Letters from John Nelson 

February 10, 1979

Dear Folks,

It looks as if the civil war may have commenced after a week of total cairn. We have just sent our employees home on the advice of Embassy. The army is attacking the air base in Farahabad and apparently the air force is handing out small arms to the populace who area battling the army according to reports. It may be the beginning of the end but until last night all signs were positive. Bazargan was saying nice things about Bakhtiar and vice versa. There were rumors of negotiations between aides and the army had pulled back and was not making belligerent sounds. Here you have two men who worked together for the same ends for 30 years. close friends, jailed together who now find themselves opponents even though their objectives are still probably the same.

I got back from Teheran 8 days ago and it has been sheer torture trying to get everything done. We took a total bloodbath on selling our things. Got 1/3 of what we estimated we would be able to sell for two months ago. I am having a difficult time selling the car as it is in Anne's name and even though we spent a day in Athens at the U.S. Embassy, Iranian Embassy, and Greek Foreign Ministry getting a power of attorney. The bureaucracy is defeating me. The other big problem is getting the got out. It will crush the boys ifl can't do it. Now there is only one other major problem-getting myself out.

I have not called all of your friends yet. Just no time.

February 12

We are now reduced to total anarchy. The streets are filled with armed young men firing their newly acquired weapons in jubilation. BBC reports that they are hunting down members of the old regime. The U.S. Embassy is without protection, Gulf District has been occupied and looted. There is no law, no authority, no order. We just hope to get out. The people have won now we must hope that something good follows for the people.

February 14

Hard to keep track of time. We did not leave the house from Sunday to Wednesday. By Wednesday we ventured to the office for a meeting. The city is an armed camp. Sandbagged positions all over, citizens arrests. While we were at the office deciding that the situation had improved enough that GTE-Law would continue, the Embassy was attacked and the decision­ making flip-flopped. We went scurrying home to another-"no profile"-day. Actually home was the worst place to go. We had a two-hour gun battle right at Jane and Alan's front door.

They live in the big ASP building at the head of Yousef Abad (the three great towers). The management had called in the Mujahids (right-wing Muslim militia) to guard the place after a robbery. After they arrived they discovered that a nephew of the Shah lived in one of the buildings so they set out to capture him. I heard all the firing and went out to investigate and found three men crouched behind the concrete embarkment surrounding the fountain in the main plaza of the complex blasting away at the building opposite us. I needless to say took that as a signal to disappear. The firing was ear shattering as the sound echoes furiously down the corridors, which are roofed between the three big towers. This went on for about two hours.

Meanwhile we received a call from Alan's landlord who said they were conducting apartment to apartment searches and to let them in. But they never reached our apartment. The evening showed no relaxation in excitement. We had gunfire all night long and supposedly the Khomeini guards who were protecting us captured seven Afghanis who were attempting to rob the building. Same night was the attack on the T.V. station. Khosrow, our guardian angel, Batul's friend, claims to be a Mujahid rushed to the defense he told me the next day. Twenty or 30 communists he says attacked, but who knows. Anyway nobody knows. The situation is very fluid. The purges have started and the government is having no success rounding up the arms.

The leftists are clamoring for dissolution of the military and the formation of a "people's militia." This is a classical leftist technique to destroy those institutions which might stand in the way of their takeover. Stability is a long way off in my view.

February 17

Sitting in the Embassy now waiting to be evacuated. GTE is pulling out. Been a hectic last two days. Nothing terribly eventful except gruesome newspaper coverage of the execution of the four generals. Western reaction is one of repulsion-we forget conveniently our own atrocities-the Indians, Blacks, etc. The pictures are disgusting. The bloom is coming off the rose. The people are starting to get scared, including the Khomeini people. Consummating the revolution is going to be tougher and less certain than anticipated.

GTE made the decision to get out Wednesday night and the Embassy informed us that Saturday, Sunday, and Monday would be evacuation days so there has been a lot to do. The best news is that ole Motte is with me. I have devoted most of my time to finding him a home and then finally got a decision that he could go along so rushed all over the joint getting his papers, food, and a courier. All is under control and he is resting uncomfortably in a luggage room.

We were bussed to the Embassy this afternoon about three. The place bustles with armed guards all of whom look alarmingly edgy. But treatment was good and friendly. We were told to dump all booze and anything that resembles a weapon. The place is well organized and things are running well. The first group of 800 received some hassling. I figure we will benefit from the experience of the first group whom it took over 24 hours to get out. There are about 400 of us in the room above the (ole) Caravanserai Restaurant. We will spend the night here and proceed to the airport at 4:30 tomorrow morning on buses with Khomeini guards. We are off to Frankfurt supposedly. I will then have to double back to Athens to get Anne. From there we will map a trip. Shorter and less expensive than planned. I just pray that our stuff some day gets out. Ten years of negatives, all our copper, rugs, etc. Irreplaceable.

February 18

We are airborne as I write. A truly exhausting day-never to be forgotten but one which should be forgotten. Last night I liberated a bathroom rug and rather fitfully slept. Actually I slept pretty well except for the cold which kept waking me up. We were roused at 4:30 AM by the Embassy personnel. I took ole Motte for a walk and cleaned out his rather gross cage. This was followed by a barely drinkable tap water Sanka and read an old "Stars and Stripes." By 6:30 we were on buses-Iran public but brand new and eleven in all. However we sat until 7:15 while the Khomeini guards got themselves organized. So we took off in rush hour traffic-out the Embassy front gate, north on Roosevelt to the yet to be renamed (Shohinshahi) Expressway to the (Vamole) Expressway finally to the (Tarasht) Expressway and through "Liberation Square" formerly (Shabyad) to the airport. The reaction of the traffic congested people was far and away the most interesting part of the day. While there were some smiles of amusement and a few victory signs flashed, the reaction of most people (and there were hundreds) seemed to be one of stunned puzzlement. The eyes expressed no hostility that I could read, only a sort of numbed disbelieve. This long caravan of Americans with armed militia men aboard, tying up traffic seemed to provoke an expression of shock in the eyes of the people I observed. They clearly didn't know how to respond or rather how to interpret the significance. So they watched, perplexed unsure of their own emotions. I on the other hand was quite certain of my emotions. I felt one-humiliated. Humiliated by being forced to run. Humiliated by the failure of my country to understand the people, their needs, and their aspirations, and humiliated by our failure to turn our own values into effective weapons of policy. We are too weak of belief, resolve, and of conviction. Finally one cannot help but be humiliated by our powerlessness to affect the course of events. My other feeling is of course one of great personal sadness at leaving Iran and of enormous concern for the wellbeing of the people of that land in the near future. All our great might, wealth, technology amount to nothing unless backed by a moral foundation which is willing to sacrifice for right and justice and let the profits fall where they may. We need a new generation of Presbyterian missionaries who (learned) of the people and forsake conversions for good works instead of the legions of Bell Helicopter and Boeings. The people on this plane who hate Iranians and Iran is really flabbergasting. I realize the situation makes for extreme emotions but the talk is from the gut which is the level that most people live on and therefore must be listened to and expresses real opinions. These are not bad people. Just people ill-equipped to deal with cultures other than their own. Economies and politics have thrust them into areas which they are ill-suited to perform with proper sensitivity. They are not to be blamed-their culture and their leadership is at fault.

