January is fabulous in Dubai, but one of these city features is having the Best Month Ever:
The WEATHER!! Sunny, warm (but not too warm), occasionally cool (but not too cool) - perfect for gazing at the ocean waves, running at Safa park, and stopping in the school courtyard to go "ahhh" and tell whoever is listening that I can't get over how nice it is.
Windows: Windows in general are having a fabulous month, and even more fabulous is their current state of openness: car windows, apartment windows, classroom windows. In January. boo yah.
Calendar Asterisks: The words "subject to lunar calendar" attached to holidays bring hope to all - and when they fall correctly, as in the case of Islamic New Year, they bring new appreciation of the practice of calling holidays by the moon and providing surprise long weekends.
The Desert: reddish-orange dunes stretch forever, but you have to get pretty far out to feel any sense of desolation, as tracks from 4-wheel drives criss-cross everywhere. Dune Bashing - it's like a roller coaster. Without a track. Cresting dunes at break-neck speeds, seeing only the sharp line where sand meets sky, before suddenly plunging blindly down the other side. Curving down slopes of loose sand, sending waves flying up over the windows, people flying out of their seats... add the sun setting in fuschia tones, and you've got a fabulous locale for both terror and relaxation in a very short time span. Adding to The Desert's good month is its feature on You-Tube... check out Jen's video of our crazy ride:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP9v-pdVDak
Shop-a-holics: Global Village gives one the ability to shop the whole world without leaving the backyard, and the 45-day Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) has brought sales to stores all over the city. What more could a shop-a-holic want?
The Creek - one night this week I took a stroll down the Creek, which runs through the center of Dubai. As part of the shopping festival, there is a night souk: temporary buildings house booths from Iran, Pakistan, Yemen, India; filled with handicrafts - rugs, jewelry, knives, mosaics, inlaid wood, marble-work. The glass-blower was working on delicate perfume bottles, heating the glass to a molten sheen, shaping it, reheating, reshaping again, the glass holding the fire's glow in a spinning blur for a few moments after it was taken out, the blue flames of the blowtorch whirring. Fireworks burst in one of the best displays I've ever seen, a random parade cleared the streets, carnival rides spun people to screams. People of all ages and nationalities roamed together... one of the best things about city life.
Sports fans: Golf tournaments, tennis tournaments, horse races, car races. Tiger Woods and Greg Norman, Federer and Nadal, biggest purse in the world.
My apartment: Painting has finally commenced, and the place is feeling much more bright and homey.
Ridiculousness: though it's everywhere, it makes Dubai what it is, and I've come to think of it fondly....
These things are all wonderful, but..............
CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES are having the Best Month Ever! Home to numbers 12 and 21 on the "world's tallest buildings" list, Dubai is trying to reach number one, and rumor has it that Burj Dubai is within meters of cracking the top 10! New developments are still flying up everywhere there's room, the Palms and the World are huge tasks, and ridiculous hotel complexes are planned for the nearby desert - no shortage of things to do. and that's why construction companies are having the Best Month Ever!!
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Changes
Just as I find myself settling in, things are changing all around me.
It's the time of year when international schools start looking ahead, when teachers decide to move on or move back, when schools make tough decisions about who to let go and who to bring in, when we all start thinking about how long we'll be here...
we live our lives like it's forever - make friends, fall in love, find routines and favorite views, open our heart to people and places; willingly set ourselves up for a fall - because people will leave, move on... and so will I.
Someday, a new adventure. A new city to explore, a new experience to embrace - changes that bring the giddy excitement of the unkown...
...and the ache that comes with leaving.
i already miss two places, two sets of faces, two climates... a dull ache that flares with a simple reminder... how many lives will i miss before i say "enough"?
perhaps that's why we keep moving - because without the next great adventure, we'd be left alone with only our missing.
I could shut myself out, keep my distance, knowing that my existence here is not forever; keep my heart safe from hurt, move on before i feel too much.
but that would negate the whole purpose that I feel right now - to know the joy of new places, the company of friends, and the knowledge of old friends and good memories waiting to be relived, the amazing people I have known and will know - and the peace that comes from being content with where i am right now, and also being content with the unknown that lies in front of me, knowing that it is better to have lived and lost, than never to have lived at all.
It's the time of year when international schools start looking ahead, when teachers decide to move on or move back, when schools make tough decisions about who to let go and who to bring in, when we all start thinking about how long we'll be here...
we live our lives like it's forever - make friends, fall in love, find routines and favorite views, open our heart to people and places; willingly set ourselves up for a fall - because people will leave, move on... and so will I.
Someday, a new adventure. A new city to explore, a new experience to embrace - changes that bring the giddy excitement of the unkown...
...and the ache that comes with leaving.
i already miss two places, two sets of faces, two climates... a dull ache that flares with a simple reminder... how many lives will i miss before i say "enough"?
perhaps that's why we keep moving - because without the next great adventure, we'd be left alone with only our missing.
