a little two somethings...

We just finished a barbecue upstairs. There was far too much food, and that's because Muhammad, being fat and greasy, insisted on having steaks in addition to the usual quota.

Went to Khobar with Abi around 3 weeks ago. Its in the eastern province. Actually, more like tagging along. I had no business going, except that I had finished exams. Of course I deserved a holiday, if only to compensate for exam-induced forehead wavefronts. Instead of a car we went by train.

You may know , for certain, that I brought a notepad and pen along; to describe a rough journey, and all the rattling in the carriage and noisy crowd. and possibly some characters taking the train ride too, who would be peculiar to this desert country. I could write about views also, peculiar to barren monotonous deserts, which are held from cracking under the sun's heat by a spider's web of civilisation across it. I imagined all this before I left.

So we got on the train, it sounded a horn like someone with a completely blocked nose trying to unblock it, then slowly rumbled out of the station. my anticipations were methodically run over by the train along the journey, and lie somewhere along that featureless route. Not even the dates and coffee the waiter served can revive them. The windows were glazed misty white, so no photos worthwhile could be taken. The people too, they could have done more interesting things then read or fall asleep.

All together, I had a really fine time recording nothing. I got some photos and videos inside the train though, so I'll post them inshAllah. - the photos.

The hotel was nice mashAllah. The food was very nice. The weather in Khobar was actually almost England's. cold, -very cold- ,windy. The only difference between the train journey to Khobar and the journey back was that it was in the opposite direction.

and happy photos....

waiting lounge, Riyadh terminal. ...i spy...who?

no, no... not a coach, its a train. I can tell.

glazed windows.

that place outside looks really deserted. ( haha ). ( pun ).

sink in the bathroom didn't have water.

boring..... immeasurably.

Khobar corniche.

the return train. back at Riyadh terminal. Alhamdulillah.

early morning

I thought I'd do maths today, early morning, straight after Fajr, but the morning atmosphere was so beautiful I thought I must share it with you, so I wrote:

" Isa is sitting alone in the dining room, early morning, the sky has just turned from purple to blue, and the cool air comes mildly through the dining room windows, and the cockerel's voice comes in sharply, and together they make it feel like a fresh morning all to myself; as I do maths.

And the morning is awake now, as I am, and I feel we're the only two awake - there goes the cockerel again - . Some of my sisters are reading in bed, maybe Enid Blyton's books, which take you on wonderful trips through stormy and adventurous weather and events.

But she never described a morning like this, and if she did maybe I missed it and didn't catch what she meant, or she missed the desert morning and caught an England morning instead; which is just as beautiful, and usually comes with a newspaper and a nice breakfast and orange juice, or tea.

Sometimes our morning comes with a wonderful breakfast too. mostly it doesn't. So people don't really bother about the desert morning, they just sleep through this this beautiful quietness.

I got to do maths now.

Isa."

Stay up one morning by yourself, when everyone goes back to sleep, and relax and enjoy the morning, wherever you are. ( preferably with a cup of coffee ).