Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
Middle East and North Africa	Second Day	Kefta Meatballs with Tomato & Egg is on the menu for tonight. I dont go directly by this recipe, I add and subtract from amounts, cause it is hard to go wrong with these meatballs. You may not like as much garlic or onion, just suit it to your taste. Ingredients: *1 lb ground lamb or beef * 2 garlic cloves minced * 1 small onion minced * 1/2 teaspoon allspice * 1 tsp of cinnamon * 1 teaspoon paprika * chopped fresh parsley (or chopped fresh coriander) * 1 egg * Salt & freshly ground black pepper * Olive oil for frying * Tomato sauce (see recipe below) (The recipe does not call for it, but I put breadcrumbs in this recipe. My MIL puts rice in her meatballs.) Method: 1. In a mixing bowl, mix the meat, garlic, onion, spices, egg, Salt and pepper and the parsley until it is all thoroughly mixed, knead to a smooth mixture. Then wet your hands and roll into 24 walnut sized balls and set aside on a tray. 2. Heat the oil in a fry pan and cook the meatballs until golden brown, then place the meatballs in your tagine. (optional, I just use the same pan, since I dont have a tangine) 3. Pour the tomato sauce over the meatballs, simmer on the stove top for about 15-20 minutes, and stir so that it does not stick. 4. Break the eggs on to the sauce and cook until the eggs are just set. 5. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley (or coriander) and serve immediately. Tomato Sauce Ingredients: * 400g canned tomatoes * 1 onion finely chopped * 2 garlic cloves minced * 1 dessertspoon tomato paste * 1 dessertspoon honey * Salt & freshly ground black pepper * Olive oil Method: 1. Heat a little oil in a saucepan; add the onions and garlic then cook for about 5 minutes. 2. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste & honey then cook for about 10 minutes and season well I hope you enjoy Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-14 11:12:00
Middle East and North Africa	Friday!	I made it through the first day of Ramadan with no problem. I did get a slight headache just before Maghrib. It is raining hard here in Mississippi. We are getting the remnants of Humberto. We needed the rain badly because everything is so dry. Maureen, Happy birthday to your family!!! I hope everyone has a good weekend! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-14 06:44:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy 1st Anniversary to my husband!!!	I cant believe it has been one year already. What a wonderful 1st year we have had. I love my husband so much and I thank Allah everyday for sending me such a wonderful, loving husband. I have never felt so loved and wanted in all my life. Happy Anniversary, Honey!!!! Thank you for being the wonderful husband that you are!!!! Meriem Edited by Meriem_setif, 12 September 2007 - 06:28 AM.	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-12 06:25:00
Middle East and North Africa	did you change your name?- for the mena girls	I took my husband's last name. It sounds like a French name. Most people when they hear it ask" What part of Louisiana are you from?" Meriem Edited by Meriem_setif, 10 September 2007 - 07:47 PM.	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-10 19:47:00
Middle East and North Africa	Mena Divorce	I am really sorry that you and your husband are having trouble. I am with Noura, only you know what is best for you and your family. Good luck. I hope everything turns out for the best. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-14 06:37:00
Middle East and North Africa	unusual places you've broken the fast	Hachemi is a youth soccer referee. He does 2 games on Tuesday and Thursday nights. The first one starts at 6pm and the second one at 7pm. I take a cooler with water and gatoraide, some dates and fruit. Between games he runs to the sideline where I am and breaks fast. They are usually waiting on him to start the game. Then he runs to the middle of the field and blows the whistle. Then between quarters he will run over to eat some fruit and drink the gatoraide. I know everyone is wondering what the heck he is doing. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-22 07:32:00
Middle East and North Africa	The visa is on its way!	: I am very Happy for you!!! Congratulations!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-24 06:22:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday	Happy Birthday Doodlebug and Dawn!!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-25 06:21:00
Middle East and North Africa	I'M GOING TO EGYPT !!	Awesome!!! Have a great time!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-28 21:36:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday	Happy Birthday, Peezey!!!	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-28 21:18:00
Middle East and North Africa	Mabrook to JP/Amira Ordonia	Congratulations, JP!!! I hope you have a wonderful wedding day!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-30 10:05:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday, Olivia!!	Happy Birthday to youuuuuu!!!	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-09-28 21:16:00
Middle East and North Africa	The Embassy	Awesome!!!! I hope he has his visa soon. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-10-02 20:51:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday Sarah!!!!	Happy Birthday, Sarah!!!! I hope you have a great day! Meriem (F)	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-10-05 10:22:00
