March so far

The past 2 weeks have been busy! First off, I turned 27...which my 25 year old husband continues to gloat over. But, in his defense, he did surprise me by baking my favorite cake from scratch for my birthday. It was delicious!

Jad has also been busy with his own little project. In an effort to increase his exercise (i.e. playing any sport that requires a ball), he decided to promote his own public health initiative to his classmates: "Sports Day."   The first one was a rousing success, even though only 1 person outside of his normal buddies showed up. We ended up making some friends and playing soccer, throwing frisbee, and juggling for 3.5 hours. The second one brought many more people, and it has already become a Friday tradition that all the girls look forward to.

We also had the privilege of working together for the first time since I became an RN. Jad joined us for a medical trip to the south of Lebanon this past weekend and got to put his clinical skills & medical Lebanese to practice. Afterwards, our team decided to enjoy the beautiful weather and do some sightseeing. Qala'at ash-Shqif (Castle on the High Rock) is a Crusader fortress perched on the top of a mountain in southern Lebanon. We had a great time exploring and taking lots of pictures.

The Mobile Clinic Team

This and next one are from Qa'alat ash-Shqif -- beautiful!

This past Sunday, the March 14th party had a huge demonstration downtown with upwards of 500,000 people, so we walked down to check out a bit of the end. This week has been full with work for both of us picking up a bit. We did take a break to have a good ol' American tradition, "Mexican night," at our house with some of Jad's friends from school. Now, we are getting ready to host our next guests... Dan and Leigh come tomorrow, Lord-willing! We are SO excited!

Masses leaving the rally

Mexican night with friends!

Tony and Laura's Visit

Tony and Laura at a beautiful seaside monastery

It’s been almost a week since Tony and Laura left, and we were definitely sad to see them go! But, we had an amazing week together here! I must say, Dena was hostess extraordinaire (as usual). Not only did she do the usual things around the house, but when I was in class, she drove them all over Lebanon – and never got too lost! (You have to understand, that is quite the accomplishment in a country where road signs are, let’s say, undervalued.)

 

 

At the market in Byblos.

Besides not getting lost, a few other things we were thankful for during their visit:

-    Good health the whole time! No traveler’s, um, issues.
-    Pretty great weather. It rained quite a bit just before and just after they were here, but during their week here, only a couple times.

Me, Metwally, and the tow truck driver.

-    Flexibility: Tony and Laura were so chill, and always up for modifying plans, and that made hosting them even more fun.
-    Safety when one of our (and by our, I mean my family’s) cars broke down while I was trying to make a u-turn on a mountain road. Long story… but suffice it to say, in a country half the size of Vermont, there should never be a car trip that is 8 hours long. That day, there was.
-    The company of my friend, Metwally, during said car trip. I might not be talking about it so fondly if I was alone. And Metwally spent a good bit of time with the four of us, so we all had a lot of fun together.

Tony insisted on a McArabia before leaving.

 

Otherwise, we are getting back into a somewhat “normal rhythm,” as I’m a few weeks into this semester, and Dena is still working hard with HOME and in learning Arabic. And then, in two weeks – more visitors! We’re so excited for our dear friends Dan and Leigh to be here!