I went to the Omani Women's Symposium. Even though there have been other conferences dedicated to women in Oman in the past, this was described as being the first of its kind, and was even advertised in the newspapers. It is wonderful that dialogue like this is becoming more and more prevalent in the Sultanate, and that issues pertaining to women are being brought to the surface continually. Every year, there is a specified goal to work towards improving, and this year is the year of the woman. I was really looking forward to the conference, and the first of the two nights did not disappoint. The women who gave their presentations were full of passion and personal experience - many were researchers and lawyers. I was taken by their bold statements and yet respectful discussion of Omani culture. The question session was particularly interesting - many of the statements made by the men left me dumbfounded that they could be so oblivious to the visible differences in opportunities between men and women in the political and the social spheres. Or that they truly believed that women had more political limitations especially in terms of marriage, because women are clearly emotional -OH! DO YOU THINK SO? - see? you're emotional. - ...
This got my blood boiling. Many times you read about these issues and living as an outsider within Oman, I have only seen a small percentage of these issues first hand, and the political ones that are below the surface are not always the most visible. Even in my interviews so far, the situations for each girl is different and depends in great deal on the conservativeness of the girl's family and especially on whether or not she has a car. I have always taken for granted the rights that I never fought for - not only being allowed, but expected to go to college, being given a car, allowed to go out every night if I wanted, marriage is optional and up to me to decide when and to whom, many of my best friends are guys, I can aspire to be whatever I want, and no one tells me habibati, leave that to the men... - just to name a few. This doesn't even touch on legal aspects, which is an entirely new conversation, but i would love to see my new girlfriends here in Oman with the same opportunities that I've had. It hurts me to leave my friend at home while I go out with her relatives because she is so careful not to do anything that might make her unwanted by a husband or leave for city center to work, and my mom stays at home all day with the kids practically locked inside with no car. Some people are ok with this and call it culture - that is fine, but not every girl wants to grow up to inherit these expectations and I think it's time to start asking for a different and more accommodating social structure. Women these days are starting to become lawyers, doctors, researchers and they are tired of people not wanting to invest in them because they will have babies one day. You can disagree, and post your own view that's fine. I am also aware that I am a young woman from the West and have naturally entered into this society with my own biases. The thing is, it is just not fair. Why not allow women equal rights as men when the laws are founded upon Shari'a law which proclaims that women and men are equal. I loved what one of the women said in particular. She said, stop asking me to prove to you that my suggestions for equal rights fit into Shari'a law; I would like you to prove to me that they don't.

stories

Our final exam and final day of class was Monday. Now it is ISP time. My research project is about how Oman's development has influenced the empowerment of women here. Oman has gone from having nothing to everything it is today in about the past 40 years and it was all due to oil. I would like to interview grandmothers and their granddaughters to better understand how this development has impacted the opportunities available to Omani women. (If you have any suggestions/ideas/questions/literature I should look into PLEASE e-mail me rdodd@austincollege.edu)
After school that last day I went home with a friend of mine in the program to her hostfamilies house to interview her sister. We got home, had coffee and temours, talked for a bit and they decided I would spend the night. I had the interview with her about her life and opportunities in Oman later that night slumber party style, sitting on her bed sipping tea. The next day we woke up late, had some visitors, and before we knew it, it was dark and there was talk of going to the grandmother's village the next day. She was the next person on my list of people to interview, so again I spent the night. We baked apple pie, visited the sister's academy and played truth or dare until the early hours of the morning. The next day we went to a symphony concert by the Royal Omani Symphony Orchestra. This was followed by lunch, then snacks, and finally at sun set we began our journey to the village.
I had an amazing time. Every weekend all of the benat (girls) in the family gather at the grandmothers house to spend time together. We all gathered together on mats for dinner and conversation. I spent this time interviewing the grandmother with her daughters and granddaughters gathered all around her listening intently and adding their inputs when needed. After the grandmother went to sleep, the older Aunties had everyone circle around under the stars and told stories. We heard a haunted story first that happened to a friend of the Aunt's, then it went into a series of stories about Oman in the olden days about the grandmother and about their weddings. They talked about the games they would play for fun and we all reenacted them together. It was so much fun! By that point I felt so warmly included in the family and was joking around, and slapping hands with the women from age 5 to 75. It's interesting; as much as Oman has changed in the past 40 years, there are some aspects such as these gatherings and the storytelling that for women are almost exactly the same and I hope never change. It was sad leaving this morning, and I hope to go back again before I leave. I know not all of my interviews will be so interactive, but this trip has made me excited to get going on my research.

