"Sunday" dinner

Yesterday's run was a bit of a disaster- we were supposed to do 17 miles, but I hadn't been feeling great on Thursday (about once a month here you eat something bad and feel sick for about a day) and woke up feeling the same on Friay AM- I debated not going, but thought I'd try and see how it was- unfortunately I had to give up and get in the support car (it follows us and carries our gatorade and collects our jackets, gloves and extra shirts when we get too hot) after 11 miles. I was annoyed since the marathon is only 7 weeks away and we're building every week (next week we are doing 20 miles) so if you miss one week it is really noticeable the next run because you haven't laid the foundation. In any case, there was nothing I could do so I am trying to look on the bright side- 2 months ago 11 miles would have seemed a long way to me.



So, as the hotel gets closer (we hope) to opening, a few more expats have joined the team. Most of us live in the same area and since we're all away from our families we decided to start a weekly "Sunday" night "family" dinner (of course Saturday is our Sunday here)- last week was the first one, at Ryan and Esther's, and tonight is my turn to host. Since there are a few chefs in the group, usually the food is pretty good, but I have to say, my contribution this week is pretty good- I am supplying appies and was at a loss since I couldn't put together my signature appetizer- goat cheese and raincoast crisps- THEN I remembered that a few years ago, Jen had a recipe for them-- I know she emailed it to me but couldn't find it (Jen can you send it to me again?) but I googled it and found a pretty good one -I didn't have all of the ingredients, but they still turned out pretty well. Here's a picture of them. I suppose the real test will be when people try them tonight. tonight's dessert will be served by candlelight in honour of EARTH HOUR! Don't forget to do it too!

Saturday morning is usually a shopping day for me- since Ryan and Esther don't have a car, we all went on a field trip to carrefour (the French version of wal-mart) and then to Gourmet Egypt- it's pricey but it's one of the only places here you can get meat that isn't raised in Egypt (which I've heard can be infested with screw worm, a particularly nasty parasite). After that we went to our favourite organic fruit stand. Ryan is sourcing some veggies there for our California restaurant so they bent over backwards trying to help us- when Ryan asked for Jicama, they said they didn't have it, but to write down the name and they'd get some seeds and grow it for us! I was admiring this rosemary bush (plant?) and the guy gave it to me- I insisted on paying but he wouldn't hear of it.



Today I told a woman in Starbucks that I liked her shoes, and we got talking and it turns out she's from Vernon. Small world. Also, apparently there is a new clownfish delivery service in town... I got this flyer under my door... no clue what they sell...


Okay, I have to prepare for the feast, but I'll post some earth hour pics later on. Hope you're all having a great weekend!

xoxo C

Book Report

I was always a voracious reader as a kid- I remember devouring Sweet Valley High, Nancy Drew (Jen!) and Babysitters Club books in one sitting, but in the last few years, with full-time work and swimming, running, grocery shopping, paying bills etc taking up most of my free time, reading had sadly taken a back burner. But here, I have an hour a day to and from work to read and I've really been enjoying it. I've read quite a few books since I've been back and some of them are really great so I thought I'd share a few:




The Twilight series: I don't think this needs much of an introduction- unless you've been living under a rock for the last year, you've likely read or heard of this series of teen vampire romantic fiction. It's a guilty pleasure, but you'll get hooked (just ask Anna and Taylor who scoffed when they heard I was reading them and now are addicts themselves!)

Shadow of the Wind: Dan lent me this book and I was a bit skeptical when he told me it was one of the best books he'd ever read, but he was right- I loved it- translated from Spanish, it had a great mix of mystery, suspense and romance and it kept me guessing almost until the last page.


Hotel Babylon, Beach Babylon and Fashion Babylon: These are easy reads but they describe true events in a narrative style and provide an inside (sometimes shocking!) look the industries named in the title- since I've worked in the hotel/resort industry for so long, the first two were fun reads but not very surprising, but I'm halfway through the fashion one now and I must admit, it is very interesting. There is an Airline Babylon that I'm going to read next. Hotel Babylon has been made into a series on tv.

Lord John and the Brotherhood of the Blade: Dad gave me this book for xmas and I was surprised to find that it was almost exclusively about gay sex! He swears he's not trying to tell me anything, but I'm not so sure! But to be fair, I read Diana Gabaldon's last series, Outlander, and there wasn't any gay sex at all, so really, he wasn't to know... if you don't mind a few racy scenes, it was a pretty good book. {**Ha ha, one of the only sites I could find to hyperlink was a gay historical fiction book review blog.. in fact, if you'd like to read more gay historical fiction, here is a list - enjoy!!!}

That's all so far, but if anyone has any reading suggestions I'd love to hear them- I have a lot of time to read right now.

