The United Arab Emirates isn't known for its rain but today took the cake. Beginning yesterday afternoon, the rain fell from the sky and filled the drainless streets with a nightmare of a problem. We traveled by bus to Abu Dhabi today and let's just say that we spent more time wondering if the cars zooming through the water would get stuck rather than gazing at the sights of Abu Dhabi. I'll tell you one thing, I've lived in Seattle my entire life and have NEVER seen this amount of rain and standing water. Just getting to the internet cafe was a Moses-esque feat. Because of the rain we were unable to stop at many places in Abu Dhabi and when we did stop it generally ended in us running back to the bus soaking wet and just ready to get back to the hotel. As the day progressed, the number of cars smashed on the side of the road multiplied and our patience for the fogged-up bus was running thin.

As the bus driver and tour guide continually wiped the windshield in order to avoid a wet and wild accident, the only thought that was going through my mind was, "Wow, I need to start snapping some pics". And so I did. I apologize that the internet here is slower than a Bush response on tribal sovereignty (look it up on You Tube, hilarious stuff and perhaps a great example of how little the man truly knows about domestic policy, let alone foreign) so I will best describe what we saw and heard on our way to and from Abu Dhabi. For the most part, the ride was just really, really wet with a side of cars crunching. I found myself sticking half my body out the window to take shots of BMW's and Mercedes attempting to plow through a foot or more of standing water and for the most part they were successful. The most memorable visual of the trip so far may have also come today. As the bus driver navigated through the quickly falling and accumulating rain, the bus full of PLU students turned to their right and saw workers attempting to pump water from the freeway which now could be better described as a pond. The workers flashed their smiles, waved their hands to the tourists on the bus partly submerged in water and kept working. Business as (un)usual. The tour guide on our trip told us that in his ten years of living in Dubai he had never seen rain like we were experiencing and the roads had never been this flooded. The roads made the front page today because many of the major bridges were closed during President Bush's visit. Now another unwelcome force of nature is gripping the region and has seemingly ground most of the country's roadways to a halt. The closer we got to Dubai/home, the slower the traffic got and in turn, the more interesting the sights of wrecked cars and soon-to-be water-flooded engines became. In a region that sees rain just about as often as a sitting U.S. President, the rain can't be anything more than a headache for commuters and for visitors like us who wanted to experience the marvels of Abu Dhabi but ended up sitting in a fogged-up bus for eight hours.

As I write this I have a wonderful view of a side street/creek adjacent to our hotel. The cars don't seem to be driving any slower and the waves from their reckless driving are pouring over the sidewalk. I'm not sure what the forecast calls for in the coming hours but I can guarantee you one thing: after nearly three days of traffic jams from Bush and rain, I think I can speak for nearly everyone in the region when I say that I'm ready to kick out the gloom and bring back little miss sunshine.

Wishing I had a boat,

Nate Hulings

p.s. A man next to me just asked me to spell out "maintain", I guess he is e-mailing someone. Hooked on phonics worked for me!