Bye Bye.....Really?

Last Wednesday, Brenda and I went to see Les Mis.  Know this is hard to believe, but I'm 21 X 2 +3 and have never seen this classic.  This was my first movie in the UAE.  It costs 30 dirhams (about $8) to buy the ticket and you pick your seat.  An usher escorts you to the assigned seat.  The chairs are a little wider and the rows have more leg room than in the USA.  Didn't partake of the snacks or popcorn because I was full from dinner....next time.  Let's just say....Les Mis was a very long movie, but it made me cry two times.  I won't spoil the movie if you've never seen it, but the ending is a real tear jerker.  Anne Hathaway had a beautiful voice and made me love this movie.  Saw she won an award just this week.

About middle of the movie, I started to feel funny.  Head started swimming and feeling dizzy.  At first thought it might have been something I ate, but later that evening, discovered that sickness was right around the corner.  Stayed in the bed Thurs, Fri, and Saturday (earache, nausea, coughing, runny nose, and lightheadedness).  On Sunday, I went to work convincing myself that I was better.  Well, about  10:00 that morning, figured out that all this positive thinking wasn't working....felt like dirt!   Then, one of my students helped me make it through the day....we will call him "A".

We were at centers and I was working with my lowest reading group.  Had a few minutes before it was time to switch to the next group, so decided to review letters and sight words.  I flashed the letter to one student and asked to identify the letter.  If he/she could identify the letter, he/she would get to keep the card.  The one with the most cards wins....Well, usually students are able to recognize the first letter of their name or letters in it.   "A" was first, and I showed him the first card in my stack....the letter was "A".  His name begins with A, so felt good about it.  Flashed the card and he said, "Bye Bye!".  I said, "No, honey.  What letter?"  He said, "Bye Bye!" again and looked at me as if to say I've already told you once lady!  I looked at the ground, shook my head, and laughed.  Showed the letter to the next child and she didn't know it.  Showed the next child and he didn't know.  I'm thinking....yep...Teacher of the Year!  Then Hanaa looked over at me and asked why I had that look on my face.  Told her and we both enjoyed a good laugh and moved on.  Note to self.....don't take yourself so serious.  Good news is he has learned at least one English word.  Bad news...lots of work to do.  Every opportunity I had for the next few hours, I flashed the A at "A" and asked him "What letter?".  By the end of the day, all the students knew A except for "A"....always tomorrow :)

"A" has a problem that a lot of students have here...attendance.  There is no mandatory attendance in kindergarten.  Some students only come a few days a week.  At my old school, when a student was absent for 3 days, someone called to check and see why the child was absent.  Parents go to jail in America if their children don't go to school.  To my knowledge, attendance is not monitored in the same fashion here.  Communication with my parents is difficult because I speak very little Arabic and most parents speak little to no English.  Hanaa helps by calling parents and fielding questions.  I feel truly blessed to have her in my life....wouldn't have made it without her! :)

This is Hanaa teaching Islamic Studies. 40 minutes per day students have religious studies. 

Hanaa is teaching her Arabic letter for the week. Arabic letters are beautiful and very difficult to learn.  

By the end of the day on Sunday, the EMT (English Medium Teacher) room was filled with illness. 4/9 were not feeling well.  The weather has been very inconsistent.  Children and adults alike have all been sick for the past week. By Tuesday, I hadn't slept but a couple of hours each night due to coughing, congested nose, and fever.  Went to school, but came home and went to the doctor.  Verdict was laryngitis and severe congestion.  4 medications and doctor said to stay home tomorrow and rest.  Well, those of you who know me well, know that school cannot continue unless I'm at work.  No teaching will happen if I'm not there.  Note to self...life goes on.  1 day at home is not going to ruin the education of these students....took a lot to say that for me.  So, I stayed home and slept for 20 straight hours.  Felt like a different woman when waking up.

My students were happy to see me back...made me smile :) Thursday brought about big changes in our life at Al Wagan.  All the English teachers ride to school on either buses or vans because we live @ 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour and 45 minutes away from our school.  There are no housing options for us in Al Wagan.  The buses are like our home away from home. Everyone has their bus seat (kind of like church) which is filled with pillows, blankets, and personal items. We sleep a lot on the way to and from work because we leave so early and get home so late.

Upon arriving at school, we were greeted with news that our busing situation would change as of this afternoon. The buses are contracted and ADEC (Abu Dhabi Education Council) decided to contract with another company.  At the end of the day, we gathered our pillows, blankets, and personal items and were sent home on our new bus....it's yellow and short....Yes, I ride the short bus....j/k.  The bus was nice, but will take time to get used to a new driver and my new seat...  Change can be good or bad, but need to go in with an open mind. At least someone else does the driving and I can rest whenever needed.

