Dolly's Blog

Two Weeks in Sunny, Southern California (and 1 Weekend in NYC)

Okay, okay....I know it's been a long time and I think maybe my mom is the only person still checking to see if there are new entries, but I've finally gotten around to a new post.  The reason being is that I've been in LA for 2 weeks!  The first weekend was labor day weekend and actually I spent it in NYC with all my girlfriends and my sister, which was so fun and the perfect thing to come home to.  That week I was in the office in LA, which was also actually fun because I got to actually help on drawings for another project...a welcome change from my paperwork-heavy job here.  During the week I went to see James Brown at the Hollywood Bowl...so cool!  The next weekend I got to see my dad, step-mom and aunt in Ventura, then I went camping near Santa Barbara with some friends.  I was giddy just being able to be outside; Dubai sure makes you appreciate climates that allow you to be outside without becoming instantly soaking wet.  When we got back we went to see Willie Nelson at the Bowl!!!  The entire next week was vacation for me, so that I could participate in my capoeira group's festival and batizado, which is an annual event that allows students to move up in level.  I went to workshops all week hosted by different mestres (masters) that were visitng from Brazil and then on Saturday I was in the batizado and moved up to a yellow cord!!! yay!!  That weekened I got to see my mom and step-dad, so I got to see the whole family on this trip!  I left on Monday and as always it was very hard to say goodbye.  When I'm in Dubai, it's not so bad...I get into my routine, but going home is sooo great and it's saying goodbye that's always the
 hardest thing to do.

Ramadan

It started today and will end a few days before I come home for good, so my last experience here will be Ramadan.  I'm actually excited, because I sometimes complain about the lack of culture here, so it will be interesting to have something actually impact how I live my life.  So basically it's a time of year where Muslims kind of renew their faith...it makes me think of Lent.  They will pray a lot and the biggest thing is that they fast during daylight hours and out of respect everybody else must not be seen eating, drinking, smoking, chewing gum, listening to loud music, dancing, etc. in public.  I don't think it's very common, but you can actually be arrested if you're caught doing any of those things!  I think they would only do that if you were doing it on purpose, not just as a mistake.  Luckily I share an office with a non-Muslim girl, so we can just shut our door if we want to eat or drink anything.  My biggest worry is that I'll drink a big bottle of water in my car or something...I'm known for being forgetful, so cross your fingers that I don't end up in jail for drinking water!!

All the expats partied hard this weekend because they won't be able to for (gasp!) a whole month.  Since I don't really drink or go out here anyway, that won't really affect me.  I'm not sure yet how it will affect me...I'll keep you posted. 

Back to the Grindstone

I'm back to work.  The only good thing is that the project is moving along and I can actually see my work being built which is great.  The work is still the same...it's lots of paperwork and lots of crises that need immediate descisions and answers.  It's still effing hot.  They say it should cool down soon, but I've been hearing that for a while now.  It's still crazy humid too, which is the real killer.

Okay Ma, that's about it...I'll post pictures soon.  Love you!