Amanda, Kate and I are booked for Crete now, we're going here in 3 weeks! YAY!

Okay off to bed soon, we're running 17 miles tomorrow (that's 27km!)

xoxo C

Earth Hour

Going from one of the most environmentally-friendly, plastic-bag-lacking, recycle-everything places on earth to almost the polar opposite, where nothing is officially recycled (there is a lot of re-using and scavenging here though...) I get pretty excited when I find something "green" that I can participate in.....I try to do my part... for example I have about 10 cardboard starbucks coffee sleeves in my desk right now, because I always take them off the cup before I throw it away, thinking that I'll use it the next time i go, but somehow I never remember till I have the burning hot latte in my hand.... maybe I'll just take them all back at once.....In any case, being green here is not very easy at all- in fact, I think I'm lucky I've lived in Victoria till now and was able to log all those green brownie points by walking to work for 6 years and recyling everything, using unbleached toilet tissue and eco-friendly cleaners like vinegar in my home because my carbon footprint here is a lot bigger...It actually makes me feel sick sometimes thinking about how many water bottles and meat trays are used here. Not to mention the fact that I sit in traffic, by myself, for over an hour every day.

Needless to say, when I heard about Earth Hour, I was happy because it's something we can all participate in- March 28 at 8:30pm local time, wherever you are in the world, just turn off your lights for one hour..... here's a video...

Okay off the the track, xoxo C

PS: Crete is booked! YAY!

Greece

I just got back from the track- I felt like I needed an extra workout during the week since I'm not swimming here, so I joined one of the runners who does stairs on Mondays...we did 12 loops of the track, with a 5 story set of stairs in the middle of each lap. sounds fun eh? Actually it wasn't too bad...
So I can't remember if I mentioned that I'm planning a trip to Greece with Amanda and Kate in mid April. We have narrowed it down to Crete, but are still trying to figure out where exactly to go- anyone have any suggestions?

x0x0 C

I forgot about photobooth...

Running pics from this week...

These are all pics of the running group, from the past week. Today's 13 miler was windy (as in lots of wind, not twisty) and hilly-- but we all finished and had a great brunch and a swim afterwards at Nabil's.

Poolside brunch at Nabil's















Some of the runners in the pool- soaking after 22km















Post-run Korean food















Michael and Lameece stretching before a speedwork session

New house rules

I've never been in the army (yes surprising, I know!), so I'm not sure what the exact phrase is, but I've heard that new recruits are advised to "never pass up an opportunity to eat, sleep or sh@#" (I've also heard the last item replaced with f!@#)... I'm not sure which is correct... but in any case, the new rule in my house will be "never pass up an opportunity to SHOWER!"

I got home last night from track practice sort of sweaty- I contemplated taking a shower, but was pretty tired, and I wasn't sweaty enough to necessitate immediate showering, so decided to do it in the morning- for a split second, I thought "what if there's no water tomorrow though".... but the water situation has been good for almost a month, so I thought I should stop being so pessimistic. The same thought occurred to me, when I looked in the fridge and realized that I was almost out of bottled water - I wasn't worried about what to drink (that's what starbucks is for), I was worried about having enough to boil and wash my face etc, do my teeth and somehow style my hair... but again, I thought, "no, think positively, it will be fine,,," so I went to bed.

And of course today, I woke up with no water. Thankfully I did have about 2 cups of water left in the bottom of a bottle so I don't think I smelled too bad, but, the funniest part was sitting at a table at lunch telling this to a couple of other expats who just nodded sympathetically and knowingly, because they've all had to do the same in the last month...ironic isn't it- executives at a luxury hotel and still bathing daily is not a guarantee...oh cairo!

Anyway I just got home and elhamdoulilah, the water is back (apparently a pipe burst and the whole neigbourhood was affected) so I'm off to take a shower! Tomorrow's run is a "short one" only 13 miles.

xoxo C

Reclining pigeon

Soooo, you'd think that after running 26km, a person might be a little stiff or achy, right? I thought I might be, but I woke up on Saturday AM feeling great! However, after a teeny little bit of stretching and deep breathing, while sitting on a mat listening to sitar music at the yoga studio- I could barely move the next day!! In fact, I ran about 20 mins at the track last night and then I had to walk the rest of the hour- it was terrible! I'm trying to remember what poses exactly we did that could possibly have have made me so sore, but none of them stick in my mind as particularly strenuous...I guess maybe i'm using muscles that I don't usually use.

