Hi all,
This will be my last blog post from Abu Dhabi for a while, and it's still sinking in that I'm flying back to the U.S. tonight. This week was honestly so stressful, but now it's over and I'm left with mostly feelings of gratitude. What an incredible 10 months this has been. It's such a powerful thing to find a place in the world where you belong and to find the purpose you were created for, and I suppose I'm still in the process of finding both of those things, but being in Abu Dhabi is the closest I've come so far. I feel so lucky to have gotten to travel so much and to have made friends from all over the globe. I've learned so much from being in this part of the world. It hasn't always been easy, but it has been so worth it. I'm going to miss the community and the diversity here so much. Thanks to everyone who has made an impact on my life. Can't wait to see you again in January, inshallah!
This week I got to have Iftar (sunset meal) with some other students in the home of a Turkish professor and his family. The food was great, especially the baklava and other sweets after dinner! I'm a little disappointed that I won't be in the U.A.E. for Eid, but I'm so glad that I got to experience all the Ramadan events this month that bring people together.
I also had a birthday this week! 19 years old. My amazing friends took the time out of their lives to surprise me with cake.
I also got to meet up with one of my childhood friends from Arizona this week. She had a 9-hour layover in Dubai, so we met up at the airport and spent the night exploring Dubai Mall/ Burj Khalifa area. It was a good excuse to see the touristy Dubai things one last time before leaving. I hadn't seen her in over a year, and we haven't lived near each other since 7th grade, so I was really glad that we got to reconnect. *cue those Disneyland dolls singing "It's a Small World"*
Other than that, the rest of this week was consumed by final exams, packing, cleaning, and saying goodbye to everyone. It's not an easy task to pack everything I own into two suitcases and a small storage locker and then clean the dorm from top to bottom, but I did it.
By the way, I'm going to be discontinuing my weekly blog posts for the rest of the summer and redesigning the blog a bit, although I might post a few things here and there. I'll resume regular posts during my semester in Shanghai starting the first week of September.
Goodnight from Saadiyat Island,
(See you in 6 months, Abu Dhabi!)
Alison
This will be my last blog post from Abu Dhabi for a while, and it's still sinking in that I'm flying back to the U.S. tonight. This week was honestly so stressful, but now it's over and I'm left with mostly feelings of gratitude. What an incredible 10 months this has been. It's such a powerful thing to find a place in the world where you belong and to find the purpose you were created for, and I suppose I'm still in the process of finding both of those things, but being in Abu Dhabi is the closest I've come so far. I feel so lucky to have gotten to travel so much and to have made friends from all over the globe. I've learned so much from being in this part of the world. It hasn't always been easy, but it has been so worth it. I'm going to miss the community and the diversity here so much. Thanks to everyone who has made an impact on my life. Can't wait to see you again in January, inshallah!
 |
| Going to miss this beautiful campus I call home |
This week I got to have Iftar (sunset meal) with some other students in the home of a Turkish professor and his family. The food was great, especially the baklava and other sweets after dinner! I'm a little disappointed that I won't be in the U.A.E. for Eid, but I'm so glad that I got to experience all the Ramadan events this month that bring people together.
I also had a birthday this week! 19 years old. My amazing friends took the time out of their lives to surprise me with cake.
 |
| Look, they even put an airplane on it! Such cuteness |
I also got to meet up with one of my childhood friends from Arizona this week. She had a 9-hour layover in Dubai, so we met up at the airport and spent the night exploring Dubai Mall/ Burj Khalifa area. It was a good excuse to see the touristy Dubai things one last time before leaving. I hadn't seen her in over a year, and we haven't lived near each other since 7th grade, so I was really glad that we got to reconnect. *cue those Disneyland dolls singing "It's a Small World"*
 |
| Back at the Burj |
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| Dubai Mall fountains |
Other than that, the rest of this week was consumed by final exams, packing, cleaning, and saying goodbye to everyone. It's not an easy task to pack everything I own into two suitcases and a small storage locker and then clean the dorm from top to bottom, but I did it.
By the way, I'm going to be discontinuing my weekly blog posts for the rest of the summer and redesigning the blog a bit, although I might post a few things here and there. I'll resume regular posts during my semester in Shanghai starting the first week of September.
 |
| Bye for now, NYUAD! |
Goodnight from Saadiyat Island,
(See you in 6 months, Abu Dhabi!)
Alison
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