Ramadan Kareem!

Hello readers!

Today marks the 6th day since the start of the Holy Month of Ramadan. I thought a lot about how I wanted to use my time during Ramadan and whether or not I would participate in fasting over the week leading up to it. Part of my thinking process involved going to my favorite beach club with my floppy beach hat and my journal to rest and relax. Being at the beach with sand under my toes and the sound of the ocean waves always makes me feel so peaceful. Getting a super sweet tan and having a waiter bring me fresh watermelon juice and a club sandwich were added bonuses.

so peaceful :)

looks like heaven to me!

So, after a few hours of partaking in nature's beauty, I ultimately settled on setting aside a small amount of quiet time each day to read in my devotional and journal about 1 thing I'm thankful for, and fasting from 6am to noon. Our school hours have been reduced so we only have students from about 7:45 to noon (I still get 90 minutes of planning time a day) and work time until 1:30 now, which makes my two goals pretty easily achievable.

At school, there are designated areas for people who are not fasting to eat, the doors and windows are covered with black paper, and kids in kindergarten and first grade are still allowed to eat as usual. Older students have the option of choosing when they want to begin fasting but a lot start small by fasting for a short period of time during the day. A few of my students have come in and told me that they are starting to fast and have been very excited about it. I guess they are excited about being 'big boys' and starting to do what their dads and older brothers are doing.

One of the first things you notice about Ramadan is that you will see less people out and about during the day, and more out after dark. Getting to and from work has never been easier, and businesses open later and stay open until well after midnight. At the mall, restaurants are closed during the day and there's also no music playing in any of the stores. We went to the movies last night, and for once there were no lines (!) but the workers also wouldn't sell us any popcorn or drinks.

Jurassic World 4D was awesome by the way, even without popcorn! I can't wait to see Terminator in 4D.

Anyway, so far for myself, fasting hasn't been so bad once I got used to it. On the first day I was okay, but then we had the weekend so I was at home and able to eat when and how I wanted. The next day at school, I got busy and lazy (its amazing how they can both happen at the same time) and didn't eat anything or drink any water when I had the chance and in my excitement to get home at the end of the day I also didn't drink any water before leaving school to make the 25 minute drive home (drinking or eating in your car can get you pulled over with hefty fines or even jail time). I have never felt so sick in my life. It felt like my body was cooking from the inside out, I was dizzy and nauseous, and I kept dozing off, thank God I wasn't driving. Since then I've been more mindful about staying hydrated and make sure I eat a good breakfast and something substantial at noon after the kids go home.

I never really liked drinking water before, but it is so essential, especially when you live in the desert and it gets so hot. This afternoon before my friend and I left to head home, I found myself frantically running to the water cooler and chugging a bottle of water in the hallway (not a designated eating/drinking space) while anxiously looking around to make sure none of the muslim teachers saw me. Nothing makes you realize what a privilege it is to be able to eat and drink whenever/wherever you want like not being able to do it when and wherever you want. It is something that is very much taken for granted. Last night after the movie, we went to Shake Shack (yeah buddy!) for dinner and I absentmindedly started to walk out with my strawberry lemonade in hand before I realized that you can't just walk around the mall with a drink or have one as you drive home from a night out during Ramadan.

So, for my day 6 of Ramadan thankful thought, I am thankful for food and water and the ability to get it whenever I want or need it. I know that for many people in this world it is not a given and I am very thankful indeed. Alhamdulillah

Milestones You Don't Want to Reach

It has been one zero days since someone shat their pants in my classroom :(

I don't know what I'm doing wrong.

The End is Near

Last week was my student's graduation promotion ceremony. I'm not a fan of graduations for kindergartners but let's just say the parents at my school are very big fans of graduations for kindergartners, so we had one. And luckily, our parents were so committed they did a lot of the planning, organizing, and decorating so all I really had to do was show up with my 25 little munchkins in tow.

It was actually a really nice ceremony! The kids were so excited and adorable in their fancy clothes. They sang "First Grade, First Grade" and then we surprised them with a recording of us teachers dancing to "Uptown Funk". Each class also did the cute black and white pictures with each kid holding a chalkboard with what they want to be when they grow up that we posted in a gallery for parents to see. There were the typical doctors, teachers, and scientists, and then some kids really thought outside of the box and wanted to be things like ninjas. My favorites were: 'riding a horse', 'a first grader', and 'a pirate'. We also had each of the teachers take the same kind of picture, and I have to say their career choices were quite boring. A lot of mommies and boring desk jobs and one who just wanted to be taller. I think mine was the best, I'll post the actual picture later, but I don't want anyone trying to steal my future career.

