Time flies when you are having fun!

Week Ending February 26, 2016
What?!!! Another week has passed? Incredible how times flies when you are having fun. Sometimes we have to make our own fun and though I'm quite limited in what I can do and where I can go, I make the best of it.  I'm working six days a week with one day off to catch up around "home", which is a cinder block flat in a gated compound about 30 km from the plant near a village called Baysh.  This week, I managed to do some beach combing on my lunch break and I brought home some fishing nets, floats and a boat anchor for some interior decorating.

I have found a quiet beach where I can swim and explore a bit.  There are several abandoned fishing boats there which tempt me... all I need is a roll of fiberglass and some polyester and away I could go!

Thursday night (Grocery Night), I drove to Jizan with three of my Finish co-workers and we had dinner in a nice seafood joint and I bought a snorkel set also.

 Grilled fish, prawns, Arabian Bread (which is absolutely delicious with hummus), fries and salad...

Wild cats (and dogs) are a part of Life in Saudi Arabia, many of which are skin and bones...

Grocery Shopping is great here... The local Panda franchise is well stocked and aside from being shutdown for prayer five times a day, is very convenient.

Tahini is an oily paste made from toasted ground hulled sesame seeds and it is used as a dip like hummus.  Its very popular here.

 Halawa is a sweet dense Tahini based confection... more of a treat.

 Ghee is an Arabic type of butter...

 Cardamom is a popular spice here that they use to flavour their coffee, often eaten with dates. (I'm drinking it that way now too!)

Note the copper bracelet I made for myself...  :)

Here is a sign posted down by my beach... 6 per room... nice....

 A new beach I went with my friends to today.. looking south.

 
 Looking north...

 A dead sea lion.... washed up on our beach... along with thousands of tons of garbage...

 And that's all I have.  As per my visa requirements, I leave for Doha Qatar with my Portuguese friend Ricardo this week.  We have to fly from Abha, a town 2 1/2 hrs to the north east of us on Thursday March 3rd and will return on Saturday March 5th.

I have two weeks off March 18th and I have found a little tropical island in the Caribbean where I can relax, enjoy some rum and have a little RnR with someone special and make a little fun. Time flies!