Photo captions: 1. I just wish Koolaid could adjust to his new lifestyle...so sad.
2 & 3. Some shots in the Emirates Palace Hotel -down the hallway to the rooms, and a poster advertising the Louvre exhibit
4. Something childish in me snickers at "Ghantoot" every time I see it...heh heh, ghantoot.
5, 6, 7, 8. Views out front of the Emirates Palace. #7 is blurry because of the temp/ humidity differential between indoors and out. This happens to my camera lens and sunglasses on a daily basis.
9. A view down the schwanky stairs.
10, 11, & 12. Me and the Jumbled Mess ~aka~ the Guggenheim model
13. Interior Em. Palace
14. The exquisite dome!
15. My exquisite living room! Courtesy of IKEA
16. The mosque just across the way, supplier of decible-generous calls to prayer
17. Examples of ads on the main drag. Don't know what they're selling... but I want it!!


29 August 2009
So the first day of school is inching ever closer. I keep trying to envision myself working with the class, having all of those necessary start-of-the-year conversations. But I really don’t know what to expect! How difficult will the ESL factor be? How long will it take me to get the schedule straight? How ~in the world~ are all those 5th graders going to fit in a room half the size of what I’m used to?? Also, I was blessed/cursed with 14(!) large boxes of stuff, mostly art supplies, left behind by the woman I’m essentially replacing. I’ve been working to dole out the goodies to those around the school who can use them (think hoarder/ packrat level of stuff-collecting), but it’s a bit mind-boggling to me to consider why someone would think that they needed 1500 drinking straws and 30 pints of paint…actually, come to think of it, those two items could make for a really fun and extremely messy art project….yeah, probably a terrible idea…

30 August 2009
I went to the Emirates Palace Hotel twice on Saturday. The first trip was with two fellow teachers and one of their friends who Actually Has a Car. We wandered around the immense puh-lace, gawking at the soaring domes and terraced fountains. The exhibit on Saadiyat Island explained the plans for developing this manmade island attached to the island of Abu Dhabi city. Saadiyat will be a cultural center with a maritime museum and branches of the Louvre and the Guggenheim museums. The developers paid 3.5 billion dollars for these prestigious names and Frank Gehry himself designed the Guggenheim building. My friend/coworker, Loretta, was not impressed by the model of the ‘Gug’. She kept calling it a “jumbled mess”. I’m willing to bet that the actual building will pack a bit more of a visual punch! The aesthetics of the new Louvre seem to be better appreciated from the inside than without. From the air, it looks like a low, flat mushroom of sorts. But the projected interior experience…it looks simply heavenly! Geometrically pierced layers form a dome that allows natural sunlight to stream in and light the place. They’ll use an open floor plan, allow the gulf waters to lap right up under the dome, and whitewash everything for a light and airy effect. It looks quite captivating! I think the projected finish date is 2012.

I returned to the Emirates Palace later that same day with my roommate, Alison. (more on her later (only good stuff, of course!)) We checked out the exhibit featuring ancient religious artifacts of Islam. What a beautiful display of textiles, metal works, fine calligraphy, gold leaf, tooled wood, etc.! All the curlicues, velvet, tassels, and sumptuous colors make for a very satisfying cultural experience. The reverence these objects have had bestowed upon them is palpable. We also checked out the super schwanky bar in the the E-Palace and treated ourselves to 50 dirham apiece drinks. (1 dollar = 3.68 dirhams, so 50 dirhams = over $13) We savored our pricey beverages and headed out.

My roommate finally showed up last Wednesday and I think I’ve had a bit of luck! She and I seem to get along very well and have a few important things in common. We are the same age, both vegetarians and animal lovers, have an eye (or two) for fashion and enjoy good coffee and loud(ish) music. She just introduced me to two new-to-me fruits from southeast Asia: dragonfruit and rambutan, both tasty and oddly beautiful. She puts up with my cats with good humor and is planning to bring her Chihuahua, Charles, here in November. We’re going to make extra cash by opening a petting zoo.

Speaking of extra cash, it seems that teachers can be hired to tutor the children of the royal family at the palace. I might have to do this just for the bragging rights! I mean, how often in life can you say that you moonlight at a palace?

School starts tomorrow so I think I’ll post what I have here. Past experience has taught me that the beginning of school tends to obliterate my previous train of thought. I may remember that I was in the process of writing a blog in a couple of weeks, but I have pictures that I want to share now.

Photo captions
1. Self-portrait on the beach 22 August
2. The Etihad towers, going up just as quick as they can build 'em
3. Marina Mall's viewing tower, 100 meters high and reminding me of Seattle
4. Clean, tranquil, salty, and hot (not necessarily in that order): Abu Dhabi public beach
5. Taken from a moving cab, it reads, "Butt Sweet House" ...erm, what?
6. La La! No, I didn't try them.
7 & 8. The etisalat building (phone & internet). I live in the golf ball on top.
9. If you like to shop for clothes and be insulted at the same time, then "Fat Face" is for you!
10 & 11. Lovely ceiling and fountain in mall whose name escapes me...
12. The Grand Mosque. I live here.
13 & 14. Back- and frontside (respectively) of apartment building where I really do live.

