From March 5 to 7, students in the university's Colloquial Arabic: Levantine Arabic course, which teaches the Arabic dialects spoken around Syria, Lebanon and Palestine, participated in a weekend-long homestay with two families of Palestinian origin living in Al Ain and Khalifa City. Below are their impressions, in their own words:

Guillaume Sylvain, sophomore

This weekend homestay experience with a Palestinian family in Al Ain was a great opportunity to live the dialect through conversations around Palestinian meals and meetings with neighbors and family members. We also had the opportunity to go with our host father to the mosque for Friday prayer, and it was a joy to experience the brotherhood found amongst worshippers of all walks of life. Not only did this short stay provide me with an opportunity to practice dialect expressions, it also expanded my understanding of one Palestinian family's experience of life in the Emirates as well as how the the country navigates its identity across time and space.

Gabriel Figueroa Torres, sophomore

Going back to Al Ain for a weekend homestay program meant many things for me. It meant reconnecting with a community that I had begun to feel a part of. It meant seeing my Arab mother again, a woman with whom I had developed a special relationship during January Term and who treated us throughout this two-day experience with exquisite dishes reminding me of the flavors of home, of my new home. It allowed me to see how much my skills had improved since the last time I visited and to realize how much I had left to improve. In the end, it is through this kind of experience that one can really appreciate the value of learning another language, of learning Arabic.

Matt French, senior

The homestay experience in Al Ain was unforgettable — I never expected to feel so welcome and genuinely at home within a span of just two days and nights. Sameera treated us as if we were her sons, complete with morning wake-up calls and delicious homemade lunches. Let's just say that Palestinian food has got to be one of the best cuisines in the world.

Clara Correia, junior

During the homestay experience, we got to spend a Friday at the park eating delicious homemade dishes, helping make 'araais — barbecued pita bread filled with kafka — and chatting, mostly in Arabic, over coffee and sweets about our experiences in Abu Dhabi. At sunset, we sipped tea in a circle while the grandmother of the family, Umm Nawal, told us a tale about the origins behind popular Arabic proverbs. It was a lovely couple of days. I was really touched by how welcoming our host family was and by how encouraging they were in our attempts at speaking Arabic.

Hidaya Ibrahim, senior

Beyond the benefits of practicing Arabic, this home stay experience has given me a true sense of a Palestinian family and its culture. In only two days, being welcomed in such a warm manner and meeting over twenty family members was more than one could expect.