Saudi Sexpat Stories: Tales from the Kingdom

Yesterday, 29 September, was doubly special for us as it was the 4^th birthday of our dearest niece, Alyssa, and the Feast Day of our two boys, Luigi and Rafa. 

-o-                                                                                                                                               

Alyssa (aka “Bambina”, “Bina”, “Carmela-liit”, “Lesles”), is the “unica hija” of my brother, Monty, and my still-sexy sis-in-law, Millie. We were overjoyed when Alyssa was born (btw, her full name is Alessandra Nicole Almanzor Veguillas) as she was the first girl “apo” in our family.   

Through her 4 years, Alyssa has managed to endear herself to us even more with her childish pranks and antics.  For one, she has this penchant for “low-waist” outfits since she doesn’t want anything to get in the way of her healthy tum-tum. The down side of this, however, is that her backside (“butt crack” or “sliced pork”, as my mischievous sons call it) has this nasty habit of making a “surprise appearance”.  O diba, “fashion na fashion”? Hahaha! J To remedy this, during our last home leave, Alyssa and I have worked out a special code such that when I say, “Alyssa, the ‘secret’ is showing once again!” in my silly sing-song voice, she would immediately put her pants up to “hide the secret” again. J I never thought she would take to this so quickly until the day she herself approached me and proudly declared: “Ninang, the secret’s not showing anymore!” also in her distinctly raspy, sing-song tone. Cute, diba? And so smart pa (manang-mana sa mga Ninang!)… 

For her 4^th birthday, Monty and Millie treated her to a birthday party in her play school.  It was a Dora-themed Jollibee party (How did Dora and Jollibee ever get together? Well, Alyssa loves them both to pieces!!!).  From the pictures Millie posted, looks like she had loads of fun! 

Happy Birthday, our dear Lesles (or “Ati”, as Marga puts it – God knows where she got the Bisaya accent! )! We miss you very much! 

-o-

Moving on to the other celebration.   

Our two sons, Luigi (Gabriel Luis), and Rafa (Rafael Inigo), were named after two of the three more well-known Archangels (in fact, if Marga turned out to be yet another boy, she would’ve been named “Miguel” – para kumpleto na ang set!).  We fervently pray (and like to think) that they are growing up to be as “holy” as their namesakes yet there are definitely times when I have serious doubts! As I have said before, boys will be boys! I guess I better charge their adrenaline-charged antics and adventures to growing up so that I don’t lose my mind! Hahaha!   

So far, tops on my list of crazy antics was the time Luigi dipped his yaya’s phone in my parents’ pool just to see if it would float! You guessed it: the phone got busted and yaya got a new phone courtesy of her alaga’s savings account! Well, a lesson has to be learned, right? ; ) 

Rafa, on the other hand, needs a lot of help in the “weight gain” department as both his cousins Alyssa and Ira (4 and 3, respectively) are even heavier than him (and he’s now 7!).  Since all his health tests turned out normal naman, Keith and I are just praying that his “potential for growth” would be more evident soon (after all, both his parents have exhibited this “growth potential” naman so we better not get worried –  kanino pa naman siya magmamana, diba? Hahaha!).

Seriously, though, despite their bursts of naughtiness and “self-expression”, we are very proud of how our two older angels have turned out to be.  Both are still straight A students at IS and are doting and responsible kuyas to Marga.  They are both very creative, thoughtful and adept at computer and electronic games (think Pokemon and Tamagotchi so you know what I’m talking about!).  With proper guidance and discipline (and lots of prayers too!), I am sure they will both turn out even better.  We celebrate you, Luigi and Rafa, and thank God for letting us be your parents!  

For more on the boys, check out my post on them in my former home. J O diba, plugging! 

-o- 

I would like to end this blog with prayers to the Archangels that I lifted from one of the internet sites: 

A Prayer to Saint Michael
Saint Michael, Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness
and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
And do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host,
by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all the other evil spirits who prowl about the world
seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.– Pope Leo XIII

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Saint Gabriel
Blessed Saint Gabriel, Archangel
We beseech thee to intercede for us at the throne of divine mercy:
As thou didst announce to Mary the mystery of the Incarnation,
so through thy prayers may we receive strength of faith and
courage of spirit, and thus find favor with God and redemption through Christ Our Lord.
May we sing the praise of God our Savior with the angels and saints in heaven
forever and ever. Amen.