As my weekend begins, life has become "normal" again and looking forward to a quiet, restful weekend....a sure sign that I'm getting older. Dan, wish we could watch the Super Bowl together.  Know you enjoy the drama of the game so much....I watch it just for the commercials :)  No matter who you're pulling for, enjoy the time with your family and friends! Even though I'm far away, my friends and family are very close in my heart! Until we meet again :)

Safety First, the Gas Leak, and a Little Piece of Home

This week began with a discussion of safety in my classroom. Bus, car, walking, stranger danger, fire, and poison safety. On any given day in the UAE, children can be spotted standing up in cars that are driving very fast. When my friend,Nicole Cruz, came over to the UAE with her baby, the taxi drivers tried to put his car seat in the trunk. They didn't k ow what it was. So, I knew there would need to be some background building!

Bus safety was new information for them too. On the school buses here, boys ride on one bus and girls on another. The kg students ride together. Each bus has a monitor that rides each day. Why? The children don't sit in the seats. They stand up, walk down the aisles, and sometimes hit others. The bus driver would not be able to handle the children alone. I admire the bus drivers of the world because I would have a wreck looking at all the stuff the kids were doing!

Drivers here are a little crazy! Stop lights, lanes, and following traffic rules are a suggestion here. So knowing when to cross the street, looking both ways and holding a grown ups hand is important here. I have to say hold you Momma, Poppa, or Nanny's hand when crossing the street. Children are with nannies most of the time.

Fires occur mostly in car accidents and not homes in the UAE. In America, homes are made from wood or have lots of wood components...not here. Buildings are made with concrete and blocks. I taught the children about staying away from things that are hot. There is no heat in the homes right now except for space heaters , so talked about those dangers. Taught them stop, drop, and roll. They thought i was very funny rolling on the floor. Hanaa explained that I was rolling to put out the fire on my clothes. They thought I crazy for rolling on the floor! Didn't want to get their clothes dirty. Sometimes things get lost in translation! :)

The weather has been very strange this week...pea soup fog for the past two days. On Tuesday, our bus drove very slowly through some very dense fog, but made it to school safely....thanks Shahab! On Wednesday when I walked out of my apartment, couldn't see the other end of the street. My phone rang and...the fog tree had been activated. My bus would not be there to pick me up until 7:20 so hopefully some of the fog would clear. Went back upstairs to couch and tried to nap until then.

The trip to Al Wagan was very foggy and we arrived to school @ 8:40. The teachers who live close covered until we arrived...team work!!! Upon entering the school, there was a horrible smell. Think about the smell of a very bad sewer leak times 10. Found out there was a leak of some kind.   Principal called the buses and all the students were loaded and out of school by 10. We were sent home for safety reasons. Good thing I talked about safety this week!


Thursday is the prophet's birthday, so no school tomorrow...woo hoo! Last holiday until March 28th....then 2 week Spring Break!!!!  Going to plan a trip to go somewhere I've never been...not sure where yet. Any suggestions?


Earlier this week, I received two boxes from home...always a joy.  Dan mailed them on the same day, but one came Sunday and the other on Monday.  If you've never lived abroad, there are always things you will miss from home.  First and foremost, I miss my husband and children.  Being separated is hard, but thank goodness for Skype and Facebook!  I LOVE to cook and really miss some of my favorite spices from home.  Before leaving to come back, I purchased all my favorites and packed up to mail here.  It was like Christmas when I opened the box....Chili-O, Lipton Onion Soup Mix, "REAL" Garlic Salt, Ground Mustard for my Mac and Cheese recipe....and so much more.  Can't wait to start cooking some of my favorites....Think I see some chili in my future!

Before I cook that chili, I'm going to go to my first movie theater in the UAE tonight.
Whitney, Brenda, and I are going to watch Les Mis (Never seen it....I'm sheltered!). Eating dinner at the Coriander (Indian) for the first time and am looking forward to it. When you live abroad, you either try new foods or starve!  Each week I buy one new fruit or vegetable to try.  The thing I've learned is you have to open your mind and not be scared to try new things. Until we meet again!