Will we learn anything? No, I doubt it. Our economic and political systems are too convoluted to respond logically. We will "rationalize" and then make inappropriate responses such as Mr. Brown's trip which are not even of symbolic value and the report the same mistakes in Egypt, Saudi, Tunisia etc. We are too soft, too ego centric, too fragmented, and too self­ deluded to take a hard look at ourselves as a nation. We have learned all the wrong lessons from Vietnam. We must rediscover our Purpose-I rant! (Too Much)

The airport after our 1 ½-hour drive was sheer agony. We stood in bitter cold for six hours to get processed-incidentally ole Motte and I may have been on CBS T.V. The Iranians went through every bag of all 800 Americans plus about 300 other nationalities with a fine-tooth comb. I don't believe there was any intended vindictiveness just unadulterated revolutionary fervor. But it took hours of standing, inching, and lugging by people who were already mentally and physically exhausted. We were all outraged, those of us who had spent a comfortless night at the Embassy when after standing in line for½ hour the Embassy personnel announced over their bullhorn that we would have to step aside to let a group of 400 DOD and Bell Helicopter people who had arrived from the Hilton 15 minutes after us go first. A howl of indignation went up for these people who had spent the night in comfort with food and booze, and bed being allowed to go first. We were later informed that they had 40 Israelis with them who Khomeini wanted out of the country pronto and that was the reason they got to go first. You can well imagine my sentiments. But after six hours and four passport inspections we were boarded and were off the ground 30 minutes later. The Pan Am all-volunteer crew were terrific. They had worked 15 straight hours and were going back the next day to pick up the next group. They very wisely cut off the booze after one drink otherwise the plane would have been a zoo with all the gorilla escaped.

Letters from John Nelson

February 19, 1979

Dear Peter and Carol, 

Thought you might have some interest in the attached scribblings written to my parents.

Saw Amir about a week before pulling out. They were fine and had all the necessities.

Ali still stuck in Iran. Ralph and Marie are staying. Marie kind of sad. Has lost all of her friends and has no options. They have everything tied up in Iran.

We understand from the Nasrs that you are off to Bahrain. Chemical couldn't use another good Middle Eastern man could they. I trust Arne has told you that we are headed to Waltham, Massachusetts for what we hope will be a short-term assignment before an overseas assignment but it depends on what contracts Sylvania Training operations can come up with. I report to work on March 26th.

Everybody we know is out but Ali. It is all very sad and depressing. I am in a state of near catatonic shock with the thought of returning to the boob-tube paradise. How many Seljuk tomb towers have you ever seen in Darien? Plus the fact that it will be very difficult to adjust to being poor again.

February 26

We are now watching the countryside of Rajasthan pass us by from the window of our train. Took the sleeper from Bombay to Delhi last night. It is okay but the Iranian service is nicer. I do not yet feel comfortable with India. It is much different than the Middle East. I suppose it is a matter of time and familiarity.

February 28

Have now spent two days touring Delhi and think we have the rest of our itinerary solidified. India sure treats your nostrils to outrageous and multi-varied insults. Have seen some very fine Islamic stuff but you could not see all there is to see in 18 months of concentrated effort. I think our Sikh driver got a little disgusted with us. In his mind, if you have seen one mosque you have seen them all.

Arrive Texas March 16th

720 20th St, Beaumont 713-832-4934

Arrive Waltham

(GTE Iran Group) 140 First Ave

Waltham, 02154

617-890-9200

You must ask for my new boss Gerry Campbell-they won't know me. How is Bozo? Be good Janet!

Love, John

June 4, 1979

MEMORANDUM

To: The File

From: A. Baghdasarian

Re: Peter A. Blyberg's Household Shipment from Tehran

During the Iranian revolution when the anti-American feeling in Iran was growing tremendously, Peter Blyberg's (PAB) house sitter and his family were continuously being threatened that PAB's house was going to be set on fire because it belonged to an ex-Savak agent and that it had been rented to an American. The house sitter's and his family's life being in danger by the threats, the undersigned-decided to call the movers (Unipack/Global International) to pack PAB's household goods in order to save the lives of a 3-year-old child, a 22-year-old mother. and a 27-year-old house sitter. We were lucky to have the movers available to us immediately after our request for packing. On or about the 21st of February, the movers came and packed everything in the house and loaded everything on the trucks to move to the warehouse when the local Komite (substituting the police department after the revolution) representatives walked in with machine guns held up to question us where we were taking the household goods. At that point all of us were lucky not to have been arrested, but had we not had enough documentation that the house was leased by PAB and that we all worked for him in the Rep Office we would have all been arrested for stealing his household goods. It should be mentioned that during the 3- 4-hour period that we were trying to prove that PAB is the tenant of that house, the house sitter was taken hostage by the Komite people. After several hours of negotiation with different Komite people, we learned that the Komite had decided to take over PAB's house and the household goods. We were told that we were not able to move anything from the house unless PAB came to Tehran himself and proved that he does not have any public property in his shipment, or gave a power of attorney to someone to prove the same. Until this time the Komite said that the revolutionary guards would guard PAB's house from any possible fire threats and theft and returned the hostage. During this period, the writer and the office staff did not give up looking for a solution to substitute Komite's demands as we knew that neither PAB nor a power of attorney could get to Iran as all the communications with the outside world were shut. During this period, we contacted our lawyers in Tehran, Ghani and Tavakoli, and asked them whether the power of attorney that they had from Chemical Bank Tehran Rep Office could be used in clearing PAB's goods from the Komite. Their response was that they do not get involved in legal things as such. Then we were recommended a lawyer who worked for the Ministry of Justice who agreed to follow the case if PAB sent him a power of attorney, and his charges were going to be $3,000. For a period of one month or more the house sitter checked the house to make sure the guards were protecting the house and we kept insisting on the fact that PAB was not a "devious" character working for the government on military projects, that he was a banker in Tehran with the permission of the Central Bank and the Ministry of Labor. Finally, due to the continuous pressure from the office staff on the Komite people, we were able to get the house back from the Komite for guarding purposes, but we still had to have a clearance from the Komite in order to be able to move the goods out of the house for shipment. Our efforts were worth it as we were able to save the bank $3,000 in legal fees. When we went to take the house over from the Komite representative, we found the house in an unbelievable condition. Almost all the packed boxes were opened and a lot of things were taken from them, bullets were shot through some ceilings and windows, all the drains in the house were clogged, the alcoholic beverages were finished or stolen. A kitchen full of canned food and a supply room full of medicine and cosmetics, clothing and linen, let aside the Tiffany china, were all stolen. As I was not completely familiar with PAB's household goods, I could not enumerate exactly what was missing from the shipment, but I could tell from the boxes that a lot of items were taken away.

When the Komite representative saw the condition, he decided to give permission to take everything from the house and ship them to anywhere we wanted to as he realized that his revolutionary "guards" did not exactly "protect" the house from possible "theft." Again, not to forget Unipack's cooperation, they sent their truck over with packers immediately to PAB's house, and promised an early shipment if everything was prepaid in Tehran in Rials since they were short of operating funds. The bill presented by Uni pack came to Rials 1,687,0 I 9, about 2/3 of our office imprest fund balance. By this time, communications in Iran were back to almost normal, therefore, PAB requested the writer to pay the bill out of her personal funds to Uni pack as the reimbursement for the February expenses was not made yet by International Control, and even if they had been, with the prevailing shaky situation in Iran it would not have been wise to relinquish funds from the office balance as we were not certain whether we would have been able to get a reimbursement for it immediately through the normal banking channels as there was a shortage of Rials in the country at that time. It should be mentioned that before the revolution, the writer, with the help of the other office staff, had already packed PAB's valuables, such as silverware, family picture albums, paintings, carpets, and had prepared an air shipment to leave the country and had paid another Rials 385,039 out of her personal funds when all the banks were on strike, to avoid depletion of the office funds. Eventually, the two shipments were combined and sent by ship from Khorramshahr.

