Schmids Shifting Sand

New Years at Qasr Al Sarab resort

2012-01-14T07:35:00.000-08:00

By the time we finally got around to arranging anything for New Years eve everywhere was booked. Originally we thought we would stay in a hotel in Dubai and watch the fireworks there but everything was booked. One hotel did provide some momentary amusement by asking what date did New Years eve was this year but still the same result, no vacancies.

So we decided if we couldn't go to Dubai we would go as far away from Dubai and the crowds as possible so we booked two nights at Qasr al Sarab in the Empty Quarter.

It is just the most stunning location. Here is a short video of the drive into Qasr al Sarab

New Years eve was a Gala dinner planned with fire shows and fabulous fireworks. We all had a great time. Here we are with our lovely guest Helga.

Finally, Bert speaks!

2011-12-30T22:22:00.000-08:00

Hello Everybody Out There (Finally, Bert contributes to the Blog)

Quite some time ago now, we created this blog for various specific reasons. Actually, I shouldn’t say “we” because, right up to now, all the work was done by Kris: the setup of the blog itself; the formatting; and, of course, all the posts and entries. I guess, therefore, it should rightfully be called “Kris’ Shifting Sand”. The name for our blog obviously had to have some connotation to our new home environment. Hence, the Sand-Shifting. But then I thought, the acronym for “Shifting Sand” would be “SS” and, considering my heritage, that would have been a little bit too close to home. So, “SSS” (Schmids Shifting Sand) it had to be.

Kris has asked me (very nicely, I might add) on quite a few occasions to write on our blog, particularly on those days when I’d come home from work and say, ‘you cannot imagine what happened today . . .’ or, ‘you won’t believe this . . .’ And believe you me, those occasions were quite frequent at the beginning of our stay here in the UAE. By now, though, the kind of wow-factor in terms of amazement, bewilderment, shock, bemusement, or outright hilarity has waned a little. I guess, one could say, we have somewhat adjusted. Whilst this kind of adjustment allows you to get through the day with much less frustration it, however, also carries with it a lurking danger, a demographical hazard: the danger of one’s mindset being diluted and, subsequently, desensitized. Depending on your ethics, values, and intrinsic worth from the outset, this can pose a potentially serious side-effect of adjusting to life in the UAE.

There were many days when I regretted not having kept a diary or daily journal. Maybe not so much for keeping track of my own experiences or personal development, but just to have a record of all those hilarious and, sadly, often heart-wrenching moments I’ve encountered and am still experiencing on an almost daily basis. This is a very different world, and living here is certainly worth documenting.

As it is with all cultures and countries, you have to live and work here to really know what it’s like, to truly appreciate the people, the culture, how things are done, all the in’s and out’s. Tourists who come for a 2-week shopping spree to glitzy Dubai, indulge in serious luxury, or soak up some sun over their winter break have no idea; they only see one side, even though, undoubtedly, a very nice side it is. Western companies, too, who want to set up business here thinking ‘we know how business is done in the developed world’ (whatever definition they may put on the word ‘developed’) very soon realize that this is, indeed, a different world. If you think you can come here and just carry on from the way you conducted business in the West, you are doomed to fail. There is no single ‘master key’ to success. Now, I don’t want this to be the foreword to my book “As-Aalam Alaykum – How to Conduct Business in the Middle East”, so, enough of that.

I first came to the UAE three years ago (it still seems like only yesterday) with the objective to set up our Australian business in the region. For the first nine months or so I kept commuting between Melbourne and Abu Dhabi two to three times a month. As the jetlag compounded so Abu Dhabi changed around me. It really is quite mind-blowing how fast this country is developing.

The UAE, rich in oil and natural gas, has become highly prosperous over the last few decades and has seen growth and progressive development of larger-than-life proportions unlike any other region in the world. Having one of the world's highest per capita incomes, Abu Dhabi and the Schmids are witnessing spectacular real estate growth rates, backed by aggressive development plans scheduled to continue until the year 2030 (worth over US$300 billion). The UAE is not immune to the global financial crisis, but, fortunately for us particularly Abu Dhabi has largely managed to avoid over-exposure to the stressed international and regional credit markets through prudent financial management and huge foreign investment.

However, every coin has a flip side, right? Far too often, I believe, one major factor contributing to the UAE’s rapid development is mostly being ignored or even forgotten. Of the UAE’s total population over 80% comprise of expatriates; around 70% of these come from Bangladesh. The remaining 30% of expats encompass mainly Indians, Filipinos, Sri Lankans, Pakistanis, Nepalese, and people from a few other countries (Middle East, Asia Minor, and Africa). There is only a small minority of Westerners like us (mainly from the UK, USA, and Australia). Whilst we “white” guys may do most of the designing, planning, managing, and supervising of the mammoth projects, it is the underpaid, exploited, and often abused workforce from these third-world countries who climb around on construction sites or dig trenches on the road side in 50ºC and 90% humidity. True, the brains from the West combined with the money from the Gulf enable such large-scale rapid development; however, the physical building of the country’s infrastructure is largely undertaken by peoples who have left their poverty-stricken countries and come here to provide a “better” life for their families back home in Bangladesh and the like. Incongruously, most of them actually manage to do just that on pathetic, hardly-conceivable wages. Moreover, when it comes to dishing out the credits for the country’s achievements, these people are rarely mentioned or, worse still, totally overlooked.

Comparing incomes further highlights the gross inequality. A housemaid or cleaner typically earns 600 to 1,500 dirhams a month (approx. US$160 to 400); a supervisor or office worker’s monthly salary may range from about AED 2,000 to 5,000 (US$540 to 1,350) depending on industry, capability, and responsibility. The moment you reach lower- to mid-level management positions, one’s origin and/or skin colour become quite a deciding factor in determining the salary structure. Admittedly, though, the difference in education, capability, and experience is equally obvious at times. For example, you’d have to look very hard to find an Indian or Pakistani project / operations manager that earns up to, let alone more, than 20,000 dirhams a month (US$4,000 to 5,500); whereas a Western guy in the same position would probably not even consider anything less than AED 35,000 (10,000 US dollars plus). Then you have your general managers and directors cashing in no less than 70-100,000 dirhams a month (US$20,000 + +) plus committee fees, director fees, etc and all the other perks that come with it, i.e. nice cars, housing, free schooling for the kids (and that’s not cheap, believe me) business class travel, bonuses, and so forth. And all of it is free of fringe benefit or income tax.

Yes, there’s no doubt and no denying, we’ve got it pretty good. Also, you can see why many lose perspective and their sense of reality. On the other hand, it puts some of us in a very privileged and blessed position where we can (and should) do a lot of good and show neighbourly love and compassion. For this, I thank God every day.

Both Kris and I believe it is not by chance that we ended up in this corner of the world. The way circumstances developed in mid to late 2008 (the passing of my younger brother in Germany, battling with sickness, and organizational restructure within my company) it first looked like a natural progression of my career to take on the role of an expat and move to Abu Dhabi to establish our Australian company in the Middle East. But now, looking back, it seems Almighty had a slightly different plan for us. No doubt, He wanted us in the UAE but not on our terms. So, we shouldn’t have been too surprised that even after eight strenuous months of establishing networks in the UAE (at the same time constantly commuting between Melbourne and Abu Dhabi) nothing really took off at satisfactory level. I contribute this to an accumulation of various questionable business decisions taken by the directors back in Melbourne, which, for ethical and commercial reasons I won’t discuss publicly online. Whatever the reasons, though, in November 2009 I was offered to run a locally-based and government-owned company as general manager. I accepted and, with a natural and reasonable amount of self-protecting interest, still saw this as the most logical and appropriate step in my career advancement. Well, what can I say? From that moment on things changed in a very positive but rather unexpected way.

