Now, a valid reason for the lack of posts... we went to Fujeirah this week on the eastern / Indian Ocean side of the UAE. It was the first time I had seen the Indian Ocean (its actually called the Gulf of Oman this far north, but it all flows into the Indian Ocean) and it was a really interesting trip.
Whilst we stayed at the lovely Fujeirah Rotana Resort, it was the drive in and the drive out that was really interesting. We took the scenic route in as we drove to Hatta (where we went about three weeks ago) and then pressed on to the coast over a small mountain pass road. The mountains in the UAE and heading down the Indian Ocean coast to Oman are massive bare rock outcrops that look very jagged and rough. The Blue Mountains of Sydney are really a big hill covered in gum trees in comparison as these were the biggest mountains I had seen (and yes, I have never been to New Zealand, the Rocky Mountains in the USA or the Swiss Alps).
The trip was also interesting because once again we got a glimpse of the older UAE and how the people outside of Dubai and Abu Dhabi are not that well off. The townships we travelled through were all pretty ramshackle with road side fruit shops and places to buy firewood, it was very old school. The roads were rougher as well and whilst there were plenty of flash resorts on the coast, the rest of the place was pretty bleak.
But that's what its all about - getting out and seeing the country side... and by the end of the three days, we had driven up all the way along the UAE East Coast from Kalba to Dibba.
The holiday itself was very relaxing with our friends and I spent two days by the pool working on my tan.
The drive out home we headed north and then back west through the main mountain pass road which is right on the border to Mussandam and the Omani territory north of the UAE. The roads were better but the views as the mountains came right to the sea were breathtaking.
All in all, a great trip away for our Eid break... and now we're on the down hill run to our trip home to Sydney for Xmas.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Tuesday, November 09, 2010
Blog Lag
Sorry for the lack of posts... simple explanation is that work has been really busy and really difficult I have been putting in a large number of hours of late.
But that should change as this week is the last week before a week off for Eid. I may have to work the Sunday, but other than that it will be Mon - Thurs off work next week and we will be heading to Fujeirah on the east coast of the UAE for a well deserved break for a couple of nights with the rest of the break spent in and around the pool. I am not sure about Sunday... its an official work day but its also the date of the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix, so many people will be away there and the day will be pretty dead. I may go in the morning and see how busy work is and then knock off to watch the race.
But to recap on the past couple of weeks, we didnt end up going on our trip to Mussandam as mentioned in my last post because of what is known as a "Dubai Stuff Up". Essentially our friend Marianne booked the trip, had a confirming email, and then the pick up didnt show. When we rang them, they had no record of our booking. No money was lost but its just one of those things that things dont happen as certain as you may hope. But all wasn't lost as we jumped in the cars and spent a day travelling to Hatta in the south east corner of the country and we still got to cross the Omani border to get there.
The weather at the moment is also brilliant with temps in the high 20's / low 30's (celcius) and the humidity non existant. Its been really nice and Oct / Nov is certainly the best time of year. We're still swimming albeit its a bit cooler when getting out and we had our first rain today for about 10 minutes.
On the other side of Eid, it will be a short wait before we're returning to Sydney for Xmas and so we need to start thinking about Xmas presents. Again, it will be a combo of buying stuff here and packing it in the suitcases and buying stuff there in Sydney.
In other news, we rent our maid quarters (yes, we have a maid quarters!) out to an Indian man called Victor who works at the local vets. I am sure I have blogged about this in the past, but to recap Victor was really lovely with our pets at the vet surgery and when he found himself looking for a new place we rented him our un-used maid room in exchange for a bit of rent and to look after the animals while we go on holidays. It has worked out really well and he is quiet, keeps to himself and does a great job with our dog Molly who he walks most days. Victor though must be very lonely and his wife and child are in India and he goes back once every 2 years. He simply works and hangs out at home and doesnt have a big social life. However he was very excited because his brother is coming to Dubai and he will bunk in with Victor soon. I put up the rent a bit but I think it will be good for him as the only people he talks to at home is our part time maid and her husband who come by on Friday's.
If you asked me before we left for Dubai would we sub-let our place to an Indian trainee vet, I would have thought you were nuts but he has helped out heaps with our travelling and keeping the pets safe and looked after.