August 27, 1979

Dear Mom and Dad,

There wasn't much point in mailing from Ireland-so here we are day #2 in Bahrain with J and J busily outswimming most of the kids in the pool. The weather is something like the inside of a dishwasher on its dry cycle. Yesterday we picnicked by and swam in the gulf which is warmer than most of the baths I had in Ireland-not terribly refreshing but the water is clearer than any I've seen anywhere. It was a good beginning for Janet and John. David Munro who was in Tehran briefly with us was also there including his Cairo gutter dog Dixie who was more than happy to swim along with J and J, eat John's lunch and, in general, pretty good entertainment.

Ireland's countryside and small villages are beautiful-every bit as misty, subtle and green as I had imagined-but considerably colder! We did feel the effects of that dreadful storm over the Irish Sea that played so much havoc with the race going on at the time. The rain continually came and went, didn't interfere with our plans though and the children were easy to spot in their yellow slickers.

We spent our first few days in Dublin getting oriented, arranging for a car. Taking reservations around the country-the Irish tourist board is a terrific resource. We saw where Peter used to live-typically he drove right to the street. "Blackrock College, his old school-a stem forbidding looking place. I can't imagine sending a little boy there. He didn't like it much at the time either. We drove North and saw the burial chambers at Howth and Newgrange ­ fascinating and most of all for John. Janet, of course quickly became castle happy and remained so for the whole trip! She loved every minute of it. Malahide Castle, outside of Dublin, being her first.

We visited the horse show. John loved the Connemara ponies which was later to become my favorite place in Ireland-it has a rugged beauty and colors all its own, ancient looking country. Something the way I felt about Iran although not at all the same, but I'm skipping around.

We left Dublin and drove toward Wexford and spent the night in Bargy Castle, a true-life fantasy for the children and most especially Janet who said it was a very "castly castle." Bargy is 800 years old and has been in the de Burgh family all those years. It's full of wildly carved Irish oak furniture-the beds, huge four-poster, canopied, curtained affairs. Again, picture Janet. When we arrived, Col. Davison (married to Marie De Beuge) told us that he didn't take children (normally) but grudgingly said this time he would make an exception. J and J heard all this and decided on their own to improve the "under 10 set image"-they would have done anything to stay!-and they were good-perfect-little midget adults. We had dinner in a huge hall, half of which was set for the other guests, the other half was ours! (Col. Davison still didn't trust us!) The dinner was perfect with only candles for lighting. Wonderful service, excellent wine and we pulled our part off without a snag and being on our own was twice as nice. After dinner we tucked the children in bed who were thrilled to discover their room had a door that opened to very mysterious looking turret stairs. P and I went downstairs to have a port in front of the fire where Col. Davison joined us-we talked half the night and departed great friends! I would recommend Bargy Castle to anyone for its charm and atmosphere-sleeping there is another matter-things really do go bump in the night.

So from Bargy to Killarney where Mrs. Eoban the proprietor of our guesthouse said, again, children did not normally stay there. She cried three days later when she kissed J and J goodbye. She was a dear, sweet woman who wanted to know our plans each day and always had ideas (good ones) of her own to add to our list. In Killarney we hiked, took jaunting cars, picnicked, drove part of the Ring of Kerry anyway, visited beaches and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We saw a steady procession of perfect rainbows, more than I have seen in my entire life. On our way we stopped in Waterford and found much of our crystal-it's to be found in Ireland in bits and pieces-but even there, they are no longer making it. During our stay we sent off two packages to your address-I hope you won't mind tucking them away for us. Seeing the situation, we decided it's now or never.

I omitted seeing the Rock of Cashel which-truly beautiful and we picnicked in the Abby below on a lovely rare sunny day. After Killarney! I should have our road map in front of me as I write, but as it is I'm dripping by the pool. Happily, there's a large assortment of children for J and J to play with but the setup plays havoc with my train of thought. Other excursions-there were so many! We explored the Dingle peninsula, of course Connemara, Achill Island, further north-countless castles-we finally ate some fabulous seafood on Achill Island-the Irish diet I will save for later! We had a memorable medieval dinner at Knappogue Castle-again the children's eyes popped! It was a fascinating evening because a group of players sang Irish songs, told legends, myths and all sorts of stories which we all enjoyed. John spaced out on the live music and was as still as a mouse the whole evening.

We did not, as a rule, get acquainted with Irish night life-pubs and that sort of thing­ because of the children-and didn't miss it either. There's really an appalling number of bars in that country! The Irish diet is a series of one greasy plate of chips after another-the famous Irish complexion is a myth. Pasty looking children with sores are common-it's still a poor country. The people are wonderful however-and always full of goodwill and advice. The Irish animals are full of personality too! One of the nice things about driving through the country is dodging and laughing at the sheep, goats and cows that litter the country's roads. Tea, also quickly became part of the daily routine for al I of us. There are 1000s of private homes with the sign "Teas" outside-we stopped at many of them. Small children bring in the tea and scones, we rarely saw the mother. We were never anywhere that wasn't spotless, everything is scrubbed till it is worn thin.

We drove across the country back to Dublin where we spent one more night, flew to London, spent another night-there we called Peter and Pari Banko (whose mother you didn't like on the phone) and it looks like they may be living in Bahrain soon. Which would be nice. The next morning we were off to Bahrain where some older children are now throwing John around the pool like a basketball which he loves. Janet is presiding over another large group-I think they'll sleep tonight!

I imagine our departure (style of) was enough to curl Dad's hair-nevertheless it was wonderful of him to come by to say goodbye and meant an awful lot to all of us. It makes you think twice about going to stay the least and I don't have to tell you how much you are missed.

Would you please send this along to Fred? Fred, would you please send us a detailed letter concerning out-of-town guest etc.?! J.C. woke up bright and early the 23rd and said,

..Chrissy's gone to see Tugga!" Have thought of you and especially on the 20th. Happy Birthday! Also Fred, get over to a bookstore and buy "The World According to Garp." You'll love it-it's your sort of book.

We will probably move into our temporary apartment Thursday. The children's school starts-I think September 9-so we are busy-we'll write sooner now!

Much love to all, Carol

Ireland - Bahrain

1979

Dear Dad and Marjorie,

I am afraid we never sent any postcards from Ireland. We kept meaning to but somehow the only time available was  10 or 11PM and we were in no frame of mind to write postcards.

Apologize to all! Needless to say we had the most wonderful time in Ireland. The 15 days were all too short but we managed to have by far our best vacation ever. We landed in Dublin the 9th (Thursday) and after getting to our guesthouse promptly fell asleep for six hours. Not really having slept on the flight. We had a room in a guesthouse in the Glasnevin area of north Dublin near Croke Park.

Thursday afternoon and evening we took a bus (double decker) downtown, walked along O'Connell Street past the office up to Grafton Street past Trinity College and over to St.

Stephen's Green. Not really doing anything in particular but just getting some fresh air (brisk) and exercise. Things seemed smaller than memory had allowed but it still felt comfortable walking around, knowing what was around the corner or up the street. The bicycles and horses are all but gone and O'Connell Street seems very commercialized but it is surprising how little things have changed physically in Dublin.

Friday we went to the Horse Show. the grounds seemed much smaller but virtually unchanged. The commercial/industrial part really doesn't exist anymore with just one hall. But just as many horses and more people. The children loved going through the stables and patting the horses. We watched some of the jumping in the outside rings although we didn't et into the main jumping enclosure to see the Aga Khan Cup. Starting in Ballsbridge and going south all the way to Dun Laoghaire it appears that Dublin has really gown significantly. A lot of new office buildings (including a new Texaco House on Northumberland Road). Since it was raining in the afternoons we went to see "Star Wars" which we had not seen before.

Saturday we went to pick our rental car and drove out to the old house-the street seems very small and very overgrown. Then we drove out to Killiney and the children played on the beach. We had dinner out there. We also saw the National Museum, bought some Aran sweaters for the children and Carol and went out to Howth Head.