I made each of my students a dvd with all of the pictures I had taken over the course of the year as a gift. I worked really hard on it and picked good songs that I thought went well with the theme of the whole thing, so I was really excited to give it to them. After graduation and gifts it was time for the parents to take their little graduates home, and for me to make a pillow fort in my classroom and watch netflix for approximately four hours. It was glorious and I think I'm ready to start a campaign for one day a week to be just like that.

Even though we had graduation last week, we still aren't finished with school yet. As of today we still have 13 days left, but many of my students have already left to go back to their home countries for the summer. Yesterday only 14 out of my 25 students showed up and it will probably only get worse as time goes on and Ramadan begins. With so few kids at school my classroom was noticeably more quiet and organized, which was nice. My students also noticed the difference and one special little one took the time to let me know. While coloring with his best friend, he said to me, "this feels like heaven to me Miss D, it's nice" and it really touched my heart that a six year old would even think of comparing something to heaven. Then he added, "when (absent classmate) is here it feels like hell to me". Outta the mouths of babes!

Brunching With Friends

This weekend marks the last weekend before the holy month Ramadan. This will be my first time really experiencing it, I'm sure it will be quite the learning experience. I've been trying to think about how I want to observe it. Although I'm not muslim I still think it will be a good opportunity for me to reflect and grow a little closer to God in my own way. That is, of course, a very personal journey so I don't know if I will make a post on it but be sure to check back for more updates on my Ramadan observations and my summer travels. Next travel destinations include Turkey and Bermuda ;)

Anywho, back to the brunching. Since Ramadan is right around the corner, people are preparing in many different ways. All of the stores are having sales on clothes, appliances, and food, I am trying to stay out of all of them. Mostly because I'm trying to cut back on my spending, but also because I'm losing patience for all of the crowds and chaos. Many expats leave for the summer so there have been a lot of going away parties and things of that nature happening over the past few weeks as well. I've seen a lot more people with the trademark opaque black bags that signify liquor purchases, so I assume people are stocking up in preparation for liquor stores closing. I really have no idea what to expect during Ramadan, but I'll only be here for about two weeks of it so I figure I'll just ride the wave and see what happens.

My last hurrah before Ramadan was brunch at the Hyatt Capital Gate, and it was absolutely fabulous. I didn't know it before arriving, but the hotel has the Guinness world record for being furthest leaning man made tower. The hotel itself is beautiful inside and out and the staff really take care of its guests. 

I always love the artwork in hotels here

We arrived on the 18th floor and were greeted with cocktails and shown to our table which overlooked the whole city. I got a couple pictures of the view, but I'll post them later. There was an outdoor deck too but it was way too hot to sit outside for any extended amount of time, I kept thinking how amazing it would be to sit out there at night in January when it's cool, but I digress. The brunch itself had carving stations with roast beef, chicken, and the biggest fish I've ever seen, along with pizza, blue crabs, shrimp, salads, and a table full of desserts. My favorite was the homemade ice cream and sorbet bar with 18 different flavors.

I loved every minute of this brunch, it was definitely my favorite one I've been to. Sadly, the time flew by and it was over before I knew it. I think my dessert plate and tea were the perfect way to end it :)

gotta love that view

After brunch, we headed over to the mall, of course. When the temperatures are above 100 every day there isn't much else to do. I've been going to the movies a lot lately and I must say, I really like it a lot. The theaters here have really got it figured out. They offer Imax, 3D, 4D and Gold experiences, which I had never heard of but makes sense given the extravagance that is the UAE. If you go with the gold experience you get to sit in an exclusive gold lounge while you wait to be allowed into your theater, kind of like the first class lounge in the airport. The seats in the theater fully recline and they give you a super soft chenille blanket to relax with, plus there are waitstaff to take orders and bring you food.

Speaking of food, the popcorn is the best I've ever had. They have regular butter popcorn, caramel corn, and cheese, but you can ask them to mix it and get all three. It sounds disgusting but it really is so good! Going to the movies is by far the best way to keep cool and entertained on a hot day.