Spending money on our apartment

Despite our difficulty with shopping for tasteful home furnishings we were able to buy some items on my birthday (July 27). We went back to Ikea and finally picked out a living room wall unit. It will hold our 27 inch screen Philips tv (sorry, no big screen plasma or LCD!) Although I did buy a used 20 inch LCD screen from a colleague. That will go in Darcy's sanctuary room. Anyway it was difficult to find a piece that was the right color wood and design. Naturally the style we chose was out of stock for the tv cabinet. That will be available in about six weeks. But we spent 2,000 Dirhams ($600 USD) and got free delivery and installation. It should come on July 31. Then we went to the Bose store and spend 5,400 Dirham on a 3-2-1 GS Series II DVD Home Entertainment System. I was reluctant to spend that much money on one item but figured that it was worth to buy a top of the line system that will last a long time. It has a universal power outlet so we can take it with us when we move back. I also wanted something that was easy to set up since I have no patience with putting together gadgets and reading instruction manuals!

We returned home late and changed clothing before heading back out to the Beach Rotana Hotel. We went to a restaurant called Pregos which was where we had our celebratory last dinner before moving into our new apartment. We had wanted to have dinner at restaurant called the Rodeo Grill but they were full. Pregos was our second choice but their indoors section was full. Their patio was empty so we braved the elements and sat outside. The solitude and scenery was nice but the humidity was high. So it was a nice birthday but it strangely did not seem like it. Perhaps it was because of the new surroundings! Scary though as I edge closer to hitting middle age. We'll take more photos of our place as we acquire more furnishings...

getting settled

So, we are moving in and starting to make our new place a home. There's still plenty of things that we need--basic stuff like curtains, coffee tables, bookshelves and blankets for the bed-- but we have enough to live, if roughly, until we are done. Strange to be starting totally over--I've moved with next to nothing before, but I've always had a few things to unpack and set out to make my place familiar. This time there's nothing but a clothes and a couple of books.

Running around and shopping would be easier except I've come down with (another!) cold. This one I got from Michael, who picked it up from a coworker at the PI. I guess between the stress of moving to a new climate and the likelihood of new bugs here that my system is not used to, it's not surprising. But after almost a decade without a cold it seems strange that I've had three of them since March! Also, I need to learn to adjust my schedule to the location. I am used to slow mornings and picking up the activity early in the afternoon. Many shops and offices here are closed between 1:30 and 4:30, which is right when I would normally be going to them, and of course the heat is at its worst right when I'm ready to go out. I need to get up earlier, rest or work inside during the early afternoon, and then go out later in the afternoon or in the evening.

The director of the other play I mentioned earlier contacted me today, and sent me a script via email with an invitation to audition. This part looks much more achievable for me than pretending to be 70 with a heavy regional accent. He is going on vacation soon, so there may not be any more news for a couple of weeks.

Also, the PI asked for my photos and scheduled a medical for me, so we are one step closer to getting our residence visas. Thank goodness!

We're moving!

Finally, after being here six weeks, we can check out of our hotel and move into our apartment tomorrow!

We had our sofa and chairs delivered today. Dark brown in a comfy faux suede fabric. Our dining room table and chairs arrived Wednesday. Michael bought a bed, television and DVD player from a coworker which they put in Thursday. I've also got enough in the kitchen (appliances, dishes, cookware) to be able to actually cook and serve meals at home as well. So the major things are taken care of, and the smaller things will come after we're settled. What a relief!

Yesterday we decided to have a "last day of luxury" before we check out of the Beach Rotana. Now that we have some money we can actually enjoy some of the things available at the hotel. So we ordered breakfast from room service, had hour-long Swedish massages, spent the rest of the afternoon at the hotel beach and ate dinner at Prego's, an Italian restaurant downstairs. The food was excellent, and even the wine was good--a rarity as far as we can see for this area.

Now all we need are our residence visas.....

We are taking lots of pictures, and as soon as I unpack my USB cable and have enough time with a computer to sit down and upload them to the web, I will post them. Promise!

In other news, I did go try out for that theatre production and it went well. The part is small enough that even if I did not manage the age or the accent 100%, it still would not have much impact, and it looks like fun. However, the director told me today there's another director in the group looking for actors for his play (the show will be a series of different one-acts), and that he may call me too. So I may end up doing another show after all, or possibly both if it can be managed. We'll see what happens in the next week.

TGIW!!

It's Wednesday afternoon and the end of another work week. The UAE decided to alter the work week to go from Sunday through Thursday to be more in step with the West. This is to start Sept. 1. Anyway I finally got the housing/furniture allowance cheque! It came yesterday so we have some spending money. So we dashed off to the 2XL furniture store and bought a 10 seat dining room table and pots and pans. Then we took a taxi to another furniture store, Homes R Us and bought a couch. It has a 3 and 1 seater so we'll need to buy another chair down the road. All items will be delivered by Saturday. We will check out of the hotel on July 16 after an extended six week stay. The hotel has been comfortable but we've been anxious to move.

