Now that S the Wunder Domestic has the house well in hand as evidenced here both by her salad,
as well as here by my newfound ability to lay in one place and enjoy bonbons and National Geographic,
we have become a stop on the Europe-Dubai-Muscat-India-Muscat-Dubai-Europe trail. As matter of fact, if things carry on in the same way that they are headed now, we will soon have our own entry in Lonely Planet.
We have joined couchsurfing.org, the website that matches travellers up with potential hosts all over the globe. And right now everyone in chilly Europe (more specifically, Germany) wants to come to Muscat, and they all seem to be seeking space on our third floor. Frankly, it seems to be the cat that is attracting everyone to stay with us as, more often that not, people's request to crash at our place begins with, "Nice cat".
At first, we joined couchsurfing in order to find a place to stay in Germany other than a hotel as staying in a hotel has become increasingly challenging as the children have become larger and noisier. For one thing, we can no longer hide them in pillow cases and sneak them into a double room which means we actually have to pay for them.
And for another, they make so much noise that the hotel guests around us increasingly have to resort to borrowing broom handles from housekeeping in order to bang on the ceiling and shut them up. Then there was the time that Tehva was discovered at 5:30 a.m. wandering around reception naked. And the time that Tian got a massive nosebleed and drenched a hotel's mattress, two pillows, and sheet set after a long flight.
Hotels have become a last resort.
Now that we have done our surfing, we have graduated to host status on couchsurfing which means that complete strangers write out of the blue and ask terribly nicely whether or not they can stay at our place, share our chow, and get pointers as to where to visit.
I am such a sucker that I almost always say yes and Tony, playing the part of the beleaguered spouse, says, "Whatever," and before we know it we are preparing the third floor for another visitor. Silas goes upstairs and puts clean sheets on the bed, arranges towels, and writes notes of welcome in the language of wherever the Surfers are from. Tian sweeps out all the corners and cleans like the obsessive soul that she is. Tehva mostly yells at the other two as they busybody about.
Our Surfers thus far have mainly come from Germany, although we have also hosted Americans and, more recently, someone from France--Nordine. Nordine made couchsurfing exactly what it is supposed to be--an exchange of ideas, an education on both sides, and a feeling of joy at being with and connecting to other people.
He determined that he would teach the children some French during his time with us and then devoted afternoons and evenings to getting them to at least listen to and understand some of the language. He sang them songs in French and filled the memory of one of the computers with programs and music for children. He brought cakes and treated all of us to shwarma. He took Silas and Tian up the waterfall inside the swim-through cave in Wadi Shaab and scared the crap out of them by jumping from high ledges.
Thanks to falafelfeast.blogspot.com!
In the car, as we drove here or there, he let Tehva play with his iPhone, wearing the battery down to nothing while using a geography app. We talked food, education, travel, culture, identity, the future, the past, and connected so strongly that on so many levels that Tony and I started to suspect that we were long lost family of some sort. You know, that French side of the family.
He not only surfed our couch...he made a huge positive impact on our family, and that is the kind of education I was hoping for for all of us when we came here.
as well as here by my newfound ability to lay in one place and enjoy bonbons and National Geographic, we have become a stop on the Europe-Dubai-Muscat-India-Muscat-Dubai-Europe trail. As matter of fact, if things carry on in the same way that they are headed now, we will soon have our own entry in Lonely Planet.
At first, we joined couchsurfing in order to find a place to stay in Germany other than a hotel as staying in a hotel has become increasingly challenging as the children have become larger and noisier. For one thing, we can no longer hide them in pillow cases and sneak them into a double room which means we actually have to pay for them.
And for another, they make so much noise that the hotel guests around us increasingly have to resort to borrowing broom handles from housekeeping in order to bang on the ceiling and shut them up. Then there was the time that Tehva was discovered at 5:30 a.m. wandering around reception naked. And the time that Tian got a massive nosebleed and drenched a hotel's mattress, two pillows, and sheet set after a long flight.
Hotels have become a last resort.
Now that we have done our surfing, we have graduated to host status on couchsurfing which means that complete strangers write out of the blue and ask terribly nicely whether or not they can stay at our place, share our chow, and get pointers as to where to visit.
I am such a sucker that I almost always say yes and Tony, playing the part of the beleaguered spouse, says, "Whatever," and before we know it we are preparing the third floor for another visitor. Silas goes upstairs and puts clean sheets on the bed, arranges towels, and writes notes of welcome in the language of wherever the Surfers are from. Tian sweeps out all the corners and cleans like the obsessive soul that she is. Tehva mostly yells at the other two as they busybody about.
Our Surfers thus far have mainly come from Germany, although we have also hosted Americans and, more recently, someone from France--Nordine. Nordine made couchsurfing exactly what it is supposed to be--an exchange of ideas, an education on both sides, and a feeling of joy at being with and connecting to other people.
He determined that he would teach the children some French during his time with us and then devoted afternoons and evenings to getting them to at least listen to and understand some of the language. He sang them songs in French and filled the memory of one of the computers with programs and music for children. He brought cakes and treated all of us to shwarma. He took Silas and Tian up the waterfall inside the swim-through cave in Wadi Shaab and scared the crap out of them by jumping from high ledges.
Thanks to falafelfeast.blogspot.com!He not only surfed our couch...he made a huge positive impact on our family, and that is the kind of education I was hoping for for all of us when we came here.
