111/21: Assalam 'alaikoom! At the moment I am sitting at the gate waiting for our departure to Saudi Arabia. It has been a long wait...we arrived at the airport at 11:30 hoping to beat the holiday crush. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, there was no holiday crush so we had a long time to kill because our flight was supposed to leave at 4:30 pm. We just had a thunderstorm that delayed the flight, and we've just been called to begin boarding the plane.

A quick recap of the morning...we had breakfast at the hotel and then a program alumnus gave a presentation about Saudi culture and the types of artifacts we can expect to bring back to the U.S. I learned today that Barbie was outlawed by the Saudi government in 2003 because she was a bad influence. Surprise, surpise, a toy company named New Boy, created Fulla, a doll for Muslim girls. Fulla comes with pretty dress clothes and of course her abaya and hijab. And no girls' doll would be complete without a house and friends!

Well, I have to go. I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving! I will write as soon as I have access to the Internet.