Abrar Writes

Timed writing is a big challenge for many students, most of whom have difficulty in generating ideas, especially when they are nervous. Here are tips about generating ideas for timed writing exams. Before Timed Writing Exam day ·         Get Familiar with Timed Writing Topics. Getting yourself familiar with general topics by reading, listening, and discussing is very helpful. Read magazines articles, books, and classmates’ essays. Also, listen to news and podcasts and discuss general topics with friends. All these methods help building new vocabulary and getting relative ideas. ·         Create your own idea banks. An idea bank is a collection of vocabulary, synonyms, questions, examples, and sample essays about a one general topic. Creating an idea bank and being prepared for timed writings at home is useful because it saves time, reduce stress, and keep focus on writing instead of thi...

Living abroad is full of new experiences and challenges, and one of the most common challenge is c ultural differences.  In this post I want to mention three challenges I have faced while I am living in the US. Prayer room As a Muslim I have to pray many times a day, and I prefer to pray on time. My problem is there is no prayer room close to my classrooms. I had tried to walk to a nearby masjid (Muslim church) and pray there, but that caused me to be late for my listening and speaking class. The best choice was to find an empty classroom and pray, although I was praying with no full comfort. This semster I do not struggle because I am home when it is prayer time. Dogs Dogs are cute, Are not they? well, not in my culture! Wait! do not judge us! We do not hate dogs, many of us just do not like to see them, touch them, or having them in our homes! 😜 In Arab and Islamic culture, it is uncommon to have dogs as pets, because the dog is a symbol of dirtiness....

As a fresh graduate, I always think about my future job. There are some traits that I would like my dream job to have: §   Challenging duties We cannot escape from having boring duties, but I don’t want these duties to be my main duties. My dream job should be a little bit challenging. §   Motivated environment The perfect job is the one that help me improve my skills and learn more about my field of work. §   Nice staff The people who I work with have an important contribution in my mood and, as a result, my productivity. I want to work with experienced manager who is willing to share his or her experience with a fresh employee. Also, working with talented colleagues will give me a chance to observe and learn. Friendliness of fellows is important as well. §   Salary It is not necessary for my career to be high-paid, but it should pay me based on my work and effort. §   Health insurance My parents’ jobs do not offer health insurance, a...

Muhalabia or milk pudding is very popular dessert  in Arab world , especially in the holy month of Ramadan. Muhalabia recipe is slightly different in some countries, but milk is the basic ingredient in all recipes. Regarding the name, some people believe this dessert is named after an Arab general “Al-Muhallab”, and others believe that “muhalabia” derived from the word “halib” which means “milk”.   In this post, I am sharing my mom’s recipe, which my family’s favorite. Ingredients:  (serves 2-3 people) 2 cup of cold milk. 2 tablespoon of corn starch. 2 tablespoon of sugar. Rose water (optional) Saffron (optional) Nuts  (optional)   Preparation: Bring to boil 1¾ cup of milk, then add sugar. In a bowl, dissolve the corn starch with the remaining milk. Put the starch mixture slowly over the milk while stirring until it thickened. Reduce the heat to medium, and let it cook for five minutes. Add rose water and saffron and mix. Pour t...

My hometown is Qatif, which is a historic coastal city and oasis located in Arabian Gulf. It is one of the oldest settlements in Eastern Arabia. Qatif used to be an agricultural city, and the word “Qatif” means “harvest”. Qatif as a Coastal City Source: jhaina.net Coastal city means beach! Qatif beach is my favorite place in the city. Many Qatifi families like spending weekends in the beach, especially when the weather become cool. Swimming is prohibited, but they enjoy the green space and the view of local boats on the gulf. Also, Qatif Fish Market is the biggest market in the Gulf region. It offers a variety of fresh fish and shrimps at affordable prices. If you visit Qatif, this is MUST TO-DO: Buy a fresh fish from the fish market and take it to a nearby local seafood restaurant that will cook it as you preferred. Yummy! Qatif as a Historical City One of historical places in Qatif is Tarout Castle. Thousands of years ago, the castle was built on the base...

Hi friends! My spring break was pleasant! The best part was when I traveled to Dallas for two days. On the first day of my trip, I went to  Dallas Arboretum. A one word can describe this place: beautiful ! It was sunny cool day, and I really enjoyed walking surrounded by colorful flowers. It was my first time to see narcissus flowers in real, and I liked them. Yellow Narcissus Also, Visitors can see the attractive view of Dallas across a lake. This place is perfect for taking photos. The View of the Lake Finally, we stopped by a classy restaurant to have lunch. Although an outdoor dining with beautiful view was available, we preferred to eat indoor to avoid the crowd. I think spring is a good time to visit Dallas Arboretum, but I wish I could visit this place in all seasons to see the differences! On the second day of my trip, I visited Dallas Museum of Art. It is a large museum with wonderful diversified art collections. I did not explore...