Goodbye Davan

      A couple days ago one of my seven exchange sisters left Oman. It is not my place to share her reasons for leaving, but I will say that she is one of the strongest, most passionate, enthusiastic people I have met. Whenever she was struggling or even when she was crying, she would try to shrug it off and say, "But it's fine." Even when she was dealing with things that were very far from fine. Being an exchange student is hard. There are many things that are out of our control: food, transportation, sometimes weekend plans, etc. I am so impressed that she admitted that things weren't getting better and that it was time to return stateside. I probably would have remained miserable for all ten months and waster a year of my life.
     I would like to thank Davan for what an amazing friend she has been. She was my bus buddy, the sole witness to my eating of a jasmine flower, she helped me when I fell off the bus seats, I was the one who taught her that Kit Kats were an American brand, and I will miss her so much.

It's pretty chilly there...

So the past couple days I've been getting reports of the severe cold in my home town of Vermont. It's hit -28 C, whereas in Oman it's been a balmy 20 C.  My dad sent over some pictures that made me thankful for the warmish weather.

Some poor soul's bicycle has been trapped in an ice prison. 

Those treacherous wintery roads.

Despite the frigid air, it is quite beautiful when winter comes
and the land is hidden in snow. 

New Years and New Flavors

        New Years resolution: write more blog posts. I apologize for my ridiculously long absence from this blog. The holidays have passed, the exchange students celebrated Hanukkah and Christmas with each other. I expected to be more homesick on Christmas than I was, but thanks to the arrival of a package from my dad and friend, my host family, the other exchange students, and the American family I stayed with on Christmas day, I had a cheerful Christmas. New Years is very underwhelming here. My only celebration was lighting a candle at midnight in honor of my New Years resolutions.
         Truth is, when I get comfortable and relaxed things like blogging and journaling become very difficult for me. Why do I need to blog or journal? It's just my life. Now my journal has been left in the corner of my drawer for over a month, and this blog has faired no better. Luckily, I feel guiltier leaving the blog behind so I'm back.
         To keep this from being boring, and to help those of you that made a New Years resolution to try new things, here's some unexpectedly delicious flavor combos I have only had since coming to Oman:

1. Nutella and cream cheese (well Puck Cheese spread, but I don't think you'll find that.)
2. Plain yogurt and rice (this is so good!)
3. Instant coffee in your oatmeal, especially with peanut butter.
4. Chips Oman, Puck cheese, hot sauce, and flat bread. Since you can't get Chips Oman outside the Gulf, try: cream cheese, barbeque chips, hot sauce, and pita bread, I hope it's just as good!
5. Peanut butter covered Oreos in chocolate cupcakes.
6. Cheese or corn puffs and hot sauce, be very very liberal with the hot sauce.
7. Spaghetti with tomato sauce and tuna.
8. Eggs, cooked any way imaginable, with hot sauce.
9. Avocado smoothie with milk and honey.
10. Green mango or canned corn, lemon, and chili flakes.