Eid Adha Mubarak!

I made it through the first two weeks of school! Being in kindergarten again after a year in 2nd grade has been an adjustment but I'm enjoying getting to spend time with little people again. One thing that has struck me about this class is how well behaved trained they are. From what I gather, the classes at this school (it is a kindergarten only school but there are two levels of kindergarten, one for 4 year olds and one for 5 year olds) are kept in the same groups so the whole kg1 class just moves together to the next kg teacher. Whoever had my class last year really had them trained. I can say "clean up" once and they all start singing the clean up song and then go sit quietly on the carpet in a U shape, waiting for whatever is next. Same thing with lining up to come in from recess. They line up and wait to be led back to the classroom, I don't even have to be anywhere near the line, they just go to the right place. I don't want to jinx myself but I hope it continues  throughout the school year.

Although they are for the most part, pretty well behaved, these past few days I've seen a lot of them come out of their shells more and show their personalities. There was one day where they were just off the walls after snack and I thought to myself, "What. The. World!?" Then I remembered that Eid Al Adha is coming. Not that this holiday can be compared with Christmas, but every teacher knows how anxious and sometimes forgetful of their manners and rules students can become in the days leading up to it. So I had a little bit more understanding about their behavior and just reminded myself that if I could make it through a few hectic days I would have a whole week to relax and recuperate.

And what holiday would be complete without some sort of celebration or festivities? To prepare for the festivities our school prepared a little celebration that we had in our indoor play area today. The Arabic staff set up different stations for the kids to visit that had to do with Eid, I did my best to try to understand the significance of everything but since it was all done and taught in Arabic, my understanding is basic to say the least. What I can tell you is that Eid Al-Adha is an Islamic festival that commemorates the sacrifice of Abraham and takes place every year after the pilgrimage to Mecca. It is really interesting to learn about, and I now understand why all of the men on my flight to Jeddah last summer changed into white towels during the flight. If you want to know more about Eid Al-Adha click here

If you want to know how we celebrated at school, I took pictures of our whole day, so enjoy!

children dressed in traditional attire

my co-teacher made each child their own passport for the 'trip'

the principals set up an immigration office for the children to get their passports stamped

photo of the actual site

children reenacting it

this reenactment relates to the story of Hajar and her search for water for her son

during this time many people will sacrifice a sheep or goat

a sheep at school!

     

the end of our trip: the children got to rest and have a drink of water

several parents sent in cupcakes, cake, and chocolates

And that was our day! The kids really enjoyed it and it was nice to see all the staff pull together to make it happen. I learned a lot of things that I hadn't previously gotten in my two years living here, but of course I still have questions and am curious to learn more.

Another thing that I love about my school is that every day the Arabic teachers bring in lunch for everyone. It is usually Emirati foods that I don't know the name of and a really good but strong tea. I love trying the new foods and it's nice to be able to sit down and have tea or a meal with your co-workers to get to know them.

there were little buns and breads in the middle and the small jars around had things to put inside like meat, cheese, or beans

I chose a curried chicken with sweet potatoes and rice, yum!

And now, I will leave you with a funny that one of my teammates sent :)

Year 3 In The UAE

This year marks my 9th year of teaching and my 3rd year living in the UAE. It's hard to believe that I've been here this long. In some ways it feels like I've been here forever and in others it feels like I just arrived yesterday.

This has been a year of change for me, and it all started with a simple prayer that God really show out in my life, to the point where I look back at the end of the year and say, "Wow, You really outdid yourself!".  The year isn't over yet, but already I can say that He's giving me every reason to be able to say those five little words at the end of the year.

So, one of the changes this year has been taking on a new job which in turn led me to a new home in Al Ain, which is about 90 minutes from Abu Dhabi. I can't say that I wanted to move here or that I've ever met anyone who said that they would choose to live here, but by way of work I've been forced to accept it as my new home. And when I found out, I was really not happy about it, although I knew that it was a possibility.

