Archives for 2010

…and there’s loving your teacher.

I had an encounter with a student today that left me quite puzzled. I’m not exactly sure about the message she sent… but here’s the message I heard:

“Ms. Jill, when I am big like you… I want to be your lover.”

And it’s not even the same girl who sent me this!

It’s weird and all, but I’m still flattered.

xo, jill

Minus the watersports!

This past weekend I drove out to the desert to visit my dear friend Frances. We filled our time with the eating of delicious sushi and the attending of the Watersports Festival. The only thing was… we arrived too late to actually see any watersports.

I wasn’t too bothered. I did get to eat some tasty yet rapidly melting ice cream and gawk at amazing creations in sand.

Like the Burj Khalifa… the world’s tallest tower…

And the Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque…

Well done.

xo, jill

Hehe!

See it? See it?

xo, jill

I didn’t forget.

Way back in February I had a very demanding visitor to entertain. She insisted we visit nearly the entire country during her stay. Well, I did my best and took her northeast to Fujairah.

After spending a bit of time hunting down a camping spot, we ended up just pitching our tent on the beach in the dark. (One of my favorite aspects of the UAE is that you can essentially camp anywhere, as I’m sure you’ve noticed by now). Waking up early in the morning we were treated to a lovely sunrise during breakfast.

We tried to make it out to a popular waterfall in the area, but my car wasn’t up to the off-road challenge. Instead we drove out on a cliff above the waterfall and marveled in disgust at the massive loads of litter covering the landscape. I mean, it was gross. Waterbottles, old shoes, dirty diapers… yuck. While Molly decided to scramble down the cliff to check out the waterfall, my mom and I got to work picking up as much trash as we could fit in my car.

I skipped the litter when taking photos and opted to capture the mountains and vegetation instead of the junk.

On our way back into the city of Fujairah, we stopped by Fujairah Fort. It happened to be closed but we still poked around the outside.

Next we stopped at Fort Hayl. It was smaller than the first but it was open!

My favorite feature of these forts is how sneaky you feel when you discover how to reach the next level. You are standing on the ground floor… and it’s obvious there are more stories above you, but it’s not completely obvious how to get there. Hint: Those sticks in the corner!

I also like the intricate designs around the windows.

And there’s Molly on the roof scouting for enemies in the distance.

xo, jill