All the Deckers and one Pugh

Everyone is here! I wish my family was here as well but we are having a great time. Everyone arrived Friday night on Chris's birthday. Chris and I had planned on going to the mountains during the day near Ra's al Khaimah (North of Dubai) to celebrate but we drove the wrong way and ended up in Abu Dhabi! We had not been there yet either so it was fine. It was nice to be out on the clear roads (Friday's are like old school Sundays in the US) in our new car exploring out of the city. Things are especially quiet with the Christmas holiday looming along with the Muslim holiday Eid al Adha which remembers Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael and this holiday also coincides with the end of Hajj (the annual pilgrimage of Muslims to Mecca). In honor of this holiday Muslims who are able sacrifice a domestic animal of which a portion will be given to less fortunate Muslims and the rest will be eaten with friends and family. I saw lots of sheep awaiting their unfortunate fate in the backs of trucks last week! After checking out Abu Dhabi (older, more organized but smaller) we headed back to Dubai to make the airport run. Since the arrival of our family we have been out for a traditional dinner of Arabic mezze and shiha (the pictures are coming) and a more formal dinner cruising down the Dubai creek (in Old Dubai) in a glass boat last night (see picture). Yesterday we hit the beach and enjoyed the sun, the waves and strolling in the sand. Today we went to the mall for a quick sight see and arrived home 5 hours later, somehow a quick trip in Dubai is never a quick trip! Now Pattie is sitting with me, everyone else is playing euchre and we are contemplating a local Indian meal. I just wanted to throw y'all a few words so that I don't lose my fan base. Faithful readership really keeps me going. We are all thinking of all our loved friends and family right now and wishing everyone a holiday filled with joy, peace and lots of love.

The Christmas corner

Chris and I got a car this weekend and were able to do lots of errands and get tons accomplished. We were able to find a decent Christmas tree and it has helped to get us both in the mood a bit more. It is just hard to feel Christmasy when you are in hot weather with a predominately Muslim population. This is our living area in our apartment, it is coming along. I drove for the first time today. Nothing groundbreaking since I have been driving for a lot of years but a different experience. It is strange to live somewhere, to feel familiar with it, for it to feel like home and then to have it feel totally different again. It is a whole new Dubai when you are driving in it. This morning it was just me and all the taxis. I felt like I was in an arcade game and they were my obstacles. Within two minutes I was passed on the right by a bus so you really have to pay attention. It is just hard to gauge how fast to go over all the stop signs here. Tonight after I safely parked our car and breathed a huge sigh of relief at passing my first day of driving I started to walk towards our elevator. A taxi driver started following me and honking his horn. I honestly didn't think anything of it and tuned it out. Finally he pulled up next to me and shoved his cell phone in my ear. I found a very flustered woman on the phone trying to explain to the taxi driver where she was. Having been this woman MANY times I graciously helped both parties and walked away feeling satisfied thinking about how much language barriers really mess up communication. The driver was mad because the woman said she was outside, she was mad because she was outside but they were on two different levels of the parking garage and that was the most important part...lost in translation. Tonight I went to a Christmas party at my friend Bea's and tomorrow I am going to Satwa to pick up curtains from the tailor and to hopefully find material for a few more things. I am also on the prowl for a tension rod so I can hang up a curtain in front of an open closet but it has been an elusive item to find. I am hoping to also finish Christmas shopping...

The camel ride

Chris's company had a work Christmas party on the beach at the Madinat Jumeriah. You can see the Burj Al Arab behind us. I went for my first camel ride there (Chris got to go on a much longer one in Egypt) and it was a bit bumpy and rough when they stand up and sit down but fun overall. Hanne and Roque are in front of us. The party was a lot of fun although it did not beat the PSM dance-a-thon Christmas party, no one cut loose that much but then again it was a 11-4 kind of a party.

Camels are so cute when they are sitting!

In the spirit of Christmas from my soapbox

Yes, it is that time of year again. I wish the holidays were a little bit later in a way because I just don't feel ready. One can't help but feel guilty when seeing the masses of privileged people out and about spending when so many have so little so here is my two cents for money spending ideas since I know people are reading.
http://www.amazon.com/World-Food-Programme-Feed-Bag/dp/B000M3OP6A
This reversible carryall bag sells for 59.99 and gives more than half to the UN World Food program. The donated portion gives one hungry child in Africa a lunch at school everyday for one year. Pretty cool.
Last night we watched a program on corruption in Africa that showed how corruption trickles down from the highest levels to even children in schools who have to pay to have their papers graded. This organization is trying to fight it and is worth a look: http://transparency.org/
Back to life in Dubai where today I went to the bank, waited in several lines to get an application for an additional credit card for the bank account Chris and I have only to be told that he needs to sign the application and then waited in another line for the car loan process. The woman in front of me was dressed head to toe in black-black velvet jacket, gold sweater, black pants and black suede boots. Sure, it has cooled down a bit but come on...it is still about 80 degrees. Anyway, she was paying cash for a Bentley. Crazy Dubai. The one cool thing about the bank is I did get ushered in front of one line for being a woman and the women at the bank have the bank logo emblazoned on their Shayla (head scarf) in crystal like beads. So pretty.

Beet Salad for lonely housewifes

I just finished dinner and thought I would include my favorite recipe for nights alone: beet and feta salad. Chris is not a big fan of beets or Thai food so I used to eat these things in Chicago if he was gone which was really seldom. Now that I dine alone four days a week beet and feta salad is like an old friend that I see often. It is not for everyone but the combination of flavors is quite nice so try it!
Serves One Lonely Housewife:
A handful of Baby spinach leaves (which I don't have here unless I want to pay a lot)
Diced or sliced red onion
Chopped beets from a can (1/3 of a can)
Crumbled or cut feta- the best kind is French feta which is creamier and softer than Greek feta
Sliced tomato
Cucumber and grated carrot are also nice
Dressing made with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, teaspoon of Dijon mustard, salt and pepper

Eat with a glass of red wine, alone, in front of the TV or while reading Yummy!

The proud painters

I tried to get them to be a bit more casual but my battery died so this is the painter mug shot. They were two young men from Bangladesh and I sort of miss them this week!

The after pictures are a ways away

This is what the whole apartment looked like on Thursday. It is coming along but will be a while before I have impressive before and after photos. Sorry no blogging, I have been busy! Chris is still away and I really miss him. He finally comes home on Wednesday so I am hoping to have the place in order and have a tree ready to decorate. We will also be assembling the nativity set Grampy made for our wedding present. I got a job for after the holidays. I will be teaching one three year old girl for a couple hours a day, five days a week for 3 months. It will be great because I will still have plenty of time for the other ideas/projects I have. I am really lucky because part time is an oxymoron in Dubai. I have to say positive thinking has done wonders for helping everything to fall in place. Last night I went to Hanne's for traditional Scandinavian glogg (red wine with other stuff). I remember the grown ups drinking it at Grampy and Jane's when I was little. It is great! Today I just unpacked some more and organized. I am about to head over to Becky and Mark's for spaghetti. I am so lucky, everyone feels bad for me being alone and they invite me for dinner. I haven't cooked much but I am scouting for something fancy to cook for Chris on Wednesday. I have all my cookbooks here so it will be easy. Well, nothing else to report here. I have to get busy on finding a taxi. Between 5 and 8 is this weird every man or woman for themselves around here when it comes to taxis, it gets ugly!

