Our First Trip to Abu Dhabi's New Beach

Yesterday the weather was finally clement enough for us to venture out to Abu Dhabi's new public beach on the Corniche.  The opening of this beach has not been without controversy.  First it was free and open to all.  Then it was segregated into "bachelor" and "family" sections to prevent harassment.  Finally an entrance fee was instituted...with men being charged double if they were not in a group that contained women (a "family").  I'm sure some of these things can be attributed to the Michelle Palmer sex-on-the-beach-in-Dubai scandal, but authorities have also been quite open about the fact that a major motivation is to keep the labourers off the beach by making it unaffordable for them.  So now they are relegated to walking the corniche and staring over the wall until a guard comes and shoos them off. The UAE always seems to come up with some way of making even the simplest pleasures complicated.

All these reservations aside, the new beach is very nice and we had an excellent day. We packed a picnic lunch and were there from mid-afternoon to early evening. The weather is still quite hot, and the water is quite warm, but there was enough of a breeze to make you comfortable with the temperatures if you stayed in the shade. The Heritage Village is right across the water, so the calls to prayer from the mosque and the music from the Eid celebrations floated across the water off and on the whole time.

The beach is open until 10 at night, and it's beautiful after sunset. The paths are all lit up with ground lights, and the beach umbrellas and shaded benches (permanent structures on the sand) have built-in lights so you have enough light to have a picnic by. I would love to pack up and come for dinner one night. It's less than 10 minutes to drive there for us...and it's also right across the corniche from my work, so we are well situated for frequent visits!

Here are some cell phone pics of our day:

I did some henna for Eid a couple days prior...so I took a picture of it with the beach as background.

Me on the sand:

A shot of both of us.

Kiran peacocks!

Old henna/new henna

Post holiday

Sorry it's taken so long for me to upload our Christmas photos and post them...they are on my flickr account now so you can take a look at what our Christmas was like by clicking here!

We are slowly getting back to normal after the holiday season. We ended up quite busy through the holidays with Christmas and New Year parties, so after all the eating and drinking and socializing it's time to get back to a more moderate routine! We are going to take our Christmas tree down this weekend. Late to have it up still, I know, but with few of the regular "holiday season" markers--weather, street decorations, and so forth--we feel like we just put it up!

I have spent a lot of the post-Christmas time taking care of pets and plants for people who are currently on vacation. Some better behaved than others! My friend Rachel's tomcat is a real hellion and is even learning how to open doors himself, so that one has been quite a "challenge". My Arabic conversation class has also started up again, so I am in the middle of learning how to say "hello, how are you" and count to 20. I have also started doing the exercises in the Henna Page's Index of henna pattern elements in an attempt to improve both my skills and my atttempts at creating original patterns. It would be nice to get proficient enough that I could do henna as a part time independent business someday.

I have also had a few developments on the job front. I met some people at the Higher Colleges of Technology Library this week, and actually ended up in an impromptu interview due to their critical need for new staff. The job is in Acquisitions, Cataloguing, and Technical Services. I really have little to no practical experience in those areas but it sounds like they are looking for a willingness to jump in and learn the job as much as prior experience, so I think my chances there are good if our previously planned vacations for this year don't get in the way (the contract is a temporary one for six months, so I'm not sure what the vacation rules are like). I also met the Dean at the Zayed University library this week, and while they don't have a specific opening right now, she encouraged me to send in a resume for their files in case of future vacancies. I would really ideally prefer something part time, but if I don't start working soon I will have a lot of difficulty getting back into the field, so I am starting to feel like in the short term at least I should take what I can get. Especially if, as in the case of the HCT job, it will provide me with a lot of new skills and experience I would be unlikely to acquire elsewhere!

post vacation details

Well, we are just back from a week in Sharjah and Al Ain. Sharjah is an emirate to the north of us...so close to Dubai that they are kind of blending together as construction expands the sprawl. It markets itself as the cultural capital of the UAE because of it's many heritage and arts attractions. It's much more conservative a culture, and still dry, unlike Dubai or Abu Dhabi. We were in the older area of town, which was interesting to say the least. The kind of place where you have a restored historical fort next to a normal looking highrise bank building next to a crumbling slum where the poorest labourers live. I would stay in this same location again, actually, because it was a facinating mix of places and people within walking distance of the galleries, historical and heritage areas, and souks, but I would NOT stay in the same hotel. we were right above a taxi stand and a square with a tent market selling cheap goods where hundreds of the local Indian and Pakistani men came to socialize and hang out every evening. So very noisy 24/7, very crowded, and extremely difficult to drive in and out. Strangely, the traffic and the crowds disappear about a block in every direction! Also, the restaurant in our hotel was terrible. I actually got sick one night we were there, though fortunately it came on quickly and did not last long and I was fine for the remainder of the trip.

