National Day and my blue dress

my Omani outfit featuring the scarf(?) I struggled to drape properly over my head

It feels like forever since I've posted, but I waited until today for a reason - now I get to tell you about National Day!

In Oman this is a much bigger deal than in the U.S., which is something that shouldn't have shocked me because all we really do in America is watch fireworks and eat cake, but did all the same. About two weeks ago I found out about this, and upon reaching the understanding that we were going to have to wear Omani traditional clothing to school as part of  the celebration I promptly set about trying to obtain some.

After much discussion on the topic, this past weekend my host aunt brought me back a beautiful blue dress from her trip to Nizwa, which I learned was being passed on to me by another member of my host family. It fits perfectly, and I love it (also it's the only piece of embroidered clothing I own).

National Day is celebrated on the 18th of November, the Sultan's birthday - but at ABQ we celebrated it today. Everyone wore their national dress to school, and during our assembly there was a program of speeches, poems, and plays as part of the festivities. Part of this program included myself and Linden - we spoke together about some of the differences we have discovered between America and Oman. 

At the end of the assembly there was a fashion show which featured different styles of clothing from all around the country (although Oman is one nation, each province has a different style of national dress. My friend told me mine is the one from Muscat, the capital region. My personal favorite style is from Dhofar). 

In America we celebrate our independence - in Oman the celebration is about the people and the culture, and the variations that occur therein while still remaining an amazing and united country. And maybe that sounds cheesy but I think it's really beautiful.

Because it's been so long I've included two songs, one of which was my jam over the last week and one of which is just really relevant to this country.

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