Fruit stand in the Gold Souk

Chris and I walked for hours last weekend enjoying the sounds and smells (well, some of them) in the older part of Dubai. We stopped here for a refreshing glass of fresh watermelon juice. Yummy!

Paint madness

The apartment is almost painted. The colors don't look anything like I thought they would and the bathrooms have some dodgy parts but I am happy with it overall and it of course cost almost nothing to do. Two really sweet young guys from Bangladesh are painting it. They are here all day, they even nap here in the afternoon. I am excited for it to be done and have my home back. There were people in and out all day today between the paint, the shower and the toilets. I am very much looking forward to this phase of my life being over. Our shipment from the US finally arrives on Thursday, I have no idea where everything will look good but it should cut down on the horrid echoes in this place. It will be so nice to have some comforts from home. I am mainly looking forward to things that were wedding gifts and photos. I think it is a great sign that I have been this comfortable without any memories or sense of home around me. It will be great when this place has some personal, nostalgic touches. I had my bridge game today. I am the only one not menopausal so I am a little bit left out as far as age. Some of the ladies also take the game a little too seriously for my taste though- I hope it mellows out a bit, we have a quiz for the next class (I am not kidding)! I might have found a little temporary part time job which will be nice and I am putting together some proposals for programs to present to some American schools. I am also trying to volunteer for the All for One foundation but I am having trouble having them call me back. I might start looking outside of Dubai for organizations that need virtual help (letter writing etc.) Living here has really spawned feelings of needing to do more with my time than relax and teach the wealthy and privileged. It only takes a couple trips to the mall seeing people valet their Ferraris and other luxury cars head to toe in Fendi and Louis Vuitton to make you feel like you have to make a difference in this world because so many people only care about material things. There has to be more to life than that....

Fun Fridays!

Yesterday Chris and I got up and took a good morning swim in the ocean before heading down to the Dubai creek (Old Dubai) to see the Flugtag (a contest where people build vessels with themes and try to "fly" them off a pier into the creek. There were families from all different cultures at the park enjoying the entertaining and silly show. We took a gondola ride that went along the creek which gave us a great view of the older part of Dubai. It wasn't scary until it stopped now and then and I was so grateful one of those times was not when we were passing over the highway...Afterwards Chris and I went to the gold souk and wandered around feeling as though we traveled around the world. One neighborhood would be African, one Chinese, one Indian etc. It was really fun to hear so many languages, see so many colors and clothing and learn to buy many things that are not necessary now but will be useful later on (from textiles to new tires)! Today we spent the whole day at the beach before Chris left for Saudi. The painters were just here to drop off the ladders and paint and they are coming back in the morning to start the living/dining room.

Thanksgiving

This is a picture of us with a local man and a falcon. Tonight we joined some new friends here for a wonderful Thanksgiving on Palm Island. We saw some people we had met before and made new friends. One new friend was Haman, the owner of this falcon. Falconry is an important tradition in Arab culture and lots of money is spent preserving the sport in UAE. So, it was a new type of Thanksgiving but certainly one filled with tradition! Our host's sons played with their rock band and did an AC DC cover so there was some good old American culture served along with the creamed corn as well.

A really frustrating day

Today was a true test of my patience, one I probably failed miserably but now I am finally mellowed out enjoying a cup of coffee before I get ready and fight the masses for a taxi on Thursday night so that we can enjoy a Thanksgiving feast on Palm Jumeriah. For those of you unfamiliar with one of the newest modern wonders of the world you should have no trouble seeing images of it with good old google. Chris came home last night which as always is exciting but unfortunately I had some sort of 24 hours stomach flu so I can't say I gave him the most enthusiastic welcome. We did enjoy a quiet night in, the first with a tv and dvd player so we watched a movie after dinner. Today was just one thing after another and I feel so bad complaining but...our things arrived in Dubai which is great but they day they have scheduled to deliver them is next Thursday which is the day I was meant to go on a weekend trip to Egypt with Chris. I haven't left Dubai since getting here at all and of course the two days I want to go on a fun trip for free (since it is for his work) are the only days they can deliver our things. Oh well. Enough whining! Today was full of other fun things like negotiating for our bank rates and car loans, getting lost in taxis and trying to go to a yoga class but that was such a disaster that I went out and bought a yoga mat and three dvds so I don't have to try to get to a class again! Well, enough negative energy for a post. This pictures is from last night, a wonderful girls night dinner that I hosted in the empty apartment (but easy to clean). I have kitchen stuff and a dining room table so it was just fine. In the picture are Rowena (English), Rachel (English), Kristina (Canadian), Sue and Jennifer, two Midwestern ladies. I met them when I first got here and we have dinner once a week. I only met Rowena last night but she is very nice and interesting. Sue's office building is in our apartment complex so I have seen her quite a bit lately and I love spending time with her.

The view from our home office.

We only have a little table and floor cushions in here but this is what I looking at when I call you or when I am working on the computer. It is even better at night when it is all lit up. I am off this morning for some errands, have to deal with some banking issues (of which there are many), find a ticket to Egypt, call the repair link in the building...again. Last night I decided to take a nice lavender bubble bath before going to bed and found out that the drain floods the bathroom. Not so much fun at one am- I only have 2 towels at the moment and now they are really wet and gross! We are still having a problem with sand in the toilets too but I know you don't feel too bad for us, that's what we get for living on the beach I guess.

Yesterday my friend Sue took me to Deira (old Dubai) to help her find her doctor's office. We were escorted by a nice man to the ladies only line and her medical for her visa only took a minute. It consisted of someone asking if she was married, if she had TB and taking her blood. As we left we saw hundreds of male laborers from India and Pakistan in the same lines that undoubtedly are still there now. It is nice to be a woman. Afterwards she took me to a great Lebanese food stand and we had this cheesy bread that I don't know the name of and fresh fruit juice. She knew the place because her husband grew up here and takes her to lots of more local places. The meal was about 4 dollars. Then she took me to buy our tv, not fun to drop so much cash but necessary since we are paying for cable and I think it will help me not feel so lonely at night in here if I can watch a movie. Later I went to Palm Island for dinner at Hanne's. Her husband is also in Saudi so myself and another woman from Finland joined her for dinner. She has her shipping already so has an actual apartment. It was nice. Tonight I volunteered to cook for 7 women to avoid going out for yet another overpriced mediocre meal. I do have 8 chairs, a dining table, tea light candles, place mats and a lasagna pan so it will be rustic but bearable. We also have a stereo so it's actually quite nice in the kitchen area. I hope to also go for a nice long swim and walk on the beach, I can't wait! The water is perfect right now.

Not a vegetarian cook anymore...

Anisah showing off the meat for the osso bucco.

Saying goodbye to the Radisson

Chris taking one last look at our lovely hotel room. There wasn't much to it not in the picture!

Chris enjoying the waves

Our apartment from the ocean

The view of our apartment complexes. They are divided up into six mini-complexes with six towers each (I think). For Chicago people they are a bit like presidential towers, except they are projects on the beach! The complexes are named Murjan, Sadaf, Bahar, Rimal (ours) and two others I don't know yet because they are beyond ours...they are types of coral in Arabic.

