TGIF

Being here brings a new meaning to TGIF (Thank Goodness it's Friday).  As it is the holy day everything is shut until late afternoon except the malls which still open at the normal time of 10am.

Yesterday I took part in what has become nearly a ritual here in Abu Dhabi for Westerners, Friday Brunch.  All the major hotels have them and my friends from the Western Region booked for us at 'Le Meridian' hotel down on the Corniche.  She thought it was fitting as that was where we had our first drink when we arrived, in fact our first outing in the new city.

The  hotel itself is amazing and has a very popular pool with its own beach.  So we're sitting outside on the veranda having our lovely food while women in bikinis and men in speedos (yes speedos) swan around a few metres away.  There was a steady stream of families and holiday makers heading to the pool and beach.  No worries about skin cancer here!  Also no money worries for the majority of people here.  And we're not talking Emirate.

The brunch runs from 12noon to 4pm and we arrived in taxi at 12.30pm to meet up with our other friends, all from our original group.  There were six of us, including us four kiwis.  Our close knit group of us three originals has been swelled by the addition of another kiwi who works here and was in our group but already lived and taught overseas so met us here.

Like most things here, the hotel is luxurious and sitting in the cool foyer would be a very pleasant way to spend a day, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.  You'd also get to meet an interesting class of people there.

The food looked amazing and was a vast spread of delicious and tempting dishes, artfully displayed to tempt the palate.  You can choose to have drinks (alcohol) or juices.  We all chose not to drink as we had a full day ahead. 

There were ten freshly squeezed juices available including fruit smoothies.  Talk about spoilt for choice.  The yoghurt was artfully presented in small glasses with a variety of fresh fruit on top.  Everything is labeled so you know exactly what you are choosing.  It also probably stops the staff from being asked 50 times, "What flavour is this?"

Another unit held fresh fruit.  You could chose from either the already prepared fruit salad or take a selection of sliced fruit.  I had chunks of pineapple and watermelon, passionfruit presented as halves, grapes, and a new fruit that I've seen but not tried before.  It has a bright pink skin and the flesh is white dotted with small black seeds.  A bit like a kiwifruit seeed.  It is called ' Dragon fruit' and is an Indonesian fruit.  It tasted nice so now I can buy it in the supermarket.

Then there was the cold buffet.  This included cold smoked fish & salmon, with the best variety of salads I've seen here.  I feasted on coleslaw, red cabbage salad, lettuce, greek salad and potato salad.

The hot buffet included your traditional breakfast dishes such as grilled tomatoes, fried fish, chicken, small sausages, hash browns, veal bacon (remember you can't get pork here) and omelettes cooked to order.

The bread table had about 15 different breads on it along with butter in a round roll which you sliced yours from or margarine in the tiny containers.  I tried a green bread, probably pistachio, a fruit bread and I also had a ginger gem with real butter!  I haven't had either of those in a while.

The desert counter was laden with tempting morsels all beautifully layered and decorated.  I tried my favourtie, cream brulee, along with another custardy pudding flavoured with pistachio and a small slice of one of the desserts.

Tea and coffee and water were brought to our table while we dined.  To finish there was a selection of cheeses but nothing to eat with them so that is when I tried the green bread. 

This four hour food fest cost us 127AED which, while moderately expensive here, was value for money.  In NZ around $45 so good value really.

You can often pick up coupons for brunch at reduced rates and there is currently one available for 70AED so I will grab a couple of them for next time.

After this I walked along to the Abu Dhabi Mall with my friends, the boys deserted us at this time for manly things, while two of us we went to the hairdresser in the Rotana Hotel which is part of the mall.  It looked expensive and the women leaving had the most elaborate hairdoes (red carpet looks).  My friend had an appointment so I asked if they could fit me in for a cut.  Yes, so I sat to wait.  While they were colouring her hair I decided to see if they could do mine and Yes again.  So I managed to get a colour, cut and blow dry for 500AED.  One guy did the colour and he was brilliant.  He looked at our hair and chose a very natural colour for both of us.  Even though the English was limited you felt in safe hands.  He sure knew his stuff.  Then another man took over for the cut.  He whizzed through our hair in about five minutes a piece with the quickest cutting I've ever seen.  Very European and very professional.  Then for the blowdry which the most time was spent on.  We both came out looking like filmstars and felt we should have had a room with a frock to slip into then head out somewhere stylish.

