Jordan- Amman, Dead Sea

This weekend, I went to the lovely country of Jordan to visit Petra, swim in the Dead Sea, and hang out in Amman.

The Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth, and has the highest salinity levels of any body of water. It is impossible to sink in the Dead Sea because of the salt levels. It is 400m below sea level, and is actually a pretty small body of water- 16km wide and 70km long. No life can survive in the Dead Sea, and there are actually mosaics and artwork from thousands of years ago depicting fish swimming towards the Dead Sea and then turning back due to the inhospitable conditions :)

The city of Amman is the capital of Jordan and home to about half of the country's 6 million people. It is full of historic monument such as the Citadel. King Abdullah's palace is also located here, though you can only really get to the front gate. King Abdullah, married to Queen Rania, is supposedly the 41st direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. Interesting side note- King Abdullah's half sister, Princess Haya, is married to the Sheikh of Dubai :)

 My morning walk in Amman (above)

 The market/souq, Amman

The Dead Sea Spa?

 Just chillin out in the dead Sea

 Map of the Dead Sea

This Desert Life

The Museum of Islamic Art, Doha

I visited the Museum of Islamic Art during my trip to Doha. This museum boasts one of the largest collections of Islamic Art in the entire world. Islamic art, especially found in mosques, is characterized by floral designs, geometric patterns, and calligraphy from the Quran. The first two features do not hold any symbolism or significance, but rather came out of Islamic rulers' desire to have a unique identity in art. The secular art pieces depict people and animals, and much of the ancient Islamic art is shown on everyday objects and items, including astronomical tools and other scientific equipment.

The museum building itself was designed by I.M. Pei, who also designed the Lourve in France. He designed it using Shamisen stone from France, which is one of the only materials that would be able to withstand the heat and salty water of Doha. The museum is located on its own private island, with a single road connecting it to the main city of Doha.

Weekend in Doha

I visited the lovely county of Qatar, which is a peninsula that shares a border with Saudi Arabia. Although it is only a few hours away by car from Dubai, women cannot drive through Saudi Arabia, and therefore I had to hop on the plane :) Qatar is home to about 2 million people and is ruled by Amir Hamad of the Al Thani royal family. Amazingly, it has the lowest unemployment rate of any country in the entire world.

While in Doha, the capital, I visited the Souq Waqif, an outdoor market with every type of Arabic gift you could think of. For food options, the Souq offers restaurants, shisha bars, and an area with local women cooking traditional food out of unlabelled casserole dishes. Guess where I chose to eat! :)

I also strolled along the beautiful coastline, visited the king's royal stables (open to anyone who wants to come pet the horses!), and visited a monument to the pearling industry which supported Qatar for many years. I ended my trip with a massage at the Sharq Village Spa, modeled after a traditional Qatari Village. All in all, a wonderful weekend away to visit a new country!

A map of Qatar (its the little brown country :))

The coastline of Doha (also known as the Corniche)

The Souq Waqif- outdoor market

The Pearl Monument, Doha

One of the Ruler's royal horses in the stables across from the palace.

The Sharq Village Spa, modeled after a traditional Qatari Village

The Grand Mosque- Abu Dhabi

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, in Abu Dhabi is by far one of the most beautiful religious structures I have ever seen. I learned a lot about this place on my tour. Built in the late 1990s and opened to visitors in 2207, the Mosque has approximately 1,000 columns in its outer areas which are clad with more than 20,000 marble panels inlaid with semi-precious stones, including lapis lazuli, red agate, amethyst, abalone shell and mother of pearl. Not to mention a 9.5 ton chandelier! Materials for the building of the mosque came from all over the world, and the inside represents a very ornate floral design. One notable thing about the mosque is the prayer clock (shown below) which changes the times of prayer automatically every day based on the sun's position. Women have to wear an abaya for entry and mine was HUGE, so I tripped often during my visit :)

Abu Dhabi Day- Ferrari World, Emirates Palace, The Corniche

The capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi, makes up over 80% of its landmass.

The population is over 1.6 million. The "Father of the UAE", Shiekh Zayed, was the first ruler of Abu Dhabi. He was only 28 when he assumed the throne, and took the UAE from a fishing town to the tourist destination it is today. On my visit to my neighboring emirate, I stopped by Ferarri World, a theme park with rollercoasters based around a Ferrari theme. I also had lunch at Emirates Palace, an incredible luxury hotel made to look like a royal palace. Finally, I took a walk on the Corniche, or coastline, with its beautiful views, cafes, and canopies.

Hatta- The Falaj

I am now in LOVE with dates, as I eat them everyday here in the Arabian Peninsula. As one of the only native fruits that grow here in the UAE, and they have a truly incredible story. The female Arabian Date Palm tree produces about 190 kg of dates each year. They are grown in a falaj, which is a interlocking system of canals that are used to get water to every tree on the farm. The way the water is channeled causes the trees to sometimes grow in interesting positions, as you can see in the pictures.

The Arabian Date Palm trees need about 70 liters of water every two days in the summertime to survive. The dates they produces are about 70% sugar and contain lots of nutrients, making them ideal for Muslims to use when breaking their fast during Ramadan.

Hatta

Last week, I took 60 fifth-grade students to Hatta, on the border of the United Arab Emirates and Oman.Hatta, an enclave of Dubai emirate, is in the middle of the Hajar Mountain range. It has amazing sand dunes and is basically isolated in the desert. Tiny Hatta was once an important source of tobacco, as well as a vital staging post on the trade route between Dubai and Oman.

We stayed at the Hatta Fort Hotel, and did lots of exploring through the Hajar mountains. Our explorations including finding Arabian toads, visiting a traditional falaj, or Arabian Date Palm Farm, and looking for fossils of ancient mollusks (also known as Gastropods) in the desert. We also had an Arabic themed dinner, in which we all dressed up in traditional garb. It was a truly amazing field trip, and I was reminded how wonderful our students actually are!

Dont worry, I do NOT dress like this all the time!

Me and the Hajar Mountains

Hard to see- but this is a small Arabian toad that just morphed from the Tadpole stage

Another good shot of the Hajar Mountains

Awesome Kiddos! :)

The Fish Souk

My friends and I visited the fish souk, where there is a weekly spread of every kind of fish you can imagine! Located in Diera, the fish souk According to GulfNews, 1400 tons of fish are sold in the UAE every year. We went around 5pm on a Friday evening, and bought some dried shark, octopus, and red snapper. We then made a delicious meal to celebrate making it out of the stinky and somewhat slimy fish market alive! :)