To Write and Roam in Florence and Rome

I do feel like the title of this post isn't the best of my rhyming game, but it was the perfect description of my time in Italy. I travelled from Dubai to Florence by way of Rome to attend the Futurescapes speculate fiction writer's workshop for writers in fantasy, science fiction, and horror genres.

It was my first time participating in a workshop like this, and it was an amazing opportunity to receive feedback on the first 50 pages of my novel as well as my query letter (the letter writers send to agents asking them to represent them and submit their work to editors, required by most traditional publishers) and synopsis (a summary of the rest of my novel).

The faculty were outstanding, and I received feedback directly from Lucienne Diver (a U.S. agent for N.K. Jemisin and for two of my friends from college, one of whom I interviewed for the blog previously), Zoe Plant (an agent from the UK), and Matt Kirby (an award-winning young adult and middle-grade U.S. author).

We all enjoyed a special session on including sensory details in our writing taught by Fran Wilde, a Nebula Award-winning author whose short fiction I've been reading and loving in Uncanny Magazine for years. She announced early in our workshop a surprise contest where if we completed a sensory detail writing exercise she would pick a few winners to get copies of her books.

I knew I had to participate, and I was so thrilled I won! I picked as my prize an Advance Reader Copy (meaning a print edition of the book before it goes to official publication) of her short story collection, "A Catalog of Storms", which she was kind enough to sign for me. The story "A Catalog of Storms" made a huge impact on me when I read it for the first time, and it has some of the best expressions of familial love and grief I've ever read.

I also learned so much from the other writers who participated. I was part of a five-person critique group with excerpts spanning many genres: space western, contemporary first-world fantasy (meaning fantasy set in today's world and today's time) including Meso-American mythological elements, secondary-world queer romantasy inspired partially by Spanish and Persian history, secondary-world dark fantasy inspired by African American folklore, and my own submission that I had submitted as a dystopian medical science fiction and Zoe Plant assured me fell firmly within "high-concept speculative fiction" - a label I love.

In Florence, I did several group walking tours as well as a hike. It's so fun to do things like this with other creatives, because for example we hiked to the top of a hill with a beautiful historic cemetery, where we did a writing exercise exploring how the societies in our novel understand and cope with death. It was a profound and inspiring experience, and to my delight besides us there was a group of artists similarly sketching various views. Florence is still truly a city of the arts even today.

I took advantage of my solo trip to Italy to add a few days in Rome to my itinerary, as well. I visited the Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which was the closest Temple to Dubai until the recent completion of the Nairobi, Kenya Temple (which I also can't wait to visit someday).

When I went, the Rome Temple was completely packed and they had to bring in rows and rows of extra chairs, and I learned it was a special final Temple visit day for missionaries assigned to Italy who were finishing their missions. How wonderful it was to share my Temple day with them!

On a complete coincidence, some of my dearest friends I had lived and worked with in Seoul happened to be visiting Rome for a weekend when I was there, so we met up for a late dinner and gelato. It was so nice to see them again. One of the best parts about being in the Foreign Service is having friends all over the world you never know when you're going to reunite with on a whim!

As you can probably tell from the photos I've sprinkled throughout this blog post, I especially enjoyed walking around many beautiful churches and cathedrals. I love the history and art in these sacred buildings, as well as their openness to the public. Multiple times, I found myself kneeling in prayer alongside total strangers from all over the world in these beautiful spaces designed to help us turn our hearts to God and more spiritual things than the bright, noisy streets just outside.

On my last morning in Rome, I decided to swing by one more church that happened to be right next to my hotel before I went to the airport, and to my surprise I discovered only after I arrived that that church was the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, where Pope Francis was just laid to rest. I was grateful to have the opportunity to pay my respects and see such a special place before I left.

I came back home with a mind bursting with creative energy, which I'm already applying to finishing this first draft and then hopefully getting started as soon as possible on revising my novel. I had so much fun in Italy, but I really missed my family and it's good to be back with them. I would definitely recommend a writing workshop to any writers who are looking to take their craft to the next level, build community, and take some time away from the stresses of regular daily life.

More Hiking in the UAE: Jebel Hafeet, Hidden Oasis Suunto, Seven Summits, Wadi Saham Petroglyphs, and Al Rabi

Since I did a hiking in the UAE roundup post last year, I thought I'd do the same this year with all the new places we went hiking before it got too hot.

