Eid

Eid gave us the opportunity to explore all seven emirates. The first two days was composed of heavy traffic b/c of everyone heading for vacation spots and below par driving skills which lead to pile-ups. During this days we went through the emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, and Ras Al Khaimah, and with the last destination being Fujairah.  It was bumper to bumper traffic here and the streets were filled with people who were trying to enjoy their vacation. It was to crowded for me. The following day we went to Al Ain which is in the Abu Dhabi emirate. Al Ain is an Oasis town. It was amazing to see what an Oasis actually is. This town was the best town we had been to for many reasons. Besides, going through the town, and Oasis, we went on top of Jebeel Hafeet. This view allowed you to see the whole Oasis from above. After spending the day here we went back to Dubai and got rest before going to Abu Dhabi the next day. Here we went to a Cultural Village and then headed out to an island which was the friend of a friends. There we spent the day on the beach and met some interesting company. From there we got onto a boat and headed to an unknown destination after being directed by our friend. We ended up on another private island and spent the rest of the evening and night there. It was a beautifully island and a very relaxing end to the vacation. The following day we went back to Dubai, and met up with another friend and joined him on his yacht. That was impressive as well, but a lifestyle I do not plan on getting use to. Several of the added pictures give you visuals of what I am talking about.

Arrival

I arrived in Dubai on August 29th. It felt like I walked into a sauna once I stepped off the plane. The trip started off with a string of bad luck. My computer and camera broke and I only had temporary housing. The first few days after arrival I stayed on the AUD campus. Then I stayed with fellow Rotarians for a few weeks before finding a permanent place at Jumeirah Beach Residence with the help of Rotary. It was nice to finally a place to settle down and call home. Finding a permanent home gave me the chance to go explore the places I had been reading about for months.
Within a few days I saw all the major construction projects that have made headlines across the world. The most impressive of which is the Burj Dubai. It's height is unmatched in the Dubai skyline. The beach by my house overlooks the Palm. The Atlantis, which is located on the Palm Jumeirah just had it's grand opening. A large fire in the Atlantis did not even delay the opening. The aquarium within the Atlantis contains 65,000 fish and some of the hotel rooms windows are exposed to the sea life which would be great to wake up to every morning. The Burj Al Arab was also hard to miss, however, I have yet to be inside. Besides sight seeing, I have also got the chance to experience the Muslim Culture.
Ramadan lasted throughout September which gave me a great chance to experience the culture and traditional foods from the region. During this period you can not eat or drink from sunrise to sunset. So every night consisted of an Iftar buffet where you were able to meet people from around the region. I also attended a Rotary suhoor dinner. This gave me the opportunity to meet a large number of rotarians and business leaders in the area. I also attended a dinner with people from the Embassy and State Department. This was organized by Cherry Baumbusch, a Rotarian. Brian, the other Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, and myself also attended a viewing of an international film which was followed by a Q & A with the director. The film was about the journey of a father and son to mecca. It completely surpasses my expectations and gave me great additional insight into the religion and what Ramadan means to Muslims.
As Ramadan ends, Eid celebrations begin. Since we had a five day vacation at school, Brian, myself and several other students decided to go explore the UAE. The details and pictures to go along with it will be part of my next post. Right now I am getting ready to attend the Jumeirah Rotary Club meeting. This will give me a chance to "officially" introduce myself. I was able to do this at the Dubai Rotary club at their weekly meeting this past Monday.