Hot Stuff

On the first day of Eid Al-fitr we took a little car ride off the compound and out to Al Khobar. Amazingly quiet as the streets were empty of cars and the sidewalks were empty of people. Perfect time to go for a ride. Unfortunately, the weather was about 100 degrees so when I would jump out of the car to take a few pictures, I would get very hot, very fast. Amazing how the pictures do not show how hot it really was. but they do show how empty the area was. At night there isn't an inch of empty space on the streets or sidewalks and we hate being out and mixed up in it all.
I am going to try and post a picture with every entry for a while just to show some of the sights here in the city of Al Khobar. I think some of the buildings are very interesting, set against such a start background.
We had a guest over for dinner last night. I made chili. In my mind's eye I knew I had chili powder in my kitchen cupboard. We had gone out food shopping earlier to gather some odds and ends. Unfortunately, the kitchen I saw in my mind's eye that had the chili powder was not my kitchen here in Saudi Arabia, but my kitchen in the U.S.A.! Now the problems get more complicated. Usually the chili powder sold here in Saudi is pure cayenne pepper and two table spoons of that added to a dish is volcanic! I know, I did it once not knowing what the heck I had bought. The label said 'chili powder' and it looked like what I buy in my own country. My dilemma was could I get my driver to go out again in this heat to find the proper powder in the very American store over at ARAMCO. This store is the only grocery store here that does not close during all the prayer times. It was prayer time when I needed my powder, and our guest would be arriving soon. The other problem was, could we park outside ARAMCO and walk through a certain building and out the other side, right to the store without being stopped because we are not ARAMCONS. Entering this building is tricky and we have to walk with a huge amount of confidence, no eye contact with the guard stationed inside and with great purpose we have to continue walking through the building and outside the other end. The only other way to enter into ARAMCO is by car and it is impossible to be let inside without calling a resident to 'sponsor' your entry. Anyway, everything worked out perfectly and I got my powder plus a can of Libby canned pumpkin for my Thanksgiving pie. About every expat living here from all the different countries can find their own special foods. Just takes a lot of shopping to do so and a lot of patience.