I drove to the garden store in Algiers the other day, and it was the first time in months I’ve driven more than a few kilometers. (Seriously, I last filled the tank in our car about 60 days ago and it’s still at least half full!) On the drive back, I was trying to figureContinue reading “Who Had It Better: Diplomats of the Present or the Past?”
Category Archives: Posts from Algeria
The Handsome Dark Green Study
It’s been a home decor fantasy for of mine for a number of years to have a handsome dark green study. A room dark and cozy, worn yet sophisticated, a room that beckons one to select a book from the towering bookshelf and sit down and read. Or, that encourages one to sit and write,Continue reading “The Handsome Dark Green Study”
The Small Things I Do to Help the Environment (And How They’ve Mostly Backfired)
It’s Earth Day! I hope you all can go outside and enjoy the planet’s outdoorsy joys. While social distancing is going pretty well here for us in Algiers, I am sorely missing trees and hikes. There’s one hike I know of in Algiers, and all the entrances to that trail are closed. I’ve been averagingContinue reading “The Small Things I Do to Help the Environment (And How They’ve Mostly Backfired)”
The Refreshingly Low-Tech Content Brought to Us by Quarantine
Quarantine Log: Day 38. I say 38 because it was that many days ago when Adam and I turned around en route to the Algiers airport and ditched our trip to Valencia. Cancelling a trip made shit real, but we still went in to the office for a few more days after that. But we’veContinue reading “The Refreshingly Low-Tech Content Brought to Us by Quarantine”
Coral and Navy Guest Bedroom
There’s something about being at home all day every day that really makes one consider all the nooks and crannies of one’s home. So what better time than to style, photograph, and share some of the completed rooms in our Algiers house, amiright? When we moved in to our Algiers house in the heat ofContinue reading “Coral and Navy Guest Bedroom”
We Had the Choice to Leave, but We’re Staying in Algiers
So things have changed a bit since my last post on the Coronavirus situation in Algeria. The number of detected Coronavirus in the country cases keeps rising – it’s currently at about 700 — and the mood feels different. Way fewer people on the streets, and about one-third of those I see are wearing faceContinue reading “We Had the Choice to Leave, but We’re Staying in Algiers”
An Algerian Kitchen Makeover
As someone who has lived in rentals or government-provided housing for the past 16 years, I know there’s only so much one can do about drab or ugly kitchen tile. And if you’re like me, a person who is in the kitchen a lot and also very into interior design, then bad tile really bumsContinue reading “An Algerian Kitchen Makeover”
Coronavirus in Algeria
On Thursday, Adam and I were en route to the Algiers airport, all set to take the delightfully quick flight to Valencia to join our friends for Fallas festival, when the U.S. Embassy Algiers (aka our employer) called and said if we went to Spain – a country with a growing number of Coronavirus casesContinue reading “Coronavirus in Algeria”
How to Host a Cocktail Contest Party
Adam and I recently hosted our 4th Annual Holiday Spirit Party and it was our most successful yet. It’s a holiday soiree with a cocktail making competition mixed in. We started this annual tradition back in Jerusalem after being inspired by another Foreign Service couple who have hosted a holiday dessert competition for well overContinue reading “How to Host a Cocktail Contest Party”
Why Learning French is So Fun (For Me)
Have I mentioned how much I love French? I have never before had this much fun learning a language. Not in high school when I was the most consistently tardy, unmotivated, yet energetic student in Mrs. Belanger’s Spanish class; not when I did a seven-week Spanish immersion course at the Foreign Service Institute, or whenContinue reading “Why Learning French is So Fun (For Me)”