Archives for 2010

But not for long.

Near the end of the school year when the students were gone, we didn’t have too much to do. The teachers began bringing in photos from their weddings and their relatives’ weddings. It was fun to see marriage celebrated with a different style. Sarah and I were especially impressed with the brides’ makeup. After Sarah joked that her and I were going to go have our makeup done, one of the teachers offered to bring in all her supplies and do it for us.

Behold the blank canvases.

Looking over the tools I knew this was going to be good.

I immediately had to smother my mouth to keep from laughing when she began to paint black over Sarah’s blonde eyebrows! And it just kept getting better…

Sarah’s total transformation took an hour. Keeping my eye on the clock I wasn’t sure if there’d be time for my own makeover. The teacher assured me that she’d just do something simple so we’d still be able to leave school on time.

Sarah’s first comment was that I looked like I belonged in a music video. When I asked what genre of music she replied, “Maybe Avril Levine. Or Marilyn Manson!” Oh dear. Keep in mind that I can’t see myself during the process.

What’s up hottie?

Sarah and I had already agreed to wear our makeup out to a dinner cruise later that night as a surprise to our friends. I think we both regretted that pact… just a little.

In the end, the makeup didn’t join us on our cruise… probably for the best .

xo, jill

Work it.

One day towards the end of the year, one of my western co-workers came to school in an abaya (black cloak) with the shaila (scarf) around her shoulders. I gave her a hard time for not going full out and wearing the shaila over her hair…

The next thing I knew I was dressed head to toe like a proper Emirati woman. The other teachers laughed hilariously, assured me I looked beautiful, and suggested different model poses.

You also might notice the lovely coniferous trees changing color in the background. Hehe.

xo, jill

Returning the favor.

Remember this guy? That’s Evan, our friend we met last fall when visiting Baku, Azerbaijan. Without Evan, our trip would most certainly have been a bust.

Because we enjoyed his company so much and wanted to thank him for his excellent hospitality, we invited him out to Abu Dhabi for the weekend in May. He was a good sport about waiting several hours at the Dubai Mall for our arrival until we finally met up with him in the early evening.

After playing in Dubai all evening and into the night, we headed back to Abu Dhabi to show off our city. That didn’t take long. By the afternoon we were heading out to the desert for more exploration.

We had a lot of fun burying Molly in the sand.

She proved pretty difficult to retrieve.

So we decided to just chill for a bit.

Hehe, did I fool you? Meet our new mannequin friend!

While driving through the mall parking lot in Al Gharbia, we noticed this little beauty being walked to the dumpster. A smile from Frances was all it took and the mannequin was ours. You can imagine our giggles as we crammed her into the car.

After a quick smoothie in a giant Land Cruiser (more on that later), we were headed back to Abu Dhabi to finish out the weekend. Then of course we took turns secretly planting the mannequin around the apartment at intervals…

xo, jill

Not pictured in this post is the copious amount of youtube.com videos we consumed over the weekend.

The mosque of all mosques.

Probably my very favorite feature of Abu Dhabi is the Grand Mosque. I consider myself lucky to pass this beautiful building on my way to work each morning.

The mosque is open to visitors and offers a guided tour each morning, except for Fridays. It’s probably the only must-see in Abu Dhabi, in my opinion. In fact, I’ve gone and seen it twice!

Ladies, if you’ve ever wanted to experiment with wearing an abaya and shaila, this is the place. Female visitors must be completely covered. Abayas and shailas are dispensed near the entrance for your convenience. Dudes can wear what they like, but must remove their shoes (as do the women).

The people of Abu Dhabi are very proud of their mosque, and with good reason. It is the 8th largest mosque in the world (accommodating 40,00 worshipers) and holds at least two world records. The first being the largest single piece of carpet! The other being the largest chandelier! What feats!

The mosque is decorated with materials from all over the world. The intricate detailing makes it easy for people of all faiths to appreciate and admire.

I expect to make at least one more visit to the mosque before my time in Abu Dhabi expires.

xo, jill

P.S. Did you find all of my India posts? Scroll down or click the “India” link in the left sidebar.