Instead the concierge hailed a cab and we headed to another mall to get nails done.  I'd had another coupon and got a manicure, pedicure and 15min neck massage for 59AED during the week so I didn't need mine doing.  While my friend had hers done I went for an hour long massage with a Thai girl at my beauty spa.  That's where I got my face threaded!  Talk about not knowing what I was letting myself in for.  Me of no beauty treatments back home, now I'm having regular trips to the various places for this or that.

After a good long browse at Marks & Spencers, The Body Shop and all my favourite shops in this tiny mall it was a taxi ride home.  We were stuffed, probably due to all that food we ate!  Lucky that I'd spent an hour or so in the gym that morning then had an early swim.

Today I have to do mundane tasks like clean the apartment and actually do some school work ready for my performance appraisal by the Principal this week.  As I've mentioned previously, and I'm sure I will again, the paperwork here is unbelievable.  I have to have an evidence folder documenting the various appraisal outcomes in case they aren't observed during the classroom observation.  What a way to spend my weekend!

But I'll do it as I don't want to get caned!  Not like the two girls I sent out last week.  I've also had my first, and again it won't be the last, experience of the reaction from the students when they don't get an A or B on their report card.  The previous teacher wasn't kind to them when she did their reports and I got the flack for it as my name was on the report card.  The response was crazy and I had to call in the Vice Principal to defuse the situation and explain it wasn't me who wrote them.  I wasn't prepared to take the blame for that mess up!  And these are only 10 & 11 year olds!  Never a dull moment here.

Last supper!

Last supper.  Or should that be breakfast.  This morning was my last free meal at the Murjan Asfar Hotel Apartments here in Abu Dhabi.  We have been there for just over two months enjoying the good life.  That included the free breakfast and full serviced apartments.

It sure is a man's world here even though it is supposedly enlightened.  When we arrived at the hotel my son was placed on a different floor to me.  He got the lovely Thai ladies cleaning his room and picking up after him while I got the wee Thai men (or boys) doing the bare minimum in mine.  Talk about different standards.  He got the slippers and dressing gown and all the freebies while my room had barely anything in it.  His TV got better channels and his internet connection when we skyped didn't cut out like mine did.  Not that any of that can be controlled by gender but it all seemed so much easier for him than me. After we moved into a family room with two bedrooms, one of the  men on his floor remarked to me in the lift that they missed his smiley face and laughter when they went into his room. 

So I'll miss the staff there and having my shopping taken up to my room on the trolley and unloaded for me.  You can sure get used to all these home comforts.

After three taxi trips we finally got all our accumlated belongings up to our new apartment.  There was no nice men with trolleys to help with the moving here so had to lug it all upstairs ourselves.  The same occurs when I went grocery shopping just now.  The taxi stops miles away from the door as there are vehicles parked right outside and I unload the shopping onto the footpath which is always crawling with ants.  Lucky I have my own 'porter' in my room whom I text and he has to run down and cart the bags upstairs.  Even with the two of us it has still been a struggle to get the stuff up in one trip.

Our apartment is on a building site.  We are in Tower B of a new development with Tower A having been occupied longer.  Outside my bedroom window is a large crane that, at times, appears to be about to swing through the window and pick me up.  I looked out there the other day and a man was standing on the end of the crane and was only a few metres away from me in my room.  And we have  no curtains yet so will be dressing in the bathroom.

Looking out the window reminds me of when Dad worked at Longburn Freezing Works on the building site there.  You'll see what I mean when you look at the photos.  There are four buildings under construction at the moment on this site and a new mall which constructions appears to have stalled on. 

We are sited behind the Holiday Inn Hotel on Airport Road.  The hotel seems very popular and I believe it has 'Ladies nights' which is when the ladies get free drinks and the men hang around and wait for them to get drunk.  Then nature takes its course.  It has a nice outdoor bar that appears popular with the local men or so it seems when I've walked past late at night to catch a taxi.

Our location makes it difficult to get onto the site and the one way road system adds to that.  You enter from 31st Street between Muroor & Airport Road.  I may decide I need a car as once you walk out the building you have to walk a fair distance to the road in either direction.  As the temperature is heating up I won't want to be doing that.  In one direction it is like walking over a bomb site with debris littering the sand.  Taxis are few and far between and even the bus stop (we are on the same bus route as before) is a hike in either direction.   I am lucky as I am catching a ride to work tomorrow with my HOF (head of faculty) who lives in the other tower.  I will have to leave a lot earlier though as she drops her daughter off at school on the way.