Jumping Ahead, the First Day Back, and Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Well, I must admit that leaving the US was much harder than I thought it would be.  Had many good times with family and friends and just wanted more.  The flight was long and bumpy with lots of turbulence.  Must say that for the first time I felt a little sick and really just wanted the plane to land....quickly.  Next time will definitely take something before flying!  My friend, Andrea Brown, and her parents picked me up in Abu Dhabi around 31 hours after leaving the US, including the time change.  Very nice meeting Mr. Randy and Mrs.Clara....think she and I talked the whole way home. I think we are very much alike :)

First thing I did after arriving at my apartment was take a bath and get on my comfy pjs. Felt like I left 3 pounds of sweat and grime in the tub!  Went to bed around 11:00 and woke up at 11 the next morning here.  Felt like I imagine a hard night of partying would feel like in the light of day....head hurting, thirsty, and not quite sure where I was and what time it was.  Went to the refrigerator and opened up realizing I had done a great job of cleaning it out before leaving....not one single diet coke in the house.  For those of you who know me well, know this is a 911 situation...don't drink coffee.  Decided to put on clothes and walk to Abela for the "nectar of the Gods" aka Coca Cola Light.  I must have looked like I felt because the produce man said you just get back.  Nodded my head,grabbed a Diet Coke, a few necessities, and made a hasty exit.

On the walk back, realized that the weather had started to change since leaving.  It was cloudy, gloomy, and windy...much like a Fall day in the US.  By the time I came back to my apartment, the rental car company was there to deliver my rental (I turned it in for maintenance when leaving for the holidays). All the rental cars from United Car Rentals contain a fire extinguisher and a jack kit.  He has to show you all these things and there are several pages you must sign.  He was very thorough...that means long-winded....and I signed and went upstairs, had some diet coke, a snack, and tried to make myself stay up.  Well, the next few hours and days are a blur.

Jet Lag is difficult to get over because there are 9 hours difference in the UAE and the US.  When I'm sleeping, you working.  When you sleeping, I working.  The most difficult part is learning to eat and sleep on the time zone you're in.  I would wake up at the most random times 2:00 am and be starving.  Well guess what, that's 5:00 pm in the US.  Sleeping was a challenge for at least a week and I really struggled to get back on the UAE schedule.

I arrived home late Thursday night and began my first day of work on Sunday. Some people came back a week early and others came back the night before.  No matter when you came back, the jet lag was hitting us all.  Remember how tired you feel when you go back to work after a long vacation...I call this the "holidays hangover".  Students and teachers alike really struggled with this. Several days passed and the teachers and students came to school and actually looked awake!  Like in the US, the students seem to have forgotten everything they learned before the holidays.  These children have heard very little English over the break and have had very few rules, so needed to start like the first day with rules and looking at me when we talk.

English is read left to right and Arabic is right to left.  Directionality is a issue here.  Even the books are stapled together different-Arabic opens to the right and English opens to the left.  Students have to learn to write names in Arabic and English.  They confuse which side of the page to start on and often write their names backwards when writing in English.  Before Christmas, I felt really strongly that we had made real progress in the area of directionality....well, not so much since the break.  Back to square one....Only took about a week for the students to begin to show signs of remembering what we'd learned earlier. We have much to learn before the end of the year, so I have to remind myself they will make it.  Just lots of hard work ahead!  I have truly been blessed with sweetest group of students....I love them and they love me! This week was easier than last week and hopefully next week will be even better.  Have to get myself back on a schedule of going to bed, eating on time, and just settling in.

The weather here is really changing! In past blogs, I've discussed the students wearing parkas, gloves, caps, etc.  Well, this week, the weather has warranted a sweater or coat.  When I leave on the bus at 5:45, it is very cool standing outside and the bus in drafty, so I have a blanket for snuggling and napping.  The mornings are very foggy and windy. In America, we have a phone tree for when it snows or when school closes.  In the UAE, we have a fog tree.  In Al Wagan, the town where I work, we drive into the desert every morning.  The fog may not be bad in Al Ain, but as we drive out into the desert, it becomes thicker.  I've heard there could be times when we have to pull over because of the dense fog.  The fog tree is to be used in case we pull over and will be late for school.  The desert is colder, windier (word?), and foggier than Al Ain.  In the summer it will be hotter!

In the UAE, the air conditioning units are huge!  In my apartment, there is a unit on the wall for each room (kind of like air conditioners in America for one room).  Bad news is there is no heat component to the units in all of our apartments.  Cool, damp, tile floors can really make you sick if you're not careful.  I'm lucky because I bought a really thick comforter and lots of thick socks.  During the day it gets up to the 70's, so I turn my unit off and let the apartment heat naturally and haven't been really cold yet.  Who would've thunk it would ever get cold in the desert?  Very cool once the sun goes down and wind seems to pick up too.

This week has gone by quickly and has been a "normal" week in the UAE.  Hopefully next week will have something more exciting to talk about.....Thursday is the prophet Mohammed's birthday and there is a school holiday....what can I find to do?  Love to all my family and friends....until we meet again!