cooked meal to try. I think we ordered a little of everything so that everyone could try it all. As we sat and talked about various things the aroma of the cooked food filled the air and for a brief moment it almost felt like home. Our food arrived in a timely manner and we all dug in with enthusiasm as our mouths salivated over the piece of southern cuisine we had discovered here in the Middle Eastern territory of Kuwait. We were not disappointed. The food was excellent! A little under seasoned but for our surroundings outside of that Southern Restaurant it was perfection. As we ate almost in silence our waitress was kind enough to give us the background on the owners. They are half Kuwaiti/half American owners; one from North Carolina and the other originally from Kentucky. This husband and wife duo decided to get together and open a restaurant that could remind expats of home. I would say they have succeeded. It was a great night out with my colleagues. It was so great in fact that I suggested to my groupme group that we meet there for our first meeting. We had great food, great conversation and laughs, American music and a little bit of good old southern hospitality.
Broken Mirrors; Omen or Art?
One of the fascinating sights located here in Kuwait is the House of Mirrors. This is a place for the art enthusiast with it's paintings, sculptures and light shows all enclosed in a house covered with pieces of broken mirrors. Most would call this bad luck but to the many visitors and artists this house is covered not in broken mirrors but in mosaics made from mirror pieces. It is truly a sight to behold especially at night when spotlights scattered around the house reflect the beautiful artistic works of Lidia Al Qattan. Lidia began her work in 1972 while her husband; native born Kuwaiti Khalifa Al Qattan, was traveling abroad. When he returned he was so impressed with her work that he encouraged her to keep going. A small mirror decorated cabinet turned into what stands today as one of the most admired personal artistic landmarks in Kuwait today. Lidia is a native of Italy but remained in Kuwait after the death of her husband. She is a painter, sculptor, jeweler and writer. Each room has a theme and was easily seen as I toured through the rooms and hallways. Every corner of the house is covered in these mosaics. The rooms are filled with Lidia's paintings, sculptures and light show art pieces. What was suppose to be an hour and a half tour turned in to a little over 2 hours as she told us her story and even generously fed us cake, ginger and cinnamon tea, sesame cookies etc. She even was gracious enough to take pictures with her guests. The tour cost is 2KD and if you like art then it is well worth it.
Thursday, October 15, 2015
My apartment in Kuwait
 |
| View from the 18th floor of my apartment building at night |
I received a letter before I left home telling me about the accommodations I would be using while I was here. It said I would have shared accommodations in a 2 bedroom apartment with another person from the US. They even sent me pictures. From the looks of them they would be clean, I would have a pool, a restaurant downstairs and a dry cleaners next door. Well by the time it was time for me to leave, a girl from my groupme group contacted me and told me we would not be staying there but that our accommodations were just as nice. This made me nervous. Once I landed at the airport, it was like someone shouted "let the games begin!" I quickly eased my way through security check points and was released into a huge room of people all trying to do the same thing at the same time. There were people everywhere trying frantically to find their luggage terminal. I felt a little like a fish out of water. But you know me I strutted through there like I knew where and what I was doing and retrieved my luggage without too much of an incidence. The men dressed in all white from head to toe seem to disregard me and my little 4ft 10in. stature and reach around me to grab heavy bags or they had what I found out later where drivers doing it for them and stacking the bags onto carts. Once I got my luggage with the help of an attendant, I left that room and into another open space I went to search for someone searching for me. When I arrived I was greeted by people holding a sign with my name on it....my name...lol I got a kick out of that. The lady dressed in traditional Kuwaiti garb greeted me with a kiss on each cheek (Loubna she's amazing and funny). The tall man (Paul, he's very nice) however, gave his hand for a simple handshake...I could tell right away that he was American. In any case I was relieved to see them because the airport was a mad house! I was whisked away to a car that was waiting outside with a driver. The lady paid for the services of the attendant and away we went. Approximately 30 minutes later my eyes had seen enough and I was arriving at a tall building surrounded by exchange shops, cell phone shops and restaurants. Everywhere I looked I saw men standing in long lines waiting for their turn for who knows what and cars driving crazy up and down the streets. Although I was fascinated by all that was happening around me I couldn't wait to get inside my building and see my new apartment.
