We arrived in Al Ain last night. There were six of us in the van, but only four were teachers being moved from Abu Dhabi here. The other two ladies were friends of one of the teachers, and just tagged along. Canada, England, New Zealand and the United States were represented. We got here about 7:00pm, got a bite to eat, and then one of the ladies came over and we got online trying to figure out how to make Skype and gmail video chat work for me. I think we got it. I'm planning a test call tomorrow.
We're living in huge two bedroom hotel/apartments. The size rivals my house in Sacramento or maybe it just seems so big because I've been living in one room for so long. Whatever the case, it's big and I'm loving it. Four of us are neighbors in a four unit building. There is a living room/dining room with a sofa, TV/DVD Player/cable box, two large chairs and a formal dining room set. There is a large full kitchen and full laundry room. The bathroom is so wide it could easily qualify for ADA compliance. We can't get too comfortable though because this too, is temporary housing until we get our permanent places.
After breakfast we decided to go to the mall and do some furniture shopping. Dionne, my friend from England with the two girls, has already found a phenomenal home. As it turns out, teachers are placed in housing, but administrators get to choose to live wherever we like, as long as it is covered by the allowance. So first I need to house hunt, then shop for the furniture.
Note to self: In the future, shop alone. We were in the mall FOREVER!
After getting home from that excursion, I needed a nap, but couldn't sleep. My next order of business was renting a car. The businesses are open from 8:00-12:00, then they're closed until 5:00, and then reopen until 7:30. Unlike Abu Dhabi, that had traditional times, this schedule will take some getting use to with that long break in the middle of the day.
At the appointed time, I headed to the car rental place, with the shaky assurance I could rent a car with my documentation. As it turns out, I couldn't, but spent the next three hours taking care of the paperwork - getting my US license legally translated, applying for an ID Card, and running from shop to shop trying to find someone to copy my drivers license in color. What was interesting is the man who legally translated my license, went to college in Washington State and did his graduate and post-graduate work in Michigan. He has a son that lives in Folsom, CA, a suburb of Sacramento, and he visits him annually. Very small world, isn't it?
This man was typing on an archaic typewriter, a relic really. And it moved from right to left, just as they hand write from right to left in writing Arabic.
I was then sent to a "typist", sort of like our notary public, who handled the paperwork from my UAE ID. As long as it took her, I expected to be leaving that office with an epistle, instead it was two sheets of paper where she filled in the blank on a few lines. I wonder, if the natives moved out of this country, how difficult would it be for them to pick up the pace if they lived in the faster moving countries of the world?
As I was waiting, it was fascinating seeing so many Emirati boys, teenagers and young adults, just hanging out on the curb, chewing the fat. There was also a parade of cars passing by that reminded me of low riders. They were driving by slowly to see and be seen. Kids will be kids wherever they are.
Side note - Huge Toyota model vehicles are everywhere here. Land Cruisers,
are hot. For every five cars I see, at least two of them are these large Toyotas. Gas is really cheap, so the cars tend to be big and bigger.
The city of Al Ain is very pretty. In an earlier post, I described Abu Dhabi as the big brother, and Dubai as the flashy little sister, well Al Ain is like the prissy sister with beautiful greenery, flowers, and colorful, picturesque roundabouts that dot the landscape throughout the area. There's definitely a homey feel here. I was reading that there aren't any buildings over four stories high, in complete contrast to Adu Dhabi and Dubai, who have scores and scores of high rises and pride themselves on them. I wanted to take pictures, but this is not a touristy city at all, so I wasn't sure if folks would appreciate my random shots. I'll ask before I snap and offend.
Our hotel is on the outer limits on the northwest end of town. My school is on outer limits on the southeast end. I'll literally be going from one end of the city to the other everyday. All the more reason to get my own transportation.
I was supposed to report to school tomorrow, but I'll be meeting with my cluster manager (this position is like a director, or maybe an associate superintendent) to get the lowdown on the school, and I'll go in on Monday.
More later.
We're living in huge two bedroom hotel/apartments. The size rivals my house in Sacramento or maybe it just seems so big because I've been living in one room for so long. Whatever the case, it's big and I'm loving it. Four of us are neighbors in a four unit building. There is a living room/dining room with a sofa, TV/DVD Player/cable box, two large chairs and a formal dining room set. There is a large full kitchen and full laundry room. The bathroom is so wide it could easily qualify for ADA compliance. We can't get too comfortable though because this too, is temporary housing until we get our permanent places.
After breakfast we decided to go to the mall and do some furniture shopping. Dionne, my friend from England with the two girls, has already found a phenomenal home. As it turns out, teachers are placed in housing, but administrators get to choose to live wherever we like, as long as it is covered by the allowance. So first I need to house hunt, then shop for the furniture.
Note to self: In the future, shop alone. We were in the mall FOREVER!
After getting home from that excursion, I needed a nap, but couldn't sleep. My next order of business was renting a car. The businesses are open from 8:00-12:00, then they're closed until 5:00, and then reopen until 7:30. Unlike Abu Dhabi, that had traditional times, this schedule will take some getting use to with that long break in the middle of the day.
At the appointed time, I headed to the car rental place, with the shaky assurance I could rent a car with my documentation. As it turns out, I couldn't, but spent the next three hours taking care of the paperwork - getting my US license legally translated, applying for an ID Card, and running from shop to shop trying to find someone to copy my drivers license in color. What was interesting is the man who legally translated my license, went to college in Washington State and did his graduate and post-graduate work in Michigan. He has a son that lives in Folsom, CA, a suburb of Sacramento, and he visits him annually. Very small world, isn't it?
This man was typing on an archaic typewriter, a relic really. And it moved from right to left, just as they hand write from right to left in writing Arabic.
I was then sent to a "typist", sort of like our notary public, who handled the paperwork from my UAE ID. As long as it took her, I expected to be leaving that office with an epistle, instead it was two sheets of paper where she filled in the blank on a few lines. I wonder, if the natives moved out of this country, how difficult would it be for them to pick up the pace if they lived in the faster moving countries of the world?
As I was waiting, it was fascinating seeing so many Emirati boys, teenagers and young adults, just hanging out on the curb, chewing the fat. There was also a parade of cars passing by that reminded me of low riders. They were driving by slowly to see and be seen. Kids will be kids wherever they are.
Side note - Huge Toyota model vehicles are everywhere here. Land Cruisers,
are hot. For every five cars I see, at least two of them are these large Toyotas. Gas is really cheap, so the cars tend to be big and bigger.
The city of Al Ain is very pretty. In an earlier post, I described Abu Dhabi as the big brother, and Dubai as the flashy little sister, well Al Ain is like the prissy sister with beautiful greenery, flowers, and colorful, picturesque roundabouts that dot the landscape throughout the area. There's definitely a homey feel here. I was reading that there aren't any buildings over four stories high, in complete contrast to Adu Dhabi and Dubai, who have scores and scores of high rises and pride themselves on them. I wanted to take pictures, but this is not a touristy city at all, so I wasn't sure if folks would appreciate my random shots. I'll ask before I snap and offend.
Our hotel is on the outer limits on the northwest end of town. My school is on outer limits on the southeast end. I'll literally be going from one end of the city to the other everyday. All the more reason to get my own transportation.
I was supposed to report to school tomorrow, but I'll be meeting with my cluster manager (this position is like a director, or maybe an associate superintendent) to get the lowdown on the school, and I'll go in on Monday.
More later.
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