My Parallel Life

Yay for a Reading Life

2012-01-06T03:47:00.003-06:00

Armed with a Nook and inspired by Cassie's 2012 resolution to read all of Radcliffe's Rival 100 Best Novels of the Twentieth Century, I'm working my way through a similar list. Why this one? No real reason. I just like the looks of it. Thanks to a literary childhood and high school English, I've already knocked 19 off the list.

1. The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkein (thanks to my dad, explored it for the first time in 2nd grade)
2. 1984 by George Orwell
3. Animal Farm by George Orwell (This one's thanks to getting locked in a dorm room at UWCiM with nothing to do but read this book.)
4. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
5. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
6. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
7. The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
8. On the Road by Jack Kerouac
9. Brave New World by Alduous Huxley
10. The Color Purple by Alice Walker
11. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein
12. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
13. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
14. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (although I think I'd already heard it quoted in it's entirety over the course of my childhood--again, thanks, Dad.)
15. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
16. 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke (and I must say, I'm glad that one's out of the way)
17. A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Alexander Solzhenitsyn
18. Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton
19. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

We'll see what's next. :)

2011-07-13T22:23:00.002-06:00

Today marks the end of an era. I got today off work (staff luncheon with seating too limited to invite interns) so I splurged on a ticket to the matinee performance of Phantom of the Opera. I remember being introduced to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical at a junior high sleepover, surrounded by the same group of girls with whom I danced choreographies to songs by The Cheetah Girls, wore bubble shirts and slap bracelets, and made funky monkey merchandise. I wasn’t actually as touched by the stage version of Phantom as the movie or the original book, but now that I’ve seen it on Broadway, I feel like all my junior high dreams are fulfilled.

Dear NYC,

2011-07-12T08:20:00.002-06:00

First a disclaimer...I like you really really a lot. But I'm not a New Yorker. MY gut reaction is to hold doors for anyone in the immediate vicinity, smile at people on the street, and refer to people at sir and ma'am. I HAVE moved past constantly staring at the skyline and have picked up the skill of taking mental pictures of the more eccentric pedestrians for later review rather than blatantly staring...I suspect Yannick and Tom are growing weary of me suggesting they should ALSO try to acquire this skill. I guess the past few days have been kind of an exercise in forcible assimilation. Too much encountering pushy strangers in the subway and glimpsing the chaos of a Manhattan work environment. The other at dinner Josh got called out by a guy who thought he was being stared at when Josh was actually just staring off into space. Now honestly, New York. The urban reality of constantly brushing shoulders is constant interactions of urban life are energizing but also wear me down.

The other night I went jogging to the East River...a proud accomplishment for a non-runner. It's absolutely gorgeous...views of the piers, and the Manhattan skyline curving around to the Brooklyn Bridge. Pretty much enough to make me fall in love with you again. And then some guy came up to me and said, "ExcusemeI'mreallysorrybutdoyouknowifthere'saplacearoundhereIcanurinate??". And then a couple of nights ago, I went to a building downtown, the facade of which had games someone had projected for people to play. And yesterday at work, I found out a gigantic moose head fell off the wall spewing a shower of arsenic and formaldehyde around the room. So now a hasmat team has to come clean all the bits of his face off the floor. And last night, I got to mingle (rather awkwardly) with Denzel Washington's daughter and the cast of the Royal Shakespeare Company at a cast party. Yes I did. So I guess there's an awesome eccentricity to city life which makes all the rest worthwhile.

Also, New York, your people have managed to make riding a rush hour subway, which involves standing with your crotch probably in the face of the person who nabbed a seat on the bench in front of you, and impressively un-awkward interaction. Well done on that one.

Sincerely,
A Resident Trying To Melt In The Pot

I Walk the (High)Line

2011-07-07T21:32:00.004-06:00

I love it when people get creative with city spaces. I refuse to see urban decay as anything but an opportunity for imagination, and one of the coolest ideas I've seen so far is NYC's High Line. Until recently, it was an abandoned elevated railroad track quickly turning into a bad part of town. Section by section, it's being renovated and transformed into a walkway and park along the Hudson River.

2011-06-24T10:35:00.004-06:00

BUSY WEEK (...I only blog when they are). On top of what I mentioned before has been piled a visit to the Brooklyn Bridge (cliche, but still one of my favorite spots in Manhattan when you walk out to the middle before looking back at the skyline), applying for jobs, a trip to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden (can't compare to the ones in the Lou!) a weirdly trashy mermaid parade on Coney Island (at least mildly amusing until a kid started projectile vomiting into the crowd right in front of me), a comedy show at Amy Polar's former club (Upright Citizens' Brigade-only one guy was funny and the others were unbearably crude), a visit to the Whitney museum, jazz in a park near the Hudson River, tramping around Brooklyn trying to get directions to an outdoor concert (try watching your friends ask "which was to go to cross the river" when you're here and see what kind of looks you get), atrip to ToysRUs in Times Square (turns out Obama was right down the street!). Some of us had the idea that it would be AWESOME to take advantage of the long sometimes-dark hallways in Sama to start a laser tag league. So Alex, being epic as he is (imagine a gentlemanly Gene Kelly who sings Phantom of the Opera in the stairwells but also has mad science skills and an equally epic girlfriend) ordered some on eBay and they arrived yesterday. My aim could use some work but yeah. We so excited.

The best thing is that I believe all of the afore-mentioned were free! (Well ok-the best part is that I get to do all of it with my NYU peeps, but the fact that it doesn't break the bank helps.) Summer in NYC is great for that, and my roommate Claudia is a champion bargain-hunter. But I have been doing A LOT on top of my internship so today I'm taking it easy. Started the morning with Starbuck's (ordering a non-fat Java-Chip Frappacino but asking for whipped cream on top defeats the purpose, doesn't it?), and plan to curl up in bed and hide from this dreary day. And I'm not getting up until my mind quiets down (these tangental thoughts (expressed in blogposts through excessive parenthetical statements) are driving me crazy).

PS-I'm being caught off-guard when various NYU staff realize I'm from Abu Dhabi because the general response is, "Oh! ...You're one of them!" Yes. I am one of them. For better or for worse, 'til graduation do us part. I'm sure they're just curious (I would be. I can be nosy as all get-out.), but when they just leave it at that I feel like I should pull out an abaya or start spewing Arabic in answer to the inquisitive looks on their faces. Oh, well. So much for New York being anonymous.

Park Avenue Armory

2011-06-19T15:40:00.000-06:00

Washington Square Park (the park with the arch is the closest thing NYU has to a "center of campus") is totally transformed from the desolate wasteland it was when I was here in January. I have yet to go there and NOT see people lounging on the grass, playing various instruments, or...walking around in the empty fountain.

Yesterday I scoped out the place where I'll be interning, and checked out Central Park since it's only a couple of blocks away. First recognizable thing I saw was Balto!!! So many childhood memories of watching the animated film and seeing a shot of this statue at the end....

Also walked down a lane at the end of which sits Robert Burns. I first heard of him when I was in Scotland, his native land. On Robbie Burns day, Scots often gather to recite his poetry and eat haggis (sheep's stomach stuffed with minced meats) - which to be honest, was far more memorable than the poetry. Still, I'm adding him to my summer reading list...

Views from Central Park of what I call the swankier part of town...

...aaaand, my place of internship...ness! Park Avenue Armory takes up a whole city block and is just as fantastically castle-like on the inside as on its exterior. Aside from preserving this quite cool historic site, they host very unique art exhibitions and performances. The big attraction while I'm there is a set of performances by the Royal Shakespeare Company...day 1, and I can already tell there is WAY more work required to put on these kinds of events than I would have guessed. But that should keep us busy - I'm excited!

