Day One in the Kingdom

Well, I made it here late last night and while the trip was good, I had no concept of what Dhahran is like until today when it was light out. Fortunately, I was able to sleep a fair bit but my internal clock is way off. My only connection to the world right now is a cellular (wireless) USB stick provided by the company. While it is very helpful, the connection is a tad dodgy ... needless to say, I cannot wait until I get DSL at the house. Until then, I will feel very isolated. Meeting people today was difficult as few people were out and about. Seems to be a typical day here: 38C, no clouds, light breeze. That is the forecast as far as they can forecast. Today's trauma as the commissary did not have any whole bean coffee - I need to ask Majed for urgent help resolving this problem! There is no life without coffee.

Tomorrow will be my first day of work then Sunday will be my orientation day - hopefully my floundering will end there. Lots going to through my head these days and it is a difficult transition for me - the attempts to comfort expats are clear and people are very friendly, but there are some short-term challenges: I cannot drive until I get a driver license, which I cannot get until I get an Iqama which takes up to 4 weeks. Taxis are not that expensive, but everything adds up quickly no matter what is done. It seems like August will be a sanity break for me ... possibly Europe, but could be a return to Houston ... first major vacation I hope to be in November and return to Houston and Canada for that one.

So the adventure in the Arabian Oasis known as Dhahran Camp has begun.