Nasturtium

I promise I'm not trying to nit pick, just making conversation, but going through a school system in MENA, even on up through higher education, is absolutely no indication that all required vaccines have been done. I look up records for parents of high school kids, college kids, etc who have all kinds of gaps, that should not have been able to advance as far as they've had without someone at school noticing. If it happens here, where there's a lot better medical records keeping, it can sure happen there.

I had considered that too, imagining that is why they had him re-do it.

Careful, you may come off as one of those n00bs that like to be snarky little bastards.

Only if someone were to be completely unobservant and lack reading comprehension.

I can see it now at HD...

Me: "I'd like some napalm, please"

Them: "Bermuda grass, eh ? It's now immune to napalm... "

Or they'll tell you it really needs a 3-prong approach of napalm, agent orange, and a small hydrogen bomb.

I need one of these

Or napalm.

Maybe both!

The War on Bermuda Grass has Begun.

Bermuda grass is from Satan! Well, not really, but I hate it too. That is one advantage to a balcony-- no invasive weeds! My bulbs, tubers, etc are sprouting... little things peeking up over the soil!

OMG I remember that ! Wild

Ouch

Mahmoud ended up getting a vaccination he didn't even need (I think the doc was maybe looking to beef up his fee)... but was never asked to provide proof of the ones that were actual requirement, as they are de rigueur in the West Bank school system.

As always, there is considerable variation in how consulates handle things.

Yeah-- because we were hoping what happened to you guys would happen for us. I mean it only seems logical, but whatever lol. Logic does not apply! I think it's better to just be prepared for the worst and be excited if you get away with not having to do it. It's like that stupid police certificate-- did you know they never made Ammar hand that stuff in? Also the other forms for the interview-- nope! That stressed us out for a while lol. He went through all this trouble to get one from Syria and didn't even need it.

Often, certain vaccinations are requirements for enrolling in schools in that particular country (much like in the U.S.) The doctors who do the medical exams are familiar with their country's requirements, and usually will not require a vaccination record if the applicant was enrolled in schools there. (This is how my husband's medical went - he didn't have to show proof of vaccinations which are routinely given to school kids there.)

The reverse happened to Ammar. He had all his vaccinations and had even done the updates when he was in the military training.. but they still required him to get them over without records, even though it was impossible for him to have attended school and college/graduate school without those vaccines.

If both languages are used almost 50/50 will interviewer then choose the language?

Who knows. My guess would be it would be in English then.

Okay. To satisfy my curiosity; if the OP and his lady communicate both in English and Arabic, in which language will the interview be done?

Whichever is the primary.

Well, i cant help.. im worrying here hahaha.. i confess im a chicken when it comes to injections hahaha.. its scary for me

Oh i wish thingsgo out well for me

Thank you

Do you have medical records for your vaccinations? If you don't, check with your schools to see if they kept the records. In Jordan they burn them after 2 years of graduation, which is not helpful... but I don't know about Morocco. You should also obviously check with your doctor to see if they have records.

Dang! I have to admit that the drama can be entertaining to say the least. As long as it isn't in my world that is.

I am pretty much stuck over in facebook playing Zynga now. Mafia wars is just to much with my busy life. I have to get a different facebook account with less friends so I can keep up with everyone. Your still friends with me on facebook aren't you?

Yep!

If you don't know about the Casablanca consulate you should not give this advice. It is a difficult and highly scrutinizing consulate, where ability to communicate in a common language is tested via the language in which the interview is conducted. People at the Casa consulate have been told if they communicate with their fiancé spouse in English then that is the language they need to speak during the interview. If this is the case for op, it is better they are prepared & don't go into the interview thinking she can do interview in Arabic or Darija or French and be unprepared for an interview in English.

Yep. The communication language and interview language need to match.

M4horses...OMG you guys have a good memory!

Yeah, I had visited the thread for the guy that is "concerned that his fiance will leave him in the US before they get married".

You've missed a lot recently! Some really awesome threads.

Off topic BUT Good morning Julianna !

Good morning!

will Doctor inject me 4 Vaccines or what?? cause i its written in Embassy Info this (the cost of 4 vaccines (DT/DTP/DTap, Polio/OPV/IPV, MMR, and Varicella).)

Actually, whether or not you get vaccinated is determined by your medical records, not your age. If you have vaccination records for things, then you will only be vaccinated for the items which you are either not current or for which you are not vaccinated. They have listed the prices so you know what to expect if you need the vaccine. The problem is many people do not have decent records and have to get re-vaccinated.

You are so creative !

I have got to track down that Firecracker vine - I looked it up and it should be great for South Texas.

LOL you didn't tell your husband you turned the balcony into a farm. Well I think he probably has learned by now to expect this sort of thing from you

Well he knew it was headed south when I started picking up a few plants here and there this spring. On the bright side, I actually owned a lot of the pots and such so I mostly spent on plants and dirt. he knows about some of the plants too, as I forgot to delay their shipment until he was gone (I am sneaky). So I am sure he has sinking feelings about it lol. He's complain about it but ultimately, if it looks really nice, he'll get over it.