Eid Mubarak!
But that should change as this week is the last week before a week off for Eid. I may have to work the Sunday, but other than that it will be Mon - Thurs off work next week and we will be heading to Fujeirah on the east coast of the UAE for a well deserved break for a couple of nights with the rest of the break spent in and around the pool. I am not sure about Sunday... its an official work day but its also the date of the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix, so many people will be away there and the day will be pretty dead. I may go in the morning and see how busy work is and then knock off to watch the race.
But to recap on the past couple of weeks, we didnt end up going on our trip to Mussandam as mentioned in my last post because of what is known as a "Dubai Stuff Up". Essentially our friend Marianne booked the trip, had a confirming email, and then the pick up didnt show. When we rang them, they had no record of our booking. No money was lost but its just one of those things that things dont happen as certain as you may hope. But all wasn't lost as we jumped in the cars and spent a day travelling to Hatta in the south east corner of the country and we still got to cross the Omani border to get there.
The weather at the moment is also brilliant with temps in the high 20's / low 30's (celcius) and the humidity non existant. Its been really nice and Oct / Nov is certainly the best time of year. We're still swimming albeit its a bit cooler when getting out and we had our first rain today for about 10 minutes.
On the other side of Eid, it will be a short wait before we're returning to Sydney for Xmas and so we need to start thinking about Xmas presents. Again, it will be a combo of buying stuff here and packing it in the suitcases and buying stuff there in Sydney.
In other news, we rent our maid quarters (yes, we have a maid quarters!) out to an Indian man called Victor who works at the local vets. I am sure I have blogged about this in the past, but to recap Victor was really lovely with our pets at the vet surgery and when he found himself looking for a new place we rented him our un-used maid room in exchange for a bit of rent and to look after the animals while we go on holidays. It has worked out really well and he is quiet, keeps to himself and does a great job with our dog Molly who he walks most days. Victor though must be very lonely and his wife and child are in India and he goes back once every 2 years. He simply works and hangs out at home and doesnt have a big social life. However he was very excited because his brother is coming to Dubai and he will bunk in with Victor soon. I put up the rent a bit but I think it will be good for him as the only people he talks to at home is our part time maid and her husband who come by on Friday's.
If you asked me before we left for Dubai would we sub-let our place to an Indian trainee vet, I would have thought you were nuts but he has helped out heaps with our travelling and keeping the pets safe and looked after.
Eid Mubarak!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Ras al Khaimah In Turmoil?
Further to yesterday's blog post about the death of Sheikh Saqr, all seems at peace here in Dubai and it was a surprise to stumble on this article in today's Sydney Morning Herald.
The contents of this article are not mentioned in local press here and this is all a surprise to me. Not that I am saying it isnt true, but it is clear that the local media does not report such "scandal" and to everyone here who reads the English language press, there has been nothing but a smooth transition of power. Maybe the Arabic language press may be being more direct, but for me this is totally new.
Having said that, I am aware that in Sunni controlled Abu Dhabi, that there is a concern that Sh'ite muslims in the northern part of the country (Dubai, Ras al Khaimah and Ajman) need to be monitored for ties to Sh'ite governed Iran. After living here for nearly 2 years I cannot tell the difference between a Sh'ite and a Sunni but apparently it is possible by subtle differences in the collar of the white robe Khandoura and the way the head dress is worn. I can pick a Kuwaiti from an Emirati, but I cant pick the difference in religion affiliation.
On Saturday, we're going with friends to Mussandam and we will have to travel through Ras al Khaimah to get there but its still perfectly safe and its hardly believable that it was over a year ago that we went to Ras al Khaimah for a holiday.
The contents of this article are not mentioned in local press here and this is all a surprise to me. Not that I am saying it isnt true, but it is clear that the local media does not report such "scandal" and to everyone here who reads the English language press, there has been nothing but a smooth transition of power. Maybe the Arabic language press may be being more direct, but for me this is totally new.
Having said that, I am aware that in Sunni controlled Abu Dhabi, that there is a concern that Sh'ite muslims in the northern part of the country (Dubai, Ras al Khaimah and Ajman) need to be monitored for ties to Sh'ite governed Iran. After living here for nearly 2 years I cannot tell the difference between a Sh'ite and a Sunni but apparently it is possible by subtle differences in the collar of the white robe Khandoura and the way the head dress is worn. I can pick a Kuwaiti from an Emirati, but I cant pick the difference in religion affiliation.