Sunday we drove up to Malahide Castle, north of Howth and then we up through Drogheda to New Grange and Dowth where the old burial mounds are located. Janet and John loved Dowth which has been opened since we were there. It has not been developed as a tourist attraction the way New Grange has and has several passage graves which twist and turn. Janet and John had a good time exploring. New Grange has been fully excavated and commercialized and difficult to recognize. All the trees around it are gone and there are graveled areas leading up to it and the front has been restored to its original condition (Irish interpretation) which is a facing of white quartz.

Monday we left Dublin and drove down to Powerscourt to see the gardens. The weather was nice but by the time we left the grounds to go to Glendalogh it had begun to rain. We toured Glendalogh in the rain but were lured into a house in the neighborhood by a sign advertising hot scones and tea-the first of many such stops. We drove down through Avoca and Arklow to Wexford. We had reservations to spend the evening at Bargy Castle. It is a restored 800-year­ old castle which has room for about 25 people. When we showed up we were informed by Col. Richmond that children were normally not accepted. For some reason he made an exception in our case. We had dashed down from Dublin to be there in time for dinner (8 PM) only to be treated as if we were not welcome. We talked to Janet and John and they agreed they would act like a real princess and a real prince since they were in a castle. And they did, you have never heard so many pleases, thank yous, etc. from two little mouths. Dinner at 8 was in the formal dining room and while the other guests, some 15 or 16 were in one section of the dining room, we were consigned to another room with only two candelabra for light. Talk about poor cousins! Anyway the four of us had a wonderful evening. The service was very good and the food delicious. All of it in an 800-year-old castle with swords and armor and tapestries on the wall.

We really felt like lords of the manor. We had our own waitress and who because of the lighting--only four candles in a huge room-seemed like an unseen presence whisking away dishes and putting food in front of us. We had a very enjoyable meal and by the end, the owner Col. Richmond had come over and complimented Janet and John and said he had never seen anyone quite as good.

After putting Janet and John to bed-Janet in a huge antique four-poster-in a room with a door to the tower stairs-Carol and I went downstairs and had some port by the fire. Everyone else had gone to bed and so Carol, I and the Col. sat and talked for a few hours. He has had a fabulous career and was in charge of British Forces in Burma during WWII. reporting directly to Churchill. By the time we went to bed around 1 AM we were good friends. Janet and John had wanted to spend a night in a castle, especially Janet and it really fulfilled their fantasy in every sense. After dinner the Col. even took them outside to explain the drawbridge, the restoration work and the bats. John liked that part best and wanted to see the bats but as it was dark this was difficult. And to have a secret door to the tower in their room really capped the night.

Tuesday we drove through to Waterford and on to Cahir for the evening. We stopped along the way at every possible castle or ruin and even managed to find some of Carol's Waterford crystal in a store in Waterford. We only found some but it was enough to round off the wine and port glasses. We tried for the goblets but they had none. It was a search that we carried out wherever we went to no avail. The pattern is no longer made and has not been exported for years which is why we could not find it in N.Y. There are still pieces around in Ireland but not many. It can be special ordered but it can take three years-they are so backlogged. We did succeed in getting some champagnes glasses in Carol's patterns-I think the last in Ireland--on our last day in Ireland.

After spending the night in Cahir we went to Cashel the next morning and toured the rock. For lunch we bought some brown soda bread, cheese, butter, fruit and cookies and went over to the Hone Abby an old ruin at the foot of Cashel in an open cow pasture and sat in what was the Abby garden picnicking alone with the splendid view of Cashel in the background. We then drove on through Mallow to Killarney where we stayed for four nights at Mrs. Peggy Tobin's guesthouse called St. Christopher's. When we showed up we were once again informed that children were normally not accepted. We got through that and by the time we left on Sunday Janet and John had won Mrs. Tobin over so much that there were tears in her eyes as she said goodbye to them. She was really a wonderful woman-very inquisitive and always wanting to know what we had done each day and where we planned to go the next day. We would rehearse with them after each day what they would tell Mrs. Tobin and it got to be a ritual­ telling Mrs. Tobin what we had done and where we had gone.

I forgot to tell you that the weather was pretty rainy for the entire time we were in Ireland and unseasonably cold. But each day had enough sunshine to make it possible to do everything we wanted and then some-in addition it provided the opportunity for more rainbows than I have ever seen in my life and some of the most spectacular.

Killarney is very commercialized but we avoided most of it-took no tour buses although we did take a jaunting car ride and a boat ride out on the lakes-the boat ride started in sunshine, went through a driving rain squall back to sunshine and still water and back to rain again-all in two hours. We drove part of the Ring of Kerry-went out to Dingle where the children spent an enjoyable afternoon on the beautiful beach at Inch and had tea and scones out at where "Ryan's Daughter" was filmed. Killarney was beautiful and the scenery particularly along the coast of the peninsula's is truly spectacular.

Sunday the 19th we left for Limerick, again stopping along the way of Castles and gardens. We checked in to our guesthouse, cleaned up and drove up to Knappogue Castle for a medieval banquet. It was very touristy but very enjoyable. The dinner was followed by a performance of songs and poems. Janet and John loved it. They loved having dinner with the atmosphere. The next morning we left and drove up to Westport.

We stopped by Ballyvaughan in the Burren south of Galway for lunch. We had read about a restaurant at a hotel which was supposed to be very good. It was really wonderful. It was a lovely pub room with a view down the mountain valley to Galway Bay, a lovely peat fire in the fireplace. We had some wonderful homemade vegetable soup, brown bread, smoked salmon and Irish coffee (one of the best meals on our trip). Not only that but we had the place to ourselves. It was a really lovely hotel and a great place to eat.

Our purpose in going to Westport was to spend three days in the area touring Connemara and up through Achill Island. It is far more dramatic scenery than anywhere else and we really hated to leave. We especially enjoyed Achill Island. It has some beautiful beaches of white sand and just a few scattered villages on a very barren landscape. The only place we found good seafood at a reasonable price too.

The children loved the beaches and played for hours. We prepared picnics of soda bread, cheese, fruit and milk and would just sit on the beach enjoying the sun and dodging the occasional shower. In fact we spent our anniversary sitting on the hood of the car parked on the beach eating two pounds of smoked salmon on fresh soda bread and butter and then had the medieval banquet at Knappogue for dinner. (One of our more unusual anniversaries!)

It all seemed to go by so quickly and next thing we knew we were driving back to Dublin--0n a beautiful day. Naturally-we spent one last night in Dublin before flying on to London where we spent a night at the airport hotel before catching the plan to Bahrain.

I must admit that I had not really missed Ireland in the years since we left. But having seen so much of it this time and having it feel so comfortable made it very hard to leave and I know we will stop off again coming or going to the U.S. on home leave. The next time I think we will just spend the time on the west coast.

We tried to call Aunt Jim but no reply so I don't know where she was. I'm sorry we missed her but perhaps on another trip.

We landed in Bahrain at about midnight and stepping out of the plane was something. The average temperature in Jreland had been about 60°-70° while here it was 90°-100°. But we had no time lag problem) only two hours between Dublin and Bahrain) and so were able to settle in very well. We stayed at the Hilton for about a week and have moved into an apartment hotel which allowed us to spread out and relax a little more than the hotel did. It has a living room/dining room and a small kitchen.

Sorry for not getting this letter off sooner but things have been very difficult here at the office and so I have been exhausted at the end of each day so that while I started this the week after we arrived it is now the 2nd of October and I have still not mailed this thing. Some day I'll fill you in on the details.

The transition here has been fairly easy for us since there is no language barrier, no traffic, and a very congenial atmosphere. We should be moving into our house this week. We have been arranging to have the rugs put in, the furniture moved from my predecessor's house, the garden hacked into shape and just generally settling into our new home.