Middle East and North Africa	My journey with a Moroccan is over	I am so sorry this has happened to you. I hope you and your baby will be alright. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-10-24 09:19:00
Middle East and North Africa	Tammy and Ibrahim sitting in a tree	Congratulations on the happy reunion!!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-01 19:06:00
Middle East and North Africa	Link to my pics from my recent trip to Egypt	Great pics!!! Thanks for sharing. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-07 11:40:00
Middle East and North Africa	camel day!	QUOTE (Cheryl & Medo @ Nov 7 2007, 10:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (jessNgeorges @ Nov 7 2007, 09:14 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Cheryl & Medo @ Nov 7 2007, 11:07 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Grrrrrrrrrrr! I think I woke up cranky. I was looking on the web site for the baggage weight limet and it says 20 kg max dose any one know what the weight of 20 kg in pounds is? I think my suit cases will be over. Then I look up the extra charge for that 0-5kg=E5per kg Im so confused!!! Has any of you ever flown with Alitalia? And then I found out there is no smoking lounge in Milan/Malpensa airport. So no cigarette for 19 hours. AGHHHHHH! Hope you all have a good hump day! hey, 20kg is 44lbs...they will USUALLY allow up to 50lbs per bag...i flew them to Toronto from Lebanon in Dec last year, i can say i REALLY didnt enjoy them at all..but thats my opinion lots of other people have liked there service. anyway i paid 25 dollars extra for my overweight bag and they can only be up to 70lbs or they wont even carry it....since then im pretty sure the sky team has up'd their overweight charge to 50 dollars a bag. hope that helps a little. you are allowed 2 suitcases at 44lbs so if u only have one heavy split it up into two bags. eta i see u say your suit cases so i guess u have 2 bags already, if possible i suggest u fill one bag as much as possible but try not to go over the 65-70lbs so u only have to pay for one extra weight bag.......sometimes they are nice and dont charge, other times they charge for 1kg over......try to get them weighed before u head to the airport, the easiest way is to get a strong guy to step on the scale and then step on the scale again with the bag and take the difference.............. Thanks so much. But I have 2 bags and there stuuffed. Im sure i will be paying a over weight charge for the both of them. Grrrrrr When I got to the counter, both my bags were over the limit and they were going to charge me a fee for each one. I took some stuff out of one of the bags and put it in the other and had only one bag overweight then. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-07 11:54:00
Middle East and North Africa	For all Egyptian's or married/fiance to an Egyptian	Congratulations on the birth of your daughter!!! What did you name her? Take care, Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-09 22:30:00
Middle East and North Africa	MAXIMUM MOJO to POLAR BEAR	Wish you guys the best of luck!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-09 19:01:00
Middle East and North Africa	NEW BABY	Congratulations!!! I cant wait to see her pictures. I hope you have a speedy recovery! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-10-31 17:18:00
Middle East and North Africa	WE'RE APPROVED!!!!	Congratulations!!!! Meriem Edited by Meriem_setif, 09 November 2007 - 06:58 PM.	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-09 18:57:00
Middle East and North Africa	MENA Men Living at home and the finances	Hachemi did live at home with his parents and 2 younger sisters. His 2 older brothers that are Doctors lived away from home. His father provided the main support although Hachemi had his own shop and helped out as much as he can. The only money I sent to him was 100 dollars to pay for the visa. Hachemi had to make 8 trips to Algiers in the 8 weeks prior to getting his visa, first to get the pkt 3 he never received, 3 trips to complete the medical and the other trips for other visa related things. It was a 4 hour trip each way and he had to stay overnight in a hotel each time, so it strapped him for money. He bought his own ticket here and I sent him 400 dollars to have for the trip just in case of emergency. When he got here to the USA he handed me 400 dollars minus the money he spent at McDonalds in the airport at JFK. He has never asked to send money home. One day earlier in the year Hachemi was talking to his dad on the phone. His father asked him was he happy and was he ok. Hachemi said, I am fine, just need to get my GC so I can work. His father said, "Do you want me to send you some money?" I thought that was sweet to offer, but we didnt need his money. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-11 20:21:00
Middle East and North Africa	Poll - how did you meet your fiance/husband	I met my husband in a language exchange website. I wanted to learn French and he wanted to improve his English. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-14 08:37:00
Middle East and North Africa	it's a happy day for sunnykleo - visa in hand :)	Thats great news!!! Congratulations. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-16 09:48:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday water-is-wide!	Happy, Happy Birthday!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-21 11:04:00
Middle East and North Africa	Making makrout in Algeria	There was some "making out" going on in Algeria, but it wasnt in the kitchen and definetly did'nt involve my MIL! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-24 11:18:00