It turned out great. It's clean, spacious, has a pool, a gym, a store for food items, a dry cleaners, and a lovely sitting area/lobby full of pluff chairs and couches. It even has security, internet and cable....and it's all included in my stay here. Paid for by my new employers. |
| Loubna the business manager and Paul the superintendent |
 |
| the lobby/sitting area |
 |
| Finally, my apartment |
 |
| My livingroom |
 | ||
my kitchen      
|
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Finally here and settled...How bad do you want it?
After months of waiting on paperwork and stressing out over the process of getting an entry and a work visa I am finally here and settling into my new home in Kuwait. This post will be comprised of my feelings and why and how I got here.
After working in the US all of my life and developing a hunger to travel outside of the states as well as a passion for teaching today's youth one day I asked myself how I could do both. I began to search the internet for teaching abroad and that is when I found the website TeachAway.com I read their reviews and researched various countries. I was quite impressed with what others had to say and thought "hey, why not". At the end of January I submitted my resume for Abu Dhabi and the journey began. I quickly gathered all of the necessary documents required for potential employers to see and was called the next week for a phone interview. The excitement was real! I was going to be interviewed for an English teaching position for Abu Dhabi in 1 week (Feb.4th). I had to drive to Charlotte, NC and stay overnight. As I gathered my interview suit and other essentials for my trip, I studied interviewing techniques (something I have never done) and informed my family about my quest and my very real intentions of landing this job. I have always been a "go getter" and therefore had no doubt that I would slam dunk the interview. Once I got to Charlotte it became even more clear how badly I wanted this. I studied and studied. Finally I got to sleep and the next morning woke up refreshed and ready. Just as I was about to walk out the door and head off to the venue my stomach started churning, my head began aching and my palms and the rest of my body became flushed. I was literally sick from anticipation. I didn't want anything to go wrong. I needed this opportunity. I needed to get away from a job where the admin did not recognize my unique talents and ability to connect with my students. I needed to get away from a place where people were secretly trying to leave and find other places of employment because they were unhappy for various reasons. I was in a place where the bad moods of others was weighing on me like a heavy load and the faces of all encompassed in the building was sullen or had pasted forced congenial fake smiles as they walked by every morning. That was not how I wanted to spend a significant part of my life day by day. I got on the phone at the last minute and called my bff; Denise. She prayed for me. She asked the Lord to calm me down and if it be his will give me the desires of my heart. With those words I cut off all of the lights and stretched out across the bed into complete darkness and silence for what seemed like 30 or 40 minutes and then I hopped up with renewed strength, calmness, determination and faith. I went to the interview and did what I felt was an awesome job. I had all of my paperwork in order, I was dressed in a conservative black suit with low dress heels and my hair was neatly combed on my head with not one strand out of place. The interviews were conducted through SKYPE by a panel of 3 people. There were several rooms interviewing at once. Of course I got the room no one wanted. People came out of that one saying how tough it was and therefore none of us wanted to be interviewed by room number 3. But I went in with confidence and I answered their questions without hesitation and gave complete and passionate answers. I rejoined the other interviewees with my confidence in tact along with pride on how well I had done. While waiting for others to finish I created a groupme.com group called Abu Dhabi Hopefuls 2015. I thought it would be a great way for all of us to keep in touch while we waited for the next step. Well, guess what....I returned to Raleigh and anxiously awaited word on when I would be starting. After impatiently waiting for 4 days the answer came across my desktop...It read: Dear Ms. Ellison, ADEC would like to thank you for interviewing however.....My heart sank and I leaped up from my chair and ran to a hidden corner of my room and I cried. I actually cried! I felt stuck, trapped and hopeless. I went on feeling this way for about a week and then it was like the real me returned to my body one day and I got on the computer and applied for more positions overseas. A day or so later I was asked to interview for Kuwait. After playing phone tag we finally connected and set up a time that was convenient for both parties. I was on Spring Break in Myrtle Beach, SC when the Skype call came in from the Assistant Principal of my prospective new school. It