KuwaitASecond: DUST DAY!!!

Today, we have a Dust Day. "What's a Dust Day?", you might be asking yourself. Well, a Dust Day, by definition, is a day when there is no school due to a sandstorm or dust storm. Technically today is probably in between the two. In my experience, a Dust Day is usually followed by a sleepless night secondary to the sounds of high winds and grains of sand hitting your shutters, the scent of dust seeping in through the vents in the house, and bouts of coughing fits as the dust travels into your mouth and nasal passages limiting the your ability to breathe.

In the morning, you might find yourself exhibiting symptoms of the common cold and/or asthma. You might find a thick layer of sand all over the counter tops in the house (despite the fact that all window and doors have been closed and then also protected by a second layer of automatic shutters that block the windows and doors from the outside world). Out the window, you might notice a presence in the sky resembling that of fog or an "overcast" day. The sky may also be bright orange resembling that of the end of the world, but rest assured... it's just Dust Day.

I've been terrible about blogging the second half of my trip, so I thought this might be a good time to do it, as I am leaving in just.ten.days.

Speaking of schools, education in Kuwait has been one of the most interesting parts of the culture. Like the states, when sending your child to school you have the options of both public (government, as they refer to them here) or private schools. In the states, where you send your child to school (public vs. private) is often dependent on a number of factors including: quality of the schools in your area, costs, religious affiliation, etc. Since Kuwait it so small, and because the majority of families have nannies and drivers, virtually any school is accessible to them. If you are Kuwaiti cost is also not a factor, and not because of how wealthy the citizens are, but because the government funds all schooling for Kuwaitis. Since Kuwaitis do not have to worry about education costs, education itself has become a huge business in Kuwait. It seems that most children attend private schools and it is more about the family's reputation in choosing where your child will go to school. There are approximately 70 schools in Kuwait. These schools run under a variety of systems including: Bilingual Schools, French, American, British, Indian, Pakistani, etc. Kuwait itself is a little smaller than the size of New Jersey, and only a small percentage of the land is actually lived on. I forget how much.. but it's small okay?

The most surprising part is when it comes to education for children with special needs. Generally speaking, if you have a child with special needs, they will not be able to receive any services or even be accepted to regular, maintstream schools. Although awareness, education and acceptance of children with special needs is growing, a large stigma is still present. So much so that many children, who in my opinion are blatantly on the Autism spectrum (although I cannot diagnose), are just diagnosed as "delayed" or "borderline" because that's easier to parents to hear. There are a variety of special needs schools, but, from what I have heard, are treated more like a day care than a place where children are being pushed to their potential to learn.

The Kuwait Dream Centre is the only direct experience I have had with working in a school for children with special needs. It is lovely and is run by a British woman who has a psychology background and has lived in Kuwait for about 20 years. This school is mainly an early intervention type school and goes up to the age of five. Speaking with the director, I've expressed my concerns about the lack of integration of children with special needs into typical school settings, which is especially important for children with mild learning disabilities or moderate to high-functioning Autism. Together, we continue to struggle with finding a placement for next year for a child who presents with mild to moderate Autism. Some schools are willing to accept children in this category providing that the family pays for and provides a one-on-one aide to be with the child all day. However, she tells me finding a school for children with special needs is a huge problem in Kuwait. This and carry-over. In the states you educate and work with parents, speak with teachers, get everyone on the same page to increase generalization and build/strengthen the child's skills. Here, you have parents (who are more hands off), three nannies, teachers and other therapists all working with the child throughout the day. To try to educate and to get everyone on the same page is a really frustrating and nearly impossible process.

ANYWAY, a few other interesting things:

Movies: Went to see Young Adult the other night. The movie theater ticket distribution is so that all male bachelors sit in the first part of the movie theater near the screen (the place where no one wants to sit ever), and then families and women sit in the upper (better) seating areas. They also edit out all kissing/romance scenes. Oh... and this is what an US weekly might look like:

Dubai: We went to Dubai for two days. It reminded me of a cleaner, less trashy, more modern Vegas. You can find anything you want in Dubai. It was really nice but I spent most of my time doing kid oriented activities such as toy stores and arcades...

View from the plane

Desert..

more desert

Burj Khlaifa
aka tallest building in the world

Skyline from the hotel.
Lots of cranes... lots of new construction.

inside Dubai Mall... which has every store in the entire world

night view from my room

Burj Khalifa view from my room

Food: Still eating. A lot. Tried Pigeon the other day. Interesting. Tastes like... Chicken. Also truffles are really cheap and abundant here so I had truffles at lunch the other day. De-lish.