khubz Oman and dirty dishes

I spent the last week in an area outside of Nizwa. Nizwa is one of Oman's larger cities, and in 2020 is set to be the cultural capital of the Middle East. The girl's were placed in host families and the boys, considering Nizwa and its surrounding area is more conservative than Muscat, stayed with male students studying in Universities in Nizwa. I was placed with a wonderful family. I became very good friends with the 15 year old daughter, and had a wonderful time playing football and basketball with the three little boys. I shared a room with the three boys, the 15 year old girl and 20 year old who is married to one of the older sons (none of whom I ever met). I was strongly encouraged by the mother to wear a scarf during the entire week, and I enjoyed helping out with household chores which included washing the dishes. Cooking for the entire family requires the largest pots I've ever seen. They do not fit in the sink - it took all week for me to perfect my method. I also got to help feed the goats, shew away the army of cats outside the kitchen door as we cooked on the floor, and helped prepare Khubz Oman. Khubz Oman was probably one of my favorite parts of the Nizwa experience. It is the thinnest bread I've ever seen. Making it requires grabbing an entire handful of dough and slapping it onto the hot surfaced contraption we had set up on the floor of the kitchen. After slapping the pan about 10 times, you are left with the residue and then you CAREFULLY peel it off the pan, drizzle it with oil and then hallas, youre done. I began to get worried about my host mother's hand getting burned in the process, and around the same time I was wondering about the broken tape floating in the water she was using. Just then she said "Ow!" for the last time, grabbed the broken tape and used a new method for making the khubz that resembled making a crepe - only with a broken tape. I hope this is not the last time that I witness a broken tape being used as a cooking utensil.
Unlike other girls in my program, I got to leave the house. This was a big deal. My family took me to another family member's house, where an engagement lunch was celebrating three new brides (aroose) in the family. The purpose of the lunch was to get to know the new girls and welcome them into the family. This took me almost the entire afternoon to understand. It was a wonderful chance to practice my Arabic, considering a very few people speak English. The best part of the afternoon was when I described my friends and family in America ALL IN ARABIC! and they all understood and said, "Meshallalah! you know a lot! in sha allah, Arabic will be very easy for you." This was nice to hear, despite the fact that I knew that what I had just said was not really that impressive. They had very low expectations. I made friends with many of the women and I had a great time looking at the bride's wedding pictures.
During our tour of Nizwa Tech University I met an incredible student there. She was great to talk to and it was interesting hearing her perspective on men, work, marriage and women's roles.
Our week in Nizwa ended with a tour of Jabel Shams and Jabel Akhdar (two mountains). They were beautiful. We got to look over the sides of many cliffs and walk through a few wadies and went through the first cave tour in the gulf region. It was a fun week, but I missed my Muscat host family and was warmly welcomed by them when I returned. I spent that evening getting caught up with my host mom on family gossip and shared my experience in Nizwa with her and listened to rap songs with my host dad - back to the regular routine.

Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar

We are going all over the place. It started in Dubai, where we had a relaxing 3 days. I was able to meet up with an acquaintance of mine at the mall of the emirates which was nice (this is the mall with the ski resort inside it). I was also able to buy a pair of jeans, which I've been missing for so long - my host Aunt laughs at me all the time for not bringing jeans to the middle east, especially she says, when skinny jeans are all the rage. Well, I didn't buy skinny jeans, but she will be happy to hear of my purchase regardless. Dubai is ridiculously over the top. It is an Arabian fairytale land with skyscrapers. The Dubai tower (the tallest building in the world) is the only object I recall seeing that gets bigger the further away from it you are. During our short stay I managed to get lost by foot and lost on a bus rout, but the new metro that just opened was a piece of cake (even I had no trouble). Each station has a different theme. The ones I saw were fire and water. It was a bit elaborate. I also saw the gold souk, the old souk, another souk I don't know the name of and a museum or two.
I really enjoyed Abu Dhabi. Our first night there was the last night of the 2009 Middle East Film Festival - and we had no idea until a few of us somehow ended up in the palace of the emirates surrounded by women in elegant abayas and long dresses. I was wearing jeans and a tshirt. This would have bothered me if I had known that Tony Blair and Orlando Bloum were there that night too. We enjoyed some spectacular fireworks, mourned over missing the last film and headed home. The next night we ended up at a concert that was followed by a big screen showing of a car race in Brazil. The commentators of that race were on stage and we had a great time getting into the spirit of the race with the rest of the emiratis. In two weeks the final race will be held in Abu Dhabi, and everyone is just a bit excited. We also visited a women's college, and I made so many friends. I had a great time.
Now, I am sitting in an internet cafe in Doha, Qatar. Earlier we visited the Al Jazeera headquarters which was unbelievable! Next we took a tour of the city and saw some beautiful Arabian horses.
Later tonight we are visiting the souk and going for a boat ride. We still have a few more days left in Doha.

Arabian nights

We just got back from our Wahiba sands/Sur trip. It was only three days long, but it was my favorite weekend so far. The first day we drove down to the desert and drove around on the dunes in a caravan of SUVs. It was like a roller coaster ride. Uncle Richard, you will be happy to hear that we got to sand-board down the dunes while we watched the sun set over the desert. Our camp for the night was surrounded by sand on all sides. All you can see when you look out is just a sea of sand - it was beautiful. That night we continued to surf down the dunes and ate some wonderful food as always. We played a game with Sultan (our Arabic teacher) and our drivers who were all Omani, that was basically an Islamic/Arab World trivia game...my team lost. Next we danced to some beautiful Swahili-influenced music. The tent we ate and danced in was a bamboo structure with Persian rugs on the ground, pillows everywhere and lamps hanging from the roof-so pretty. That night, the girls in my tent and I decided to sleep outside so we could see the stars.
The next day we drove to a camp just outside of Sur. That night we went to see the turtles. It was amazing. We got to see a mother laying her eggs, another digging a hole and another searching for a spot to start digging. As we were leaving we were lucky enough to see some babies climbing out of the sand and start their treacherous journey to the ocean. Here are some amazing facts about sea turtles that we learned: 2 out of 1000 babies survive the journey. They follow white light because they always assume its the moon's reflection on the water. Turtles lay their first set of 100 eggs 37 years after they are born. To do this, they travel back to the same beach where they were born. The next set of eggs is when they are around 60 years old. It was mind blowing to see this play out on the beach that night.
The next day we traveled to a Wadi near the ocean. This place looked like it came straight out of a movie. It was in a huge canyon and all throughout there were palm trees and the folage (irrigation system that looks like a small river). The sides of the mountains on the edge were giant and when you're inside you feel so small. The walk to the specific pool we were going to was an hour long walk. I had broken my shoes in Sur, so I was barefoot the entire time. There were stones, hot sand, hot stones, jagged rocks - I cannot explain how badly my feet hurt. I have never been so angry at myself before. 10 minutes before we arrived at the pool, Hugh found me a right shoe and then a left. At this point I could not fathom walking back without shoes, so I consider myself very lucky. The pool was worth it. We had to swim under a cave opening to get to it. It was basically a cave with a spring and waterfall inside of it. As much as my feet hurt, it was completely worth it. We only got to stay for 1/2 an hour because the walk back would be another hour long.
Once we arrived back in Muscat I was exhausted. All I wanted to do was sleep. I probably needed a shower, but I was willing to skip that step if it meant I could get to bed just a little sooner. Right after I put my bad down in my room, my host mom Ifat insisted I could not go to sleep without food. After some discussion I finally agreed. She said great I'll get Said and we will go to my Mom's house! Oh dear. I was so tired, but I managed to stay awake those next 2 hours until I passed out in the guest bedroom. Despite this, the food was great and I was happy to be with the family again. Needless to say, I slept well last night and I'm fairly confident I'll sleep very well tonight as well.

