Urgg it’s been one of those days. You know the ones when things just don’t seem to go right. The kids tell you dinner is ‘disgusting’ and refuse to eat it (I am one of those mums who lets them go hungry. There are kids literally going hungry outside our walls – are they kidding me!) When you need to see a doctor but the ordeal of it living in a place like this is too much to bear. When you forget to send an important happy birthday message back home, and you ask a favour of someone who says ‘no’ leaving you wondering where to turn next. When your to-do list is up to the ceiling and all you can do is sit and search for Stephen Amell exercising on YouTube…things just get to be…a bit much. Oh then there is the no-reply on yet another follow-up to the big email I sent about some rather serious maintenance items outstanding…
It is definitely time to get out of town for a break when things get like this. It has been a while coming. We have been stuck at home for about four weeks now and I think I am twitching. This city life is congested in ways beyond just the traffic. I sit in a car with our driver (who is awesome), we share our house with our maid (who I appreciate), I have people stare into our windows if the blinds are up as they walk past our condo on the great lawn area where children play and squeal and make noise well into the night. Because kids here don’t go to bed until around ten o’clock. Well, generally. My kids go to bed by seven. Then they lay in bed listening to the sounds of children playing in the playground outside their window. The people who live upstairs come alive at night and do something…not sure what yet, that makes the strangest noises on their floors. Just now I can hear what can only be described as galloping…
One of the challenges to expat life is that significant change in lifestyle. Back home we had the big house, the space, a big yard, cubby house and pirate ship and veggie garden to boot. We had privacy. There was a time I could even hang the washing out in my undies. That was always a good time for me…then construction happened and we got neighbours. I learnt about that the interesting way. I could walk out to my garage to get to my car and did not have to say ‘hello’ to five people mopping floors as I passed by…
To put it simply, I feel suffocated. Don’t get me wrong, I am very social and love being around people, but it is on my terms. I am right on the middle ground between Introversion and Extroversion so my need to have time out is not just about me feeling like a grumpy pants. Which is most days now, just because I don’t seem to get enough alone time. Some days I am ready to get my party pants on, other days I want the world to disappear for a while.
We started adventuring out of the city on weekends as our chance to explore this country. As time has progressed I have found it is more and more about escape. Getting away from the crowding I feel. I have never ever enjoyed feeling crowded and now it is my life. I struggle with it mostly silently although I am sure my friends here would disagree. They just don’t know how lucky they are to only get the meltdowns they see!
Time to plan our next adventure…