************************************************

Saint Raphael
Blessed Saint Raphael, Archangel,
We beseech thee to help us in all our needs and trials of this life,
as thou, through the power of God, didst restore sight and give guidance to young Tobit.
We humbly seek thine aid and intercession,
that our souls may be healed,
our bodies protected from all ills,
and that through divine grace we may be made fit
to dwell in the eternal Glory of God in heaven. Amen. 

A blessed day ahead!

My first foray into experiencing Indian food was on a holiday in Thailand in 2003 where our good friend Iza introduced us to the different kinds of curry (red, yellow, green), the delicious nan (Indian flat bread usually served with curry) and the equally refreshing yogurt-based drink whose name I regretfully forget now (pagpasensyahan na ang naka-tatlong C-section!).

Since then, my “curry” encounters have been limited to the times when we would cook our “Flipinized” chicken curry at home in Manila or later, when I tagged-along with my classmates when they craved Indian food while I was studying in the UK for a short course in 2004.

Perhaps, it was the presentation of the curries that kinda’ put me off eating it for quite a while (they all look the same – save for the color of the sauce!) or the fact that neither Keith nor myself couldn’t bring ourselves to eat curry more than once in a month!  There’s something about the richness of the sauce that satiates your tastebuds and makes your tummy go squeamish if you have it once too often.

Here in the Kingdom, probably due to the great number of Indian and Pakistani migrants, there seems to be quite a proliferation of Indian restaurants.  It took a while before Keith and I had the nerve to try them out (medyo di kasi appealing ang ambience e!)  as there were admittedly other cuisines which we would much rather taste first.

Finally, two weeks ago, Keith brought me to this Indian restaurant (about a few notches higher than our local “carinderias” in terms of ambience) near our house.  At first, I was skeptic because of how the place looked but when I tasted what they served (we ordered two kinds of chicken curry – Black Pepper Chicken for Keith and Chicken Nandi for me), I became a fan!

The red-sweetish yet mildly hot flavor of my dish blended well with the delicious nan they served.  Keith’s order, though a bit spicier than mine, and with a darker brown sauce, was equally delectable. Though I must’ve drank gallons and gallons of water to put off the “heat”, it was a gastronomic adventure nonetheless!

In fact, I requested Keith to take out our dinner from the same resto again last night – yum-o! This time, he ordered two kinds of curry (chicken-based again, of course), one done the Indian way (what they term “karahi” in this part of the world) and the other done the Pakistani way.  Though they looked perfectly the same in their reddish-orange sauce, it was surprising that they tasted differently.  The Indian one was spicier while the Pakistani one was again “sweetishly” hot. I must’ve looked like I was enjoying myself a lot as Keith even joked that I better make sure that I put on “Secret” after consuming all that curry  - baka daw kasi lumabas na sa pores ko yung mga spices! What can I say? My hubby is “grossingly sweet”! Hahaha!

Anyway, the “secret” is out and I can say that it has all been totally “Curry-fic”!

Egged on by the “fishy” success stories of some of our Pinoy friends here in the Kingdom, and probably due to the upside-down hours we keep here during Ramadan season (i.e., all stores, malls and restos are closed practically the whole day – while there is still daylight – in deference to the Moslem practice of fasting – and open only from around 8 pm until 3 am the following morning – can you believe that?!?), Keith and I, together with the Megas, bought our very first fishing gear nearly a week ago.  We literally were so into the fishing adventure that we bit into it (pardon the pun) “hook, line and sinker”! :D

The intention was simple: Do something productive during the “dead hours” and possibly be able to contribute a “fishy success story” of our own… After all, who wouldn’t want to be able to say that the fish we ate for dinner is guaranteed fresh (since kami mismo ang nanghuli!). Diba “nature na nature” ang dating? Something we never ever would have thought of had we stayed in Manila (where the closest we got to fishing is the “pseudo-fishing” we did at Island Cove in Bacoor, Cavite!).  Simple enough, right?  Or so we thought! 

