Custom made in Lebanon

I'll be writing two blogs about this Tuesday, during which I attended a wedding and went to the souk. This is addition one: the souk. I'll talk about why the souk is probably my favorite place on earth, but first I shall explain  the title of this post, a little insight on Americans abroad.
At the souk, I experienced the first instance of rudeness since I arrived, but it wasn't from an Omani. The girls and I had seen our program director with a necklace with her name in Arabic, and we wanted to find a place where we could get one. At one of the shops, an American couple walked in, and the women was wearing such necklace, so we asked her where we could find one. She laughed at us, saying "It's from Lebanon." Her husband snorted "it was custom made." My friend and I were veryyyyyy tempted to ask "Was your culturally inappropriate minidress custom made as well?", but decided it wasn't worth the time and the possible legal consequences, as insult is illegal in Oman. Side note: we asked our program director, you can get them custom made for $10... Moral of the story: don't be "the ugly American." No matter where you're traveling, be mindful of the customs and courtesies! And just be nice!!!! Even if you don't know the language, a smile goes a long way. Okay cultural rant aside, the souk!!! Most of my posts will be in lists just because it's easier to write and organize my thoughts. The following list is what I learned from the souk and why it's my favorite place on earth. 
1. Best part of the souk: there rarely are price tags, and if there are, ignore them. You and the seller agree on the price, and it's one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. 
2. There are dozens of little shops at the souk, selling mainly scarves, silver, perfume, henna, kohl, frankincense, traditional dress, rugs, jewelry, hookah and teas and juices. Think Chinatown but a lot less tacky magnets and tshirts, although if you've ever yearned for the tourist staple Omani camel tshirt, you'll find a place. Keep in mind that there are many shops that sell these items, so if you can't agree on a good price, la moshkilla! You will find another shop.
3. Bulk buy! Bargain! Bundle! These magic "b" words are the key to successful shopping. If you want five scarves, buy them all at the same place!!!!! That way, if the seller tells you they're 4 riyal a piece, you can offer 10-15 for the five and they will probably accept because it's a lot of business.
4. Alas, the "white person tax". The stories are true: they will try to charge you more if you're foreign, thinking you have more money and probably won't understand the value of the items (or lack thereof). The fix? We used "Ana taliba!" (I am a student), which leads the seller to the accurate conclusion that your spending money is not top tier. Also, try some Arabic! Most all of them speak English, but they really appreciate us trying to speak Arabic and would often agree to a lower price. Even if you mess up, they'll love it. (My host family thought it was hilarious when I messed up "heart " and "dog".. Qalb and Kelb? It's close, right?)
5. When in the souk, buy perfume!!!! It's oil based not alcohol based, so it stays on longer. And smells SO good. I would never have thought to try it, but a seller and I reached a very good deal so he gave me a bottle as a gift (Omanis are like that). I would go back just to buy more of this stuff.
6. Bargaining is so fun. It's a whole new language. Tips: always ask the seller the price first, if you tell him first he'll just raise it. Instead, ask him. Act like whatever number he says is just rediculously high (it probably is. See "white person tax") but just be careful not to insult the value of his grandma's handwoven rug. Offer a price much Lower than his, and lower than the price you are willing to pay. He'll raise it, you'll lower it until you meet in the middle (which is why it's important to offer a price lower than what you're willing to pay). He doesn't budge? La moshkilla, no problem. Walk away, 9 times out of ten he will call you back and lower the price, and if he doesn't, you'll find another place in the souk that sells the same items.  

To summarize, if you ever find yourself in Oman, make the trip to muttrah just for the souk. You'll find some wonderful finds and may even get really good deals. I bargained from 40 riyals  down to 19 (110 dollars to 50, approximately). It's fun, the goods are beautiful, and it's just another reason why Oman is an incredible country. Ma salaama, until next time :)

When in Muscat... Drink Mountain Dew?