Maa fi petrol? Maa fi mushkulah!

I went on a trip this past weekend (weekends are on Thursdays and Fridays). 12 of us in the program went on a camping trip organized by one of the guys' host dad. After school we went straight to the beach ready to go with our gear and tons of food and water. We were ready by 4 and we sat and waited...and waited...and then waited. The sun went down and we were still waiting. Then Grahm's dad showed up, but the men weren't there so we waited a little more. Around 9 they came and we all gathered around a small boat with a motor that we had piled all of our stuff in. Then we all ran the small boat into the ocean. Then we all got in. With the weight of our luggage in addition to us, the boat was low to the water and waves were crashing in over the sides. We drifted a little ways out to sea (I don't think any of us were fully comprehending the situation we were in) as the men worked to start the engine. It just wouldn't start. Amongst the unidentified Arabic, I recognized one phrase that summed up the entire problem - "Maa fi petrol!"...Oh! Ok...so we just don't have any gas. I was expecting us to paddle our way back to shore, when they told us to jump out of the boat. We did. One of the drivers (around 16 years old) began swimming back to shore to retrieve the much needed petrol, as the rest of us proceeded to bail water out of the boat that seemed to be filling up quickly. One of us asked how long of a ride it was to the island, and the answer...40 min. People began to doubt the entire trip at this point, but we stuck with it. 20 min later, the 16 yr old returned and filled up the boat. It wasn't much longer until we were on our way. 20 min into the boat ride (which was beautiful with the ocean, the stars the occasional smugglers from Iran) the boat just stopped. There were only minutes of tension until the roar of the engine killed the silence. We passed by one other boat that was close enough to see who we were. It must have been a puzzling sight for them - 12 young Americans crammed into a small boat in the middle of the night between the gulf and Iran (Just not your typical scene). We finally arrived on the island to find we were not the only ones with the intention of spending the night there. We ate like royalty that night; shrimp kabobs, hamburgers, roasted apples, s'mores...wonderful. All the while listening to the music we missed the most. By the time we cleaned up, it was already 1 am and we were all tired, not to mention everything we owned was sandy and wet but passed out on mats anyway.
The next morning I woke up with the sun around 4 am. I was freezing cold (I haven't known this for a long time) and so I walked along the beach with the sunrise to warm up. I woke up again around 6 am (felt like 12). I helped make breakfast...I'm getting better at cooking out of necessity, and went snorkeling around the island. We saw a turtle, some fish, some coral and swam through an opening in the rock to some pools and caves that I later could walk through after the tide went down. Our boat was late to pick us up and we were all in bad moods; tired, hot, sun burned, hungry. When the men finally arrived I thought some of us were going to attack them because they decided they wanted an hour break of just sitting around. We finally set off, after taking 10 min of trying to start the engine. It started thankfully and we were on our way home. On the way, one of the men threw fish to seagulls. At first there was a following of 2, but by the time we reached Muscat there were about 7 of them snatching fish out of the air. We also stopped again half way, but this time just to randomly fish a little. By the time we reached the shore, and pushed the boat up to its resting spot it was dark. Two of the others in my group who live close to me and I walked 3 km (about 30 min) to the nearest souk to find a taxi. We were so hungry and tired and carrying heavy luggage. No taxi wanted to take us considering it was dinner time and they wanted to go home too. Just then, one taxi rolled up. Scott told him where we needed to go and gave him a low price. The driver agreed immediately - no haggling. As I stepped into the car, I felt as though I was stepping into a spa. There was frankincense burning and the cab was clean. We all were talking and the next thing I knew he was taking us for meshcock on him. By the time I was dropped off at my house, I was feeling much better.
All in all it was a wonderful weekend and even though, my phone fell victim to the ocean as a result, I had a great time.

