Gaza rally, Abu Dhabi, the flood and my Sheikh sighting...

Sorry for being a blog neglector! Its been a while since I've written an update of any real substance. Sitting down and emptying my brain like this is more difficult than anticipated. Dubai is still great. It could be warmer, but I'm sure that's not a statement for which you in the states will harbor any sympathy. A lot has happened since the last time I wrote.

There was a Gaza rally on campus Jan. 14. A lot of people came out to show support for the Palestinian cause--a very different perspective from what I've known. It was something like being in the middle of a bizarro universe, in which everything was opposite, but just because the rally didn't express my own views or those I see in the foreground at home, the emotion behind them was just as strong. Just as real. The transition point in the rally (after speeches and before a candlelight vigil) was the crowd chanting in Arabic "Death to Israel", "Palestine is our home and the Jews are our dogs" and "Our souls, our blood, for Palestine". Unnerving? Definitely. But this is the perspective I came here to gain. The rally was pictured in Gulf News, a major English language newspaper here... let me know if you recognize anyone in the photograph: http://gulfnews.com/nation/Society/10276188.html

Later on on the night of the rally it started raining... just a little... and then... a lot. Well, Dubai is in the desert, and it doesn't rain much in the desert. Let's just put it simply by saying that this city is not, in any way, built for rain. Streets flooded within half an hour, buildings leaked and everything was impassable. Of course we still found it within ourselves to go out to the bars, but by the time we got there we looked like we'd crawled right out of the sea. The issue isn't even that it rained that hard or that much, the issue is that Dubai doesn't have drains in the streets, or anywhere, and doesn't build sidewalks or buildings capable of withstanding even light showers. Still, people managed to drive through the flooding in their Range Rovers, Porches and Lamborghini's. The next morning, I saw barefoot migrant workers outside my window manually pumping water out of the street. I really don't think urban planning was in any way involved in the urban planning of this city. They still haven't fixed any of the places where the sidewalk caved in, and the roof in one of the buildings in Media City where we often eat caved in, and has yet to be fixed (though a lovely plaster wall encompassing the entire dining area/hole has been erected), and there were huge puddles (or small ponds) all around for most of the week. Also, most of the sidewalks/building entryways on campus are granite or some other smooth, fancy stone surface, making them dangerously slippery when wet. I also heard that the rain was chemically induced, which probably shouldn't surprise me, but I don't actually know for sure. Either way, its got to be easier to build things right the first time than to have to repair them every time it rains even a little bit.


This past Saturday my Islamic Art and Architecture class took a trip to Abu Dhabi to see the Sheikh Zayed Mosque (also called the Grand Mosque) which is the 3rd largest in the world. It was AMAZING. Really really really really reallllllllly gorgeous. I could explain, but the pictures do it much better. Also, I got to wear an abaaya for the first time, which was a cool experience. They're actually pretty cool. Except for the fact that it was windy out and really difficult to get the hijab (headscarf) to stay on my head! The mosque is super hi-tech (I'm talkin' helipad, flat screen TV's, fancy clocks displaying prayer times for the whole day, etc.) and glamorous. I'd be interested to know how many tons of marble are in it. Also, it holds the world's largest carpet and chandelier (both exquisite) and has 82 domes... I can keep talking about how huge and gorgeous it is, but I'd rather you just look....


In other news, I saw the Sheikh of Dubai today!!! I was eating lunch outside at a restaurant and he was just walking down the sidewalk. So cool! People here seriously love Sheikh Mohammed. You see his likeness EVERYWHERE... on buildings, cars, t-shirts, hats, scarves, billboards, in restaurants, businesses... everywhere. But its really cool that he just walks around his "kingdom" like a normal guy. He looks like he'd be nice....


In the works are a (border run) trip to Muscat, Oman this weekend, and possibly Beirut, Lebanon for spring break. I also really want to get to Kish Island, which is off the southern part of Iran and is supposed to be really really beautiful. Also, I found a $5 flight to Bahrain...

I've learned how to say a couple phrases in Hindi from one of the guards who works the night shift outside my dorm. Kay Sai Ho? = "How are you?". That's all I actually remember... but I'm workin' on it.