Ashley's Arabian Adventure

So many ridiculous things have happened to me in the past month that I don't even know where to start. But this is my attempt to recap some of the things that I probably should have blogged about.

There was the time that I almost got run over by the Prime Minister and his entourage. Apparently we live in the same neighborhood.

Then there was the time I was asking for the bathroom in Arabic (hamam) and instead asked where a similarly named terrorist organization was.

What about that one time when I was trying to go in the grocery store and they wouldn't let me and I couldn't figure out why? The security guard was making hand motions and pointing at my stuff and speaking Arabic. I later figured out that if you have bags with you, you have to check them in or get them sealed before you can shop.

My favorite is probably the time I got kicked out of a taxi on the side of this major street because it was about to break down. I had a bunch of groceries too. To keep it short, the meter read 1.15, so I thought I was being generous in giving him the 1 since I never actually made it to my destination. He disagreed and yelled at me about the rest. I gave him the last .15 while yelling "Are you kidding me?" several times. I have since learned how to say that in Arabic. I'm sure an opportunity to use it will arise.

I have also learned that it is not wise to buy decaf coffee unless it is from Starbucks. Maybe decaf means super espresso in Arabic. I'm not sure.