There was some excitement at the InterCon today! The people who are placed in Abu Dhabi had been told that they were leaving the hotel at 3:00 this afternoon to head to their new apartments. There was excitement in the air as they got packed and said goodbye to friends that were made. It was a little sad knowing that Kisha, Kate, and Virginia were going to be leaving the hotel, but at least we're all still in Abu Dhabi. Well, 3:00 came and went and no bus. The excitement changed to nervous which changed to frustration when they realized that they were not leaving. The lack of communication is getting to everybody. I think everyone would be ok if we just knew what was happening when. The people who are moving to Al Ain have been told to get comfortable; we'll probably be here another week. That's fine with me, just knowing something is better than all the rumors and wondering that is going on here. Even though everyone on Facebook from last year said to expect stuff like this, I thought they would have gotten it worked out and been more organized. Guess I was wrong. That's just the way this country works; not much planning and organizing except when it comes to consturction. So, knowing that I am going to be here for a while longer I did some more laundry and organized my luggage. I was so sick of rifling through suitcases and clothes that I'm not going to wear to find the stuff that I wanted to wear. Now that I am all organized and have wet clothes hanging in the bathroom I'll probably leave tomorrow!! I think I am getting to be quite good at washing in the tub!! It's not fun at all and I thank the inventor of the washing machine:) Can't wait to get my own!
This evening Cassandra, Kisha and I went to Madinet Zayed to pick up our abayahs and go to the gold souk. Cassandra's abayah was finished and it fit her well; mine was finished, but it was a little too tight in the arms. The guy said it was fine and that it was very loose; that was when I held my arms out like I was flying. I don't normally walk around like that. When I bent my arms, and even when I just put them by my side it was tight. So after arguing with him that it was actually tight, he said he would fix it so it won't be ready until tomorrow. After Cassandra got her abayah we walked next door to the gold souk. I thought the gold souk would have bars of gold for sale and anything you wanted decorated in gold. I thought there would be gold vending machines (they have them here) all over the place. I expected to see lots and lots of different gold objects. Boy was I wrong. All it was, was gold jewelry. Quite disappointing. I wanted to take some pictures of the very tacky (Mr. T like) gold jewelry, but no photography was allowed. There was some nice jewelry as well, but most of it was very gaudy and "blingy". Guess I should have gotten some bling, since I couldn't get my abayah!
The taxi ride home was very scary. You are putting your life in danger everytime you get in a taxi in this country. They drive so fast and cut other drivers off all the time. The taxi is equipped with a device that tells them to slow down if they are going too fast. This particular driver heard the warning and promptly sped up! The horn is their favorite part of the car! Cassandra said that she felt like she was at 6 Flags!!!! In a way I can't wait to get a car, but it also scares me because I know I will have to drive with these maniacs! Defensive driving is a must here.
Still no money in my bank account, but at least my card works at the ATM now! One step forward!! Patience. "Shway, shway" (slowly) is a phrase that we're all using a lot now. "Inshallah" (God willing) has become like "no". Everytime we hear someone say Inshallah we automatically say that the answer must be no. Off to bed; maybe more information or money tomorrow!!
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