Dubai and all it's riches...

Well I am sure those of you who are reading my blog are wondering why it takes so long between posts...well I don't know why it takes so long, but trust that they are coming...so where should I begin this week..

Well despite staying in my hotel for an entire week and a half, I am managing to stay sane.  Even a 5 star hotel stay has it's expiration date.  However, I am far from complaining because these are the DAYS to soak in the peace, great service, and overall splendor of staying within a 5 star hotel.  I have sat by the pool and taken advantage of the wonderful gym.  I wake up every morning to a hot, free breakfast...what else would I want?  Reality...  The fact that I was not brought and paid to come here to vacation...I was brought here to provide quality education to Emirati children in Abu Dhabi.  I am ever so grateful for the warm welcome from the company I work for and Abu Dhabi, but I am curious about what my job will bring me in the near future.

But enough of the seriousness, let's talk Dubai! 

Oh Dubai!  Oh the beauty...Oh the MONEY!  This place oozzzzzeess money.  It's felt in the landscape, the roads, the people, and even in the hot, humid air.  What a beautiful place!  Everything is shiny and new...including the people.  I felt like money there....even though I have very little...especially after a day in there.  I walked through Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Chanel feeling like I belonged in those stores...my materialistic alarm system in overdrive.  I picked up Gucci sunglasses and I felt that they were just mere trinkets to add to my collection.  A LV bag is just a staple to my everyday wardrobe....oh and well Chanel...an indulgence.  Can you believe I would think such things...a mere teacher who has lived on a teacher's budget (and sometimes a meager one at that)?  But Dubai has that effect for those of us who dream of that kind of life.  So tonight, I returned to my room where there are clothes lying on the balcony to dry and I put away the pair of Adidas that I have owned for 4 years, but I promise you this.....I will dream a good dream!

A Whole New Worrrllldd..(Aladdin song)

So, I'm here and the true adventure can begin..so..where do I begin.  I will begin a few days before I left...

Because I'm a nerd and I have never gone, I requested to go to Tweetsie Railroad and so, my aunt, Isaiah, and I have a great day at Tweetsie!

Don't you love my face holding popcorn!  Isaiah was scared of the manequin man in the other part!

 Tried to get a good pic with my camera.

On the train!

So, then it was time to pack and this is what it looked like at 3 am on August 8th...

On the way to Abu Dhabi...

So, of course, I didn't take any pics because I thought my camera was broken so most of this part will be my thoughts during the trip.

On the 9th, I woke up with the biggest knots in my stomach that I ever had.  I was so pent up with adrenaline that I couldn't eat drink, my mind was on "drive".  My mom asked me if I wanted to take a pumice stone with me and we both broke down into tears.  I needed it though because crying made me physically feel better!  I don't think I had ever been that "scared" in my life!  As I packed, all I could think of was, "I CAN'T leave anything behind because there will be no getting it later"  I just wanted to be strong but that is really hard to do.  Of course, I teared up a few more times before it was all said and done but I was surprised how much I didn't cry until...but I will get to that later. 

So onto Chicago!  I met some more of the EMTs and many of them were just like me.  Stress level went down even more. Onto Etihad!  The flight wasn't that bad!!  I slept mostly, watched Hunger Games and The Vow for free.  View wasn't very good but I didn't care.  As we landed in AD, I saw the buildings, sand, and overall "flatness" of my new home.  All of a sudden, I burst into tears..not for sadness but exhiliration!  I was HERE!  Months of waiting, making the decisions, and saying goodbyes came down to this!  I could hear God saying, "This is your time! You are going to be fine!  I got this!"  I found myself praising God and thanking him for His goodness.  I had made it this far and I knew I was going even farther!

ABU DHABI!!!

First of all, it gets dark here at like 7 and it feels like a sauna.  It's WARM and humid.  My hair turned into the Wildebeast very quickly!  I met some really great girls and we connected quickly.  It's Ramadan so the malls and stores are open super late because everything is closed during the day.  So at 12 am, there are families in the mall just eating and shopping like it's 5 pm.  We exchanged our monies which is an experience (not bad though). I was trying to hide my money as I normally do but I remembered I was in one of the safest countries in the world.  I still will hide my monies though..don't care where I am.  Off we went shopping!  I have to say that it felt odd being there but I got more comfortable.  I hade beef pepperoni pizza!  It was good. 

The next day, I went to breakfast, met a very handsome trainer who showed us the gym, and worked out...here are some pics.

My Hotel

 106 degrees outside!

The waterfront