Being a good housewife

Today was my first full day in the apartment. We"moved in" on Friday from the hotel. This consisted of trekking by taxi a mile down the road with what seemed like way too much stuff for people who came here with 5 or six bags...It was hard to leave the safe womb like atmosphere of the hotel where any request is just one touch service away (Radisson humor) but once we got here I was so glad to be here, despite not having much furniture. I am all alone right now, Chris just left for Saudi and I hadn't stopped to think about how strange it will be to be in a big, empty apartment all by myself for the first time. I'll be alright though, luckily I don't have a TV or access to Unsolved Mysteries (humor only my family would get). This weekend was great but I didn't see enough of my husband. We did get to go for a nice swim outside of our apartment and walk the beach. We walked all the way to our favorite bar and were excited you could reach there by foot on the beach (no way would it be possible by the streets). So, we can go out for a drink without a taxi. There is a 0 tolerance rule for drinking and driving-any in your system if caught equals jail and immediate deportation end of story. Needless to say we take taxis here for that reason and we don't have a car either... Friday night we went out with some friends to yet another fancy hotel for drinks and dinner but this one had an amazing view of the Burj Al Arab (the sail shaped 7 star or something hotel). At night they do a light show of pretty colors projected on it. We were easily amused. Saturday I organized the apartment, laundry, mopping, putting away clothes and then we went to see a movie with Hanne, our friend from Finland. They have a gold class section of the movie theatre where you can pay 27 dollars for a huge first class airplane like seat and have food served to you at a designated time chosen by you. They also give you blankets and pillows. We did not do that, I am saving it to see Om Shanti Om, an epic (goes without saying really) Bollywood movie that is the talk of the town right now. Today I had nothing except waiting around (toilet repair, dry cleaner pick up, paint quote, water delivery) planned and three people came by for a visit. A friend from Holland, one from the US and one from Saudi Arabia/Singapore/New Zealand. My friend Anisah from from Saudi taught me how to make osso busso which was delicious and made Chris very happy when he came home. Hopefully a picture will be with this but the computer is fussy right now so I will have to try tomorrow I think. Oh, the dry cleaning pick up just came, at 10pm, Oh Dubai!

Getting lazy

I have been horrible about writing lately and for no good reason! Things that have happened over the past week: (Sorry for the list format, I can't think in paragraphs at the moment)
1) I have a drivers license and we found a car to buy. All wonderful but it means I will actually have to drive, a task still a little daunting! We are of course still waiting for the bank to call us back about the car loan...hopefully it will be done by next week.
2) I have a residents visa that declares I am a housewife and not allowed to work. Post your comments here, I know they are coming...
3) I have done some more teaching jobs despite the fact I am "not allowed to work"
4) I had a sleepover this week with Becky because her husband was gone too. We went out for sushi, rented a movie and baked toll house cookies in her apartment. Complete bliss...
5) I had my first trip to a Turkish bath, a truly spiritual experience that I hope to treat guests to when they visit. I feel like I have baby skin now.
6) We have Internet and cable now but no TV or furniture.
7) My friend Becky found the fabric part of town and good tailors so I am excited to get moving on curtains and of course clothes that I don't need.
8) Chris is home and gets to stay until Sunday, one extra day which will be nice because we are moving into our apartment tomorrow (I think).
9) I have made some efforts to find meaningful causes to get involved in, more to follow. I just want to be moved in and unpacked before I jump into something.
10) I still haven't picked paint colors for the apartment, big surprise. Indecision is my middle name on that front.
11) We are depressed that it looks like we won't be able to have a dog since they officially outlawed them in our building.
12) I survived my first horrible haircut by Juan, a man with a long slicked back ponytail who wears all black and teases you with a few buttons open on his shirt to reveal his hairy chest. Is it any surprise my haircut was a disaster? I have now retrieved a layer in my hair I spent a year trying to get rid of but it just keeps coming back to me like a boomerang! Oh well, petty problems.
13) Chris is on a new project in Riyadh, the capital and largest city in Saudi Arabia. We are hoping this project is a little less intense in terms of hours from him but we shall see. He had some funny stories this weekend about Saudi. They went to TGIF for dinner. They wondered why it isn't called TGIW since the weekend is Thursday and Friday. He also learned that the malls there have family time to prevent single guys for cruising the malls for women. To get around this inconvience it is rumoured that young boys hang out outside and will pose as a son to create a family for a fee.
I think that sums up this week for the most part. Life is still a lot of running around, trying to get things delivered, installed or set up. We are still waiting for our things so shopping is a bit overwhelming. I am trying to hold off on buying anything until our things come but it is difficult. I tried to grocery shop today but as I stood in the huge hypermarket I got dizzy and overwhelmed when I thought about the fact that I need everything. I bought olive oil, salt and pepper. Good start huh? I have some feta too because I can't ever resist it's creamy richness and the fact that it costs 50 cents for a whole chunk. I think besides things like waxing and taxis it is the only thing that is cheap here!

I love the Radisson but have a love hate relationship with taxis

I do believe I will always feel at home when I see a Radisson from now on. We are still living in a hotel since we are still waiting for our things from the US. It will be another month before we see them but I figure it will be an early Christmas present. I will have a whole new wardrobe! So superficial of me but my clothes are getting a little boring since it has been the same selection since August. There is really nothing new to report except that Chris is home, at work though. We looked at our first car today, big step since the roads still look terrifying to me, more manageable but still intimidating. We are still after that elusive liquor license and my passport. I had to give it over a couple of weeks ago for the visa process and I still don't have it. Obviously without it I can't get a liquor license, cable, Internet or a drivers license. I think by now you can see the pattern. Frustrating indeed but otherwise life floats on very easily here. Tonight is a birthday party of some sort for someone Chris works with. The tradition here seems to be that you invite tons of people out on your birthday and pay for all of them to eat and drink. Luckily I just had a birthday before we got here! Chris's birthday is actually not that far away though...I better start saving my teaching money. I just finally finished a big job yesterday for a university student that I love in Sharjah. It was a HUGE paper on the Enlightenment, a subject I never want to think about again. She is a joy to work with and we spend a lot of time gossiping and sharing cultural tidbits. She has given me lots of insight to the Emirate culture here, how to tell people from different countries apart, about polygamy, what men wear under those long white robes (It's not like the kilt, that's for sure) and other useful information for someone as curious as I am about everything.

TV and movies

I only watch TV if I am in the gym on the elliptical and I am so glad that I never watched Scrubs, Friends, The View, Dr. Phil or Tyra at home because that's all there is in the way of programming in English. There is a cooking show with Jamie Oliver that I love because he is just so manly and rustic yet not afraid to show his softer side by calling potatoes "little darlings". He shows you how to do everything from planting the potato to serving it with capers and creme fraiche. Anyway, there is quite a lot of censorship but I think it is only applies the free channels. As far as cable it only covers a few channels, there are not hundreds like we have at home (which is fine, really). I caught Dirty Dancing on the local channel a couple of weeks ago and all the dancing scenes were cut out...go figure. There are a lot of sports channels so you can watch any soccer game imaginable, endless hours of cricket and even European women's volleyball. Chris loves it.