The apartment itself is new, only having had one previous tenant.  She obviously didn't know how to clean though so have been down on my hands and knees scrubbing floors.  The builders dust is still on the walls and there is glue from the tiles everywhere.  So I'll be looking for some product to try to remove that and clean it up.  It looks 1000 times better already after a decent clean but I could have used my sister and her 'Ha Ra' cloths here to help out.  She'd make a mint here as a cleaner as many cleaners have no idea how to clean.  My knees did protest though after a day on them so I need some of those knee pads that Dad uses when he's doing jobs for us.

Before our new beds were delivered I told my son to get the floors cleaned.  So he asked the man on the front desk for a broom and made sweeping motions.  Next minute there's eight or ten men in the apartment with buckets of water and they're sluicing the floors with all this water.  That's how you wash a floor here!  When I arrived the floor was under water and as it's all tiles it was very dangerous.  So I'm frantically trying to open windows and find something to dry the floor.  I hitched up my long dress that I was wearing and used a roll of toilet paper (only thing in the apartment), got down on my knees and started mopping up the water.  The floor was littered with tufts of white paper but at least it was dry before the new mattresses were dragged in!  Phew!  Another crisis averted.

My purchases to date are:  2 new beds - mattress & bases; a three seater couch; a two seater couch with drinks holder in the middle; two duvet sets; fridge; washer/dryer; cleaning products; TV cabinet (cheapest I could find); TV (dearest my son could find); sheets (1 pair each of Egyptian cotton - reckon if we this close to Egypt may as well have the best); towels (2 white good quality - 2 beach for swimming); bath mat; 3 knives, forks & spoons; 2 cups; 1 cereal bowl; 2 sharp knives; breadboard; fish slice; small frypan for omeletes; 1 ring convention cooker; jug.  Minimalistic is the catch phrase.  I've got an iron and ironing board & two small book shelves to pick up that I'm buying second hand.  Then hopefully I'll be able to make do until all the teachers go home in June then I'll pick up wardrobes and tables second hand.  Having no storage other than the kitchen cupboards is a challenge.  Also apartments don't have stoves in them so you have to buy your own.  Having said that, they are so much cheaper than at home.  You can get a four burner normal size gas oven for 1300AED which is around $450NZ.  I paid 999AED for the fridge and I love the lock on it.  I could have used that years ago when I had hungry teenagers.  All fridges come with a lock.  The washing maching is also a dryer which is wonderful.  It cost 1999AED so you pay more for that facility.

The Tower has a good gym and outdoor pool on the roof along with a sauna and yoga room.  I haven't used them yet but the pool never seems to be used.  Strange.  The gym is busy though and could probably be twice the size.  Lots of fit looking people here and it's funny to be back where everyone is wearing western clothes again.  The four towers in the block are nearly all teachers so you can't get away from them.

Tonight will be my first sleep here though my son has been here for a few nights.  The constant noise is a concern even though work has stopped.  Building continued on one site even on Friday (holy day).  Our building runs on generators so the noise is continual.  I changed bedrooms after visiting at night due to the humming that never stops.  As we are on the 8th floor we are not high enough up to miss the sound so I don't know how I'll go with sleeping tonight.

The rooms don't look so small now either and the large foyer will be able to be used for storage if I can get some big wardrobes to put in there.  And we get food delivery to the apartment from numerous local restaurants so will be availing myself of that this week.  It's hard to believe that I've only cooked twice since I've been here so will be getting back into that again.


View from my bedroom

Nice new kitchen

Roof top swimming pool

View from the lounge

Check out the lock on the fridge - handy to keep those kids out

Sand storms

Yesterday a sandstorm blew in from the Gulf.  It arrived with such ferocity that I thought it was a tornado and quickly checked out the window to see what was happening.

It sounded like heavy rain on the window but it was the sand hitting it at speed.  Papers, plastic bags, pizza boxes and large cardboard boxes were flying around and scudding across the road.

I was thankful that I was indoors and not caught out in it.  It arrived with such speed and no warning.  I spoke to a dad at breakfast today who was at the park with three small children when it hit and he found it a major challenge to manage them and get them to safety, especially since they weren't all his own children.

During the course of the day another two storms hit but not as strong as the first.  By the time I ventured out at 2pm (I'd been working from home inputting data into the school report system) the sky was murky.  But it is the air that you breathe that is the problem.  I wrapped my mouth and nose in my scarf and hoped for the best.  Even being covered you still taste the grit in the back of your throat.  A water bottle is a must.

