Mum's The Word

There are many groups and clubs here. All the major sports and activities are covered by one or more expat society. A major one, of course, is the Mums. With hubby earning the bucks by deciding which hotel should be built next, she has the tough task of sitting in her villa (or by her private pool) with her children. Often, she only has ONE maid to help her.
She needs an outlet, so they form groups. They arrange places and times where they can meet and ignore their kids for a few hours and discuss how hard their life is.
Now last week, we decided to take our daughter to one these mornings. We knew the reputation for it being a close knit affair, but we thought our daughter might enjoy the time playing with other kids.
Upon entry I decided to deal with this myth straight away and I went to the main table where a small gaggle was seated and I cheerily said, "Hello"
The response was remarkable. Three of the coven turned their heads, mouths wide open and stared. One barely managed to cough out "Hello," in response, after about ten seconds of silence. There were no smiles, no "come and join us", no "haven't seen you before," Nothing. Zilch. All I could feel was the sense that I was deep in enemy territory and I should retreat.
I said no more and left them to natter about the terrible state of the A/C in their four-wheel drive tank that sat outside. We stayed for an hour or so and my "hello" was the first and last communication we had with this "friendly society for parents to meet each other"
Ahh, the expat life. There are definitely two sides to the coin.