Gone and Back Again

So I did end up being evacuated from Bahrain last week (March 17th) by Brian's work. At first I was relieved to get out of my house after being stuck in it for almost a week, and also glad to be brought to a safer country. I was dreaming of going home to my parents place in Idaho, but things got to be more complicated then I'd hopped. We ended up going to Dubai and then Abu Dhabi instead because Brian's work didn't want to send Brian back to the States, and I didn't want to fly alone with three kids. Also, there was a potential that Brian would be changing jobs and if I had to be flown from the U.S. when he started then his pay would be reduced by the amount of the cost to fly us back to Abu Dhabi. So instead we just stayed together. It was quite the site to see our family- the biggest of the crowd of all the workers- and all our luggage. We were aloud one bag and one carry-on per person, and I didn't know if we'd come back to Bahrain so that's what I brought- one large suit case, three boxes, and three carry-ons. So we had a lot of luggage and attracted a lot of attention.

We drove our car to a hotel a mile from Brain's work and Brian dropped us and half our luggage off, and then went back to our place to get the rest. It was interesting on our way to see the remains of what had been going on the previous few days. We saw the car that caused the crash I mentioned before on the side of the road. A few miles down there were some civilians doing a "check point" on the road. They were wearing ski masks and holding rather big guns. We glanced down a road at another intersection and saw men standing around with clubs and bats. As we continued down the road we saw another car on the side of the road that was upside down and looked as though it had some fire taken to it. Signs were ripped down in other areas, and trash everywhere. There were some cement blockades that were pushed over and broken in the road.

We got to Dubai about 1:00 in the morning and the kids were pooped. None of us woke up until noon the next day. So we didn't do much on Friday, but Saturday we visited the big mall in Dubai which is home of "Ski Dubai" which is an indoor ski hill that is 400 meters long. You can also just sled and play in the snow, so we paid the big $$ to bring the boys in (Syler had to wait with our friend because you have to be older than 3 ). Ashton keeps talking about "when it snows..." and since he doesn't quite understand that it doesn't snow in the middle east, it was nice that they had the opportunity to have some fun. It's not as fun as the real thing, but it has its benefits since it wasn't even cold enough for Brian and I to need gloves and when you do get cold, you can go back to the 70 degree mall.

Then on Sunday Brian's work moved him to Abu Dhabi which was just an hour car ride away, so that he could work in their office there. So Monday he went to work while I stayed at the hotel with the kids. Luckily there was a couple of play grounds near by so we had somewhere to go to get out of the hotel. We didn't have a car so we had to walk where we wanted to go. We did take a taxi to the mall on Tuesday (with Brian with me). But that mall really wasn't all that exciting- not the most interesting place to bring your kids anyway. So- yeah our "vacation" wasn't all that exciting- but at least I can say that now I've been in three different countries- if you count Canada.

Since things started to calm down in Bahrain, Brian's work wanted to bring the employees back to Bahrain. However, they didn't want to bring families back yet. So our choices were for Brian to go back and I stay in Abu Dhabi in a hotel in the middle of the city with three kids, or we could all fly back together if we were to sign a waiver saying that it was our own choice to come back so if things turned "ugly" again we would be on our own and the company wouldn't pay for us to be evacuated again. We also hadn't received the job offer that we were waiting for so we couldn't take that direction. Brian tried to continue to do his work over the phone and email, but they started having issues with getting visas and getting their employees back into Bahrain. So he felt it was best to return. We ended up just buying our own tickets and coming home. It was funny because it was cheaper to buy round trip tickets then for one way, so I actually have a return ticket if I want it!

The day we were flying back then I was getting text messages from my neighbor saying she was home and putting her kids in school, and from another person saying there was church on Friday. However as we were sitting down on the plane, Brian got an email saying that the government recommend staying away if you were gone and if you were still there to think about leaving. Ha! Oh, well. There are protests going on this weekend so we will see how things are. I have food in the fridge so I feel safe and secure in my home. I just hope I can resume normal life soon before I go stir crazy. There were some protests on Friday, but there wasn't much news about it and I've been going out more each day.

Here are some pics of the Ski Dubai:

When I Titled my Blog "Adventures of the Shurtliff Family" I Didn't Expect THIS!!!

Hello from the craziness in the Middle East. My last report in February wasn't too exciting because the protesting in Bahrain was quite localized and being in my home in Riffa Views I wasn't very close to any excitement, but now things are getting... interesting.
Brian took the following videos on his ipod. The first was on his way home from work on a Thursay afternoon. He called me to say he was on his way at about 4:40 and it usually takes him 20mintues to get home, but this time it took him an 40- as you can see why from the video. the second was from the window of his work place. The crowd was walking down the street to one of the palaces for their protest.




So things kept


So those protests where the extent of things until Sunday. Sunday, as many of you might know from the news the protesters blocked the financial district in the capital. That didn't make people too happy since it disrupted banking and such, so the police took action to break it up. Unfortunately this made people angry and things have gone down hill since. I have some stories to tell...
I had a friend try to pick her son up from school but couldn't get off the highway at her normal exit because there were cars parked there blocking it all. Right when she showed up the police had thrown some fresh tear gas and the people outside her car where coughing and covering there faces. She couldn't go forward or back until someone moved the cement road blocks. She was then able to turn around and go home. She sent her husband who works down the street from her sons school go to pick him up. The school is also in the same compound I live in and about a quarter of a mile away from my house. Right outside the compound there is a round about that they were stopped on and a car pulled out going the wrong way and smashed into an oncoming car. So they high-tailed it out to there soon as they could. They all got home safely. I was already staying home because Brian phoned from work telling me that it was heating up in the financial district, but after she told me about that I was getting a bit concerned. That same day, Brian happened to have to go to Saudi Arabia for some training. I started wondering if he would get back to Bahrain or if they would shut the causeway down. Luckily his boss saw what was coming and told him to come back and he was able to get across to Bahrain (and buy me some milk and eggs before he left), but by this time I had heard from several people that it was becoming increasingly harder for people to get around the island. He tried to take the road that had the clearest path, but about three miles from our home there were people with clubs and bats at the intersections and any way he tried to go he couldn't get through. We had already heard that someone had their car smashed up when they stopped- so he was a bit nervous. He had no choice but to turn around and stay the night at a friends house.
The next morning he was able to get to work and then took the same route home (about 12:30) that he had before and was able to make it with little interference. We hear some more stories from time to time about people walking around with swords (pro-government), and tanks coming, and a soldier was just killed.
Right now the country is under Marshal law and we are all staying home. I have a friend that is being sent back to the states because her husband works for the embassy and they are evacuated all non-essential personnel. A few moments ago I got a text that says that Bahrain is in state of emergency and to stay indoors. I'm going to end this post now and go pack a few bags. I don't know if I will be leaving my home here in Bahrain and if I do if I'll be coming back. But I guess I should go prepare. I don't feel a threat of danger as much as what will happen in the next few days in unknown and how long will I have to live on the food in my house...? I'll post more later if I get a chance. Oh this is interesting!