Read first hand experiences of students, teachers and program leaders while also learning about upcoming travel opportunities.
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The United Arab Emirates is an Arabian Peninsula nation settled mainly along the Persian (Arabian) Gulf. The country is a federation of 7 emirates. Abu Dhabi, the island capital, is home to Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, with crystal chandeliers and room for 40,000 worshipers. Dubai is the site of ultramodern Burj Khalifa tower, enormous shopping centers and extravagant entertainment attractions.
- Travel to Dubai: Relax and enjoy our scheduled flight from Boston to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
- Meet your tour director: Our 24-hour Tour Director will meet us at the airport and remain with us until our final airport departure. Our private coach will be waiting to transfer us to our hotel in Dubai.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- Dubai: This city is a destination that mixes modern culture with history, adventure with world-class shopping and entertainment. Dubai is extremely well known for its warm hospitality and rich cultural heritage, and the Emirati people are welcoming and generous in their approach to visitors. With year-round sunshine, intriguing deserts, beautiful beaches, luxurious hotels and shopping malls, fascinating heritage attractions and a thriving business community, Dubai receives millions of leisure and business visitors each year from around the world.
- Sights from Dubai: Enjoy a visit to the Bastakiya Quarter, including culturally significant sights, such as Dubai's oldest building, the Al Fahidi Fort, the Dubai Museum, and the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding.
- Dinner: We will enjoy a special Iftar Welcome Dinner, tonight. Traditionally, Iftar is the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- About Sharjah: A United Arab Emirates city on the Arabian Gulf. Traditionally more conservative than its southern neighbor, Dubai, Sharjah is widely considered the nation's cultural capital. Its Heritage Area is on the creek that the city first developed around, with restored homes and museums devoted to Emirati customs. It's also home to Sharjah Fort, a 19th-century royal residence turned local history museum.
- Sharjah Aquarium: Explore the fascinating hidden world of the deep sea and its amazing creatures. Enjoy a close-up look at the local fishes and learn about Sharjah's historic coasts and ports.
- Sharjah Heritage Museum: The museum is dedicated to the distinctive customs of Sharjah. It is a source of immense pride and inspiration to the people of the United Arab Emirates and a true eye opener to the traditions of this great region to the visitors. Discover the 'Landscape', 'Lifestyle', 'Celebrations', 'Livelihood', 'Traditional Knowledge' and 'Oral Traditions' of Sharjah's rich heritage as you embark on an exceptional journey through the museum's six distinctive galleries.
- Museum of Islamic Civilization: Visit a place held in a former Souk with ancient writings, scientific findings, architecture, ceramics, and other artifacts from the Islamic world.
- Dinner: Tonight, we will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- The Sustainable City: We will travel to one of Dubai's newest developed areas. The Sustainable City is situated on the Al Qudra road, and is the first net zero energy development in the Emirate of Dubai. Apart from periphery roads and car parking areas, the development is a car-free site. The parking areas are topped by solar shading featuring solar panels that are connected to an electrical grid to supply energy into different sections of the city. Panels are also placed on the roofs of all of the houses. The townhouses have UV reflective paint to reduce the thermal heat gain inside the houses. The tree-lined borders of The Sustainable City act as the first line of defence against pollutants with a remarkable 10-meter-high buffer zone running along the periphery of the development. We will visit the park in the center of the city that also acts as a 3,000 square meter urban farm for residents. During our visit we will also learn about the future Fairgreen International School, will follow a curriculum that will complement the progressive-minded sustainable model of The Sustainable City. We will also learn more about the construction of "SEE Nexus Headquarter," which will be the first Positive Energy Building in the region. This means that over an anticipated 50-year lifespan, the building itself will produce 140 percent of its energy requirement, thus offsetting emissions during construction, operation, and decommissioning.
- Dinner: Tonight, we will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- Burj Khalifa: Known as the Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration in 2010, is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. With a total height of 829.8 m and a roof height of 828 m, the Burj Khalifa has been the tallest structure and building in the world since its topping out in late 2008. Soar to the 124th floor to see sweeping views of Dubai and see why this city is so spectacular.
- Desert Safari: This afternoon we will enjoy a desert safari tour, concluding with a scenic sunset overlooking the desert.
