I love my friend, Ashley. This is why I am in so much pain right now. I am lifting weights every other day. Cardio every day...except when I just can't bring myself to do it because I am too sore.
I don't see any actual improvements, but I hope that the actual effort pays off by March.
David comes home tonight. I think we will head down to the Muscat Festival. I have been avoiding that because I can only imagine all of the gobs of yummy food that I have never tried before just waiting for me to sample...I'm giving a report when we get back. I'm sure the kids would love to ride on a camel...speaking of Camel...I always see it in the meat section...does anyone know what it tastes like? Is it any good? If you say it tastes like chicken, don't bother, I won't believe you. How is it cooked? Is it considered a delicacy or your average meat every day meat?
A few days ago I visited the souk. I like going down there and finding new things. Apparently, a cruise ship came in and it totally effected the reasonableness of the shop owners. They were NOT coming down on any prices. I guess they assumed I was with the cruises, although I can't imagine why. I wasn't dressed like someone with no common sense - wearing a tank top with no bra in a muslim country. In fact I had on a shirt that went up to right underneath my chin...and as I was walking through the souk something unimaginable happend. I saw it coming, but couldn't do anything to stop it because I didn't fully comprehend what was happening simply because it had never happend here in Oman before. This indian guy put his hand up to his shoulder as he was eyeing me (nothing new about that) and then he took an aggressive few steps toward me and grabbed my breast! Yep! Here! In Oman! I was stunned...I had ladies with me, right behind me. In my minds eye I knew what I needed to do to beat him to a bloody pulp, but then a picture of the horror on these women's faces as the ROP dragged me away for attempted murder caused me to pause. I didn't know the laws regarding these situations. Would I end up in prison and this guy get off free? My husband is out in the interior - what would happen to my children? Is kicking this guys rearend the proper thing for the church ladies to see from their Relief Society President? (for those who don't know LDS stuff - that means that I'm supposed to be the leader of the women's section...or something like that - it is a poor description, I'm sure, but I have to set good example's and murder isn't a great example). In the one second it took for my brain to process all of this at once and decide that none of that mattered, this guy was going down anyway...he had slipped through the mass of tourists coming in from off of the ships. My friends assured me that I could have done something and he would have gone to prison. Can I get a check on that? Anyone know? Would the american lady have gotten in trouble for leaving an imprint on his forehead or throat of her black satin stiletto heel? I tried calling the embassy today to find out - but they were pretty much worthless as they never pick up the phones. What is the deal with that? Such limited hours it makes them basically useless. I think there are only 2 hours in the day that I can get business done like notarization and a seperate 2 hours to call and ask my questions...and only 4 days a week...not even all of them. How hard would it be for them to be open? I mean, honestly, what would have happend should I have snapped that little malnourished guy like a twig and ended up in jail? Would I have to sit there all night until someone could come help me because they only answer their phones between 2-4 on Sat., Mon., Tues., and Wednesdays? They have NO problems sending out warnings to be aware of the freaky world by e-mail, but if you have a pertinent question about the laws in Oman - they aren't available? You would think that THEY could put forth some actual effort.
And I know...I know people who work in the embassy, they work tirelessly. To me, it means they need to hire more people because the staff they have isn't enough. So, I know some of you are going to derail me for my criticism of the American Embassy in Oman...but really? A two hour window to call only 4 days of the week? Come on!
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4 comments:
Try the camel briyani at Ubhar at Bareeq alshatti.
I'm so sorry and shocked to hear about your incident at the souk! how horrible! if you had screamed I'm sure a lot of the men would have beat the crap out of him for you without u lifting a finger. Hope this doesnt happen again to anyone and believe me karma goes around he'll get it back some way or another if that is any consultation.
Kay's suggestion is perfect, though I think I would find it significantly more satisfying to beat the crap outta him myself.
Couldn't agree more that the US Embassy puts US citizens concerns at the bottom of thier priority list. I don't think they could be any less helpfull if they tried. I find it especially irritating since unkile most other western Expats, Americans overseas still have to pay income tax.
Argh.
Amber, that's terrible! I think the ROP would have taken your side if you had been able to catch the guy and hold him until the ROP came.
Maybe they should be notified in case this guy is a serial pervert.
Kay - thanks for the camel tip. And yeah, I totally yelled after him once I was done getting over the unexpected shock. The guys that had witnessed it all sat there, more amused looking than helpful. That is why I just kind of gave up at that point. I know they saw what happend.
Sub - I tried her suggestion, it didn't work. It's a beat down next time. No question about it. Yeah - we do still pay a LOT more taxes than I thought we would be paying.
AIO - if this guy is a serial feeler, I will catch him next time. Of course, I was walking in front of the ladies, so I looked like I was alone...that rarely happens...so I don't know if the opportunity will ever arise again for me to catch someone and give them a true crack on the head.
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