Making Christmas Merry...

I am behind in my posting--trying to get ready for the holidays! This is not one of my more normal posts in that it is really more personal in nature instead of travel-related. Having 2 of our 3 children and daughter-in-law--and more importantly our first grandchild!-- come for Christmas means that I suddenly have to decorate for Christmas. Since we are here only temporarily, I brought no Christmas decorations with me, never expecting to spend the holidays here. So, I kicked into DIY mode, and went scavenging around Muscat for craft supplies--not so easy in a town that really doesn't support a crafts industry like we are used to in the US!

First off was some fabric--gold and turquoise tulle and turquoise Christmas fabric for a certain little girl's Christmas stocking and other presents!

 Next a shopping trip in Dubai for lights.

then a trip to the beach for a few shells,

I put Don to work after we bought some ornaments here in Muscat. The ties had to be attached to the ornaments, and there is no such thing as ornament hangers to purchase here.

I purchased some painted wood ornaments at a local handicraft store inside a small shopping mall in the al Shatti area:

This little ornament was purchased especially for my granddaughter when we were in Salzburg this past summer. When you pull on the string, the doll's arms and legs move up--like a very simple marionette! I couldn't resist this Bavarian addition to our Christmas celebration!

I also purchased some handmade ornaments at the craft bazaar that was sponsored at our church in Muscat. The lovely lady in this picture happened to have made and painted them herself--which I didn't know at the time I purchased them. It was a special treat to know that I had not only spent money towards a good cause but that I knew the artist!





After collecting a fishing net at the local "dollar store", gold spray paint, shells, hot glue sticks, and the tulle, it was time for a little crafting. I painted some saved bottles gold (it was a true treasure find that I found gold spray paint at all!). Then I wrapped it with some fish net and tried to glue on seashells.

The hot glue didn't work entirely, and I've only found Elmer's glue over here in a stick. (It might be in some store around here, but I didn't have 3 days to get in the car and search for it!). So, a little American ingenuity kicked in, and I googled how to make your own glue.

I selected the recipe I thought would work best and for which I had the ingredients: corn starch, vinegar, and Karo syrup.

Following the directions, I cooked the mixture. Then I used a paint brush to wipe on the glue so I could add glitter over the gold paint on the bottles and help the net and the shells adhere to each other and the bottle.













Voila! I am on my way to having inexpensive, homemade Christmas decorations for my beach theme.

And now, for the finished products!

And the best part of Christmas...

Looking at her stocking toys!

Relaxing under the tree...

Celebrating on Christmas Eve after the family service at church. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

"Take Your Wife to Work" Day

When Don said he wanted me to use my Saturday accompanying him to look at "rocks" for a wall mural in the office building he is working on, I thought "ho-hum." But, being the good wife that I am, I chose to spend my day with him instead of being by myself at the apartment. I sure am glad I went along!

They are commissioning a giant wall mural for the lobby of their building which depicts the many geological layers underground that must be drilled through in order to reach oil. We visited the business that is going to do this for them.

Walking into their building, you immediately smell the incense burning. This picture does not capture the intense aroma nor the smoke infiltrating most of the room--can you see the smoke coming from the middle of the table?

As you may have quickly surmised, rock and stone are used to make artistic creations as well as functional furniture here.

Showcase at store entry.

One of their specialties is the incorporation of fossils into the stone.

The big piece of quartz is backlit--I didn't realize quartz had so much
transparency. (They've made a fountain area in this corner).

This is a giant piece of agate that is being used as a bowl, sitting on a pedestal of petrified wood.

The owner was anxious to share his many samples with me. It was really interesting to see the amazing stones inside rocks along with fossils, as in this sample below. 

This is a piece of quartz. If you look closely towards the left end you will see a white circle.
That is actually a bubble of water trapped inside the stone.

Have you ever seen a meteorite? This one fell to earth in Egypt.

This is a piece of polished meteorite.

An enormous ammonite fossil.

A chunk of amethyst. It is sitting on top of a mock up sample of the how the mural might
look. Don and Monica were there to discuss and finalize the look, the materials and the size.

Quartz in natural form

I tried and tried to get a clear picture of this piece of quartz. It's called a "hairy"
quartz because those vertical lines you see inside really look like strands of hair!

This piece looks like it has blades of grass or other plant matter floating in the stone.

Hospitality is very important, and we were offered coffee or tea. I was commenting on the
unusual shape of the tea bag when the owner told me it came from America. Who knew?

The owner/artist outside the door of his shop as we are preparing to leave.

 Since this mural is going to be the focal point of the entrance lobby, the artist wanted to visit the site to get an idea of color tones, light, spacial proportion, etc. We loaded up in our cars and set off for the new building. After we signed in, I had to get a hard hat to wear while in the construction areas. Here I am with Monica, one of the architects/designers of the building interior, posing in front of a 3D conceptual drawing of the entrance lobby.

As we toured the facility, I took a few shots of some interesting rooms. Because this is a Muslim country, prayer rooms are an integral part of the workers' day. A prayer room is located on every floor and will alternate between men and women on the different floors.

The ablution area--where hands and feet are washed in preparation to pray.

Prayer Room--one day it will be covered in prayer carpets.

View from an office window on the upper floor. If you look right at the horizon, you
will sea the ocean. The window is dirty (it's still under construction!) and it is a
hazy day as well. The red triangle in the bottom left corner is actually a flowerbed
planted alongside the highway. It is very common in this part of the Middle East
to have flowerbeds planted alongside major highways like
this--it's also very beautiful this time of year!

View from a side window of the Grand Mosque. It is prestigious
to have an office building located so close to the Grand Mosque.

My favorite of the day was a gift from the artist to me of an ammonite fossil! The artist/owner is a Persian who has visited America. He was very gracious and generous. When he saw me taking all of the pictures and showing interest in his work, he wanted to give me this gift.

As for the wall mural, I will be looking forward to sharing it with you after it is installed and the lobby is finished! Moving on to that finish line and the end of the project here in Oman....