HOME ALONE - KEEPING SANE
So it was my first day home alone with the kiddos. It was nice having our own place & a little bit of a potter round but also slightly boring. I did all the cleaning I could & about 5 loads of washing still with hours to kill before Seth would get home. And my little friend Cole asked all day about going to school, until he had Kaija asking also.
We've been doing very well with the stickers, colouring books, teddies & story books we set out with 5 days ago, but the kids are starting to get a little over them. Also I promised them, particularly Cole that he would finally get a big boy bike & go to big boy nursery school once we went to live in Oman. So he's been hounding us since we arrived at the airport. He expected a bike to be waiting at the Visa processing area.
We managed to occupy ourselves fairly well with hide n seek & the usuals, but I am kind of dreading what later today will bring, or not bring. As usual, its the middle of the night & I'm wide awake. Hopefully I've sorted out the kids body clocks though & if all goes well they'll wake properly close to 6 am local time.
AROUND HOME
I took the kids out to the pool area for a little wander about 8.30am in the morning & it was really hot. It feels a little odd, as for locals & other expats used to the climate, it is really, really cool right now - jeans & long top weather. We were all hot, sweaty & flushed when we got in. However that might have had something to do with the stalking dog.
We made friends with all the cats that seem to appear from nowhere, had a chat with a British neighbour & a good nosey at the pool area. This included me trying to hold all 3 back from throwing themselves in. They couldn't understand why they weren't able to swim when they very very much like it. Siena of course needed multiple savings from the super steep water slide that runs straight down into the pool's shallow end which is well above all their heads. I'm sure her climbing gene will eventually take her to Everest. I see the pool may not quite be the secret weapon I thought it was going to be. As each child needs their own adult to hold them or at least some sort of safe flotation device, we can't really go in with just me.
STALKING DOG
Before coming to Oman I'd read info about stray animals not to mention the land snakes, sea snakes, spiders, biting ants & scorpions, sharks & a few other friendly beasts. There was a huge stray cat problem but an ex-pat group started catching them & fixing a lot of cats so it is not so bad, but there are still a few around. I guess expats get animals then kind of pass them on or leave them behind when they move on & they've all bred. Apparently there is a bit of a wild dog problem in parts - the packs of dogs being very scary. I've seen a few roaming dogs, very tall-large & quite slim.
In the morning, I thought that we might go for a quick walk around our block to fend off boredom before it got too hot when very suddenly we acquired a large doggy friend. The kids were quite nervous of it & so was I even though it appeared friendly enough. I'm just not sure whether its a "pet" or just another lone, wandering dog, looking for food & company. Anyway it was quite tall & in our face a bit so I decided to quickly end our walk & snuck into one of the walkways back to the pool area. But he kept following us rather excitedly. And the kids & I were getting more nervous.
When I got to the gate I pushed it closed so it latched, even though usually, they seem to be kept wide open, & felt we could relax. Suddenly the dog got right up on his hind legs & very easily pushed the gate open & followed us. I left the kids, (panic pushed them round a corner) & coaxed him back out again & this time held myself against the gate & put the lock on, hoping it would hold. It did.
What a relief, but the very determined dog was hammering the gate & whining trying to get in, as we sprinted along the path & into the safety of our own closed yard, in case Mr Dog got too clever & found one of the other open paths leading to the pool area - especially the one right by our apartment. Luckily he wasn't that clever or determined. Not like our wee fox terrier Jacku-san who had he been in that situation, I'm sure would have figured that one out before too long because he was so good at finding ways & means to go places.
REMEMBERING JACKU-SAN
I had entertained the idea of bringing Jackson with us to avoid putting him down, but I didn't think he would cope with the vet visits, required injections, being caged, plane journeys, drugging, quarantine, and then the heat, scorpions & other odd but dangerous creatures, once he'd made it here. And if he'd lived long enough, due to the rabies in animals here, he'd never have been allowed back to NZ.
I also think he may have got into trouble with all these cats around as he didn't have great self-control in that department & if he'd encountered any large wandering dogs especially anywhere near us, he would have fought for dear life with them. And he certainly had no idea of the driving code here, a quick escape near any moving vehicle is super dangerous. Something we also really try to watch with the kids. The speed, sudden manoeuvres & huge SUVs are all factors kids have to get wise with quickly.
