Thursday, September 29, 2011
There's a first time for everything, isn't there...
It's amazing how quickly things can get back to how they used to be in the blink if an eye! This time yesterday I was on an airplane flying halfway around the world and today I am washing clothes, checking the mail, outside playing with the grand dogs, and thinking about what to do for supper. There's a lot to be said for touching base for a while and thinking about where we've been the last few weeks...
I do know I won't ever question whether or not it's necessary to explain how to use a seatbelt in an airplane ever again...apparently it isn't a "no brainer" after all. I had the pleasure of sitting next to a fascinating young lady from Nepal on the first leg of my trip. Beautifully dressed and scared to death, she was leaving her country for the first time ever to go be with her husband at the ripe old age of 28. She was very tired and very hesitant to talk. She did share with me that she thought her luggage had been taken never to be seen again and I somehow managed to make her day when I finally got it across to her that it would meet her there when she reached her final destination which was Lisbon. And yes, she was the one who could not figure out how to unlatch the seatbelt. She has been on my mind all day and I hope her reunion with her husband was a magic moment for her in the midst of all that anxiety. I should have told her that I admired her for her courage and the next time I get nervous about doing something on my own, I will think of her...
I'm thinking meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner...
Until next time...
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
It's not about the money...
I woke up thinking about Leslie this morning...I hope I am spelling his name correctly and if not, I apologize. To explain this, I need to go back to our previous moves overseas. Not that there have been that many (this is number 3 for us), but each time almost the minute we got off the airplane we are told about a local person who we MUST meet and buy from and always there is a story...
Iceland was the land of wool and sheepskins and if I remember correctly we are still using the blankets we bought the first week we arrived there 28 years ago. Belgium introduced us to Martin the benchmaker. We came home with three of those pieces of art (according to me), and I can honestly say I was not the first one to buy within the first week we were there in 1996 (you know who you are :-). Again...the benches have stories...
Now we come to Leslie...he owns a carpet store and has been here in Abu Dhabi for over 20 years. Everyone here knows Leslie and Leslie remembers everyone he meets. I met him the first full day I was here and am fascinated by him and his stories. He is closing his store to go home and everyone here is sad to see him go. There is no such thing as just buying a carpet from him. There's coffee or tea and lots of laughing and good conversation. His life has been his relationships with his clients and everyone who walks in his store is just a friend he hasn't met yet. I wish he would write a book...call it the Rug Store knowing his stories are not about his carpets, but about his friends and all the people he has encountered throughout the years. I've only known him for a couple of weeks and I miss him already...
To quote Leslie..."it's not about the money"...We will miss you, Leslie. Thank you for being so kind.
Iceland was the land of wool and sheepskins and if I remember correctly we are still using the blankets we bought the first week we arrived there 28 years ago. Belgium introduced us to Martin the benchmaker. We came home with three of those pieces of art (according to me), and I can honestly say I was not the first one to buy within the first week we were there in 1996 (you know who you are :-). Again...the benches have stories...
Now we come to Leslie...he owns a carpet store and has been here in Abu Dhabi for over 20 years. Everyone here knows Leslie and Leslie remembers everyone he meets. I met him the first full day I was here and am fascinated by him and his stories. He is closing his store to go home and everyone here is sad to see him go. There is no such thing as just buying a carpet from him. There's coffee or tea and lots of laughing and good conversation. His life has been his relationships with his clients and everyone who walks in his store is just a friend he hasn't met yet. I wish he would write a book...call it the Rug Store knowing his stories are not about his carpets, but about his friends and all the people he has encountered throughout the years. I've only known him for a couple of weeks and I miss him already...
To quote Leslie..."it's not about the money"...We will miss you, Leslie. Thank you for being so kind.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Pictures!!!
The second picture is a view of the inside of our apartment. It looks bigger than it is, but I wanted a good shot of the windows all the way across and this the best I have at the moment.
The third picture is the tower complex...ours is on the left...
And the last one is of Dubai taken yesterday morning...looks like it could be southern California!
More to come...
24 Days Later...
I really don't know how I literally got here...actually my friend Jennifer here in Abu Dhabi gave me a few tips and here I am and very happy about it too! I really hope I will be able to get here again and in the meantime, I get to play catch up! In a nutshell...
The flight over was great! I slept most of the way which at the time felt wonderful! Of course having not a good idea of time difference yet, we landed soon after finishing breakfast only to watch the sun set as we left the airport and you guessed it...there was no sleep that night. Knowing Terri (my angel friend here) was picking me up the next day at 9am, I just stuck with it and crashed about noon. I only napped for two hours that day and as the days went by, it didn't take too long to adjust. There have been some hard days that were a little unexpected, but it all evened out. We found an apartment in Etihad Towers. We decided on a 3 bedroom place in Tower 5 overlooking the gulf...truly a view difficult to describe. The water is beautiful...all the time. Did I mention we are on the 52nd floor???
