Lifestyle Change in a Big Way

View from inside my front door

Change is always good. We become so accustomed to our lives that sometimes it’s a good thing to dramatically change things up. That’s exactly what I’ve done. I’ve left the comfort, beauty and safety of Muscat, Oman and am now in Lahore, Pakistan for the  next 2 years.

I knew I was going to experience some pretty drastic changes in my lifestyle and so far, I've been, as they say, spot on. The only similarity is the weather, with 7-8 months of hot/hot and the rest of the time very pleasant. And that’s where the similarity ends.

I already miss my walks on the beautiful white beaches in Muscat. No beaches here in Lahore. I am driven to and from work and thank goodness for that! The streets of Lahore can only be described as insane with hundreds of motor bikes and bicycles intermingled with cars, all lobbying for the same lane and most of the time, creating their own lanes. Families of 5-7 all ride on one small motorbike. Donkeys pulling carts are frequent sights as well as non-functioning traffic lights, making for chaos at some intersections. It’s every man for himself. And come to think of it, I haven’t seen a female driver.

Naturally there is increased security for me here because, after all…I’m in Pakistan. I have multiple guards, 24 hours a day, at my house. I think I have 4 from dusk to dawn and then 2 during daylight hours. They are all armed. I live in a large 2 story home that was made into 2 residences, one downstairs (mine) and one upstairs. When I got here, I had 2 couches, 3 loveseats, 2 overstuffed chairs, 2 straight back chairs, 4 bookshelves, a desk and chair and 5 tables all in my living room. Yes, my living room is huge! I have since moved things around, putting a loveseat in my bedroom, moving the dining table back into the dining room and creating a den where the dining table once was. To summarize it…I have huge living spaces! As soon as all my personal belongings get here, I hope to make this large space more like home because right now, it feels like an auditorium. And I have not escaped highly polished tile floors!

There are frequent power failures here and I have a very large, VW size generator in my front yard. I had this same issue in Honduras and you get used to things going off and on. One thing I will have difficulty getting used to is closed drapes. There are houses on both sides of me and by virtue of where I am, I really don’t want people looking in my windows. Perhaps I’ll get over this but for now, both drapes and black out drapes behind them remain closed.

On the bright side, I really like the people I’m working with in the Consulate. I think it’s a great team and I look forward to 2 years of good times. For my third and final tour with the State Department, I am once again in the Regional Security Office but believe me, things are totally different from the previous 2 posts. Being in Pakistan, I will be learning a whole new level of security procedures that I never had the need to know before.

In spite of the negatives, I’m certain my time in Lahore will be positive for me and will result in an interesting and memorable 2 years. Stay tuned…

My Dad

Last week, at the age of 97, my father left this world and passed into the next.  I was able to be with him until 2 days before he died.

My father lived a wonderful life and I am so fortunate to have been born his daughter.  He was full of life lessons and no matter what, he always stuck to his guns.  He was very headstrong (probably as a result of his Greek and Turkish heritage) and would let you know loudly when he thought you had screwed up! 

When I was considering joining the Foreign Service, the one thing that caused me to hesitate was that I would most likely be living far from Dad.  I talked to him about it and he encouraged me to "go for it."  For me, being away from him was one of the most difficult parts of being assigned overseas.  When I found out I was going to Pakistan, it took me a month before I could write to him, letting him know where I would go next.  When I got his response, saying that he trusted that I knew what I was doing, it was a huge relief.  And I know he was proud of me.

I know that when I'm in Pakistan, my father will be with me.  He is at peace now, taking wonderful deep breaths without coughing. He's probably on the back nine with Ben Hogan, hitting the ball long and straight. 

I love you Dad.

Home Leave: Our Reward for Service

I have completed my tour in Muscat, Oman and am now spending the first half of my 25 days of home leave on the beautiful island of Kauai.  My son lives here with his wonderful wife and their adorable 3 sons...my grandsons.  Home Leave is mandatory and must be taken between overseas assignments.  And when I say 25 days,just weekdays are counted in that 25.  This does not include weekends and/or holidays.  It's a time when you reconnect with family and friends and it helps you stay grounded after serving overseas for an extended period of time. 

I'm a workaholic, to a certain degree.  So, for me, home leave can be painful.  I'll be ready to get back to work after about 3 weeks.  Keeping busy is key for me.  Currently, I have no problem doing that!  Today I took my 5 year old grandson, Gavin, on a trip to 2 different beaches here and we had a blast.  He insisted on bringing his pail and fishing net just in case we saw fish.  We didn't.  But we did encounter a monk seal at Haena Beach.  At Ke'e Beach (or End of the Road Beach) we saw some pretty wild surf.  You could see 2 para surfers surfing at Tunnels, on the outer edges of the reef.  It was beautiful. It was kind of a rainy day but hey...it's Hawaii and who cares if a little rain falls on you??  On the way back, we stopped and had a Bubba Burger in Hanalei. Gavin is so much fun to be with and we had so much fun today.

In about a week, I head for Home Leave, Part 2 in Fort Worth, Texas. It will be wonderful to see my 97 year old Dad again.  And have some great Mexican food!  But until then, I will continue to spend quality Home Leave Time with Gavin and my other 2 grandsons, Micah and Makana.