Middle East and North Africa	Making makrout in Algeria	Click here to see a video of me and my mom-in-law making makrout for Eid. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-15 13:46:00
Middle East and North Africa	VISA IN HAND!!!!!!!	Awesome news!!! Congratulations!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-20 22:41:00
Middle East and North Africa	Thanksgiving Recipes	This is a recipe for my favorite appetizers. They are easy to make and very yummy. Make plenty cause they will go quickly. RASPBERRY-BRIE TARTLETS MAKES 5 DOZEN PREP: 1 HR., BAKE: 17 MIN. 20 white bread slices Melted butter 1 (8-ounce) wedge Brie, cut up 1 (13-ounce) jar raspberry jam REMOVE crusts from bread with a serrated knife. Roll and flatten each bread slice with a rolling pin. Cut 3 circles out of each bread slice with a 1 ¾-inch fluted or round cookie cutter. BRUSH mini muffin pans with melted butter. Press bread circles on bottom and up sides of muffin cups; brush bread cups with melted butter. BAKE at 350° for 7 minutes or until lightly toasted. REMOVE bread cups from muffin pans, and place on ungreased baking sheets. Fill cups evenly with cheese pieces; top each with ¼ teaspoon jam. BAKE at 300° for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. NOTE: To make ahead, freeze toasted bread shells up to 1 month in advance. Thaw at room temperature about 30 minutes. Assemble tartlets, and bake as directed. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-11-20 16:14:00
Middle East and North Africa	algerian american citizen married to algerian citizen	If I counted correctly, Wahrania, you said "Algeria or Algerian" 32 times in this thread alone! It's giving me a headache. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-08 12:10:00
Middle East and North Africa	Visa in hand.........Finally!!	Congratulations!!!! I am so happy for you. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-03 19:16:00
Middle East and North Africa	Happy Birthday Sara!	Happy birthday to youuuuu!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-08 12:32:00
Middle East and North Africa	our yisa	sorry for all the confussion i applied in dec/05 for K1 it was sitting in cairo embassy from feb 2006 thru till i withdrew it dec 2006 . nothing was getting done just sitting on someones desk collecting dust. so we got married and i applied for the spousal visa and it was approved june 5 2007.20 days it took to the date at the california center . vermont had it for 10 months without processing it so it was transferred to the calif. center no time and we were approved.now we are waiting for the packets from the nvc . then to cairo again. hopefully he will be here by the end of the summer. sorry to all i hope i cleared it all up for you, micky MABROUK micky... I know you have ben waiting a LONGGGGGGGGGG time... hopefully your processing will speed up thank you mabrouk. as os june 21 my case is finally at the national visa center.i am so excited i can see the light in that long tunnel now lol.and i got a letter from the president telling me he has contacted the homeland security to find out why it was taking so long. last week i got a letter from the vice president. so if you are having troubles email everyone or write letters to everyone you can .. it helps You know occasionally the President will answer his own mail and messages. I have a friend that is married to an Algerian. She was raised by her grandmother because her mom died in an car accident. One summer my friend, her husband and son went to Algeria and stayed about a month and they were having so much fun that they never checked in with the grandmother. The grandmother became worried and called the White house and left a message saying her granddaughter and family went to Algeria and she has not heard from them and she was worried. One day Mrs Peggy got a call and it was President Bush himself. He told her he understood how our children make us worry about them and that he would contact the Embassy in Algiers and let her know something soon. A day later, she received another phone call telling her that they had located them and they were all well and enjoying their vacation. Needless to say they never neglected to call her again. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-06-22 12:58:00
Middle East and North Africa	morocco and degree transfer to US credits	I also wanted to add, that if you are doing this for education purposes. You can not get any financial aid or student loans until the university receives the transcripts from WES. (world education services) or whatever service you are using. Hachemi has received a full pell grant, but it will not be awarded until they receive the transcripts and he is officially accepted by the college. They are allowing him to attend college on a conditional bases until they receive the transcripts. So if you plan to take college courses get this done early. We kind of waited until the last minute, but it still worked out. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-11 14:15:00
Middle East and North Africa	Its tuesday - my first thread	QUOTE (sara535 @ Dec 11 2007, 03:16 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Happy tuesday everyone... we are all sick here with a nasty cold and I can tell you, I have ONE CRABBY BABY. I cant put her down and she is so unhappy. poor girl. and in the meantime all the rest of us feel like ####### too so its not much fun here. I just wish we had some snow so I could look outside and see a winter wonderland! Awww Sara, sorry you guys are all sick. I hope everyone is feeling better soon! I cant imagine it snowing here anytime soon. I have had the air conditioning on the past 2 days. It is hard to believe 2 weeks before Christmas and it is unusually hot here in North Mississippi. Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-11 14:21:00