On Saturday, we're going with friends to Mussandam and we will have to travel through Ras al Khaimah to get there but its still perfectly safe and its hardly believable that it was over a year ago that we went to Ras al Khaimah for a holiday.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
National Mourning...
The ruler of the Emirate Ras al Khaimah, Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, passed away this morning at the spritely age of 92. He was, according to wikipedia, the worlds oldest ruling monarch and had been the ruler of Ras al Khaimah since 1948 after taking over in a "bloodless" coup.
Yes, I can read wikipedia and regurgitate all this but what does it mean on the ground here in the UAE?
Well... for starters, there has been a period of National Mourning declared. It varies from Emirate to Emirate with Ras al Khaimah declaring that they will be in mourning for 40 days. The rest of the Emirates are plumping for generally three days of mourning but what is interesting to me is that the largest Emirate - Abu Dhabi - has actually not declared any official mourning period with the Ruler of Abu Dhabi and President of the UAE Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan only passing on his deepest condolences.
Which is disappointing because "National Mourning" includes the closing of government offices and businesses, which would have been a day or three off work for me because I work for an Abu Dhabi government company.
Other than closed government offices what National Mourning means that all radio stations now only play "mourning music" which is at best soft classical music but is typically recitals of the Holy Q'uran and Arabic poetry. This extends to ALL radio stations, which means when the kids want to listen to Virgin Radio Top 40 in the car, its sorry, but we only have Arabic poetry.
Also, all public events and celebrations are cancelled. The opening of the multi million dollar Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi has been postponed which would have involved a huge number of celebrities and big wigs cancelled / rescheduled but also even our kids school cancelled their "International Day Parade" out of respect for the Sheikhs death.
So, it impacts everyone from the big events in town down to the kids and schools... but I have to say that the reaction has been sombre and respectful without being hysterical in the media. It is by no means a "Princess Diana" event, but then again he was 92 and it was hardly unexpected.
Rest in Peace Sheikh Saqr.
Yes, I can read wikipedia and regurgitate all this but what does it mean on the ground here in the UAE?
Well... for starters, there has been a period of National Mourning declared. It varies from Emirate to Emirate with Ras al Khaimah declaring that they will be in mourning for 40 days. The rest of the Emirates are plumping for generally three days of mourning but what is interesting to me is that the largest Emirate - Abu Dhabi - has actually not declared any official mourning period with the Ruler of Abu Dhabi and President of the UAE Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan only passing on his deepest condolences.
Which is disappointing because "National Mourning" includes the closing of government offices and businesses, which would have been a day or three off work for me because I work for an Abu Dhabi government company.
Other than closed government offices what National Mourning means that all radio stations now only play "mourning music" which is at best soft classical music but is typically recitals of the Holy Q'uran and Arabic poetry. This extends to ALL radio stations, which means when the kids want to listen to Virgin Radio Top 40 in the car, its sorry, but we only have Arabic poetry.
Also, all public events and celebrations are cancelled. The opening of the multi million dollar Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi has been postponed which would have involved a huge number of celebrities and big wigs cancelled / rescheduled but also even our kids school cancelled their "International Day Parade" out of respect for the Sheikhs death.
So, it impacts everyone from the big events in town down to the kids and schools... but I have to say that the reaction has been sombre and respectful without being hysterical in the media. It is by no means a "Princess Diana" event, but then again he was 92 and it was hardly unexpected.
Rest in Peace Sheikh Saqr.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
God Parents!
Well, after being here for 18mths we reached a nice milestone this weekend with Niki and I becoming god parents this weekend.
We were very chuffed to be invited to be god parents to baby Olivia who is our friends and neighbours Trevor & Sam's newest addition and its a bit of a feather in our caps to be asked to be a part of their family.
Whilst I am not religious at all and to me the name is a bit of a misnomer, it is still a great honour.
So there we were on Friday morning, in Christ's Church Jebel Ali Dubai, being part of the ceremony along with two other babies to have Olivia baptised and us along with our fellow friends John & Deborah to be God Parents.
