Abdication

Well the big news of course has been the abdication of Pope Benedict XVI.  It's been on our TV continually and tonight I've sat and watched the whole show.  The pomp and ceremony was reminiscent of a royal wedding or funeral.  Even at school we were affected as one staff member took the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to flit to Rome to witness the spectacle.  Her boyfriend works at the Vatican as a journalist and he has written the memoirs of the Pope.  No doubt he will have to alter the end now.

As the news broke two weeks ago announcing the Pope's decision it overtook even the Syrian crisis here.  I am constantly amazed at how much coverage we have of Christian events in a Muslim country.  So you'll be pleased to know that we are not starved of news or have our news censored.  However, many websites are blocked due to inappropriate content, including one I was looking at about the Pope.  We have BBC & CNN TV coverage so see most news (even the recent shark attack in NZ made the news here).

As the countdown continued to this momentous event we have been updated, leading up to the Pope's final mass then his final address in St Peter's square to thousands of faithful.

It's amazing to think that I've visited the places that I am viewing and have stood there, both in the square and inside the church.  It makes the moment more personal and poignant.

Watching the Pope being farewelled by his staff as he left the Vatican was an emotional moment for many but it barely registered compared to the emotion felt during his final speech on arrival at Castel Godolfo, the Pope's summer residence where he is spending the next two months while his new residence (apparently a gardener's cottage) in the Vatican Gardens is prepared.

I am continually amazed at what I learn each day and today it was that Pope Benedict XVI was a pilot who enjoyed getting hold of the controls during his annual flight to the Castel.  However, today he was a passenger, compliments of the Italian Airforce.

I was shocked to see how frail the Pope had become and can understand his decision to step down from such a position of power.  This shows the true measure of the man as he puts the future of the church before any personal need for gratification.  I am sure the Catholics among you will have many opinions on this unique undertaking so feel free to add comments to this blog to enhance my understanding.

As the helicopter flew the final journey of Pope Benedict it passed over  many Roman landmarks beginning with a circuit above the Vatican.  It flew dangerously low over the city but it was a spectacular sight as it flew over the Colosseum and other historic buildings.  As it approached the airport it appeared to be landing as it hovered so low over the runway (obviously nothing else was flying in Rome at that moment) but then it lifted and continued on its journey.

The crowd of 10,000 in the square outside Castel Godolfo silenced as the helicopter landed then cheered as the motorcade approached and the Pope exited the vehicle.  Very quickly he appeared on the balcony and gave his famous wave.  His final speech to the people was emotional, both for the Pope and the crowd with many wiping tears from their eyes.  As he disappeared from public view, his Papal banner was removed from sight forever.  I imagine it will be destroyed along with his Papal ring.

The absence of his red shoes as he left the helicopter was noticable as was the fact that he was no longer wearing his red cape.  Another piece of information I found out was that the red shoes and cape were gifted to the Pope.  It has been commonly believed that the red shoes were Prada but that myth was smashed by a interview with CNN.

Monsignor Irwin gave the CNN audience the real story. “They are red shoes given to him because Constantine gave him the privileges of being an emperor and he allowed him to wear red shoes and a red cape,” he said. “Frankly the Papal shoemaker is up the block. And it’s not Prada. So the devil may have worn Prada but not this Pope.”

The red shoes have been replaced with brown leather ones made in Mexico on a visit last year.  So a new life away from the public eye awaits this Pope.

I am struck by how, yet again, I am 'witness' to such a historic event and wonder what else will occur in my lifetime.  Has history always been like this or is it modern technology that allows us to experience so much more?

Weekly snippets

The weather here is fabulous at the moment and I'm making the most of it everyday by getting out and doing something.  You can feel that it's not going to last much longer as it's heating up daily.

Thursday afternoon I walked from work down to Burjeel Hospital to have my physio appointment.  The walk takes about 15 minutes or more depending on whether you catch the traffic lights to cross the road.  As the roads are crazy you don't risk your life by crossing unless the wee man in showing green.  As most roads involve two wee men, often I'm stuck in the middle of the road with only a foot of curbing either side of me while the traffic roars past.  At these times I suck it all in and hope nothing swerves for any reason.

It's nearly time to start carrying my umbrella again to shade myself from the sun.  This, of course, is hypocritical as when  I get home I'm out in the sun as soon as I can.  I could just carry a sunhat but no-one, and I mean no-one, wears them here.  I would really stand out, not that I don't already with my numerous freckles - an oddity here.  I've been asked why I don't go to the skin clinic and get my skin sorted?

