Getting there from here

I promise to take city pics this weekend! Prominently featured will be the Sushi building (stay tuned...) and the mosque down the street, along with my apartment building, Al Jezira bakery downstairs (no relation to the news network) and the co-op grocery in the park.

Landmarks mean a lot around here because there are no street addresses in Abu Dhabi. This is somewhat remarkable, given that the place emerged whole from a box marked "DIY City" about 30 years ago and is built on a grid. Furthermore, the streets have names--logical names like 6th Street, 34th Avenue and Sheik Zayed I Boulevard. There is even a method to the naming: streets run east-west and avenues run north-south. My apartment building is technically on the corner of 26th Avenue and 9th Street. The nearest grocery store is technically on 13th Street at 32nd Avenue.

Why do I keep saying technically? Because when taking a taxi to go to school, I tell the guy "behind the BMW dealership" (which is actually about two blocks away). Going home, I say "across from Khalidiya Park." When I told Ikea where to deliver the magic couch, I gave them the name of the neighborhood (pronounced Cal-a-dee-ya) and my cell phone number--they'll call when they get close, and I'll talk them in. I've seen this work (K did it when she got her dining room table), so it's not some citywide delusion. But why? Even if there is no residential mail delivery (and obviously there's not), a city full of cabs where every restaurant (even McDonalds) delivers needs address numbers. Most businesses have cute little suggestion boxes near the checkout. Maybe I'll start a campaign.

Computer update: it's here and in my possession! Not only that, but my classroom is now home to the 6th grade laptop cart. At this school, they call the carts COWS (computers on wheels) and give them cheesy names. Mine is Moozart, in case you were wondering.

PS: My mom pointed out that anything called a COW would certainly have a cheesy name. We're a family of comedians, let me tell you...