Our first hike this season was Jebel Hafeet in Al Ain, which is so famous it's one of the first places people will recommend if they find out you enjoy hiking. Unfortunately, due to an unusually heavy rainy season we saw a ton of garbage on the trail, which made it not only less safe but also less pretty. I would not recommend this trail unless it undergoes some extensive trash pickup. On the bright side, there was an awesome playground, picnic benches, and nice restrooms at the start of the trail, so the potential is definitely there for this to be a great outing for the whole family once it's cleaned up. At least we enjoyed some decent views while we tried to avoid slipping on crushed waterbottles and plastic wrappers.

After that, I went hiking with some friends from my book club to a hidden oasis in Ras Al Khaimah emirate. As soon as I heard "hidden oasis" and saw the amazing photos one of the ladies who went before shared with the group, I was in. This is one of my favorite hikes I've done in the UAE with a ton of scenic variety, very cool rock formations, a valley with an epic echo along the way, and the rewarding payoff of the hidden oasis of greenery at the end (though watch out for the goats, who were quick to try and pilfer any snacks hikers pulled out). I can't wait to do this one with the family next time.

On our way back from our Oman road trip, we did two hikes in Fujairah emirate: the Seven Summits and Wadi Saham. The Seven Summits trail was not nearly as difficult as it sounded, and I would describe this as the easiest hike we've found in the UAE and definitely kid-friendly. There's an easy path up with plenty of sitting areas to the top, and from there you can reach seven "summits" that are quite close and not too steep. (Just make sure when you park you walk to the edge of the trail by the road so you can take the proper path up. We didn't see it at first and took some less-nice stairs instead.)

Wadi Saham is another hike I consider a must for hiking enthusiasts in the UAE. It's challenging and has different paths so you can make the hike a bit longer or shorter. There is basically no shade, so be prepared for lots of sun exposure and not as many natural places to take a break. But what really makes the hike stand out is the petroglyphs near the start of the hike. (Petroglyphs are a type of rock carving where a chisel reveals the lighter layer of rock underneath the surface.) I was worried it would be one of those things that wouldn't live up to the hype online and would be barely visible in real life, but thankfully it was awesome and easy to see.

Our last hike of the season was Al Rabi trail in the Instagram-famous seaside town of Khor Fakkan. This hike was stunning, with views of the mountain on one side and the ocean on the other. There were also nice sitting areas spaced throughout. (There's a cute restaurant and cafe called The View with a gorgeous perch overlooking the ocean I recommend hitting as soon as you're done with the hike - if you can get a table! When we finished our hike, the wait was so long we opted for post-hike smoothies to go instead.)

For those who long for hikes and nature (like me) in the UAE, I hope these hikes can give you something to look forward to after summer is over. And for those who are far away, I hope posts like this show there's so much more to the UAE than just the glitz and glam of Dubai. At least for this expat, happy hiking makes for happy living!

Road Trip to Oman

Yes, this was my third trip to Oman in the year and a half I've lived in Dubai. No, I regret nothing. I've loved Oman, ever since my days studying Arabic and teaching English there more than a decade ago, and I'm always excited to go back. This time, we took a family road trip from Dubai to Muscat and did plenty of sightseeing and adventuring on the way!

First, we spent a day in Al Ain, stopping on the way to visit Emirates Bio Farm. Of the three of us, I enjoyed the farm the most. They had Damascus goats (the ones with the super long ears I didn't know existed until very recently) and sheep, but S decided the animals were scary and didn't like them as much as I thought he would. They had a lovely farm store and restaurant with a play area, and overall I thought it was a lovely excursion for a family.

Al Ain Oasis was even better, with plenty of long, winding roads in the shade of impressive date palm trees. It's the perfect outing for some unstructured time just walking and enjoying nature's beauty.

Al Ain Oasis was also an excellent example of the aflaj traditional irrigation system that's been used in Oman for thousands of years. We saw working aflaj still operational today!

After that, we went to Ibri where I couldn't believe how much the city had changed since I lived there briefly more than 10 years ago. They now have malls! Trendy hipster coffee shops! Definitely more hotels than I remember! The school where I used to teach is no longer there but has moved to the capital of Muscat, and I had a hard time finding the exact location where it was (since I'm a bit directionally challenged even for places I have seen more recently than a decade ago).