A bit about fashion

So important. I am such a closet clothes freak so I have to mention it. Fashion is very high end here. Lots of Fendi, Gucci, Prada, Chanel and other you stuff normal people don't really buy. There is of course regular clothes and bags here too but there isn't a lot in the middle. It is either really expensive or really cheap. Fashion has a Muslim twist here as well. Since traditionally fashion is more conservative and modest some styles have really stuck here such as dresses over jeans, tunic shirts, pashminas and scarves. The other trend you can't escape in Dubai is skinny jeans. I had to explain what they were to Marc and Christos over dinner. I demonstrated by pulling my pants tight around my ankle and Christos exclaimed "gross" which was confusing because 10 minutes later they ogled a girl that walked buy and successfully modeled the skinny jeans look. For some reason skinny jeans were in style in the states for about 10 minutes but here they are all the rage. It is not a good look on most of society, especially men!

A day late and a week later

It is almost 2am, I just got back from "work" and I am determined to sum up the past week in one blog entry...Chris was very disappointed in me for going so long without writing. I don't know how I can be so busy without a full time job but somehow I am. I have been helping two students with papers the past week and worked 3 days last week when Chris left and started again when he left tonight. The best thing is being able to tell people I can't work when my husband is here and them understanding! Last week I got to go to a Dubai compound villa close to the beach to help a new student and also to her Grandfather's house which is more like a palace guarded by caged dogs. I never see much of the interiors but can summarize the ones I have seen as: aromatic (incense), formal, ornate and full of things that you know are really expensive but don't look all that appealing. There are always a lot of sweets accessible and I feel rude saying no so sometimes it is difficult to stomach the strange candies. The families I have met are very friendly, helpful and gracious. Tonight I went out to Sharjah (another emirate) to help another student with an art history paper. This student is very sweet and happy to explain anything I want to know about Islam, Arab culture and UAE in general. When I got back to the hotel tonight I encountered a prostitute outside my door looking for a room number that is not on my floor. You might be wondering how I knew she was a prostitute...well, the plunging neckline, the glitter all over her face and her tight and revealing clothing coupled by the fact that she was looking for a hotel room she had obviously never been too at 1:30 in the morning gave me some clues. She was very nice but unfortunately I could not help her find the room number that had been texted to her on her mobile. I suggested she call the person whom she was visiting. Never a dull moment around here. This weekend Chris and I got to spend one dinner with Christos and Marc- we are seldom all together anymore but we did manage to squeeze in one night. On Friday Christos and I went to Ikea to get some staples for our apartments while Chris worked. We got lost at least three times and almost ran out of gas. All in all it was about an 8 hour experience that left me exhausted and delirious. Chris was however in the mood to go out so I scraped myself up and we went to the mall for a proper date night- dinner and a movie. It was interesting to see a movie here which leads me to some other posts...

Love is my religion

On Friday Chris, Christos, Marc and I literally crossed the street for an outdoor concert and saw Ziggy Marley and Kayne West perform. It was amazing! I am in love again with reggae music! I also have a new respect and appreciation for Kanye West, I like a couple songs before but he is truly remarkable. His energy was contagious. It was really amazing how organized, clean and mellow the festival was. It was also great to see so many families out and about, we saw an African family dancing with a baby that must have only been a few weeks old at 11pm to Kayne West. I love living someplace where all ages go to the same places and there is something for everyone. They had play areas for toddlers and teenagers there. The other fun part was seeing all the teenagers of Dubai out and about in their trendy clothes. There was of course letters to the editor the next day complaining about parents letting their tweens prance around in skimpy clothing in public in a Muslim country. I have to admit I do remember some ridiculous outfits of my middle school days but clothes have gotten rather risque for young girls lately but things always look shocking when you are in a more modest society. I clearly recall Liz and I wearing matching off the shoulder ruffled white midriff tops to a carnival once and her parents just laughing at us- I can't imagine not realizing we looked stupid but I guess that is youth for you.

Chris is of course gone again and I am hoping to get a lot done this week but I am still waiting on my visa which rules out anything that involves a passport. I would like to make decisions about painting the apartment, a dining room table and buy some of the smaller appliances we need right away (like an iron) but I want to run by the bigger decisions by him so I will wait until he comes back. I am waiting on the smaller appliances until I have a big block of time because you never know how long it will take but today I have to help a student again so I don't want to be late. Anyway, I am also waiting on a phone call to let me know when I am tutoring a famous singer here. Again, another connection through our real estate agent. I am about to have lunch with Hanne; half of a couple Chris and I met over the weekend. Her husband is from Chile and she is from Finland. They have lived quite a few places around the world and her husband works with Chris. They are the first couple we have met and they are going to live near us too. This weekend we are also going out on the Palm to meet a friend of my brother's for a drink. Chris and I met her sister over the summer so we finally get to meet her on Thursday. We were also invited there for Thanksgiving which is great because we still won't have our stuff by then so that rules out me cooking a T-day feast! I still wish I could be home at Uncle Bruce's for Thanksgiving. I love traveling and living abroad but Thanksgiving is the one day I only want to be in the US for, it is just not the same anywhere else. We did have some nice ones in Ghana though so I am sure this one will also be memorable!

I got to talk to Lauren, Pattie and Bob last night which was so nice- they are all coming here for Christmas so we are so lucky!

Well, I think that is about all that is new. I read some posts last night about some labor disputes going on in other parts of the city and it just makes me so sad that there doesn't seem to be anything going on or any international pressure to raise wages or improve conditions. I found a website that collects care packages for workers here in the camps but there has to be more that can be done?

At Juan Salon. My friend Anisah took me to her salon last week for some pampering.

weekend begins

It is Thursday morning and I am waiting for yet another phone call for our last delivery...our stove (for now)! I am also waiting for Christo's stove and washer/dryer instillation. Christo's one bedroom apt only has a hookup for a washer or a dishwasher. After some serious consultations he decided the chances of a laundry emergency were far greater than a dishes emergency since he will travel all the time and probably not cook. I waited at his apartment earlier this week and took a nap on some ikea chair cushions waiting for his appliances and a new scenario happened. The people showed up to install the washer but they couldn't find it, they were searching all the closets and cupboards and I didn't know what they were looking for, I thought they were looking for the hook up but turns out the washer had not been delivered yet so we were back at square one. I am hoping after today we are all done with delivery bloopers for a while. Chris got home last night and we went out to a complex of restaurants right on the beach for Italian food. I wish it was possible to just go out for a casual bite to eat but all the places are fancy. The prices aren't too bad as compared to upscale restaurants at home but already I am missing dive bars and Mexican restaurants. Soon I will be able to cook and going out will be back to occasional and then we will want a treat so it's all good. I have two more students needing help so I have a busy Saturday and Sunday ahead of me. Both students need help with essay writing. One is a girl and I will go to her house (which will surely be a palace) and the other is a male student from Abu Dhabi so first I have to meet him in public with a chaperone. I am so excited to be able to do this because otherwise I would never have a conversation with an Emirate man. It is definitely a cool way to learn about the culture here and since the Emirate population is about 20% of UAE it is understandable why you don't meet that many. I have got to motor because I have to get some passport pictures done as well this morning for my visa. Chris and I were very excited to see the score of the baseball game this morning-looking good!

