On the joys of winter, and embracing nature and family on the slopes.
"Oh my God, snow!", a first-year friend of mine shrieked at the first snowfall in early December. She then raced out of our flat as the rest of us looked on confused. Having grown up in Miami, she had never seen snow before. At the time, I was right to think the pathetic flakes had no chance of surviving, but it wasn't long before a blizzard hit New York and she was able to experience the true meaning of "winter wonderland".
I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with snow. Actually, I pretty much love it, except in the city. That's because you don't really get to enjoy it in Manhattan. The snow barely has a chance to settle before snowploughs come out of nowhere to make sure that traffic can proceed as normal, while the sidewalks turn into a slush-covered disaster as pedestrians, bundled from head to toe, try to avoid slipping and getting wet while ducking head-on collisions with other pedestrians doing likewise.
I say be done with cars: why not let the streets get covered in fluffy, snowy delight so that there is one gorgeous blanket covering the city? People will just be happier that way. There must be a scientific study to explain why it makes people run around throwing snowballs, making snowmen and laying down in the cold stuff just to make snow angels, and, if you happened to be at Columbia University campus when the blizzard hit, using wooden planks and cafeteria trays as sleds on the main steps. Logic doesn't apply when everything is covered in snow. Nature has taken over, and people seem to remember suddenly that they like to play.
While to some people snow is synonymous with cold weather or Christmas, for me it signifies the beginning of ski season. Since I was six, the winter holidays meant that we took a family ski trip, and to this day, it's one of the things I look forward to most in the year. Although some people might consider skiing quite dangerous, I find it is the perfect antidote to a stressful semester.
In addition to the childish glee I get from zooming down the slopes and yelling challenges at my sister to see who can get down faster, it's also a relaxing sport. There is nothing as comforting as swerving between evergreens with just the quiet swish of skis to accompany you. In ideal weather, the sun beats down against the white mountainside, causing it to glitter in the most beautiful way.
When you think about it, there is something reckless about skiing. I would like to have been present when the first person decided, "Hey, I'm going to attach two wooden sticks to my feet and hurl myself down a mountain." Someone standing by must have been thinking "what an idiot". There's no denying the danger - I know people who have torn knee ligaments - but it's still such ridiculous fun.
I have many friends and family members back in the Emirates who take advantage of the cooler months to go away camping in the desert, to escape city life and spend time in nature. My family's skiing trips serve the same purpose. I willingly give up the internet and my phone (or at least leave them to a minimum), and it is the one time of year when my daily routine revolves around healthy eating so that I can take full advantage of my time on the mountain.
Every morning I pile on four or five layers (thermals, sweaters and T-shirts) just to make sure I can spend all afternoon, until the ski lifts close, out in the open. More importantly, I get to spend a lot of time with my siblings and my parents as we enjoy the mountains for hours, spending nights around a fireplace sharing stories from the day. So while my friends joke that it is unorthodox for an Emirati family to have a tradition that involves snow, skiing is possibly my favourite sport: after football, of course.
Results
2pm: Handicap Dh 90,000 1,800m; Winner: Majestic Thunder, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
2.30pm: Handicap Dh120,000 1,950m; Winner: Just A Penny, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson.
3pm: Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m; Winner: Native Appeal, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson.
3.30pm: Jebel Ali Classic Conditions Dh300,000 1,400m; Winner: Thegreatcollection, Adrie de Vries, Doug Watson.
4pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m; Winner: Oktalgano, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
4.30pm: Conditions Dh250,000 1,400m; Winner: Madame Ellingtina, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
5pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m; Winner: Mystery Land, Fabrice Veron, Helal Al Alawi.
5.30pm: Handicap Dh85,000 1,000m; Winner: Shanaghai City, Jesus Rosales, Rashed Bouresly.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
FIGHT CARD
1. Featherweight 66kg
Ben Lucas (AUS) v Ibrahim Kendil (EGY)
2. Lightweight 70kg
Mohammed Kareem Aljnan (SYR) v Alphonse Besala (CMR)
3. Welterweight 77kg
Marcos Costa (BRA) v Abdelhakim Wahid (MAR)
4. Lightweight 70kg
Omar Ramadan (EGY) v Abdimitalipov Atabek (KGZ)
5. Featherweight 66kg
Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Kagimu Kigga (UGA)
6. Catchweight 85kg
Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) v Iuri Fraga (BRA)
7. Featherweight 66kg
Yousef Al Husani (UAE) v Mohamed Allam (EGY)
8. Catchweight 73kg
Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Abdipatta Abdizhali (KGZ)
9. Featherweight 66kg
Jaures Dea (CMR) v Andre Pinheiro (BRA)
10. Catchweight 90kg
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
Mobile phone packages comparison
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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