One step at a time, wherever these adventures lead.: Who would have thought?

A Night Under the Stars
I helped organize overnight camping/ safari experiences for our students and on a Thursday I went with our sophomore class. Once we arrived on sight, we kicked off the evening with dune bashing. An exhilarating adventure, and this time we had a slight pause as we were passing through the dunes. The SUV got stuck and driver kept trying different maneuvers and no luck. We could even smell the clutch. The 2 interesting moments occurred simultaneously:

1-the vehicle was on a significant tilt so some of our first instincts would have been to evacuate car; however we were also slightly worried about how to redistribute the weight of 6 people without causing significant impact on the SUV's position.

2-the camp's manager appears out of nowhere and he helped move the vehicle.
To emphasize the camping company's efficiency and diminish our level of anxiety in the moment, this actually all took place in span of 5 minutes.

In fact for the most part, we were all laughing about our predicament. Behind us we could see another SUV with our students and we assumed they were also getting a good laugh.
Hence when I grabbed my camera to document what was happening. Once the smell of the clutch got stronger, that's when we were ready to move on. Luckily, that is about the time our "rescue" arrived.

The rest of the evening was spent:
Getting on a camel for 2nd time. This one seemed more approached partially because it appeared less intimidating but still high above the ground compared to the last one. Also the animal caretaker had a sense of humor so trust was there.

Getting up-close with this beautiful parakeet which later proceeded to climb up my shoulder.

Sand Skiing . At least a version of it. This also included this impromptu photo shoot before conquering. We climbed the large dune which is featured in the intro of this blog submission.

Trying on traditional attire and getting henna done.

Watching belly dancer perform on main stage.

Waking up around 6am to this beautiful scene.

Some of our students slept on the dune overnight and decided to roll down for the morning.

We decided to do more sand skiing before we ate breakfast and this is the beautiful view; getting to the top required several breaks before could settled down.

Once we were there the high winds made it hard to spend more than a few minutes at the top before we decided to come down.

However it was a serene sight from the top. Because of the distance from the top one may assume that you will move very fast from one point (at the top) to the bottom. However it requires quite a bit of momentum to pick up speed. DISCLAIMER: I can only say this now after trying it two times and both times I was still terrified of the height and potential high speeds. To make it easier I sat on the board to descend versus stand.

However some of our students were more successful in their journey.

Overall I had a wonderful time during this overnight camping trip and definitely made a difference going with a large group of people and we had the sight to ourselves. Our night went well unlike for our first year student group; they had a different but unique perspective since they had a snowstorm the following evening around 11pm.

As we left, we passed this beautiful sight on one of the main roads:

Gravity Taking Control

Last semester we had hosted a program for our students which allowed approximately 30 students to partake and enjoy 2 mins of Indoor Skydiving. It was such a successful program but we didn't get a chance for our RAs to participate. So my supervisor had a great idea for team bonding and recommended that we host our own sometime in the spring. Viola! That day finally arrived and 15 of us were geared up for the experience.

From my perspective it was not as easy as it could have been. Apparently I could not relax my body enough to allow for great heights. At least that is what I was told by my instructor. In exact words "you need to relax". In the moment I thought I was and I even had tunes running through my head to help me through the experience. This probably explains the soreness I felt in my back and joints post flight. Nonetheless, we all had a wonderful time and I would give it another try. As for "real" outdoor skydiving, I think that will have to wait. It is nowhere close to my must accomplish list.

Another look at Ladies Night

This month was eventful and I was involved in several programs with our students, including visiting Wild Wadi waterpark in Dubai. It is found close to the Burj Al Arab and very family friend. For the night which I went it was for a Ladies’ Night. This program was primarily focused on taking female students from our non visitation floor and later we opened the program to other female students. Besides being my first time at a water park in the UAE, I was thrilled to be in the company of our students. We were all delighted to go explore this new experience. Upon arrival, majority of the attendees were dressed in Abayas and not surprising (in a good way) it was great to see the water park fashion. Make up, perfumes, high heels or very classy sandals were in place.

Our admission pass

Notice the back

Past the checkout point, I had to turn in my camera, a policy which is I completely understandable. I was surprised that they let us keep our mobile phones. Nonetheless I completely understand and respect why this policy is in place. Once inside it was a “free zone” inside and one might be tempted to capture the moment. Once inside beyond the changing rooms, you cannot tell who is from what religion, country etc. Everyone adorned swim type attire from bikinis, tankinis, fully covered swim tops and leggings, tank tops, shorts...anything you name it.

I also appreciated that it was an "any body type is welcome" type of zone. Young girls, teens, misses, adult women and moms were present. Inside the park, the only male genders present were young boys from babies, toddlers to maybe 5-6yr olds. Even all the lifeguards working every station in the park and people at the cafeterias and food courts were all women. This included the chefs at the grills.

It was a different vantage point but also best way to highlight the commonalities between everyone who was present. This is a rare but valuable perspective about women here. Outside the park’s walls we still share common attributes as women however one might overlook that since every individual chooses to express the physical appearance very differently once we are in a public sphere. Another great way to understand Ladies Night!

On the Way Home

Fog is Back! This probably happens every day around midnight. At 12:30am is the time when our bus encountered the first phase. It does not seem as heavy as the one from a few months. Best personal advice, unless you have the patience, possess excellent driving skill... .take it easy during these late hours especially on main/only road which connects Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Ah Ha I think we have returned to Abu Dhabi; that's if the theory about the differences between the Emirates is correct. The trees are in sight. Please read below.

Bonus:

As I was in a car heading to Dubai, a friend told me that one can physically spot the difference when departing one Emirate to the other .The roads and scenery change between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. So my curiosity got the best of me.