My day in the kandura, 2011 edition

December 2 is National Day, the equivalent of July 4 in the US.  In honor of the holiday I wear a kandura (robe).  Last year I had a white kandura and I wore it again for cultural night in the post below.  This year I decided to have one made with color.  I joke with students, "Don't you ever get bored wearing white every day?  I can't imagine opening my closet door and seeing nothing but white kandura's staring back at me."  I like a little variety in my closet. Anyhow...

I had a tailor make a blue one with subtle stripes.

Dr. Omar grew up in the Emirates and received his Ph.D. in the US.  He started teaching at UAEU last year and his office is next to mine.  I don't get to see much of him but we've become friends.  I love the US and enjoy teaching and living in the Emirates.  Omar loves the UAE and really enjoys his time in the US.  He and his wife return each summer to Arkansas.  (I raised my eyebrows the first time he said it, too.  He explained that he's from the one liberal town in Arkansas.  That makes sense.  Living in Iowa City is a world different than western Iowa.) 

Omar and I are wearing the egal (black ropes) because it is appropriate for our position as teachers.  The shebab (young males) only wear them when they have something formal to dress up for.

 Khaled is one of my favorite students.  Here is demonstrating the nose greeting.  While I found it unnerving last year I got over it quickly this year.  I still can't bring myself to make the "smooch" sound as I touch the other guy's nose.  Obviously I can't say it is "too gay."  I'd have to say it strikes me as too intimate as a way to greet a casual friend almost anyone.

 I have been teaching more years than I care to remember but this is the first time I have had a German exchange student.  My ancestors are from Germany and I have long believed my family has very, very German attributes - for good and bad.  It is fantastic to be able to talk at length with a pure-bred born and raised German to learn whether my German stereotypes are accurate.  The answer?  Yes, but that's a story for a different post.

Lukas also had a kandura made and right after this picture was taken he said, "I don't know what my grandmother would do if she saw this picture."  I laughed because I know my grandmother would have started with "Oh, pshaw" and gone downhill from there.

 Rashed is a student from Afghanistan.

Afghanistan... as in, a year ago he was living 50 miles north of Kabul.  One of the reasons I don't get bored in my job is that I love, love, love the chance to talk to people whose life experience is simply fascinating.  For the record, he's more optimistic for Afghanistan than most American pundits seem to be and he had some solid, yet anecdotal, evidence to back it up.

We are wearing scarfs that celebrate the 40th National Day and have pictures of the rulers of the country.  Patriotism leads to commercialism here.  (I don't mean that as a pejorative.  The fact people are willing to spend lots of money to show their spirit for National Day is something I like.  It's nationalism without any of the bitterness of the Tea Party.)

OH!  There are few pictures that have disappointed me more than this one.  This is my favorite class in my four years of teaching in the Emirates.  A few of the guys bought a Coke, Coke Zero and Coke Light (Diet Coke) for the class.  Unfortunately, there was no good place to take the picture at this time of day.  My lack of foresight on this really bothers me.  I'd like to do a do-over and probably will; this is a class I want to remember.