Back to school.

As Amélie started school this week, I thought that 'back to school' would be a good report (pun intended!) for this week!

She is at a British curriculum school so you'd expect it to be similar to one back home, and in essence it is.  She has a super teacher who has gone the extra mile to ensure the classroom is ready and the pupils feel welcome.  Her class has 25 children of whom 7 or so are from outside of the Emirates.  The school day in the early years runs from 9 to 2, there are two TA's in each class, one of whom speaks English and Arabic as some of the children have little or no spoken English when they arrive.

All very normal, so where's the story?  Last week I talked about transport and this week the theme continues!  If you'd ever wondered what the school gate would be like at drop off and pick up times without the parking restrictions, PCSO presence and if the parents were allowed to do whatever they like, I can now tell you, it's chaos!

Virtually no-one lives within walking distance of the school, especially in the summer heat, so all the students arrive by car.  The school has a group of security officers who haven the unenviable job of keeping order in the rush hour.  However the majority of parents do not think that they need to pay any attention to these poor beleaguered guys and park/drop off where they like.  For these people any distance further than 10 feet from the gate is unacceptable so they will double or triple park in order to get as close as possible.  Often blocking the road and causing massive unnecessary conjestion.  You see cars 'parked' at 45 degree angle to the pavement causing a chicane which others will try and pass two abreast.

Others in cars the size of a double decker bus will stop outside the gate completely blocking the road.  Out gets the nanny, carrying all the bags, then the driver to open the door for his employer, then the  mum with child.  All oblivious to the mayhem they are partly causing.

Being British, I park 50 yards up the road where there is virtually no-one else and walk the last bit,  with my stiff upper lip and a pith helmet, 'an Englishman will walk but never run'!  So next time you  question the zig-zag lines or the lollipop person stop and be grateful for common sense, a few regulations and a climate that's not at boiling point for three months of the year.