The children have adapted very well and both love school. It is tough but the quality is very good. John's teacher is a strong disciplinarian and John had a few difficult days getting adjusted but he looks forward to school each day now.

I really must mail this to you so will close now and fill you in on what has been going on here in another letter which I will start as soon as we get in the house this weekend.

Much love to all

Peter, Carol, Janet and John

September 5, 1979

Dear Mom and Dad,

Seems like it's been a while since I wrote-and that was all Ireland.

The children have adapted very well-after Iran-veiled ladies, dusty streets, the muezzin and so forth seem very familiar and they enjoy having all these things around them. I'm amazed how content they've been-and good! They feel good-which makes a big difference.

We stayed in the Hilton for several days-made more enjoyable because a Chemical couple from Dubai were here to talk to Peter-whose been busy talking to all these individuals planning what he wants to accomplish out here. So Lisa and I had each other's company by the pool-and swimming is the only outdoor occupation you can comfortable do in this weather!

John's swimming has really improved-he literally flies through the water (on top now) and no longer looks as though he's going to drown at any moment. Janet, of course, is fine. We've now moved to a hotel/apartment which gives us a little more room and flexibility-it has a large living and dining area, two bedrooms and a small kitchen-since it only has a hot plate I don't bother with dinner but it's great for breakfast and lunch. Janet is very enthusiastic about the whole arrangement and gets up early in the morning and sets the table, pours the juice etc. She loved the way they set up teas in Ireland and supplicates the process here. Also a little girl in an apartment upstairs has befriended J and J so they play, have lunch together and they enjoy taking the elevator up and down to see each other. One of the people Peter hired in N.Y. will be moving in today and they have four children so there will be plenty of playmates.

Peter and I have been sharing the bank car so I have been driving around a bit and learning my way around. There's very little traffic so the driving is easy but the streets all look alike and few of them have names so specific places are hard to find! Still, there are many people who never drive here so I already have a little more flexibility. I buy groceries during the day and cart the children back and forth to the pool. Peter and I do major errands together after 4:00 when the heat is more tolerable. The week seems to go on forever since he only has Friday off but his day ends at 2:30 which is nice. Earlier this week we had to go to the souk to buy John's school uniforms, checked material for Janet's, find a tailor to make the dresses and so on. This we accomplished over the space of several days and so they are now all set to start school­ which begins on Saturday. They have a funny school week with Sunday and Friday off. J and J can hardly wait to start and they've already met and made friends with a number of St. Christopher's students at the pool.

We checked on our house and it looks nice-in fact it's very near where we are now­ and I've met a Canadian and British couple I like very much who will be living practically around the corner. Once the children have started school I'll start supervising the carpets, curtains and planting-still to be done. Our landlord did put in a very nice-and restrained for the Middle East) kitchen. The outside is painted an assortment of colors which will make it easy to find. The trees in back make it the coolest place I've found so far in Bahrain! Hopefully by the beginning of October we'll be in.

Good luck in Angola! Write-I know you've been away.

Much love, Carol

October 2, 1979

Dear Mom and Dad,

Another large gap in letters I'm afraid-things have been stranger than life around here so I decided to wait till things got sorted out.

Loved your letter-and was very glad to hear from you. The trip to Brazil sounds wonderful-hard to believe you've covered so much ground.

We are now waiting to get the last of those things done to the house which will make it habitable-Bahrain is I 00% more efficient than Iran-but nevertheless-still the Middle East. Hopefully by Saturday we'll be in. When we arrived, Ford, our predecessor, had been away a month travelling and visiting overseas Chemical offices in the Far East and then during our first month here he was taking another month home leave in the States. Also almost everybody else in the office was on home leave so we got our own selves oriented but couldn't help but think the situation was peculiar. I was annoyed with myself for feeling less than charitable every time I thought of Ford's empty house full of bank furniture-on the other hand I told myself had he been here for the changeover we'd still have been in the hotel anyway. He and his wife finally came back last week and packed up and left today after having astounded N.Y.-and us by announcing he was leaving the bank. Obviously he couldn't pack up for another post if he was quitting and he didn't want to say he was quitting until after his trip to the Far East-so that's why we aren't in our house. I suppose you could describe our first month as messy-Peter has been wonderful however-and although it was messy-and difficult-it has not been unhappy.

Our shipment finally arrived today-although we could have moved in without it but we couldn't figure out why an air shipment should take a month and communications with N.Y. were vague. Well, it seems the warehouse burned down. Only a handful of containers made it­ they say the delay was in taking inventory and there is minor smoke and water damage but I guess our household is slated to survive. I think our combined shipment and household goods are a monument to human courage and tenacity. Oddly enough my first reaction was how crushed Anna would be if it all went up in smoke now!

J and J have both settled in and love school-Janet right from the very beginning (naturally) and John with a teary first few days. St. Christopher's demands a lot of the students and John, although in his age group, was over his head. His class plunged right into reading and writing-and he's determined to catch up-and-incredibly has. I have made him a reading and writing exercise book with drawings to color and he works for at least an hour every day after school with it. His progress is amazing! Janet has a lovely class and an energetic teacher named Mr. Bove whom she talked about non-stop. I went with them on a field trip to the Bahrain Museum. The children were given a questionnaire on the exhibits, turned loose in the museum and expected to write the answers and draw pictures of some of the displays. It was very impressive the way they scattered and got right down to work. The mothers were on hand to help give a little direction but the children did the work. All seven years old! One little Bahraini boy appeared to have some difficulty so I helped him especially-with his writing and he drove himself to perfection. A beautiful child. I used some of my rusty Arabic to help him out and later found out he's an Al-Khalifa. He had his own car and driver-wasn't allowed to take the bus to the museum with the rest of the children. Anyway Janet is very happy and Mr. Bove enjoys her Americanisms-I think she's a welcome addition to the school.

Life is considerably easier now that I have my own transportation-and the children require a lot of carting back and forth-even their schools are in two separate locations. I have a Toyota (white) Celica (with a tape deck Fred-but it would be hard to find a car in Bahrain without one). It's low and squatty (Peter can hardly fit in it) and I love the way it drives. J and J think it's neat. It's great fun zipping around-Bahrainis are very courteous drivers-very magnanimous about letting you merge into traffic, they nod and bow and smile when you let them in but they are great tailgaters and you just have to remember to signal a good three blocks or so before you intend to turn!

Peter and I with our free afternoons have browsed through some of the carpet stores-by and large the selections are poor with the exception of very expensive Nains which the Arabs love. One store nearby was obviously Persian and we had a long and pleasant conversation with the owner in Farsi. It turns out that he speaks little or no English and needs a translator to help him with his English-speaking customers-also to help him write and read letters so it seems I have a job! I was very touched the way he went about it-which was to call Peter at his office and invite the two ofus for tea this AM and discuss it with both of us. He would really like me to work all day but I really want to be home in the afternoons for J and J and they would hate it if I wasn't so we'll try it out part time. He also wanted to help arrange carpet shows in Dubai, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Doha-I was pleased when P raised his eyebrows and looked very displeased and Kamean said well, we could do it if it coincided with one of Peter's trips -and respected Peter much much more. Not exactly a women's lib situation but very suitable for this part of the world. He has one English woman working for him but they can't communicate and she can't tell him what a customer wants in a carpet. I'm very much aware Iranians are fascinating but very difficult people-I don't know what working for one will be like-but will give it a try-and Kamean is interesting. Before the revolution he worked for the (Pais) News Agency covering the Gulf. His job was just another one of the casualties-he's certainly a bright man. He's been in Bahrain 25 years but is originally from Shiraz. We talked at length and he seems to be satisfied with my level of Farsi. I'm amazed-this whole thing sort of fell into my lap. I'll probably start sometime next week.