Being responsible for the livelihood, welfare, and pretty much all other facets of their lives, my over 2,000 employees provide me with ample opportunity (and the continually renewed and deep-routed desire) to extend the Love of Christ on a daily basis. Even if you disregard the spiritual aspect of this statement, the amount of genuine care, compassion, and love for my neighbour I can provide on an emotional level and in practical terms is worth more than anything (whosesoever my neighbour may be: my wife, my children and stepchildren, my extended family and friends, all my staff and workers and their families in third-world countries, our housemaid, the pool guy, a gardener in a hotel car park, or the guy sweeping the streets on a busy intersection). Seeing the eyes and faces of my workers light up when I pay them a visit at the camp and sit on the floor with them sharing a meal with our hands from the same plate is priceless, the biggest reward, something precious, something to cherish till the end of my days; in those moments I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world. “Giving – Showing Love in Practical Ways” will be the heading for my next blog entry. Let’s just hope it won’t take another three years before I’ll sit down to write it. My love and greetings to all of you.

Driving at Yas Island F1 track

2011-12-23T11:07:00.000-08:00

This was last years Christmas gift for Bert but he has not had time to make the appt to go for the drive. It was worth the wait! Pictured here with Abbas the Emirati instructor in front of the Astin Martin car he drove.

Good news.

2011-12-18T02:11:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to my sister and brother in-law Jan and Allan. I'm thrilled for you both.

another fabulous photo from National day

2011-12-11T08:15:00.001-08:00

Yas Island

2011-12-10T00:19:00.000-08:00

We only live a few minutes from Yas Island. Home of the Grand Prix circuit, the largest Ikea in the Middle East, and they are building a huge water park, just what we need in the middle of the desert.

A friend took this beautiful photo last night of Yas Island hotels. It is just amazing that when we first arrived this area was nothing more than a sand island with a few building sites.

More of Berts birthday

2011-12-09T06:57:00.000-08:00

I had cufflinks made for him that say Schmid in Arabic. So lovely!

Our lovely friend Omar. Father of 9 who believes he is the luckiest man on earth.

2011-12-07T09:22:00.000-08:00

For those at dinner last night.

2011-12-06T05:33:00.000-08:00

This was taken a few years ago in Germany when Bert was hospitalised, his nephew brought in this poster for Bert and the Franz, the guy he was sharing a room with.

Visitors

2011-12-06T05:27:00.000-08:00

I just noticed I have now had 4,000 unique visitors to my blog from Feb 2010 to today. Most I can see who they are Anne in Norway, Marianne in Denmark, Renee in Sacramento, but I have had visits from
Guernsey,Iceland, Gullbringusysla, (where on earth is that?) Dublin, Morocco, Barbados, Saint Michael (how cool is that!)Honduras,Nigeria,Lagos, Singapore,Reunion,Rwanda,Laos,Bangladesh, lots of visitors from Germany and parts of Canada we have family (waves to you all)

However two jumped out at me as very regular visitors. Croydon Vic Au and Peterborough On. Canada. Really are you STILL that obsessed with following my every move? I have the ability to block your isp, but frankly who cares, I shall consider myself flattered that ten years later you are still searching for information when ever possible.

The big birthday surprise!

2011-12-06T04:54:00.000-08:00

On Saturday Bert and I were at the Shangrila souk and he saw this picture in Gallery One. I was picking up some gold jewellery I had ordered and he came to where I was and said Ive seen this picture I really like, lets buy it. I glanced at it and said no I really dont like it (I lied, I do) lets get going, Im hot and tired. I did think I will come back and buy that in a few days as a gift for him. The next morning I got a message from his PA who said we have collected money to buy a gift for sir (hehe, everyone calls him sir) can you give us some suggestions? I suggested a few things but much cheaper than this picture as it was quite pricey. She called back and said no we have lots more money, so I told her about this picture. Her and the secretary, a young Emirati woman went to the souk, phoned me and I told them exactly where the photo was, but they couldnt find it. Then the shop keeper told them they were a special display for the 40th National day celebrations and all those frames were on a truck on their way back to Dubai. Maha, the Emirati woman told them to turn the truck around, they wanted that photo. So several hours later they phoned me excited with the success that they had the picture. I was really excited for Bert, I knew he would be floored by the gift. He said it was the first time his staff had rendered him speechless!

Birthday dinner

2011-12-05T06:17:00.000-08:00

We regularly eat here as its only a few minutes from home, and the buffet is always good and we love their salads. We often go with friends,Caroline and Neil

This afternoon I phoned the restaurant manager Sameer as I had his mobile phone number and I knew he would recognise who I was. I asked him to set up a table for six in the smoking section *cough cough* and told him it was Berts birthday so could they also organise a small birthday cake. His reply, certainly M'am, will Mrs Roberts (Caroline) be joining you for dinner? Yes, she will be. Oh good he replied, I will make sure the chef makes her favorite beetroot salad on the buffet.

Where on earth do you get such good service? This is a very large hotel with four large restaurants in a very busy tourist area of Abu Dhabi.

The best part? As I was finishing off the conversation, I said see you tonight Sameer. He replied oh no, its my day off, Im in Dubai shopping! I said Sameer, why didnt you just say, I will ring the restaurant myself and make the booking. No no no, he wanted to do the booking for me.

He also phoned Bert to wish him a happy birthday.

It's fabulous service and lovely people like Sameer that make living here such a nice experience.

Berts birthday

2011-12-04T23:20:00.000-08:00

Today is Berts birthday, his PA marked the occasion by making this photograph of him. I bet the boss is not as amused as I am

She also added these words, which are lovely
It's nice to work for someone who knows the secret to being a good manager... being a good person. May God continue to bless you life and give you the desires of your heart. It is clear that God created you for a great purpose. Happy Birthday

40th birthday of the Nation of UAE

2011-12-04T23:08:00.000-08:00

December 2nd marks the 40th anniversary of the United Arab Emirates. Its been a nice time to be here in Abu Dhabi, the buildings are decorated, the weather is perfect and every just seems happier and friendlier.

This logo has appeared everywhere, even on the back of our car! I love it. Whoever the graphic artist responsible was they deserve praise. Lots more photos to follow

Another nice video of the Emirates.

2011-11-26T07:57:00.000-08:00

Emirates winter

Three Sheikhs

2011-11-22T09:37:00.000-08:00

Further to yesterdays post about knowing you have been in the Gulf too long. We had only been here a short time, we were still living in the hotel, and Bert came home from work and said we needed to go shopping for the three Sheikhs. Not only did I understand what he wanted to go shopping for, I knew where we needed to go to purchase them.

How to tell you have lived in the Gulf too long

2011-11-21T09:34:00.000-08:00

I saw this list on a website and thought it was funny and a little bit too close to the truth!

• You're not surprised to see a goat in the passenger seat.

• You think everyone's first name is Al.

• When phrases like 'potato peeler', 'dish washer', and 'fly killer' are no longer household items but are actually job titles.

• Your idea of housework is leaving a list for the maid.

• You believe that speed limits are only advisory.

• You expect all police to drive BMWs or Mercedes.

• You believe that the definition of a nanosecond is the time interval between the time the light turns green and the time that the guy behind you begins to blow his horn.

• You can't buy anything without asking for a discount.

• You have more carpets than floor space.

• You expect all stores to stay open till midnight.

• You make left turns from the far right lane.

• You expect gold for every birthday.

• You send friends a map instead of your address.

• You think it perfectly normal to have a picnic in the middle of a roundabout at 11pm.

• You have a moon phase predictor on your computer.

• You accept that there is no point in asking why you are not allowed to do something.

• When you expect queues to be 1 person deep and 40 people wide.

• When you realize that the black and white stripes in the road are not a zebra crossing, just bait to get tourists into the firing line.

• When seeing guys welcome each other with a kiss no longer disgusts you.

• When you carry 12 passport size photos around with you just in case.

• When you can tell the time by listening to the local mosque.

• When you start to say "Insha'allah" when you actually mean "No chance!"

• When you overtake a police car at 130 km/h. And don’t worry about it.