My main concern was that I'd be farther away from my friends and my hubby, and that I would go into labor and he wouldn't be able to get to me in time because he's always on the road for work. Then I learned that my apartment was actually only an hour drive from Dubai, and therefore closer than if I were in Abu Dhabi. Cross that worry off the list! Next, I got my school placement and it was literally 5 minutes from the Oman border and a 45 minute drive each way. Not ideal but I sucked it up and put on my big girl panties and made the best of it because what else was I gonna do? But then, I went down to HR one day for another reason and they told me that I had been transferred to another school. A school that was only 15 minutes from my apartment, and has a nursery, and a few other amenities that I won't get into here. So, inside of a week all of the things I was worried about were worked out and I can only say that it was by the grace of God. Now I can focus on getting ready for baby Graham, who will be here in less than 7 weeks! Where did the time go?!

I'm still adjusting to my new home and the new roles I've taken on. I'm so happy that I at least have the benefit of having been through the international move before and can navigate getting things done without as much of the frustration, and I can try and be of some help to the other new teachers who are new to this experience. Still, it isn't easy starting a new job,  setting up a new home, and getting to know a new city all at the same time and while being pregnant, but I'm managing.

Here are some of my observations about the ways in which Abu Dhabi and Al Ain are different:

1. Abu Dhabi is a major city, Al Ain is a small, sometimes rural, town

the view coming into Abu Dhabi

the view driving into Al Ain

There are so many things to do and see in Abu Dhabi, and one of the major draws for me was that it is on the coast and surrounded by water, which means...beaches! I'm so sad that I'll now have to drive over an hour to get to my favorite beach club. Al Ain is more inland and therefore, there are no beaches nearby but there are some really scenic sand dunes and of course, Jebel Hefeet, that big mountain I visited two years ago when I first arrived, but these things also mean there isn't a whole lot to do because of the location and size of the city. To prove my point, one of the main things people do for fun on the weekends here is to go to the grocery store with the entire family.

2. High rises vs. complexes

my old apartment complex

a complex similar to my new place

Both places are more than suitable to my needs, especially since I'm not footing the bill, but I'll admit I did have to check myself for complaining about first world problems (no pool, balcony, or assigned parking space?) when I first got here. Now that I'm about 85% moved in those things aren't as big of a consideration for me.

3. The people

I don't think I've ever been gawked and stared at so much in my life. Al Ain is a bit more conservative than Abu Dhabi, so you will find that many of the local women will cover their faces in addition to wearing the abaya and sheyla, and there is not as much mixing of men and women in public places. One of the things we were explicitly warned about in training was to not extend our (women's) hand to men in greeting, and to be conservative in our dress. Whereas in Abu Dhabi I could go out in shorts or a short sleeve shirt without a thought and nobody cared about my tattoos, I made the mistake of running into the grocery store wearing shorts and a long shawl and was stared and pointed at by some little boys. Other times I've been out and had my natural hair out in a big puff and gotten some stares. I'm not sure if it's because I don't cover, because I'm black, or because I have tattoos. Maybe it's all three. There doesn't seem to be as much of a presence of expats or different nationalities here, so maybe it's just lack of exposure.

Another thing that has been different is working in a school where all of the students first language is Arabic and working with an Arabic speaking co-teacher. At my old school, the students came from a bunch of different places but most spoke English, and even if I had one student in my class who didn't, there was usually another kid who spoke that language and could help translate. When we had meetings they were given in English, but at my new school meetings, announcements, and everything else are done in both. Working in a place where my first language is everyone else's second has been challenging in a way that I've not previously experienced. It has caused me to think a lot more and I have to work harder to make myself understood, and it's really made me have to rely on another person to help me do my job. None of these are bad things, I know that they will help me to grow as a person and teacher, and I will for sure learn some Arabic, but it is mentally taxing at the end of the day.

One thing that is the same, though, is that the kids are all sweet, and curious, and have already taken up a special place in my heart :)

Here are some pictures of my new classroom:

indoor play area for recess