To make things easier Ford (predecessor) passed along Frieda, their maid. Freida, I think is going to be a jewel-she's about 50, from the Seychelles and desperately needed a place to live and we do have a little house out back for her. So I have a babysitter for evenings out and she can hardly wait to start sprucing the house up. She worked for the Amir's uncle for years­ and for years they never would give her a raise so she left them. She came well recommended and very nervous about her future, poor thing. She knows the entire AI-Khalifa family and every Friday walks for three hours out to West Riffa to see their children. Incredible in this heat.

People here are very nervous about Khomeini's influence in Bahrain. Shortly after we arrived there were disturbances in the suk--quickly dispersed and for awhile we saw soldiers in Jeeps. Tonight there was a great deal of coverage on T.B. of the Prime Minister's trip to Saudi­ putting up a united front-lots of footage of rows of troops-that sort of thing. It's hard to determine what the situation really is.

I mentioned our crystal in an earlier letter. If you could let us know what the duty was­ or is and we will send you a check. Hope it's not a problem. There will be a lot of it.

I"m getting weary! Last night was Ford's farewell party and the sun rises early in Bahrain! By 9:30 this morning I had already taken the children to school, gone to our house, taken Frieda on some errands we had to do, took her home gone to a department store to buy a quilt for Janet's bed and had tea with a neighbor. Yawn!

Peter came home and said Anna's stuff had burned-I think I'm going to be sick.

Miss you lots and much love. Carol

P.S. Heard from Lucy-she's ditched psychology and is going into accounting.

November 1979

Dear Nancy and Jack,

Settle down and have a cup of coffee-there's a lot to tell! We're fine, the weather is lovely and it will really have to be something major to blast me off this island-it is so nice to be settled at last. We are enjoying Bahrain thoroughly, love our location here in Manama, have met so many super people, plus friends from Tehran have also appeared on the scene. Our initial weeks however were something else....

To start, the bank personnel knocked themselves out messing up our shipment. They left thins intended for storage in a firetrap building-which burned down-all I know at this point is that we did lose a lot. Then they sent things here the long way around so it got lost-and very wet-I'11 spare you a description of that mess. The smell alone when we opened the boxes after spending three months in Singapore was overwhelming to say the least. That was the major reason I didn't write to thank you for the onion keeper-I was so worried I'd never see it again! but it's (in one of those 11 countries) on the coffee table and has been the object of endless compliments. The wet shipment arrived (with things that should have been in storage and many other things that should have come didn't) at the time when Peter was in Tehran-the same time the embassy was taken-in fact he had an appointment there that afternoon. It was so incredibly close that I still sometimes can not believe I have him back. He was questioned extensively at the Tehran airport and his passport taken away for awhile but Peter sometimes has incredible style-he finally got out (with IO lbs Iranian rice and 7 lbs of caviar!). Peter said the city turned hostile overnight, he had phone calls warning him not to go to the office or any other American homes-when his plane finally got over the Gulf he let out a sign of relief. It took my stomach days to settle down. Typically, he ran into John Nelson in the Tehran airport as well-he also got out (via Delhi). After that we launched into the month of Moharram and Ashura which has had everybody in the States-and a good chunk of people here in a state of paranoia. Bahrain is and has been very peaceful. All embassy dependents have been evacuated but it doesn't seem necessary. We know Bob Pelletreau, our Ambassador, quite well-saw him last night in fact.

He's very down to earth and sensible-I like him a lot. His wife, Pam, is in Athens and I think is wishing she could be here. Some bank people also left during Ashura-most are back now. My opinion is that some of these expats are their own worst enemy, happily spreading ridiculous rumors and working themselves into total misery. We spent Ashura on the beach cooking hamburgers and playing Frisbee with four other families-a glorious day. Peter was in Dubai during the days just before Ashura and I went to a reception for some very good friends and on the way home there was an accident so my cab driver cut through a small neighborhood near our house which put us squarely in the middle of a religious demonstration-had they wanted to make mincemeat of me, these people missed a golden opportunity! I've also shopped in the suk every day and I can say there is absolutely nothing going on. Peter also has quite a few Shias working for him in the bank and they simply want to go on about their lives and maintain that Khomeini belongs to Iran-not Bahrain. Obviously if the U.S. bombs Qom, that puts things in a different light. I don't have to tell you we are sick about the hostages. I drive past the American Embassy here every day to take Janet to school-they've added two more sleepy guards outside sitting on folding chairs. I go by so often we have a nodding acquaintance. Also while Peter was in Dubai the children and I went on a dhow trip (Arab boat) with some friends to the Qatar sand bar and on the way home police boats were cheerfully checking all incoming dhows to

Bahrain for Iranians trying to get in illegally. We were stopped as well. It was a beautiful day and the water crystal clear and perfect for swimming. So picturesque on the way back with the sun setting and the boat hands pulling out their rugs for prayers-a sight I missed so in the States.

In the meantime Bahrain is moving right along into the Christmas season-I've even managed to find a poinsettia! The stores are into this in a big way and the whole place is in a frenzy of shopping and children and adult parties, evening of caroling and so forth. I was delighted since Christmas was hardly visible at all in Tehran. Janet is planning her birthday party for the 19th and she said-if you can believe this-"Mommy, I don't want any hats and balloons, I want a grown-up party." I feel ancient! Especially with John reading now-he does beautifully. He actually drives himself in school-he doesn't always like school but it's important to him to be the best. Janet doesn't feel that way at all but certainly loves the social aspects of it. It's gratifying to see them both so happy and making friends-at this point I wouldn't rip the rug out from under them lightly and their recently acquired home is just about the most important thing in the world to them right now.

Our neighborhood is mostly Bahraini and we have been so privileged in that we have gotten to know them and have been invited to a few of their parties. I want to tell you-that's rare! These people are delightful hosts and can be incredibly funny and relaxed-I had no idea! Especially after the formality of Iran. One party had the best Arabic dancing and music I have ever seen or heard followed by a midnight buffet-it was at that point that I really began to be enthusiastic about living here and now I am quite attached to this little place. Now if only the press would get some sense in their heads and buzz off. They alone are creating ill will here.

We did have a lovely time in Ireland (now moving backwards) and did see much of the things you included in your stack of articles. We did rent a car and simply wandered from the east to the west coast soaking up lrish scenery and hospitality. Lots of rain which the Irish teas took care of and we saw a phenomenal amount of the country (and as many crafts as I could talk Peter into seeing). We bought Waterford which we sent back to the States-we were overjoyed to actually find our pattern! Spent one night in Bargy Castle which was simply a dream come true for Janet. There is a long story to that which I'll have to tell some other time. But it was super-and then to Bahrain which in August was simply the most incredible steam bath I've ever been in. I won't even try to write about our first few months here-it was so bad and it's all sorted out now anyway.

Love the house and we have a terrific live-in Seychelle woman who makes life much much easier plus she's wonderful with Janet and John and they adore her. If Peter isn't traveling we're out as much as in Tehran so once again babysitting is essential. During the day Frieda splits her time with us, some friends of ours and the Amir's uncle. She's a fascinating lady. Just happens to like living with us-and I'm so glad!

I was-and may still, work for a carpet store owner who speaks Arabic and Farsi-but no English. He needs a translator but also needs to ditch the English lady who's working for him presently. They can't communicate-but American dependents have real problems getting work permits, and with our schedule there have been too many snags-so maybe eventually it will work out.

Thrilled to hear about Arlene's baby boy! Please congratulate them for me! Must stop at this point and will try to fill in the gaps-and there are many, after Christmas.