• When a problem with your car AC or horn is more serious to you than a problem with the brakes.

• When you can smoke a shisha in public without expecting to be arrested.

Emirati women

2011-11-21T09:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to the diabetic clinic . It is really where I have the most interactions with Emiratis, as I am often the only westerner there. I am always very impressed by the high standard of care, from the lady at the front door who greets me by name, even though I only go there every second month, to the security guard who stops the traffic for me to cross the road rather than me wait for someone to actually stop at the crossing.

It is one of the most asked question from friends and family at home, are you ever uncomfortable because of dress standards. The answer is never. I am a reasonably conservative dresser even at home so it takes very little adjustment to fit in here.

At the clinic I had to go to womens section to get a B12 injection and there were perhaps 20 women in the waiting room. Generally I find Emirati women very friendly, they always smile and nod from behind their veils and masks to acknowledge you, something that rarely happens if you enter a room full of western women. I sat down, looked around and realised every single woman in the room was dressed in black, and I was wearing a bright pink shirt. I felt like a canary and made a mental note to next time I come to tone down the colour scheme a little

interesting perspective

2011-11-11T22:50:00.000-08:00

Abandoned cars

2011-11-11T09:38:00.000-08:00

Cars like this used to be much more commonplace. I saw this one in Dubai last week. People get into debt here and as debt is considered a serious offense here that will get you a prison term, people just get on a plane and go home and leave the car in the street.

More Abby

2011-11-11T09:32:00.000-08:00

Abby likes to build a nest to sleep. She is the most playful and energetic dog we have ever owned but she falls asleep with just as much enthusiasm. She often builds a pile of her toys in the middle of the living room and falls asleep on top of them

Abby and her toybox. She spends a lot of time rumaging around in her toy box looking for exactly the right toy or chew

40th birthday of the Nation of UAE

2011-11-09T04:22:00.000-08:00

It really is extraordinary how far this country has come in just 40 years. This clip has some fabulous footage of Abu Dhabi in the 1960's

Abu Dhabi awards

2011-11-08T08:21:00.000-08:00

I am incredibly honored and humbled to let my friends and family know I have been nominated for the Abu Dhabi awards. More info here Abu Dhabi awards and here Abu dhabi award vision-missionAt first I was horrified when I heard that I had been nominated, it is SO not me to get involved in things like this. But it is a huge honor, I received 29 nominations. Seriously, just that one person nominated me is huge honor. What is embarrassing is the nomination committee were phoning my friends interviewing them about me!

making a difference

2011-11-08T06:12:00.000-08:00

Two short years ago when I arrived in this country I was so overwhelmed just crossing a road was a major achievement. It is impossible to live in a country surrounded by such wealth but also such hardship. Laborers, and maids do it hard here. They come from the Phillipines, India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to make a better life for their families back home. They get paid shockingly low wage by our standards but they consider themselves very fortunate to have these jobs and consider life here is easier than back home. It is a complex issue and one Bert and I struggle with constantly.

I am in a unique postion as I have access to the expat community as well as these laborers so for the past year or so I have been collecting donated goods from people and taking them to the camps. The quantity and quality of goods we receive is astounding.

When we moved to Al Reef I petitioned the compound managers to instal welfare bins. Just a simple big bin at each security gate to enable residents to drop donated goods into the bins, and we take the goods to the camps. Over ramadan we received 270kgs of rice. I have given away thousands of dollars worth of baby goods and clothes and I cannot even begin to estimate the number of sheets and towels.

I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved, but there is still a long way to go as the need is enormous.

welfare bins at each of our security gates, like the camera reflection in the side mirror? I left it in because it looks funny.

Delia

2011-11-07T01:48:00.000-08:00

Delia is more than a little camera shy and we certainly could never snap a photo of her sitting relaxing because she NEVER stops cleaning. Delia lived next door to us with an Arabian family and was never allowed to leave the house. She worked 7 days a week, was rarely spoken to by the family and often they never paid her. We noticed her frequently outside washing cars at 11pm and I once saw her cleaning the kitchen window at 5am. It is a long and complicated story but we now have Delia living with and working for us. She says she is happier than she has ever been with us. She has a sad and isolated past so it is good to give her time where she feel valued and can get ahead a bit financially.

She loves Abby, and the feeling is mutual, except at first Delia was bathing her daily, Abby thanked her by peeing on her bed daily.

Two years ago today

2011-11-06T08:02:00.000-08:00

Bert started his new job as manager of the company he is now with. We had already been in Abu Dhabi for some months working for an Australian based company. It became clear it was never going to be viable and it was very timely when he was offered this position. We flew home for him to resign hand in his computer, car keys and clean out his desk and straight back to Abu Dhabi (to the news of Shellys death).

The morning he was due to start, before he had even left the hotel room he got a text message to say 40 women had baricaded themselves in their rooms and were refusing to go to work, can you please sort this out? It wasn't a good start.

This job has been such a fabulous opportunity for Bert. He works insane hours and is always tired and stressed but he loves it. He loves that he is able to make a difference in so many peoples lives.

A sad anniversary

2011-11-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

It is two years today since my lovely friend Shelly died.
This picture was taken when she was here in Australia on holiday

A group of friends and I organised for this brick to be place in Disneyland Ca in her memory.
We really wanted it to say All you need is Love as Shelly was a Beatles fan but Disneyland have strict rules about the bricks only saying a name and date. I didn't want to put her date of death on it, I wanted to commemorate her life, not her death. So I told a few white lies and outsmarted the mouse and told them her surname was McKinney Love. I know Shelly would be amused.

yikes how did it get to be November already

2011-11-04T08:09:00.000-07:00

Im sorry I am not posting regularly, I will try harder in the upcoming week to update daily to catch up on all our news.

My biggest problem has been that blogger keeps insisting I log in in Arabic. It would be easier if they gave me Swahili has an option.

We are both good, all is happy and well. Abby is just gorgeous and we are so pleased we made the decision to get a dog. We also have a live in maid with us Delia. Life will never be the same! Bert went to India last weekend for the Grand Prix in Delhi so we have lots of photos and news to share in the next few days now I have found a way to log in.

Abi.

2011-07-23T02:10:00.000-07:00

Short for Abu Dhabi. Could there be a better trinket to take home from a country?

maids.

2011-07-16T23:53:00.000-07:00

Our two lovely maids, Siriani from Sri Lanka and Lorna from the Phillipines. Lorna has a one year old daughter at home in the Phillipines and will be in the UAE for three years before she can go home to see her. Her and Siriani are always so happy! Here they are packing up goods that I have given them from stuff people have donated.

One of the perks of the job I guess

2011-07-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

This tissue box, and five others were lovingly made by one of our Bangladeshi women for all the managers in the company.

Paul's graduation

2011-07-03T03:36:00.000-07:00

Paul has just completed training with the Melbourne Metropolitan fire brigade, we are so very proud of him

Paul and his lovely partner Jacqui.

A change of scenery

2011-05-14T09:23:00.000-07:00

Could this be any different than the United Arab Emirates? We are in Germany for a week to spend time with Berts father. We drove from Frankfurt to Burghausen and it was this green and this beautiful. I love the UAE and I am constantly surprised by just how pretty the desert can be, but goodness Germany is beautiful.

computer problems

2011-05-04T23:33:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry my postings have been a rare occurance lately but the computer access here is driving me a little, well a LOT crazy. I have downloaded a program today that seems to be helping and I got my log in page for my blog in English this morning which is a bonus as logging in, in Arabic is a bit of a hit and miss affair.

I still cannot upload photos, so that will be the next thing I need to work out.

Interesting encounter

2011-04-23T19:36:00.000-07:00

Last week I was at the local petrol station getting a drink. As I approached the cashier a young Emirati woman reached the counter at the same time, she had a magazine and a drink already on the counter and an icecream in her hand. She said to me, oh sorry you go first. I replied, oh no its ok, you were here first. Just polite banter nothing extra ordinary. She stepped back and said no it's important to me never to push in front of people, so I had no choice but to go first.

