When Maryann’s husband was awarded the diplomatic promotion of a lifetime, friends and colleagues rushed to celebrate their good fortune.
A successful businesswoman in her own right, Maryann was now wife to the Ambassador of Guyana to Kuwait; a role that would have them working with business leaders, royalty, and heads of state.
But while those around Maryann were smiling, some harbored unspoken concerns. As a successful, independent career woman and USA citizen, what kind of life would she lead in the middle east, often portrayed as prejudiced against women, crawling with terrorists, and decades behind the rest of the world?
On the day Maryann and her husband flew to their new home—wedged precariously between Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the Persian Gulf—she knew their lives would never be the same. She was right.
With great affection and humor, Maryann shares the intrigues and adventures of diplomatic life, from befriending dozens of street cats to joining the glitterati on the red carpet, and going viral on social media for all the right reasons. At its heart, Friendship Is the Gift is a story about falling in love with a foreign culture and finding home in unexpected places.