Where we fish – the Dammam Corniche

Since Dammam is practically a coastal city, we are blessed to be able to drive off to the corniche in as little as 10 minutes from where we live, and throw our fishing lines to the Arabian Gulf.  So this is what happened the first time we ventured out.  We were full of high hopes and thoughts of catching 3 or 4 tilapia danced in our heads.  Three to four hours later, after our hooks being snagged on the rocks countless times and our lines getting tangled for the umpteenth time, and NO FISH BITING, we decided to call it a night.  So much for our fishy dreams!  Well, “charge it to experience”, we thought… Maybe the next time would be better… 

So, yesterday evening, we tried our luck again.  This time, we drove a little farther… to the neighboring town of Al Khobar (about 30 minutes drive from our place), since most of the Pinoys we knew apparently caught a lot of fish there.  Though a bit more skeptical, we were buoyed by the hope that probably the location would turn the tide for us.  We were the third party to arrive at the sandy sea side (the first two being fellow “kabayans” who already hauled in their catch of fish and crab) and we just felt the fish would bite this time. After all, Bro Cuz and fam even bought live bait this time (the squid stank like anything but what the heck! Anything for a bite, right?).  So, casting our lines, we found it promising that the fish were at least nibbling on our bait (though, for some reason, they were wise enough not to take the deadly bite!). Konti na lang, may huli na! We just felt it would be our lucky night! Anticipation mounted and we waited… and waited… and waited… AND WAITED… Heck, there was even a fish brave enough to jump at the water’s surface near our lines and yet nothing was biting! What gives??? Alas, three long hours after, as we shook off the sand from our shoes and bodies and tried to wash off the scent of the stinky squid bait from our hands, we again gave the dream up. We still were going home empty-handed.  Our hopes for a fresh fish dinner were doused and we had to settle for chicken shawarma on our way home.  Ano ba yan???  

Well, to look at the bright side, at least I got to know the Pinoy terms for the different fish that our other kabayans caught… Never thought that a “batotoy” would grow up to be a “bakokok” (then into a “bakekang”? Hahaha!)… or that you could actually eat “pagi” (ray) with coconut milk.  Too bad that all we got from our trip were little nuggets of trivia such as these and not actual “fish nuggets” (boohoohoo!). 

Well, better luck next time (again), I guess… We’re not giving up on the dream, though…  I’d like to be optimistic about this whole experience and think that when we were “gone fishing”, the fish were actually gone (on vacation, perhaps?) too! Bet when they come back soon, we would be ready for them… Till then, we look forward to the day when we can finally say, “Huli ka!”

Just made the informed switch too:  “Bye-bye 360, hello Word Press!”

Welcome to my new home! Here’s looking forward to swapping stories with all of you soon…

To view my old posts, please visit my former home at Yahoo 360.

Before you think that I’ll now break into that famous song from “Sister Act”, do not panic… I have enough sense in me NOT to.

I just wanted to let you know that, being the “submissive domestic (diva)” I have since become, I must now bid my Yahoo 360 site adieu too and follow the lead of my dear hubby. ‘Ika nga, kung nasaan si “koya”, dapat kasunod na din si “Inday”!

Seriously, though, I have also been convinced that WordPress has more of the features that I am looking for in a blog. So, most logical step would be to move my blogsite there too! I will be retaining my 360 site so that all you 360ers may still know my blog updates in my new home via a link (thanks to my cousin-in-law Weng for showing Keith and I the “light”!).

See y’all soon in WordPress!

Happy to be able to keep my promise to Weng to share my desktop view after she tagged me . I very rarely use this desktop. By force of habit, I normally just click on Keith’s (the path of least resistance, ika nga… ).

My desktop looks like it has been stuck in Disney limbo… I actually have had it since the time I was surfing the net for a theme for Marga’s 1st birthday (which, as most of you know by now, was “Jasmine/Arabian-inspired”). Obviously, it has been A WHILE since I used my own ID to log-on. Anyway, here goes… Enjoy!

