by Deborah Quinn | Apr 23, 2012 | Abu Dhabi, expat, Feminism, pop culture, shopping, UAE, What's It Like?
So I was at the mall. I’m at the mall because “everything” is at the mall: grocery stores, bookstores (or at least stores that sell book-related products), the Walgreens-equivalent stores. These malls are vast echoey spaces designed to entertain:...
by Deborah Quinn | Oct 21, 2011 | Abu Dhabi, Children, Parenting, religion
Caleb came in for an early morning snuggle. 6:13AM on Friday morning, which in this part of the world is Saturday. Well, actually, it’s like Sunday, the day of worship. Tomorrow, Saturday, is like Saturday. Anyway. It’s early, I’m sleeping, he’s chatty. Caleb: Why do...
by Deborah Quinn | Apr 24, 2011 | Children, family, religion
As we drove in from JFK on Saturday, having just landed after a 13 hour flight from Abu Dhabi, Caleb said “now we can do that painting eggs thing for the Easter Bunny?” The Easter Bunny thought fast. “Well, I’m not sure we have eggs at home to...
by Deborah Quinn | Nov 29, 2010 | Feminism, Gender, NYC, Travel
Here’s where you get your abaya when you visit Abu Dhabi’s Grand Mosque: No, there are no shoes available here, just black full-length robes for all female visitors not already wearing a robe, and white full-length robes for male visitors wearing shorts. And...