so, this month included Ramadan, visits, fun, the end of Ramadan, and more! I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I did!
I was so excited when I found out a friend and her husband would be around for a visit. I had gone to see them a couple times in France, so was soo excited to have them in the place in which I live. we definitely took in as much as we could for the short time they were here. loads of shopping and eating fun. they were so excited to grub down at the American chain places we have here. wahoo! R and I above taking it all in downtown!
then it was like a mini-reunion later. it was sooo great to see sweet friends and get to be all together. really. and what better place to meet up than Roman ruins?
by September Ramadan was in full gear. I had the privilege to go visit a friend and learn how to make one of my favorites eats here: breeuwats. no, it isn't close to bratwurst, but it sure does taste good! it is kind of like an Arab version of egg rolls. above is my friend and I with all the goodies.
above here is the assembly line: thin, thin dough cut into strips, cooked chicken and crushed almonds and an egg wash. so, you take the chicken and almond mixture and put it toward one end of the strip. then you simply wrap up the mix in the thin dough to make a triangle. if there is need for the egg wash to help secure the end, then paste it together with the egg wash. then you bake or deep fry and enjoy!! they are sooo yummy!
there is a tramway being built throughout the city and it has caused many headaches in traffic jams. the buses seem to be rerouted regularly, so it keeps folks on their toes. this from our balcony on any average morning or afternoon. imagine the horns blarring that come along with a photo like this!
I met up with a friend at McDonald's one afternoon to plan for our weekly high school youth meeting time. first, we chose to meet at McD's as all other cafe's were closed due to Ramadan. well, this particular day also happened to be a special day during Ramadan--the Night of Power. so, McD's provided a great show with a French-speaking Ronald! there was all kinds of fun music and cool activities for the kiddos.
then later in the evening we went to a nearby mosque to check out the scene. lots of families go out and kids get sweets, wear fun clothes, and have their pictures taken. above this family was trying to keep this little guy upright for the photo. it was too cute!
I was so excited when I found out a friend and her husband would be around for a visit. I had gone to see them a couple times in France, so was soo excited to have them in the place in which I live. we definitely took in as much as we could for the short time they were here. loads of shopping and eating fun. they were so excited to grub down at the American chain places we have here. wahoo! R and I above taking it all in downtown!then it was like a mini-reunion later. it was sooo great to see sweet friends and get to be all together. really. and what better place to meet up than Roman ruins?by September Ramadan was in full gear. I had the privilege to go visit a friend and learn how to make one of my favorites eats here: breeuwats. no, it isn't close to bratwurst, but it sure does taste good! it is kind of like an Arab version of egg rolls. above is my friend and I with all the goodies.above here is the assembly line: thin, thin dough cut into strips, cooked chicken and crushed almonds and an egg wash. so, you take the chicken and almond mixture and put it toward one end of the strip. then you simply wrap up the mix in the thin dough to make a triangle. if there is need for the egg wash to help secure the end, then paste it together with the egg wash. then you bake or deep fry and enjoy!! they are sooo yummy!there is a tramway being built throughout the city and it has caused many headaches in traffic jams. the buses seem to be rerouted regularly, so it keeps folks on their toes. this from our balcony on any average morning or afternoon. imagine the horns blarring that come along with a photo like this!I met up with a friend at McDonald's one afternoon to plan for our weekly high school youth meeting time. first, we chose to meet at McD's as all other cafe's were closed due to Ramadan. well, this particular day also happened to be a special day during Ramadan--the Night of Power. so, McD's provided a great show with a French-speaking Ronald! there was all kinds of fun music and cool activities for the kiddos.then later in the evening we went to a nearby mosque to check out the scene. lots of families go out and kids get sweets, wear fun clothes, and have their pictures taken. above this family was trying to keep this little guy upright for the photo. it was too cute!below is mio with the unfinished tower of an old, old mosque-site. our 'hood is named after this tower.
as I mentioned above, I am helping out with a youth group here and it has been fun. we got to do a service project of stuffing over 300 backpacks with pens and notebooks to later be handed out to kids. they were super fast at packing the bags and turned into a race against time. fun!
later, the end of Ramadan came with the small feast they have to celebrate the end of the month-long sun-up to sun-down fast. i was invited to a new friend's house for the occasion. of course tea and cookies were served!
we later had this yummy dish that has tiny bits of pasta in this huge pile with sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. it is such an interesting combination of flavors, but is fantastic! also, the mixture on the small dish to the lower left is super-good. it is like a mix of eggplant, peppers, onions, and goodness. yummy! we also had a tajine and fruit later. I was stuffed!
thankfully the music got cranked up and we started dancin' all around. it was ladies' only and loads of fun! one gal even brought her sweet jingling belt to make the dance party that much better! this dance move was done to the song, "Hero".