I could shut myself out, keep my distance, knowing that my existence here is not forever; keep my heart safe from hurt, move on before i feel too much.
but that would negate the whole purpose that I feel right now - to know the joy of new places, the company of friends, and the knowledge of old friends and good memories waiting to be relived, the amazing people I have known and will know - and the peace that comes from being content with where i am right now, and also being content with the unknown that lies in front of me, knowing that it is better to have lived and lost, than never to have lived at all.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
National Geographic
This months National Georaphic has a cover article about Dubai - I recommend checking it out if you have a chance... there are some interesting facts about the city, a few of its not-so-glamourous secrets, and a fabulous picture of one of the Palms...
Thursday, December 21, 2006
Homeward Bound
Sitting in the Amsterdam airport, wishing I was home already - 7 hours is a long time in an airport.
Remembering sunny and 70's yesterday, fitting before I head home into the cold.
Contemplating the fact that I have been in Dubai for 4 months, and it's ages and a split-second all at one time, but it feels like home, and I'm happy.
Several recent "Dubai moments":
How many blue-jumpsuited Indian laborers does it take to get Erin's car unstuck? Many, all arguing about the best way to do it - push forward, back, use a lever, use a ramp? Understanding nothing, I can do nothing but thank them profusely when they push me back onto the hard-packed sand. (How was I supposed to know they had cut off our shortcut?)
We had our school Christmas party outside at the golf club and, strangely enough, we were almost pushed inside by rain, but it stayed away and we were able to enjoy the view of the Creek and the floodlit fairways.
Working the film festival was fun, though it didn't leave me as much time to see movies as I would have liked. I managed to fit in a few, all of which I enjoyed. I happened to be working the theater when they showed Bobby, which had a red-carpet gala premiere the evening before, and right before the movie began, they rushed some of the cast in to do an introduction - including Laurence Fishburne!! (He was sporting a beard and a fedora... he looked old...). The movie was quite good - a fabulous cast, and the ending was very moving. THEN Joshua Jackson came back to do a Q&A and I got to be about 2 feet away from him (most people were not TOO impressed by this, but coming from the Dawson's Creek generation, it was fun for me!) That's what was great about the festival - directors, producers, and actors (collectively 'talent') were often on hand to introduce the movies and/or answer questions afterwords.
We were going to take the whole middle school to an amusement park on the last day of school before break - but then they told us that Wednesdays are "ladies days" at the park, so we couldn't go... only in Dubai!!
I think half the teachers at the school were at the airport at the same time last night, all waiting for early-morning flights, heading home or off on an adventure...
Picture of the buildings on Sheik Zayed Road from our school - the two towers on the left are Emirates Towers.
Remembering sunny and 70's yesterday, fitting before I head home into the cold.
Contemplating the fact that I have been in Dubai for 4 months, and it's ages and a split-second all at one time, but it feels like home, and I'm happy.
Several recent "Dubai moments":
How many blue-jumpsuited Indian laborers does it take to get Erin's car unstuck? Many, all arguing about the best way to do it - push forward, back, use a lever, use a ramp? Understanding nothing, I can do nothing but thank them profusely when they push me back onto the hard-packed sand. (How was I supposed to know they had cut off our shortcut?)
We had our school Christmas party outside at the golf club and, strangely enough, we were almost pushed inside by rain, but it stayed away and we were able to enjoy the view of the Creek and the floodlit fairways.
Working the film festival was fun, though it didn't leave me as much time to see movies as I would have liked. I managed to fit in a few, all of which I enjoyed. I happened to be working the theater when they showed Bobby, which had a red-carpet gala premiere the evening before, and right before the movie began, they rushed some of the cast in to do an introduction - including Laurence Fishburne!! (He was sporting a beard and a fedora... he looked old...). The movie was quite good - a fabulous cast, and the ending was very moving. THEN Joshua Jackson came back to do a Q&A and I got to be about 2 feet away from him (most people were not TOO impressed by this, but coming from the Dawson's Creek generation, it was fun for me!) That's what was great about the festival - directors, producers, and actors (collectively 'talent') were often on hand to introduce the movies and/or answer questions afterwords.
We were going to take the whole middle school to an amusement park on the last day of school before break - but then they told us that Wednesdays are "ladies days" at the park, so we couldn't go... only in Dubai!!
I think half the teachers at the school were at the airport at the same time last night, all waiting for early-morning flights, heading home or off on an adventure...
Picture of the buildings on Sheik Zayed Road from our school - the two towers on the left are Emirates Towers.
Friday, December 08, 2006
Friends and Films
Yes, Dubai has a coffee shop themed after the "Friends" hangout - same type of comfy couches, small tables and funky art, and great coffee...
The Dubai International Film Festival is kicking off this week, so I'm keeping my eyes peeled for celebrities. "Bobby" is premeiring here, with a red carpet and all that jazz. Movies from Hollywood, Bollywood and everything in between are showing in 4 locations on my end of the city. There are films from local directors, short films, and documentaries; movies in every language imaginable, and even movies for kids. I'm volunteering with my friend Lamonda, so I"ll be working at the theater during shows, ushering, taking tickets, etc. It's interesting to see how the whole thing runs from the other side - plus I get free movies out of the deal! We already got a sneak-peek the other night, of a great French film called "Paris, je t'aime" which I highly recommend!
2 weeks from now I'll be back in the snow and cold, wondering how my internal thermometer could get so messed up in four months...
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