I have to say, I'm not totally convinced on this yoga business- I guess maybe since I have to sit all day at work, when I'm off I like to be moving- walking, running, swimming, biking-- something!! I know it's supposed to be good for relaxation and clearing your mind etc, but I honestly find it a bit boring- and in the times when we're supposed to be "gently pushing thoughts aside" and focusing on our breathing, I can never really relax becuase I keep thinking that I'm not supposed to be thinking.... also, some of the poses have realllllly funny names that make me crack up... try keeping a straight face when someone tells you to please move from "cow into reclining pigeon'!! I haven't given up on it completely- next week there is a 'power yoga' class, which sounds like it might be a little more up my alley... but we'll see. I guess if I'm sore it must be having some sort of benefit, right?

Check out my friend Pat's new website- we did our business degrees together and he was really creative and talented back then, so I'm not surprised that he's become so sucessful in his various ventures- he's also got a skin care store in downtown vancouver. You should go!

That's all for now, I'm going to try to get an early night and hopefully be fresh for tomorrow's speedwork. Hope you're all doing well.

xoxo C

16 miles and Dim Sum

Even though this week was only 3 days, it felt waaaaay longer, so I was pretty happy when Thursday arrived!

Yesterday's run was 16 miles or 25.6km, which I think is the furthest I've ever run (well maybe once before, but it was a long time ago... ) the trouble with these longer distances is there aren't that many nice places to run around here, so we have to do what we can to cover the miles- yesterday a bus took us from the school and dropped us off in what seemed like the middle of the desert, with factories and army bases all around- then we ran back to the school on the highway- thankfully it wasn't very busy since it was 6am, but still trucks were going by from time to time and yelling and covering us with dust and exhaust- it really makes me miss all the nice places we have to run in victoria. (don't take them for granted!!!!). Now, I know you're all waiting with baited breath to hear what yesterday's featured dead animal was....we actually had TWO- a dog and a crow! And, to make it even more enjoyable- we (the women) don't wear shorts to run here because it attracts "unwanted attention", we are running in pants which can be reallllly hot! But still, even with all the negatives, it is still nice to be able to run here. And all the runners came back to my place for brunch.

After brunch, one of our chefs and his wife invited me to their place as he and the Chinese chef were making dim sum-- it was a great recovery meal and I was in bed by 9:30 last night! All in all, not a bad Friday.

Today I'm doing yoga and laundry!

Hope you're all doing well,

xoxo C

back from the track..

I just got back from an amazing speedwork session @ the track. Sometimes we do it in partners (one partner runs, one walks and the runner has to sprint till s/he catches the walker again) but tonight we ran at our own pace- 2 laps fast, one jogging, and it was great- I ran with my friend Peter, the banker from Dorset, and we just flew- once in a while I have these nights where everything just seems to work and tonight was one of them. It doesn't happen every day, but when it does, it's great! Peter was wearing his HR monitor which has an odometer and we ran 6 miles (about 10K)... not bad for an evening practice. Unfortunately, Julie might be injured- she has a sore heel so she's taking it easy this week- maybe everyone could send some healing vibes so she gets better quickly and can run with me again. Ready.......GO!

Today I had to explain a new one to Ahmed: "Skating on thin ice..." (in reference to my driver who was 30 mins late for the 4th time in 2 weeks...). I don't think he knows what skating is, so it was a little tough to explain, but I think he got the gist eventually.

In other news, my "boyfriend" Simon W was involved in an accident over the weekend- a car hit another car which veered into a group of cyclists-- it sounds like nobody was badly hurt, but it's scary nonetheless....
In other, other news (and this will probably really only interest Nicky and Jen) did you hear Dakota Fanning has signed on to play Jane (one of the Volturi Guards) in the next twilight movie? I was sort of disappointed, I thought the fact that the actors were all unknowns in the first movie helped you focus more on the story, but I guess famous people sell more tickets...

Speaking of movies, I finally saw Slumdog Millionaire the other night- someone from the running group got a copy of it and we had a potluck movie night. It was a good show, I'd definitely recommend seeing it if you haven't.