It just goes to show how much we have come along here in Dubai! To think I could be a god parent to a little girl from English parents 18mths after landing in this strange country, well I wouldnt have believed you!
We were very chuffed to be invited to be god parents to baby Olivia who is our friends and neighbours Trevor & Sam's newest addition and its a bit of a feather in our caps to be asked to be a part of their family.
Whilst I am not religious at all and to me the name is a bit of a misnomer, it is still a great honour.
So there we were on Friday morning, in Christ's Church Jebel Ali Dubai, being part of the ceremony along with two other babies to have Olivia baptised and us along with our fellow friends John & Deborah to be God Parents.
It just goes to show how much we have come along here in Dubai! To think I could be a god parent to a little girl from English parents 18mths after landing in this strange country, well I wouldnt have believed you!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Welcome Back Mum!
Niki comes home tonight! After her being away for two weeks in Sydney, I have come to the end of my run as "Mr Mum" and I think if I can blow my own trumpet, it has gone well.
The girls have had lunches and dinners without resorting to mass orders of take away food and the dishes have been done and the laundry upkept.
I have been able to get away early from work each day and the girls have been able to get home from school to wait for me really well.
I should also say that with the girls being the ages that they are (11 and 9) that they have been really mature and responsible with what they have had to do and Kate has had a key to the house and she hasnt lost it nor abused it. I am very proud of them!
So tonight, with Niki landing around 11pm, it will be a dinner out at the kids place of choice - Chili's or McDonalds undoubtedly, but I may try to convince them to go to Fuddruckers and then we will probably look thru the mall and then onto to Abu Dhabi airport late to pick up their mum.
As for Niki's trip, her mum is recovering well from her surgery and I am glad Niki was able to get back to be there.
For us, the next holiday time is Eid al-Adha, and we're booked into the Indian Ocean side of the UAE for a couple of nights at Fujairah. That's going to be on 17-18 of November!
The girls have had lunches and dinners without resorting to mass orders of take away food and the dishes have been done and the laundry upkept.
I have been able to get away early from work each day and the girls have been able to get home from school to wait for me really well.
I should also say that with the girls being the ages that they are (11 and 9) that they have been really mature and responsible with what they have had to do and Kate has had a key to the house and she hasnt lost it nor abused it. I am very proud of them!
So tonight, with Niki landing around 11pm, it will be a dinner out at the kids place of choice - Chili's or McDonalds undoubtedly, but I may try to convince them to go to Fuddruckers and then we will probably look thru the mall and then onto to Abu Dhabi airport late to pick up their mum.
As for Niki's trip, her mum is recovering well from her surgery and I am glad Niki was able to get back to be there.
For us, the next holiday time is Eid al-Adha, and we're booked into the Indian Ocean side of the UAE for a couple of nights at Fujairah. That's going to be on 17-18 of November!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Dubai, the Land of Service.
Dubai is the land of "service". Everywhere you go, there is someone there to push your shopping cart to the car, pack your groceries and help you with your luggage. At restaurants and food courts, there is always a "Hello Sir" as soon as you walk in and the service is very attentive.
This is one of the great things about Dubai. Given that is so cheap for the Emirati's to import service staff and Emirati's also have a very high expectation of service, for us expats its a dream come true. No 16 year old school girls behind the counter texting her BFF whilst you wait to be served here!
The downside though is that at times the service can be infruriatingly good and the keen desire to provide good service drives you batty. Today, was a case in point.
We subscribe to the local pay tv company and they're rolling out High Definition boxes and upgrading everyone for free. (Would you get that in Australia?). I rang them to ask when I can book them in and they said, dont worry sir, we will ring you personally when your name comes up and arrange a technician to come and install it.
So, two days ago the phone rings and a pleasant voice at the other end told me all about the transition and that they would take care of it and I didnt have to worry at all. They asked what time would suit on Tuesday and I asked for as late as possible so that I could get home from work to meet the technician. Given that Niki is in Australia, I had to be there for the technician. Positively she said "does the 4pm to 8pm slot suit you". I agreed and she said that the technician would call when he was an hour or so away.
