PST in Dubai

After our GO Conference, all those joining the Logos Hope ship flew to Dubai, United Arab Emirates for 2 weeks of PST (Pre-Ship Training). This was to prepare us for joining the ship and also to teach us about the Arab culture that we would be in for the next month. This was in order to be more effective in everything we would do while in the Arab world, but also to be respectful of their culture and be able to build better relationships with the locals we would meet.

Sharing the gospel with the local people was illegal (therefore we refrained), however only about 20% of those living in Dubai are true Emirati - the rest are immigrants, mostly from India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines. 

As we try to be culturally sensitive and appropriate in each culture as well as modest all the time, in the Arab world the ship had imposed a dresscode of shirts coming up to the collarbone and past the elbow. Skirts had to cover the ankle and any pants that were worn had to be loose-fitting and ensure the top would cover your backside.

the church compound where we had our PST - Christian churches
are few in the Arab world. Many different denominations shared this
compound, with knowledge by the government and no local Emirati
are allowed by the government to be Christian.

The hotel we stayed at - beautiful luxury, with 2 people per room!

67 people gather for 2 weeks of training about ship life, ministry and
the Arab world - where we started our journey.

We truly were in the desert - so dry, and no real trees anywhere -
just bushes and heather.

This was my 'fellowship group': at the end of everyday we gathered
together to share our thoughts, hang out and pray for each other.

A patch of typical desert.

This was a humongous hotel - where we walked most
days is just through the arch, known as 'the gaping mouth'!

The nearest shopping mall was a 30 minute walk from the church compound.
Our first afternoon we were asked to go there and do no shopping,
simply observe the local Arabic culture, so foreign to our own.

The Ibn Battuta Mall, named after the Islamic explorer Ibn Battuta, is divided into 6
sections: each decorated after a section of the world that Battuta conquered
for Islam. This particular photo is part of the Egyptian court.

Tunisian part of Ibn Battuta mall - beautiful decorations and detailing.

The local mosque. As we were in an Arabic country, these were everywhere
and the hourly 'call to prayer' became a normal sound during our time
in the Arab world.

Interesting fact: each call to prayer, from mosques to in shopping
centres and everywhere else are all done individually - no
pre-recordings anywhere.

This was the entrance to Ibn Battuta mall (Tunisia).

The display in the Indian court of Ibn Battuta.

A beautiful fountain outside Ibn Battuta mall.

These were our trainers during PST, using a drama as an introduction
to sharing about the different work departments on the ship.

A beautiful lamp in the Persian section of Ibn Battuta mall.

Old Chinese boats in the China section of Ibn Battuta mall.

One free afternoon, 3 friends and I took the Metro (behind us) to
have a little look around parts of Dubai. Each Metro station looks the
same as the one pictured behind us - very modern and futuristic.

On the walk to Ibn Battuta, we came along a random chair stuck in a bush!

We had one full day off in the middle of our PST, so a few of us went
to explore the beach in Dubai. It was a lovely day out, although very
coarse sand and incredibly cold water!

Dubai is host to many of the 'biggests' in the world:
this is the Burj Khalifa - the tallest tower in the world.
Dubai is also known for the biggest piece of plastic...

This is a typical shot in the Arab world with palms everywhere.
I enjoyed just taking some picturesque shots for beauty!

I found this photo quite ironic - I only noticed the half-naked lady behind
me in the picture much later! The irony was that most people were quite
covered up in the Arab world, ladies wearing burkhas and even non-Emirati's
wearing quite respectable clothing up to elbows and down past knees, so to find
this attire was rather shocking to us!

Daylight shot of the Burj Khalifa

Enjoying fellowship whilst waiting for our BBQ to begin!

A beautiful sunset above the church compound.

BBQ Arab-style: what we would commonly call kebabs.

Our whole PST together - 67 people

Our last evening was 'Fun Night', an evening of fun and games.
This was our group teaching our PST the 'animal game' - so much fun,
I'll have to teach it to you one day!