Our first Christmas in Bangladesh has been different but better than I expected. It's different because you don't have the whole country celebrating. Funnily enough though, it's been the busiest Christmas ever with Carol services, Christmas parties and end of year break up parties. It does coincide with the Independence of Bangladesh so there are red and green lights and decorations on the streets since they are the Bangladesh flag colours so it feels festive.
On the 24th we had staff from the school for a meal and some games, on the 25th we had presents with the boys first thing followed by a group call with all our kids and Mum and Dad and another with D.C's family.
The Christmas stockings were a little different this year as I could fill them with things that are treats here, things such as Milo and Tang. Badminton is huge here so we got them each a badminton racquet and a volley ball for them all to share. Then we were off to church for a Christmas service followed by a meal. The biggest difference for us is that we were guarded on the 24th and 25th by RAB (Rapid Action Batallion) They are the equivalent of the SAS here. It's a first to have Christmas with AK47s but it does remind you that we are a minority in this country and not everyone is going to like our presence so sometimes extra protection is given when groups gather. In saying that, we have been welcomed openly by the people we meet each day and everyone has been very friendly to us no matter what religion they are but also like any country, there are radicals that can cause problems.
These are not the guys guarding us but this is what they look like...
On the 26th we had a foreigners Christmas lunch. We had fried chicken, pototo salad, Cauli and cheese sauce (cheese is a luxury as we can't get it here, the couple we are staying with had some bought over when some visitors came) It was a lovely time.
On the 24th we had staff from the school for a meal and some games, on the 25th we had presents with the boys first thing followed by a group call with all our kids and Mum and Dad and another with D.C's family.
The Christmas stockings were a little different this year as I could fill them with things that are treats here, things such as Milo and Tang. Badminton is huge here so we got them each a badminton racquet and a volley ball for them all to share. Then we were off to church for a Christmas service followed by a meal. The biggest difference for us is that we were guarded on the 24th and 25th by RAB (Rapid Action Batallion) They are the equivalent of the SAS here. It's a first to have Christmas with AK47s but it does remind you that we are a minority in this country and not everyone is going to like our presence so sometimes extra protection is given when groups gather. In saying that, we have been welcomed openly by the people we meet each day and everyone has been very friendly to us no matter what religion they are but also like any country, there are radicals that can cause problems.
These are not the guys guarding us but this is what they look like...
On the 26th we had a foreigners Christmas lunch. We had fried chicken, pototo salad, Cauli and cheese sauce (cheese is a luxury as we can't get it here, the couple we are staying with had some bought over when some visitors came) It was a lovely time.
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