IN THE FAST LANE
I think the driving etiquette is currently overwhelming me because other than the wandering dog incident, the kids & I were in our own little quiet, peaceful haven until Seth arrived home & took us off in search of Lulu Hypermarket (a huge supermarket with huge department store + mini stores attached. Suddenly we were thrust out into the bustling, beeping, speeding, overly populated roadways in the fast lane of life in the real Oman. It was good to get out though & to get a few household things.
Just before we left Auckland I started using the local cobbler/fix-it guy at our local mall as I was getting everything fixed before we left. Turns out he happened to have lived in Oman for about 11 odd years. His family had a business there which he worked in after finishing school in India. He said that life was a lot faster, more hectic than in NZ. He was right, particularly the driving.
THE CAMP
Seth drove us to his work, & around the club, beach, & camp (housing area). It is a very nice place & slower paced, easier driving etc as everyone driving around there only works for the company. The schools, rec club & work is so handy, I understand why its good to be located there but the waiting list is currently 9 months for us as a family. We are the 64th family on the list. Seth went to the housing department today to discover all this & is thinking maybe we'll try and live off-camp so we can get settled in quicker. The company is about to second a few more houses off-camp, Seth had a look & took us all there after work. We are going to try and put ourselves down for one of these as they're in the same suburb we're in at the moment. Its a very nice suburb, & is popular with lots of western expats, the local shops really cater for westerners too. So its the next best thing to being on the actual company camp. The home we looked at was very nice too, just been built. But we will see how it all goes.
Having a chat about the differences, I think we will be fine off-camp. Having lived in Japan, out in the countryside & also in Tokyo, also amongst locals, meeting other westerners & foreigners became quite capable & independent so probably don't need to live right in that support network of the camp. And the drive to work & schools is only about 10 mins from where we currently are. It just seems far at the moment I think, because everything is a bit new.
WORK
Seth at work is really just meeting a few people & organising our life. He opened our bank account today & got blood tested & started finding out about schooling, housing, how to get cars, the internet, mobile phones, our freight etc. He's pretty much got the next 3 days to sort all that out before work kicks in & other team members return from training & leave.
So it was my first day home alone with the kiddos. It was nice having our own place & a little bit of a potter round but also slightly boring. I did all the cleaning I could & about 5 loads of washing still with hours to kill before Seth would get home. And my little friend Cole asked all day about going to school, until he had Kaija asking also.
We've been doing very well with the stickers, colouring books, teddies & story books we set out with 5 days ago, but the kids are starting to get a little over them. Also I promised them, particularly Cole that he would finally get a big boy bike & go to big boy nursery school once we went to live in Oman. So he's been hounding us since we arrived at the airport. He expected a bike to be waiting at the Visa processing area.
We managed to occupy ourselves fairly well with hide n seek & the usuals, but I am kind of dreading what later today will bring, or not bring. As usual, its the middle of the night & I'm wide awake. Hopefully I've sorted out the kids body clocks though & if all goes well they'll wake properly close to 6 am local time.
AROUND HOME
I took the kids out to the pool area for a little wander about 8.30am in the morning & it was really hot. It feels a little odd, as for locals & other expats used to the climate, it is really, really cool right now - jeans & long top weather. We were all hot, sweaty & flushed when we got in. However that might have had something to do with the stalking dog.
We made friends with all the cats that seem to appear from nowhere, had a chat with a British neighbour & a good nosey at the pool area. This included me trying to hold all 3 back from throwing themselves in. They couldn't understand why they weren't able to swim when they very very much like it. Siena of course needed multiple savings from the super steep water slide that runs straight down into the pool's shallow end which is well above all their heads. I'm sure her climbing gene will eventually take her to Everest. I see the pool may not quite be the secret weapon I thought it was going to be. As each child needs their own adult to hold them or at least some sort of safe flotation device, we can't really go in with just me.
STALKING DOG
Before coming to Oman I'd read info about stray animals not to mention the land snakes, sea snakes, spiders, biting ants & scorpions, sharks & a few other friendly beasts. There was a huge stray cat problem but an ex-pat group started catching them & fixing a lot of cats so it is not so bad, but there are still a few around. I guess expats get animals then kind of pass them on or leave them behind when they move on & they've all bred. Apparently there is a bit of a wild dog problem in parts - the packs of dogs being very scary. I've seen a few roaming dogs, very tall-large & quite slim.
