International Day at Raffles World Academy is always on a scale that’s hard to describe. This time, the kids arrived early with their nanny, and I only showed up for the grand finale. And immediately got dropped into a quest: finding three kids in this sea of people was a mission with a bonus level. For about 30 minutes I just looped around the perimeter, trying to spot them in the crowd, while they zoomed between the booths at supersonic speed.
The atmosphere was absolutely epic. A real symphony of sound: in one corner, national drums were pounding, in another, ethnic instruments were playing, and all of it blended with the hum of thousands of voices. On stage, one performance was cooler than the next; costumes, flags — moments like this really make you feel that Dubai vibe, when the whole world has actually gathered in one small spot.
As for food, it was basically unlimited: the country booths were bursting with all kinds of sweets and local specialties. Though there was a little local drama too. Konstantin was furious and loudly complaining because he spent a full 30 minutes in line for ice cream. In his frame of reference, that was apparently the longest and most unfair quest of his life.
But overall — it was super cool. Tired, overfed with ice cream and all kinds of sweets, and energized by all that noise, we headed home. These are the school days worth dropping everything for and just being part of this colorful chaos. Next time, we’ll try to come as a whole family.