Sunday, August 30, 2009

















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.

3 comments:

  1. those upside down guys are awesome! looks like you are having fun ;-)

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  2. beautiful description of the teaching "over there"! This is one of my dreams...and I'm curious, did you ever get to to "moonlight" at the palace?

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  3. I have enjoyed reading the blog so far, but would love to read about your actual teaching experience in Abu Dhabi! I will be teaching there in August of 2012, and want to read more!

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