New Adventure for an old Educator!: March 2014

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Loving AD, "same, same, but different."

When the locals- Arabic, Emirati, Pakistani, and those from other nations who work and live here- try to explain something to us newbies, they use that term alot! It means, it is not much different from what we are used to but not quite the same.

Things that are the same- there is a lot of construction! The joke is that the national bird of the UAE is not the falcon but the crane- because there is one everywhere! lol...The construction is mainly buildings- hotels, retail, etc. Another thing the same about construction- one man working while 8 stand around or are sleeping! Yes, sleeping! I saw one crew where a couple of guys were digging and one guy had made himself a place to nap in the V of two date palms!

Another thing the same- crazy driving! But it is to the extreme here. Tailgating is an art here! If you think you have a friend who tailgates, bring them here! Not an inch between cars! And lane changes are at will, and without warning! If someone wants over, they don't slow down an signal here, they just force their way over! I had a cabbie swerve all the way to the right lane (which was ending!) to go around a slower bus then back all the way to the left lane..What a ride!

Some things cost the same here- meals at fine restaurants are about the same at home. Fast food and groceries are a little cheaper. It just depends on what you want to eat. Mid fair- such as Applebee's and TFIG, are a little cheaper.

Things that are different-

Few traffic lights, lots of "roundabouts." They love roundabouts and speed bumps here! If there is a stretch of road that is a km long or longer, it WILL have a speed bump. Not one of those baby ones we have in the states either! Big, wide, high ones! The taxis will speed down the road then are able to somehow slam on the brakes as they get to it without throwing you around the car. Over it they go, then back to speeding!

Speaking of speeding- if you get a speeding ticket (No, I haven't gotten one, but have been with someone who did) you get a text message telling you about it! They have traffic cameras along the highway which register your speed and issue you the ticket. The cab drivers have all downloaded an app that tells them when they are coming up on a camera. You will know this because their meter will "ding" and they will suddenly slow down for about half a km, then back to Indy 500 speed!
My driver that brought me to Al Ain- ADEC sent a driver since it was just me- drove between 120-200 kph! I wasn't terrified but it was frightening at times. We made the trip to Al Ain (AA) in under half an hour. It is 115 km from my hotel!

Getting used to dirhams takes a while. One USD = 3.68 dirhams. So when you buy something it sounds expensive. For example, a sandwich and water would probably be about 35 Dhs. But it is actually around $10. They don't have one dirham bills- only one dirham coins, and a fil, which is half a dirham. You have to be careful with the money- some are colored so closely that you can overpay. The other day I accidently gave a clerk a 50 Dhs instead of a 20. She caught it and gave it back (was trying to give her 40).

Women and men are kept separate alot here. If you go to the post office or other office building, there will be separate seating for men and women. Although I don't have to dress in an abaya or shayla here (long dress and hair covering), I do dress appropriately for where I am going. I was concerned about going to the beach until I saw some girls in bikinis. No, I am long past that- but was worried about my top showing cleavage.

If you go to the bank or post office- or any other business, you don't stand in line. There will be a number machine at the door. Depending on what service you need, you push a button and are issued a number. It is nice to not have to stand in line.

Mailing items- they are serious about weight limits here! In the states, we are used to paying according to weight to mail an item. Here, it is limited to what you can cram into a box that is about 2 inches high, 16 inches long, and 10 inches wide. Also, it can't weigh more than 2 kg! I had gone to the post office with a box that weighed 3.5 kg so I had to bring it back to the room, sort and go back. I was able to do that and have a box on the way to Hominy. Tell Teresa and Sara that their gift will come separately- I ran out of room in the box! Most of the items I am sending home will come back with my hubby, Tony. He is coming for a visit the end of this month and will return in early April. He can mail them cheaper there. That one little box I mailed cost me 186 Dhs. You do the math...lol...