Phone call...ZXB love!

So Adnan called me on my way to school one random morning. It was so good to hear his voice again then all the sudden John Mark is talking to me about something and then BAM! I'm a ZXB little sister and all these wonderful brothers are talking to me through my phone in the middle of Muscat. I'm pretty sure I scared my driver Selma to death a few times (people don't normally shout here). Needless to say I was all smiles all day and the next and the next and now its official :) and ALICIA AND RINDCY TOO! I am so excited! Here is a shout out to all my wonderful brothers and bro/sisters!!!!!! I MISS YOU ALL!

Eid mubarak everyone!

Well, I just had my first Eid! The first day we had to wake up really early, cook some rice, burn some frankincense, clean the house and put on our new clothes. We set out coffee, sweets and were ready to receive guests by 8 am. No one showed up until 2 pm when the entire family seemed to come all at once. We laid out the dinner rug in the living room and ate tons of lamb. That night, my family stayed at home which is not customary, so they called up their relatives and Scott and I were able to tag along with them. The next day for second Eid we visited the grandparents and I was given 7 Omani Rial (all the adults hand out money for Eid) and that night we went to a barbecue wht the family which meant a lot of "meshcock" and more lamb. It was really good. We all had way to much to eat. The final day of Eid, one of my auts took Ahlam and me out to a park where we ran into some girls that I'm apparently related to and we all had a picnic of meshcock and 'chips' (aka: frenchfries). The park was beautiful. The next day I moved into my new home - a two bedroom apartment. It had not been lived in for a month so Ahlam Ifat and I spent the next few hours cleaning it up. After we washed up ourselves, Nehad (one of my many Aunts) took Ahlam, Iman (another Aunt) and me to her place where we spent the night and wathed her adorable baby while her husband took her out for dinner. The next day all of us had a picnic on the beach and that night was our turn to go out. Nehad droped us off at the mall where we went bowling. I was told to dress up, so I ended up beating Iman and Ahlam's butts in bowling in a nice dress and bowling shoes. Apparently our perceptions of 'dressing up' are different. The rest of our time at the mall was filled with running away from boys that Iman and Ahlam know. I have never experienced so much drama with so little conversation.
Now, we are all back at school after our week off and getting ready for an Arabic practice test. Wish me luck!

tents, prophets, camels and nice weather!

Internet access here is difficult to come by. Our group just got back from Salalah (a city in southern Oman). Before we left I finally got an outfit for Eid (a traditional dress) and an abaya! Salalah was so beautiful and the weather was great. The Dohfar region has desert, mountains, plenty of vegetation and the ocean. It was a wonderful three days. Although I'm pretty sure I went on more tours those three days than I've ever been on in my life. We visited Job's tomb, essentially the Queen of Shebah's hotel, some ruins, some castles, some forts and saw hundreds of camels. We got to visit the Port of Salalah, which was very interesting, but the best part was riding on a tug boat. We also had an iftar picnic with students from a nearby University in a tent in the middle of a desert. That was amazing. We played the winking card game...I got the joker and apparently I need to learn how to wink properly. We also saw some 'black magic' card tricks. The souk in Salalah is filled with frankincense and is all outdoors. May had to go to the bathroom, so we asked around until we were directed to a specific restaurant. We asked the guy working there and he led us to the back, then up the stairs then all the sudden we were in an apartment. I wasn't nervous at all because his mom greeted us immediately a little confused but welcoming all the same and after we got to talking I learned that they were from Bangladesh. She offered us rice and tea, but we had already eaten a huge meal. After saying good bye and 'danobad' we were back on our way. The freedom we got in Salalah kept all of us up all night. SIT told us from the beginning that what we would miss the most was our independence and they weren't kidding. Just being able to roam a city was a breath of fresh air. In Muscat we are completely dependant on our families and SIT.
Tomorrow is Eid, and I am really looking forward to it. I've got henna, a new dress and a new haircut (the lady insisted she cut it)...and its really really short...my little host sister has been calling me 'waled' aka 'boy' ever since.
Eid mubarak!!