I paid with a 200 dirham note, which is quite a large note for my purchase, and I was digging through my purse for something smaller and found a ten dirham note. I said to the guy oh hang on a sec, Ive found something smaller. The Emirati woman said where are you from? Ive never heard an accent like you have. I said Im Australian. She replied oh how wonderful do you like it here? I said yes I do, its a bit hot (it was 41 celcius outside) she said ah yes that is why we have airconditioning, so other than the heat you are happy here? I said yes I am, I miss my family but otherwise its great. She said oh really, you want your family here? I can help, let me get them a visa! I said oh no, thank you its ok (at the same time thinking what is this girl talking about?) I said my kids are both busy with new jobs and careers and my mother is elderly, she doesn't even catch a bus anymore, much less get on a long haul flight. The woman said seriously, I can get them a visa, let me help.

So I said goodbye, no we didn't need visas thank you, have a nice day. I got in my dust covered honda civic, she got into the back seat of the Mercedes and off we went.

So I'm driving down the freeway to go home, take my exit and realise the black Mercedes is behind me and taking the same exit. They took the exit too, went to the first roundabout and that is where they left me as I crossed the flyover into our compound, they took the exit into the Palace.

Suddenly the whole conversation made sense. This young woman was one of the Royal family of the UAE.

Good Friday

2011-04-22T07:49:00.000-07:00

It is Good Friday today, and because we are in part of the world that the weekend is Friday and Saturday church is always held Friday mornings. As in most churches world wide over Easter and Christmas it was packed full. We usually sit up the front because visitors don't like sitting up the front, so we sit there to make more space. This morning people were still coming in 30 minutes after the start of worship time, which is distracting for everyone involved but the parking outside was just mayhem in good Abu Dhabi fashion.

The music was just fabulous today, the sermon excellent but what struck me the most was a small action by the Snr Pastor. He always sits in a seat just to the side of the stairs that lead up to the platform/stage area. This morning as the church filled and then overflowed to what is called the overflow room the ushers directed an older Pakistani couple to the front row, there was only one seat. The wife sat down and Pastor Cam jumped to his feet and gave the gentleman his chair. Pastor Cam sat on the stairs until the music was over and it was time to preach.

It was just a small act but one I doubt would have happened at our previous church in Melbourne. The Pastor and his wife there used the front pew for their exclusive use and Im very sure he would not have sprung to his feet like Pastor Cam did.

Easter tree

2011-04-22T07:21:00.000-07:00

I bought these cute little Easter decorations back in 2002 on a trip to Germany, but I never really had anywhere to hang them. Easter has a nasty way of sneaking up on me and I never found them in time to decorate each year. This year however I was organised.

The pool guy

2011-04-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

Having a pool guy is not as exotic as it sounds, see picture and you will understand. He is however a delightful guy who is always willing to help empty my always packed full car for a 10 dirham tip. Yesterday I was sorting through bags of donated clothes and there were four pair of socks amongst them. I walked out and asked him if he would like them. He grinned like I had just given him the news that he had won lotto. He took the pairs apart and laid them out on our outdoor sofa, looked at them all, thanked me again, paired them all up again and put them in his pocket and went off smiling again. It really makes me wonder what he thinks of us when four pair of second hand socks makes him so happy.

Berts, Uncle Albert.

2011-04-07T00:59:00.000-07:00

ALBERT KRATZER (published on January 29, 2011)

ALBERT KRATZER After a lengthy battle with Parkinson's, it is with great sadness we announce the peaceful passing on January 25, 2011 of Mr. Albert Kratzer, with his family at his side. Born November 26, 1931 in Marktl, Germany, he immigrated to Canada in March of 1956 and in 1965 he moved to Stonewall. With hard work and dedication he worked for Silverline Trailers and C.P. Railway Black Smith Department. In 1977 he started up his own family welding business called K-Indu Ltd. He was predeceased by his first wife Claudia, grandson Daniel, siblings Anni, Michael, Tony, Franz, Joseph and Hans. He leaves to mourn his wife Helga; his three sons Peter (Alana), Gunnar (Lynn), Bernie (Lorrie); his stepchildren Frank, Chris (Patricia), Gaby (Mark); grandchildren Dawn Marie, Neena, Tony, Kevin, Matthew, Tyler, Katja and Matteo; sisters Maria and Rosie; and nieces and nephews. He loved the outdoors, nature and travelling. The family would like the thank the Home Care workers of Stonewall and the staff of Middlechurch Home B1 for their wonderful care. Donations may be made to Middlechurch Home, 280 Balderstone Rd., West St. Paul, MB R4A 4A6 or Parkinson's Society of Manitoba, 7 -414 Westmount Dr., Winnipeg, MB R2J 1P2. Cremation has taken place. A celebration of his life will be held at a later date. MacKenzie Funeral Home, Stonewall in care of arrangements.

It HOT

2011-04-07T00:37:00.000-07:00

I was sent this before we left to come to the UAE but someone has posted it on a local forum this morning because this week the weather really has moved up a few notches in the hotter than hell scale. I turned the AC on yesterday, and if I have my way, it will stay on until about October.

April 30th:

Just got transferred to work and live in beautiful Dubai, UAE! WOW!!! Now this is a city that knows how to

live!!! Beautiful sunny days and warm balmy evenings. It’s like New York City minus all the crocks, murderers, and drunks. What a place!

Iwatched the sunset from a deck chair on my beautiful bedroom verandah. It was beautiful. I’ve finally found my home. I love it here.

May 13th:

Really heating up. Got to 95 degrees today. Not a problem. Live in an air- conditioned home, drive an air-conditioned car, and everything is fully air-conditioned. What a pleasure to see the sun everyday like this. I’m turning into a sun worshiper.

May 30th:

Had the backyard landscaped with tropical plants today around our lovely pool. Lots of palms and rocks. What a breeze to maintain. No more mowing lawn for me. Another scorcher today, but I love it here. Heat is no problem at all.

June 10th:

The temperature hasn’t been below 95 all week even during the night. How do people get used to this kind of heat? At least today it’s kind of windy though. But getting used to the heat is taking longer than I expected.

July 15th:

Fell asleep by the pool. Got 3rd degree burns over 90% of my body. Missed 5 days of work. What a dumb thing to do in this lovely city. I learned my lesson though. Got to respect the ol’ sun in a climate like this.

July 20th:

Kitty (our cat) sneaked into the car when I left for the office. By the time I got to the hot car for my lunch break,

Kitty had died and swollen up to the size of a shopping bag and stank up the $60,000 Audi. I told the kids that she ran away. The car now smells like Wiskettes and cat shit. I learned my lesson though. No more pets in

this heat.

July 25th:

The wind sucks. It feels like a giant bloody hair dryer in here!!! And it’s hot as hell. The home air-conditioner

died. The bloody AC repairman charged 500 Dirhams just to drive over and tell me it was broken in Hindu English or some language that I couldn’t understand.

July 30th:

Air conditioner still broken. Been sleeping outside by the pool for 3 nights now because it is 7000 degrees

inside. Bloody 2,000,000 Dirhams house and we can’t even go inside. Why did I ever come here? The sun, the wind, the freakin’ocean. And locals walk around dressed in white tablecloths followed by little black female ninjas. crazy town.

August 4th:

It’s 114 "Naughty Word" degrees today. Finally got the ol’ air-conditioner fixed. It cost 2,000 Dirhams and got the temperature down to 25, but the humidity makes the house feel 30 Dubai degrees. Stupid terrorist repairman. I hate this stupid place.

August 8th:

If another local wiseass cracks, ‘Hot enough for you today?’ I’m going to whack him all the way back to his bloody desert. Dubai; by the time I get to work with all that traffic and heat, the car’s radiator is boiling over, my clothes are soaking wet, and I smell like a baked cat!!!