In the morning, I thought that we might go for a quick walk around our block to fend off boredom before it got too hot when very suddenly we acquired a large doggy friend. The kids were quite nervous of it & so was I even though it appeared friendly enough. I'm just not sure whether its a "pet" or just another lone, wandering dog, looking for food & company. Anyway it was quite tall & in our face a bit so I decided to quickly end our walk & snuck into one of the walkways back to the pool area. But he kept following us rather excitedly. And the kids & I were getting more nervous.
When I got to the gate I pushed it closed so it latched, even though usually, they seem to be kept wide open, & felt we could relax. Suddenly the dog got right up on his hind legs & very easily pushed the gate open & followed us. I left the kids, (panic pushed them round a corner) & coaxed him back out again & this time held myself against the gate & put the lock on, hoping it would hold. It did.
What a relief, but the very determined dog was hammering the gate & whining trying to get in, as we sprinted along the path & into the safety of our own closed yard, in case Mr Dog got too clever & found one of the other open paths leading to the pool area - especially the one right by our apartment. Luckily he wasn't that clever or determined. Not like our wee fox terrier Jacku-san who had he been in that situation, I'm sure would have figured that one out before too long because he was so good at finding ways & means to go places.
REMEMBERING JACKU-SAN
I had entertained the idea of bringing Jackson with us to avoid putting him down, but I didn't think he would cope with the vet visits, required injections, being caged, plane journeys, drugging, quarantine, and then the heat, scorpions & other odd but dangerous creatures, once he'd made it here. And if he'd lived long enough, due to the rabies in animals here, he'd never have been allowed back to NZ.
I also think he may have got into trouble with all these cats around as he didn't have great self-control in that department & if he'd encountered any large wandering dogs especially anywhere near us, he would have fought for dear life with them. And he certainly had no idea of the driving code here, a quick escape near any moving vehicle is super dangerous. Something we also really try to watch with the kids. The speed, sudden manoeuvres & huge SUVs are all factors kids have to get wise with quickly.
IN THE FAST LANE
I think the driving etiquette is currently overwhelming me because other than the wandering dog incident, the kids & I were in our own little quiet, peaceful haven until Seth arrived home & took us off in search of Lulu Hypermarket (a huge supermarket with huge department store + mini stores attached. Suddenly we were thrust out into the bustling, beeping, speeding, overly populated roadways in the fast lane of life in the real Oman. It was good to get out though & to get a few household things.
Just before we left Auckland I started using the local cobbler/fix-it guy at our local mall as I was getting everything fixed before we left. Turns out he happened to have lived in Oman for about 11 odd years. His family had a business there which he worked in after finishing school in India. He said that life was a lot faster, more hectic than in NZ. He was right, particularly the driving.
THE CAMP
Seth drove us to his work, & around the club, beach, & camp (housing area). It is a very nice place & slower paced, easier driving etc as everyone driving around there only works for the company. The schools, rec club & work is so handy, I understand why its good to be located there but the waiting list is currently 9 months for us as a family. We are the 64th family on the list. Seth went to the housing department today to discover all this & is thinking maybe we'll try and live off-camp so we can get settled in quicker. The company is about to second a few more houses off-camp, Seth had a look & took us all there after work. We are going to try and put ourselves down for one of these as they're in the same suburb we're in at the moment. Its a very nice suburb, & is popular with lots of western expats, the local shops really cater for westerners too. So its the next best thing to being on the actual company camp. The home we looked at was very nice too, just been built. But we will see how it all goes.
Having a chat about the differences, I think we will be fine off-camp. Having lived in Japan, out in the countryside & also in Tokyo, also amongst locals, meeting other westerners & foreigners became quite capable & independent so probably don't need to live right in that support network of the camp. And the drive to work & schools is only about 10 mins from where we currently are. It just seems far at the moment I think, because everything is a bit new.
WORK
Seth at work is really just meeting a few people & organising our life. He opened our bank account today & got blood tested & started finding out about schooling, housing, how to get cars, the internet, mobile phones, our freight etc. He's pretty much got the next 3 days to sort all that out before work kicks in & other team members return from training & leave.
It seems a bit odd for me being at home, finding out about Oman through Seth. When we lived in Japan I was working & so experienced everything first hand. Being stuck at home is kind of strange but I'm sure it won't last long. Once I get wheels & the kids in kindy & school, I'll start discovering things directly.
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