Love,

Carol, Peter, Janet and John

I reread this and it's awful-bear in mind I started out hours ago this AM in a fishing village watching ladies weave mats and drinking cardamom coffee-it's hours later now and my eyes are twitching back and forth!

November 13, 1979

Dear Mom and Dad,

I don't think I've written since we've bene in the house-as it turned out we didn't move in quite when I'd hoped-it took ages to get the electricity problem sorted out but finally it did get turned on and the workmen could finish drilling holes for curtains and everything else hooked up. The nice thing is that everything seems to work-i.e. wires aren't popping and hissing like they did in Tehran. Also last week we finally got the last of our shipment and this whole business has been a god-awful mess. After the fire they opened our boxes to look at things and at random sent half to Bahrain and put the other things back in storage (at least I think that's what they did) because I have here all the winter clothes I designated for storage and very little kitchen equipment etc. Then to add insult to injury they sent our things (by air) the long way around where it got lost in Singapore for two months (and soaking wet) so many of our clothes can now be junked and those things that are salvageable have all had to be scrubbed and pressed. Horrid job. Grey fuzz was growing on just about everything. There is no nasty expletive strong enough for personnel-since they were in charge of these wonderful arrangement.

In the middle of all this we were going around in circles with the phone company trying to get our phone connected-they weren't sure what our phone number should be or where the house was although we gave them countless maps and so forth. Finally they determined we had a working number and there was no reason for the phone to be dead. This got Peter thinking so he borrowed a ladder, bought some telephone wire and hooked us up. Worked beautifully-Fred would be proud. The next day the phone company called and couldn't figure out why there was a problem since our connection was so good. I explained what Peter had done-and they said, "Great, then you don't need us," and I said, "He's a banker, not a telephone man and maybe you should still come and check his handiwork." -which after dozens more telephone calls (each time someone different) for directions, they did. They said Peter's wire sagged too much so installed a new one. Our number should you need it is 243150. This place is nuttier than a fruitcake.

Shortly after we got the phone installed (and under the circumstances I'm glad we did) Peter left for Tehran. the first part of his trip was uneventful and since the weekend was Eid El Jah (when everybody goes to Mecca) Peter, a friend and Arshak drove to the Caspian and had a lovely time. Peter said everyone was as nice·as can be. They drive through Rasht where people are quite candidly anti-Komiteh. After the weekend they were back in Tehran-did some shopping, made numerous calls on people and would have gone to the embassy at 3:00 PM had it not been taking at 10:00 that morning. I shudder when I think how close that was. Later in the day Peter received a phone call warning him to stay away from his office and any American home because people were going through the streets looking for Americans to add to the group of hostages already at the embassy. Peter spent an uneasy night at the Intercon. and left the next day. 1spent an uneasy night At the airport, at one point his passport was taken and Peter was led away from the departing group. He was asked a lot of questions, his bags gone through once again but they finally let him go. He was pleased when they were at last in the air. No doubt Peter had the airport officials baffled-they couldn't help but notice the 20 lbs of rice, 10 lbs of pistachios and 4 lbs caviar-but no carpets. Not to mention pomegranate syrup and two beautiful antique copper bowls with the finest handwork I've ever seen. I showed them to Pari Banko who said she'd only seen things like that in very old families. They tell a sad story as I'm sure those families were among those who had to leave-and copper like that was never available when we were there. So Peter finally got home but it still took several days for my stomach to settle down. He said Tehran was worse than it had ever been-certainly the tension was higher and so Iran is finally completely gone and the people will accept rule by the mullahs for the sake of Islam-whether they like it or not. We just listen to the news now to hear about the embassy.

Before Peter left we had a very nice dinner in Awali with the Trackwells-for about 20 people-assorted British and American and a few other newcomers like ourselves. It takes forever to get out there, one lady said she almost never gets to Manama-I can see why? It's a real stretch of desert. In any case it was a most pleasant evening and very thoughtful of them to include us.

Then a most amazing thing happened-and this is rare. Our landlord, a dazzlingly dressed Arab, invited us to a party at his "holiday house"-which we accepted. The afternoon before the party Kalifa stopped by the house to take Peter to the "place" so he'd know how to get there that evening. The "holiday house" was the ground floor of an apartment building that I wouldn't have glanced at twice-pretty seedy and full of booze. Peter wasn't at all sure about going but in the end we decided to and it was the best decision we could have made. There were several British couples there--obviously longtime residents in Bahrain, a lot of Bahraini business men and then a lot of the various ministers-all drinking-but not a lot-all extremely polite and they did everything to make us feel at ease and included us in all they said and did­ very informal and we had a wonderful time. The best was the music. I was told the best singer and drummer in the Gulf area was there-friends of Kalifa's. There were four women who alternately danced and they were incredible-all the more so because they were dressed in extremely conservative dresses such as you might see on the street. Kalifa would take off his qatra (the white head scarf), tie it around their hips and the musicians would play and sing while the lady danced. Absolutely fabulous. Later on a Bahraini man walked in with a tall and striking looking British woman-everyone stood up and I found out he was head of the police and an AI­ Khalifa (one of the many). He fascinated me because everybody else was decked out in their best thobe and he didn't wear the Arab head gear at all and just a simple brown thobe. Very soft­ spoken gentle kind of a person-we only talked briefly. Two people we did get to know were Ahmed Amin and his friend Rashid, who together are two of the funniest individuals I've ever met. Ahmed as telling Peter that we should come to his house for dinner-then he told Rashid to organize it-which he did, meticulously getting names and phone number and in fact, two night later we all met at Rashid's restaurant which he is about to open and then drove to Ahmed's house-which turned out to be right around the corner from our house. We even knew his son who rides his bike and has been very nice to Janet and John. In the middle of all our planning and Rashid's organizing, Ahmed Al Khalifa decided to leave, walked across the room, kissed me on the cheek and let without saying a word to anyone.

Dinner at Ahmed Amin's was very nice-wonderful food (not a lamb grab). He had four or five couples and he and Rashid kept up their nonstop bantering-it was super. Ahmed has two sons at the University of Texas-he was complaining that they like Austin so much that they never come home.

So we were really pleased. So many people have told us that they never meet Bahrainis or have never been in their homes. I'm glad we have, they are funny, relaxed (the way Iranians never were) and wonderful hosts. So living in Manama, with its problems, can be an advantage.

We met a really nice American/French couple at David Munro's Iraqi girlfriend's house­ Thackery asked me if we were "Manama people"- there seems to be a special group of people who do live in Manama and Thackery and I have since started calling ourselves "inner city people." The phrase is catching on. We'll be spending Thanksgiving with Thackery and Jean Françoise and heaven only knows how many more people. Similar to our Thanksgiving in Tehran but happily in Thackery's house-not ours!

It's late and I've probably left a lot out. Thanks for the cartoons! Tell Fred to write before it comes a lost art.

Much love, Carol

December 1979

Dear Mom and Dad,

Well, we have had a very uneventful Ashura-it's true some banks did evacuate-costly and unnecessary. We spent the day on the beach with four other families down by the military checkpoint south of the Island. Totally deserted except for some police land rovers going back and forth. Just about the best place to be I should think. Peter wracked up his knee playing Frisbee-our only casualty!

Truly, Bahrain is very quiet-and I have spent hours in the suk shopping and everyone is as friendly as ever. This AM went to Budaiya and spent the morning in a Bahraini house drinking cardamom coffee and watching the ladies weave straw handicrafts. A good place to use my limited Arabic and they were lovely. These women live with their families right on the water and their husbands are all fishermen-their homes are pretty sparse but I was grateful to see there was at least one A.C. stuck in the wall! The view counts for something too-most people I know, ourselves included, look out on rubble!