Bridge to bridge

This morning I rode a short distance over the bridge to Palm Jumeriah for my first bridge lesson. Our guy friends are very mad at me because they say I will never meet any cute single women for them at bridge games. I have always wanted to learn how to play bridge and someone invited me to join a beginners group so I figured why not? I may not always have such a free schedule and until we are in an apartment and I have a visa I can't look for a job so I am going to make the most of it. After playing bridge (I know some people are probably still laughing) I had to head over to our new apartment for more delivery mayhem. This time I had a book. I am so excited... Chris comes back tomorrow but this time he is only here until Saturday morning so I want to have a great weekend planned before he gets home. We already bought tickets to see Kayne West (from the west side of Chicago near where I used to teach) and Ziggy Marley at a desert music festival. It should be fun. Tomorrow morning I am going to a warehouse to bargain for a dining room table. We never had one in Chicago and we definitely need one in our new apartment so I am hoping I have luck.

Bur Dubai

Bur Dubai is an older part of the city on the creek. It has cheaper rents and the hustle and bustle reminded me of parts of New York or London. We had dinner there over the weekend and then walked around...which is a rare treat in Dubai! There were actual sidewalks since this part of Dubai is much older and not under constant construction. We wandered around the souks admiring the beautiful saris, the aromatic street food and the plethora of vendors selling gold, electronics, fake purses and all kinds of things no one really needs. There weren't prices on anything, it was dirty, grungy, loud, bright, gaudy and we loved it- it was a nice change from the brand new construction zone we have been living in! We went here on Friday night so that Chris could have a fun night out and explore more of Dubai. Since he is gone during the week he doesn't get to explore as much as I do. On Saturday we both spent the day running in opposite directions trying to get things done before he left again. He went to get a new phone and get the liquor license and I spent yet another day waiting for a delivery. I only got to run back to the hotel and say goodbye to him before he left again. This week he will be back on Wednesday so it is better than last week. Last night I finally got skype hooked up and it has been so nice to catch up with people and hear their voices. I was very excited to hear about the Red Sox and their big win last night. I just hope they can do the same tonight! I wish I could watch it but I would have to stay up all night and just watch updates on the computer, there isn't any station that plays it. Today I met a woman (Becky)who also just moved here from Chicago and had a great day visiting and showing her our apartment while waiting for yet another delievery. Becky and I also had a terrifying taxi experience today, I won't write about it because I know everyone will just worry but it was a good lesson in how much you have to pay attention, even if you are not driving! I have two days off from waiting for any deliveries which will be nice. I am off to work out now and then have dinner with Chris's coworker, Christos who also still lives in the hotel.

Chris looking important at the Buddha Bar.

The Buddha Bar

This is a shot from inside the Buddha Bar, a really swanky bar near our hotel. We weren't able to get in at first because it was myself, Chris, Christos and Marc. The ratio was too man heavy. Instead we headed up to the top of the hotel and had a drink there. Because the bar on top was so high up (at least 30, maybe 40 floors up) and the decor was like Austin Power's private jet it felt like we were on a plane. After we left there we managed to talk our way into the Buddha Bar which was ambient but I am not sure what the big competition to get in there was...

Keys to apartment

This is our new kitchen- before appliances. We finally got a key and I can visit the empty rooms whenever I want! The rest of the pictures are too boring and empty to show you but soon they will be exciting! I am so happy about our kitchen because it has a door so I can shut it if I don't want to clean up straight away. After a couple of apartments with an open, studio floor plan where the kitchen is your apartment I am happy to have it as a separate area. It does have an open bar area though so I won't be all isolated in it either. Most people know my love of cooking and understand while I dedicated a whole blog post to it. I haven't cooked in two months...I am afraid I might get too used to it!

20 things I've learned today

1)That the man in this picture (Sheikh Mohammed for short) has an elaborate website http://www.sheikhmohammed.co.ae/ and that besides being the ruler of Dubai, the Prime Minister and VP of UAE he is also a poet. Check it out. I am embarassed to say I am not 100% sure who the guy on the right is. I will find out.

2) There is a bus system in Dubai. It is cheap but follows no schedule, route, set price or logic that I can figure out yet. There are separate seats for women and men.

3) Five minutes might mean 7 hours for a delivery time.

4) An empty tub is not a horrible place to spend those seven hours reading British tabloids.

5) British tabloids are not that exciting when you don't know who anyone is or why they are famous.

6) David Beckham has a squeaky child like voice according to my friend Emma who works in fashion and met him once.

7) English people are embarrassed of Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice (also according to Emma), really embarassed

8) The security people at our new building are very, very nice and helpful and it is truly sad how little money they get paid and heartbreaking that many of them go two years without seeing their families.

9) There is a full time lifeguard at our pool from 6am-10pm. He smokes and drinks redbull next to his post.

10) There is a sign of rules posted next to him. I saw every person breaking every single rule on the sign.

11) It is really safe here and I am glad we ended up in this city instead of Johannesburg. My new friend from SA had her old, beat up car stolen while she was getting her haircut there.

12) Taxi drivers often don't know where they are going and take you really far out of your way. I am actually learning my way around and can direct them now. It is time for me to get a car!

13) Our building is a mile (and three stoplights) from the closest u-turn so we will always have to drive a a mile in the wrong direction to leave...funny!

14) The beach looks beautiful from our new bedroom. When I wasn't busy laying in an empty tub today I watched people water ski and para sail.

15) You can see part of Palm Jumeriah from our bedroom.

16) Palm Jumeriah is creating artificial reefs along the shore that will make sea life very exciting.

17)I was told they are filming a commerical, movie or a concert outside our hotel tonight and it is full of film crew people and spotlights...very glamorous.

18) People work a lot here. I just saw a man typing emails, talking on the phone and riding the stationary bike in the gym.

19) People do other strange things at the gym. I saw a girl sitting on her boyfriend/husbands lap while he was lifting weights yesterday.

20) Our landlord is from Jordan. He paid 660,000 dh for our apartment (approx 183,000 dollars for a beach front 3 bedroom apartment) and we just gave him a check yesterday for 150,000 dh for a year's rent.

I don't know

A lot of people have been asking why goods are in such short supply...the answer is I have no clue. My first answer was that they just can't keep up with the masses of people that keep moving here. Then I found out it was even worse a few months ago-some people waited 3 months for appliances so who knows? It could be worse. We were lucky to get all of our necessities right away, of course we didn't wait around for the bargains.

Today I was planning on working on that liquor license and my visa. Neither got done since the person who does the visas is out this week (reminds me of Ghana) and before I could get out to the mall (where of course a liquor license can be obtained) a friend invited me to lunch and I couldn't say no. We went to a super fancy hotel that has touristy souks (Arabian markets) and nice restaurants. It was the company that was the best part. This friend is someone I met briefly at a coffee morning and she lives across from JBR (where we are moving to- Jumeriah beach residences). Our friend Christos thinks we should start a reality show about it since masses of people are moving there now and there are some glitches with the design of the buildings (no one is sure where the gyms are going...or how to fit the appliances into the too small spaces) Anyway, my lunch companion showed me the bus system in Dubai which I didn't even know existed and enthralled me with her life story. She was born in SE Asia to parents from Saudi Arabia and she escaped an arranged marriage at the age of 16 because she felt that she was still a child and that the traditional life was not for her. As a consequence she has not seen her parents for 40 years but she is going back soon to see them. In the same conversation she also had a lot of positive things to say about the traditional dress here (dishdash for men and abaya for women). She thinks they are beautiful, exotic and that modesty is a seriously underrated virtue. But she wears whatever she wants. Everyday is another persons perspective and it is always interesting. Tonight I went to the gym and for the first time I didn't cover up on the way there, everyone tells me it is fine to wear whatever you want if you are western but most of the time I cover my shoulders and knees. It was especially respectful during Ramadan. So tonight, wouldn't you know it my key didn't work when I got back from the gym and I was forced to go to the front desk in the main lobby in my skimpy workout gear. I waited a while for the elevator to come and when it opened it was my worst nightmare, I am in skimpy clothes and it is a husband and wife in a dishdash, abaya and sheyla (headscarf). The wife's abaya was of the latest fashion here. I like to call it bedazzled. It had pink swarovski crystals embroidered on the sleeves and hemlines. They are beautiful in a sparkly kind of way. Back to the elevator... you know it is OK for them to be in their clothes and you to be in yours but you can't help feeling a little under dressed for the occasion...so I found myself apologising and explaining my situation. They couldn't have been any nicer or understanding. Turns out they lived in America for university and were so warm and conversational about the US. After the key fiasco I returned to my room, got ready for dinner and enjoyed an outdoor Lebanese feast with 3 new girlfriends from England, America and Canada. Another day in Dubai....