Last night, we NYUADers also went to a Yankees game...where they pummeled the Rangers

Tom and Aly's first experience with Cracker Jacks...good times for the rest of us.

Summer Room with a View

2011-06-13T12:51:00.000-06:00

Well, there's a satisfactorily New York-ish view from my apartment, which I'm sharing with the lovely Claudia of Bolivia and Layla of Abu Dhabi. It's a bit crowded, but once I learn to fight my way through the crowds at Trader Joe's I'll love the Union Square area. Actually, being easy walking distance from a subway hub, gigantic Barnes and Noble and Strand Bookstores, and just about anything else you could want, how could I not be? Ventured out for Insomnia cookies and more than decent $1 pizza last night (in that order), and then discovered that there's tango in Union Square park every Sunday night throughout the summer. Hit up the farmers' market this morning and raided the sketchiest Salvation Army store I've ever seen for pots and pans, and am now prepared to cook classy college-style for the rest of the summer.

I love the city even if it is a little overwhelming...and we Abu Dhabi kids will have a few things to learn. No longer will we be stared at on the street, but neither can we be indiscreet about our people-watching. We don't take up the whole floor so don't shout in the hallways at all hours (or perhaps even whisper, since the walls seem to be thinner than paper). Stop looking at and commenting on the skyline if you don't want to look like a tourist. And for goodness sake, don't hold the elevator for ages or keep trying to talk to the people on it! Speaking of which, notable difference between NYU Dhabi and NYU on the square: the presence of Sabbath elevators instead of non-visitation floors. As it was explained to me, pushing buttons counts as work and is therefore forbidden to more conservative practicing Jews on the Sabbath. So, on the Sabbath the elevator just stops and opens it's doors on every floor. Slow but very cool, although I couldn't help thinking hiring a non-Jewish button-pusher would have been an equally interesting solution.

A few things I've missed...

2011-06-01T08:09:00.001-06:00

Our friendly neighborhood deer...

...clouds

...RAIN

...sunsets through the trees

...farms

...the places my cousins and I used to play when we were younger

...homemade desserts, and fresh-cut flowers from the garden!
My dad's side of the family has their big reunion every year around Memorial Day, which is a great time for nostalgia...and good food, of course.

Majorly Memorable

2011-05-29T20:53:00.001-06:00

After sampling classes from Chemistry to Middle Eastern Music, it's about time I overcome my curricular commitment issues and delve into a field of study. Out of the 18 majors at NYUAD, I'm choosing Literature. I was cleaning off my bookshelf today and thinking about how much reading and writing have always been part of my life...pretty much every room in my parents' house has at least one bookshelf and I still remember snippets of the stories they'd read me as a kid. I also remember seeing this trend on Facebook where you list books that have influenced you. So here it is...in no particular order, 15 works of fiction that will stay with me forever.

1. The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

2. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

3. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein

4. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

5. The Giver by Lois Lowry

6. Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates

7. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

8. The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

9. The Kite Runner by Khaled Husseini

10. Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

11. The Cirlce Trilogy by Ted Dekker

12. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

13. Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman

14. A Separate Peace by John Knowles

15. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

2011-05-18T13:00:00.000-06:00

A nice dinner and peace and quiet in a hotel by the Formula 1 circuit at Yas Island. Not the worst way to pass the time after a flight delay, and although I've spent most of the day watching Arabic TV and sleeping, I figured I might as well take the chance to update! It occurred to me today at the airport that almost every time I've traveled with my classmates, we've been mistaken as relatives in some form...either siblings or spouses. And I'm not talking about people who are besties at school, either. Yay for familial codependence. Great and so far not dysfunctional.

Anyway, I also added riding the world's fastest roller coaster to my Experience Junkie Encounter list. Let me tell you, sittin' in the front seat of that thing is nothing like sittin' in the back seat, so I don't care what day of the week it is...you'd better make your mind up which seat you can take.

La Vita Es Bella...and very hot.

2011-04-30T15:00:00.000-06:00

Well, I managed to do just enough schoolwork to ensure I won't be screwed in the week ahead. I took a really long bath in the lounge (no need to contemplate the number of girls who've probably used that tub...okay, ewww, stop), read a book for FUN (I Am The Messenger by Markus Zusak comes highly recommended by me...kind of an adult and Australian version of Jerry Spinelli, if that means anything to you), had a little crisis but got by with a little help from my friends (and Cassie's BRILLIANT idea of making cookies with Josh and Aly), ate some guacamole and was introduced to Borges at Latin night, got to Skype with some lovely people back in the States (still excited...still stalking your Facebook page/blog for updates :P), slept in TWICE and STILL took naps, went to the beach and made a sancastle/pyramid complete with moat, watchtower, and sand camel with Emily and Rafa, finally saw Fantastic Mr. Fox with Yannick, watched a documentary on Norman Finklestein, started taking video around Abu Dhabi for my final Translation project, ate fresh saj (flatbread) and cheese and chilled at the park with Tom...
So yeah. Incoming freshman, NYUAD is what you make of it. Stressful times, but that's college in general. The powers that be are not joking when they say you have to learn good time-management skills...but thankfully, that means learning to give yourself time for relaxing as well. :)

Easter in Abu Dhabi

2011-04-26T10:31:00.000-06:00

For the past two Easters, I've been on the road taking advantage of the week-long break created by the necessity for my school in BiH to recognize both Catholic/Protestant and Orthodox Easter. In 2009 I was in Scotland, and in 2010 I was visiting my friend Nidzara in Bugojno, Bosnia. So as nice as that was, it was good this year to be settled and celebrate with a church congregation. On Friday, I hosted egg-dying and painting for faculty and their kids as well as students. It's always good to see stressed college kids playing with face paint and Easter baskets, and we're total creepers when it comes to opportunities to actually interact with families and little kids. The event was a huge success, but I ordered WAY too many hard-boiled eggs, so Cassie and I teamed up with our RA, Maria, to make an absolutely epic batch of deviled eggs. Despite a steady stream of people coming in to sample them, we still haven't finished them off.

On Friday night we had a screening of The Passion of the Christ. This was the first time I had seen the film, and I have to say it was even more impactful to me because after studying Arabic, I could understand some of what they were saying. I know there were some artistic liberties taken and deviations from scripture, but the idea that a man lived in this part of the world and died for my sake is still there, and it's still absolutely amazing. So it was good to finally watch the film, and it led to some really cool conversations with classmates after.

Sunday is a weekday here, but I took the day off school and went to the sunrise service at the only evangelical church here with a few other students. We don't see dawn in Abu Dhabi very often (if we do, it's usually coming from the other direction of having stayed up all night), but the city is beautiful! I wish I'd gotten to know it better. Later in the day, the Dean of Residential Life and his wife hosted a lovely Easter dinner in their apartment.

I'm so glad I took the time to reflect, remember, and celebrate Easter. It's such a busy time right now (well, isn't it always?) as we're just a couple of weeks away from the end of the semester and I've been on Struggle Street as far as keeping energy up and staying motivated. On a light note, at our prayer time the other night Erin introduced us to these Korean candies from Al Safa (our neighborhood supermarket). Basically, these things are espresso in hard candy form. Which bodes well for my concentration in class...maybe not so well for my general health and well-being.

