In the 3 weeks since I last wrote, our lives have become so amazingly random I can't help but laugh as I sit here and write this entry. Let's put it this way...we don't know how to drive manual, Jess doesn't even have a license with her, nor do we speak Greek, yet we scored a job delivering cars for Budget rental in Mykonos, Greece. Like many things on this trip, I'm not sure how we stumbled upon this opportunity - but I'm just gonna roll with it. Yesterday we had to walk an hour to get home because we missed the bus, today we have our own company car to drive around the island and we are going to get courtesy cell phones. It's crazy what a day can bring.
Before arriving here in Greece, we rounded out the China leg of our trip and visited the wonderful Taylor and Tobin Ireland in Abu Dhabi. Our time in Beijing was spent visiting the Forbidden city, summer palace, and, of course, - the Great wall of China. The most memorable of the three is definitely the wall - it truly is "Great." We spent our last day in Asia hiking from Jinshanling to Simatai. This is an interesting stretch of the wall with sections that remain original and others that are completely restored. The landscape is overwhelming; the mountains are so green and textured that they look fake. The wall itself stretches as far as the eye can see, up and over the hill and cliffs. It's a wonder that they able to build the wall on such terrain - I was getting winded hiking it...imagine having to haul all of the materials and build the wall to boot! It made us realize that our goal to run a half marathon is going to be more challenging than we thought.
We left Asia with a tear in our eyes and endured a day long journey to the UAE. It was not long before we were in the laps of luxury in the Ireland's apartment in Abu Dhabi. Our time with Taylor and Tobin was like a breath of fresh air...before we arrived we were grumpy and homesick - by the time we left we were rejuvenated and ready to move again (although we would have preferred to hang in Abu Dhabi a bit longer). Within 24 hours of our arrival we met the entire staff of the American International Elementary School. They were chock full of entertainment with their crazy tales of teaching the expats and royal Emirates. It was interesting to hear all of their stories and we are now convinced that teaching is in our future. It would be the perfect occupation to feed our travel addiction. Beyond that, we spent a full week watching boot legged movies or, when we wanted to get some "fresh air," walking around glamorous malls with the rest of the Emirate women. The dry heat of the UAE is both tiring and satisfying. This, coupled with our laziness, kept us form exploring the city too much. But, it is amazing to think that just 30 years ago this incredibly modern city was all desert. Now it is an interesting mix of western and eastern cultures, set in the richest country in the world. Public transport was slacking but the crazy cheap gas prices allow the taxi rides to be affordable - we filled up a full tank of gas for about 15 US dollars.
Two highlights of our trip to the UAE were dining with Cornelia and Hunter Milborne at the Emirate Palace and playing in the sand dunes in Liwa. The dunes were incredible and unlike anything I have ever seen before. Pictures will be up soon. Though these were "highlights" of our week, in all honesty, our favorite times were spent on the couch watching movies, awaiting the return of our adoptive parents from work with hugs and dinner in the oven. We love Taylor and Tobin, the perfect mirror image of our own relationship. It was like a double date with 2 old married couples: I was Taylor and Jess was Tobin.
As for life at the moment, we are happy to be settling down for awhile in one spot. Hopefully by this time next week we will have an apartment and will be able to cook meals and have a hot shower. We are spending our days learning to drive manual, our afternoons running, and our evenings sitting in front of our friend's jewelry shop sipping wine. It's a hard life but someone has to do it.
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2 comments:
It's about time you wrote on this thing. But, I guess it is quality you wanted, not quantity. I want you to love your trip, but not so much that you don't want to come home. Just remember, there are as many, if not more, ignorant children in New York that you could teach as there are on the other side of the world--and you could live with your mother as a bonus.
I agree Mrs. Schenck! Come home! We miss you!
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