Residing & Driving

Today was a very productive day! I am now a legal resident of the UAE (not that I was ever illegal, just that I was only a visitor) AND I am the proud owner of a UAE driver's license ... all in the same day. Here's how the rest of the story turned out.

Last I wrote, we were missing just one more stamp on my visa application. Well, our PRO (Public Relations Officer - remember? the guys with the wasta) got the ever elusive stamp and Brian headed back to Dubai to again visit the immigration office and sign my visa application. I didn't go this time - I didn't need to be there anyway and I'm sure I had something important going on ... like a pedicure! ;)

Once the application had been submitted, it was time for my health exam. To get a visa here in UAE, you have to complete a medical test, which includes a blood sample and a chest x-ray. In short, they are looking for HIV, Hepatitis and TB. I can't even imagine how awful it would be to find out that kind of a diagnosis while completing a medical exam for your visa! The exam wasn't too difficult. Brian had to work that day so I headed to Dubai on the Emirates Express bus, which is a lot like the Van Galder or Badger bus back home, but only costs 35 dhiram round trip (less than $10!!) The trip was about 2 hours, so a little longer than driving yourself, but the coach is comfy and I had my audio book to keep me occupied. I got off at the World Trade Center and tried to find the metro, but failed so hailed a taxi to take me to "Knowledge Village" which is where you get the medical exam.

We had to find gate 12 in Knowledge Village and I realized quickly that my taxi driver either couldn't read at all or couldn't read English because the road signs were pretty clear, but he didn't know where to go. I tried to help, but the language barrier was too great so he stopped in front of one of the security guards. Soon we were again on our way and I was dropped safely at Gate 12. There I met our PRO who took me through the paperwork process (that's the huge benefit of the PRO - he knows exactly where he's going and can field any questions or problems).

The "exam" was first a blood draw (expertly done I might add) and then a chest x-ray. Pretty straight forward and we were out of there in maybe 20 minutes. The PRO dropped me at the Metro station and after a short side trip to the Dubai mall, I headed back home. Piece of cake!!

Today, then, we again met up with the PRO (Brian driving this time) and headed to the immigration office once again. Brian went in and signed for my visa and all was well (and the counter guy wasn't surly this time ... maybe because we had all our stamps?:) Oh, and have you noticed that the only time I had to be there for MY visa was during the medical exam? Otherwise, only my sponsor, Brian had to appear in person. So, I now have my husband-sponsored residency visa, which is good until 2014 and lists my occupation as housewife ... don't even start!

Next up was the driver's license, which I've actually already written about when Brian got his. It was exactly the same process except I got to be in the "ladies only" line so was done in about 20 minutes compared to Brian's 40. I think I'm gonna miss the "ladies only" lines when we return home. :)

We headed back to Abu Dhabi and Brian is finishing out the rest of the work day. And me? I had to take the car for a spin of course! :)

The Path of Roses

The last three weeks have been the Abu Dhabi Festival, which is a cultural event sponsored by one of the Sheikhs and designed to celebrate arts, music, dance ... in Abu Dhabi. There have been many events including a robust educational program, community program and some high end dinners and award ceremonies. There is everything from free exhibits, lectures and concerts to expensive gala dinners and big name performers. We've taken advantage of a few free things and one of those was the Path of Roses art exhibit. 

The artist is Rachid Koraichi from Algeria and the piece is a retrospective created from a combination of types of calligraphy and other symbols he finds interesting. I'm not a big art enthusiast so can't at all interpret his work, but I did find the exhibit stunning to look at. Here are a few pictures of the combination of sculptures, pottery, lighting and metalwork that made up his piece.

 This photo gives you the best overall idea of the exhibit. The whole piece was housed in a relatively small rectangular box that you stepped up into and walked through. The artist said it was to enclose the piece so you weren't distracted by anything around it. This was significant because the exhibit was housed in the Emirates Palace hotel, which can be pretty distracting! :)

Down the center of the exhibit were the calligraphy sculptures. They are a combination of symbols from a number of different cultures so don't have a single clear meaning. Then below them on each side are these beautifully decorated shallow bowls. Each is filled with a small amount of water and 3 rose petals float in each one.

Along the far wall is a collection of more symbols hung from the wall. The lighting is then set up so that they create overlapping shadows on the wall - really stunning to see. And because he built this separate space, it's really quiet in there - Brian and I were the only two there when we visited so that added to the atmosphere.

This is the view from the other side, standing with my back to the wall in the photo above. If you look closely, you can also see that along each wall, there are curtains of varying lengths. Above the curtains is a silhouette of more symbols and behind the sheer part of the curtain sits another of the sculptures you see in the middle aisle as well as some embroidered cloth. Lots of mixed materials in the exhibit which made it really interesting to look at.

You can also see the bowls a bit better in this photo and the 3 rose petals floating in each.

At the other end of the exhibit was this filial metal work. It was attached to the wall horizontally and then lighted from above to create this interesting shadow. The artist says this is the focal point of the piece. We just thought it was gorgeous.

 

And here's a close up view of the pottery bowls. This type of decoration on everyday objects is a hallmark of Arabic art. The elaborate calligraphy and detail in the design is amazing to look at. 

As I mentioned, this exhibit was part of the Abu Dhabi Festival and free to the public. It was housed in the Emirates Palace hotel in the lobby area of the auditorium there. After we took in the exhibit, we poked around the hotel a bit more just cuz it's so fabulous. We were even able to find our way to the spa entrance and then out the back onto the beach area. We weren't really supposed to be there, but had been lead to this area by a helpful hotel employee when looking for a restroom. Lucky us! Here are a few more photos of the Emirates Palace hotel.