If it is humanly possible, I have more freckles than before.  So even so the sun here doesn't burn like at home, it still causes my skin to redden and freckle.  I may have to start using one of the many whitening creams on sale here like the local woman do.  Pale skin is considered beautiful here.

Friday dawned bright and windy.  I went down for a swim (walk really due to not swimming at the moment because of my shoulder) and enjoyed the sunshine.  Early afternoon I met up with my kiwi friends here and we picked up another kiwi (my Polynesian double) and went to Cafe Arabia for coffee and cake.  I declined the cake due to still watching my weight for the competition.

Mind you, it was difficult to say no to a slice of cake.  As we entered the 3-story converted villa we were greeted by a round glass table topped with cake display cases of various heights.  Each one was filled with a fabulous cake and it was impossible to even get in the door without drooling.  Another stand held magnificent muffins and it was a difficult choice for my companions to choose which delicacy they would have.

We meandered up the stairs and reached the rooftop and chose to sit outside in the shade of an umbrella.  What a fabulous way to spend a few hours.  Good coffee, good chai, good cake and good company!

Each floor of the villa held it's own surprises with art displays, books for borrowing, exquisite trinkets from around the Middle East to purchase and of course, the cakes.  I topped the afternoon off by 'borrowing' six books.  The book system works on 'swap a book' but as I wasn't aware we were going there I didn't take any books so had to hide them away in the overlarge handbag of my friend.  Once they've all been devoured, I'll take them back along with a few of my own to get some new titles.

Saturday I swam/walked in the morning then headed to Mushrif Mall for a spot of trying on warmer clothes for the trip to Switzerland.  Big sis and I are getting a tad worried as we check out the temperatures daily on our iphones.  -3 degrees is not what we had in mind for a spring fling in Amsterdam or climbing up mountains in Switzerland.  I hope those damn tulips are through the snow by the time we arrive.  When booking the cruise I purposely booked from Switzerland to Amsterdam to allow us the extra few days in case the tulips weren't blooming.  I hope someone is listening to me when I say they'd better be!

Saturday night I realised that I hadn't done any planning for school so had to hurry up and get ready.  As school seems to be on a binge with paperwork (as in giving us more and more of it to do, all on deadlines) I sat down and typed up the weeks work then found a few resources to use.  There is no leaving you to get on with the job here, after all we are supposedly professionals.  But when I hear that others still are not planning I can see why the over-supervision.

I missed my Skyping over the weekend as the internet wasn't co-operating.  I'm hoping it'll be up and running next weekend so I can catch up with family at home.

Payday today.  We all look forward to the monthly text telling us that our pay has gone into our account.  It's the first full pay I've had since June last year so it is a biggie for me.  All this time our employer has been deducting money to make up for the 'overpayment' we had last summer.  No where else in the world would they be able to get away with doing this.  But hey, that's teaching in Abu Dhabi.  You take the good with the bad, else you get on a plane home.

One for the girls

Well it's back to the daily grind and trying to write a blog entry weekly to keep you all in touch with what I'm doing.

School has been crazy.  It seems like the more we do, the more they want.  My co-teacher  has been absent all week so I ended up with her class split and half added to each of my classes then the next day I had two classes together.  Needless to say I wasn't happy and was glad to get out of there yesterday and not get up for work this morning.

I seem to have been spending a lot of time at the hospital.  I've decided it is because you have to go to a hospital or clinic to see a GP, plus services are much more accessible than they are at home so I tend to make use of them while I'm here.

Take this week for instance.  I was aware that it was time for a mammogram and had been thinking about organising one when I received a text telling me that the "Pink Caravan" was going to be at my local hospital on Tuesday.  Thinking that this was meant to be, I phoned and registered for a check up.  All free!  So off I  head after work and have a breast examination.  While lying there getting checked I thought to myself, why wouldn't someone else be doing the check up for me?  No-body does anything for themselves here so why would a breast examination be any different.  So another first for me.

Anyway, as I've previously been aware of, there is thickening so they say I'll need a mammogram and give me a phone number for a hospital in Dubai.  Dubai, I ask?  Yes, that is the hospital they use.  Odd when we are at one hospital that they are referring you to another but I later realised that this clinic is independent of the hospital where it was being held.