Gavin, ready for a fish sighting

My New Photography Blog

This blog is and will continue to be a running commentary of my life as I travel through it.  I decided I also wanted a blog to just post photographs. So today I created a second blog for just that purpose...to post my photographs.  You can find it at http://debidemetrion.blogspot.com/.  I'll still be writing here but will use the other site to post just photographs, with maybe a comment as to where the shot was taken.  I hope you'll visit it!

Bittersweet

Webster's defines bittersweet as "a combination of the standard tastes of sweetness and bitterness, and is often used as a metaphor for experiences which have elements of both happiness and sadness."

That would be me right now...happy and sad.  I'm sitting in my hotel room in London, having departed Muscat, Oman last night.  When something and someone is so good and you have to leave it/them but you are headed to see your grandsons...well, that equates to bittersweet.  My 21 months in Muscat were the best.  I loved my job, my friends and the country.  Leaving such a wonderful place was hard to do. The friends I made were a bonus. What a bonus!  And leaving them was harder than leaving Oman.

The benefits of doing what I do are unending...I travel, I have an interesting job that makes me WANT to come to work every morning, I meet fantastic people and have the opportunity to live around the world and meet and learn to understand people of other cultures.  That last one is really important.  The more we learn about other people, their culture, their beliefs, their traditions...the more we understand them. You realize very soon that understanding is powerful.  It softens any negative attitudes you might have about a certain culture or country. It promotes tolerance.

What we need is more tolerance of other cultures.  And what I need are fewer goodbyes.  And the bittersweet of this...I look forward to the many 'hellos' I'll get when I arrive in Lahore, Pakistan.

Time Flies, Even When You Wish It Didn't

It's now 2 weeks before I am wheels up and leaving Muscat, Oman.  What a fabulous place!  I will miss so much about Oman.  There are gorgeous beaches, beautiful striking mountains, lots of sand and camels...and wonderful people.  Right now I'm taking a break from trying to sort all my stuff into piles...things to go in my suitcase, things to ship that will go by air and arrive in Pakistan soon(er) than the things that will be shipped later, things that will go into storage for 2 years....yes, 2 YEARS!  Can you imagine not seeing some of your favorite things for 2 years??  Due to where I'm headed (Lahore, Pakistan) I am not taking anything with me that I have an emotional attachment to...just in case I have to leave fast, abandoning all my belongings. It makes it easier to sort but harder since I know I won't see my stuff for years.  *sigh*  But...that's the Foreign Service for you.  Most of the time, most of your stuff follows you everywhere.  It's just that I have so many decisions to make that my head is not processing it all like I wish it would.  I also need to pack my suitcase, pack a box of things I want to mail to Lahore so it will be there when I arrive.  Things like my favorite Hawaiian coffee, some work clothes and shoes (things I don't want to take up room in my suitcase).  The list goes on and on.  Oy.  Fortunately, it will all come together in 2 weeks and I'll be able to breathe again without feeling the stress of a move to another country.

Although it may sound like I'm complaining, I wouldn't trade these times for anything.  I have the best job in the world and moving every 2-3 years is something you eventually get used to.  It sure does keep you from accumulating too much 'stuff' along the way. We do have weight limitations on our shipped things so we are always being careful about just what we collect.  Of all the things I will have collected during my short 6 year career  as a Foreign Service diplomat, the memories will weigh nothing and I will take them with me wherever I go.

Grocery Shopping, Omani Style

One of the great things about my job, and all the traveling I get to do, is grocery shopping in a foreign country.  At my last post, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, so much was available, with fresh fruits and vegetables out of this world!  Shopping was a dream and the prices were great.  Here in Oman, so much is imported that the cost of everything is very high. The fun part comes when you read the cash register receipt and see where things come from.  For example, today I shopped for vegetables and salad fixings to make a really nice salad for a dinner I'm going to tonight.

As you can see, everything is beautiful...fresh, great color and tasty.  But the fun is finding out how far each of these things traveled to end up on my plate tonight.

• Cucumbers are from Oman
• Cauliflower is from Iran
• Bananas are from India (and they are not your standard peel-and-eat variety...very bitter!)
• Carrots are from Australia
• Tomato is from Oman
• Fresh beets are Omani
• The gorgeous red pepper is from Holland
• The lettuce is from Jordan
• And the huge sweet strawberries are from the U.S.A. And at $7.80, they better be good!

Such an international salad I'll have tonight!  I have a garden of my own here and have been very successful in growing some things.  I bought a tiny, 10", fig tree shortly after I arrived here in July 2010 and now it is about 10' tall and covered in figs. I hope some of them ripen in the next 49 days so I can enjoy one!  I've also grown basil from seed and at one time, had 6 large basil bushes.  The plants were so big and healthy that I was supplying the embassy cafeteria with basil and bringing it to work and giving it to my co-workers.

I have some small tomato plants now, and will harvest the first tomato of the season today.  It will go on top of my salad tonight.

It's the size of a walnut but I'm sure it will be delicious!!