Brief Reflections on India

2011-04-26T09:33:00.000-06:00

As someone who considers myself relatively well-traveled, I would say that a weekend isn’t enough to let travelers see even a small cross-section of a country’s culture, especially if that country is as rich and diverse as India. While I stand by that as a general rule, I can’t deny that our Making Theatre class’ recent trip to Kerala was impactful. I feel like recently I’ve lost my sense of wonder in travelling, and I am especially grateful that I was able to recapture a little of that through India. I was simultaneously honored to be travelling with Theater Mitu folks, who had laid such solid foundations and taught us to be so culturally sensitive in our interactions, and ashamed to find that I was in a country I knew so little about.

My first impression outside the airport was that there were so many people. Even in the wee hours of the morning. We arrived in the town of Kollam at dawn at the end of the Mallayalam new year. Traditionally, the eldest woman in each household builds a colorful shrine, sleeps next to it, and then wakes each family member up individually and brings them to the shrine so that they start the year by seeing beauty. I woke up to my sleeping classmates drooling on the seats of the bus around me, but…I suppose the kind of camaraderie we have is beautiful in its own way.

After a few hours sleep at the hotel (and the obligatory exclamations of, “Oh my gosh, guys! We’re in INDIA!”), we had our first introduction to Indian food (I’ve never tasted a banana so sweet) and informally met Gurukkal and Chechi, who were to be our teachers. Our visit came as the continuation of a long relationship between these masters and our professor, Ruben Polendo, and the company of Theater Mitu. After hearing so much about them, I somehow expected Gurukkal and Chechi to be stern and intimidating. While they were certainly diginified (and, we would soon learn, absolutely formidable in the practice of their art forms), they were also unpretentiously human and accessible to us. This was invaluable to us in our first exposure to kalaripayattu and mohiniattam.

Kalaripayattu is a performative martial arts from which virtually all other similar traditions stem. It’s holistic, incorporatic what I would call yogic elements with healing and, of course, combat. It’s practiced in a kalari, which serves as both temple and training ground. A couple of days practicing even the basic stances was enough to make muscles I didn’t even know existed sore, but it was well worth it. I’ve never denied the fact that I’m a clumsy person, but I’ve never felt as far from gracefulness as when I watched Chechi perform mohiniattam. When executed properly, the intricate eye movements, facial expressions, gestures, and narratives of this traditional art form are captivating…but to an someone with virtually no dance experience it’s just frustrating and all I could do was try to stay in the attempt of the choreography. At the end of the experience, there was a demonstration staged just for us at the kalari…no exaggeration, one of the coolest things I’ve ever witnessed. Martial arts masters wielding flexible whip swords? Oh yeah.

Between encounters at the kalari, we ventured even further off the beaten track to witness some of the rituals associated with the new year. On the first night, a four-hour busride and a roadside bathroom stop brought us to the ruins of a temple in the middle of the jungle. And if anyone thought that wasn’t exotic enough, they were certainly awed by the rituals to the goddess Devi involving mediums, ostensibly in a trance possession by the gods, who wear huge, heavy headdresses and dance al l night…still trying to process exactly what spiritual phenomenon was taking place there.

The following evening, we were there for part of Kollam Pooram, celebrations involving long lines of elephants facing each other, each representing a local temple and displaying umbrellas and other icons they had made. Both lines are trying to outdo the other, but in typical Indian fashion, the point is not to authoritatively declare a winner but to give people something to talk about and debate for the rest of the night. One thing that made an impression on me was a huge tree in front of the Sri Krishnaswamy Temple which was covered in baskets. Apparently, couples hang the baskets on the tree when they want to have a child…the higher the basket, the more likely it is. Then Yannick told us he’d seen a similar, smaller tree (one of the only ones in the area since we’re both in the desert and in the city) covered in baskets and baby dolls…but it was recently cut down. I find that a really heartbreaking symbol of the displacement that so many of the migrant families here must feel.

The most comprehensive thing I could say to describe India to the people who’ve been asking me is that it’s deep. Rooted, and colorful, mysterious and profound. I struggled to blog about India only because there’s so much to process and so much that’s already been jotted down or come up in conversations with people that everything I wanted to write felt like repeating myself. And I think the fact that we’re still working through the trip and pulling it into the wider context of our lives is the mark of something truly impactful.

PS-This was the first time I've traveled without cell phone, iPod, laptop, or even cash and camera...they were quite suspicious when we said we didn't have ANY electronics at airport security. :) It was a fantastic and low-stress experience, and Inshallah I'll have some pics taken by the trip coordinators soon.

Week in a nutshell

2011-04-06T00:39:00.003-06:00

Another busy week in the Dhabs...
John Sexton was in town and hosted an alumni dinner on campus. The way he talked about "gathering the family" was amusing. I now suspect "global network university" is just a euphemism for NYU mafia. The next day, we had our last government and religion class with him. It is fairly epic that I've taken a class with my university's president, but we never got around to discussing the legitimacy of the US Supreme Court. Which I thought was one of the main points of the class...

Went to a basketball game on the Sorbonne's Reem Island campus. As cool as the NYUAD facilities on Saadiyat are rumored to be, I'd rather be downtown for now. The outskirts of Abu Dhabi are still pretty otherworldly/desolate. It all looks pretty much like this --------------------------->

Most of my week has been consumed with summer internship searching, essay writing and Arabic vocab studying, project planning, and other routine things. Tom and I had this brilliant plan that we'd be more productive and manage our time better so we'd be able to actually go to the beach, explore the Emirates, and basically take a chill pill. Worked out well in the beginning, but it's tapered off now. :(

Shabbat Shalom

2011-04-02T05:23:00.000-06:00

Pretty eventful day yesterday...my alarm clock went off at 4:30am, because Josh and I had the intention of going out into the city and checking some activities off the month-long NYUAD scavenger hunt list. Decided we'd rather be dead, went back to sleep, and didn't head out until after lunch. Discovered the epic fish market and carpet souk, and that I'm still terrible at bargaining. We got our picture on a dhow with some drunk but apathetic sailors. I got an afternoon nap in, made a salad while listening to country music (it's a guilty pleasure, I know), and went to the store for baklava with Yannick and Tom and a shopping cart they found. One or more of us may have been barefoot, and we may or may not have been in the shopping cart at some point. All of which led up to a lovely shabbat dinner with some of the NYUAD community. Aside from stuffing our faces like it was Thanksgiving, it was lovely to acknowledge time set aside

Today I'm just sick enough to stay in bed and "rest"...aka catch up on work and eat ice cream cake and Krispy Kremes. One of my professors assigned Artaud's The Theater and Its Double warning us that it would make no sense. After all, it is now widely accepted that the author was psychotic. The overarching idea that there is some deeper meaning in life which we generally ignore and which it is the aim of true theater to reflect is intriguing...but I'm not sure where the analogies between theater and alchemy or golden dolpins fits in. Try synthesizing that material into a class presentation.

Kenya

2011-04-01T00:42:00.003-06:00

I've put this post off WAAAAY too long, first because I lost about 300 pictures that I took while in Kenya and was hoping to get them back and include them in this post, then because our first week back at classes turned out to be one of the busiest this semester! The first few days back from Africa, I didn't even know what to say about it except that whatever picture you have in your head about Kenya...it's exactly like that. From the deep red dirt (my Converse All-Stars will never be the same) to the thatched huts, savannah wildlife, and rich, earthy smell...sad, I know, but it sometimes felt like being in The Truman Show or on a ride at Disney World. I'd wonder briefly when we were going to hit the edge of the set or the end of the ride, but for six unforgettable days it just kept going.