The incidence of asthma and chest infections rises dramatically during sandstorm weather patterns.  I can see why when you are inhaling sand and dust all the time.  We now see why the women here cover up, it's to protect their skin and selves as much as anything else.  It's self preservation.  Their skin won't be leathery like mine or dried out and aging their beauty.  There is wisdom in their ways.

This morning the sky appears foggy but it is dust.  Even my regular cricket players on the Eid prayer ground are not there with only one game in progress.  In fact, you can't even see the people in the photos.  These are taken from the 13th floor as we have moved up in the world, or the hotel at least.

We had a bit of a scare on Wednesday night when there was a Tsunami warning in place after the major earthquake in Samarta.  Luckily it didn't come to anything here or anywhere else.  I imagine the locals were fearful as memories of the Boxing Day tsunami returned fresh in their minds.

Today we get the keys to our apartment so am leaving the hotel on Tuesday.  It doesn't allow much time to buy furniture and set up but we will see what happens.  So a busy few days coming up.

Happy Easter

As today was our first day back at work after Spring Break it's hard to remember that it is Easter Sunday for everyone else.  Happy Easter to you all.

So this evening I went for my walk.  I'm trying to go at night now as I would have to be up too early to get an hours walk in before work.  I set off around 6pm and it was much busier on the track than it is in the morning.  It was also much warmer and I got quite a sweat up.  There are more westerners running at that time and they wear shorts and singlets.  I still wouldn't feel comfortable dressed like that but will see how the summer goes.

Anyway, I'm walking around and hit the back end of the track and hear a choir singing.  Alleluia! Alleluia!  The sound was magical and I suddenly realised that it was Easter Sunday.  Hearing the music and singing I wished that I was in there with them.  So I'm enjoying the sounds but am amazed by the cars driving around, even onto our walking track!

The air was full of sound: a cacophony of horns tooting, motors revving, choir singing, the call to prayer blasting over the speakers, buses circling and people talking excitedly.

It was such a mix of noise that I could hardly walk for the distraction.  I was drawn towards the sounds and wandered through the dark and sandy trees to take a look at the church.  Sadly, mass was finishing when I arrived but I was treated to the spectacle of everyone leaving.

What struck me as absurd was the constant tooting of horns during mass.  I could hear the singing but it was overlaid by this continual tooting, some prolonged, others short and sharp.  During all this, the call to prayer blasted forth from the mosque next door.  So visualise this, a mosque with a Catholic School between it and the Catholic Church.  And both were competing for cliental.

I wonder about the tooting?  Is it a deliberate attempt to provide a distraction to one or other of the religions during an important festival?  It certainly seemed like it was.  Most seemed to be from the empty buses and taxis.

I wondered where all the people came from for mass but as I spent half an hour at least just sitting on a bench waiting to cross the road, I watched and discovered most of them were Phillipino.  That makes sense as a large proportion of the workforce here is from the Phillipines.  And they are mostly Catholic.

As the traffic left, I sat and watched.  It reminded me of the end of a test match at Eden Park or the Cake Tin.  Except that no-one walked.  Every person was in a vehicle, either car, taxi or bus.  You wouldn't believe how many buses there were there.  Jammed full.  You have to see the number of buses on the roads here to really grasp the situation.  Each company has at least one bus to transport its workers around.  All the children go to school on buses.  Then there's the public transport buses which we use to get around cheaply.

Most of the buses are small, around 20-30 seaters.  They have a pull down seat in the aisle which they use, beginning from the back, when they get full.  This means that there is no aisle so you have to exit from the front, row by row and lift the centre seat.  Quite an experience.  But I digress!  So there are all these buses, hundreds of taxis plus everyone else has a car or big 4WD.  Traffic circled the block continually with so many near misses.  4 lanes of traffic with a continuous stream trying to enter the lanes from two exits.  All between a set of lights and a roundabout.  And the traffic kept coming.  And coming.  And at speed!  You would have been crazy to have attempted to get over the road at that time.  So I sat and watched and waited.

Next year I fully intend to attend mass as I imagine it would be a once in a lifetime event.  I wish I'd been there tonight.

Anyway, my first day back at work was surprisingly good.  The kids were well behaved and I didn't have enough work planned for them to do as we don't usually get through anything much.  The staff seemed far more welcoming and pleased to see me.  I think there is such a big problem with the western teachers just not coming back without notice that anyone who returns is welcomed with open arms.

We've moved into a two bedroom apartment at the same hotel and I'm loving that.  It's on the 13th floor so have a fantastic view out over the city and gulf.  It also means that I have a kitchen with a stove, plus a refrigerator big enough to put food into.  So I've cooked for the first time in nearly two months.  I've nearly forgotten how...

