saying farewell to Kuwait

Lot's of people say goodbye to Kuwait in the summer.  Non-Kuwaiti people like me outnumber Kuwaitis 3 to 1. Many of us leave the country for the summer months and escape the brutal heat.  This spring, I packed my belongings and prepared for a summer away along with lots of my friends.  However, this time, when I closed the door to my 10th floor apartment, it would be for the last time.  My time in Kuwait has come to an end.

This is an Arabic phrase meaning"to stop or come to an end." 

I spent 2 years in Kuwait. I met new people from all parts of the world.  I had my first experience working at an international school. While I am really happy to have had a great start in Kuwait, I did not have any desire to continue living there for 2 more years.  I missed living in a place with four seasons. Kuwait has cold, colder, hot, and hotter.  I missed having a wide variety of social activities to choose from as Kuwait is somewhat limited.  However, I also knew that I was not ready to return to the states.  I began searching for new job opportunities in other countries.  After interviews and careful consideration, I accepted a position in Istanbul Turkey!

Although I have moved many times at this point in my life, I am not great at packing.  I had to pack my classroom.  I will miss this spacious and colorful room.   

I had to pack up my apartment.  It's amazing what one person can accumulate in only 2 years.  I shipped boxes directly to Istanbul. 

I was really grateful for the beginning of Ramadan.  Our workday was shortened to just 4 hours each day.  That left me time each day for packing and catching up with friends for 1 last visit.  And even some napping.

Some friends threw a farewell party from my friend Laurie and I! 

My Filipino coworkers gave me this lovely keepsake!

I thought about selling the items that I would not take with me, but decided to just give things away for free.  People like free stuff.  Friends helped me to clean out my apartment as they collected my free giveaways.

Farewell Kuwait.  I've had a pretty nice 2 years.  I will miss my friends. I will not miss this..

Now I'm off to spend my summer in Thailand and the USA!  Thanks to everyone who reads along with me as I continue my journey.  I'll be spending time at a fitness themed resort in  Thailand.  I hope to write about that soon.