Days are spent out with new and wonderful friends rapidly becoming family. This is one part of this whole adventure that I was really excited about. The group of people here from BAH is amazing and we all have enjoyed each other's company tremendously. We are all ages and fun...most of us are experieincing the same aches and pains with good doses of senses of humor and that's what it takes to accept the different way of life we all are living right now.
We've spent most of our time within the city limits of Abu Dhabi. We have traveled over to Dubai a couple of times marveling at the desert, saw some camels wandering around, and admiring the new and very comtempory buildings that make up this city like I have never seen (except in the Jetson cartoons)!.
I should talk about the food, but even mentioning it brings on 5 more pounds to add to the rest of the weight gained just by thinking we have to sample everything. Seriously, we have not had a bad meal yet and I don't expect to ever have a bad meal. Customer service is definitely a priority here and certainly helps the adjustment. We are living in the Khalidiya Palace Hotel right now and will be here till the first part of November. Hotel living here is not hotel living at home and will not be a hardship at all. I can say, though. that I really don't like not knowing how to get around and depending on my friends so much, but I know that will end. I look forward to walking out my own front door one day soon and getting in my own car and going somewhere without questioning how to get there. I keep telling myself I know more today than I did yesterday and will know more tomorrow. Sometimes I just want to go to bed!!!
Okay...that's it for right now. There is so much to talk about and I will eventually cover it all. My next project is to figure out how to load pictures. I envy the DNA of our children's generation. They just automatically know how to do this stuff...I should be so lucky!
Until the next time...
The flight over was great! I slept most of the way which at the time felt wonderful! Of course having not a good idea of time difference yet, we landed soon after finishing breakfast only to watch the sun set as we left the airport and you guessed it...there was no sleep that night. Knowing Terri (my angel friend here) was picking me up the next day at 9am, I just stuck with it and crashed about noon. I only napped for two hours that day and as the days went by, it didn't take too long to adjust. There have been some hard days that were a little unexpected, but it all evened out. We found an apartment in Etihad Towers. We decided on a 3 bedroom place in Tower 5 overlooking the gulf...truly a view difficult to describe. The water is beautiful...all the time. Did I mention we are on the 52nd floor???
Days are spent out with new and wonderful friends rapidly becoming family. This is one part of this whole adventure that I was really excited about. The group of people here from BAH is amazing and we all have enjoyed each other's company tremendously. We are all ages and fun...most of us are experieincing the same aches and pains with good doses of senses of humor and that's what it takes to accept the different way of life we all are living right now.
We've spent most of our time within the city limits of Abu Dhabi. We have traveled over to Dubai a couple of times marveling at the desert, saw some camels wandering around, and admiring the new and very comtempory buildings that make up this city like I have never seen (except in the Jetson cartoons)!.
I should talk about the food, but even mentioning it brings on 5 more pounds to add to the rest of the weight gained just by thinking we have to sample everything. Seriously, we have not had a bad meal yet and I don't expect to ever have a bad meal. Customer service is definitely a priority here and certainly helps the adjustment. We are living in the Khalidiya Palace Hotel right now and will be here till the first part of November. Hotel living here is not hotel living at home and will not be a hardship at all. I can say, though. that I really don't like not knowing how to get around and depending on my friends so much, but I know that will end. I look forward to walking out my own front door one day soon and getting in my own car and going somewhere without questioning how to get there. I keep telling myself I know more today than I did yesterday and will know more tomorrow. Sometimes I just want to go to bed!!!
Okay...that's it for right now. There is so much to talk about and I will eventually cover it all. My next project is to figure out how to load pictures. I envy the DNA of our children's generation. They just automatically know how to do this stuff...I should be so lucky!
Until the next time...
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Here We Go Again!
Since that fateful day in March when the question was asked "what would you think about going to Abu Dhabi?...life definitely took a sharp turn in a completely different direction for us and we are headed for new adventures once again. Saturday's the big day. I've told my closest friends they can't take us to the airport...I think Oprah coined the phrase "the ugly cry" will happen if you know what I mean. Seriously, we are really moving...again? And without the men/children? Really? And...at the beginning of football season?
All this is new and exciting to say the least. It will be interesting keeping up with this as I hope to record and share our travels and experiences for the next couple of years. Stay tuned, y'all! This is going to be fun!
All this is new and exciting to say the least. It will be interesting keeping up with this as I hope to record and share our travels and experiences for the next couple of years. Stay tuned, y'all! This is going to be fun!
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