was another really good interview. She was at home babysitting and I was on the beach with my grandson Elijah. In spite of the kids running around, afterwards I felt great. A week later I received an offer letter in my email! That entire process took about a month and a half. Now it was time to get the required authenticated documents needed for the work permit. Who knew it would take 7 months! My patience has never been something I could brag about so you know this just slayed me. My mother kept telling me not to tell people just in case something went wrong but I couldn't help it. Before I knew it I had told most of my students, my bff, my biological children, my ex boyfriend, my closest coworkers and finally my admin of my intentions. Now I had to find a renter for my house, put all of my belongings in storage and figure out where to store my vehicles. These were not easy tasks. After all, I would be gone for a year. I had to find the right person to live in my house and be neighbors to my very loving friends (Ms. Bette, Tod (across the street), Stephanie & Curtis). I had to find someone that would take care of my home and pay the rent on time. I finally found her! Finding storage was a hoot. It had to be large enough to contain a 3 bedroom house full of furniture, climate controlled due to my electronics, close and secured. I finally found it and payed for the entire year. Now I had to find someone to help me move it all....thank heavens for my ex; Arthur. He got 3 of his friends to help. My bff and I were there to help and supervise. It took us 3 days in July to get all the big stuff moved. While these two tasks were being tackled I also had to have medical tests done and documents authenticated. I was also working as a full time teacher preparing for final exams and end of the year activities. Needless to say I was under a lot of stress. There came a point when I could move no further in the process until I received the NOC (no objection certificate) from Kuwait. This is the part that took the longest. I had moved out of my house and was now living with my parents for the first time in over 25 years! I love them to pieces but oh the STRESSSS! My daughter and my new grandson always needed me for something and she knows that in the end I will ALWAYS come to her rescue (if I am close). That means transporting, loaning money, babysitting, feeding and buying whatever catches my eye that I think he needs or wants. Yes, they are both spoiled. Oh the STRESSSSS! I had to deal with a sulking dad and an ex boyfriend that did not want me to leave (he began wanting to prove himself to me) and oh yea I had to decide who would get the dog. Yes I had a dog (Toy Poodle) need I say more. She is family so who ever got her had to treat her as such. With all of this done now I had to pack my suitcases and hope I wouldn't go over the luggage cap and have to pay more money to get my clothes, shoes and other essentials over to Kuwait. With the help of my loving and patient Aunt Deborah I packed and repacked and unpacked and repacked and then weighed at least 4 times. By the way, I have 2 other grandsons that live with their mother and father in Florida. I received a phone call from my oldest grandson; Trenton that said "Mimi please don't leave the country without coming to see me" if you have ever seen my Trenton then you know his big beautiful eyes will melt your heart and have you eating out of his tiny hands. On the airplane I went at the end of August to see my other babies. It was the most rest and peace I had received in months. My son Tyler cooked me breakfast and my daughter n law Christina cooked dinner. They allowed me to do ABSOLUTELY nothing but rest. I guess they could see from my face that I needed it. My job was to love on my boys Trenton and Titus and simply relax with great conversation, great movies, food and drink. Paradise in Florida could not last forever and I left 3 days later to return to the chaos that had become my life. Soon after my return the day finally came when I opened the door and a courier was standing there with a package from Kuwait (NOC). I immediately got on the phone with the HR person from my new school and informed her it had arrived. A day later I had an e-ticket to Kuwait for September 10th. With my over sized suitcases in hand I arrived at the airport early Thursday morning with my mother and bestfriend to see me off. Teary eyed we said our "see ya laters" and my dreams became my reality. I arrived in Kuwait 24.5 hours later....and went to work the next day! Did I mention that during the month of July added to my stress was the death of a student while I was on vacation in Jamaica (a trip I'd paid for last year that was non refundable without fees), a student was in a horrible accident and is still in the hospital, and another dear student of mine was hospitalized for depression! I really needed to get away. I wanted this experience really badly. This is my time to shine, explore and discover more of what this huge world has to offer. Stay tuned for more updates on what I've done so far since arriving to this beautiful country.