Cleaning services are cheap here. You can get an item washed, dry cleaned, ironed with pickup and delivery for about 2 dhs. There are no self service laundry mats in AA. I heard there was one on AD, but not sure. The washing machines here are very slow. Takes about 2 hours to do a load.

AA is halfway between AD and Dubai. I am sure I am going to love it here. If you have any questions, just ask!

-J

Moving On!

After a month at the Ibis Hotel in Abu Dhabi, and still yet to not work- I was moved to the Rotana in Al Ain. Al Ain is the city I will live in. It is the closest housing to my new school, at Al Wagan, cycle one co-ed. It has about 900 students. I will be the first AVP there. Hope I make them proud!

The Ibis was a very nice hotel, but one of the drawbacks was that I had to pay to use the small pool. It wasn't much- about $8 US daily but that adds up. I could take a taxi to the Corniche beach just a cheaply.

The Rotana is a 5 star hotel resort. I am so lucky to be here. I requested it so I would be close to the HoF (head of faculty) and principal at my school, so we could carpool.

I haven't been cleared officially to start work so I am on continued paid vacation until further notice. Loving it!

Below are pictures of my room and from my balcony- yes, balcony! I oversee the massive pool area.

View of the lobby from my room. I am on the "second floor." Here the first floor is called "ground" and goes up from there. So actually I am on the third floor.

Entry in the hallway of my room

kind of dark but you can see the length of my room

Bathroom, yes that is a bidet. No, I haven't tried it yet!

Two full sized beds. Vacation anyone?

Hospitality tray upon my arrival. Very nice!

Yes, there is my balcony!

View from my balcony...Loving the pool!

The dome is the entrance to the hotel spa area. Wonderful exercise room and massage area! Underneath the balconies are restaurants. We ate at Trader Vic's. It was wonderful.

View from the right side of my balcony. That is the nightly buffet they are setting up

White chocolate covered strawberries with raspberries. Yum! I shared...though I could have eaten them all!

So far, I haven't ventured around Al Ain much. I did go get a rental car Tuesday. But I have only driven it once.

I may not start at my new school til after the spring break, which is March 27th-April 13th here. We will see!

Keep in touch!

Monday, March 3, 2014

More festival fun!

Two friends and I attended the Qsar Al Hosn festival recently. It was to highlight the history and culture of the UAE. It was a magical, wonderful night.
As part of the event, Amy and I dressed in traditional garb and sat to pose with a falcon. Falcons are revered here. They even have their own passports and can ride in a seat on an airplane!

We sat and posed with the falcon..first me holding him, then Amy. I will post the pics of her holding him first:

Actually I held the falcon first. He is beautiful and majestic....

And had a mind of his own....

Notice that his owner didnt even get off the phone to take him. Amy is laughing the whole time! The falcon couldnt go anywhere. The sleeve I am using- you put your hand inside and there is a finger grip that the falcon is tied to.

I was a little shocked but didnt get excited. I was grateful to Hamad Al Mansoori for getting these wonderful pictures and sending them to me. If you need a fabulous photographer, call him!

We had such a blast that night. I am sure many more are to come.

Zayed Grand Mosque

I am still on "vacation" as I wait for placement in a cycle one girls school in Al Ain. So my days consist of getting up around 6-7 am (I just naturally wake up then) and going to the breakfast buffet here. It is a good buffet but "same, same, but different" as they say here. Same as same menu items but different as they rotate how they fix the eggs and the type of non-pork sausage they serve.
Today I checked in at ADEC then went to the Mosque. I had intended on going on a guided tour. But I got there 15 minutes late and didn't want to wait 45 minutes for the next one, so I walked around on my own.
It is very beautiful- and that word doesn't cover it! The workmanship and grandeur is amazing. I will let you decide from the pictures:

Front, right side

front, middle

side view, visitors entrance

The hooded menace! lol! I only needed a shayla (hair covering) but they didnt have separate shaylas from abayas (head to toe dress covering). It was a tad warm!