Getting Ready

Friday marked 5 months since I came. The days have flown by. I barely remember when I first came, though I remember the feelings well. Back then the days stretched with the newness of it all; now the familiarity of scheduled work, Tuesday and Thursday night volleyball, Saturday night games, and then events sprinkled throughout makes time evaporate faster than I'd like.

I leave Sunday for the States. I'm starting to plan now, when to do my last load of laundry, who to give my jam and bits of leftover food to, whether I should bring two suitcases and a carry-on or two suitcases and a small handbag. I'm already getting that odd feeling I get when I fly--sort of nauseous because I've usually slept too little, nervous about going over open water, apprehensive of the inevitable turbulence, and worry about whether things will go smoothly with the paperwork. 

At the same time, I feel a tiny bubble of excitement that soon I'll be in a country where my passport always gets me in and I know the rules. In an airport, the common language is English. I know the routine and I can find my gate in any airport worldwide without fear. My credit card always works and I can easily buy a snack or a meal if I'm there for several hours. There is no fee to use the bathroom and there's always a Western style toilet with a privacy door. Here is a world I'm comfortable in. 

Today I went with Sylvia to Bourj Hammoud. It's primarily an Armenian section of town with many little shops tucked along a labyrinth of corners under a string cheese stretch of power and telephone wires. Some doors blend into the scenery, like the tiny hair salon whose door was part of an oversized pink poster. We slid open the door and stepped in where for less than $4 you could get your hair washed, dried, and then straightened/styled. For a treat, I decided to get my hair straightened. It was fun to see a different woman appear in the mirror. Thankfully I took a picture right away as not less than an hour later the humidity had already put waves back into my rebellious Islander hair. 

We stopped in a compact seamstress shop where I found out the lady would replace my skirt zipper for $3.50 and immediately regretted not coming sooner. My single black skirt had been relegated to my suitcase for several months now since the zipper broke. We finished the leisurely stroll with a little sandwich and a hot drink in a favourite restaurant. I drank anise tea--my favourite--with lots of sugar. Each day I enjoy a different adventure. Tomorrow we tour downtown with the ESL class which I'm looking forward to!