Ended my day in Twi

Tonight I joined Christos and Marc downstairs while they ate Italian food and saw our friend Micheal, the Nigerian man raised in Ghana. He is the head of security here at the hotel and every time he sees me he tests my Twi (the language Chris and I spoke in Ghana). I think he is still shocked every time I say something back. It has been a long time so my Twi is reduced to pathetic pleasantries but it still feels nice. I should just go to bed now but I can't stop thinking about our shipping container from the US. We found out that it still hasn't left the US even though we had an arrival date for tomorrow here in Dubai! Customs blessed us with their "special" search and now it will be at least a month before we see our things. I hadn't really stopped to think about some of the logistics involved with the shipping container until this week. I already have towels, flatware, dishes, pots and pans etc... I don't want to buy more but can't really live without cooking in our apartment for that long...or showering for that matter. Anyway, we will figure it out. Today my friend Bea took me to Al Karama, a market in an older part of Dubai (like 10 years old maybe?) . This is where all the knock offs can be found. I did not buy any purses but was tempted by the craftsmanship...I did buy some new colors of Pashminas- they are only 3 dollars here and so very useful with all the AC. After shopping I went to Bea's for dinner. It was nice to have something outside or a restaurant for a change!
Chris and I got invited to watch the Rugby world cup with some English friends that I met so I am impressed that I am working the sports network for him. Unfortunately, Chris won't be here for the match since he will be flying out again on Saturday. Tomorrow I need to work on my visa, find the form for an alcohol license so that we may keep alcohol in our home and hopefully also get the keys to our apartment. I am so excited to have an apartment but I was hoping to have some furniture/comforts of home a bit sooner. Oh well. Sorry no pictures today, I was lazy. I have some old ones but the computer is slow tonight so it will have to wait.

The beach

This past weekend was the end of Ramadan and there was a festive mood all around. We did not witness any special, cultural celebrations but we did notice a more relaxed feeling. We also noticed that places were more crowded since a lot of people had time off from work. We went to the beach on Saturday before Chris left for the week and it was glorious. We decided not to pay to go to a hotel or even a beach park and it was a great decision! The beach was wonderful, fine white sand, warm waves. The water is really salty here which sounds silly but it's true. Other than the beach our whole EID was spent getting things we need for the apartment. For other interesting pictures of EID throughout the world check out this link:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_pictures/7041752.stm

Dubai Marina

This is a view of the Dubai Marina where we eat out a lot and where we will keep our yacht (kidding). This area is very close to where we will be living and it looks like we might be able to walk there in the future but for now it is a 1 min cab ride away.

My favorite time of day

Everywhere I have been I have always loved this time of day, just before the sun sets. It is nothing short of miraculous here as well. This is the view from the 8th floor (roof) of our our hotel. There is a fantastic mosaic pool up there as well and now that Ramadan is over there is a bar as well which makes the place pretty fantastic.

adventures in appliances

We just found out Chris is leaving on another work trip tomorrow (right in the middle of this holiday) for all of next week and we need to get our apartment ready for living so we are now in hyper efficient mode except that is not really possible! Appliances are nearly sold out everywhere so we got really lucky last night and found most everything we need so we bought it on the spot but we need to try to find a fridge today. Our poor friend Marc needs smaller sizes of all appliances so his plight has been much worse than ours. Last night we were all weary after hours at the mall searching for appliances and excited to head to the Sheraton beach Iftar for the last night of a Ramadan Iftar feast. I didn't think I could walk anymore without food but we couldn't find the car at the mall, that is how big they are. We ended up having to split up and search separately and I started to wonder if they had a search and rescue committee for the mall parking lots, what would we do if we couldn't find it? Obviously we did find the car that Marc rented and we set off for our dinner which was of course wonderful. An Iftar buffet has every dish you can imagine: hummus, fatuoush, bean salads, vegetable salads, lentil soup, corn soup, meat salads, many breads, hot Indian dishes, lamb and chicken shawarma, pasta dishes, shrimp and seafood stews, fruits, juices and desserts. After stuffing ourselves we sat on the beach for some shiha and made strategic plans for our shopping needs today. Chris and I figured out we need a new bedroom set for our room because our bed won't be here for a while and we need a set up without nightstands for our bedroom. The problem is that the mattresses are sold out a lot of places and what good is a frame without a mattress? We think Ramadan is over and we should be able to eat in public today so I think that freedom alone will make today easier. Wish us luck!

Working already

The American University in Sharjah during a dust storm today. Unexpectedly, I ended up traveling to another Emirate today, tutoring an Emirate college student trying to help her with her presentation on the duality of the enlightenment and it's effects on architecture. I was up pretty late last night brushing up on that topic! It was a great connection for future jobs so I didn't want to turn it down but hopefully next time I will have more notice (and a topic I am more knowledgeable of ).

So I will not talk about the weather ever again on this thing. On Monday I wrote that the weather was quite nice because it was not humid at all. In fact I was wondering when this so called humid weather would start. Well, Tuesday it did. It was as if you were taking a shower when you stepped outside. People with glasses were complaining that they were foggy all day. I think my contacts got foggy at one point. Of course it was the day I did laundry and had to hang it outside so it was all still sort of wet and probably still is. Then on Wednesday we had a dust storm which would have been even worse for the laundry. I speculated that they might be exotic and interesting. It was quite beautiful to watch the palm trees sway in the wind and have the landscape a bit blurred. The light was unique because desert sun doesn't get filtered through much so it is harsh and without shadows. This changed it...but it also blew sand in your face. Yesterday after my morning of work I relaxed until Chris got home. A driver was sent for me yesterday from Sharjah at 7:30 am to help this student with her 12:30 presentation and then I was driven back to Dubai. I got back here around 2:30 and looked online for some used appliances for the apartment. The problem is that no one posts pictures or dimensions or how old it is so we decided to just buy them new because the price difference is so small between used and new. I got a little excited thinking I could actually pick out what I wanted but we went shopping with Marc last night for his and to do price comparisons for things we want and realized it is not going to be easy. First of all we need electric appliances (apt rule) and there are very few electric stoves in this country. Then if something looks nice, is a good brand and is a good price every store is sold out until November. I thought that when I would be able to buy these kinds of things I could go to one store, pick them out and have them delivered. Obviously that was a daydream. Today I will got look at a couple other stores and see what is available and hopefully start ordering. I found out yesterday that Chris has a work meeting next month on the Red Sea in Egypt and I get to go! I am so excited. We are close to so many destinations, I can't wait to start taking some weekend trips once we are settled. The paperwork went through yesterday with our apartment so hopefully we will be able to move in sometime around the 20th. Our things are still on their way by sea but we hope they will get here soon

