Plenty of personal growth ahead

Wow. No entries at all for the month of September. Which really has been worse for me than it has been for you. Believe me. It isn't like I haven't had anything to write about, I find sometimes strange being that I am, that I avoid Chilli Walter precisely at these times. So after a one month hiatus, I am back with some new realisations. One of them being, it doesn't matter how many times I check my own page. It is NOT going to magically update itself. So what's been going down? Well, the biggest news is that we are moving, leaving Ulm that is and going somewhere other. Not Sydney because that would be going home. Not Paris because that would just be way too perfect and of course, how can a person grow when life is just so all round perfect? One can't is the answer and obviously, I have lots of growing to do. And how does one accomplish all this growing? So that one day, when one is older, one can also guarantee (because we all know these two things don't go hand in hand) that one is wiser? Challenges, of course! Now, seriously speaking, I thought I had met and conquered challenges enough by moving to Ulm. By even entertaining the possibility that I could spend the rest of my life here. When I had accepted that, I thought I had achieved some pretty major personal growth. Clearly not. Clearly, the powers that be feel that I need to be cultivated even more. Perhaps and yes, I see things much more clearly now, I have been an ungrateful twat, living here, complaining about the fog and the lack of good Asian food. So much so that life thought, hmmm... why don't we send her to the desert? See how she finds that. And so, yes people, we are moving to Saudi Arabia, to Riyadh. Right in the middle of the desert. Yay! I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to doing it all again. Meeting new people, learning a new culture and a new language and trying to feel at home enough at least for the next two years. Husband has a new job and he is pretty excited about the whole thing and of course being the good woman that I am my first priority is to support him. Goodness knows he has always supported me in my ventures. But it is still difficult not to feel sometimes, just some occasional times, like throwing a shoe at him just because he is so chirpy about it all. I know it is important and that Husband's half full and my half empty make a very good balance but nevertheless there are times when my hands are just itching, my brain using all its powers of self-control to control that urge to throw. What am I worried about you may ask? Why not just lighten up and see what Riyadh holds for me? Yes, quite right this is the attitude I am working toward and I am sure I will get there. I am after all a highly adaptable person, I say Grüss Gott now for Pete's sake! It's just the things I have been reading I guess, and I have been doing quite a bit of reading to prepare myself for my time over there. Alcohol is banned in Saudi Arabia, and I do think this is terribly unfair as I can't imagine a quick shot of something would make the new surroundings just that teensy weensy bit more bearable. No pork either which doesn't bother me all that much really. One of the things I am obviously looking forward to is all the new food I will get to try. Foreign women must also cover up when out in public, which I have to say, strangely enough, is also on the list of things that don't bother me all that much. I mean, don't you have those days when you wish you didn't have to think of what to wear? Now, I'll be able to throw anything on and have bad hair days galore and no one will be able to tell because I will be all cloaked and veiled. Among the things that bother me is that society is totally gender segregated. I have read a bit about this but I think I won't really get the full idea of what this means till I am there and that is a wee bit scary for me. I am moving to a country that I have never visited, do normal people do stuff like this? There was an option for a weekend trip where Husband and I would get to look around and get an impression of Riyadh, but there were some issues with me obtaining a visa and we don't know if this can happen now. I think I would feel much better if I had some sort of first hand impression of where I am going to be living rather than going only with information that I have gathered from the internet. I am doing a German course at the moment though, and really enjoying all the contact I have with other foreigners trying to learn the language. There are quite a few Muslim guys in my course and it has been great talking to them about my move. When you tell a German person or any westerner that you are moving to Saudi Arabia it is almost like someone died. There is the downward glance that suggests they are very sorry to hear this most alarming news and then the quick cover up and a positive smile, 'think of all the things you will learn. How interesting!' One of my students, when I told her that I was moving to Saudi Arabia because of my husband's job, busted out with 'now that is love!' She could never do it. The guys in my class on the other hand are really excited for me. I have been able to tell them that I am pretty scared about the culture shock and they totally get it. But most of them are totally jealous of me. I am after all going to be living in the land of Mecca, where they dream of visiting at least once in their life. They keep telling me what a wonderful culture it is and how warm the people are and have already offered to help with my first Arabic words. I guess if these guys are anything to go by, I haven't got all that much to worry about.