The Gap Day

         

            This is probably a premature judgment but it doesn't seem as bad here as everyone seems to be thinking – it's not really as bad as I was thinking. Of course, I haven't run into the religious police yet, but it is often the case that what the government and the media say, is not always practiced on the everyday-person level.

            In particular, the men seemed more concerned about the state of women than women do. I've seen a woman walk into a restaurant and whip off her headscarf while the waiters all rush to pull down the blinds and set up a screen so no one can see her. It wasn't an 'I expect you to get this done' thing either. It was a 'I don't give a crap' kind of thing.

            From what I've read and what I've observed, a lot goes on here when no one is around to care.

            I'll have an update on this later because I may be getting a false impression.

            Today, I missed the morning bus because no one had told me what I was supposed to be doing. Far from being annoyed, I actually DID wake up on time, I just chose not to be there when the bus arrived because, again, no one had told me what to do. I think I'm getting the hang of this system.

            Later in the day, someone contacted me and asked, among other things, where I was. I told them I was at my apartment and he said 'Oh, have you been to campus yet?'. I told him no and he said I should just relax for today. He did not mention tomorrow.

            But I really couldn't stand another day cooped up in my apartment so I asked specifically: 'So I should be on the bus tomorrow morning?' to which his answer was a resounding 'sure'. I mean, they've already given me an advance, so it's no skin off my nose if I'm not working.

            This is a very interesting place.