August 9th:

Tried to run some errands today because it is Friday. Wore shorts and sat on the black leather seats in my
Audi. The seat was so hot I thought my was on fire. I lost 2 layers of flesh and all the hair on the back of my legs and my ass. Now my car smells like burnt hair, fried ass, and a baked cat.

August 10th:

The weather report might as well be a recording. Hot, humid and sunny. Hot, humid and sunny.

Hot, humid and sunny. It’s been too hot to do anything for 2 damn months and the weatherman dude wearing the white tablecloth on TV says it might really warm up next week. Does it ever rain in this damn place?

August 14th:

WELCOME TO HELL!!! Temperature got to 120 today.

Now the air-conditioner’s gone in my Audi. The Audi serviceman said, ‘Hot enough for you today?’ My wife had to spend the 7,000 Dirham to bail my ass out of jail for assaulting that stupid Indian bastard wiseass. What kind of a sick demented bloody idiot would want to live in this shit hole?

August 15th:
I’m off back to New York.

gulfnews : Major car pile-up in Abu Dhabi: report

2011-04-02T02:59:00.000-07:00

gulfnews : Major car pile-up in Abu Dhabi: report When they do things here, they over do them! This is the road that Bert drove twice a day at least 5 days a week last year. I drive to Dubai at least once a week now and Bert still goes at least once a week too.

India vs Pakistan or Justin Bieber?

2011-03-31T04:26:00.000-07:00

The community we live in has a very active facebook group, last night someone asked this question

Quick question.....I'm on street 5 and all I can hear this evening is what sounds like groups of girls screaming? Is Justin Bieber in town? Starting to get a bit annoying now!

answer?

Nope its the labour camp and apparently Indian has been playing Pakistan in the cricket and won! Great to hear them have some fun as their lives must be very lonely and not too many laughs or fun

Ooops

2011-03-31T00:08:00.000-07:00

Sorry friends and family, Ive been AWOL. Actually I've been to Australia and back and as I write this Bert is on his way to Winnipeg Canada for his Uncle Alberts memorial service.

But the biggest reason I have not updated my blog is this العربية فارسی हिन्दी اردو

For some strange reason google keeps changing to Arabic and its very hard to log in and navigate my way around in Arabic.

We had a great time in Australia, I was there for three weeks, Bert two. Unfortunately it was too short as we ran out of time to visit everyone we hoped to catch up with. We stayed with my sister Jan and her husband Allan and really enjoyed their hospitality. It has been a long time since Ive had time to just sit and chat with my sister, so that was a huge bonus.

While we were home Paul entered the Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade. He has been in their application process for just on two years and his was considered a very fast tracked application. He loves it and we are incredibly proud of him.

Other than that, there really is not much news. It felt strange to come "home" to Abu Dhabi and feel like we were heading home rather than Melbourne.

Unfortunately we were not able to get to Perth to see Jenni and Phil and the grandgirls but here is a new photo of them. Ella, Heidi, Philipp and Amelie.

Grocery shopping

2011-02-07T08:36:00.000-08:00

Today the thing we all fear at the checkout happened. My card didn't work. I have a spare, that didn't work either. The network was done.

The checkout guy said "you don't have cash M'am?" No I don't have cash, why don't you have a machine that works? "So you don't have cash?"

The security guard had packed my groceries for me and he said do you live here M'am? I was at Choithrams in Green Community Dubai where I used to live. I said no, we used to live here but now we live in Abu Dhabi. Oh he said looking sad, I was going to suggest you take the groceries home and come back later to pay. Where else on earth would a supermarket suggest that.

I went to the bank next door and withdrew cash with the assistance of the bank guy who stands in the foyer, they have no idea of privacy with banking here, he was wanting to push the buttons on the ATM for me.

So I got my money, paid for my groceries and lived to tell the tale.

Bert had a similar experience one day he got fuel. The guy pumps the fuel into your car and Bert thought he could pay in the shop with a card, as he had no cash. He couldn't. They said oh its ok, just bring the cash in tomorrow on your way past.

It's things like this that make the frustrating days more tolerable.

Sand storms

2011-02-02T06:33:00.000-08:00

We have been hit by two very bad sand storms in the past few days. They are impossible to photograph, as it just looks like fog. This however is the aftermath of one. This coffee table sits on our patio and was cleaned about 7 hours before this photo was taken.

Pretzels

2011-01-31T09:02:00.000-08:00

In Australia we used to drive a ridiculously long way to buy pretzels. We used to buy them in bulk and freeze them. We can now buy really good quality ones at our local supermarket.

A hitchhiker.

2011-01-31T08:56:00.000-08:00

See this guy, he must have been four foot tall on a tall day and somehow without us understanding a word he was saying we agreed to drive him to the mosque. One minute Bert was using the handful of Arabic words he knows, next thing we know he's in the backseat of the car giving us directions. So we drove him quite a few kms to the mosque. Goodness knows hows he was going to get there without us.

Australian floods

2011-01-11T05:39:00.000-08:00

As I type this North Eastern Queensland is underwater. I read that an area 7 times the size of Texas is flooded. Many people are lost many, many more are under threat. When I was last home it had barely rained for ten years. It all seems so unbelievable. Australia is most certainly a land of droughts and flooding rains.

My cousin had this photo on her facebook from the floods. Its a green frog hitching a ride on the back of a snake. Amazing!

foggy mornings

2011-01-09T22:21:00.000-08:00

The last few days we have woken to thick fog. It's a relief that Bert does not have to travel from Dubai in this weather as the high speed and crazy driving does not ease up when there is low visibility.

This photo is taken from the Abu Dhabi police website where they are pleading with motorists to take care.

Laura and Paul

2011-01-07T09:34:00.000-08:00

My son Paul, and daughter Laura were here in Abu Dhabi for Christmas. They visited the Grand Mosque of Abu Dhabi.

Awards ceremony, pick the odd guy out.

2011-01-06T12:49:00.000-08:00

Bert receiving a recognition award on behalf of his company for being a valuable partner of the Abu Dhabi government

Swimming pool heaters and chillers

2011-01-05T20:40:00.000-08:00

Our new house has a swimming pool in the garden. Thankfully it comes with a chiller as during summer it would be like swimming in soup. We never really considered that it would also heat the water in winter. Winter weather has been glorious. Lovely sunny days and cool nights.

Paul had been suggesting he might like to jump off the balcony into the pool below. I ranted a bit about how crazy that would be because the pool isn't that deep or large and one small slip and his life could be changed forever.

Today this photo appeared on his sisters facebook account. I suspect its the result of a leap off the fence or balcony!

The solar eclipse according to Susan

2011-01-05T06:39:00.001-08:00

A Sole r eclipse in her usual position beside the pool at the

Beach Rotana Abu Dhabi

Partial solar eclipse

2011-01-04T21:27:00.001-08:00

Hassan Ahmad Al Hariri, CEO of the Dubai Astronomy Group, calibrates the telescope set up to watch the solar eclipse from in front of the Burj Khalifa. Image Credit: Megan Hirons Mahon/Gulf News

We had a partial solar eclipse yesterday. It was already quite overcast so blocking out some of the sun made it even more bleak.

Dubai's Celebration 1-1-2011

2011-01-03T18:03:00.000-08:00

We were home in bed by the time this all started. But it really is a spectacular setting for fireworks. We were at the fountains a few days before and got wet every time they shot up in the air thanks to a nice chilly breeze.

Parking woes

2011-01-02T23:42:00.001-08:00

We got this photo in an email but its worth sharing.

Translation? "I Swear to Allah that I do not have Coins, and am just here for 10 minutes, so PLLLLEEEEAAAAASSSSSEEEE Mr. RTA, I am sure you can understand and not fine me"

More Camel festival

2011-01-02T22:41:00.000-08:00

Bert was offered six camels in exchange for Laura at the camel festival, and a potential son in law named Mohammed. After we got back in the car we were laughing about it all and Laura said you didn't even haggle for me Bert, I think I am worth at least 8 camels.