- Dinner: After our safari, continue to a Bedouin campsite, where we will enjoy a barbecue buffet.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- Abu Dhabi: Meaning 'Land of the Gazelle' in Arabic, Abu Dhabi was founded when a young antelope led a wandering tribe to fresh water, on an island with no more than 300 palm ('barasti') huts, a few coral buildings and the Ruler's fort. This simple island settlement has since been transformed into the modern, cosmopolitan city of Abu Dhabi and the high-rise capital of the United Arab Emirates.
- Falcon Hospital: Visit the Falcon Hospital, the first veterinary hospital in the UAE exclusively for falcons.
- The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque: This location stands out as one of the world's largest mosques, and the only one that captures unique interactions between Islam and world cultures. Sheikh Zayed's vision for the Grand Mosque was to incorporate architectural styles from different Muslim civilizations and celebrate cultural diversity by creating a haven that is truly diverse and inspirational in its foundation. The mosque's architects were British, Italian and Emirati, and design inspiration was borrowed parts of Turkey, Morocco, Pakistan, and Egypt among other Islamic countries, revealing a glistening architectural marvel with an astonishing capacity of 40,000 worshippers and visitors. The open-door policy invites tourists and celebrants from all around the world who can witness the spectacular onion-top domes, the reflective pools that engulf the courtyard and the iconic prayer hall, which not only overflows with blissful sunlight, but also houses the world's biggest chandelier and carpet, both meticulously handmade. Be sure to spot the calligraphy encircling the hollows of the domes, etched with verses from the Quran and painted with gold leaves in An-Naskh lettering.
- Heritage Village: Visit the Heritage village to experience the traditional aspects of the desert way of life, and immerse yourself in the time capsule that brings to life a souk, a mosque and an encampment from pre-modernized Abu Dhabi. Run by the Emirates Heritage Club, this reconstruction of a traditional oasis village provides an interesting glimpse into the emirate's past.
- Dinner: Tonight, we will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.
- Breakfast: Enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
- Masdar City: Just outside of Abu Dhabi is Masdar City, a fully sustainable city that relies on solar energy and other renewable energy sources. As you walk through the city, you will notice its progressive urban planning and eye-catching architecture that combines traditional design principles with leading-edge technology. Masdar City hosts the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The city is designed to be a hub for cleantech companies. Its first tenant was the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology. The low-carbon development of Masdar City has an integral role in transforming Abu Dhabi's economy from an oil foundation to one with a knowledge and innovation base. It serves as a centralized test bed for global renewable energy and technology companies. A 10-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant and an array of building-mounted solar panels offsets nearly all of the electricity in Phase 1, reducing the need for power produced by fossil fuels. Streets maximise shade all day long, capturing cooling breezes and reducing the need for air-conditioning.
- Al Ain: Al Ain, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is an inland oasis city on the eastern border with Oman. It's known as the Garden City for its palm groves and natural springs. Bronze Age remains include tombs on the towering Jebel Hafeet, a mountain to the south, and in Al Hili Archaeological Park, to the north. The central Al Ain National Museum displays artifacts from these sites.
- Al Ain Palace: Qasr al-Ain or "Al Ain Palace", is one of the best-reinstated forts in the Abu Dhabi emirate. The museum showcases the everyday life in a ruler's fort when the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and his family resided in the palace prior to 1966. The Sheikh was the first president of the United Arab Emirates.
- Camel Market: Al Ain's famous camel market is a wonderful immersion in traditional Arab culture. From young Arabian camels that might grow up to be racers to impressive adult camels ideal for breeding, the market is a one-of-a-kind experience to get a closer look at the animal that enjoys a special place in the Emirati heritage.
- Dinner: Tonight, we will enjoy dinner in a local restaurant.
- Going back home: Our rewarding and enjoyable tour comes to an end as our Tour Director accompanies us to the airport on our final day.
TEACHER OF THE YEAR
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Yes. WorldStrides welcomes handicapped participants and makes every effort to accommodate the student’s needs. Middle and High School students should ask the teacher leading their program to contact his or her Account Manager regarding any special needs so we may take care of the necessary arrangements. University students may work directly with their Account Manager. Please note that there may be some activities in which a traveler is unable to participate. WorldStrides will be happy to work with anyone who has mobility or other issues to try to make it possible for them to participate. Additionally, we recommend that students with special needs investigate their destination(s) to make sure any special care would be available. Review the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Travelers’ Health website for tips.
