People People hear me out!!!. There's no conspiracy here, no coincidences, no crazy wacky adventure and I have a valid excuse as to why I have been MIA (missing in action). This was never meant to cause frustration or to linger for so long. I'm actually sorry if it has caused any of you distress. For those of you who think my writing is a hoax, that I am liar or that I intend to cause drama, you are very wrong. I was simply sharing with you a very exciting episode in my real life and because I have a REAL life, I honestly didn't have the time to update my blog as soon as I thought I would (I went camping). As for Nadia, I did politely ask her to not post about our meeting until I returned from my camping trip. She agreed, and I hope this too, hasn't caused her trouble.
For the patient and faithful, what you've all been waiting for ... here's what happened. First, I was a little late meeting Nadia. I had only three hours to get ready and had to cancel prior plans, make sure the little ones were fed and race off to the "spot". By the way, no one suggested what I should wear, so I kept it simple:)
So, Nadia did approach me from a distance as she said she would, but she wasn't nearly as mean, bossy, or scary as she was in her reply. She was almost the total opposite. She was all smiles, very polite, funny and a little taller than I expected. Come to think of it though, after exchanging pleasantries, she did say "we're taking my car" and I just followed. Bossy? hmmm.
Our first stop: coffee of course, it helped take the edge off ... like booze I guess. We got two large coffees, fought over who would pay, she won, (bossy or just Dhofari?) And off to the corniche we went, her idea (bossy?). It was rather romantic actually. We sat on the beach with hot coffee and the comfortable winter air around us, and the sound of the waves hitting the shore. I've never been on a blind friend date before, without ever at least talking over the phone, so this was kinda weird cool.
She did not wear her pink grilled shades, although later she pulled them out of her bag and had a pair for me!!. I didn't think those shades were real in her profile pic, did you?. Anyway, we spent nearly three hours chatting, sharing and laughing, we even came up with a really fantastic idea about blogging (will share details soon). I honestly enjoyed myself. The interesting thing, is that although Nadia was pretty awesome, (and we've exchanged numbers and have texted several times since our meeting), she really is a very different person from what I expected based on her writing. I'm not exactly sure what I "expected" and I am not at all disappointed, on the contrary I'm thrilled we met. It's hard to really explain. It's kinda like meeting the author of your favorite novel. Its just strange. She certainly doesn't fit the stereotype. Some things though, remain the same, she had lots to say with a tinge of sarcasm of course, she knows so much about Salalah and is very proud of her community, she is also quite the intellectual.
When I got home, the kids were STILL awake and the babysitter (my hubby) did a poor job of keeping things tidy;) On the upside, we had a wonderful time camping over this long weekend, where he earned major brownie points!
In the end, I am really glad our paths have crossed (Nadia and me). I think its safe to say we both left a lasting impression on the other and we will be friends. And yes I caved and wore those ridiculous glasses.
PS To Nadia, I never asked you how you found my blog???