We saw many more men holding hands and walking with their arms around each other than you do in Abu Dhabi. Actually, we saw very few women on the street period! I don't know if the population in this district was made up more of men who left their families at home to work here, or if it was just because more of the women were at home or running home-related errands, due to the more conservative mindset, rather than out on the street with the men. We saw very few other Western expats there.

We paid a visit to the central souk and ended up buying a couple of Caucasian carpets--deep reds and greys, and bolder tribal patterns. The souk is also known for its jewelry stores...I don't think I have ever seen so much gold in one place in my life! Beautiful Asian styles, totally unlike the things you see at home. We also visited some historic buildings and a couple art galleries.

After 3 nights there we travelled on to Al Ain, an oasis city in Abu Dhabi that borders on Oman. *Much* nicer accomodations there--the only options in Al Ain are 5 star!--and it is a quiet, peaceful, relaxing city. Unlike the other places we've seen in the UAE so far, the city is made up of low rise buildings, and since it is an oasis there are lots of trees and working date palm farms. There is also a mountain--Jebel Hafit--that we could see from our hotel room balcony. The woman we had our first UAE job interview with lives there, so we got to meet her in person; she took us up the mountain and out for dinner one night and met us for coffee the next day, where she introduced us to some other librarians that live and work there. We visited local coffee shops, the Al Ain Palace Museum, a couple of the oases, the Al Ain National Museum and Sheik Zayed Fort, and also managed to find time to relax by the pool and hang out.

So for the most part a very good vacation.

Almost every woman I saw had lovely henna for Eid. I wonder about it though...whether it was wholly natural or not. The colour was such a uniform mahogany, and often little to no variation from fingers to hands to wrists and forearms. It would be sad if adulterated henna was the norm here. I still haven't gone out and found a salon to do henna on me, so i don't have any personal experience yet. Mostly the very flowery Gulf/IndoArabic style, with a lot of dipped fingers.

Lots of the little girls were out in their sparkly new Eid clothes...so cute!

hurry up and wait

Well, we still have no apartment, no paycheque or furniture money, and (for me) nothing to do, so in lieu of any real news, I give you the following observations of daily life in the UAE so far:

I'm seeing lots of pretty henna in flowery arabic styles on the women here--both veiled and modern. I'm not sure where they get it done, but I'm sure a few questions at salons (or, as they call them here, ladies' saloons) and nail places would find it out. Once we're a bit more settled I'd like to get some done...and find a place to get new henna supplies. I thought about bringing some here, but somehow trying to carry a plastic ziplock bag filled with powder over multiple international borders didn't seem like a good idea ;)

Grocery shopping, at least at the Abu Dhabi Co-operative Society attached to the mall beside our hotel, is an interesting trip through Western and native foods. Their deli counter has no hummous, unfortunately, though it has quince jam and a million different kinds of labneh (yoghurt cheese). Going to the meat counters, you will find the usual lamb and beef and chicken, but also intenstines, kidneys, brains and tongues, neatly shrink wrapped and waiting. Oddly, given my usual reaction to such things, I can examine all the vicera with no problem but have problems with the skinned and smoked (or otherwise preserved) lamb's feet. At the fish counter, you find all the fish, whole and ungutted, packed in ice. You won't smell it before you get there, but once you do the odor will follow you into the next departments. You find the usual fish but also whole shark, octopus, and other interesting things. I assume they will clean it for you when you buy the fish but I don't know for sure as I haven't had the courage (or the cooking facilities) to try it yet!

The roads are congested but little to no gridlock. Taxis are everywhere--you flag them down like you would in New York, or you go to a hotel or taxi stand near a mall or other major landmark. Taxis are incredibly cheap--you can cross town for the equivalent of about 3.50 USD. Driving styles are aggressive--lots of speed, tailgating, and cutting people off.

