Biggest Loser III Update

Tommorrow heralds the next Sky Super monday weigh-in for the T family biggest loser. P is catching Mrs T fast on the percentage body weight lost as Mrs T has stalled slightly, despite much exercise and eating right. Apparently I am told by many women that losing weight is harder for the female kind than for us menfolk. Even the secretaries at work were spinning this line. I tell them it maybe true, but only because men have greater will power!!!! Still the scales are non-gender specific so we will see tommorrow......

In other news Mrs T spent the weekend helping out at a white elephant sale for charity, netting over 5000EGP. Ahmed the driver apparently brought most of the stuff for his new baby Yassin.

P had his first golf lesson and then promptly played the best game of his life to score a 90 over 18 holes, only 18 over par (not bad, down from 28!)! So he beat the guys at the weekend who are all calling him a bandit! Next lesson on Tuesday, watch out Lee Westwood.

The future European golf superstar

and the other one is Rory McIlroy......

Spent the afternoon at the Marriott in Cairo watching the last day of the Egyptian open. Followed Rory McIlroy for a few holes then sat around the 17th and watched the battle unfold. Whilst getting a drink in the club house Rory was walking around so young J got his hat signed and Mrs T took the best photo she could get on my old camera (proper cameras were not allowed). Mrs Ts opinion - nice wee irish guy.....

Mrs T - Golfing Groupie

Whilst working in Damascus I rang Mrs T to be told she could not speak as she was on the golf course. I presumed she was playing but no, she and here female cohorts were being golfing groupies at the Egyptian Open, following Rory McIlroy and others around on the first day. Apparently they were pretty much the only spectators!

As one of the golfers came off the green he presented Mrs T with his used Titlelist V1x golf ball. Seeing him later on the putting green she got his autograph. Should EGA Swedish Golfer Peter Gustafsson ever get really famous we shall Ebay it! His unique head wear is what makes him stand out from the crowd....take a look! Not sure its my style, more Mrs Ts mums beach wear!

Yellow Curry in Cairo

A few months ago Mrs T dragged me to the Queens Ball at the British Embassy in downtown (if you read the blog you will remember it was the same night at the England Algeria world cup game). I entered the lottery as usual and even told Mrs T that one certain ticket, number 401, was a winner. And indeed it was, we won a 500 EGP voucher for the lounge at the new Thai inspired hotel close to Kattameya, called the Dusit Thani.

Mrs T moves and is known in many circles and now and knows the wife of the manager of the hotel. So when we visited last night we met the assistant manager, the manager and Tina friend all welcoming us to the very impressive hotel. Unfortunately the Thai restaurant which we are desperate to open has not been finished (December inshallah) but the Thai chef has turned up. So we were also introduced to him and he cooked us a delicious Yellow Chicken curry - excellent, and did not burn my mouth off like the last one I had! Surely going to be one of regular haunts.....

Day 3 - Survival Cairo

Situation looking bleak, supplies are dwindling, toilet roll supplies gone on day 1, no milk this morning, last of the nutella used, bread supplies almost gone just crusts left, all towels wet and on the floor and "dad, there are no cereals that I like". Fresh socks are a distant memory.

Not sure how much longer we can hold out.....going to see what we can scavenger to eat in the garden, thank goodness we watched Bear Grylls last night.....not sure how much longer we can hold on like this..

Send for Social Services

With Mrs T away in the UK I spent my first weekend as a home-alone single mother of two.

Weekend consisted of: got up 5am, made wife breakfast, kicked her off to airport 5.30am, rudely awakened 5.40am by wife, who had left phone, 7.30am woken again by wife texting to say she was getting on the plane, so waved white flag and got up. As we had a sleepover here of the bigger boys fed them then when to pick up young one at his sleep over as he had a new friend visiting later. When picking young one up i picked up two others who wanted to come also (felt like the pied piper), then picked up friend as dad has no car, brought all 4 littl' uns back, picked up big one and went down to Maadi. Coached the football (lost 0-6), two little'uns left leaving me with 2 remaining littles ones and one big one. Stopped off for something to eat, got back, big one went off, 2 little'uns played until took friend without a car back. Made dinner, laid table, big'un came back, ate dinner, washed up. Fell asleep. This morning, went to Maadi again, gave all three of the kids the stuff that they left in the car yesterday. Coached my team (5-1 win), got back, made lunches, took little'un up the golf range, prepared dinner, cooked dinner, set table, fed the kids, cleared up, washed up. Made lunches. Now sitting with cuppa in front of the TV.

Tomorrow goes something like this, brekkie, school, work, school, home, school (extracurricular pickup), home, maadi coaching little'un, maadi coaching big'un, home, food, bed.

Bring it on!

1001 Jam tarts

The many different nationalities at the school ran riot in a blaze of colour and culture at the annual International Day today. Over 36 countries had tables where the parents lay on a spread of local goodies for the kids to try and have posters that the kids are suppose to read and learn the facts of the country (yeah right!). Mrs T and friends were representing 'Team UK' and had a jam tart, shortbread and cucumber sandwich-fest. Remarkably the cucumber sandwiches were as popular as anything else!

T and J had already indicated that they were only interested in the food rather than learning some new fasinating nuggets of knowledge. Mid-way through the day both boys declared South Korea to be their favourite stop off for a tasty snack (although J liked Japans pick up a sweet with chopstick challenge as he is competent with them and picked up two in one go). National pride was at stake - so the British girls brought out their super-weapon, killer Millionaires Shortbread and mini Sticky Tofffee puddings. these went down a storm.

Not sure how much they learn new about other cultures, but the kids had a good time, the teachers got a good lunch, the leftovers were spread amoungst the cleaners etc and the parents enjoyed it........ Anyway some pics of the event.

Brunei and Chilean friends

Assorted kids

My personal trainer....

I popped to the gym at the Shell club this week at lunch. I can normally get in a 20-30 min run on the rickety old treadmill and then a couple of quick goes round the gym before a luke-warm shower and back to the office within a hour. I am normally on my own, which frankly I like in a city of 19 million.

This week however I had a partner, people had told me about Captain Nour, an ex-army PT instructor who uses the gym and helps out a few of the egyptians and trains some of the local sports teams. He introduced himself and offered to help and show me some tricks of the trade using the gym equipment and a few new exercises. Soon, in true egyptian style, he had fully taken over and was helping out full time. Normally I would have not agreed but I had the sense, and from what I had been told, that Captain Nour knew what he is doing. And I actually enjoyed it, being pushed a little with good encouragement I got a good work out and mixed it up a little from my normal routine.

The remarkable thing is Captain Nour is 72 and looks as fit as a fiddle. Not many people have a 70+ year old personal trainer!

And the biggest loser is......

after six weeks of intense martial rivalry the exciting final weigh in has taken place....

and the winner is....

well, that depends on how you measure it!!!!

P crushed T 5.0kg to 4.9kg (phew) in the total weight category

T "narrowly" beat P 7.9% to 6% in the percentage body weight lost category.

So we are both winners, ah! ain't that nice. But one thing we are is ultra-competitive so we have gone into extra time, 6 weeks of mortal, low fat, combat - let the wholegrain games begin.

What this space....