Thank You and Goodbye

I am back in Canada and I have found a great job.  I just wanted to take a minute to say thank you to everyone who has read this blog over the years.  Thank you to everyone you came up to me in the UAE and said that they read my blog.  Thank you.

All the best and if you are thinking of moving to the UAE, DO IT!

All Done!

Hello Readers, 
   I know that it has been a hot minute, but I am back in Canada.  I officially left ADEC and I can say that I survived 4 years working for ADEC.

The exit process wasn't as bad as it seemed on paper but there will be more on that later.  I am pleased to announce that I have found a job in Montreal, I will be teaching at an all boys school and I will be teaching Grade 7, 8, and 10 Science.  The last few months have been crazy, but I am so happy that things have turned out well.

More to come and thanks for reading!

All Finished!

Yesterday was a monumental day, I handed in my LAST project for my Master's degree.  I cannot believe that I am finished, I am so proud of myself, I am the first person in my family with a graduate degree.  This weekend we have a long weekend and I am heading to Istanbul in Turkey, very excited!

79 days left!

All Good Things Must Come To An End

Well readers, it is the end of an era.

Last week I put in my resignation to leave the UAE at the end of this school year.  I plan to go back to Canada and see where the wind takes me.

I want to thank each and every one of you that has commented, read and approached me in person.  To all those that have been inspired, keep your dreams alive.

I will graduate from my Masters program in April, I am looking to take a break from the classroom.  I am excited and nervous to see what next year will bring.

Just like I documented the entry process, I am going to TRY and document the exit process.  Last week, the resignation window opened, you have two weeks to fill in the application to apply to resign.  The application asks for basic information, name, expected departure date.  There are about 9 people that have to approve this resignation, the first one is your principal.  She approved mine, but she also had many questions for me as to why I was leaving, I explained that it was my time to go.  I now wait on the next approver. 

Hardest Thing About Living Abroad

   There are many things that come with living abroad.  The mere fact that I am 8 hours ahead of my home city makes it difficult to take to anyone in a timely matter.  Living here I have missed weddings, baby showers, the birth of my friends kids.  This year I have been hit with something that I have always been afraid of; my mother will need an important surgery next month.  There is not negotiating about this, my mother is very important to me and I need to be there.  I have already told my principal and I will be out of work for 2 weeks once we get the surgery date.  I will have to fly home and miss two weeks of work.  I will not be paid, but sometimes it is not always about the money.  Hopefully, everything will be fine.

Global Village: A Must in Dubai

   One of my absolute favorite things in Dubai is Global Village. This event takes place during the cooler months from November to April. Global Village is wonderful, it is a collection of countries where most countries have a pavilion.  In these pavilions they sell clothes, food and art from that country. There are fair style rides as well as performances by local artists. If you have kids, this is an excellent family outing. My favourite pavilion is Africa (I know it isn't a country), they do black henna, which can be hard to find in the UAE. They sell items from all over Africa for excellent prices and the purses, omg 10$ for a gorgeous clutch, every year I buy at least two. I am sometimes tempted to buy a bunch and resell them.

 I bought the bottom one, I should have bought the bottom two. 

Getting some black henna done by a Sudanese lady. Black henna gets a bad name because it needs to be dyed to get that black color, often one can get severe allergic reactions from that dye. Global Village is the only place I will get black henna done, I figure if people who know what they are doing are the ones doing the henna I am safe. 

I also went on the ferris wheel, such a wonderful view.

Parking is a bit of a pain, when you park, please look at the number assigned to your area. We didn't do that and we had to look for our car for about an hour at the end of the night. 

#notfun

They also had fireworks,

If you are in the UAE between November and April, you have to go to Global Village. You will find so many wonderful souvenirs from around the world. You may need to go more than once, i honestly go every year.

Paint and Sip In The UAE

   I don't always go out, but I do love trying new things. My co-worker and friend L, has a husband who is an artist (V). They host their first paint and sip back in February. For those of you who don't know what a Paint and Sip is, it is when an artist teaches a group of people how to paint a painting meanwhile you sip on wine and have snacks. Very fun. 

Here I am with my final product! 

Here we all are with our paintings. 

Such a fun time! 

Most people tend to do these for birthday parties. 

I also love to see the variety in the paintings.