Yes, Omanis love Mountain Dew more than Americans. And honestly, I don't blame them! There's is sweeter and much less fizzy, which is overall much better I assure you. I've been in Muscat for four days now, but it would be impossible to account for all the experienced I've had, so instead I'll make a list of different things I've learned and experienced.
1. The mangos here are soooo good. It's mango season, so it's a common treat Alhamdulillah!
2. My host sister did my makeup! Omanis love makeup.. My sisters took me to a movie after the afternoon nap and they woke us up like two hours in advance to get ready!
3. I have fallen in love with Um Ali, which is this bread pudding with pistachios and cardamom and all sorts of yumminess. Sorry I keep talking about food, I can't help it!
4. Arabic is hard. It has sounds that don't exist in English, and more letters for the sounds they do have. And the letters change depending on where they are in the word. And they don't write short vowels but you're expected to pronounce them and know what they are and where. It's hard..
5. I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO THANKFUL FOR AIR CONDITIONING. It's over 100 even in the middle of the night
6. I have never met people as competitive in Snakes and Ladders as my host family..
7. My host dad continually nonchalantly tells the coolest stories. He builds yachts for the Sultan and owns a company that oversees American military presence in Oman, so he's always doing cool stuff. Like fishing with George Bush. Or chilling with Michael Jackson. Or Tony Blair. Or Hosni Mubarak. Or the king of Sweden. Or the prime minister of Syria. Oh, not to mention Nelson Mandela. Just to name a few..
8. Oman is such a peaceful country.. It's literally friends with everybody. Both Iran and the US, like kudos! It's called the Switzerland of the Middle East for a reason I guess..
9. Eating on the floor is harder than it looks.. They tried to teach me the comfortable way to sit, but my inner yogi is just not emerging.
10. I French braided my five year old sister Halla's hair, she's the sweetest thing. She'll talk to me for twenty minutes in Arabic and not be phased at all that I don't understand..
11. Agenda for the week: School Sunday to Thursday, a city tour and souq stop on Tuesday, then my cousins wedding to follow, then I leave on Friday for Jabal Shams, on overnight camping trip I'm the mountains of Oman so we can watch the sunrise over the mountains. Next week: dolphin watching, snorkeling, and maybe some studying in there..
12. People believe that if people are jealous of them, it's unlucky. So if you compliment someone on something, they'll probably try to give it to you so you won't be jealous. The fix? Masha'allah, which you say after compliments to show admiration rather than jealousy.
Anyways, there's sooo much more but it would take hours! If you have questions about anything, email, Facebook, whatever! Ma Salama!

And So It Begins..

Well, not technically. I'm in DC, currently hanging out in my gorgeous hotel room with some of the girls who will accompany me to Oman. There are seven of us, none of which have any formal Arabic training besides a collection of YouTube videos and google searches that taught us how to read and write.
For those of you wondering what would bring us group of girls to the Middle East, the answer is a wonderful program called NSLI-Y. More formally the National Security Language Initiative for Youth, the State Department sponsored program sends 650 American students abroad every year for either summer or year-long programs to learn languages that aren't normally taught in schools. Although they offer Tajik, Hindi, Russian, Mandarin, Korean, and Turkish as well, I chose Arabic, and was placed in Oman (Morocco and Jordan also host students). If you're a high school student who is a citizen of the United States, you can apply for the 2015 program! If you get accepted, the entirety of the trip (flights, room, board, the whole deal) is paid for, and since 650 students are accepted, it's definitely worth the application.
As of the moment, the seven of us are in DC for the pre-departure orientation. There will be another orientation in Oman, but we first have to be aware of the laws and customs so as not to get arrested on the first day (Fun Fact: It's against the law to disrespect people. Flipping someone off is means of deportation). While we're here, we'll get an introduction to Omani culture at the Sultan Qaboos Learning Center, suggestions to maximize our Arabic study, an introduction to Islam, a visit to the Omani Embassy, and a visit from State Department Representatives.
I can't believe it's all happening! We just got our textbooks, everyone I've met is amazing, and I'm so excited for this summer. If you have any questions about Omani culture, NSLI-Y, the Arabic language, or for some reason would find my input valuable, feel free to email me at swhipple98@gmail.com.