After working in the US all of my life and developing a hunger to travel outside of the states as well as a passion for teaching today's youth one day I asked myself how I could do both. I began to search the internet for teaching abroad and that is when I found the website TeachAway.com I read their reviews and researched various countries. I was quite impressed with what others had to say and thought "hey, why not". At the end of January I submitted my resume for Abu Dhabi and the journey began. I quickly gathered all of the necessary documents required for potential employers to see and was called the next week for a phone interview. The excitement was real! I was going to be interviewed for an English teaching position for Abu Dhabi in 1 week (Feb.4th). I had to drive to Charlotte, NC and stay overnight. As I gathered my interview suit and other essentials for my trip, I studied interviewing techniques (something I have never done) and informed my family about my quest and my very real intentions of landing this job. I have always been a "go getter" and therefore had no doubt that I would slam dunk the interview. Once I got to Charlotte it became even more clear how badly I wanted this. I studied and studied. Finally I got to sleep and the next morning woke up refreshed and ready. Just as I was about to walk out the door and head off to the venue my stomach started churning, my head began aching and my palms and the rest of my body became flushed. I was literally sick from anticipation. I didn't want anything to go wrong. I needed this opportunity. I needed to get away from a job where the admin did not recognize my unique talents and ability to connect with my students. I needed to get away from a place where people were secretly trying to leave and find other places of employment because they were unhappy for various reasons. I was in a place where the bad moods of others was weighing on me like a heavy load and the faces of all encompassed in the building was sullen or had pasted forced congenial fake smiles as they walked by every morning. That was not how I wanted to spend a significant part of my life day by day. I got on the phone at the last minute and called my bff; Denise. She prayed for me. She asked the Lord to calm me down and if it be his will give me the desires of my heart. With those words I cut off all of the lights and stretched out across the bed into complete darkness and silence for what seemed like 30 or 40 minutes and then I hopped up with renewed strength, calmness, determination and faith. I went to the interview and did what I felt was an awesome job. I had all of my paperwork in order, I was dressed in a conservative black suit with low dress heels and my hair was neatly combed on my head with not one strand out of place. The interviews were conducted through SKYPE by a panel of 3 people. There were several rooms interviewing at once. Of course I got the room no one wanted. People came out of that one saying how tough it was and therefore none of us wanted to be interviewed by room number 3. But I went in with confidence and I answered their questions without hesitation and gave complete and passionate answers. I rejoined the other interviewees with my confidence in tact along with pride on how well I had done. While waiting for others to finish I created a groupme.com group called Abu Dhabi Hopefuls 2015. I thought it would be a great way for all of us to keep in touch while we waited for the next step. Well, guess what....I returned to Raleigh and anxiously awaited word on when I would be starting. After impatiently waiting for 4 days the answer came across my desktop...It read: Dear Ms. Ellison, ADEC would like to thank you for interviewing however.....My heart sank and I leaped up from my chair and ran to a hidden corner of my room and I cried. I actually cried! I felt stuck, trapped and hopeless. I went on feeling this way for about a week and then it was like the real me returned to my body one day and I got on the computer and applied for more positions overseas. A day or so later I was asked to interview for Kuwait. After playing phone tag we finally connected and set up a time that was convenient for both parties. I was on Spring Break in Myrtle Beach, SC when the Skype call came in from the Assistant Principal of my prospective new school. It was another really good interview. She was at home babysitting and I was on the beach with my grandson Elijah. In spite of the kids running around, afterwards I felt great. A week later I received an offer letter in my email! That entire process took about a month and a half. Now it was time to get the required authenticated documents needed for the work permit. Who knew it would take 7 months! My patience has never been something I could brag about so you know this just slayed me. My mother kept telling me not to tell people just in case something went wrong but I couldn't help it. Before I knew it I had told most of my students, my bff, my biological children, my ex boyfriend, my closest