On March 28 and 29, the NYU Abu Dhabi community hosted an appreciation event for its contract staff on campus. The event mainly took place in the Central Plaza where the cool weather allowed for a beautiful atmosphere for the evening.

Appreciation Day was a result of weeks of effort and preparation by ADvocacy to celebrate our contract staff on campus. It hosted multiple events such as dancing and singing performed by the students and the staff. The event also included multiple giveaways, which engendered significant excitement among the crowd.

“It’s really fun, especially when you see how the contract staff break the ice with us and ... start dancing and performing … you see a side of them that you don’t see every day,” said Juan Pablo Rossi, Class of 2021.

“The organizers did an incredible job. That could clearly be seen through all the smiling faces and laughter in the event. I really enjoyed it the event. I think it’s really important to show our appreciation to the staff. They are heroes of this university and it is sometimes really easy to take that for granted. These two days are very important,” said Mauricio Yanez, Class of 2021.

On March 30, students from NYU Abu Dhabi headed to Yas Island to witness the Harlem Globetrotters’ return to the UAE as part of the Amazing Feats of Basketball World Tour.

Founded in 1926, The Harlem Globetrotters is an exhibition basketball team which combines athleticism, theater and comedy in their style of play. Over the years they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 122 countries and territories.

“I am not a fan, really, but I went because I thought it would be fun with friends. It was definitely exciting in some parts but it also got repetitive,” said Oorja Majgaonkar, Class of 2021, a member of the NYUAD basketball team.

“They had great tricks when passing. And one time, one of the guys climbed up onto the basket. That was pretty funny,” added Majgaonkar.

“It was an evening with a lot of energy and drama in a basketball game. All of us laughed a lot and were awed by their athletic abilities,” said Ayaan Ali Shah, Class of 2021.