We flew into Nairobi and then rode in safari vans about 5 hours down the (mostly-paved) Nairobi-Mombasa highway to a town called Makindu. Within the first hour we saw dozens of giraffes by the side of the road...way more impressive than in the zoo. We stayed at a sikh temple in Makindu. It was beautiful, and the people were friendly; I never would have guessed there's such a big Indian population in Kenya! Despite the fact that it's a little hard to stomach spicy curry for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the food was good and no one was tempted to complain in light of the fact that the front of the dining hall was decorated with signs depicting starving children and reading "Don't waste food." The amazingly fresh tropical fruit was the best. There were always people standing by the highway selling pieces of sugar-cane, tomatoes, and other fruits, but in Makindu I bought mangoes from a women's co-op next to the temple. I'd only had fresh mango once before, in the States, and thought I didn't like it. I now know that what I don't like is unripe mango...go figure.

Once we finally made it to the center, the kids in the Early Childhood Program ran out to the gates to greet us with songs and poems they had prepared, similar to this one that we saw the next day...

I've worked with children before, but I kept thinking over the next couple of days that I'd never met a group more vibrant, patient, funny, or loving as this one. We were completely taken with them. I'll never forget one group walking in line to escort us to the bus stop, marching in rhythm to a chant that said, "We are moving beautiful movement. We are flying up like angels." Also unforgettable...I think someone asked them to teach us a song one afternoon as we were playing together, and they started singing Shakira's Waka Waka song from the FIFA World Cup. The kids thought it was hilarious when we started singing along...that's cosmopolitanism. :)

Aside from just loving on and playing with them, we had several visits with Michael, Agnes, Ruth, and Stephen, the leaders of the Makindu Children's Center. They have a great model: they work with over 400 orphaned or "vulnerable" children, but it isn't an orphanage. All children are placed with guardians in local families, and attend local schools. They have a small farm with dairy cows, chickens, and an orchard so they can be partially self-sufficient and teach adults in the community how to earn income through similar projects. The center worries about people becoming too dependent on it...their goal is to shut down because the community has improved they are no longer needed!

One day, we visited some of the sites on the outskirts of Makindu to see what food distribution and home visits there look like. This was one of the most moving parts of the trip for me...seeing what houses look like, where the kids walk to get water (this is the fourth or fifth year of a drought) and how prevalent HIV/AIDS is. So after all that, it was kind of a shock to leave for our safari the next day and stay overnight at an upscale tourist lodge. The lava flows and volcanic valleys were simply breathtaking...I had no idea Kenya was so beautiful. As we went out into the park the first day, it was just after a short rain and there weren't many animals but there were amazing clouds and several rainbows in the sky. I had this feeling of peace and started thinking about what the Swahili words hakuna matata actually mean. It's so hard for my soul to be at rest even for a second. To let go of all the tension of being a college student and live as if I really believe that God has got me taken care of. To live with the purpose. Although I did feel a little guilty in the luxury of the safari lodge, it was fantastic to go those couple of days with nature everywhere...no music, no TVs, birds and lizards crawling on the tables around us and monkeys in the distance at dinner. He The safari was definitely one of the greatest experiences I've had...and just saying, Kenya is the 24th country I've been to...I've done some cool things. Here's a video taken from the terrace where we had our meals...yep, we got to wake up to this view (often with animals roaming around!) in the morning...

We flew back into Dubai almost exactly one year since the day I passed through that same terminal during Candidate Weekend. It's amazing that now I walk past that Metro train, feel that humid Gulf air hit my face, and read all the Arabic signs welcoming travelers to Dubai with different eyes. As I was sitting on our bus back to Abu Dhabi at 4am listening to the Bollywood music on the radio, I got super reflective. Let's face it...NYUAD students sit pretty much on the top of the privilege pile. I won't lie...it is nice to be in such a secure place sort of looking out at a vast plane of opportunities before me, there for the taking. But it's also strange to be in a place where so many things are handed to me when I feel like I should be struggling more for them. (omg Miley Cyrus was right...it is about the climb...)

I think this is one of the reasons we found Kenya so refreshing. We saw the other end of the spectrum, where people are working hard to improve there situation and there's not much place to go but up. Finally, we could get our hands dirty, put our energy into something that produces results, start using our skills and connections to do something with significance for someone else. Because we've received so much. It's only year 1, but I feel like if the powers that be expect a return for the investment they've made in us NYUADers, we're already approaching the firstborn child level of obligation. The Makindu Children's Center is doing amazing things with the resources they have and its a model that can be replicated in other places...we just want to help them continue to develop. Since coming back to Abu Dhabi, we've started working on more long-term ideas. Hopefully, we'll be able to raise an endowment fund so the center isn't dependent on one-time donations. They also need a database to help them keep track of children and guardians and apply for grants. And of course, plenty of us want to go back, so an internship program is in the works! In addition, we're working on a narrative telling the story of the center, some of the children and workers there, and our involvement with the project as it unfolds.

Oman

2011-03-04T00:21:00.000-06:00

There's nothing better than a spontaneous weekend camping trip. And I think best part was that not only did we see secluded beaches, climb up to spectacular mountain views, and swim with THOUSANDS of harmless flying fish and jellyfish, we spent a whole night sitting around the fire shooting the breeze and NO ONE had to leave for meetings or homework. We need to do this more often.

I have to make note of one strange experience...On the way down, we passed through some areas with clothes EVERYWHERE. Literally hundreds of scarves, shirts, shoes, kandoras, you name it of varying sizes and states of decomposition. Our guide told us they were from people who had sailed to the coast from Iran and were trying to walk into Oman as illegal immigrants/refugees. They'd spend the night in the mountains and then change clothes before heading to the city so they won't be recognized. I don't know anything else about the situation so I shouldn't comment. All I can say is that the sight was pretty surreal.

Events of the Day

2011-03-03T06:42:00.000-06:00

Started my on-campus internship. My first task is to propose a budget and order books on spirituality to build a library for the Spiritual Life Center...RIGHT up my alley! Learned protest chants in Arabic. The opening show of CHAOS (the first production ever written, rehearsed, and performed completely in Abu Dhabi) was cancelled due to it being one of the windiest days ever in the city. Also, wind made it a bad day for window-washing...the cradle broke near the top of our building and swung over to the adjacent side of it, several workers stranded for nearly 2 hours before firemen broke a window on the 38th floor and pulled them through. Let me tell you, watching that plus pieces of your building flying by the window is...disconcerting. But everyone's safe!

Everyone's also a little bummed. This week has been kind of hellish and neither going to bed early nor the camaraderie of late-night discussions can cure it. I wander to Starbuck's with my iPod last night. The ladies in front of me were imitating this video ("Do the Creep" with Nicki Minaj from SNL), which is also disconcertingly descriptive of Abu Dhabi's beaches. So we had a nice laugh waiting in line for coffee. And it gave me just enough energy to (almost) get through my Arabic homework.

Happy Australia Day!

2011-01-26T13:46:00.000-06:00

First day of classes...glad to be back. I had one class on globalization followed by three hours of US history from a global perspective, which will normally be followed by two hours of reviewing cases for Government and Religion. Yikes....a little too much repetitive philosophizing for one day. I think I may have to rearrange my schedule a bit for my less stressed semester to survive. After class, Tom and I started carrying out our mission to stress less and explore more with a walk to a local bookstore (I always meant to go but never got around to it) and some exploration of our school library. Amazing how many great books and films we have that I never took the time to look through! Stocked up on popcorn for those movies, watched the sun set over the mosque, and stopped in at the Australia Day celebrations at Le Meridian hotel. Didn't really meet anyone our age, but we did get to sing along with some Aussie tunes. One day of classes, and my soul's still at peace. So far, so good.

