Saturday, October 27, 2007

Learning More...

What’s different or the same:
Work Week: Sunday to Thursday
Weekend: Friday-Saturday
Driving: Right side of the road
Malls: the hub of activity for teens

Traditional Dress:
Here is what I learned/figured about the clothing culture in the UAE this far. I hoping to explain all accurately, if not please place a comment on the blog to educate me more…
In the Emirates the local people are called Emirati. Some Emirati may choose to wear western attire, but most men will choose to wear the dishdash (dishdasha). Women adopt various forms of dress including western style, with many choosing a varying degree of covering up that ranges from having some headwear to full burqa, which covers from head to toe including the face.
Women: The
abaya is a long dress that covers from the neck to the ground with the arms covered below the wrist to the back of the hand. It is worn with a hijab or a sheila (shay-la). A hijab is a sort of fitted scarf that is pulled over the head and the sheila is a shawl like scarf that is arranged to cover the head and the neck. Wearing either is ‘wearing hijab’. When women’s faces are completely covered the way of dress is the burqa – ie. a woman wears burqa or is dressed in burqa (she is fully covered).
Men: The dishdasha, which is also known in some countries as a ‘jalabah’, is generally a long white or cream garment, though other colours seem to also be fashionable. They also wear a ‘ghutra’ on their head – these are red and white in colour or they can also be plain white or the colour of the dishdash. The ghutra is secured by an igal which is a double black cord and is worn over a tagiyah, a small skull cap that stops the ghutra from falling off.

Layout of Al Ain: The streets are well laid out and mostly fairly rectangular, joined by roundabouts of all sizes. The roundabouts are for traffic management to keep the “lots of drivers/cars flowing here and not create traffic jams. They are also very good at confusing as your typically do not know which direction you are traveling in. After driving around a few roundabouts, you can get lost quite easily! Yes, there are street signs, but the pace of traffic and the locations of the signs does allow for you to read them.
The roundabouts are great landmarks as most have centerpieces or have names. They are decorated with elaborate items such as gazelles, horses, deer, flamingos, fountains, mountains, water falls, coffee pots and jewelry boxes – I will eventually take picture and make a collage. I think might be a common project for expats in Al Ain! The city is brimming with lovely gardens and fountains. There are lots of trees and flowers in the center median of streets. Trees also tend to line sidewalks and the years of my homes.
Little to no Skyline: The town itself is rather spread out as there is a height restriction on buildings. I don't know the exact restirctions, but it seems the city buildings are limited to three or four stories and the residential areas are no mor than 3 stories. It gives a lovely feeling of spaciousness and also allows the minarets and domes from the mosques to stand out against the skyline, giving the city the definate feel/look of Middle Eastern enviroment.

The Mountain: The most natural landmark is Jebel Hafeet, which is a mountain on the outskirts of town, and in the daytime, it is usually not usually visible for a haze (or for dust). I hoping that during an upcoming weekend I will venture up there during both day and night. I heard the views are absolute great and you can see for miles around!

Crossing Streets are your own risk… as pedestrian safety can be challenging. At home, a pedestrian crossing is a place where people can generally be assured of a safe crossing of a street. The traffic is typically compelled to stop for people using the crossings. In the UAE pedestrians must be constantly on the alert. Drivers pay not attention to crossings. You are risking your life in your hands at every crossing of the road whether there is a pedestrian crossing or not. So far...only the I notice that only the crossing that and part of a traffic light get a little respect, but event their, look right, then left , then right and left again before stepping out.

Traditional Souq (the tradtional shopping area/markets)
The souqs in the Town center offer a fascinating insight to an aspect of the daily life of Al Ain residents. Visitors to the Central Meat, Fish and Vegetable souq will discover a fascinating friendly atmosphere amid a kaleidoscope of oriental colours, noises and spice smells.
It is all about learning…..more to come.

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