Getting to know you! Getting to know all about you!

Stories of acculturation.

So I was chatting with my bff, debriefing and trying to get a handle on this place and my place in it, and we realized the humor in some of my stories…

Here’s my most embarrassing moment thus far: I was stressed the other day, trying to get some information from one of the artists exhibiting in the Biennial. I got pulled away by unfinished business I had with this young Emirati fellow with whom I work. Being the sweet man he is, he was taking his time, incorporating a bit of chatting, and I started to get stressed. “Please! Hurry!” He read my distress, asked me sign, and sent me off. In my haste, and I smiled widely – “thank you!” And followed it up by blowing a kiss.

Ummm....yeah. I blew a kiss to an Emirati in a country where some men, even boys (okay, the ones I’m talking about are super religious), won’t even get into the elevator with me. (I have mixed feelings about that: one the one hand, it’s annoying that even a prepubescent teen thinks he should stay away; on the other, I’m glad for the privacy. I can see the value in wearing a burka, for it allows you to exist anonymously in a place, to look, watch and listen without offering others the same privilege. Anyways…) I ran out the door, rather mortified. But being an understanding fellow, he didn’t take it seriously, and thought it was kinda funny. I went about my day, which consisted of filling up my already overflowing head with more information.

Along the lines of acculturation, here’s something sweet that happened today: I walked into a local spot to get a shawarma sandwich (I’m tired of paying $6 for hummus at the hotel). I’m guessing women don’t typically come into the spot, but they were gracious and wanted to make me as comfortable as possible. I had a seat and ordered a spicy chicken shawarma sandwich. The waiter, who is Indian, asked me if I wanted fresh juice. I shook my head no and smiled, which was a tricky thing to do. He looked at me, my brown skin and features that could pass for Indian, and figured I meant “yes” because in India, when you shake your head back and forth, it means “yes.” Thinking I wanted a fresh juice, he brought me a menu. After I had gone through the whole thing, I assuredly said “no thank you” (with a smile, minus the head shake).

And a bit about Eid (holidays): I don’t understand how I’m supposed to plan a trip during the holiday when the exact date of the Eid is determined by the moon’s visibility. Umm…for real? Being here will teach me a lot about letting go and going with the flow.

Also, I think I need to learn a South Asian language because the population is overwhelmingly from the sub-continent. Wouldn’t that be cool? I move to the Gulf and learn Hindi!

week one, sorta

Week one, sorta.

Work is great! I love the people I work with. They are sweet men and women (mostly women) who keep their cool, don’t take their stress out on other people, and are supportive of newbies like me. I’m quite happy with my job. In a couple of days, the curators are coming so we’re preparing for a bunch of meetings. That’s why it’s week one, sorta. Cause I have to work some over the weekend. Gotta work whatchyo mama gave you, right? I’m aiming to make waves up in here.

So this evening, I was invited by a friend to hang out with her friends at a fancy bar in Dubai. Now I’ve been reading about these fancy bars, and from what I learned, shit is expensive. Like $15 a drink kind of expensive. So we did a little pre-partying at home and headed out. It was fun! Women in general were pretty nice to each other. Men new when to take the hint. Music was pretty fun (YAY majorlazer!!) and the drinks were also tasty! And I lucked out…both bartenders hooked me up super fat with free tasters and shots and etc. It was a great time.

Here’s what life is like thus far: I live in a hotel. The breakfast buffet is free, so I eat like a piglet in the morning. The waiters and waitresses are primarily Filipino, but the main guy is Sri Lankan, I think. I’m just learning about the race/class hierarchy in this town. In general people are pretty nice. I try to be as gracious and generous with my tipping as possible without seeming like I have a problem.

Walking down the street isn’t the most pleasant experience, but as a woman, it has NOTHING on Cairo, where you had to be more defensive walking down the street. Here it just stinks a little, and the humidity rocks the house down. Only once was I kind of offended by a passerby. And today I dealt with a jerk ass in a market while trying to buy a couple of apples. Otherwise it’s just fine.

Things are generally expensive, but you know, if you want the more affordable options, they are there. For example, we ordered lunch at work the other day and it cost the equivalent of 10buckeroonis. Yesterday I went to dinner with a friend to a shaabi (local) place, and it cost less than that for 2 dinners! So I’m excited to find all these treasures…

And speaking of! It’s really exciting to be in a place where diversity has been a reality for hundreds of years. If you look at a map of the United Arab Emirates, you’ll see that we’re surrounded by a number of places – South Asia, Iran, Central Asia, the Arabian/Persian Gulf, and East Africa. Are you kidding? There’s been so much mixing here, with the ports and all, it’s no wonder that the UAE is as open to other cultures as it is. Now I realize I just got here, but so far…I’m enamored.

Stay tuned!!