Weather here remains at about 45 degrees celsius (that's about 113 for you fahrenheit folk) but so far less humid than in Florida. Get out on the beach in the afternoon, in the shade with a breeze, and it can actually be comfortable.

That's about it for now. HOPEFULLY next time we post we will be able to say we are in our new apartment!

2 weeks to go!

Ack! We are really into the home stretch now. Michael and I are in his office right now, selecting music to burn onto CDs for the reception--a long overdue task. Tonight, we are going to map out the major things we know we will need to do, and will need others' help with, before and during the big day. We also need to look at the ceremony text again, finalize who will be doing the readings, and block out the processional and so forth. I also keep on having to remind myself to bring henna, so we can do our hands!

Michael has pretty much finalized his outfit...he just needs to decide which of his 2 vests to wear. I finally managed to find shoes, so I won't need to go barefoot, but I haven't totally decided what to do with my hair. I will probably curl it, instead of fighting with its natural texture, and due to its length and weight at least some of it will have to be tied back or up, but that's all I'm certain on for now.

My mom has been busy preparing the house and yard. They have had French doors installed on their patio door (which they were going to do anyway), and the dining room has been rewallpapered. She has also spent a lot of time in the yard, weeding and planting flowers. She is very nervous but I'm sure the place will be lovely. She has also done a few test runs for our cakes, so she and Dad have had a lot of nice desserts lately!

I am starting to get quite nervous. I'm at the stage where everything seems a little unreal. I am naturally anxious about hosting a party, and wanting it to go well, but also anxious about the life transition--getting married, becoming a wife, and figuring out what it all means. Realistically I know that things will be fine if I just take life one day at a time, but it's still a little scary.

Michael, in contrast, doesn't seem to be nervous at all. Lucky him!

shower fun

My friend Jamie hosted my Florida bridal shower last weekend. It was a really wonderful party. She and my friend Diana (of Indu-Zari Henna) did a lot of work to make it special. They decorated Jamie's entire house in an exotic Morrocan/Indian style. Diana made a fruit plate and a batch of cookies, all decorated with henna patterns in icing, chocolate and caramel. During the party, my friend Alina did my hair in "tribal goddess" style, and Diana did henna on me and on other shower guests. We also had a selection of videos for the night: Kama Sutra, Devdas, and Bellydance Divas. Thankfully, no silly shower games!

My friends gave me lots of nice gifts, and it was nice to be "princess for a night." No one has really ever thrown me a party before...someone I used to be friendly with tried to give me a 30th birthday party, but the idea unfortunately backfired. Needless to say I'm feeling really fortunate and thankful to have such thoughtful, fun people in my life right now. I don't know how I would have survived living in Florida without them!

You can see an online picture album from the shower by clicking here.

As Michael wrote below, we're more than a little unhappy that the postal system has conspired to ruin some of the invitations we sent out. Strangely, most of Michael's friends and family say their invitations were destroyed, while the people I've asked on my side say theirs are fine! I'm not sure what's going on here, but it's upsetting--especially considering that the post office worker here assured us that they would get special handling. I guess between USPS and good old Canada Post we should have expected it though. Anyway, we will be making more invitations, and if anyone whose mailing was damaged would like one, we'll be more than happy to hand-deliver on on before the day.

a shower in the forecast

I had not thought that anyone would do this for me, but my friend Jamie has decided to host a bridal shower later this month. Even better, she's arranged for my friend Diana to do henna at the party! Diana is a wonderful artist, and I love henna, so this should be a great evening. I'm really looking forward to it. Thanks Jamie!

Of course, this has necessitated a shorter deadline on populating our wedding registry. So I've had fun picking out things in Crate and Barrel, and the amazon.com one should grow as well. Not that I expect we'll be getting everything on there, but once you get into it picking things out is actually kind of fun.

Invitations have not been finished yet, but they should be soon--I'm hoping to get the decorations done this weekend. I'm pretty sure just about everyone on our guest list knows when and where anyway--one of the advantages of having a small party. Michael has arranged for some really nice wedding favours, too--handmade by someone he knows at work.

Hard to believe it's coming up so soon!