Also, in the states you know within relative certainty, the timeline in which it takes something to get done. Here? It's not quite that easy. Here you need to be flexible...and patient. I might actually choose patient over flexible, however the two might go hand in hand. Living here has helped me slow life down a bit...to be more patient....and flexible, which for a strong Type A personality has been quite the challenge indeed. For example, in the states, your school calendar is fixed and you know almost a full year in advance what those holiday days off will be. Here? part of the school calendar is controlled by the moon. Yes...the moon. Eid al Adha I'm not saying whether the difference is good or bad - it's just different...and requires flexibilty...and patience. So, we didn't know we'd get a full 9 days off of school until last Wednesday...which meant making travel plans (or any plans for that matter) more difficult. I understand now why the favorite saying in the UAE is "insha allah" - meaning God Willing. If it's meant to be...it will be - insha allah. It's slowly becoming my mantra as well. Despite the patience and flexibility on-the-job training I'm receiving (insert sarcasm here), I am thrilled to have 9 days off from school. The first couple days of which I spent hanging with the ladies in Al Ain - my first trip into the desert. It was beautiful there and should I stay in the UAE long enough to have a family, I would probably move to Al Ain. It's smaller, quieter, greener, and close to the mountains.
Sand dunes!!
I can't wait to get on a camel and explore those dunes someday!
A billboard of Sheikh Khalifa - current ruler of the UAE.
See those mountains in the background? :)
While in Al Ain we watched a rugby match and the team from Al Ain slaughtered their opponent - final score at half was 75 to 7...so they finished the game at half time. It was pretty amazing. The rugby matches here are little parties...this one had a band and a flamethrower as sideline entertainment.
After rugby we went out for a night on the town. A couple of my friends here taught in Al Ain last year, so we ran into former students and parents. It was really wonderful to see the sense of community in this smaller town.
Later on when we returned to our hotel and were about to go to sleep, our A/C went out. We'd had problems with it all night, had the repairmen into fix it, were told it was fixed, only to lay in bed, almost asleep and here a "pop---shhhhhhh" and have the room quickly fill with a burnt stench and smokey smell. They offered us another room and when we came back to the room the next morning to collect our belongings, this is what we found.
Smoke stains above the a/c vent.
and they had started knocking out the wall in the bathroom and ceiling to get to the a/c
yea - that would be the bathtub in the bathroom...with the floor covered in cement chunks and bits of drywall
Soooo....we took our a/c troubles to the pool :)
After our overnight -we headed back into Abu Dhabi. On the way back we actually saw a live camel. It was my first camel sighting and it was pretty thrilling!
Even tho he's in the back of a truck - it was still super fun to see him! Next time, I'm going to find one to ride...it's a must and on my bucket list!
Prior to our trip to Al Ain - the secondary (high school) students at our school put on a Marhaba festival for the new teachers. Marhaba means "welcome". It was pretty amazing. It was primarily the 9th grade students who organized the whole thing and it was truly wonderful. They put together powerpoints and videos about the history of the UAE, as well as treated us to henna artists, amazing food, had traditional clothing called "jalabiyas" for us to try on. One girl even brought in her pet falcon (yes, her pet) and we were allowed to hold and pet him. It was amazing and so much fun!
the henna artist starting...
My first henna - it actually got MUCH darker than this. It turns dark brown when it's fully dried.
Amazing that someone has a falcon as a pet. :)
jalabiyas on display
"oud" - perfume...so strong, but so pretty
trying on jalabiyas
Me in my first "jalabiya". I will definitely be buying more. While not the most slimming of attire, they are super comfortable and the kiddos sure got a kick out of seeing me wearing one :) They were able to dress in their traditional attire, kandooras for the boys and jalabiyas for the girls. I wish I could post a picture of how absolutely adorable they looked!!
Some of the Eid treats brought in by the parents.
So - after school finished for the day and I now had 9 days off, I decided to hit the beach at sunset. I've wanted to do this for quite some time and it seemed a fitting and peaceful way to end a very hectic week and to start a wonderful Eid break. Here are some of the pictures from my sunset beach walk.
Once again...my life is so blessed. Being away from everything I've ever known has caused me to be come extremely self-reflective. I've always been a self-reflective person - constantly questioning myself and challenging myself to do better, to be better...and feeling sick to my stomach guilty when I fall short. My time here is like that, but on steroids. There is nothing like living in the unknown for some quiet self-reflection and change of perspective. Perhaps, I'll share more of those changes in perspective with you later. But for now....Happy Eid Al Ahda! I'm going to read a couple of chapters in my new book - "I am Malala" about the 16 year old girl who was shot by the Taliban. What an amazing story! Take care and thanks for reading. More updates to come!
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