Apparently our employers didn't realise that we are still in the hotel!  There are three of us still here from our original group that they've forgotten about.  It doesn't help that we are all happy here, especially with our bigger rooms.  So let's hope they forget us again, now that they know we're here.  It's so much cheaper for us living here as there are no outgoings other then internet (which is expensive).  I get breakfast cooked for me, my rooms are cleaned daily, my bed is changed and made.  My taxi driver picks me up at the hotel door then again at school.  Why would I want to leave?

The paperwork is falling into place, as it should, as I've spent most of the break sorting it.  I now have my Emirates ID card.  My son has his residency visa and health card (with the wrong spelling of course so another reprint required) and his ID receipt, awaiting the ID card.  My new passport has arrived so we are nearly all set and sorted.  What a process!  It's not for the faint-hearted.

My latest is that my postbox doesn't open and I've now had two sets of keys so have to return again.  Nothing is straightforward here and once you accept that you are ok.  If you don't, life here would be unbearable.  Everyplace you go to, you push a button on a machine and take a number then take a seat and wait until your number flashes up at one of the numerous counters.  So you usually sit for at least half an hour, even for a simple process.  And don't leave or you miss your turn!  And of course every task requires a taxi ride to and fro.  But with 7000 of them in the city, it isn't usually a problem.  One I got at the weekend had only been here two days and wanted me to direct him!  Joy, joy, joy!!!

Living it up at the Palace

Monday night the boys went to touch rugby training at the Palace.  I tagged along for the ride and used the time to wander through the Palace grounds and  hotel.

The grounds are amazing and they have a couple of sports fields that were used for training.  I'm not sure how often they get used but a soccer team came on as we were leaving.

The Palace Hotel was incredible.  Most of the people wandering around inside and I presume staying there looked normal.  Then there were the others who looked like they were 'To the manor born'.  Or should that be Palace?

I wandered around with awe on my face, snapping lots of photos on my iphone.   Everything had the Midas Touch, that is turned to gold.  Even in the ladies bathroom the fittings were all gold.  I'm not sure if it's real gold or plated but who cares.  Looks are everything.

I discovered this incredible cake shop within the Palace and was dying to take photos of the cakes.  They were intricately layered then decorated with the most amazing toppings.  I wanted to buy one just to enjoy the visual elegance of it.  But resisted.  After an interesting conversation with the man behind the counter, he persuaded me to try a Palace cappuccino.  He suggested I could take the opportunity to relax in the opulent surroundings which I quickly agreed to.  Never mind the fact that I'm there in my walking shoes.  Certainly not Palace fare!  Luckily I didn't ask the price beforehand or maybe I wouldn't have.  So I ordered that along with a chestnut truffle. 

I carefully chose my seat on a couch to make the most of the environment and people watching opportunity which presented itself.  I couldn't help wondering where the people had come from and how they were staying in this luxurious hotel.

My coffee arrived and it was worth every dirham, 50AED.  I didn't need to order the truffle as it came with it's own side plate of a chocolate tart and a date.  The date was as sweet as any cake and it was only the stone in it that allowed me to believe it was real and not confectionary.  The tart melted in my mouth with a burst of chocolate delight.  The truffle had a creamy chestnut filling covered with milk chocolate.  All three were equally delicious.  A lot of the chocolate in the shop was camel milk chocolate which I have yet to try.

The cappuccino was topped with gold flakes.  I wasn't sure about how you eat/drink the concoction and nearly managed to choke to death on my first mouthful of gold flakes.  Lucky for me they provided a glass of water with the coffee.  I was showered in gold glitter, and it was the real thing.  I could still savour the metallic taste the next morning.  All this decadance was silver service while the cup was decorated, probably with gold.  I remembered the hours we'd spent as kids cleaning Mum's silver and wished for some of it now as I enjoyed the silver tray and teaspoon.  It's funny what pops into your mind at the most unexpected times.

After a trip to the ladies to enjoy the atmosphere I finally left and strolled my way back along the road to the West Wing spa area which was where the training was being held.  I passed three security guards at the same post on my travels so imagine they rotate around the grounds.  All were very pleasant and helpful as I wasn't sure whether I was allowed to be roaming around like I was.

All in all a memorable evening.

Check out the website for more pictures.  http://emiratespalaceabudhabi.com/



My Palace cappuccino!

Silver service

Check out these  hand towels in the ladies

Looking like I belong in the Palace.