As I didn't want to travel to Dubai I stop at the radiology counter to ask if they will do a mammogram there.  Yes, but I need a referral.  The piece of paper I had didn't count so I make an appointment for the following night to see a Gynaecologist (don't you wish you could get seen that quick in NZ?).  So off I go, pay my 30 dirhams and meet with my French man who is keen to check out all parts of me!  I explain what I am there for but he still thinks my 'bits' need to be checked out.  So I'm whisked out into the ultrasound room and have ultrasound on my breasts (which are all clear) then abdomen and pelvis.  So everything as it should be.  Thank goodness for that!

Back to the examination room and it's time for a check. The IT man comes in as the Dr has called him to load some things on the computer.  So there's the IT man, the nurse, the Dr, and me in this tiny room.  The Dr draws the curtain.  OMG!  I'll spare you the details but all this is taking place while the IT man and nurse are on the other side of the curtain.  Reminding him what I came for - I think myself lucky to leave with only blood tests and an appointment within the week for a mammogram.  I hightail it out of there with a parting message to pop back in a week and to tell all my friends to come to him.  Oh, did I mention with his phone number and I can also 'Whatsup' him?

During all this he's taking phone calls and organising flowers for his wife for Valentines Day.  The health system here is nothing but thorough!

One thing I do have to say is that it is difficult to be a woman alone here.  Unmarried women are considered odd and to not have a husband was a discussion I didn't want to get into with this French Dr.  Imagine where that could have led????

While they find that strange here, what I find strange is all the men at the hospital with the woman.  Here I am feeling highly embarrassed that the IT man is inside the checkup room but the women here would never go for a checkup without their husband and often have the husband's brother plus mother and father along for the trip.  It's a sight to see, especially in maternity which is big business here.  I'm not sure if it is because women are treated as chattels or if it is just the way it is, everyone cares so everyone comes.  And it's not just the Emirates, it's also the Indians.  Why these men are not at work always amazes me.  Perhaps that is why the clinics have such late hours.

Another reason for my frequent trips to the hospital is that I'm having physio on my shoulder as it's been painful when I swim.  So this morning I've been up since 6am, done my stretching exercises for the physio then went down and spent 45 minutes in the pool just walking as I'm to have a break from swimming freestyle while my shoulder recovers.  Then there was time for a bit of sun before coming back upstairs for breakfast of pancakes, bananas and maple syrup.

Biggest loser

Forgive me readers for it is nearly a whole month since my last post.  Time has flown by.  What with school being hectic and the weather being so nice I never seem to have a spare hour to put fingers to keyboard.

Another reason for me not being home is that I've  joined a new group.  Yes, 'The Biggest Loser".  Never thought I'd see the day that I'd sign up for a weight loss programme but there you go.  And I have to say it's the best thing I've done since living here in this building.  The reason why is that I've met a like minded group of women and now have numerous exercise buddies to use our wonderful facilities with.

The group was started by another teacher who had moved here from Al Ain and had a similar group there.  We all put in 100 dirhams and the biggest loser takes 75% of the money.  The other 25% goes to the person who gets the most points.  Daily we score ourselves on a sheet for things like exercising, not eating sugar, eating 2 servings of fruit and 3 of vegetables, drinking copious amounts of water, contacting another group member for support, and keeping a food diary of what we eat.  So the incentive is strong to make an effort.

Imagine my surprise when I was the biggest loser in the first week, then again in the third.  Don't go there for the 2nd as I put on a bit but back on track again (I  hope).  I've already lost 6.2 lbs.  Not sure why they use pounds here but most are American and the scales are in pounds.  I'm also trying to get maximum points each week but have slacked a lot over the last week.

Originally it was an 8 week challenge but we've extended it out to 12 weeks.  Check out the website the programme was taken from - SixSistersStuff.com. The 12 weeks is good for me as it takes me up to my big trip with sister when I'll need to be a few pounds short to make  up for all the fine dining and drinking beer we will be doing while cruising through Germany and other regions.

Hopefully all the extra exercise will prepare me for the cycling around Amsterdam and walking up Mt Titlis in Switzerland.

As I mentioned the weather here is glorious at the moment and I'm swimming a lot.  However, 45 minutes swimming is a lot (maximum points) and sometimes I only manage 30 minutes.  My shoulder still troubles me and swimming often ends in pain.  I've just been to visit a physio last night so will begin some treatment here for it.  Let's see if they can do anything different than back home.

The other wonderful event here is that we've finally got basketball hoops up on our court downstairs.  Yah!  I had the basketball bought months ago in preparation so now I'm often down there shooting baskets.  Apparently I'm nearly a pro and have been complimented several times on my style.  You can just see and hear' the teenagers' rolling around laughing, can't you?

