After giving big hugs to our bleary-eyed travelers, we had to tell them that our shortcut transportation back to our city had been cancelled due to weather and that we would have to make a 6 hour bus ride. They were really troopers about it considering their flight schedule had been screwy enough to make even a seasoned traveller lose his mind! And off we went . . . got some fast food at the airport and set off for the bus station.
We made it home, no troubles, only to find that the top lock on our door was broken and we couldn't get into our apartment. Not to worry . . . our sweet neighbors ushered us into their home and gave us a little refreshment while we waited for our landlord and a locksmith to show up. We had had our locks changed a few months ago and when the lock was installed, a very important screw was left unscrewed. The locksmith had it fixed in a jiffy, and we were all in bed by 9:30!
The next few days found us preparing for and eating holiday meals. On Christmas Eve, we got together with some other ex-pat friends for dinner. And on Christmas Day, we had a small family dinner (complete with a really yummy turkey!). Between both meals we enjoyed both of our families' favorite stuffing/dressing recipes. Hmmm Hmmm good!!!
a "before" picture of our Christmas turkeyThe day after Christmas we headed downtown so they could see our city and taste some soup from our favorite little soup place. They loved it as much as we do! Then we went to visit one of Mark's friends who operates a dessert shop. He set several bowls of traditional desserts in front of us so we could taste them all, and by the time we finished we were stuffed! After eating all that we wandered around a park until we felt we might freeze. That night we had beans and rice (thanks to a neighbor that wanted to cook a traditional meal for Melissa's parents while they were here). At the end of that day, we were beginning to think WE were the stuffed turkeys!
Over the weekend, we traveled to a city a few hours away and stayed with some friends so we could do a little sightseeing. We got to visit some historical ruins and do a little shopping at an old bazaar. And, of course, we ate lots more delicious food!
inside a traditional style restaurant where we ate lunch one dayWe made it back home in time to celebrate New Year's. Well, we didn't do much in the way of celebrating other than eat again! We made a big pot of black-eyed peas and a pan of cornbread - traditional Southern cuisine. Then to finish off the week, we got to visit some of Melissa's friends downtown and eat dinner at another friends house. Melissa's parents said the meal eaten in our friend's home was the best they had while they were here. We'll have to agree that it was delicious! Our friends really enjoyed meeting some of our family, and they all pulled out their very best English to practice on them, too!
We had a day trip the day after New Year's and got to see a little snow while we were walking around town. Here's a couple of pictures of a mosque we were able to go inside to see.
At the end of their visit, we all headed to the city they would fly out of to do a little more sightseeing and a little more shopping. We had some more really great food, but thankfully did so much walking around that I think we burned most of the calories off right away!
a large mosque
inside the mosque
a garden area at a museum
a view from the gardenOh yeah . . . I almost forgot to show you a picture of all the wonderful things our families sent over for the baby. We had a little baby shower one night and had a really great time opening all the gifts and cards from parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends! What a blessing!!!
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