Guess now it’s my turn to return the, ahem, “favor” , by tagging the following people as well:

Millie, Martie, Claire, Ge and Jenny

Here are the simple instructions:

A. Upon receiving this tag, immediately perform a screen capture of your desktop. It is best that no icons be deleted before the screen capture so as to add to the element of fun.

You can do a screen capture by: [1] Going to your desktop and pressing the Print Scrn key (located on the right side of the F12 key). [2] Open a graphics program (like Picture Manager, Paint, or Photoshop) and do a Paste (CTRL + V). [3] If you wish, you can “edit” the image, before saving it.

B. Post the picture in your blog. You can also give a short explanation on the look of your desktop just below it if you want. You can explain why you preferred such look or why is it full of icons. Things like that.

C. Tag five of your friends and ask them to give you a Free View of their desktop as well.

D. Add your name to this list of Free Viewers with a link pointing directly to your Desktop Free View post to promote it to succeeding participants.

Thesserie; Dom Lawrence; Rebecca; Blue Panjeet; Rose; Beng; Knoizki; Sardonicnell; Weng; Pinky

Join in, guys, for whatever it’s worth, it was fun!

Have been in a somber mood pretty much since yesterday afternoon since my eldest son, Luigi, told me that one of his schoolmates died last Thursday from a car crash. Turns out that she was about to go malling with her family when the tragedy occurred. Though her whole family was also hospitalized due to the accident, it was only her who suffered the ultimate misfortune. L

As it is, death is something which a lot of us dread. When it happens to one so young, healthy and full of life, it just feels like the burden becomes greater to bear… I could only imagine the grief that her parents must be going through right now. I totally agree with the person who said that we grieve more deeply when a child precedes a parent as this does not follow the “natural order” of things. After all, how many times have we heard of parents working so hard to try and make the world a much better place for their children? When children pass on before their parents, like what happened to this 8 year old, it just does not seem fair.

I pray that peace comes out of this tragedy and that a deeper understanding of a loving God comforts all of us in the face of such seemingly inexplicable loss. God rest your soul, Mahnoor, and may angels welcome you to your everlasting home.

Life is not always fair, but God is always faithful.

Before I had a daughter, the only “DQ” I was fond of was the no-spill-when-turned-upside-down creamy concoction called Dairy Queen… now, DQ takes on a totally new meaning for me… For you moms out there with precocious little daughters, this one’s for you…

After her recent bout with some gastro problems, I can say that my daughter, Marga, is sooo back with a vengeance! The past few days, she has literally driven me up the wall in a hodgepodge of surprise, frustration and outright hilarity. Let me share with you some recent events to prove my point: my little princess is a “certified drama queen” (takes one to know one, I guess! Hahaha!):

Ø EVIDENCE 1:

Every morning, as Keith is preparing to leave for the office, we are very careful not to wake Marga up lest she gets into one of her moods again. Today was no different. Unluckily though, the princess was needlessly roused from her slumber…so with loud protests of “Papa, waah!” and “Dan” (her version of “down”, when she wants to get off the bed), Keith painfully extricated himself from the tearful clutches of our wailing daughter with promises that he’ll be back soon (Hon, how come I don’t get the same response when I make drama???).

Ø EVIDENCE 2:

Last night, we had a follow-up visit to Marga’s pedia. For some reason, Ramadan season contributing, probably, the hospital was packed! What normally took 3 mins to an hour took an excruciating 2 hours! Needless to say, the princess got tired and upset by the time we got home. What followed was classic: Setting her down the bed while she was already screaming and throwing a fit proved no easy task especially when I still had to get out of my “costume” (i.e., abaya) and eventually still change her to her sleepwear. Taking a quick stop to the bathroom to fix her stuff, I was surprised to see our little diva heading right at me (yup, she got off the bed pretty quick even in her “highly charged emotional state”!)and whaddyaknow! The minute she saw me, she let out a piercing wail of protest enough to wake the dead before walking out towards the living room! What a night! What a girl!

Ø EVIDENCE 3:

Never thought Windows came up with such an addictive concept when it introduced me to its movie maker! Now, I have this highly unnatural urge to document even the simplest of experiences with it… oh no!