Christmas day

2010-12-24T20:18:00.000-08:00

Its Christmas morning in that nice quiet time of the day before the rest of the household gets up and you have time to ponder Christmases past.

This year Laura and Paul, my son and daughter are here in Abu Dhabi to spend Christmas with us. Im thrilled they were able to come. Last year we had Christmas with American friends. In the past I have had Christmas with so many, much loved and interesting folk. Marianne Steen from Denmark and Anne Margarate Matre from Norway spent Christmas with us in the late 80's as exchange students. One year we spent Christmas in Denmark with Mariannes family. It snowed all day and they made a huge effort to give us a wonderful Danish christmas. I spent a few Christmases in Malaysia with The Plenert family, Ceinwen and Michael Schneider and Tina and Zack Bartol.
Of course my extended family have always featured large in Christmas plans. My mum and stepfather, I wish very much that they could be here with us to spend the day together. My sister Jan and brother in law Alan and their family, I miss you all. Trevor and Barbara Williamson, whom for many years we had a fabulous Christmas eve when all our kids were little. We would go to Mt Macedon Carols by Candlelight together. Our friends in Berwick, Bendigo and Macedon. Where ever you are and who ever you are with, I hope you are having a wonderful day.

Today we will spend the day quietly at home together, and later Christmas dinner is at the Rotana on Yas Island with a Muslim family and their three year old triplets! I am so incredibly blessed to have so many good friends who come from all corners of the world. I love you all so much.

Camel festival

2010-12-22T09:06:00.000-08:00

We drove to Madinat Zayed in the desert to an annual camel beauty pagent and market. It was the craziest thing I've seen here in the UAE.

There were reportedly, 43,000 camels, and Im guessing 25,000 white Nissan Patrols, 20 thousand men, three other expat women and Laura and I.

There was a traditional heritage village set up staffed by Emirati women. As I said in an early post it is very unusual to have to the chance to interact with Emirati women so it was all very interesting. They were wonderfully hospitable with almost every single stall inviting us in for coffee. Bert was at one stage sitting in the sand drinking coffee with four of his new best buddies. It was a great day and we will go again next year, only next time we will be armed with the video camera as well

More National Day

2010-12-03T09:59:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to Yas Island and they had a Heritage village set up as a display for National day. It really was lovely. Tents set up with traditional carpets and cushions and displays of local crafts and life. Emiratis were in each tent to explain different aspects of their lives. Every contact we ever have with Emiratis has been positive. They have been polite, gracious and very welcoming. This lady spoke no english so I asked the younger woman with her if we could take a photo. It is very rare to have the opportunity to photograph an Emirati woman with her traditional face coverings.

National day UAE style

2010-12-02T01:54:00.000-08:00

My friend Susan getting into the spirit of things. She does it so well!

Today December 2nd is the 39th anniversay of the United Arab Emirates. I really admire how patriotic and proud of their nation the Emiratis are. I do think they have a lot to be proud of.

They celebrate by elaborately decorating the cities, and particularly their cars in national colours.

Atlantis on the Palm Jumeira putting on its best colourful display

And just because its so funny! I saw this in the shops last year but was still in my dazed and confused state so courtesy of Susan here is the manequin in the National flag...err abaya.

Eid, or let the slaughtering begin.

2010-11-14T07:18:00.000-08:00

Last year I was totally unprepared for what went on over Eid. We were staying in a hotel in the middle of the city and there were goats and sheep tied up to lamp posts everywhere when we went out early in the morning. By mid morning when we returned to the hotel it was a blood bath. We drove to Dubai via then new Yas Island freeway which unfortunately takes you past the slaughter house. There were people pushing goats and sheep everywhere! We stopped at a set of traffic lights and Bert said oh look at that, as I looked a man picked the goats head up and slit its throat, right there beside me trapped in the car behind a red light. It was hideous.

This year I am determined to avoid the bloodshed. I have tried not to look at the sheep and goats being transported along the freeway in trucks. I'm pretending they are being moved from the sand to a nice green pasture somewhere.

I was relieved to see this sign at a round about near where we live. There were lots of other signs in Arabic but I found this one in English. I hope the sheep are as relieved as I am.

The local supermarket

2010-11-14T07:15:00.001-08:00

A Mork moment

2010-11-12T05:00:00.000-08:00

Today I had a Mork moment, well I do almost daily, but this afternoons trip to the supermarket was funnier than usual. Since we moved last month I go to a weird little Arabic supermarket where they all look at me like I'm Mork from Mork and Mindy. I needed celery and bay leaves, no luck, I do think my chicken and dumplings is going to taste pretty ordinary with out it but basically if I can't see it, I can''t buy it as no one speaks English. They know I tip well, mostly because Im just grateful to have got out of there alive so I always have a guy leap forward to take my trolley out to the car and unload the groceries for me.

So as he is unpacking my groceries into the car he says Mám are you from Germany? No Australia, why? He said oh I saw your name on your credit card and its German but ah you are from Australia. Do you know Ricky Ponting? Cricket is the common language between Indian, Pakistani's and Sri Lankans, and a lot of Australians, unfortunately I am not one of them. I always feel like I let them down when I know nothing at all about cricket

Finally, found the camera and SD card at the same time!

2010-11-12T04:53:00.000-08:00

I seriously hate moving. I hate the chaos of not being able to find phone chargers, cameras matches. Nothing life threatening if you do not have it, but such a nuisance when you cannot.

Here is a photo of the new house in Al Reef on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi. We have moved from a two bedroom apartment to a five bedroom house, or villa as they are called here and we still have not got things in order. The house is actually three stories high. Top level has a bedroom, study and bathroom, a balcony that overlooks the backyard and a large roof terrace that overlooks the street. None of the rooms have built in wardrobes, which is just insane, so a trip to Ikea and we have fitted out the two smallest bedrooms with wall to wall wardrobes. We have one spare bedroom for guests and we have the bedroom on the second floor. If I had to climb the stairs to get to the third floor to go to bed I would have to start before I was actually tired each night, otherwise I am not sure I would make it.

Al Reef

2010-10-30T07:01:00.000-07:00

We have been in our house, or villa as its called here a week now. So far, its lovely. Providing you just ignore the mouse nest in the back garden, or more accurately sand pit.

It has been a very hard week for Bert with work. He has had staff problems since the day we arrived. I was left to deal with the move alone.

Houses here are rented as empty shells. No cooker, no curtains, no light fittings so I feel like I have spent the week with half the population of the subcontinent traipsing through the house.

We finally got the pool filled and I spent the day waiting for the pool guy to come and do whatever pool guys do. We had to wait 24 hours after he did his bit before we could swim. Well if ever there was an anticlimax this was one. Its hot here, a pool is a fabulous luxury. But I don't want to have to break the ice on the surface before I get wet. I don't know what he had set the temperature for but it was cold. So another 24 hours, several phone calls and visits from more workers we finally had a pool that we can use.

Oh poor neglected blog, friends and family

2010-10-16T02:03:00.000-07:00

I finally found the link to my blog, eventually found the enthusiasm to log in and beg for everyones forgiveness. Yes we are alive and well, yes we are still here but life just got very hectic.

I am so far behind I will just fill you in on some news and I shall try and catch up with more photos once we move again

Yes you read that right, we are moving again. We have decided to move back to Abu Dhabi, to a devolopment called Al Reef. It is behind the airport, across the freeway from Al Reef Palace, I'm sure you will be able to tell our house from the Palace easily.

It will be 15 minutes drive from home to Berts work, which is great. But there is nothing much out there, which is bad. Where we live now I have everything on our doorstep, I am a little nervous about the move into the desert.