coworkers and finally my admin of my intentions. Now I had to find a renter for my house, put all of my belongings in storage and figure out where to store my vehicles. These were not easy tasks. After all, I would be gone for a year. I had to find the right person to live in my house and be neighbors to my very loving friends (Ms. Bette, Tod (across the street), Stephanie & Curtis). I had to find someone that would take care of my home and pay the rent on time. I finally found her! Finding storage was a hoot. It had to be large enough to contain a 3 bedroom house full of furniture, climate controlled due to my electronics, close and secured. I finally found it and payed for the entire year. Now I had to find someone to help me move it all....thank heavens for my ex; Arthur. He got 3 of his friends to help. My bff and I were there to help and supervise. It took us 3 days in July to get all the big stuff moved. While these two tasks were being tackled I also had to have medical tests done and documents authenticated. I was also working as a full time teacher preparing for final exams and end of the year activities. Needless to say I was under a lot of stress. There came a point when I could move no further in the process until I received the NOC (no objection certificate) from Kuwait. This is the part that took the longest. I had moved out of my house and was now living with my parents for the first time in over 25 years! I love them to pieces but oh the STRESSSS! My daughter and my new grandson always needed me for something and she knows that in the end I will ALWAYS come to her rescue (if I am close). That means transporting, loaning money, babysitting, feeding and buying whatever catches my eye that I think he needs or wants. Yes, they are both spoiled. Oh the STRESSSSS! I had to deal with a sulking dad and an ex boyfriend that did not want me to leave (he began wanting to prove himself to me) and oh yea I had to decide who would get the dog. Yes I had a dog (Toy Poodle) need I say more. She is family so who ever got her had to treat her as such. With all of this done now I had to pack my suitcases and hope I wouldn't go over the luggage cap and have to pay more money to get my clothes, shoes and other essentials over to Kuwait. With the help of my loving and patient Aunt Deborah I packed and repacked and unpacked and repacked and then weighed at least 4 times. By the way, I have 2 other grandsons that live with their mother and father in Florida. I received a phone call from my oldest grandson; Trenton that said "Mimi please don't leave the country without coming to see me" if you have ever seen my Trenton then you know his big beautiful eyes will melt your heart and have you eating out of his tiny hands. On the airplane I went at the end of August to see my other babies. It was the most rest and peace I had received in months. My son Tyler cooked me breakfast and my daughter n law Christina cooked dinner. They allowed me to do ABSOLUTELY nothing but rest. I guess they could see from my face that I needed it. My job was to love on my boys Trenton and Titus and simply relax with great conversation, great movies, food and drink. Paradise in Florida could not last forever and I left 3 days later to return to the chaos that had become my life. Soon after my return the day finally came when I opened the door and a courier was standing there with a package from Kuwait (NOC). I immediately got on the phone with the HR person from my new school and informed her it had arrived. A day later I had an e-ticket to Kuwait for September 10th. With my over sized suitcases in hand I arrived at the airport early Thursday morning with my mother and bestfriend to see me off. Teary eyed we said our "see ya laters" and my dreams became my reality. I arrived in Kuwait 24.5 hours later....and went to work the next day! Did I mention that during the month of July added to my stress was the death of a student while I was on vacation in Jamaica (a trip I'd paid for last year that was non refundable without fees), a student was in a horrible accident and is still in the hospital, and another dear student of mine was hospitalized for depression! I really needed to get away. I wanted this experience really badly. This is my time to shine, explore and discover more of what this huge world has to offer. Stay tuned for more updates on what I've done so far since arriving to this beautiful country.
 |
| My bestie; Denise and my beautiful mother Dr. P. Williams |
 |
| At the airport following my dreams |
 |
| Trenton with his beautiful eyes.... |
 |
| My relaxing time in Florida before I left the states |
 |
| the spoiled daughter Queen Victoria |
 |
| the ex boyfriend that doesn't want me to leave...my Arthur |
 |
| My sulking dad.... |
 |
| My loving grandson Elijah (1st time) at the beach when I had the interview |
 |
| Melonnie the spoiled Toy Poodle |
 |
| Rest in peace S.S. You are gone but never forgotten as you soar among the angels |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)