The weather is similar to what the weather was like in Florida last Christmas-and what amazes me is how Christmassy Bahrain is at the moment. The shopkeepers are really into the season-Tehran never was which seemed so creepy at the time. There are decorations up everywhere here. The days are getting quite hectic too with parties (for both children and adults) not to mention J.C.'s birthday which we're are having the 19th! She said, "Mommy, this year I don't want hats and balloons. I want it to be really grown up." If I didn't know her so well I would have been stunned!

Peter has just walked in so I must fix him some lunch. Merry Christmas!

Much love,

Carol, Peter, J.C. and John

1979-1980

Happy Christmas Granny and Grandad With Love

Janet

My maid gave me a rubber eraser with a little girl with a kitten and she is holding a present with a orange dress with blue flowers.

I am going to have a party. I will be 8 years old now.

I have a friend. Her name is Charlotte. We made a sweet corner together.

Happy Christmas,

Love Janet

from Janet

to Granny and Grandad

1979

Dear Dad and Marjorie,

Hard to believe Christmas is almost upon us. Time passes very quickly here and the weather is pretty much the same as ever only beautiful, cool and clear. It is now around 75-80 during the day and 50-60 at night. All in all a beautiful time of year to be here. We had a lovely Thanksgiving together with 60 other people. Some friends a French (him)/American (her) couple have a traditional Turkey day celebration sit down no less-20 Americans, Canadian, Brits, French, Asian etc. A real melting pot. Everyone brought something. I carved one of the three turkeys. A wonderful dinner. The Americans got up afterwards and sang traditional American songs (Steven Foster etc.) and then ended the evening doing square dancing on the patio.

John has been settling into his school. He has finally gotten over his initial reaction and enjoys it, except for his teacher who is leery of since she yells at the children. But she is a good disciplinarian and John needed it. He has now begun to perform and can read and write and do "sums." Not bad for a five-year-old. They earn stars for extra good work and John has the second or third highest total in his class.

Janet thoroughly enjoys school, loves her teacher and if anything is just not pushed enough. He reading skills are excellent but writing leaves something to be desired. It could be good if she wanted it to be but she tends to be a bit lazy. She is very good around the house and is a very sweet and helpful little girl. We have been working on John's self confidence since it was not in very good shape and took a beating during the past year. But he has bounced back and with his natural determination and inquisitiveness should be alright.

Came back from a trip to Iran on November 4th. One other person from New York and I were there for a week. We arrived on a Tuesday, spent two days visiting with banks etc. Then we took off with the office driver and went up to the Caspian, spent the night at the old Ramsar Hotel built during the reign of Reza Shah. It is really lovely up there and it looks somewhat like Vermont or New Hampshire with heavily wooded hills and lush greenery. Other areas look like South East Asia with rice paddies, grass huts and open country. We drove up the coast through Rasht to Bander Anzeli (formerly Pahlavi) and then back through Qazvin and Karaj to Tehran in Friday night.

Saturday we had some more calls to make on various banks and the embassy in the afternoon. By noon however we had given up making any more calls because there were so many demonstrations that we couldn't get around town. We went back to the office and found out that the embassy had been taken over. Needless to say we cancelled our appointments for the rest of the day. That night we went over to the house of my secretary for dinner. Her husband works for the oil company. They are both Armenian. So there we were drinking gin and tonics, eating caviar and a real Persian meal while the biggest crisis of the year is building up around us. Never pays to lose your sense of perspective.

Sunday we had few more calls and spent some time shopping for carpets. I found some beautiful antique metalwork bowls, 150-200 years old which was fairly inexpensive with the black-market exchange rate. We had dinner at the hotel with the Chase man rep who had just arrived that day and was already planning to leave.

Monday and Tuesday were quiet days, largely spent keeping a low profile-although getting to the office Monday we ran into a funeral (really a memorial) procession for one of the students killed last year at the same time. It was a little tense sitting int eh car, the only foreigner while a crowd gathers around and a funeral procession goes by three feet away (the escort consisted of 20-30 revolutionary guardsmen with rifles).

Tuesday we were at the office when I got a phone call from the Iran-American Chamber of Commerce saying that the students at the embassy were searching American offices for Americans and that I should leave. Which I promptly did and beat feet for the airport, even though the plane wasn't due to leave for two hours. We had no trouble checking in at the airport but our trouble started at the passport control. They kept looking at our passports and asking our names. We sat in the waiting hall and every time we got up to get a coke or something someone would come up to ask to see our passport. I went over to the caviar desk, pulled out my little insulated six-pack holder and asked for three kilos of caviar which I then proceeded to pack into my holder. Jerry had by this time gotten in line for the security check, the plane having been called while I was busy spending the last of my black-market rials. While we were standing in line a young man in sneakers, beard, jeans and fatigue jacket began to walk down the line looking at everyone. When he got to Jerry who was about five people ahead of me he asked to see his passport, flipped through it and then proceeded to walk down the line again toward me with Jerry's passport in his hand. When he got to me he said, "Passport." I gave him my passport, he flipped through it and began to walk down the line again. About three people behind me was another European looking man who went through the same routine. But I could see he had a British passport. When he finished looking at the passport-he handed it back. At that point I figured Jerry and I were finished! He took our two passports went over to one of the men who was examining handbags and briefcases and began talking, while looking and gesturing to us. After about five minutes he walked back to Jerry-and gave him back his passport. And then he gave me mine.

While we were having our bags checked the man who was apparently some sort of superior went through my things. I had a briefcase with Iranian leftist publications (for background materials) plus my normal business papers, my beer holder with 3 kilos of caviar, a flight bag (Aer Lingus!) with 2 kilos of pistachios and a coper pot, and a 10-kilo bag of rice. I don't think he believed the whole thing. I told him I loved Persian food and that my wife had asked me to bring all these things back. (Oh I forgot I also had a bottle of pomegranate syrup.) Anyway somehow we made it through security. Jerry and I were then standing in the boarding areas for buses to take us to the plane when an Iran Air steward plus two "gentlemen from the ministry" as he called them came up to us (the usual uniform, fatigue jacket, beard, jeans, tennis shows0 to question us once again. He asked if we had any letters or money we were taking out. I said I had no real money and pulled out my wallet-in it were 2 one-dollar bills, 3 one-pound notes, 4 Bahraini dinars and 200 Iranian rials (total about $20). They rolled their eyes up and proceeded to Jerry. I think we convinced them that we were only two dumb American businessmen and not CIA agents guilty of "spreading corruption on earth" and "warring against god and his emissaries." Needless to say we were both relieved to get off the ground. Better yet when we were over the Gulf and 15 minutes from Bahrain.

It felt so good to get back to sleepy old Bahrain. It is still pretty sleepy although many people are nervous. In situations like this people resort to rumors and panic easily. There is no reason to get nervous that I can see. Certainly nothing will happen internally. Iran has created a good deal of turbulence and small countries like Bahrain are bound to get rocked. But we feel no concern for our own safety and see no reason for the State Department to issue the blanket evacuation order for 11 countries in the region. Each country is so different and to fail to differentiate among them is causing a lot of ill will here. Articles like the December I 0th issue of Time with its comments on Bahrain (Every single one of which was false!!-not simply distorted) do not help local sentiment. The expatriate community here is really up in arms (figuratively speaking only) about that.

Needless to say we are all very much looking forward to Christmas. The weather is beautiful and it is so relaxing here at the moment. We will be here through New Year's-I am trying to get reservations for the steamer cruise up the Nile from Cairo to Luxor for the first ten days of January but may not be able to get anything until late January or early February. But that is where we plan to go. I have always wanted to see Cairo and the Upper Nile with some of the sights along the way.

Will resume again after Christmas. Merry Christmas to all-

Love

Peter, Carol. Janet, John