Dubai

2011-01-25T22:52:00.000-06:00

I spent the last couple of days before classes in Dubai, catching up with friends there and taking some time to relax, reflect, and plan for the coming semester. Monday was family day at the Global Village (only women and children, families, and couples are allowed admission), so in a move of slight dishonesty, we paired off for the night. For once, my Regional Music of the Middle East class had some practical application...there was a group performing what I could actually recognize as a Sufi dervish dikr! (A very audible ceremony carried out by members of the Sufi sect of Islam, for those who haven't spent a semester engaging the musical theory of the Near East). One of the best moments of the night was being offered samples of dozens of varieties of honey in the Yemen area...some with slightly shady names like "Honeymoon mix" and "Only for married." It was a great evening wandering around chatting...and I managed to attempt bargaining for the first time! But I'm still puzzled as to what booths like the one below represent about the countries in which they're located.

Below: Erin and I in front of the Afghanistan area

Home again, home again

2011-01-23T13:53:00.000-06:00

Things I rediscovered about the Dhabs:
The smell of the salty Gulf air and the sod on the lawns makes it feel like the beginning of summer...even in January. Room 708 rocks...we came back to a room Nicole (and Josh) can decorated with notes, streamers, and a wall of blown-up pictures of our best moments from last semester. Our room frequently and instantly turns into a lounge, and the conversations are always worth staying up until 3am for. Being pathetically co-dependent can be surprisingly blissful. I still feel slightly awkward when people come to clear my dirty dishes away, even when I just run downstairs for lunch in the building I call home. Even when the water filter and the shower are fixed they don't work quite like you expect them to.
I got my 33 BOOKS for classes today, so my bookshelf is happily full again. Everything on campus is clean and neat after the holidays, but considerably less so now that the spoils of our holidays in the States have exploded out of our suitcases. Even the supermarket next door seems to have done some cleaning and reorganizing...all the pens, toothbrushes, and papers were stocked neatly in place. My first day back ended with jazz and an art exhibit on Saadiyat Island, the future home of NYUAD. Jet lag and all, it's sogood to be back!

All that's standing between me and a BREAK is...

2010-11-28T01:30:00.009-06:00

...an exam. Some meetings and lectures. Some Christmas shopping and errands. 17-hour plane trip. A to-do list including things like "presentation analyzing musical theory in pieces from 20th century Egyptian and Syrian art music" which is so long and overwhelming that I've put things like "shower" on it because it makes me feel good to know I'm crossing things off. So sorry for slacking off blogging.

So my I was reminiscing today about how my Thanksgiving morning started with a zombie. Some students had gone to be extras for the first zombie movie screened in Abu Dhabi...I was so tired I didn't think I could pull an all-nighter, but I'm already regretting that decision. As my mentor Rubén Polendo has been known to say, perhaps our primary goal in life is to create memories. Anyway, at about 5am, the zombie extras returned and decided in their sleep-deprived state that it would be a good idea to sneak into people's rooms and wake them with zombie screams. Yeah. Thankfully, they went to the other bedroom where Cassie and Nicole were sleeping, but it still took a bit to realize what was going on...and that I couldn't possibly be hearing what I first thought was a catfight from the 7th floor of an apartment building in downtown Abu Dhabi.

On the bright side, this week I got to watch people try Dr. Pepper (it's really only the Texas who are huge fans), root beer, and snickerdoodles for the first time. :)

College kids and animals

2010-11-18T08:12:00.000-06:00

Went on a trip to Al Ain, a city on the other side of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, organized by my awesome RA Maria! Visited a goat and camel souk. In case you ever wanted to know, Saudi camels are black about twice the size of their tan counterparts...very intimidating. Camels are awkward animals...I still think there is potential for an "awkward camel" hand gesture. The camels in the market were separated into breeding, riding, and butchering varieties. Not pleasant to think about, but I do want to try a camel burger...or at least a bite of one.

Al Ain camel souk (market)

Our friendly and not-too-creepy camel vendor, keen to take pictures with each of us

Al Ain's answer to Ayer's Rock

After the souk, we took a super speedy walk around the zoo. Got back and tried to take a nap. Ended up starting my essay thanks to Manuel, then watching High Fidelity thanks to Juan, and then going to the midnight premiere of Harry Potter 7 in Abu Dhabi! Don't know why it came out nearly 2 days earlier here, but US fans...get pumped! Got back about 3:30am on the one bus left running in Abu Dhabi, got in a few hours of sleep and then woke up just in time for breakfast before finishing the essay and going to the last planning weekend for Candidate Weekend!!! In just a few hours, the first batch of finalists from last years applicants will be arriving. It brings back all the excitement of our own selection, and also a little nervousness because the dynamic of our little community is going to be changing! At least this time, we're the ones who know what we're doing. Luka, safe travels...see you soon!!!

Eid Mubarak!

2010-11-16T11:52:00.001-06:00

So it's the beginning of the 3-day festival of Eid, which according to Wikipedia commemorates Abraham's "willingness to sacrifice his son for God." For us, it means a week off of school...FINALLY!!! The Sama flu finally caught up with me, so I've mostly spent my days napping, chatting in the dining hall, reading MLIA and watching YouTube videos, and browsing websites like this one. Mixed in with that was an absolutely fantastic afternoon spent exploring Abu Dhabi's bus system, a not-so-enjoyable Kanye West concert, a roomie dinner date to Fuddrucker's with Cassie, a trip to the public beach (which turned out to be way too full of creepers) and a game of sardines in Sama Tower. Yay!

Also, Shaked, if you are reading this, it has been decided that the hippie pants you gave me look like they belonged to MC Hammer...which made them very useful in a spontaneous rendition of "U Can't Touch This" in the flashback tour of 90s music that happened earlier today.

2010-11-07T15:32:00.000-06:00

In the last 48 hours, I...

2010-11-07T02:37:00.001-06:00

Wrote paragraphs in Arabic, slept for 5 hours, and then showed up to a class so full of tired people that the professor made us run around in circles with her to wake us up.
Gave up standing in line for coffee to finish reading a Supreme Court case in the 15 minutes between classes. Had a discussion of Hitler's persuasive writing techniques and what separates a Hitler from a Biko, Fannon, or Malcolm X. Everything's clearer in hindsight, but in the midst of living life, how do you know which sort of leader the people you put our trust in will become? Still believe that violence is never "justified." But in a fallen world, nations get stuck between rocks and hard places and there are no easy answers. No good options. Personally, I still believe there's only one answer to this dilemma...
Skipped lunch to pound out the final draft of an essay/Wikipedia Supreme Court Cases during two exhaustingly focused hours in the library. My "Brennan" small group spent 2 hours drawing and redrawing some very crooked lines in the sand regarding separation of church and state.
Rushed downstairs to catch a shuttle to Sama...where I found that the smell of rotting sewage had returned to our room. Packed in 10 minutes flat, submitted the essay, and rushed downstairs to catch a bus to the desert.
Spent such night with my class, in the sand. Under the stars. Ran up and down the dunes until my muscles were screaming in protest. Then rolled and slid down the sides instead. Sat in complete silence. Watched a belly dancer...and Tom and Alex trying to burn orange peels. Remembered being in the same place last March during Candidate Weekend...who could have known how far we'd come? Watched Russians conquer the dune with their flag. Got six wishes off of shooting stars. Ate Fun Dip under a palm tree. Rode camels...not elegantly. Fell asleep swapping stories in the dark.Woke up to sleeping bags like a string of beads on the dune and a pile of other sleeping bodies on the carpets in the camp below. I'm pretty sure my classmates who slept on top of the dune and then sand-boarded down with their sleeping bags in the morning reached a new level of epic-ness. Dune-bashed twice before 9am.
There is a timeless presence and energy about the desert that is perfectly contagious. A night rolling around in the sand without a building in sight or a mention of homework was exactly what we needed. I was so busy being happy that I forgot to take pictures.
Came back to city life. Utterly failed to banish the sand from my person and possessions. Got in a quick nap, then went on a hectic and unsuccessful search for Indian clothes. Discovered that unless properly arranged, a sari just looks like a toga. Celebrated the Indian holiday of Diwali in the courtyard at Downtown campus. Had the stress of the afternoon melted away with a hug, henna, Bollywood dances, and the beauty of hundreds of candles and flowers. Had Indian food I actually liked! Sat at a table with a philosophy professor and realized that entering this field would be detrimental to my mental health...I analyze everything based on principles anyway. Make it my job, and I'd get completely lost in my own head. There's one more major I can cross off list.
Talked to one of the security guards about how she has to work on Diwali. Went to see The Social Network...note to America, there are roads in Bosnia. I'm sure we have the intellect, but still trying to figure out why I don't think the environment of NYUAD is conducive to innovation that produces anything as groundbreaking as Facebook.
Went to bed with just a few hours before catching the bus to volunteer for Formula 1.
I'm not complaining. I like being busy and this weekend was an incredibly action-packed exception.