Another day...another mall

This is a man made scene of traditional Bedouin (desert dweller) culture. The figures and camels actually move and guess where I saw it? At the mall of course. My friend B took me to the Ikea at yet another mall to get a catalogue so I can later order a few pieces from there if I choose too. She also wanted to see if they had any of their wonderful, frozen imported Swedish meatballs in yet but they are still sold out. Everything at Ikea is also on back order for at least a month so I am glad we have the staples coming from the US. I also found out there are some wonderful furniture makers who can copy from the US furniture catalogues so that might be fun as well. I don't plan on furnishing from only one store but Ikea is certainly easy. It is possible to find amazing Turkish style rugs and lots of other unique things at great prices but it is in a whole other part of town from the malls! Once we get a car that will be fun to explore.

I just realized today that some people have been leaving comments for me on the blog and I didn't know it so sorry I haven't responded. The notes from family about the fall are very much appreciated. Keep them coming... So are the baseball reports. We are following it but you forget about it sometimes because it isn't big news here. I was very excited to hear about the Yankee's misfortune last night!

Last night I had dinner with some new friends, some from England and some from the US. It is nice to meet people here who are not as new as me and know a lot of answers to my questions. Chris got home early from Saudi last night and has been busy working on his new project and getting our apartment paperwork settled. He loves what he is doing and the people he is working with so we are very happy! I am hoping he will get home before dusk because there is an amazing pool on the roof of this hotel that has waterfalls over it and an amazing view of the city. I only discovered it yesterday!

Thanks for reading. The blog is motivating me to write everything done each day which will help me remember everything.

We have a home!

The windows will be cleaned before we move in but this is the view from our new bedroom! We won't be able to move in for a bit since our things aren't due to arrive until the end of next week (at the earliest) from the States and I need to buy all the appliances but we have a home! The best part about our new apartment is it is on the beach! It is also a new building and the grounds are not finished yet so the prices are still low compared to other parts of Dubai so we were able to get a three bedroom which feels like a palace after all the one bedrooms in our past. So please, come visit!

The weather

A word on the weather, a subject I have neglected entirely despite various inquiries. It is sunny and hot everyday. The sun sets around 6:30ish and then it is considerably cooler. It is really nice to sit outside at night, especially on a rooftop. So far I think it is a very dry heat and it is not unbearable. Would I run in it? No. Unfortunately you can not walk anywhere here- the roads were built around the businesses quickly and not made with walkers in mind. There is round about or rotary every half mile....at least. So I am outside very little BUT by the end of the month the weather will drop to very comfortable temperatures in the 70s and 80s and you can actually do things outside for most of the year. So, as I suspected it is a lot like Arizona. If I did not have AC my position on this matter might be less optimistic and I would be sweaty, red and feel like I was in Peace Corps again. I have heard that also with the cooler weather comes some rain which floods everything since it is so dry and flat. I have also heard that there are dust storms from time to time which sound very exotic and exciting but are probably not pleasant at all. I just changed my weather profile from Chicago to Dubai and was surprised that it is still quite hot there. I probably shouldn't have actually looked at a weather report. It looks like it will be around 100-102 degrees this week with a full, shining sun everyday. The sunshine is nice though! Last night I saw Chris off to the airport and then had Thai food with one of his colleagues. Chris doesn't love Thai food so I always get it when he is out of town. Afterwards we checked out his apartment on the beach and then headed back to our hotel for some lemon shiha (another new flavor) and then I went to bed exhausted after another day of apartment hunting. The good news is that I think we found something, Chris is coming home early tonight and I think he will be able to see it with me and we can make a sound decision. The bad news...someone might take it by then! Nothing much else to say. I am waiting for someone to come and pick up our laundry, waiting for a real estate agent to call me back waiting, waiting, waiting...I hope to have some pictures up but as of now I am always alone or it is just Chris and I and that is a bit boring for pictures. I haven't had much time to go sightseeing but I have a long list of things to do once all of this searching is over. Another great thing is I met someone who is moving out of country from a three bedroom and wants to sell all of their things so I might score a lot of barely used appliances. This same person was also a private art history tutor for university students here and is going to connect me with the right people. Apparently Emirate students will come to our apartment (once we have one) and pay me good money to help them write essays. Sounds good to me. I also met someone who works in movies and commercials here who said they are always looking for help with logistics, extras etc. so that might be fun as well! But first the apartment....

The epic housing search

I guess we have only been here a week but I was hoping to have a home sorted out before Chris left tonight for Saudi. He will be gone for a few days and when he gets back it will be Eid - the official end of Ramadan so everything will shut down for a few days. It stands for Eid-Al-Fitr and it is a three-day celebration. We had a low key weekend. Today is Sunday and things are back to work around here. It will take a while to get used to Sunday being Monday. This weekend we checked out a couple more roof top bars, watched the Rugby World Cup, looked at apartments and villas,relaxed and caught up on sleep. Yesterday we rushed back to the hotel after apt viewings to grab the lunch buffet because we were so hungry since you can't eat in public or find anything to eat for that matter. We bumped into my dutch friend, B and her husband in the lobby. They were also having lunch at our hotel. Hotels are really the only places to eat during the day. We joined them and get this for a small world- B's husband was also a candidate for the job Chris interviewed for in Mustique (the tiny island). Pretty crazy that there were about 20 people in the world involved in that job search and I had lunch with two of them. Anyway, we had our hearts set on this amazing apartment that I can't even talk about because I don't think we are taking it. We were all set to sign and the landlord changed his mind on the price! I am waiting for another estate agent to call me back and take me to some more places but I am already sick of looking! I am going to run a couple of errands and get Chris ready for his trip. The estate agent just called and said no for more viewings today so now I have to start calling again. This is so much fun! Also on my list of fun things to do today is find a great brunch reservation for the start of Eid- they are meant to be the most amazing meals! Even the Iftar meals that we have been to that break the fast each day of Ramadan are breathtaking. The one we went to was the size of a huge banquet hall and each wall was filled with beautiful arrangements of food from salads, to lentil soups, meats, breads, cheeses, fruits, sauces etc. I can't even imagine what the "special" one will be like! I only wish I could eat as much as I want to at these events.

