AUS, sweet AUS

I absolutely love it here! These last four days have been so full of new, exciting and unexpected things that it will take me a few blog posts to catch up. Fair warning before you go any further, this will be a long post so hang in there.

I got off the plane and through customs and security with my brand new UAE student Visa at about 2am local time. I barely made it out of the secured area before Abu Bakr, the Residential Director of my program, spotted me and waved around the sign that said CIEE, the program I am with to show me that he was legit so that I would feel safe meeting him outside. First thought as I left the air conditioned airport lobby... it is unbelievably hot at 2am, I am surely going to die during the day.

We got to campus (after getting slightly lost in Dubai) and to my dorm where I was greeted by the sweetest woman who took me to my room and got me my bedding. After taking a few moments to realize I had actually made it and was in the UAE I began to unpack. It is amazing how easy it is to move in when you have only six shirts and a few pants. As I was finishing I heard birds chirping (more like screeching-the birds here are crazy! Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds in real life) and looked at the clock to realize it was 7am. I figured it wasn't worth staying up to overcome jetlag so I found myself crawling into bed for a good day's  sleep. With the shades down and hiding under the blankets to mask the fact it was the sunny morning, I slept like a rock and woke up at 4pm to begin my day. I put on my jeans and long shirt and stepped outside in what was 117F at that time. It was an incredible feeling. Gross is also a good word to describe it. It was like a sauna but with more clothes on. Or when the breeze would blow it felt like I was in a room with 100 hairdryers pointed right at me. I am afraid I am not actually exaggerating on this one, especially since I was in jeans and a long sleeve shirt. To give you an even better idea of the heat here, I heard that there is a bus that takes us to campus if we want. It is a five minute walk which is too far in the mid day heat. Ridiculous.

 After getting slightly lost I found the path to campus and walked toward what is most definitely the most beautiful campus I have seen (sorry Dartmouth, you know I love you!). If you don't believe me...take a look for yourself.

Main campus building. Center of campus.

Shameless selfie in front of the palace that is AUS. Don't mind the hair, the humidity was 50% and it was 117F outside.

The beautiful Mosque on the side of the Main Building

The end of the quad of campus and a look at the gardens at the entry way. Never would have thought you'd see this much green in the desert...that is probably because all of this was imported.

It is even more beautiful at night.

 As you can tell, this place is amazing. Every day (the four whole days I have been here that is) I walk to campus and across the quad and am amazed that this is my school for the next semester. It is pretty darn incredible.

The dorms are great too! I have a one room double with a kitchenette and a bathroom. Everything is so nice and clean and spacious compared to Dartmouth. Taller ceilings and new furniture is a plus. Biggest plus...air conditioning...high powered...that we control. It honestly makes a huge difference. I also have a roommate who is a freshman at AUS from Abu Dhabi. I could not have been more blessed to have her as my roommate this semester. We are the perfect balance in that I can help her navigate the ups and downs that is known as freshman year (since I am an ancient Junior at this point) and she can help me with all things Arab and UAE. It has been such a joy so far. We have had lots of great talks and the first night we did a rundown of how to properly wear a hijab. I am sure more great things are to come. (أهلا أفنان) Here is a short preview of our nice little room.

Hallway to our room...looks a bit like a hospital but it is cool in temperature and has a water dispenser which makes it amazing.

My side of the room. Don't you just love the free bedding they gave us?

Our beautiful bathroom. I am sure the first thing that caught your eye was the rather hideous rug on the floor. We were nearly flooding the floor every time we showered so I found this gem on sale for only 17 dirham (less than $5). If it is that cheap it can be this ugly.

Our kitchen. Not much going on in here yet but soon and very soon!

In closing, I am so happy that I am at AUS and am so excited for all that is to come. I know that this is going to be exactly the experience I was hoping for and that come January I will feel like this place is another home for me. We are still in orientation (which has been great so far) and we start class next Sunday so before long it will be back to the grind. I hope to catch time tomorrow to fill you in on orientation and all of that. Until next time, أحلام سعيدة