Three days, one post.

2010-11-03T12:27:00.002-06:00

Peer-edited essays for Prejudice. Playing with words makes me so happy...I may be destined for a literature major after all. Attended a lecture on suicide. According to this guy (and by guy, I mean professor and expert in the field), dark and rainy climates have little to do with suicide rates. It's more about isolation. There are four groups in society which are likely to commit suicide. In one, a person is connected to multiple networks but those networks don't intersect. Therefore, they feel torn between two cultures, sets of values, etc. First-generation immigrants would belong to this group, as well as...college students! Another category is one in which society is made up more of driven individuals than by close networks of people...a situation illustrated by Western societies like that of the US. The fact that something like 15% of incoming NYU freshman test positive for some sort of mental illness is starting to make more sense...
We may be insular and slightly dysfunctional, but as I was laying on the grass, chatting in the courtyard, and watching people build F1 cars and play in the fountain, I was once again VERY thankful to be a part of this community. It sounds simplistic, but it's a pure sentiment.

Started "Fit for Life" with personal trainer Stan the gym man. All we did were some basic side planks, sit-ups, etc. but I'm still a little sore. Don't judge...I can only improve from here. Walked to school and saw them planting pansies by the fountain on Electra Street. It was so tempting to steal one for the appartment...apparently one of my classmates did. Met with Vice-Chancellor Al Bloom, Provost Fabio Piano, Dean of Students Jim Larimore, and a panel of students to talk about academic stress and work overload. I'm proud of us. We're functional enough to keep the big-picture goals of the university in sight, keep constructive conversation from slipping into complaining, and really listen to each other. And that convinces me that no matter how many more editorials I have to write about academic stress, we're going to be okay. Time for Arabic and SLEEP...don't want to be warn out for desert camping tomorrow!

Also, http://bookshelfporn.com/

Halloween #3 (the real deal!)

2010-10-31T14:43:00.000-06:00

Talked about costumes in Arabic. Argued the complexities of the American court system in a great preceptor session. Hung out in the library watching The Battle of Alegiers. Chatted over lunch, took a survey to discover my parenting style for my Prejudice class...should I be worried that this is involved in the same lesson as reading Mein Kampf? Edited essays in the courtyard...it's almost winter which means it's a sunny 80 degrees EVERY DAY! Took a nap! Had a Halloween-themed dinner in the dining hall...the rare treat of turkey and deviled eggs and pumpkin risotto eyeballs, anyone? Printed our first copy of the school newspaper, The Fishbowl Tribune!!! Met with an advisor from the local newspaper The National and got psyched all over again for the future of our little journalistic endeavor. Had pizza and cupcakes while learning reading strategies and note-taking skills. Was about to finish Arabic and go to bed early when Cassie said, "So, how busy are you guys right now?" We proceeded to rap the essay we were supposed to be editing for Prejudice, complete with glow sticks and backup dancers. Our lives are awesome.

Nicole and Cass with their creations

Halloween #2

2010-10-31T11:23:00.000-06:00

Discovered that not all Oklahomans refer to sweatpants as "hot pants"...it's just Zach. Grocery-shopped with Cassie at the co-op, where we found a strand of little UAE flags to brighten up our wall, as well as some UAE camel birthday hats which we will definitely be returning for. I'm amazed by how many fruits, vegetables, and spices I don't recognize in this part of the world. I can't wait until our ovens are installed so I can start exploring! So far, all we have are vent hoods above the counter tops where the stoves should be...it's like they're mocking us. Apparently, there were supposed to be kitchen appliances which were installed, but then some miscommunication occurred and they were taken out, and now they are scheduled to be reinstalled anytime between now and...January. Good job, Sama Tower. Until then, we're getting creative with our microwaves...but definitely not with rice cookers or hot plates because that would be in violation of our residence contracts.

Kayaked in the mangrove swamps just outside the city. It was really relaxing and surreal to see crabs and fox dens just inches away from me and the skyline in the distance. We kayaked up a newly dug channel which destroyed a lot of the red fox habitat and heard a little about the effects pollution from construction sites is having on the mangroves. They're really essential to controlling the salinity of the water in this part of the world, so hopefully the ambitious city planners of Abu Dhabi will take this into account!

Had professor's children trick-or-treat to our room while I attempted to form an opinion about Wallace v. Jaffree for Government and Religion. I'm sure the profs were amused and slightly alarmed by our fascination with children. College is great, but glimpses into normal family life are sadly lacking. Got "headless" with some of my fellow creative writers and submitted that Supreme Court opinion at exactly midnight. I'm amused at my own audacity...I disagreed with Justice Sandra Day O'Conner.

An Unfocused Day

2010-10-27T15:02:00.000-06:00

French toast and maple syrup for breakfast! Had a coffee-free morning, walked back for a nap, spent the afternoon having lovely conversations and meetings. Failed utterly at feeling satisfied with my work on the newest edition of the newspaper about to be published. It's great...just when it hits midnight and that essay on prejudice and Arabic mid-term (and all that subconscious stress I can't even begin to explain) rears its ugly head, I run into a Foundations of Science kid on the stairs and empathy-hug the defeat away. I don't love all-nighters. But I do love college.

I'm Still Alive!

2010-10-26T14:39:00.000-06:00

For the sake of my own memory, and for anyone who's still reading back home, I'm going to give the daily postcard-style posts another fighting try.

Discovered the pork section at Spinney's with Cassie. Bought some $7 bacon...but we're too poor for pulled pork and pumpkins. Listened to the life story of Richard Revesz, Dean of NYU's law school, and affirmed that I won't cross law school off my list of possibilities just yet. Sampled a smoothie place discovered by Alistair (a fellow UWC graduate). Was too distracted to write or study Arabic, but had some good chats and went to bed late. And happy.

J-Sexing it up (and I mean that in the most respectfully platonic way)

2010-10-05T14:57:00.001-06:00

Sunday was our first class with NYU President John Sexton. There's no use denying that even the most cynical of us seem to find our university president truly charismatic. Combine achievement with wisdom, vision, approachability, and an interesting life story, and you begin to form a picture of the character I've been introduced to. Although it's called "The Relationship of Government and Religion," examining the US Constitution is only incidentally part of a course that's more about engaging in "epicyclical conversations" about our own minds and developing the skills of exegesis and argumentation. If that sounds dryly academic, it isn't. It can't be when the professor is personally familiar with the system we're discussing and has no problem standing on tables, giving students advice on their love lives, and doling out hugs as encouragement during lectures.