Anyway, it's almost time for bed for me, work and another run tomorrow- I hope you're all doing well!

xoxo C

Beach time and a very happy birthday to Mohamed!

So I hear it's snowing in Victoria right now.... if that's the case, you might not be so happy to see what I did this weekend... don't worry, in a few months when I'm dying of heatstroke, you will be the ones who are laughing!

Practicing my Baywatch run (I am actually running away

from the water because it was so cold!)

View of the resort looking toward the desert

Since we had a 4 day weekend, Nassiba and I decided to go to the red sea for a little beach time. We decided to try a new place, and unfortunately that wasn't a good choice as the service sucked but it was nice to be away from the city anyway AND as soon as we got there a pod of dolphins (or maybe porpoises) appeared and gave us a show (see video).



Today is the prophet's birthday so we had the day off work- I ran this morning (just an hour easy on the track) and had breakfast and a coffee with some of the runners. The weather lately has been great- about 25C and a little breezy but it's getting warmer, I can feel it....

Hope you all had a good weekend and are enjoying the snow!

xoxo C

Pyramids Run

Friday AM we ran from where I live to the Pyramids- around 20K. It was tough...dusty, windy and hot, and, in keeping with our dead animals theme on our friday runs-- we were treated to a dead horse. nice.

Once we got there it was worth it though- we had our breakfast at a little tea shop and ate traditional Egyptian food. Ful (pronounced "fool"-cooked fava beans with spices and oil) and tameya (we call it falafel). here are a few pictures:

Julie and Me with our Ful and Tameya sandwiches

Me immediately after finishing the run (that's why I'm so red)-
with the pyramids in the background

Our group after the run.

For Jen...

I don't actually have much to say, but Jen has requested that I post something, and we all know that you don't want to disappoint Jen!

Hmmm, what would Jen like to know about....wellllll..... I am on the brink of a FOUR DAY weekend! The prophet's bday is on Monday and usually employers give boxes of these inedible sweets to their staff, but instead, our GM gave us Sunday off with pay so we all get a long weekend! We only found out a few days ago, so yesterday and today we were all scrambling to book flights and hotels and get out of Cairo!! Zoomie and I decided we needed some beach time, so we're off to the red sea for a couple of nights. The resort we're going to is only an hour outside of cairo, but it's like you're in another world. I am really looking forward to a break- it's been cold here lately, but this wekeend it's meant to get to the high twenties, so hopefully I'll be able to swim! Here's the place we're staying, it's a new one, opened since I was there last so it'll be interesting to check out the competition! Since I missed last week's long run I wanted to make sure I was able to do this one- we're running 12 miles- from here to the Sphinx- should be a pretty interesting run, but I still miss Dallas road!

What else? Remember my co-worker? The 'see you later elevator' guy? Well, I feel bad because I think I'm confusing him- he's so eager to practice his english that he asks me to explain everything he doesn't understand-- have you ever stopped to think how many weird expressions we have in english? This week alone I had to explain the following:

-Why he should stop being 'a drama queen' because he was 'making a mountain out of a molehill'
-Why we had 'bigger fish to fry' and why we had to have our 'ducks in a row'
-Why someone dying after a long and painful illness was 'bittersweet'
-Why our Controller had his 'panties in a bunch' today
-How 'people living in glass houses.....' and 'the pot calling the kettle black' mean the same thing
-Parallel vs perpendicular
-Squishy vs Sticky

Anyway, that's pretty much all for now.... maybe I'll have some pictures to post when I get back from the red sea. Hope you all have a great weekend!
xoxo C

New Fav sites

When I first moved here someone told me you can get almost anything delivered, and it's true! But I've shied away from ordering many things simply because it means I'd have to call the store and sometimes I need to use actions along with my arabic to make myself understood... wellllll, the other day I learned about a site where you can order from any restaurant in Cairo online (actually any restaurant in the UAE, KSA and Bahrain too) - you don't even have to pick up a phone. My sushi should be here in about 10 minutes! (in case you are wondering, otlob means to call or to order in arabic)

My second new favourite website, Michael told me about yesterday-- if you think you're having a bad day, just read a few entries, I guarantee you'll feel better!

Yesterday, I baked cookies with my new friend Claire; she's 9 and the daughter of my friend Julie!
Hope you all had a great weekend! xoxo C