- abundance of skin "whitening" cream in the markets, by brands we are familiar with, but that are not marketed to the US. (L'oreal, Neutrogena, Nivea etc.) Wonder if this is where Michael Jackson shopped??
- office politics - learning the who's and what's and why's
- caste system of sorts alive and well here....rates of pay differences received by ex pat westerners vs eastern workers is unbelievable.
- Life in a true welfare state
- Gas/petrol is about 60 cents a gallon with no tax...
- paranoia 101 class...what not to do, where not to go, what not to say to anyone you casually run into who engages you in conversation, did you sign up on facebook under your real name? You did??? Are you crazy? How to survive an abduction / hostage situation.... fun.
- Unbelievably amazing Indian food - Oh my god.
- the taste of 0% alcohol budweiser products. Yes, folks - they make 'em.
- will I eat camel while here? the locals do...I guess we will wait and see.
- the ridiculousity of going on base and getting fitted for a gas mask, sitting through a barrage of tests, signing my name and life to this gas mask only to hand it back over the counter at the NBC building. SOOOOOO, in the event of some chemical or biological attack, there is a gas mask assigned to me (and a bejillion other people) an hour away...I guess the name of the game is "if you survive long enough to make it to camp to sign out your mask - you're golden!"
- people and their stories here
- the extremely amazing service and niceness from the folks at the local Starbucks.
- indoor fish market - ugh....the stench.
- running in freakishly hot conditions...haven't done this yet, so can't write about it yet...
- working out my demons in my dreams...interesting
- the amazingly deep and sound sleep I get without the influence of alcohol and even with lots of background noise. I have gone into near coma like states here without realizing it.
- Jet lag is a mother F*&ker.
- Driving in Kuwait...and the driving dichotomy that exists. Kuwaiti drivers = Formula 1 Racing without the precision and safety knowledge....Indian drivers = extremely cautious, frequent brakers...Ex-Pat American and British etc drivers = just as crazy here as in the states and just as varied....all having to learn to curb their 1 finger salutes and road rage or suffer the consequences....
- my love affair with the bathrooms and sanitary standards here. There is a bidet or a spray hose at every single toilet whether public or private - amazing!
- bathroom floors and kitchen floors have drains in the middle of the room and are all made of marble or hard tile, so you can spray your floor clean, squeegee and voila!
- Damn near everything is free here to the Kuwait folks except the water - which is very expensive because it is desalinized direct from the gulf.... the rest, housing (and we are talking NICE housing), electricity, cable, food allowance - all free. Just for being born into a Kuwait family. Not too shabby.
- body odors can get a bit overwhelming in this climate and under all those dang clothes many wear.
- Wishing there were a Tropical Smoothie Cafe nearby...
- Ramadan - coming soon - will have plenty to talk about then. Looking forward to it - it should be cool and kind of a collective spiritual experience. I understand that you need to stay off the highway at sunset though, because folks are high-taling it home to EAT after a long day of fasting!
ciao for now~
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