Middle East and North Africa	Its tuesday - my first thread	QUOTE (julianna @ Dec 11 2007, 12:40 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Meriem_setif @ Dec 11 2007, 10:09 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Who are you using to do this? We are using WES (world educations services) I sent Hachemi's family the signed release to have his transcript sent from the University directly to WES. (required by WES) Does WES get them translated or does WES send the transcripts to us to get translated? I am confused at this point. Anybody that has used them, can you please let me know how it works? I sent a copy and translation of his University diploma to WES also. Hachemi is enrolled in our local community college and will start this January. He has 3 online classes and one that he will have to attend at the college. Meriem I've not looked into WES... The place we're using wants certified translations of any transcripts and diplomas NOT in English (can you get Hachemi's transcripts, etc in English?). He can get his MA in English but Syria does not do anything other than Arabic, so we have translated them (last night, PITA!) and are going to get the translation certified. Then we'll send off for the degree and hopefully we'll have about a 5-6 day turn around. We have to send all teh originals (which is scary) and he is being certified for American employment. If you're doing this for school, it's different. The biggest problem we have right now is that Ammar is also applying for PhD entrance, and that required 2 copies of official transcripts sent from teh university itself.. he said he may be able to get the Jordanian university to do this but Syria-- no way, they don't issue this stuff. So we're off today to figure out if they will accept his official transcripts that he got upon graduation. GAH. QUOTE (Meriem_setif @ Dec 11 2007, 10:09 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (julianna @ Dec 11 2007, 10:57 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yay! I'm so glad for your puppy! Foreign degree authentication sucks if anyone ever has to go through this. We're working on certified translations of his Syrian transcripts and Diploma right now, and overall I think the whole thing is going to cost like $400. Sucks, too, that it's only good for 3 years! Who are you using to do this? Meriem Oh and this is who we're using: http://www.iescaree.com/ For employment it has to be NACES accredited, so I just looked and decided on these people You know, I am not sure if the University will translate them. I hope they do. If they have to be sent straight from the University to WES, I dont know how to get them translated if we dont have them. To evaluate his University education and diploma cost 160 dollars. They will send one report to the college you will attend and one report to you. Here is the link toWorld Education Services. Meriem.	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-11 13:49:00
Middle East and North Africa	Its tuesday - my first thread	QUOTE (julianna @ Dec 11 2007, 10:57 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Yay! I'm so glad for your puppy! Foreign degree authentication sucks if anyone ever has to go through this. We're working on certified translations of his Syrian transcripts and Diploma right now, and overall I think the whole thing is going to cost like $400. Sucks, too, that it's only good for 3 years! Who are you using to do this? We are using WES (world educations services) I sent Hachemi's family the signed release to have his transcript sent from the University directly to WES. (required by WES) Does WES get them translated or does WES send the transcripts to us to get translated? I am confused at this point. Anybody that has used them, can you please let me know how it works? I sent a copy and translation of his University diploma to WES also. Hachemi is enrolled in our local community college and will start this January. He has 3 online classes and one that he will have to attend at the college. I cant believe how warm it is here in north Mississippi. Everybody is talking about freezing ice and I had to turn my air conditioner on for the last 2 days. Very bizarre weather! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-11 11:09:00
Middle East and North Africa	someone tried to abduct my 10 year old daughter today	I am glad she is safe and sound!!! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-08 12:35:00
Middle East and North Africa	im sending my Fiancé my forms	I was in the same situation as you. I did not plan to live at the same address when my fiance came to the US. I would suggest you do what I did. Put the current address of your fiance in the USA on the petition and send it. When the time of your interview comes, you should know where you will be living and put the new address on the documents that you will have to bring to the interview and just explain about the new address to the officer. Now about your parents birthday's. I understand that a lot of people in Morocco do not know their actual day of birth, only the year. If only the year is known, then you will be OK. I am sure the consular official is familiar with this problem. Good luck with your visa journey! Meriem	Meriem_DZ	Female	Algeria	2007-12-25 10:49:00