I will write more often from now on - In sha allah

I have been in Muscat for about 2 weeks now. We spent orientation in Corniche, a tourist destination within Muscat. It is right on the water and most days you can see the Sultan's yacht in the harbor. The city is wedged between the ocean and some mountains that outline it. Dispersed throughout the mountain sides are forts, giving the area a traditional vibe amongst the neon lights at night. It was a wonderful week of resting, browsing the souk, watching Baluchi futbol in a back alleyway, Frisbee by the road, touring the fish market and getting lost on the last night (we blame the mountains that seem to pop up out of nowhere). The 20 students in my group are all wonderful we've already embarked on some great adventures together. One night we decided to eat out at an Omani family style restaurant where, as is customary, all 20 of us ended up eating on the floor. We all had a great first week.
We have begun classes and moved in with our hostfamilies. At the moment Scott and I are unexpectedly sharing his house and my family while his is away in Malaysia. My hostfamily is a young Swahili family (Said and Ifhat) with two small kids (Fatima-5 and Sultan -3) with one more on the way. The two kids are always introduced as "naughty" and believe me they are. They know three languages (English, Swahili and Arabic), yet they don't listen to any of them! Their father usually has to bring out the camel stick most nights to get them to behave. It's a nice family and we are living with Ihlamb at the moment (Scott's host sister). She is about my age and is wonderfully patient with my Arabic attempts and cooking flaws. I am continuously meeting new family members who usually say something along the lines of "I'm your uncle's brother's cousin from his mother's side." It gets very confusing, and I've given up trying to figure out the family tree.
Iftar is my favorite time of the day (6:00 pm) that's when all the family comes over and we eat ridiculous amounts of wonderful food. My favorite is Besbusa - if you're lucky I'll consider making it for you when I get back to the US. You always know when it's time for Iftar because that's when our favorite Arabic soap opera ends. It's about a mother, her seven daughters and how they ran away from the dad who hasn't treated them well since he married his second younger wife. It's full of drama.
During Ramadan, it's very common to stay out until 2 or 3 am shopping or visiting relatives. It's busy everywhere until around 4 am and everyone is out and about. We are excited for Eid though, which is right around the corner and will be filled with more wonderful food, new clothes and family from all sides and then some.
Before this, I will be visiting Salalah (in the south of Oman) with the program for two days. I am told the weather will be cooler and there will be grass. This is a big deal in Oman. We will return the day before Eid which means we will have to scramble to get ready quickly for the big day.

The long flight ahead

I'm in the Austin airport waiting for my flight. I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update this while I'm in Oman, but I can say for sure that I am getting a little (just a little) nervous. However I'm going to waive it off as a healthy feeling given the circumstances. Fortunately my excitement and drowsiness are overpowering the jitters at the moment anyway. The woman who checked me in was a little baffled by my destination and the duration of time that I would be there. I have experienced many reactions similar to hers in the time I've been preparing for the trip and my response is usually along the lines of "I really like adventures - this seemed to have adventure written all over it" if my explanation of wanting to learn Arabic fails suffice. Soon enough I'll meet 16 other American students who have a similar interest as me for far off destinations who are looking to challenge themselves in a way that only culture shock can. I look forward to exploring Muscat with them in these upcoming months.

It begins...

I am preparing to leave tomorrow for a destination of 130 degree weather and high humidity. My cheetah-print scarf is packed so I'm ready to go! I'll be leaving behind some great friends and a worried family for a four month long Arabian adventure. I'm looking forward to the camels, the sand and the scarves, but I'm nervous about many things as well. I'm excited to go into this experience with unanswered questions, and return knowing things I never expected to learn. Khudafis Austin, Texas!