Saudi Villa in Jubail

Well, since our crossing into Saudi from Baharain, it is a totally different world here. Going through immigration and customs at the Saudi border was not too bad. Our driver went inside with me to get my fingerprints and picture taken while Bill and the kids sat in the car. It was like something out of a war movie. The Saudi guards were speaking Arabic all stoned faced and then they burst into laughter. I was glad to get out of there. It was a good thing that we arrived into Saudi at night. It is very ugly here. Jubail is a industrial town. On the way to the hotel was nothing but huge chemical plant, refineries etc. However I was pleasantly surprised when I went on a tour of Jubail the next day into town. The Royal Commission area is quite clean and pretty. The beach and water here are beautiful. We have several western fast food chains here, so I knew we would survive. The prayer time here is unbelievable. 6 times a day they call to prayer. The stores all close up until it is over. We were at the grocery store when call of prayer happened and we were locked up inside until it was over. The stores also are only open from 9-12 and reopen at 4:00, but there is also prayer time, so it seems the only time to go out is after 7 when prayer is over. Our hotel is quite comfortable, but not being in a compound is horrible. There is nothing to do at all. I am well rested and the only stress I have is being stressed about having nothing to do. I will be glad to get my pups sent here for some company. On Saturday January 7th, the kids went to visit their new school. ISG-Jubail.org. They start school tomorrow (Jan 10th) Bill will go into work late so he can drive them their first day. I was happy to meet several ladies from the states. Most of the office staff and teachers are from the states. I met a lady from Sugar Land and another from Sweeney. I am looking forward to getting to know them. On Saturday we also went to visit our villa at our compound. The picture is above. It will seem much more like home when we are able to move in. I will be able to mingle with other westerners there. The compound is very safe. It has a private beach area which is awesome. I have met two ladies there as well. The next time I go out, I will make sure my camera is charged and take some more photos.

Arrival in Dubai

Today is January 8th. We arrived in Saudi on December 28th after spending a week in Dubai at the Atlantis resort.I got a terrible cold just before we left on the 22nd. I was filled with excitement to leave and terrible thunderstorms came. Matt drove me to the Pensacola airport with AJ following behind and after a tearful goodbye and checking 8 bags lol we were going through security. Well, our flight was delayed 4 hours and I missed my connection in Atlanta, so we had to spend the night in Atlanta. There was only one flight per day out of Atlanta to Dubai and it wasn't until 9 pm the next night. So I had to get 8 big suitcases from baggage claim in Atlanta at midnight and realize one is missing so that takes another hour to find out where the missing bag is. Then I have no idea where I am going to spend the night and with two kids and eight bags I wander out to the sign that says "hotel shuttle" and get on the Marriott bus in hopes that they have a room (and they did). It was after 1:00 am when we got there and they kids and I were starving because we hadn't eaten since we ate Mcdonalds drive through on the way to Pensacola. Marriott had a turkey sandwich in the cooler, so we shared it and the kids were asleep in 10 minutes.

With beautiful skys the next day, I didn't have to worry about weather delaying our flight, so we were sitting at the gait patiently waiting to board. I had never flown overseas, so I had no idea what to expect when I boarded business class. Well to say the least Delta flight 8 business class was AWESOME. We had huge recliners that layed completely flat for sleeping, non stop movies, food and drink. We were very comfortable for our 15 hour flight. I didn't have close access to the kids because the seats had a half wall around them for privacy. All I could see when we were taking off was Gus over there pushing every single button on the recliner. up down up down up down lol. The only excitment was the pilot coming over the intercom and saying " we have a medical emergency is there a doctor on board". I panicked thinking of Lord, are we going to have to make an emergency landing. I saw the doctor and the flight attendants going up  and down the isle, but I guess everything turned out alright and we landed on time. Bill was there to greet us after we came out of baggage claim. The children started sobbing with happiness when they saw him. (I shed a tear myself). He presented me and Anne Marie with flowers. He is the best husband in the world.