On Sunday night, we had a student dinner at the Intercontinental Hotel and then watched a performance by Tisch students entitled "NYUAD: The Musical." It was surprising how much of the reality of our lives they captured (fish bowl, Sama flu, anyone?) and we had a few good laughs. But the best part of the evening by far was the sense of "family" that came from our president asking us all to hug each other. I'm not the type to be "starstruck," but any leader who can invoke the power of 150 simultaneous hugs earns trust and respect from me.

NYU President John Sexton (and me)

A Doll's House

2010-09-23T01:21:00.001-06:00

I heard someone make an analogy that Sama Tower is like a doll's house; it looks quite nice, but nothing works. An exaggeration? Yes. But...the electricity goes off in the laundry rooms and only the laundry rooms periodically. Vent fans have been installed in the kitchens although no stoves (only counters) are in evidence. Some of the elevators are "mysteriously" draped with gray material and beep at you sporadically. The dining hall ceiling has been known to start spurting water on several occasions, and, most dramatically, a window was apparently sucked out of the 30th floor. It fell onto a car below, totaling it, and "window guards" were subsequently installed in every room. Of course these are only minor inconveniences in our daily lives (no more sitting on the windowsill to read for class!), but it's been enough to inspire a conspiracy which has spread throughout Facebook, the unofficial school newspaper, and the popular consciousness of NYUAD. The gist of it is that the reason we're not allowed on the upper floors and there are practically no ugly people here is that there's a clandestine plan in place. When the world ends in 2012, Sama Tower will turn into a spaceship and we will be the future of humanity. I'm not sure how I feel about this but I do know one thing...if they want this spaceship to survive space travel, someone's going to have to fix those windows.

My Weekenday

2010-09-20T00:17:00.000-06:00

Due to the Eid holiday at the end of Ramadan, we had a day of school to make up on Saturday, which brought our weekend down to one day...Friday! It's going to take me a while to get used to Friday and Saturday being the weekend, but even this mini one was pretty awesome.

I got to have a sleepover with the Sulaiman girls, whose family is from Cleveland and who live in the "suburbs" of Abu Dhabi

We had some fun in the sun...

...and then after classes on Saturday there was an NYUAD beach day at the Corniche. Jellyfish stings put a damper on it for some people, but the warm water, sun, and Coldstone definitely helped give the illusion that we'd had a full weekend without homework waiting for us at the dorm.

A Different Day

2010-09-19T14:38:00.000-06:00

This morning on the shuttle, I told Nicole that something interesting was going to happen and it would be a good day. Maybe it's the fact that it's Sunday AND the second day of an identical schedule of classes AND the beginning of a new week after a one-day weekend have left me disoriented...I don't know. The day just felt different.

Turns out I was right; a few hours later I got an email saying that the Executive Director and Chairmen of the Board of United World Colleges International are in Abu Dhabi this week and want to meet with all the UWC alumni on Tuesday! Aside from the fact that I'm always happy to maintain the UWC cult and proselytize NYU Abu Dhabi, I'm eager to hear these men's perspective on the unity and functionality of United World College in Mostar, and of course the UWC movement in general. There are about 8 or 9 UWCers here in Sama Tower and judging by the number of times we ended up at the same dinner tables during Marhaba week, I'd say we're almost magnetically attracted to each other. Now if only I can get as excited about my Arabic homework as I am for Tuesday's dinner...

Spontaneous Sentimentality

2010-09-14T13:53:00.003-06:00

It's been said before and I'll say it again: it's the people who make or break a place. Today I sent a maintenance request to address our new and leaking shower and toilet. Within less than an hour we heard a knock on our door, our bathrooms were fully functional, and there was a reply in my inbox saying, "Job complete." For once.

For some reason, that was just a minute bright spot in a day full of roommates who call me to tell me she's buying the ridiculous tshirts we found (can ANYONE explain the slogan "Why milk? You do it all for your king-ox." ??!!), a family who takes me out for lunch at Subway and hangs out with me at the local mall, a shared box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts, a spontaneous lounge party, and countless other small but priceless moments. I'd post more pictures, but my unskilled shots wouldn't do much to capture the atmosphere of the day.

Some lists for my life...

2010-09-13T13:36:00.001-06:00

Lists are my sanity, my happiness, and basically the way my life works. Therefore, I'll lay it out, plain and honest.

Reasons I've found my first week at NYUAD intimidating:
-Having classmates who can come up with nearly 150 words and phrases to describe our alma mater on the spot.
-Knowing my scholarship is provided by royalty.
-Being surrounded by beautiful people with accomplishments like leading multiple student organizations, speaking up to four or more languages, playing in national orchestras and on championship sports teams, and having saved someone's life.
-Knowing people who can compose music and describe the latest developments in neuroscience to me, in another language, with equal skill and eloquence.
-Having classes in which the author of the textbook is also the professor.
-Listening to hours and days of experts tell us that they believe in us and in this project, which could ultimately be more significant than, say, the Human Genome Project?

Reasons I feel right at home:
-Being surrounded by people whose accomplishments also include reading all of the Harry Potter books, baking cakes from scratch
-Not feeling too ridiculous for spending an evening watching YouTube videos and tossing a bouncy ball with my roommates and shopping for the following treasures with my friends.

-Having every staff member from administration to security encourage us with their enthusiasm and excitement for our arrival. Having professors who are willing to be not just teachers but mentors and a sort of family.
-Sunshine. Every day.

Reasons I'm inspired:
...see all of the above.

Christmas comes early

2010-09-12T14:22:00.000-06:00

This morning Cassie and I woke up to workers installing a full-length mirror! Previously, these coveted commodities had only been found in select rooms (inexplicably concentrated on the guys' floor) and so, petty as it may be, we girls felt much more at home with it firmly in place.
Before lunch, we also went to pick up our books before classes start tomorrow. Let me tell you...for a bookworm such as myself, nothing tops being given a bag full of thousands of dihrams worth of books that I didn't have to pay for. In fact, some of us were so excited that we started reminiscing about our bookshelves and collections at home...which led to the following evidence of our geeky enthusiasm about the start of classes.

This afternoon, I was invited for a trip to the beach and dinner with the Sulaiman family, American expatriates in their third year here through a position with the Cleveland Clinic. As evidenced by a gift of silly bands and an invitation back for a sleepover, their girls assured me that I have already gained three more sisters and become part of the family. :) The night ended with Skype calls to Shaked in BiH (every amazing thing I see I wish I could be showing to you, querida!) and to my family. Eid or Christmas...what better holiday could I ask for?

Welcome to Our World

2010-09-10T21:07:00.002-06:00

Sama Tower, my new home

7th Floor "London" themed Lounge

Violet NYUAD pride

Tried to get pictures of the courtyard, but it was so humid the camera lens fogged up!

The Burj Khalifa in Dubai - the world's tallest building

Halfway up the world's tallest building

What was left from the observation deck to the top

The toy city below

The same view from above...

...and below

Sama Tower dining hall

Campus Lounge in Sama Tower

Living area and kitchen in my dorm room on the 7th floor. I share it with Alyazia from Abu Dhabi, Cassie from California and Michigan, Nicole from Argentina and Colorado, and the newest addition to our family: a shopping cart we found by the alley.

Our bathroom with a bidet

Alyazia's and my still-undecorated bedroom

The early morning view from our living room window.

Lost in Transit...

