Abu Dhabi and Dubai

[SORRY FOR THE PICTURELESS ENTRY, MY CAMERA BROKE AFTER OUR DESERT TREK]

We all arrived in Abu Dhabi after the pretty short flight in an amazing airport where we were swept over to a VIP lounge for a little discussion and light refreshment. The women from the Arab Women's Organization took care of our passports and luggage and we were put in vans and shuttle over to the Intercontinental Abu Dhabi Hotel.

AMAZING!
This hotel, let me tell you, was absolutely breathtaking. I haven't seen one like it in all of my life. The crystal chandeliers, the marble everything, and especially the amazing rooms! Diana and I were in heaven, and were all too quick to take a nice shower, cuddle up in our bathrobes and relax. After a couple hours we were greeted with an assortment of room service food which Diana and I of course chowed down only to attend another dinner at 9 PM.

Downstairs in one of the ballrooms we became acquainted with all of the Arab students that were invited to the conference. They were all asked to dress in their traditional clothing so it was really cool to see. There were 14 countries represented by the Arab students, mostly one male and female from each of those countries. After dinner and tons of pictures taken, Diana and I passed out in bed for the long day ahead of us in the morning.

In the morning we were divided into different groups to discuss women's issues, my group ended up being Health which I didn't really know much about but I figured, I'm a woman and I'm healthy so that was good enough for me. The moderators of my group were Grace and Maess (haha that rhymes) and we were able to tackle most of the issues, or atleast the ones we could get comparable facts for. We really didn't leave any subject unturned, we include STD's, HIV/AIDS, and even abortion. There were only about four members of our group that really contributed, Maess being the only Arab that did but we were able to finish up our presentation and Maess and Grace did a great job.

In between working on the presentation we attended a couple different events. The first day a lot of the girls went to the all girl's spa where we relaxed by the jacuzzi and pool. After the presentations we went to the Emirates Palace Hotel where we were able to see a Picasso exhibition, which I didn't expect. Then after the exhibition a group of us went to the Abu Dhabi mall for only a little while because were were unimpressed.

The next morning we went to the Grand Mosque of Abu Dhabi which I didn't really enjoy. I feel like when you're discussing which three world records your mosque holds, it becomes more about luxury and less about the religion and prayer. I found the mosque way to distracting for my taste, whereas I prefer something like Ibn Tulun in Eygpt.

After the mosque was a quick tour of Abu Dhabi University which was somewhat unamusing as well. Maybe it was just the mood I was in. Lastly we visited the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research. There we found out that the UK had issued some terrorist warnings concerning Dubai and that we wouldn't be going there on a day trip. A lot of us were bummed but I think it was in our best interests.

Wednesday morning we woke up early to visit the General Women's Union where we saw a slideshow presentation, different workshops, and a beautiful bride. We were also able to dress up in traditional clothing which was so much fun! All of the girls were able to get henna tattoos and we were given gifts at the end of the visit. The rest of the day I was a bum in the hotel room, took a nice bath and relaxed before traveling.

At night we said our goodbyes to all of the Arab students and hopped on the bus for Dubai. First we stopped at the Mall of the Emirates where we went to explore the giant ski slope, Ski Dubai. Then we just wandered back, some people got ice cream, then back on the bus. Next we stopped to see the 7 star hotel, Burj al-Arab but it costs money to go inside so people just took pictures. Lastly we saw the Burj Dubai, soon to be the tallest building in the world which was absolutely amazing, too bad I didn't have a camera!

Finally we ended up at the airport where we sprawled out and waited to be checked in. The flights were exhausting and I was just happy to get back to the Marriot today and relax.