food, packing, and people

well, another week is upon us and i have to say that it has passed quickly, yet slowly. i am about to head to my last class for a while ( i will be traveling and we have folks coming to visit after i return). we have been listening to a series about making good decisions and it has been really challenging, yet full of good wisdom. it is now a matter of application. so, today has been an experiment of sorts for me. i have to say that i am really thankful for some sunshine after what felt like months of rain. in the next 10 days we have just one day that has a below 50% chance of rain. what a welcome forecast for sure. as i look out my window now i see a couple gathering clothes from the line that is hung on the roof of the building across the way. finally we can dry our clothes, too! :) so, here are some fun photos from this past week. hope you enjoy them!

i got a recipe from a friend for this really great dish: General Tsao's Chicken. I had it at a friend's house and it was just so good and reminded me of some good American Chines food back home that I had to make it for myself. nothing may smell (or even taste) sweeter than friiiiied chicken. oh yeah!
here is the final product. it was steaming with goodness. i was really excited (as you maybe can tell).

i have started packing for my trip home and decided to take an evening to figure out what all i actually had and make sure that i had what i wanted for everyone. it has been fun to shop for friends and family for sure. after packing up the suitcase and adding some more things that i needed to get for friends and family, my gift suitcase weighs in 14 lbs over the limit. so, i will have to readjust some of the heavier things to my carry-on to help even out the weight! i am definitely looking forward to going home. it is still kind of surreal and i am also trying to not check out early, ya know?

below shows the first stage of packing up....

my roommate and i went for a walk on Sunday afternoon as i have been battling this insistent cold and needed to take in some sunshine and move about some. she decided to take along her really snazzy camera and capture some shots of the city and people. since we have had a lot of rain and the sun was finally shining many people were out and about (plus Sunday afternoons walks here are like Sunday afternoon drives in the States). so, here are some shots from my roommate of our Sunday afternoon walk.

i haven't figured out the actual name for this stuff below yet, but it resembles taffy. these guys walk around with these huge clubs of the stuff. i will have to try and tell you guys all about it.

this is a very, very common site on sunny Sunday afternoons in the winter and just about any afternoon/evening in the summer. these folks love to sit, talk, watch, and socialize. this shot definitely captures a lot!

well, i hope you are having a great week. i am trying to think of any other things that have happened, but it is life as usual i guess. i am looking forward to this Saturday! not necessarily because it is V-day, but because my friend is going to help me make up some sweets that are local neccessities so i can take them back with me to the States! lots of fun photos to come:)

oh! and i did go and get my jellaba (all by myself:). a photo to come for sure!