Things I See (Vol 14)

Welcome to "Things I See."  If you want to see the previous installments, you can click on:

 Volume 1 , Volume 2, Volume 3, Volume 4, Volume 5, Volume 6, Volume 7, Volume 8, 

Volume 9, Volume 10, Volume 11, Volume 12, Volume 13 (US Version)

Menus make me smile.  

I can usually find something humorous on every one, but I forget to take pictures of all of them.

I still don't know why places of business here don't employ a native English speaker to check over their copy before taking it to the print shop.

This is a Shisha menu.  It's also known as Narghile, Hookah, Water Pipe, etc.

It is a real money-maker for restaurants here.

In most places alcohol is taboo, but for some reason, smoking shisha is considered "ok" (by some).

One time Doug saw "Boobie Gum" on a menu (for bubble gum), so we always like to take a look and see what flavors they have.  I can't imagine what Desert Mexico or Woman Secret taste like???

I'm pretty sure they don't mean Blue Bell when they say "Texas Ice Cream" either.

I'm guessing this was supposed to be "mustard," but I'm really not sure what "budget bread" was supposed to be.

All fried chicken here is called "Kentucky."  

It's called Kentucky in school cafeterias, homes, and all restaurants (product placement at its best).

Here, they just spelled it their own way.

This is what someone longing for a beach vacation wishes for.

Self-explanatory

Recently, a grocery store in town got a very large shipment of American products.  I don't know how or why, but we were so excited to go look, and then we saw the prices...

I did break down and buy a few Dr. Peppers for $1 a piece, but the mark-up on the rest of the products was crazy!!

This bag of Quinoa costs about $26, and as much as I love grits, $80 for some crushed corn is not going to happen in this house (cheese maybe (right Natalie), but not grits :).

Every time I go to the store, I look to see if the price has dropped, and it hasn't, and the bag is STILL there.

This is not a mirage.

You are seeing this correctly

In February, I was parked next to this creation at a gas station.

The people here love to buy and wear gold, but this... 

The building behind us was sure that our drains were stopped up, and that is why their water wasn't working. In fact, they told me that water was draining out of their ELECTRIC PLUGS!

I don't understand it, but they came to the house four different times to look in bathrooms, the hot water heater room, 5 or 6 drains, etc.

On the last day that I saw them, they brought some workers to clean an outside area that is closed off. We never use it, and haven't opened the door since we moved in. They were "sure" this was the issue, and maybe it was since they haven't be back.

It was gross.  Four dead pigeons and a LOT of pigeon poop.  They watered it down, shoveled it out, and all I did was provide the trash bags...SEVEN of the them.  THAT is a LOT of POOP!

I don't know what we did to receive this sort of blessing, but it was nice; however, I still don't want to open that door, because who knows what it looks like now. This was on January 20th.

For a school photography project, Kylie asked a bread shop if she could come in and take pictures of the process, and they were so inviting.   

She got some great pictures.

Her photography teacher required them turn in all their assignments in black and white.  The black sesame seeds provide such a great contrast in these pictures.

We used to go to the orthodontist about once a month, and we had a fun time calculating that EVERY SINGLE TIME we went for an appointment, some couple was at the fountains taking wedding pictures.

It's hard to find pretty places in the city for pictures, so they all gravitate toward the few they find attractive.

Things I See (Vol 9)

Welcome to "Things I See."  If you want to see the previous installments, you can click on:

 Volume 1 , Volume 2, Volume 3, Volume 4, Volume 5, Volume 6, Volume 7, Volume 8

These boys wanted to play soccer in the middle of the city, so the median seemed to work just fine.

Flour from the government.  Each neighborhood has a small building where the flour is stocked, and by showing identification, each family can come and pick theirs up.

Men playing backgammon at a local tea shop.

There is even a park specifically for retired men where they can pay a small fee, enter in, and meet each other during the day.

This looks safe.

Three wedding photography sessions going on at the same time.

(The third bride can't be seen)

Just another fun menu.

A young adult visiting our house one night said he wanted to teach my kids some survival skills, so he duct taped their wrists together to see if they could escape.

Just another normal night in the Middle East.

Attics in America = Roofs in this country

Well...maybe not ;)

The entry way for a Kindergarten.

It's hard for my kids to do online school when the entire country shuts down the internet.

This happens every year at the end of school when there are big tests, and the government tries to control the cheating.

Chips and Salsa were on the menu, so Doug and I got a little curious.  We were a little hopeful, but we knew to lower our expectations.

If you can't tell, we got a plate of Lay's potato chips, and dipping "sauces" of ketchup and garlic mayonnaise.

In case you're wondering...we didn't touch any of it.

Is it because "ham" isn't allowed in this country??

It's like "something" without the "e"

Field Trip Out of Town

A week after Kylie got her knee drained, we took a trip to see an old monastery (Oct 16).  It just so happens that the orthopedist was part of our group, so that was a bonus.

I'm glad we were in a vehicle.  I can't imagine how long it must have taken the people in earlier times to walk up here.

Can you see where we're going? 

This is the view, up from where we parked.

And here is poor Kylie starting the trek up hundreds of stairs.

Sweet Karis stayed right by her side.

Looking back down.

 The long winding road we had taken.

The kids enjoyed climbing everywhere.

Here is Karis at the edge of the wall, and the hole in the wall is empty for now.

Then Karis went into some tunnels below and stuck her head out through the wall.

 Here are Karis and Keira climbing on the older part.

Of course, since we aren't in a country with a lot of regulations, there is a straight drop-off right behind us and no guardrails anywhere.

Right across from where we took this picture was this "prayer" tree.  People come and tie ribbons or strips of plastic bags all over this tree.  Sometimes they tie money inside the the plastic bags.

Kylie started her descent down.

She and her sidekick made it in good time; however, I think she was wiped out.

When we left the monastery, we drove around a nearby town looking for the tomb of Nahum, the prophet.  As we were winding in and out of streets, we saw this.  

I have no words.  There's the birth, Last Supper, crucifixion, hints of Babylonian empire, and who knows what else.

When we finally found the tomb of Nahum, the entire church built over the site was under construction.

Unfortunately, there was no way in, so maybe we'll get to see it another time.

After our long day, we drove to another city to eat, and there are so many things to be said about this menu, but I'll let you check out the other items for yourself.  I've circled the few that made me grin the most.