We have had visitors, our lovely friend Nessie Millar visited us for a weekend on her way to Scotland, and a few months back Marian Watson stayed with us on her way to and home from her trip to Europe. Paul and Jacqui also spent ten days here with us on their way home from an around the world backpacking trip

We have just returned from a short trip to Germany to see the Passion Play at Oberammagau. It was just amazing. I've always loved history but Oberammagau and the Passion play takes history to a whole new level. We both loved it and had an amazing time. (more on this later

I will be back soon, I need to keep packing

Sri Lanka

2010-09-05T00:25:00.000-07:00

Bert recently travelled to Sri Lanka to recruit workers and was lucky to fulfil a life long ambition to ride elephants

2010-09-04T23:41:00.001-07:00

photo from gulf newspaper

A UPS 747-400 crashed not far from where we live in Dubai on Friday evening. First reports said it had crashed onto Emirates road and that cars were on fire. Thankfully those reports were incorrect and the pilots had steered it away from housing and crashed into the desert on a military base. The consequenses of a 747 crashing onto houses in a city are too horrific to think about.

Those of us from Melbourne can probably remember the light plane crashing into a suburban home in Essendon and killing a woman and six children. A 747 is a whole lot bigger

Sadly two men lost their lives but almost certainly saved the lives of many others by their actions

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/emergencies/ups-identifies-american-crew-killed-in-dubai-crash-1.677784

dogs

2010-08-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

today our dear little Millie went for her final trip to the vet. Im just so sad that I was not home to be with my kids who have cared for her since we moved here. Sometimes distance is a very painful thing.

Bus stops

2010-08-07T08:45:00.001-07:00

Bus stops in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai are airconditioned to encourage people to use public transport in the brutal summer heat.

Millie

2010-08-02T06:07:00.000-07:00

More Bangladesh

2010-08-02T05:38:00.000-07:00

I love this photo. Firstly, Bert blends in with the crowd so nicely doesn't he. Look at the little boy with the money in front of his face. I would love to know where he got it, did he find it in the rubbish?

Bangladesh

2010-07-26T08:41:00.000-07:00

Bert recently travelled to Dhaka Bangladesh to recruit new workers for his company. Most of his photos were taken from inside a car as he worked the whole time he was there, but they still are so interesting

More window cleaning

2010-07-26T07:48:00.000-07:00

Bert snapped this window cleaner on a recent trip to Dhaka Bangladesh. This guy despite his ladder made of bamboo and rope, has a safety harness of sorts on.

safety first

2010-07-24T10:33:00.000-07:00

This is a reasonably common sight here. This guy is on the top floor apartment across the courtyard.
I walked into our dining room one day to find our maid balanced on the ledge outside the window. I resisted the urge to grab the camera, I was more concerned about coaxing her back inside safely

Qasar Al Sarab resort

2010-07-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

Bert and I recently spent four lovely days at Qasar al Sarab resort in the Empty Quarter in the Liwa Desert. The resort itself is built like an Arabian villiage. It was just all very spectacular and restful.

Ibn Battuta Mall Persia court

2010-07-16T11:11:00.001-07:00

Ibn Battuta is the closes mall to us and its spectacular. Ibn Battuta was one of the greatest travelers the world has ever seen and hardly ever heard of. Making Marco Polo seem like a casual backpacker, Ibn Battuta was on the road for almost 30 years, covering some 75,000 miles through the length and breadth of the Muslim world. The mall is divided up into courts to represent the countries he explored. These photos are from the Persia court.

Mall of the Emirates

2010-07-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

Driving through Dubai

2010-07-10T06:19:00.000-07:00

Something a little saner!

Driving

2010-07-10T05:46:00.000-07:00

Since he first arrived in Abu Dhabi in February 2009 Bert has been a confident driver on the crazy roads here in the UAE. Me, not so much! I didn't even apply for a licence because the roads just look horrendous, and of course they drive on the wrong side of the road compared to Australia. Other women have told me it all looks worse from the passenger seat. Eventually I went and got my licence transfered, which really was a simple exercise once we found the right building and had the right paperwork. Confusingly, I did not need the letter of no objection from Bert that other women need to do almost anything nor did they give me an eye test that everyone else said they had.

Thankfully we did not film this ourselves this youtube clip made headlines all over the world. This is on the main road that runs through Dubai and on to Abu Dhabi.

Paul and Jacqui

2010-07-10T05:36:00.000-07:00

While Marian was in Europe Paul and Jacqui arrived in Dubai to visit us. We had not seen them since November last year. They had been backpacking around Asia and had two weeks in New York before coming here, so they were weary travellers. They had planned to just relax at home but they were surprised at how lovely Dubai is. They had a great time and got around easily on the citys metro driverless train system. Mostly it was just so nice to spend time with them at home.

2010-07-10T04:57:00.000-07:00

I have been doing some welfare work amongst Berts workers. He had promoted two men to a level that they were able to bring their wives and babies over to the UAE to live with them. Most low paid workers are here alone. We discovered that despite these mens families being due to arrive in a few days, they had nothing! I was able to in a very short time collect together enough furniture and goods for them to live comfortably. We were given, new bedlinen, new pillows, toiletries to get them started. Toys and clothing for the children, crockery, cutlery, microwaves, and towels. People really are very generous when they see genuine need. From this small start to look after these two men, I have continued to collect goods from people in Dubai, and a friend has been collecting on my behalf in Abu Dhabi.

As well as carloads of clothing, we have collected and given to low paid workers approx 50 new pillows, perhaps double that number of towels, microwaves, electric kettles, toasters, dishes, cutlery and more truck loads of furniture than I can keep track of. A couple contacted me from Kyzakstan and said they had a good quality furniture in storage in Abu Dhabi they wanted to donate to us, for us to sell and use the funds to purchase anything for these workers. We have put a water cooler in the grouds of the apartment complex we live in as it was bought to our attention that the gardeners and cleaners have no access to cold water during the summer heat. Money raised will give us the ability to buy water to keep this supply going. We have donated in the vicinity of 150 kgs of rice.

Bert's staff at first were incredulous at the quantity and quality of these goods we were being given, now they are just overwhelmed with gratitude.

I really do not feel like I am giving a great deal, other than facilitating peoples generousity into the right places.

Marian's visit

2010-07-10T01:02:00.000-07:00

A dear friend from Melbourne Marian Watson came to stay with us on her way to Europe. It was so nice to have a visitor to show around. Marian as always was lovely company and we were sad to see her off to Munich, well actually it was probably more jealous! She was going to see the Passion Play in Oberamaggau Bavaria, it had been a life long ambition for her to go.

I know I am way behind on my blog posts, I will update a few more times in the next few days

Gold to go

2010-06-04T23:34:00.001-07:00

The Emirates Palace has installed an ATM that dispenses gold bars at the current market rate. So Bert had to give it a try of course. So we got a nicely presented gold bar bought at the peak of gold prices, but it was a good photo opportunity.

More job satisfaction

2010-06-02T08:03:00.001-07:00

We photographed this guy at 11pm on a Saturday evening in a mall in Abu Dhabi.

Inside Atlantis

2010-06-02T07:59:00.000-07:00

The foyers of all hotels here in the UAE are spectacular, Atlantis is loud though, with water everywhere! This fountain is all made of hand blown glass.

Atlantis Palm Jumeira

2010-06-02T07:37:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend with Jenni Matt and the two girls at Atlantis on the Palm Jumeira. I really didn't think Atlantis was all that fantastic but as far as a destination goes it couldn't be any better. It is on the outer crescant of the palm. If you look at the photo, the main road goes up the trunk of the palm, then disappears under the sea into a tunnel and comes out on the outer crescent at Atlantis.

Ella

2010-06-02T07:15:00.001-07:00

Ella is just two and as cute and sweet as could be. It was so lovely to have them here to have time to play and chat with them

Grandbabies

2010-06-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

Bert's daughter Jennifer, and her husband Matt and two lovely girls Ella, aged 2 and Heidi 7 months came to visit. Bert saw Heidi when she was a newborn but I have never met her, so it was lovely to spend some time with her and get to know her.