20 August ‘09

The flight here was fairly uneventful, just how I like it. In the Amsterdam airport my new coworker, Jessica (1st grade teacher) found me. We originally met at the job fair in Bethesda and proceeded to spend the 4 hour layover together.

Once in Abu Dhabi, some concern was raised over the fact that I do not have my work visa yet (due to the late hire), but many other teachers are in the same situation and security let us through by issuing visitor’s visas. This will require a trip across the border to Oman, later, for a different passport stamp. I’m keen on getting all the stamps I can, so that’s cool with me! Seventeen new teachers arrived together that night and we began to share our stories as we walked to the AISA (American International School in Abu Dhabi) buses. The new staff seems to be comprised mostly of Americans, Canadians, English, Irish, Australians, and New Zealanders. Some people have extensive overseas teaching experience and some are first-timers, like me.

As I walked outside, I was struck by the thickness of the atmosphere. Even though it was past 7pm and dark, I had the sensation of walking through soup. Not gazpacho, either. A warm, thick soup. It feels very much like a sauna here and that night it was also a bit foggy. I also noticed immediately the coating of dust on most of the cars parked at the airport. My assumption that those cars must have been parked for a while to build up such a thorough coating was dispelled just as soon as we reached the city proper. Three quarters of the cars look as though they overdid it in the powder room. On the subject of cars, the unexpected growth of the city (planned for about 600,000 and now at about 900,00) is evident in the intense parking situation. Drivers here simply park down the center of streets and jockeying for a pathway and squeezing through incredibly narrow passages is the norm. The chaos of the roads reminds me of Italy. I don’t think I’ll be driving here!

My new apartment is quite spacious with 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms (3 bidets is 3 bidets too many!), a commodious living/ dining room, and very high ceilings. It’s in ok shape but has a funky smell –think Florida cabinet smell- and then there are all those bidets! But since my roommate doesn’t arrive for another week, I went ahead and helped myself to the room with the attached bath and small balcony. The apartment is growing on me, especially now that my cats are here. Feels ~sorta~ like home. I live across the street from a mosque and the daily calls to prayer are both a thing of beauty and a bit of a shock to the system. Some of the singers have entrancing voices. The sound of it is like a gift being broadcast out to all within earshot. I am not usually awakened by the 4:20am call to prayer, as I am known for my rock-like sleeping habits. However, when I was napping yesterday (still working out the jet-lag), I incorporated the high-decible singing into the dream I was having, to a startling end.

The prolonged lack of communication with friends and family from home is wearing on me. I put in my request for wi-fi 2 days ago, was promised 5 to 7 days connection time. But the advent of Ramadan is purported to delay things. The school has internet available most days, but we have so much to learn about working there that the window of time from when we get dropped off to when we depart is mostly booked.

22 August ‘09

I finally made it to the beach today! 2 other teachers and I ignored the warnings about it possibly being closed for the first day of Ramadan and the threat of it being overrun with ogling workers. In fact, the beach was quiet, clean and wonderful! The gulf waters were no more than 5 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the air, quite salty, and captivatingly calm –only slightly more frenetic than a large lake. They are a very clear blue-green color and the saltiness makes it easy to float. As far as I could tell, there was not a great deal of marine life. I saw dead jellyfish and (live) small, minnow-like fish, but there is a distinct lack of smell to the waters’ edge that makes me think that the high temp of the water, the seclusion of the gulf, or the various sea-bottom reclamation projects restrict the growth of life (at the beach I visited, anyway).

23 August ‘09

I’m writing this at 4am local time, testament to the difficulty I’m having with the time change. New Mexico is 10 hours behind. Out of the 17 new teachers, I came from the farthest western point. I don’t go around feeling exhausted, but when I have a bit of downtime, I tend to drop off for the better part of the afternoon/ evening. At least I won’t be awakened by the early morning call to prayer today! Another time-keeping difference to which I need to adjust is that the work week runs from Sunday to Thursday. I spent all day today thinking it was Monday simply because we returned to work.

The washing machine is also the drying machine. A space-saving convenience, I’m sure, if only I could figure out how to use it…

Ramadan started yesterday. Although it is a time of fasting for many here, it is also a joyful time; you can sense it in the air. Non-Muslims are also expected to refrain from eating, drinking, chewing gum, and smoking in public from sunup to sundown. The staff lounge is a safe zone, but I imagine the first week of school will be difficult without my trusty water bottle on hand. School hours are shortened by an hour in the morning and the afternoon, which is a nice way to start the year regardless, I think. The city really comes alive at night during Ramadan, as many eateries offer special fast-breaking buffets after dark and businesses stay open extra late. The internet and phone company, etisalat, stays open until 3am! I will be attending one of these feasts the day after tomorrow.

25 August ’09

My kitties seem to be fine with being indoors only. They definitely will not be going outside unless on leashes or something (hahaha…funny mental picture!) because this is a real, live city here, folks. With real, live, sad, homeless cats all over. I’ve been feeding the homeless ones after I saw them dumpster diving across the way. I have ideas about catching-cleaning up
-neutering-and releasing these poor creatures, but we’ll see if the dream comes to fruition. I may put birdseed out on the sill, too, to provide entertainment for my little inmates –for WATCHING purposes only, of course.

Start her up!

I'm learning so much so fast that I think I can actually feel my brain wrinkling!