Our life in words and pictures.
You are currently browsing the archives for the Arabic category.
I got to do something that only one other visitor has gotten to do with Ryan… go see him teach at the university. It was really great, the students were really very nice, and I got to speak to them a bit (a very little bit) before class and use some Arabic. It was interesting to be there and hear the things they have problems with in learning English. Knowing some Arabic now, and how the language works, those thing didn’t surprise me.
We all went out to the Rub Al Khali (translated literally “quarter the empty”) in Al Ain. This is one of the largest deserts in the world, and even though we’re basically on the “edge” of it, you get a sense of how vast this thing is.
We got to see a great camel train… the men were very gracious and allowed us to drive right up and snap a few pictures. Then we found a nice spot for a picnic. The second the sun went down the wind picked up and we ended up leaving. But it was all worth it for the camels and the sunset!
We did something a little different today… instead of one of the malls for coffee we went back to downtown Al Ain and to The Mug Cafe. After that we walked around a bit, at at farooj (a great shawarma place) and watched some alley cats (the only kind of cat in the UAE) fight it out over territory. It was a great afternoon!
We went into Barami, Oman today to go to the souq… which was awesome… and I got to use Arabic quite a bit there. Asking how much things cost, if the people spoke English, stuff like that. But it was after the shopping experience that I really got to practice speaking and listening in Arabic.
We went to Ryan and Colleen’s friend’s house. (I’m not going to mention their names for respect of their privacy.) She is 22 and speaks very good English, but her father, who was there also, speaks no English - save 3 words… “drink”… “and thank you.” We sat for a good hour talking to him about where we lived, what we did, if we had children and wanted children (Lord willing I told him). There was certainly quite a lot of translating that had to happen, but I was very happy about how well I understood him, even when I didn’t know some of the words… and how well HE understood me!
Since I’m learning the Egyptian dialect I sound like a “movie star” to them. Ryan and Colleen’s friend would laugh sometimes after I said something and tell me that she was very impressed by my accent. She told me I said things very clearly and correctly and was very good at language. Of course that made me feel good… and I thank her quite often for the compliments. It also reminded me of all the times I’ve spoken to non-native English speakers who are learning English and who are very wary about how well they’re doing… but, because they’re in fact doing very well, I compliment them. This time I’m the “foreigner”… the one getting complimented.
Again… I know I’m FAR from any sort of fluency… but this was another very encouraging experience!
One of the great things about our trip to Dubai was that I finally got to really use some Arabic. So far, most everywhere we’ve gone has had some non-native person working there who is more excited about getting to use their English with me than I am to use Arabic with them. And, even if I did use it, often they understand it as little as they do English.
Today, however, was different. Starting with the riverfront souq I got a chance to speak to quite a few people… asking how much things cost, what things were, etc.
Then we went to the Dubai Outlet mall where I bought a pair of shoes from the Aldo outlet. I told the guy the shoes were a little snug in Arabic. He asked where I was from and I answered, in Arabic, “We live in America.” He said, “But you speak Arabic.” I told him a “little” and said I was learning (all in Arabic). He asked me where I was studying and I told him on my own… that impressed him somewhat. I was happy.
The best was on the way home afterwards. We stopped a rest area for Colleen to feed Ole a bit and I ran into the little shop to get some waters and Nescafe´. I spoke in Arabic the entire time, which was fun… but the great thing was the guy replied to me in Arabic the entire time. He didn’t act any differently than if I knew the language fluently… which obviously I don’t yet.
I got my waters, then asked him if he had any Nescafe´. He said yes, but I had to get it next door. Then yelled the order for a Nescafe´ through the little window. I told him “two”… he yelled “two”. He told me how much it all was, and I paid him. I then walked next door, got our Nescafe´, thanked that man, and walked out. It was a short conversation, but for someone like me, who’s learning their first new language, it was a very exciting moment.
Actually more correctly translated it is “The Flower Lebanon”… but regardless, this is the place Ryan & Colleen took us to eat in Abu Dhabi. We had the traditional olive plate, hummus, fattoush, and shawarma. It was awesome!
Here we all are at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in the Al Jimi Mall. They moved it from where it used to be. There’s a Dunkin Donuts at that location now.
Notice the Emirate man behind Colleen and Henry in the first picture.
Ryan and Colleen took us to the Mug Cafe in downtown Al Ain. It was a quaint little cozy place. They even made Henry a special crepe with a face on it. Very nice and relaxing.