The first photo is of a HUGE Tahitian pearl and diamond ring. I can't even imagine how it would fit comfortably on your finger! But it is gorgeous - we weren't brave enough to even find out how much it costs.  The second photo is the hallway leading to the hotel spa. As we were trying to get this photo, a young couple with a baby strolled by, we assume headed for their room. How can a couple so young afford this place?! Honestly, some people just have TOO much money (and it's too bad Brian and I aren't some of those people! ;)

The Splendours of Mesopotamia

Last weekend we visited Manarat Al Saadiyat on Saadiyat Island, which is in the process of becoming a cultural center in Abu Dhabi. The plans for this area are huge and include a Louvre museum, a Guggenheim museum, the Zayed National museum and I'm sure many more.

The Zayed National Museum held an architectural contest for the design of the building. The winning design is from Foster & Partners and looks just amazing. It's modeled off of the wings of a falcon. I couldn't copy any photos of the design as they are all copyrighted, but here's a link to the website where you can read about the museum and see some of the amazing design renderings. Looks like it will be quite a place.

Zayed National Museum

Most of these places won't be ready until 2013 or later, but Manarat Al Saadiyat was built to provide occasional previews of what's to come from the Zayed National Museum. I'm not sure if this building is to be temporary and then taken down once the museum is built or if it's part of the museum that's simply been built first to 'whet the appetite'. In any case, it's a really brilliant idea to bring in a few exhibits before things are finished to get people used to going out there and excited about what is to come. Oh, and yes, it's all free!! The exhibit we went to see is called the Splendours of Mesopotamia and is on loan from the British Musuem and the Al Ain National Museum.

Mesopotamia is considered the birthplace of the first international cities as it was located ideally for trade. The exhibit focused on 3 of the major areas: Sumer, Assyria, and Babylon and tracks the growth of these cites through the centuries as well as the political ups and downs of their rulers. It was a really interesting exhibit, especially since we are here in UAE and this all happened, not across the world like when visiting things like this in the States, but across the Gulf. They even had a small area describing what was going on in the area now known as UAE around the same time. Not big cities developing, but interesting all the same. The exhibit included pottery, jewelry and mostly pieces of architecture and murals. There were also a number of interesting artifacts related to the first written word, which was fun to see. They used a stylus and made little hatch marks with different sides of the instrument to make the words. This all on clay tablets, so a list of goods looks like a little clay tablet with chicken feet markings on it. We got the complimentary audio tour as well, which provided more details than the placards in place.

It was a great outing and very interesting and it still blows our mind that all these things are free. They are all sponsored by a Sheikh in the area and designed to promote the arts and make Abu Dhabi a favorite tourist destination. I can't wait to watch this area grow and develop over the next few years.

Stormy Weather

Today I got my first up close and personal view of an Arabian sand storm, and it really wasn't that fun. I had plans to meet some new friends downtown for lunch so headed out around 10:30 to catch the bus. My first clue was how overcast the sky was when I stepped outside. It was gray like it was going to rain, but just couldn't. It also looked really dusty - almost like smoke or fog. And it was windy, but not outrageously so. I walked out of the compound onto the road and started heading to the bus stop and that's when the wind picked up. It was windy that's for sure, and pretty annoying, but the worst part was all the dust, sand and grit in the wind. Within a few minutes, I felt like I was covered in grit and the fine sheen of sweat due to the temperature didn't help the situation any. And darn it, I was wearing lip gloss again! I waited a little more than 20 minutes for the bus to arrive and the wind and sand storm continued that whole time. By the time I reached my destination, it had calmed down and while still windy, not nearly so much as earlier and it wasn't picking up the dust and sand. So, the fun news is that I now know what a sand storm is like, and the not-so-fun news is that I need another shower. ;)

Working through my Resident Visa

Yes, I've been here now almost 3 months and still don't have my resident visa! To get a visa in UAE, you need to be sponsored by either 1) your employer, 2) your parents, or 3) your spouse. Obviously, I fall into the 3rd category. Brian has been coordinating all the visas for the Epic team, which had some bumps, but now is a relatively painless process and takes less than one month, so the newest members here haven't even had to get a visitor visa extension, which is great. Unfortunately, a spouse-sponsored visa is a totally different process and since it's our first time through it, it's taking a while.

The first step was to get an attested marriage certificate and my college transcripts over here. I don't technically need the transcripts for the spouse visa, but since I plan to work, I'll need that in the future so we got it at the same time. This requires sending the docs to the US Embassy in DC, then to the UAE Embassy in DC and then onto UAE. I mailed these docs at the end of December and we FINALLY received what we needed just two weeks ago. Until we had those docs, we couldn't even begin the process over here.

The next step is working with our Public Relations Officer (PRO). A PRO isn't required, I don't think, but they know the legal ropes and regulations and can get paperwork through MUCH faster than if you tried to do it yourself. Some things in UAE work on what they call 'wasta', which you can kind of think of as clout or negotiation power. PROs have that wasta and as such can help you get things done. So, the PRO helped Brian complete the paperwork for my visa and then they had to go to the Immigration office in Dubai to submit it.

Strike One - Apparently, we're missing a necessary stamp. (sigh) So, the PRO has to work through that and when it's again ready, Brian will need to make another trip to Dubai to try again. Unlike the business visas that the PRO can work through the process, Brian has to be there in person for mine since he himself is the sponsor - what a pain. The worst part is that my visitor visa expires on the 15th and I don't want to have to do a border run to extend it. I've got all fingers and toes crossed that things will work out by the end of the week!