I'm OK but my Hair is Homesick

It is no secret that I have never been able to do hair.  With the salon being an hour away and the sound of a PING from my bank account telling me I've been paid being only a dream right now, I probably should learn.  Everyday I put it in the same bun (those that know my knows it took a while to master said bun).  

Speaking of bun, by the time I got home from work today only half of the bun still sat on top of my head.  You know why?  Because those 4-year-olds showed me what it means to be four and have a teacher that doesn't speak your language.  My Arabic co-teacher got sick so I had the children by myself for part of the day.  Normally, when I have them alone everything still goes smoothly.  But today, some American kids must have told them the meaning of "turn up."  They were all over the place, running in circles, rolling on the floor, singing Arabic nursery rhymes, singing the alphabet song (this actually made me proud).  After a while I finally calmed them down.  It turns out that teacher look, the look that says "I am about to lose it" is universal.  Once they calmed down we did our centers focused on the number 2.  One group molded the number 2 with play dough, another created a collage out of the number 2, and the third group traced 2s in their journals.  When I asked the question, "What number?" someone actually yelled out "2!"  Others yelled out "1" or "Monday" but this is a long way from a few weeks ago when I would ask, "What number?" and they would all reply, "What number?"  They actually know that I expect a response now.  There are no small victories.  

When I got home from work, my normal desert crew took forever to debate about what we were eating for dinner tonight (we take this family thing seriously out here in the desert), and then we got a phone call about our Emirate IDs.  That's right, I am official.  I have an official resident ID.  No turning back now.  

The only sad part is that as of right now I look like I live in the desert.  Literally, the desert, like in the sand out there with the scorpions and camels.  SMH.  I'm going to fix this really soon.  But, on the other hand, the men from India love this look.  I see them looking when I'm out in public.  Either they love it or I scare them.  Either way, they're looking!

Don't Let Me Die in the Desert

How could I forget to highlight my near death desert experience.

Picture it, on Wednesday after a long day of playing with 4-year-olds I come home, go to the gym, return home to sit on the couch, turn on my VPN and turn up Pandora like usual.  Then, all of a sudden, I start getting sharp chest and stomach pains.  I jokingly texted my somewhat of a best friend and tell him that my body is shutting down because it is not used to real food or working out daily.  Little did I know, this was no joking matter.  Eric, another teacher, came over to get something.  In the middle of him talking, I ran out of the room to hug the toilet.  Vomitting is something I never do, but by Thursday morning I had become a pro.  Digusting!

I vowed that I would not miss work on Thursday because I like to save missing days for later in the year and Thursday is the last workday here.  But, on Thursday morning I literally could not move.  My everything hurt!  Luckily Eric was able to take a break from work and drive me to the doctor.   I even did something that I said I would never do......I visited the doctor's office that is in the same building as the fish market.  *hangs head in shame*  The office was actually not so bad.  What was bad, what I did not do, what I could not do, what I refused to do was use that hole in the floor inside of the bathroom.  I explained to the doctor that there was no way possible I could use that bathroom.  He thought I was saying it needed cleaning.  "No sir, I don't know how to use a hole in the floor."  He found me another toilet, gave me my prescriptions, and got me out of there.  The next day I was fine, still on a soup diet, but fine.  I am pretty sure I had food poisoning.  The doctor seemed sure too although he said it might have been gastro inginitis.  Who knows really?  The point is, I am much better and I did not die in the desert.

I Live for the Weekends

"I live for the weekends" is a phrase I started to use to comfort me about living in the west.  The weeks go by fast in the classroom so my goal every Sunday is to make it to Thursday so that I can start my weekends and go into the city to be a part of civilization again.  Honestly though, the past few weekends have been filled with business: going into the city to buy things for the house (stores in the west are very limited), chasing this debit card that I applied for the first week I got here and still have not gotten, and other important not so fun starting a new life in a new country things.