Bert in a balloon

2010-05-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

Bert recently went up in a helium balloon that we have seen driving along Sheik Zayad road, the main freeway through Dubai. It was a Friday, so much quieter than usual, and for a change it was a reasonably clear day. The balloon usually goes up to 150 metres but Bert was the only passenger on this day so the guy took up even higher to 285 metres. He got some great photos of Dubai south and the Jebel Ali area

Time flys by.

2010-05-08T01:41:00.001-07:00

How can it possibly be May already? Almost every day I think I really should log in to our blog and put something up, but well, you know how often I succeed at that! We have had a lot going on in the last few months. I went back to Australia to empty out our house to rent it out. Then when I came home to Dubai we had offered to dogsit for friends who were going back to USA for three weeks.

So I was home for two nights before we were off again to someone elses house. We stayed in Al Raha gardens on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi. The dogs were fabulous, and it was nice to spend time with them. I miss having a dog badly. And it was nice to be able to help Jane and Bill as in the past several people have helped us by caring for our high maintenance dogs so we could go overseas. The bad news was that Jane isn't coming back. Their job has finished here and they are moving back to USA. This is always the hard part of being an expat, that friends move on to new adventures but there are always new people arriving too. Jane was one of the first people I met here, and she was reassuring to me. She is insulin dependent diabetic and I remember thinking ok if she can manage with insulin I will be ok too. Her and another friend Michelle who is also leaving have both been very kind to me and have helped me settle in to life here.

My lovely and funny friend Gemma left for USA while I was home in Australia too. Each time someone leaves life here just changes a little bit but the world is a much smaller place these days and we are able to keep in contact easily. But Gemma and Jane, I miss you both.

This guy sure gets around

2010-04-18T10:35:00.000-07:00

Bert met with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed last year when he was doing some defence force tendering. There were no photographers present though like there was last week when he met with President Obama.

holding back the sand

2010-04-16T03:25:00.000-07:00

Does this guy not have the most futile job ever?

And just because

2010-04-09T09:45:00.001-07:00

I like my friends to be happy, here is a photo

Luck has very little to do with it.

2010-04-09T06:55:00.001-07:00

I try very hard to always look at the positives in my life and not dwell on the negatives. If you read my blog hoping to hear how miserable I am, this is the post for you, bookmark it, because you won't see another one for a long time. If you come here just for the pretty photos, I'm sorry, today is not your day.

I am told so frequently how lucky we are to live here and earn good wages. Luck had nothing at all to do with it. Coming here took a lot of risk-taking, and a huge amount of hard work and a lot of sacrifice. We gave up day-to-day contact with our loved ones, we left most of our possessions at home to come here to a very foreign way of life. I gave up a lot of freedom to live here and Bert made a huge leap of faith in his career to move here.

Yes, we came because we wanted to. Because we knew it would be a fabulous experience but it took a lot of courage to make the final move.

Yes, we live a very priviledged life here, we live in lovely accomodation, we have a great car and petrol is cheaper than water. We spend the occasional weekend in fabulous expensive hotels and lap up the luxury. We pay no tax, I have a maid. I could go on about all the huge pluses in living here, but to be fair, I would need to also list the negatives.

First and foremost would be Bert's work. Bert works long long hours. He is often at work from 7am to 10pm at night, very frequently he doesn't have time for lunch. He rarely has a two day weekend and even if he did, at least half of one of those days is spent working on the computer from home. It upsets and annoys me that people think because he is the General Manager of a company he has it easy. It is quite the opposite actually, the responsibility ends with him, he has to deal with awful situations constantly. Mostly, because he is the kind-hearted generous man he is, but also because it is his job and he takes the responsibility seriously.

So, from our privledged position, we are faced with workers who are paid a small fraction of Bert's wages and live and work in extremely difficult situations. It's hard, and I am not being facetious or sarcastic in saying that, it is hard because we believe that all people deserve to be treated humanely. We want people who we come in contact with to feel valued and safe just as we do.

I am horrified by the large number of women (and I guess men too, but I see it with women because I'm not out in the workforce) who have too much time, money and power and walk all over people in their quest for domination via the nail spa and handbag shop. I read a woman describe this situation once as people who arrive a Smith and quickly become a Smythe.

Bert recently spent an evening at a workers camp where he ate with them and sat on the floor with them and discussed religion with them. Bert has repeatedly described it as a very humbling experience. Those workers treated him beautifully because they were gracious and felt honoured to have him visit with them to learn more about their lives. We need to learn to be more like these men, who have nothing but so willingly share and think they are the most blessed people on earth.

He has also in recent weeks faced an impossibly difficult situations that have had dramatic ramifications for several people. He has agonised over these people, worked tirelessly and sought advice from many people we trust and respect their views. He has had sleepless nights and feels that he has not done enough to help them. Those of us who know and love Bert know that he has done a whole lot more than most people would, he showed them he genuinely cared.

The past two weeks I have often thought what on earth are we doing here, then I realise if we were not here, these workers' fate would be much harsher than it is now under Berts management.

Emirates Palace

2010-04-06T07:34:00.000-07:00

I posted about the Emirates Palace a year ago when Bert originally came to Abu Dhabi to do a tender. It is one of two seven star hotels here, the other being the Burj al Arab in Dubai. As a surprise Bert booked tickets to see Il Divo at an outdoor part of the Palace and a room for the night to stay there. There was then an issue when the UAE govt, announced three days of mourning for Sheikh Ahmed. We decided to stick with our bookings the way they were and then stay at another hotel in Abu Dhabi the following night for the concert. More on that later.

The hotel was just fabulous. As we drove up to the door valets appeared from everywhere and opened doors and got the luggage out of the car. One asked me our names and he wrote them down. From that point on, every staff member we walked past called us by name. Instead of being ushered to a counter in reception we were seated and offered cold drinks and arabic coffee. I was given a bunch of pink roses. I guess this is where they get their extra stars from, this kind of service.

The Emirates in mourning again

2010-04-05T21:42:00.001-07:00

Sheikh Ahmed bin Zayad body was found a few days after he crashed into a lake in Morocco whilst flying a glider. The high respect and affection for the ruling family here in UAE is very impressive. People genuinely love the Sheikhs. It's a bit different to politians at home! 3 days of mourning were announced in response to his death, this means all live music is cancelled, and the radio plays classical music 24 hours a day. Unfortunately this means a bit of chaos and rescheduling is required for our weekend. We have tickets to see Il Divo at the Emirates Palace and had booked to stay overnight. The concert is now on Saturday. Sheikh Ahmed was only 42 and leaves behind a two year old child.

Ooops its been a while

2010-04-05T08:04:00.001-07:00

But life got in the way. I have been home to Australia and back. Hear that Mum? I called it home!

My mum asked me once when I was coming home, about two weeks after we had finally moved into our own apartment after living like gypsies for nearly a year, and she thought it was funny that I said what are you talking about I am home.

It was great to see everyone, to chat with friends that don't use computers (yes there are still a few of those people around) to see my daughter, my mum my sister and my dog but it also feels good to be back here in Dubai.

The question on everyones lips is how long are you staying. Bert and I really have never discussed how long we are staying. The plan is to stay as long as we are happy here. If one day we decide we are not happy here anymore, for any reason, we will make plans to return to Australia.

The good part of flying home? I got upgraded to first class from business class. It was lovely.

Summer has arrived.

2010-03-28T08:30:00.000-07:00

Since we went returned to the UAE at the end of October the weather has been beautiful. Clear sunny days that were warm but not too hot to be outside enjoying all Dubai has to offer. The evenings were still warm enough to sit outside and be comfortable. Twice we put on a sweater.
The past week or so you can feel its starting to warm up, but yesterday was very hot. Our temperature gauge has an outside probe that is in deep shade on our balcony, it registered yesterdays highest temp at 46.1 It was also windy just to add to the discomfort. Sadly, we know its going to get worse.