A Second Once in A Life-time Opportunity
Going to Olin has been a once in a life-time opportunity. I’m incredibly grateful, not only for the awesome classes and classmates, but also for the opportunity to help build this school into the world-class institution that it deserves to be known as. Some of the time, awesome things fall into your lap that will change your life forever. Olin has been this for me, and by that same line of thought I would have to describe my experience at Khalifa University of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, UAE as my second once in a life-time opportunity. It’s not every day that you get to be the first exchange student to a three-year-old engineering school in a Muslim nation.
Hanging out at Emirates Palace, one of the most expensive hotels to construct in the world
This all began with a spontaneous conversation between two external guests touring our campus, my lovely Mat Sci partner, Elizabeth Poindexter (’13) and myself about our plastic recycling project. The conversation ended with one of them saying “if you’re up for an adventure, you should consider studying abroad with us at Khalifa University. Here’s my business card. Don’t worry, e-mail works in Abu Dhabi too.” About four months later I was on a plane to the other side of the world to learn from and help build a new institution.
Cosmopolitan Living
“Cosmopolitan” is the word for NYU-Abu Dhabi, an awesome nearby school that isn’t much unlike Olin, for a reason. Being at the junction between of Africa, Europe and Asia plus having oil reserves that keeps America invested in this region puts the UAE smack-dab in the middle of the world. Living in this city for three months, I have met people from as many different countries, if not more, as I have in the last 21 years of my life (mind you, that I’ve lived in San Jose, Needham, and The Netherlands; plus a fair amount of travelling). Constantly meeting people from different backgrounds is one of the more rewarding parts of life here, and will likely be the thing that I miss most when I return to the US.
At a Beach Ultimate Tournament in Dubai
Knowing so many different people has reinforced my belief that everyone is a person too. Everywhere you go; there is a healthy, Gaussian distribution of personalities and beliefs across all spectrums (intelligence, liberalism, etc.). This makes a lot of sense when you think about it. However, the weight of this statement doesn’t really hit you until you travel to an incredibly different place. For Americans, one of those places is the Muslim/Arab World. Case and point – have you ever really gotten to know a Palestinian and hear his/her story? If not, please do so.
The Good Life
I think that speak for most people what I’ve talked to here when I say that I have a love/hate relationship with the city. The rules and atmosphere of living in what is approximately a benevolent police-state can get to you some of the time, although 98% of the time you don’t notice it. One third of life here is all about cars, fast food and shopping malls. It’s a part of life here that drives me insane. The next third is the rich, cosmopolitan city life which can give you almost whatever you want, provided that you look hard enough for it. Ex: Argentinian Tango classes (thanks to Laura Stupin (’07) who tipped me off to them), a hidden Frisbee league and NYU Abu Dhabi’s events. The final third is the more traditional lifestyle lived by both Emirati Nationals and Arab Ex-Pats. This is the hardest lifestyle to get to experience, but is often the most rewarding to become acquainted with.
At a traditional Emirati wedding, at these events them men don’t mix with the women until the end, when the groom attends the bride’s half of the party.
Arab hospitality is legendary for a reason, and the foreigners who travel here are predominantly an adventurous and open-minded bunch. When you can’t find something in Abu Dhabi (like a good cup of tea…) you can almost always find it, and much, much more in Dubai (which really should be pronounced “Du-freaking-bai” since it has so many epically cool, albeit superficial, things like the world’s tallest tower, and a palm-tree shaped island). Life here is good. More people from the US need to check out this part of the world. Oh, and classes are good too.