Joyeux Noel et Bonne Annee!

I have been hoping to run into my best friend from fourth and fifth grade. Mariam Al-Sabah and I were students at the American School of Paris together during the first Gulf War, and kept in touch for a while after we both moved back to our respective homes (which, for her, was Kuwait). However, trying to find one specific Mariam Al-Sabah in Kuwait is like trying to find bronzing cream in the Middle East (explained later). To give you an idea, I teach two girls with the exact same name as my childhood friend. There seems to be a relatively short list of very popular names in Kuwait, which get re-used over and over. I have two Ali Al-Sabah's in the same class (Al-Sabah a particular favourite, being the royal family's name). Three Lulu's in another. And twin boys named Hassan and Hussein in yet another class. Our school also hosts a crew of Hamad Al-Hamad's, Bader Al-Bader's, and Mohammed Al-Mohammed's. On top of that, the Arabic names are transliterated from an entirely different alphabet, so there ends up being four different ways to spell Mohammed/Mohammad/Mohamed/Mohamad. I work with a student who has a possible sixteen different spelling combinations for his first and last name, and he currently uses about four of them interchangeably. My name has also been written in a variety of ways, even on official documents such as my driver¡'s license and blood tests. My favourite so far is Emli -- if you say it out loud (which is what they ask you to do), it actually kind of works!


We have been here for a solid four months now (maybe the longest amount of time I've ever stayed in one city consecutively?), so we are quite used to the foreign language peculiarities, the death-defying traffic, the 15-1 ratio of service workers to clients, and the unexpected smells that seem to lurk around each corner. And, while these nuances are beginning to feel like a part of home, we are still very much ready to get away for a bit!


In 41 hours, Joel and I will be boarding an Emirates Air jet for Thailand. Our Christmas holiday promises floating markets in Bangkok, scenic train rides through central Thailand, climbing on Koh Phi Phi, New Year's Eve in Hong Kong, and adjusting back to our time zone at a friend¡'s house in Dubai. No, it isn't dashing through the snow, but we are looking forward to it all the same. And, believe it or not, we are getting enough chilly temperatures here in Kuwait!


We keep our heat turned on these days, as the weather has turned almost wintry. Okay, maybe autumny? Highs are only in the 60's on most days, and we get down to the 40's overnight - positively glacial for Kuwait. We even saw our first raindrops the other day! So, neither of us have got much of a tan left from the balmy pool-side days. In fact, I was thinking of using a little bronzing lotion before we left on our holiday, so that I didn't look quite as white in my swimsuit next to the Thais. Well, good luck finding bronzer in Kuwait - I tried searching next to the whitening cream (that's right, cream that bleaches your skin!), but no luck. I guess tans aren't really in style around here.


Don't believe me that it gets cold in Kuwait? Joel hosted the ASK Holiday 5K last weekend, and everyone was visibly shivering in their jackets! But the sun woke up, the wind died down, and the race turned out to be a great success. The course wound over a pretty brick path along the Gulf, with pavilions and fountains and playgrounds on either side. Joel organized it all, and we had runners from our school, Chevron, the embassy, and others in the area. I was an essential component of the envelope-handing-out station, so I couldn't leave to run myself . . . pity, as you all know how much I enjoy a good race. : ) But it did kick off the holiday mood, which has been picking up speed each day.


On Saturday, we were treated to a Christmas brunch, hosted by the owner of our school. It was held on the beach under an Arabic tent (when I use the word "tent", please think gaping 'Father of the Bride' reception scene tent, not 'The Parent Trap' zip-up rain fly tent). The floor was lined with Arab carpets, and the inside was lit with stained-glass lanterns. We ate turkey dinner, and the high school music teacher kept us merry by playing Christmas carols on the grand piano.


Oh yes, Christmas is in the air! This week we put on the annual Winter Festival of Song, which was politically correct in name only. As Judaism, like Israel, is not acknowledged by much of the Arab world, every effort is made to suppress the notion of Chanukah, and Christmas gets centre stage in December. Each song on the program was recognizable by any mall-going Christian in the US, and red and green attire was de rigueur. The Honour Society provided votive candles, and the Boy Scouts gave out hot chocolate to complete the effect.


Still not convinced? Our supermarket has been pumping Kenny G Christmas over the loudspeakers since Thanksgiving, and every business has at least one plastic Christmas tree festively glittering in the window. On one hand, it is a commercial effort, and one might argue that the Kuwaitis have embraced the Christmas holiday as an excuse to buy more Versace scarves, Apple technologies, and glistening Porsches for one another. On the other hand, the thick-accented manager of my spa declared today that "The Christmas Spirit is alive here!¨ (meaning, in the room that I was about to get waxed in). And what can be wrong with that? It made me feel better to know that the woman who was about to rip my hair out was also imbued with a little sprinkle of Noel. (This is the same woman who slaps me on the bottom and tells me to eat more cornflakes). But I think she's great, and we share something in common at Christmastime.


In fact, dare I say it, this part of the world seems to be a step ahead of the West in acknowledging holidays outside their immediate culture? We found canned pumpkin and cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving. Orange and black M&M's were readily available at Halloween. And now everyone is up to their veils in lights, tinsel, greeting cards, stockings, trees, and polished ornaments, all to prepare for Santa's big day. All I am asking is that the US bring home the date frapuccino during Ramadan - is that unreasonable of me? There are certainly far more Muslims in the US than there are Christians in Kuwait - why are they not represented? (Please no hate mail about terrorism and nuclear weapons).


As I type this, I can hear the sound of fellow "Mangafians¨ (staff who live in our apartment complex) singing 'O Holy Night' in the hallway below ours. My spice-scented candle is burning, fairly lights are twinkling, and I have children's Christmas cards taped on the walls all around me. Yes, Christmas is in the air! We will miss all of you this year, but everyone at our home-away-from-home has worked hard to make the season feel special, and we are glad to be together. For those of you who are far in distance, please know that you are close to our hearts and thoughts.


So, wish us a Bon Voyage, as we wish you Happy Holidays (Chanukah included!)


Love,


Joel and Em
XOXO

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