2010-09-06T12:31:00.000-06:00

NYUAD: A Love Story

2010-09-04T23:02:00.000-06:00

Below is another post resurrected from my time in Mostar. It was written shortly after I visited NYUAD for the first time in March, at which point I was still in turmoil over college decisions. I refer to the tale of my involvement with NYUAD as a love story in jest, but I was very skeptical of the concept at first; my commitment did require the university earning my trust...which they've done admirably. And although time will reveal some flaws in any institution, these reasons for choosing NYUAD haven't changed and the initial excitement hasn't died, all of which I think is reflected in the following:

It's been in the news and in the making for nearly 5 years...is it a depository for oil money, a government pawn, a trophy for NYU's Manhattan campus, a Middle Eastern travel sponsor targeting unsuspecting students? I was prepared to believe any of the above, so it was a surprise akin to (if you'll allow me to be a bit irreverent) something between religious conversion and falling in love when I went to the March Candidate Weekend and was completely converted to a cause I see as anything but pointless and pretentious.

In astonishing ways, things fell into place. I expected to feel bribed during the elaborate and all-expenses paid selection weekend, but bizarre as it sounds, it was more like building a relationship through a series of conversations. But first the basics: NYUAD is created to be a relatively small research university offering the same top-tier liberal arts and sciences degree as their Manhattan campus. More than that, it's toting itself "the world's Honors College," pulling the best students and faculty from many dozens of countries and nearly every continent. And even more than that, it has a vision of examining what the world will look like in the next couple of centuries in the context of various theories of cosmopolitanism, globalization, and cultural identity in hopes that students will be non-traditional leaders carrying civilization into the most ideal and sustainable future possible. And that's just innately exciting. This inaugural class consists of just over 100 students and about 40 faculty on a temporary downtown campus (permanent facilities are scheduled to open on Saadiyat Island in 2014, so you can imagine what a close-knit community it will be. It was glimpses of this network which blew me away, and what impresses me most is the extent to which personal sacrifices have already been made for this project. I didn't expect President John Sexton's legendary charisma and enthusiasm, nor the potential professors' candor in describing why they've decided to leave jobs at the world's top universities for this crazy endeavor, nor that chatting with Dean of Students Jim Larimore and other staff about living in Abu Dhabi would be so cathartic. From what I have seen, they certainly have the means to turn their idealism into reality.

It's also interesting to note that such enthusiasm hasn't always been present. There has been a fascinating evolution of opinion about the project as evidenced articles from several years ago full of cynicism and doubt to applause from organizations like the Human Rights Watch and an academic world which is supposedly calling involvement in this first generation a "less than a once in a lifetime experience." It's true, there is an undeniable aura of possibility pervading Abu Dhabi. For one thing, unlike in Dubai, the government prides itself upon it's long-term plans for economic and environmental sustainability, and with projects like the Cleveland Clinic's new facilities and the zero carbon emissions city of Masdar in the making, the future looks promising. It's an exciting time to be in such a truly cosmopolitan city where something unique is always happening (camel races, concerts on the Corniche, or sandboarding, anyone?), and the people are so diverse that on the beach I saw abayas, bikinis, and everything in between.

I am by nature I person who overanalyzes every aspect of every experience, struggles with decisions, and always second guesses even the ones I'm satisfied with. And yet, here I have no doubts. I have rarely been as sure of anything as I am that becoming part of NYUAD is worthwhile. It was not even on my radar until recently, and the option sort of fell into my arms since I only applied after being nominated here at UWCiM. But it fits on so many levels that I can't deny the connection...not to mention that it gives me a chance to make use of the fact that UWC is such a similar community by drawing upon my experiences here. And then there are the full scholarship, study abroad, research, and other intrinsic benefits of being at a university like NYU! It is a sacrifice in some ways, since I won't be serving with City Year in Cleveland as planned and will be away from my family for much of these four years, but I can't think of a better place to add another dimension to my identity. There are many more aspects of the city, the university, and the decision that promise to keep me on an intellectual and emotional high for quite a while...ask me and you'll have real difficulty getting me to shut up! I figured I'd start with this post in order to fill in those of you back in the States who haven't had more than pieces of the story until now and to hopefully start some conversations about what promises to be historic and, for the vast majority of people involved, life-changing.

By the time I got the offer of admission (and finished leaping around in circles and screaming in the park with Shaked), I was already at peace with the decision. About the only thing that would have changed my mind would have been getting struck by lightening on the way to the post office. I wasn't, so as of today the card is signed, sealed, and sent off. The commitment is made. I'm moving to the Middle East and couldn't be more thrilled...but I'm gonna need a new name for the blog.

Abu Dhabi in Pictures

2010-08-23T21:25:00.001-06:00

This post comes from my previous blog and was posted right after my first visit there in March for a Candidate Weekend. These were arranged for potential students to come visit the campus and get a better idea of what the university is all about (more on this coming in next post!) and to be interviewed (read benevolently scrutinized) for a short but intense 3 days. I'm curious to see how much my impressions differ from March to September; so much has already changed since then. For example, I know know the figure 2nd from the left in the picture below as Alyazia, my roommate!

The Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi is one of the most impressive structures I've ever seen and hands down the most stunningly beautiful. These pictures don't do it's size justice. To give you a frame of reference, the prayer room underneath the two largest domes in the first picture will easily hold 10,000 people. The mosque was just recently completed with materials imported from around the world, and it contains the world's largest crystal chandelier and rug, seen above. For those who are wondering, no, it is not required to wear the abaya and head covering everywhere in the UAE, but it is done out of respect when visiting mosques.

A model of Saadiyat Island, located off the coast of Abu Dhabi, on which architectural tributes to the Louvre, and the Guggenheim will be located along with the campus of NYUAD and other cultural attractions.

Evidence of the incredible expansion in the UAE...hopefully at a more sustainable level in Abu Dhabi than in Dubai! On the right is a view of the world's tallest building from Dubai airport. It's even more impressive up close, but since I saw it in the wee hours of the morning the first time, this is as close as I could get with the camera! To the left is a view of construction seen from the Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi...we were told construction continues 24-hours a day, but only at night in the hottest months of summer.

And here is the Emirates Palace "hotel" itself, surely one of the most expensive venues in the world. Again, these pictures hardly do it justice, but suffice it to say that the Ferrari's and Lamborghini in its valet parking and the number of dignitaries who have stayed here are probably a good indicator of its opulence. As for the interior, they say everything that looks like gold is. We had a multiple-course dinner in their outdoor gardens on our last night, complete with the sound of the ocean, dancers, and view of the gazebos and fountains which kept me just waiting for a princess Jasmine to appear. It was an unforgettable experience but a bit surreal for this Midwesterner!

Despite the plentiful opulence, Abu Dhabi seems to be a lively and comfortingly less than immaculate city. It's a hub connecting North, South, East, and West in many ways, and an ideal place to make connections...like the one my coyear from UWC in Hong Kong and I made here.

2010-08-10T15:17:00.001-06:00

Some might call it "off the beaten path." Robert Frost calls is "the road less traveled." Whatever you call that road, I'm on it, and the next stop is New York University in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates. For my geographically disinclined friends, that's on the Persian Gulf, right about here:

Although it's not my first time living outside the USA, it's my first time in the Middle East and the first time anyone has attended NYUAD, so it promises a good challenge. The reason I call this life "parallel" is as exciting as this adventure sounds, it's a huge shift from my original plans to do a year of volunteering and then "settle" into a more traditional college experience. In fact, the path my life would have taken had I attended a US university is easy enough to imagine that any alternative seems a little unreal, like a parallel universe.

According to my father, adult life includes making decisions that aren't right vs. wrong so much as choosing one out of several good options. I hope that here, I'll be able to share what happens to me and my classmates as a result of our choosing this leap of faith. The blog ends with my time in Abu Dhabi. But the road? Next destination still unknown.