I loved that our hostesses were totally into! then the hair started flying all around. it was quite the way to end a fun and memorable month! thanks for staying tuned and please know I am working to get this updated little by little. thanks guys!
as I mentioned above, I am helping out with a youth group here and it has been fun. we got to do a service project of stuffing over 300 backpacks with pens and notebooks to later be handed out to kids. they were super fast at packing the bags and turned into a race against time. fun! later, the end of Ramadan came with the small feast they have to celebrate the end of the month-long sun-up to sun-down fast. i was invited to a new friend's house for the occasion. of course tea and cookies were served! we later had this yummy dish that has tiny bits of pasta in this huge pile with sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. it is such an interesting combination of flavors, but is fantastic! also, the mixture on the small dish to the lower left is super-good. it is like a mix of eggplant, peppers, onions, and goodness. yummy! we also had a tajine and fruit later. I was stuffed!thankfully the music got cranked up and we started dancin' all around. it was ladies' only and loads of fun! one gal even brought her sweet jingling belt to make the dance party that much better! this dance move was done to the song, "Hero". I loved that our hostesses were totally into! then the hair started flying all around. it was quite the way to end a fun and memorable month! thanks for staying tuned and please know I am working to get this updated little by little. thanks guys!
a day at the beach. i was excited to get to be with my friend, Ai, at the beach some this summer. she is always a blast and is definitely the friend that I have known the longest since I ame here over a year and a half ago. I can't believe how quickly the time as rolled by! wow! it was fun this day at the beach as her sister came, too. I was excited to have time with both of them!
later we all went to this interesting place along the coast. it was like old volcanic rock all around and these plastic chair and table cafe's. quite funny. I was even more suprised to find that it also doubled as a hookah outlet. the sister smoked it, which was interesting to me and the whole afternoon was full of some new experiences. fun! above is our group of ladies with FZ on the hookah!
it is always fun to have visitors and take them around the city. it was great to have a crew up from the metro capital for a few days. i think we were definitely saying CHEESE! nice grills, huh?
I also love going to this fun rooftop cafe' in the old city. at night it allows for super-great people watching. this is a hot night in the market. sellers and buyers all looking to give or get a good deal. these sellers have their wares on tarps to allow themselves to be mobile. oftentimes police will show up to bust up the illegal selling. it can be like a game of cat and mouse.
for one young guy's birthday he opted for his activity to be paintball!! yes, we played paintball in northern Africa! it was so much fun. I only played once in the States, so I was totally a novice among some seasoned pros. I loved this course as it was compact with loads of places to hide. we had a blast! above is me going in for the kill. ha!
once again we enjoyed our All Out Eat Out in preparation for Ramadan. for a week we ate one meal out at a favorite place around town. meals ranged from couscous to burgers to sushi. it was yummy and I gave it two thumbs up!
thankfully this summer wasn't devestatingly hot, but it was still rather warm. the days were (and still are) full of sunshine. this is by far one of my favorite views around the city. i love this river-walk area looking over to the old, old city. the boats really helped make this day's shot even better. over the far left you can see the edge of a carnival! yes, it came back, but in a new location! 
I kept going on and on about the carnival to my friends until we finally went. it was a blast of course! we rode all the adult rides. I love the night lights!
we have a new pottery shop that has opened up in the old city. I love going in there because I find something new everytime. I really like this plate. the colors and the design are so fabulous. incredible!
then came my birthday! I was house-sitting for some friends, so I woke up to make some yummy muffins and enjoyed them out on there nice patio. I also was so happy to open up cherished cards and gifts from family and friends. thanks so much for helping make my day so special! what was my activity of choice for my birthday you ask? well, check it out...
since there were loads of birthdays during the summer and lots of cake, I opted for brownies. yummy! happy birthday to mio! it was such a neat day to be with friends. yeah!