It's been a good way to meet other like-minded people and my Hamilton friend is a weekly visitor so he can hang out at the hoops!  I must book the court more frequently than most.  Today I have two young Syrian teenagers (brother and sister) coming over to play.  These lovely young people are refugees from the war in Syria and fascinating people.  Our young people in NZ seem unworldly by comparison, both in life experiences and education.  They speak 4 languages, are learning their fifth, and have the next one lined up.  They found our kiwi hospitality unusual and were unsure what to make of an offer of a ride home (just over the island) and an invite back to play.  Probably thought we were some crazy middle aged perverts!

I'm doing a lot of walking around the island with  my new friends.  This is great as it isn't always a comfortable feeling to be out walking on your own due to the huge number of workers around.  I'm trying to make the most of the weather while I can as you can feel it warming up already.

Each day a group member leads an exercise activity and you can choose to attend or not.  So we have a wide selection.  I take basketball and tennis once a week.  There is walking, swimming, circuit training, body pump, dancing, basketball and tennis.  So plenty to choose from and you know there will always be someone else to do  it with so much more enjoyable.  As we have the most amazing facilities here it's good to make use of them.

A bonus of this new group has been the friendships forged and new people met.  One of the ladies, a Pakistani woman, invited us all to her home for a traditional Pakistani dinner last week.  She hosted it and had spent the week planning and preparing everything.  Her brother had flown in from Norway and her father was visiting from New York.  Her father works for the United Nations and Helen Clark is his boss.  Her brother was fascinating and works as an environmental city planner (I can't remember the title he used) but making cities around the world more sustainable.

Another Pakistani couple had their parents visiting also so we met them.  The mother was a retired lawyer so well educated people.  This younger couple had spent 2 months in New Zealand so were able to talk at length about our beautiful country.  The husband kept remarking on the sheep and cattle just walking on the road and no-one was killing them and running off with the meat!  Amazing!  We certainly live in a different world.

Last week we also celebrated our nearly one year here in Abu Dhabi with a breakfast back at the hotel where it all began for us on February 12th 2012.  Hasn't time flown?  To think that we have survived that long and are still sane to tell the tale.  Having said that, our original group was much smaller due to defections back west.  A lot haven't been able to hack the demands of working and living in another culture and the stress it entails.  The promised land wasn't as promised and the difficult working conditions do not suit many. Having said that, many come here expecting an easy ride (and a gastric bypass!).  A lot of 'teachers' have never taught before!  That always floors me!  Lesson plans are unheard of so stress levels are high when they have to be handed in the week before.  Weekly newsletters to parents informing them of the next week's programme are mandatory.  Unannounced formal teacher observations are commonplace in many schools - I had one this week with the Principal and HOF.  Additional duties keep being added and assessment is rampant.  New Zealanders and South Africans cope well as our system is similar and we just get on with it.  Albeit with a few moans at times but it isn't anything new to us.  What is new is having a free period every day.  The Emirate staff struggle to teach 24 periods a week and a mutiny is always brewing (that's when they are at work).  I don't believe they will be able to take over the education system as the government wants.  But who knows?  The government may have to back down to the demands of its people, who don't want to work long hours without many breaks. It just isn't part of their culture.  50 years ago they were all still running around in the desert living the Bedouin lifestyle, carrying guns.  Many still  live that lifestyle so getting the kids to school isn't important for them.  Daily survival is.  If the going gets tough, the Emirate staff disappear.

The kiwi contingent with the English Rose who was adopted by the three kiwis when we arrived at midnight a year ago.  She has since left the government employ and now works for a British International School in Al Ain.

Last night I popped downstairs to another Kiwi's apartment to share a glass of wine to celebrate Waitangi Day.  There is a big celebration here today but I'm not going as saving hard for my trip.  Also, I hear it's just a booze fest so no different from back home.

I'm in with the security downstairs thanks to the boys.  I was stopped at the door and asked, "Madam.  Are you the mother of ...?"  I'm thinking what has the teenager done?  But it was Mr 19 who made a favourable impression and he was asking after him.  He said there was a facial resemblance.  Later that evening he stopped the teenager to tell him that he also looks like his brother, now that he knows them.  The boys had a great time seeing the ins and outs of our home with security guidance, including golf cart rides around the island.  They came back up one night with the phone number of head of security and had been told to call him if they wanted a ride anywhere.   So now we have the 'man' on our side.  Most people don't give them the time of day but kiwi's don't come with that attitude. The old adage of, "Treat people as you want to be treated" is so true.