Despite the business stuff, we try to squeeze in occasional fun.  Last weekend we went to the movies to see No Good Deeds.   The movie was better than I thought with French and Arabic subtitles.  That's a lot of mess popping up on the bottom of a screen as you watch  a movie.  What made the movie even more entertaining was watching the Arabic speaking women actually enjoy the movie.  I thought maybe it would be a little too much for them, but they gasped, jumped, and cheered on Taraji just as much as we did.

Last night we went to Roof Top Rythms, a poetry/open mic event in Abu Dhabi.  The event was a lot of unexpected fun.  Some of the poets were great, some were on their way to ok, and some were outstanding.  The featured poet was a man from Australia who was absolutely amazing (clearly I am bad with names so I don't remember his).

In essence, I guess I actually do live for the weekends.  Now, I can't wait until the weekends involve more fun, more traveling, and more shopping for things other than household items.  And I hope we get some good concerts here to pay everyone back for all of their posts about the Outkast Atlast concert that I missed in Atlanta.

P.S. we hear a PING from our text messages when we get paid.  There was no PING heard this week.    What a fun killer!

So I Was a Little Bitter

It has officially been one month since I have been in the UAE.  I went on a hiatus from this blog because I was a bit bitter about being placed in the west.  They moved us from the hotel in the city where there is a mall on every corner to a hotel in the middle of the desert.  The hotel had a great view of a beach.  However, there is nothing in Mirfa but sand and that hotel.  Oh yea, some housing, some schools, and a few local stores.  My school is also in Mirfa.  When I saw where I had been placed, I almost thought about catching a flight back home.  Good thing I have waaaaaay too much pride for that.  So, I decided to stick it out and join the other teachers in the west.

Here is an overview of what has gone on in the last month:

-We took a trip to the Corniche Beach.  "Hot" was not the word to describe it.  The sand literally burned our feet.  Going to the beach in the middle of the day in Abu Dhabi might have been the dumbest thing I have ever done, but we made the best of it:

-We visited the Grand Mosque before being transported from the city to the western region.  The architecture is amazing and the building itself is amazing:

-I started school soon after moving into Mirfa hotel.  I teach KG1.  In the states we would call it Pre-K.  They are adorable but speak no English.  It is interesting how we find ways to communicate with each other.  They love to repeat after me and they think some of the things I say are funny.  I am thankful to have the little ones because I get to see progress everyday.  It is like having a blank slate and watching the artwork unfold.  The children call me Ms. LaTwya.  They love repeating English words and phrases.  So far, it seems like their favorite is "Gooood job."  I really have to find another way to praise them.

Everything I do is hands on in the classroom.  They might not understand a word I say but they do work hard.  Plus, I love my Arabic speaking co-teacher.  She helps translate, gives me ideas for activities they can do, and manages to balance Arabic and English instruction well.

-I moved into my apartment in Medinat Zayed in the western region.  The apartment is spacious and is the exact opposite of what I was hoping for, but the rent is still free and I can't complain.  I have started to decorate a bit to make it feel more like home but the process is slow.

Rooms here don't come with closets so we buy wardrobes.  I'll probably need a few more of these soon because there is no way all of my clothes and shoes will fit.

Nobody warned me that in the UAE we wash clothes but do not dry them in a dryer.  Using a drying rack has been a big adjustment for me.  Luckily, the temperature is always oven hot so the clothes dry quickly.

Gas is popular here of course.  Going with the flow, I bought a gas stove.  Soon after buying the gas stove I returned it after I realized I had to buy a propane tank, turn it on and off, and manage the flames on the stove itself.  All I could imagine was me burning my entire villa trying to boil water.  Now, I have two small eyes.  This is perfect for a person that can't cook and has no desire to learn, especially not on a gas stove.

That about wraps up the month.  We go to the city on the weekends but the past few weekends have been about furnishing this apartment.  We still have not gotten paid, but once we do there is a lot more of UAE and the surrounding areas to conquer.  Stay tuned.  I will try to post more often now that I am getting over being bitter.