I also got my 50% July salary advance so we actually have more than enough cash. But we needed to pay the 5% commission for our real estate agent for finding our apartment. Since we still don't have our residence visas we can't make cash withdraws from our bank account. I discovered that after the bank teller inadvertently deposited my salary cheque and I couldn't make a withdrawal from the ATM! After waiting an hour the branch manager gave me some money. I set up direct deposit for my paycheques so I hope that I get my visa by the end of the month. I'm not sure what will happen if we don't get our residence visas before our 60 day tourist visas expire on August 2.

I'm suffering from another cold although it may also be allergies. It's been very windy with smog, sand and grit in the air. Apparently this has blown in from Saudi Arabia. Last night we went out with friends for dinner and afterwards saw a live band. It was comprised of a keyboarder and two young lady singers. They were Polish and performed Western pop songs. The sound was quite good although the keyboarder played to loudly and drowned out the vocals. The singers were a bit cheesy with dance moves but it was fun to watch and listen. We have a bunch of photos to finally post. Also took some video using our digital camera. But the latter's 30 second clip seems to be too large to email or post anywhere. We'll see what we can do. I Better go soon and catch the shuttle back to the hotel...

so close

Well, Michael finally got his first paycheque. So, we have a little breathing room until our furniture allowance gets in. Our apartment has been safety inspected and cleaned, and the contractor who does the modifications like water filters and shower curtains should be in the apartment as I type to finish up. Today I sunk 6500 Dirhams--about 2000 US dollars--into a stove, fridge, washer and dryer which should be delived tomorrow night. We have a friend who will sell us a bed, some kitchen necessities like knives, cutlery and a coffee maker, and a deposit on some dining room furniture. Our hotel room reservation runs out on Sunday morning, and god willing we should be set to move in with the basics by then!

Finally having an apartment again, no matter how spartan, will be a big relief. We have been homeless for over three months now!

The other news is that I am auditioning for a play on Saturday. The character is 60 years old with a thick english accent, so I really don't think I am suited, but the wife of a teacher at the PI gave my name to the directors in her dramatic group and so I will go to this one, even if I don't get it, so they know I'm interested when other roles come up. She also invited me to the Wednesday morning coffee meetings of the Abu Dhabi Ladies group, so I will check out one of those as soon as I get a Wednesday morning with no household shopping and other duties to take care of.

My new job

Sorry for the delay in posting but my excuse has been that I've been too busy. My typical work week runs from Saturday through Wednesday (that's based on the Islamic calendar). So it's been an adjustment with having having Thursdays and Fridays for weekends. My work day runs 7:30 to 3:30 so I wake up at 5:30 and catch the college's shuttle at 6:45. I arrive at work at 7:20 am and the days fly by. the work shuttle leaves at 3:30 and 5:00 so I tend to take the latter one. I just can't get into the habit of spending only eight hours at work. I need some time to unwind at my desk before I leave for home everyday.

I've been busy with unpacking the books and journals and re-shelving them. Much time seems to be spent figuring out policies and learning the ropes that goes with starting any new job. This is my third job helping to open three brand new libraries in six years so I'm used to being in a bit of a chaotic situation. The library currently has four professional positions and four support staff. There are openings for more in both categories including my counterpart that is to start at the end of July. I will share the office with my new colleague plus we'll help staff the brand new women's college library when it opens in a few months. My primary duties for the fall semester will be developing an information literacy program and teaching library instruction classes to first year students. Collection development will be important too and also helping develop various policies. It's exciting to be opening another new library although this one will be unique. It will be challenging teaching students whose first language is not Arabic and who have not read much. Islam has been a predominantly oral society so history and culture has been passed down verbally so reading and doing research in the Western style is a fairly new concept here.

It's been interesting talking with expats here and the social circles that have developed. Society here is stratefied and the many different cultures work together but remain separate socially. The Arabs, Westerners and Asians from the subcontinent have formed their own social networks. I can see why based upon language, religion and customs but there also is some loss of community. Darcy and I moved here in large part to learn more about the Middle Eastern culture and interact more and not less with them. But I expect that there will be opportunities for us once we settle into our apartment.

Darcy and I are still at the hotel as there have been some delays with getting my paperwork done. But I got my first paycheque today so we can buy a washer and dryer and a fridge! We should also take possession of our apartment (they're called flats here) tomorrow and my furniture allowance will follow in a day or so. The climate is very hot but it's not as humid (yet) as I had expected. There have been a few mornings with heavy fog though! We've gone to the hotel's beach later in the afternoon and it's tolerable sitting in the shade. It's breezy here because Abu Dhabi City is on an island. But the Arabian Gulf water is very warm (29 ceclius or about 85 farenheit). I thought that the ocean water in South Florida was warm! Speaking of which I'm currently listening to WLRN's Saturday Edition. I do miss NPR and can at least catch some of the news online when I'm at work. I better go catch the work shuttle. Later....