I hope that everyone is having a fabulous Halloween filled with lots of great costumes. Surprisingly (not really), Halloween is not any sort of holiday here. Instead, I started my weekend (yes, the weekend is Friday-Saturday, not Saturday-Sunday) with a free continental breakfast. It's definitely something that I could get used to in the mornings :).
As for now, despite what anyone (myself included) would have suspected, I am completely unpacked. It's shocking I know. And in a couple hours, a couple work people and I will do some touring of the city, perhaps to a mall. Since it is Friday (day 1 of the weekend), stores open late today. For example: the Abu Dhabi Mall doesn't open until 3:30pm, but stays open until 11pm.
Happy Halloween everyone :)
Friday, October 31, 2008
Good Morning
As I was "Cleaning up my blog today" I realized that I never posted this piece which I wrote on Halloween right after I arrived in Abu Dhabi:
Today, I've managed to wake up at a normal time (8:15 local), so hopefully I'll fully adapt to the new time difference. It is a little bit of an adjustment to be up right now however and see so many people online, but know that they are all sleeping.
Interesting things that I have discovered:
- There is an arrow in my desk drawer that points to Mecca
- There is a Toys R Us in the "Free Zone Stores" my map of the City
-------
As for today, I did go to the mall and really enjoyed the Banana Republic (even though they really dont have anything!) and the fact that there is a BOOTS! pharmacy/drug store. I am super excited.
Additionally, I realize that I have discovered other things that I am anxious to share with you all
- If you turn on the cold water during the middle of the day, it will be hot. If you turn on the hot water, it will be boiling.
- Driving and Parking will forever be a weird phenomenon here.
- I am addicted to my blackberry, which I realize is a way to work all the time.
- I miss good red wine with a meal.
- Driving in a car with the AC and recirc on is not nearly as nice as with the windows down.
Today, I've managed to wake up at a normal time (8:15 local), so hopefully I'll fully adapt to the new time difference. It is a little bit of an adjustment to be up right now however and see so many people online, but know that they are all sleeping.
Interesting things that I have discovered:
- There is an arrow in my desk drawer that points to Mecca
- There is a Toys R Us in the "Free Zone Stores" my map of the City
-------
As for today, I did go to the mall and really enjoyed the Banana Republic (even though they really dont have anything!) and the fact that there is a BOOTS! pharmacy/drug store. I am super excited.
Additionally, I realize that I have discovered other things that I am anxious to share with you all
- If you turn on the cold water during the middle of the day, it will be hot. If you turn on the hot water, it will be boiling.
- Driving and Parking will forever be a weird phenomenon here.
- I am addicted to my blackberry, which I realize is a way to work all the time.
- I miss good red wine with a meal.
- Driving in a car with the AC and recirc on is not nearly as nice as with the windows down.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
I've landed
After over 17 hours of travel through 3 different continents, I have finally arrived in Abu Dhabi.
First Impressions: The airport smells like real tobacco (not cigarettes entirely, but tobacco itself) and human bodies. Also, as soon as you walk away from the gate, you walk into a huge circle shaped room and it's a slight challenge on how to orient yourself on where to go because there doesn't seem to be anyone really in charge. (Not to mention that everything is written in English and Arabic.)
Needless to say, Justin (another guy from my office who I traveled with) and I paused for a minute or two to get our bearings, and then we hit up what many of our colleagues would claim to be the most important place: Duty Free Alcohol. Since alcohol is illegal for many of the residents of the UAE (Muslim residents), there is an incredible tax on alcohol.
Once we made it through passport control and "customs" (which was in actuality just walking through a door...however Justin did manage to get stopped), we located our cars and made it back to the hotel fairly uneventfully.
Since I arrived after dark, it was hard to see some of the architecture. However, much of the construction is being completed round the clock so there was plenty of artificial light. The light just hangs in the air since there is so much humidity and dust from the construction. I'm excited for tomorrow to be able to see more of the buildings and architecture in the daylight. There are so many domes and arches in the architecture here; it's quite striking.
As for right now, I'm relaxing in my hotel room on the 16th floor in the center-ish (because to be quite honest, I'm not entirely sure where I am) of the city. The room is very nice and really relaxing, so hopefully I'll adjust well to the time change (which is 9 hours for Central Time at the moment, but will move to 10 hours on Sunday thanks to Daylight Savings Time)
I am going to try and answer everyone's questions about life here, but if you have one that I haven't answered, let me know and I'll make sure I get to it.
Already missing you lots, but loving this new adventure :)
- A
First Impressions: The airport smells like real tobacco (not cigarettes entirely, but tobacco itself) and human bodies. Also, as soon as you walk away from the gate, you walk into a huge circle shaped room and it's a slight challenge on how to orient yourself on where to go because there doesn't seem to be anyone really in charge. (Not to mention that everything is written in English and Arabic.)
Needless to say, Justin (another guy from my office who I traveled with) and I paused for a minute or two to get our bearings, and then we hit up what many of our colleagues would claim to be the most important place: Duty Free Alcohol. Since alcohol is illegal for many of the residents of the UAE (Muslim residents), there is an incredible tax on alcohol.
Once we made it through passport control and "customs" (which was in actuality just walking through a door...however Justin did manage to get stopped), we located our cars and made it back to the hotel fairly uneventfully.
Since I arrived after dark, it was hard to see some of the architecture. However, much of the construction is being completed round the clock so there was plenty of artificial light. The light just hangs in the air since there is so much humidity and dust from the construction. I'm excited for tomorrow to be able to see more of the buildings and architecture in the daylight. There are so many domes and arches in the architecture here; it's quite striking.
As for right now, I'm relaxing in my hotel room on the 16th floor in the center-ish (because to be quite honest, I'm not entirely sure where I am) of the city. The room is very nice and really relaxing, so hopefully I'll adjust well to the time change (which is 9 hours for Central Time at the moment, but will move to 10 hours on Sunday thanks to Daylight Savings Time)
I am going to try and answer everyone's questions about life here, but if you have one that I haven't answered, let me know and I'll make sure I get to it.
Already missing you lots, but loving this new adventure :)
- A
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