Not making decisions today

Have seen many more apartments but haven't made any decisions yet! Last night, Thursday night, was the official start of the weekend here, kind of feels like college again. Chris and I had to go to the mall again after we went out with an estate agent to look at villas. The villas we saw were clearly on the low end of things, some doors were even broken and there was trash everywhere. It was depressing and freaky, the roads all looked the same like the Truman show. It seemed like you would have to leave bread crumbs on your way to work so that you could find your way home. The only good thing about them was they had backyards so they would be perfect for a dog. Anyway the estate agents dropped us off at a City Centre in the older section of Dubai. It seemed like more local mall with more residents and less tourists. Chris needed a cell phone so we got that and since fast had broken we grabbed some food and headed back to the hotel. Since it is the weekend the rooftop bar was open so we headed up there for some shiha (hookah) overlooking the skyline of Dubai. Normally they have live music and a bar but because of Ramadan they don't. They make wonderful non-alcoholic drinks there but we just had apricot shiha. We are working our way through the fruits. While we were there we met the head of security for the hotel, a man from Nigeria who was born and schooled in Ghana. We got to speak a bit of Twi and reminisce about Ghana. He told us Dubai is nice too because it is peaceful and easy but better for making money. From the rooftop we headed over to the Meridian hotel which has a wonderful tiki style bar on the beach. It was crowded with tourists and expats. We fought the crowds and headed down to the beach huts and relaxed. It was great, it was actually my first time on the sand of the beach because we have been so busy. I did see a rat on the beach though, some of you know how terrified I am of rodents but the couple of drinks helped to numb my fear. Then we met up with a friend of Chris's from work. He is from Montreal and started one week earlier than Chris. We have been having fun hanging out with him and some people he knows through friends, school etc. The crowd was pretty wild for what we have seen in Dubai. I left Chris to go to the bathroom for a minute and an Australian girl grabbed his butt as an ancient mating ritual I guess! I will have to keep a closer eye on him...We then walked home, an almost impossible task with the construction, highways, median and lack of sidewalks but we were determined. We didn't get home until almost three and we slept until noon today- we desperately needed the sleep. Now we are off to lunch and then....the mall of course. Chris needs a small carry on for his suits because he leaves for Saudi on Sunday for work. We are just hoping to make a housing decision tomorrow so that it won't drag out past his trip. So summary of life so far: if you need anything you have to go to a mall, there are no small shops and if you need a drink you have to go to a hotel!

You don't have a house yet?

You don't have a car yet? You didn't get your license yet? These are the questions we are asked on average once an hour. I am not sure if that is like a cultural "how are you" or the British "you alright"? We don't have any of these things because we got here 4 days ago and we don't even have a visa yet, something you need to do any of these things so just trying to be cool about it all, in due time we will have all of these things! Our estate agent just canceled our appointments today so now I am phoning many more and trying to get to see as many apartments and villas as possible. It is difficult because just last night we found out Chris will be traveling a lot so now it is less important to be close to his office and more important that I can have a dog and a community...a lot to think of but it will all work out. I have made a few friends or whatever you call people you have known for one or two days! A Dutch woman, B chatted to me in the hotel and took me in her car to show me around the city a bit and see what her villa was like. It was very nice but the community seemed isolated. Yesterday I went to an expat women's coffee thing and met some very nice women, mostly older, non-working women but one girl my age from London and she has been helpful. It is a young city but I just haven't found any couples like us yet but then again it has only been 4 days! Things are moving slow in some areas of life because of Ramadan and it can be difficult to forage for food during the day. Chris is so lucky because he gets fed at work! I am off to the mall again right now because they sold me a SIM card for my cell phone with someone else's stuff on it so now I have to start over I think. I never thought I would spend so much time at malls but that is where everything is! We are hoping to look at some apartments on the beach today but they may not allow dogs so that is a downside....the upside obviously being the beach...until later!

First Monday

It is another hot and sunny morning and Chris is getting ready for work. They never told him what time to come so we figured 9 was good. My big to do list for the day is to begin blogging and wait to find out when we are looking for places to live. Yesterday we went to the Mall of Emirates, a huge mall with everything from H&M to Gucci and Louis Vuitton. They have a lot of my favorite English stores- Boots being at the top of my list. It is essentially just a British CVS but so much better because well it is British. They also have a Harvey Nichols which I have never seen outside of countless Absolutely Fabulous episodes. If Dubai had been a big destination in the early 90s I think Patsy and Eddie would have had a blast here. Ski Dubai is also in the mall so you can watch people skiing from the food court. Pretty crazy! Everything was pretty quiet and none of the restaurants were open because of Ramadan (more on this later).We didn't buy anything except a camera (and some lunch to bring home from the HUGE grocery store in the mall) because our camera was stolen in Mexico. The camera was a bit old and temperamental so that wasn't the big loss. It's the memories to be a little dramatic. I was hoping to be able to have a lots of sappy pictures of our honeymoon one year after our wedding but oh well. We will just have to actually remember it in our minds now.After the mall we were really exhausted after the night from hell aka the Emirates flight to Dubai. We have been in America too long because it felt like a tro-tro in the sky to me or for those of you not familiar with Ghanaian transportation methods: a greyhound with wings. So after the trip to the mall we rewarded ourselves with a nap and a massage in the spa downstairs. Very posh! After that we ventured out to the Marina walk which is not far from our hotel and the Dubai Marina is visible on any map of Dubai. It is really nice, lots of restaurants, cafes and apartment buildings along the Marina. We chose a traditional outdoor place and had felafel and lots of grilled meat. We watched many parents bring their children to the fountain across from our table. The children were changed into swimsuits and allowed to play in the fountain. The fountain was really sophisticated and the water followed all kinds of patterns set to a soundtrack of water noises ending in a grand finale of the sound of a huge wave crashing. The kids loved it and we enjoyed watching them chase the geysers shooting up but most of all I enjoyed the fact that it was 10pm and no one minded kids running all over the place getting wet even if they were in their clothes! After dinner we ordered apple shisha (mild and fruity tobacco smoked through a standing hookah). Every table around us was also smoking them, young, old, in traditional or modern dress.A little bit about clothing:On the whole the National population wears their traditional dress in public. For men this is the dish dash (a) or khandura- a white full length shirt, which is worn with a white or red checked headdress, known as gutra. In public, the local women wear the black abaya- a long, loose black robe that covers their normal clothes- plus a headscarf called the sheyla. This traditional dress totally covers them up and this is what is considered appropriate within the constraints of the Muslin culture. I took this from a page for other expat women and if you wish to know more about life here this link is a great overview:

http://www.expatwoman.com/profiles.php?ID=5&geosplit=Middle%20East

Everywhere we go people are from all different places. I am not sure where lots of people are from yet but people watching is a lot of fun because you get to see all kinds of cultures on display. The style of dress is modest on the whole and I think things are even more conservative now because of Ramadan. The most prominent feature of Ramadan is the daytime fasting which is meant to be a sacrifice. Eating, drinking and smoking in public is illegal during this time. (Ramadan is also a time when Muslims are supposed to slow down from their worldly affairs and focus on self reformation, spiritual cleansing and enlightenment and establish the link between the God almighty and themselves by prayer, supplication, charity and showing good deeds, kindness and helping others). I got that from wikipedia because it is a great summary. It is a really special time to be entering Dubai and I think we can all learn from this practice. Everywhere we go there are reminders of donation and even huge collection centers for used books, phones etc.So now I am enjoying tea (not illegal because I am in my hotel room). Restaurants use screens to block the view into the restaurants to accommodate the eating and drinking needs of tourists and non-Muslims. I think the only thing you can't do is drink alcohol during the day, alcohol is not served everywhere so Ramadan limits it even more. Chris just left for his first day and I am contemplating breakfast. The food is wonderful here- a huge block of feta cheese only costs about 50 cents! Chris and I both love Middle Eastern food and there is also a lot of fusion of various Asian and North African foods. Until later!