Well, without further ado, may I present, in collaboration with my dear hubby (who acted as musical director, o di ba? ), our second foray into the WMV World!

Disclaimer: Please be kind and lower your standards a bit… after all, we are still amateurs!

“>WMV Project#2

It’s been exactly 2 weeks since we arrived here in the Kingdom and I’ve been practically on my toes doing God-knows-what most of the time! It’s only now that I can actually sit back, catch my breath and relax somewhat… What have I been up to exactly? A quick run-down follows (drum roll please!)…

23 Aug :The plane has landed! 1.5 hours drive to the kingdom after touchdown in Bahrain. Five checked-in, 4 carry-ons, 1 pram, 1 humongous baby bag, 3 kids – exciting, di ba?

24 Aug: Pantry and fridge wiped-out. Drop off kids at Megas (thank God for them!) while Keith and I do major grocery shopping. After stowing the stash away, quick lunch (again courtesy of Ge – love you guys! Mwah!) then back to HQ to start unpacking suitcases…

25 Aug: Keith back to work. Me back to the grind too – some cleaning, a lot of cooking, refereeing (2 pre-pubescent boys with a lot of unused adrenaline rushing through their veins can do wonders on your weight loss programme, not to mention, your sanity too!) and baby-watching (my, Marga can now strut her stuff – go girl!). Still unpacking… sigh!

26 Aug: Saw boys off for their 1^st day of school. They seem excited – me too – at least some moments of peace and quiet while the “cool” (as in kulit!) kids are away J. More time too to do my dreaded Cs in relative quiet…

27 Aug: OMG! Woke up to find Marga has a fever. Tended to her practically the whole day. Temp’s been going up (high 39s) inspite of round-the-clock meds and sponge baths… extremely anxious again! How I hate illness… Grrr talaga!

28 Aug: Fever no let-up. Had Marga checked by our Pinoy pedia – said all seemed normal – chest, throat and nose all clear – he had hunch that ears may be the problem. Too bad he couldn’t check ‘coz he didn’t have equipment at home. Observe her more daw… so I did. Stressed out na ako!

29 Aug: Day 3 of high fever. Went to the ER na. Otitis media daw (ear infection) so antibiotics again. What a week! Two more suitcases to go…

30 Aug: Marga still sick! What’s happening??? I’m literally on the edge na… Keith reminding me as usual to keep a lid on it – but how can I ???

31 Aug: Went to ER again. Ears have cleared yet she still has high fever up until yesterday. What gives? Doc suggests stool exam to find out (hope they do this time!). “Effi” pedia rings us well into the night to say initial results are normal yet will have to do culture to be more conclusive… New antibiotics given to rule out diarrhea-causing effect of previous one…Haay, when will this end? L

01 Sep: It’s a new month! Can’t believe we’re into the “Bers” already… Marga’s fever gone down – yahoo! Some good news at last.. Things looking up J One more suitcase to go…

02 Sep: At last, able to do my long-overdue laundry! Something about washing things off is extremely therapeutic for me… Whaddyaknow? Able to squeeze in reading Harry Potter Book 7! ALL suitcases unpacked at last! God is good!

03 Sep: Marga’s appetite has improved and she’s been fever-free for 3 straight days! Realized good health is really the greatest treasure we should always pray and be thankful for…

04 Sep: Had quite a scare again… received a text from Marga’s pedia that she has something important to discuss with us… if we could please call her. Heart pounding… what could it be now? L Got through the dreaded phone call. Apparently, SALMONELLA was the culprit – good news is that the strain she contracted is the one treatable by antibiotics. We shouldn’t be worried daw… Well, I hold on to
God’s promise to restore us each new day(got inspiration from an email from Bro Cuz today – how timely!). Almost finished HP7 – highly recommended reading – what a cliffhanger!

05 Sep: It’s a new day! Just finished HP7… too bad it’s the last book (sigh!). Marga still on the up and up while the boys are now out. Happy to have some “breathing time” at last. “Come to me all you who are weary and I will give you rest.” How true!

A blessed day ahead!

23 Aug :

23 Aug

23 Aug