Try looking at Lowes even or HD.. or WM.. the seeds are pretty common and you can get them for under $2! I had never tried them before even though I thought they were looking pretty cute. I now feel I have missed out on years where I should have grown them! It's grown another 8 inches since I took that picture

FGM was banned in Egypt in 2007.

However, it's an ancient custom in Africa, embedded into cultural traditions which cross religious lines - many Egyptian Coptic girls are also circumcised; Ethiopian Jews also practiced FGM.

There certainly are those who continue to call for the ban to be lifted, and try to give it religious justification. But we know that Islam does not justify, endorse, or encourage it (at least not beyond what is now considered a cosmetic procedure in Western countries - labiaplasty.) In fact, most forms of FGM violate Islamic laws about women's right to sexual enjoyment, or laws about unnecessary bodily harm.

This practice is perpetuated almost entirely by women - it's performed by women on other women and girls. Most of the time, men have nothing to do with the decision or carrying out the procedure. It is mothers who are having this done to their daughters.

So it's up to women to stop it.

Yeah, that's the thing-- they will try to give a religious justification a lot but it's totally cultural... but then some just give cultural justification so I was curious what the party line was.

It is totally a women's activity, enforced, sponsored, and perpetuated by women. It has a lot to do with social control.

I don't understand why females are wanting this for other females.

I know, right?

A couple of weeks ago there was a mobile FGM clinic that ran through Minya, supported by one of the political parties. This same political party has a female member of parliament, who has openly called for mandatory FGM for every female, with fathers bearing the responsibility of assuring it gets done.

What is their ultimate rationale for this-- culture or religion?

Julianna - it's absolutely lovely and so charming ! Did you make that seashell table ? I love the beach mat rug - I am planning to enclose or at least screen in my back porch, and that idea is perfect for it. What is that orange-flowered viney thing - it's beautiful.

Thanks! I can't wait for it to fill in. All of these things are perennial here except the tuberous begonias, nasturtiums, the gesneriad, and the ferns. So I have almost nothing to bring inside! I spent a lot of time, as some here know (because they had to listen to me lol), looking for inspiration and ideas. I really like this blog: http://66squarefeet.blogspot.com/ (on the left, under pigeon holes is the top tag for the terrace where you can see her amazing terrace garden!).

i did make the seashell table. I painted it my favorite blue and then mosaiced the shells on to it. You may remember my 400 other seashell items/fireplace, but I've since been forced to part with them. This is the beginning of round two lol.

The orange-flowered viney thing is Ipomoea lobata, or Spanish Flag/Firecracker vine. They sell it in a lot of stores as seed. I planted it, flying saucer morning glories, moon flowers, and thunbergia alata Spanish Eyes and figured whatever came up could compete for life in the pot. My seed was super old so I over-seeded. I have gotten 3 vines to emerge-- a moonflower (or morning glory-- it's small to be a moonflower but big to be a morning glory so I'll have to see it grow a bit more), a thunbergia, and this spanish flag. Here is a link to a more bloomy plant from someone else

http://media.photobucket.com/image/recent/itsnotworkitsgardening/October%25202010/IMGP6790.jpg

All of the above love sun, and of course I have shade. So it was really just an experiment.

My cheap wire windowbox hangers are because seriously, I am NOT paying $12 per bracket to hang those boxes. When the plants grow up more, they will hide that. My teeny balcony is 12x4. Ammar has no idea I've done this lol. We'll see what he thinks when he comes back since he was not in favor of a garden

Okay okay...I suppose if I was in the shower and I heard some horrid shriek outside and it turns out (God forbid) one of my kids or someone elses kids being hurt, then I may run outside in towel (or less) to make sure they were okay but like you said, Julianna, only under special circumstance.

Yeah. I mean i can think of a few circumstances-- like I might strip if I had to jump into water to save a drowning person (I'm usually wearing heavy jeans)-- but I can't say I would just, on average, I would just do it without there being some kind of danger factor.

My windowboxes are trailing nasturtiums and mara des bois strawberries.

and here are some table/rug shots..

I used some beach mats sewn together to make a reed rug for $2 lol. It's much better than the planks. I have some cute table cloths

I also have finally mounted my hanging baskets. They look empty, but there are hanging tuberous begonias in them.

last one! These are some shots from the ground. I'm up on the 3rd floor. This was obviously before I mounted the brackets for the baskets.

And here is the right side.. the blank spots are not blanks lol. if there is a vacant spot in a pot, it's either a gloriosa lily, oriental or trumpet lilies, or tuberoses. I just planted them recently and they are beginning to break above the surface.

^^ a climbing rose is on its way to live in this pot

Some herbs... thyme, oregano, tarragon, orange mint, and spearmint.

Here is the left side of the balcony:

Here you go, WOM! I'm going to post some pics for you.

This is my little growing prickly pear, disassembled into 5 new plants.

It has some other things in there as well... just beginning to grow.