Then we went to Jabreen Castle, which I consider a must-see in Oman if you're passing anywhere near the area (and it's on the way between Ibri and Nizwa, another essential stop for those interested in culture and history)! The intricate and spacious rooms inside are a beautiful sample of old Islamic architecture.

Once we reached Nizwa, we visited Nizwa Fort, as well. Nizwa Fort and Jabreen Castle were both built in the 1600s, and Nizwa Fort is bigger but Jabreen Castle is more detailed inside. They're both great sites to visit even when it's scorching outside, because the thick walls (and in the case of Nizwa even some air conditioning in certain areas) keep the interiors cool enough for visitors.

After that, we visited a site that didn't exist when I used to live in Oman: the Oman Across Ages Museum, which just opened in 2023. This was such a fabulous museum for the whole family, with plenty of games for M and S and plenty of things for me to read! It covered a lot of history, culture, and science and had an impressive collection of artifacts (including this passport and ID cards from the former Sultan of Oman).

Once we reached Muscat, we stayed with my friend and colleague M, who is studying Arabic at the same school where I used to teach English back when it was in Ibri! What a small world! I even crashed one of her study sessions where we played a German-style card game called Bohnanza but in Arabic. It's also so fun to stay with families with kids now that we're a family with a kid. S loved playing with their kids and we all had a great time.

I was determined to get out and about while we were in Oman. I had heard about the Muttrah Geotrek as a recommended hike very close to the city of Muscat, so we all went there despite some mixed reviews about whether it was still open.

We had only just started the hike when we reached an ominous sign telling us not to continue because it was too dangerous! I wish they had put that sign at the beginning of the trail, but at least we got to enjoy some nice views before we had to turn back. Thankfully, there was a small park close to where we parked to start the hike, so we took S there and let him play and it was still a fun family outing.

We also decided to splurge on a one-day Shangri-La hotel day pass so we could enjoy the pool, the beach, a lazy river, and lunch as a family. S and I love to swim and play in the water together, so we had a blast!

The next day, we woke up early and drove a bit outside of Muscat for one of my favorite hikes in the world: Wadi Shab! It was just as stunning as I remembered it over a decade ago, except now it's even better because they have restrooms by the parking lot and guys who will rent life jackets, waterproof phone cases, water shoes, and other things at the entrance if you need them.

This is a fantastic hike that we did as a family on the solid ground and then I let M and S enjoy some father-son bonding time while I continued through the swimming-only part (from which I took the first photo of this post). At the end, you can even swim through a very narrow path between rocks and get inside a stunning cavern with a waterfall. There was almost nobody there, and I enjoyed every second of the beautiful nature around me. It healed my soul.

That night, we enjoyed an Omani iftar (the meal with which you break the fast during Muslims' holy month of Ramadan) at Ramsaa Omani Restaurant that included a dish I love, harees. (I looked up harees on Wikipedia and the description does not do this dish justice! It says, "a dish of boiled, cracked, or coarsely-ground cracked wheat or bulgur, mixed with meat and seasoned. Its consistency varies between a porridge and a gruel." It's better than it sounds.) This trip was right at the end of Ramadan, which was observed much more strictly in Oman than in most of the UAE. Restaurants including fast food places and cafes were completely closed during the day in Oman, whereas these days almost everything is open in Dubai all day and all night during Ramadan. To our surprise, a stranger came up to us since S was wearing a Virginia Tech shirt to say they were a VT alum! They and M (hubby M, not friend M) bonded over their time in Blacksburg.

Sadly, our week in Oman flew by and we had to return home. An Emirati friend asked me before I left, "Are you looking forward to the cooler weather there?" and I had forgotten how much cooler Oman feels than Dubai when we're so close but she was right. It did feel way less hot! When we came back to the UAE, we drove through Fujairah (one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates of the UAE) and did a few last hikes for the season (which I'll include in a separate UAE hiking post with more details).

We all had so much fun in Oman, and I will never not love visiting this amazing country. Unfortunately, I planned our trip too last minute and missed out on meeting up with my former boss and his family this time, but since my Oman visa is still valid maybe I can make it over there again before it expires... If I'm lucky!