Uma Mencia refers to herself as 'Bedouia', meaning someone born and raised in the desert from the mountains, to depict the contrast between her current life in Dubai and her life back home in Spain. While she lives alone in Dubai and works as a desert-loving horse racer, her heart remains in the Spanish mountains. She leads two very different lives but incorporates aspects of Spanish culture into her daily life in Dubai. Uma balances her passion for horse riding with continuing her education, giving both pursuits equal importance in her life.

1. ‘Bedouia’ From the Mountains
By Maria Botros
COMM 222

2. ‘Bedouia’, a term used for people born and raised in the desert, from the
mountains is the way Uma Mencia refers to herself to depict the contrast between
her life now and what it used to be. She lives alone in Dubai, UAE yet her heart
still longs for home. Photo by: Maria Botros

3. As she pointed on the map the distance between home, Spain, and the UAE, she
explained how she is leading two completely different lives. In Dubai she is the
desert-loving horse racer; however, once home she is a Spanish mountain climber
Photo by: Maria Botros

4. As a horse rider, travelling around the world is evident which allowed language to
become a passion for Uma. As Spanish, French and Basque come naturally and are
spoken fluently, she is currently working on mastering the Arabic language to add to her
list. Photo by: Maria Botros

5. Although she faced a culture shock at first, she still managed to incorporate aspects of the
Spanish culture in her daily life whether in the form of music playing in her apartment in
the background or keeping her Flamenco shoes handy.
Photo by: Maria Botros

6. Despite the fact that riding absorbs most of her time, education occupies the rest of it.
Uma clearly expresses that she does not allow horse-riding to interfere with her
intellectual life and gives both equal importance. Photo by: Maria Botros

7. Her mornings start with training in the Meydan stable in order for the horse and
herself to be physically fit for competitions while her afternoons are reserved for
classes and studying. Photo by: Maria Botros

8. Once she has set foot outside the doors of the tower she lives in, she automatically
leaves the busy city life behind and embraces the serene and cool desert mornings.
Photo by: Maria Botros

9. Her perfect morning starts with feeding Kimbell, her personal horse flown out of
Spain to be with her in Dubai, then a quiet walk with her around the desert dunes
and ending it with riding around the track for endurance.
Photo by: Maria Botros

10. She passionately describes how interesting it is that every morning as she takes out
Kimbell for a walk, she is constantly reminded of the rush of the city as she sees the
towers faintly in the horizon.
Photo by: Maria Botros

11. Uma explains that she takes advantage of the time she spends with Kimbell for
contemplation. She concludes that Kimbell, her race horse, is the reason she lives in
Dubai and continues to bring her great opportunities to circulate the world.
Photo by: Maria Botros