We very quickly realized the compartmentalized life we'll be living over here. While in Cairo you were struck by the heat, the dust, haze, the buzz of constant honking, talking, yelling, calls to prayer....LIFE-- it appears that the U.S. contractor here at Kom Awshim has attempted to pluck a neighborhood out of small-town America, complete with rambler houses (are these ramblers?) in neat rows/blocks with patios, sidewalks, front yards and speed limits. At the end of our block is the cafeteria where you can eat three meals a day if you so choose (last night we had lasagna, a few nights before we had ribeye steaks), plus there's a bar, the pool, the store, and the post office. And it's very, very quiet....there's only about 15 Americans who live here and during the middle of the day most of the buzz comes from the Egyptian landscapers. I told David I feel like we live on a resort......I wasn't sure what to expect but I certainly didn't anticipate this!
Our front yard:
Our street:
Our living room:
Kitchen:
The pool....it's very nice :)
And the poolside bar which has a very interesting feature. They've installed a mister, pretty much exactly like you'd find in the produce section misting broccoli and lettuce, which will mist you periodically so you don't get overheated. I thought this was hilarious!!!
11 comments:
Dave's not in the Army anymore, is he? This doesn't reflect Army living that I know...
BTW: Cairo reminds me a Baghdad, but all grown up.
You made it to Egypt! Don't forget to pet a camel for me :) Your house looks just like I would expect one to look like here. How strange. I do like the pool with the mister bar, though.
Lisa
Is that an agave plant in your front yard! Tequila time!
My Mom would say "Of course!" Exactly what the military does in other places...moves American there. I think this is meant to be comforting. This feels VERY familiar to me. :)
Cool! Esp the pool & yard. Does sound like a resort. Looking fwd to more photos. Cheers! ART
Also, the misters are a common upscale installation I think. My brother has one for his patio in Tricities. ART
Salam Alekum! Great pictures! Can't wait to hear more of your adventures.
Krista, I forgot you spoke Arabic!! I have my first Arabic lesson in 20 minutes...we'll see how much I can learn this year. :)
And, Suzy, of course you're right about the military trying to make a home away from home for Americans...I guess I hadn't expected everything to be so nice. But then when I think about it, we've never lived on-post overseas. Camp Humphreys, where we lived in Korea, didn't have on-post housing just quonset huts but the post up in Seoul did have little American "neighborhoods". :)
Thanks for sharing your adventures! I can't wait for your next post. Misters are common on the decks of restaurants in Texas, and, you're right, I felt like a bundle of parsley :)
We miss you,
Peggy
My first thoughts are - the house looks cozy and comfortable. The yard looks pretty low maintenance - how much landscaping actually happens? How hot is it over there right now? The pool looks VERY resort-like I would probably be in it every day. But the misters....I have to ask...do they smell? It seems like that could be a potential problem with constant misting...bacteria...and then weird smells.
1. I'm still getting a feel for how much landscaping needs to happen. I've got a bunch of really old gnarled geranium plants which need to come out but it seems that for the most part these are desert-hardy plants which are good with very little tending. I have no doubt I'll still manage to kill some plants though. :)
2. Right now, it's about 11 AM and the temp is 77 degrees. It's supposed to reach 100 today.
3. And I haven't smelled anything with the mister..but yeah you would think that could be a problem. No one wants to be misted with nasty, smelly water. :)
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