Monday-Wednesday, 1-3 September 2008

Classes have been going well this week. I'm finding them all to be very easy. Some of the teachers are less organized than others, expecially one who has taught us the same thing from five classes now. Things are definetly run differently around here. For example, Kendal and I went to yoga yesterday which was supposed to be from 8 to 9at night. When we got there, no teacher was there and a couple other people had shown up for it. We asked the front desk person at the gym and he said she should be here soon. After fifteen minutes we asked him again and he said he did not know. Then we asked if she had a number to call and he said he had no idea who it was. Finally, he gave us the number of the person in charge of the program who told us they had not hired a teacher yet, which is all fine and good, but why would they put up signs advertising a class that had no teacher? Why not just wait until they hired a teacher? Some things just don't make sense.

Ramadan has started, and though I am not fasting, it still affects my life. Eating and drinking in public during the day are not allowed. No food places on campus are open during the day, so I have been doing a lot of cooking in my room. On the first day, my friends and I went to the iftar (breaking of the fast) in the cafeteria. It was an experience but not something that needed to be repeated. Lines were long and the food wasn't that great. The best thing about all this is that my curfew has been extended until 2 AM during the month of Ramadan and everything is open late. I went grocery shopping yesterday at 1:30 AM and there were families there doing their shopping as well. The whole society seems to be on a night schedule now. Also, they have lights up everywhere for the holiday, and it feels a bit like Christmas. Still, it is going to be a long, hot month. I don't know how people can go all day without drinking in this heat, but they seem to manage. It is very impressive.

Tomorrow is my friend Bader's birthday, so a bunch of us went out to celebrate tonight. We went to a Persian restaurant in Dubai for dinner. It had good food and a wonderful atmosphere. Afterwards, we went to a mall for ice cream from a Cold Stone Creamery-like store called Marble Slab. It was the first normal ice cream I have had here. The mall, called Festival Center, is amazing. It has huge fountains every where and a canal with a pathway outside. We went for a free boat ride in the canal and then walked around the marina which is filled with beautiful yachts. All the buildings were decorated for Ramadan, and it was truly beautiful. The pictures below do not do the scene justice. Anyway, I should be going to bed at some point, so until next time...

-Lindsay

Fountains in the Mall:



Ramadan Lights: