Mom's visit ... continued

In actual fact, Mom is already back in Canada. Busy times and computer issues kept us from further blogging...

The Official "First Day of School" Photo, actually taken on the second day of school

Ty's CELTA course brings him to Abu Dhabi 3 or 4 times a week. It's pretty intense! At least for his first week, though, he had some company on the drive to AD, as my Mom and I were eager to play tourist in Abu Dhabi.

Our first Abu Dhabi adventure was the Guggenheim exhibit at the Emirates Palace Hotel. A few of you know that my Mom is an artist, so it seemed like a good idea to bring her to see one of the art exhibits in town. The Guggenheim specializes, of course, in contemporary art, which is not her cup of tea, but which grew on her as we wandered around, looking at Pollocks and Kandinskys and the like.

Not the Guggenheim exhibit, but a different one about proposed developments on Saadiyat Island

Not a Jackson Pollock, but Ty in the kitchen....

Not a Kandinsky, but a vibrant display of colour and form nonetheless...

She was so inspired that a few days later, as we were stuck inside due to a sandstorm, she painted her own little abstract art piece.

My Mommy's artwork

From the Emirates Palace, we headed to the Marina Mall which, unfortunately, was a little bit on fire. No worries, nothing can stop shoppers in Abu Dhabi, so we continued wandering through the mall with the rest of the shoppers.

Our next trip to Abu Dhabi took us for a quiet evening along the Corniche, including supper at a neat little cafe that is in the middle of a spiral fountain, with a view of the Abu Dhabi skyline. Our walk along the beach was thwarted by extensive repair work along the Corniche as they rebuild and expand the waterfront. Yes, well, at any moment of the year, I think there are about 17 million construction projects on the go in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

This is not a picture of repair work along the Corniche, but some buildings that are going up across from the Emirates Palace

A few days later, we went to the Camel Festival again. This time, it was for shopping!

Let me know how many weavings of tanks you might need....

We wandered around the pretty kiosks, full of Bedouin handicrafts and took in the traditional dancers.

It's a bit hard to describe... two lines of men face each other. They are holding long sticks that they wave up and down while they chant.

If you were Harry Potter, this photo would move, and you would be able to fully experience the camel dance

Between them is a whole crowd of men and boys, dancing with sticks or twirling fake guns. Every so often, they go into the "camel dance", where they move their heads and sway down to kneeling positions as if they were camels. It's actually rather hypnotic (and I'm hoping we have a video of it too!).

Liwa and the Camel Festival

With Ty starting his CELTA and now unable to join in our fun, we booked our friend Nawaf for a day of visiting the area around MZ. My work colleague Karen joined in on the fun too.

We started off by poking around one of the Liwa forts before heading off to the desert.

Tal Moreeb (Moreeb Dune) is the largest dune in this area -- I mean, big enough to have its own name!).

This photo shows my Mom standing at the bottom of a part of the dune,
and it isn't even the highest part!

We ran around in the dunes, then went to check out the Liwa hotel (which was, of course, my first "house" here).

From there, it was on to the Al Dhafra Camel Festival. We were immediately invited into a tent, where we were fed sweets and tea - the full-on Bedouin hospitality experience!

It was really nice! We couldn't stay long, though -- just enough time to get a taste and check out the souk really quickly, before heading back home. We'll definitely be going back later in the week!

Dubai Weekend

And so, we kicked off my spring vacation with a weekend in Dubai. My Mom has been to Dubai several times, including almost 30 years ago, when it was nothing but a road in the desert, so we knew we had to make it special.

We started off with an evening around the Creek and good food and great shopping. We had booked a "hotel apartment" so we had a big condo to return to each night.... 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, a living room... and all for just over $150 a night! Unbelievable in one of the most expensive cities in the world.

Our plans to ride the new Dubai Metro were thwarted on Friday morning as... well, everything is closed on Friday mornings. We took a taxi instead, first heading to the big Palm island and the Atlantis hotel to look at the big aquarium, and to dance around in the huge hallways.

After that, we went to the Mall of the Emirates for lunch at a South African restaurant overlooking the famous indoor skihill.

On then, to the Burj Khalifa - riding the Metro (which was awesome!).

First, though, we went to the Dubai Mall (the largest something something mall in something... with the largest indoor aquarium or something again) to meet up with Grant and Dianne, who had lived with us in the Liwa hotel and worked in MZ. Now, they live in Sharjah and Grant had reserved our tickets for the Burj a week earlier to make sure that we could watch the sun set from the top (funny fact: The sun sets 30 minutes later when you are so high up!). As you can imagine, the whole Dubai skyline looked tiny from the top of the Burj!



Supper was a real treat (and here's a hint if you are ever in Dubai) at TGIFriday's, which has a patio overlooking the big musical fountain at the base of the Burj. Every 15-20 minutes, we were treated to a wee musical number, with lights and water coordinating along. Another great find by Grant and Dianne!

Exhausted from our long day (I mean, if Ty and I were tired, you can imagine my poor Mom!), we returned to our lovely little apartment to put our throbbing feet up.

The next day, we headed back to the Creek for more shopping and a wander through the Gold Souk and the spice market.

Our Dubai weekend was finished up with a nice visit to the Ibn Battuta Mall, a huge shopping complex based on the historical journey of a 14th C explorer who went from Morocco to China, and all the way up to northern Turkey and Timbuktu!

Really spectacular: Each part of the mall is themed to one of the places he visited.

Mom's Visit So Far

Alright, so Mom arrived on Sunday evening, and it's been a pretty cool visit so far.

After only a few days, she's already been to the camel racetrack, watching a herd of camels being herded by SUVs.

She's toured the new Tilal hotel (and had supper there).

Najat is one of my favourite teachers.... I'm rocking my Emirati kandura in this photo...

She got a special breakfast from my teachers (2 kinds of foule, falafel, hummus and bread). She helped us host a wine and cheese (and she even cleaned up afterwards!).

An awesome group shot of some of the teachers in front of my school. The one in the purple, on the far right, is Gharam, who I've been working with for a year. The lady who is completely covered in black is Mira, the Principal. Aziza, another of my wonderful English teachers, is standing just in front of the principal, also wearing black. You can see my Mom poking her head out on the left.

And last night, she and I got to hang out at my principal's "farm" (like Bedouin tents in the desert, with sheep and camels and stuff).

A very friendly camel!!

Today, we are off to Dubai for a few days.... with more photos to come!

Where have we been?

I know, I know... we've been bad bloggers. But really -- it's been a bit of a slow month!

Ty has been doing his CELTA pre-assignments (he has pages and pages of homework, and the course hasn't even started yet!) with a vengeance. I've started my MA with less of a vengeance (as I'm still waiting for a textbook to arrive and the first few units were reviews of basic concepts).

At both of my schools, mid-year exams are underway, meaning that I've been doing lots and lots of correcting: Which really isn't blog-worthy. One thing that is blog-worthy is the "breakfasts" that the teachers have before they start correcting: Picture 12-15 women, sitting on the floor, with plates and plates of salads, hummus, falafel, bread, exotic mixes of grilled veggies ("This recipe is from Jordan/Syria/Tunisia," they say as they fill your plate to overflowing). Besides being incredibly delicious, the breakfasts (eaten around 11:00) are also wonderful bonding experiences. Maybe the coolest thing, though, is that, when everyone is relaxed in an all-female setting, the hijabs and veils start coming off, and you actually get to see what everyone's hair looks like (long, highlighted, curly... and everyone suddenly looks 10 years younger).

The big news, of course, is that my Mom is coming to visit for a few weeks. During that time, we'll take her to Dubai (we have tickets to go to the top of the Burj!), and Abu Dhabi to see the Guggenheim exhibit at the Emirates Palace, as well as a few local events, including the famous Camel Festival, which is happening a 5-minute drive away.

This event made news last December when Sheikh Hamdan (who sometimes parks his helicopter in the soccer field behind our apartment building) paid almost $3 million for a camel there. Anyway, this year's festival is sure to be quite special as Sheikh Hamdan has done a lot in the past few months, since his arrival at the palace in Liwa, to bring attention to the area.

Of course, I'll also drag my Mom to school with me, so that she can have a breakfast or two...

The Burj Dubai/Khalifa

Last week, 4 January 2010, the Burj was finally opened, making it officially the world's tallest skyscraper. Dubai put on its “let's show the world that we can put a good show” gloves, and staged a grand opening ceremony. The ceremony, which can be watched here, included vast amounts of fireworks being let off from the building itself, from top to bottom, a huge sound and lights show, and an accompanying, co-ordinated water show from the Dubai Fountain which lies in front of the building.

At the ceremony the Burj Dubai was newly renamed Burj Khalifa, presumably after the current President of the UAE and Emir of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

The building has broken a large number of records, including, at 823m, the tallest man-made structure ever built. It trumped all previous record holders of various categories (tallest skyscraper, tallest structure, tallest freestanding structure) by over 200m. It is 160 storeys high. It also holds other stranger records such as world’s fastest elevators, and both the world’s highest mosque and swimming pool.

It is quite something driving into Dubai and seeing this futuristic building looming over absolutely everything, including buildings much taller than any in South Africa. We can’t wait to get up to the top as soon as we have the chance. (Hopefully it will be open for tourism while Virginia’s mom is here!!)

Just after it was built, this guy took a camera to the very top and made a video looking down from the top. It's worth a look, especially if you've ever been to Dubai.

*pics courtesy of wikipedia

Final Azerbaijan Blog: The Weird and Wonderful Moments

Even a month later, there are moments from our 9 days in Azerbaijan that come back. I'm sure that there are certain things that I'll never forget:

• The crazy funikulyor up the hill in Baku. For 20 qepik (about 25 cents), you can ride a ridiculously rickety funicular up to.... well... to the higher part of the town, a collection of cemeteries from different uprisings, and monuments. You will also find some very hungry cats up there who will climb into your backpack to get your lunch...
• 
• The Old City of Baku. The Old city is beautiful, clean and so full of history inside its city walls that it is hard to describe. Everywhere there are old buildings, old streets, old people.
• The cats!  Everywhere we went, it seemed, there were friendly stray cats. On our last day, we stopped for lunch and, as happens in Azerbaijan, got a private room with a space heater. We were soon joined by a mother cat and her kitten, who happily shared our cheese with us, as they toasted themselves by the electric fire.

 

 

 

 

• The bus to and from Sheki. Instead of taking the luxurious "Western" bus, we hopped into a mini-bus for the 5 hour trek from Baku to Sheki. Lumpy seats, no shocks, a bumpy road with hairpin turns, a chain-smoking driver, a quick stop at a restaurant with a bear in a cage outside, and views of shepherds leading flocks of sheep over rolling fields... One of the weirdest bus rides I've ever taken in my life.
• Qobustan rock carvings. We had a private tour (for about $4 each) through the museum and up into the caves to look at rock carvings that were, in some cases, 20,000 years old.
• The fire temples around Baku. First off, we stopped at a naturally occurring phenomenon of the side of a hill that seemed to be completely on fire... and it was incredibly hot. You couldn't stand near it without getting singed. And it's been burning for thousands of years. The more established Fire Temple has been a favourite place for Zoroastrians for ages. In the rooms, we stared at 1st century swords and jewellery -- in glass cases without backs, meaning we could have simply squeezed our hand behind the case to grab at them.  
• The "wishing mosque". I'm not sure who the famous poet was who was buried here, but the mosque (in a rather unpicturesque village by an oil field) is absolutely gorgeous. If you visit his grave (I was in the women's section, following a group of women around and around the bars surrounding his grave, as they prayed), you can make a wish. As you are leaving, a woman may grab you by the hand and drag you over to a lady behind a counter who will hand you a bag full of candy.
• The bathroom in Xinaliq. Okay, we've talked a lot about Xinaliq but we haven't really touched on just how, um, primitive the bathroom was. A mud floor, over a hole in the ground, with  slippery rocks to stand on. And it's freezing cold on your nether regions. And to get there: you get to slide down either a muddy path (in the sunlight) or a hard frozen slippery path (at night, holding a tiny flashlight). Finally, on the last morning, I just simply refused to go at all. Hmmm, nice view out the little window, though (snowy mountains and a frozen river).
  
• Butchers/sacrifices etc. So, yes, we were there during the Muslim Eid that is known for its sheep sacrifices. These were done, it seemed, every 100 metres or so on the 150km drive from Baku to Quba. A collection of (live) sheep in a pen, or meandering around the side of the road, and one (dead) sheep hanging in a tree. In general, Azeris want the freshest meat possible, choosing butchers over pre-packaged fare. This meant that there were butcher shops just about everywhere, with both live and dead animals on display. One of our lunches in Xinaliq arrived in the same way: we got back from our horseback ride in the snow to a bloodstain and 2 feathers in the snow -- and had chicken for lunch.
• Televisions, everywhere. No matter where we were, there was always a TV blaring. The shows tended to be endless loops of funniest home videos and randomness like how to turn a lighter into a water gun... We did spend an entire evening drinking tea and watching TV in Quba.
• The random 11th century castle. We wrote about this when we wrote about the people. The size of it and its perfect condition,  its spot in the middle of a shanty town, our tour guide, and the odd jumble of ancient artefacts lying around, including the carved floor-plan, just waiting to be slipped into one of our backpacks, made this an unforgettable stop on the trip.
  
• The food. Of course, with animal carcasses hanging all over the place, Ty was in heaven (especially once said carcass was cooked and dipped in a special blend of spices). What, you may ask, did the world's most finicky eater survive on? Every meal is served with a pile of amazing bread, at least 2 different cheeses, and a plate of cucumbers, onions, rocket, parsley, cilantro and so on. I also discovered incredible oddities like hot yogurt soup (actually very delicious) and that bread spread with smetana and honey is the best breakfast in the world.
• Our caravansary hotel in Sheki. For about $50 (which is expensive in that part of the world), you can have a "suite" (sitting room, fireplace, bedroom, bathroom) in a caravansary. These were the stopping points on the Silk Route where the camels could be stabled downstairs, while the people had rooms upstairs. Quite thrilling to be surrounded by something so vibrantly old.

I'm not sure if we've left anything out, but don't worry... the next time you see us, every sentence will inevitably start with "In Azerbaijan, we...." and you'll be sick of hearing about the whole thing anyway. (edit… I’ve added a few parts to what Virginia wrote, and realised we’ve left a few places out… but I think we’d carry on writing forever if  we allowed ourselves more space. For now I leave you with the car full of apples, of which we saw two – Ty)