Halas. Finished. Enough.

I leave my last blog post from Kuwait with one of my new favorite words to incorporate into my vocabulary. I hear it interwoven into Arabic/English discussion from my students and others. I like it.

We are two hours away from a taxi taking us to the airport. It's going to be a long journey. . .Kuwait to Bahrain. . Bahrain to Amsterdam. . .Amsterdam to Atlanta. . .and finally Atlanta to Roanoke on Wednesday evening. My cell phone and iPod are charged and my bags are haphazardly packed for the return.

The last few weeks were a bit of a blur. Nothing too exciting to report. The last block of classes flew by. I loved having the comparison of teaching both male only and female only sections. Many have in fact, asked me which I prefer. Hands down. . . the boys. Girls are just too dramatic when left to themselves. They make the biggest drama out of nothing. Presentation days were always stressful. Overall they probably out performed the boys in both grades and speaking abilities, but to do it all over again, I would rather have a more laid back class. In fact, in all the rush of the last day I didn't even get a chance to take a photo and class ran a half an hour over time. I did, however, appreciate the female enlightenment I was able to experience with my class of ladies. As I've mentioned before, we talked openly about numerous topics I didn't feel comfortable engaging with the fellas on. I know I enjoyed the teaching and was always the highlight of my day at AUK. I will miss many aspects of AUK.

Overall I guess I can say I got a little lazy with the blog as time went by. I have a few noteworthy photos to post, but I've already packed my camera and cord away. I also think I got better at entertaining myself beyond my laptop. Emily has been a great roommate and we constantly find ourselves in long, meaningful and probably meaningless conversations about life, family, school, etc. We also spend hours watching my Sex and the City DVDs I brought with me. They have brought hours of enjoyment to Meredith, Emily, and myself.

Ah, the call to prayer is signaling me time to go. Seriously. It is.

I've laid awake at night the past several days realizing I have a few precious hours and days before the fall semester begins at VT. The only thing between me and graduation is researching and writing a dissertation. It's been a nice break and blessing to have some time away from the stress of school and to have had this cultural and professional experience. I leave Kuwait with some new friends and life learnings I hope to be able to share with others.

Blogging will be another story. I have a trip planned to the Czech Republic in November, so it will be a great outlet for those travels to report. Otherwise, this might serve as a venting point for grad school, a place to share my thoughts and opinions, or another entertaining procrastination tool. Either way, I plan to keep it up on some level. I hope you have enjoyed it!

On the Downhill

There hasn't been too much to report since our return from Jordan. The photo above is a view of the gulf behind me on a visit to the Kuwaiti towers.

I started teaching the second block of students, an all female section. I do note some of the differences from my male students, but in all they are a good bunch. I have noticed the girls seem to be listening more intently. Especially when it comes to making a difference in their grade. They are tuned in. I can talk more freely about "girl stuff" which makes it easier. They are known to get me off on a tangent of sorts ranging from Oprah to Twitter and singing at my college graduation.

My class of guys (with a few missing) on the last day.

We said good-bye to two of our friends we made over here, Kevin and Jeremy. Kevin will return to Texas A&M and we'll definitely see Jeremy again as we return to Virginia Tech. We spent last weekend savoring their last precious moments here in Kuwait and counting the hours until they left. I'm not going to lie, we were all a bit jealous.

I also got a raging case of food poisoning. Exactly a week ago I could not sit up in bed, nor keep anything in my system. Thank goodness this has past. It was intense, but didn't last as long as previous experiences (Morocco & Egypt 2007). Needless to say, I am OVER middle eastern food as a result. No more grilled kababs, hummus, etc. for me. At least until I get back and have a reunion at More Than Coffee (similar food in Blacksburg).

You've all heard the saying, "It's a small world", and boy have I got the epitome of that for you. When I returned from Jordan I received a forwarded message from my Dad. It was from my cousin, Scott Roney and his wife informing everyone of their recent move to Kuwait. I couldn't believe I knew anyone, let alone relatives, that might be here! I sent them and email and through several correspondences we were able to meet up last week for lunch. It was my first time to see Scott in about 6 years and the first time to meet his wife, Sarah. Such a blessing to visit with them clear across the world. They will be here several more months as Scott works on a project for his company.

As I write this, I realize there are not very many days left here in Kuwait and only 7 more class days at AUK. I'll probably have at least one more post, with some final reflections, of course.