Tuesday comes and I am at work this morning and the phone rings at 11:30am. "Hello Mr Clayton, this is (insert random name I didnt catch) from Orbit Showtime". I said yes, how can I help you... "Well Mr Clayton, I am at your Villa but nobody is home". Umm... why are you at my villa at 11:30? You're nearly five hours early I replied! "I was in area, and my next appointments are at Deira" (which is about 45km across town) "... and I thought you might like early installation".
I replied that I am at work, was an hour drive away and that I wasnt leaving until 3pm to be home by 4pm.
"Can you leave now Sir?"
Um... NO... I have work, I am already stretched for time and you're five hours early!
"OK sir... sorry, I can wait. When can you be here?" he asks... he is being disarmingly pleasant and this is just him trying to do me a favour but my diary now looks like I need to rearrange things to accommodate his 'favour'.
I said I will see what I can do and call you back when I am leaving Abu Dhabi.
"No problem sir, I will wait".
I in turn, perhaps rudely, didnt leave until a bit after 2pm. I had things to do and I got caught up in work and worked through lunch. I rang him as I walked to my car and told him I would be there around 3:30pm.
"OK Mr Clayton, no worries. Can I ask Mr Clayton... can you drive faster?"
Given I drive at the max speed before the cameras flash (which is 160km/h) I reaffirmed that I would be there at 3:30.
Anyway, I arrive and he is there and he is very friendly and helpful and takes me through all the options as if I had never seen a TV remote before... he also tweaked my junction box to boost the signal and was very happy to install. I offered him a drink which he declined but almost apologetically he asked at the end if he could use my bathroom.
It was the least I could do given I kept him waiting for about 4 hours!
This is one of the great things about Dubai. Given that is so cheap for the Emirati's to import service staff and Emirati's also have a very high expectation of service, for us expats its a dream come true. No 16 year old school girls behind the counter texting her BFF whilst you wait to be served here!
The downside though is that at times the service can be infruriatingly good and the keen desire to provide good service drives you batty. Today, was a case in point.
We subscribe to the local pay tv company and they're rolling out High Definition boxes and upgrading everyone for free. (Would you get that in Australia?). I rang them to ask when I can book them in and they said, dont worry sir, we will ring you personally when your name comes up and arrange a technician to come and install it.
So, two days ago the phone rings and a pleasant voice at the other end told me all about the transition and that they would take care of it and I didnt have to worry at all. They asked what time would suit on Tuesday and I asked for as late as possible so that I could get home from work to meet the technician. Given that Niki is in Australia, I had to be there for the technician. Positively she said "does the 4pm to 8pm slot suit you". I agreed and she said that the technician would call when he was an hour or so away.
Tuesday comes and I am at work this morning and the phone rings at 11:30am. "Hello Mr Clayton, this is (insert random name I didnt catch) from Orbit Showtime". I said yes, how can I help you... "Well Mr Clayton, I am at your Villa but nobody is home". Umm... why are you at my villa at 11:30? You're nearly five hours early I replied! "I was in area, and my next appointments are at Deira" (which is about 45km across town) "... and I thought you might like early installation".
I replied that I am at work, was an hour drive away and that I wasnt leaving until 3pm to be home by 4pm.
"Can you leave now Sir?"
Um... NO... I have work, I am already stretched for time and you're five hours early!
"OK sir... sorry, I can wait. When can you be here?" he asks... he is being disarmingly pleasant and this is just him trying to do me a favour but my diary now looks like I need to rearrange things to accommodate his 'favour'.
I said I will see what I can do and call you back when I am leaving Abu Dhabi.
"No problem sir, I will wait".
I in turn, perhaps rudely, didnt leave until a bit after 2pm. I had things to do and I got caught up in work and worked through lunch. I rang him as I walked to my car and told him I would be there around 3:30pm.
"OK Mr Clayton, no worries. Can I ask Mr Clayton... can you drive faster?"
Given I drive at the max speed before the cameras flash (which is 160km/h) I reaffirmed that I would be there at 3:30.
Anyway, I arrive and he is there and he is very friendly and helpful and takes me through all the options as if I had never seen a TV remote before... he also tweaked my junction box to boost the signal and was very happy to install. I offered him a drink which he declined but almost apologetically he asked at the end if he could use my bathroom.
It was the least I could do given I kept him waiting for about 4 hours!
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