Challenge

About 2 months before I left the UAE a very dear friend challenged me to make a list of all the things that I am thankful for and that I will miss once I left the UAE.  I accepted her challenge and began reflecting on my time overseas.  In no particular order, this is what I came up with.

What I am thankful for:

1. Making enough money to pay off my student loans and credit card debt.  Without the job at ADEC, no matter how stressful it was, I would not have been able to pay off my student loan debt and now be debt free.  I would still probably be living pay check to pay check.
2. Making enough money to be able to travel.  I have been able to experience many different places and cultures because of the job that God has blessed me with.  I have been to Jordan, Oman, Thailand, Ireland, UK, Australia, Germany, Lebanon, and Turkey.  Despite all of the hardships of working with ADEC and ENS it is only because God has allowed me to work here in the UAE that I have been able to travel.
3. Being able to learn a new culture.  Living in the States I was surrounded by people just like me, and in the UAE I was always surrounded by people who are different than me.  Not just Emiratis, but people from many different countries.   I have been exposed to a multitude of cultures, languages, and people.
4. I can truly get any type of food I want.  I know at times this has been a challenge, but it was a good challenge because I have tried many different foods; foods that I had never heard of.  True, I didn't like them all, but just being able to try them is something that I wouldn't have done in the States.
5. Having a cleaner and taking my laundry in are luxuries that I never would have been able to experience in the States.  True, I didn't need them but it was nice to be able to have someone provide those services.  Again it's because of the jobs that I've been blessed with because without them I wouldn't have been able to afford those luxuries.
6. Redeemer Church of Dubai.  This really goes without saying, but God truly blessed me with a fantastic church family.  One that made me feel welcomed and loved and one that continually and accurately preached the Word of God.  I came to know Jesus there and grew in my love for the Lord.  This is what I am most thankful for and what I'll miss the most.
7. Friends who became my family.  I made my home in Al Ain and God blessed me with wonderful friends both in Al Ain and in Dubai.  I am thankful that I didn't spend my 4 years there lonely and bitter.

What I'll miss:

1. Camels.  Camels in the backs of trucks.  Camels walking along the side of the road.  Camels in the desert.  I'm just going to miss seeing these beautiful animals.  Although I've never seen a real camel race I did enjoy the practice one that I saw 3 years ago.  Even though there are no wild camels in the UAE, I did love seeing them roam the desert as I traveled to Dubai on the weekends.
2. Arabic.  I'm going to miss seeing, hearing, sounding out words, and attempting to speak the language.  Despite the fact that there are many letters that I cannot produce the correct sound for, it's a beautiful language and I'm going to miss being around it constantly.  Maybe I'll just have to throw a few habibis, khallas, and shway shways around when I get home.
3. The desert.  Yes, it's hot and sandy, but it's beautiful.  I love the rolling sand hills and seeing the sand sparkle in the sun.  The changing colors of the sand continues to amaze me, as it goes from reddish brown to yellow depending on where you are in the country.  Beautiful.
4. Being around different cultures all the time.  Everyone here is different.  From different countries, speaking different languages, wearing different clothes... and I love it.  I'm going to miss the different accents and expressions that I've gotten used to hearing.  You may hear me saying that I'm peckish (hungry), taking the lift, or crossing at a zebra (that'd be zebra with a short e instead of a long e) crossing.
5. The grocery store and the huge confusing selection of a wide variety of foods.  I'll miss seeing where my produce comes from.  Sometimes going to the grocery store was overwhelming because they just didn't have what I wanted, but I never really knew what I would find.  Then there's the fact that I could buy a whole fresh fish if I wanted to.  I'm sure I won't miss the smell of that part of LuLu and Carrefour.
6. All the malls.  There are a ton of them and each one is different in its own way.  There's the Dubai Mall with the aquarium, Burj Khalifa, and the dancing fountain.  There's Mall of the Emirates with Ski Dubai.  There's Al Ain Mall with the ice rink, bowling alley, and tons of coffee shops.  There's Bawadi Mall with Marks and Spencer's where I bought all my clothes from.  There's Jimi Mall with the men who stalk women and try to pick them up (first-hand experience).  And there's more on the way.  When I got tired of one mall I knew there were at least 5 others I could choose from.
7. Food.  I will definitely miss foods like hummus, chicken tikka, briyani rice, tabbouleh, zatar croissants, garlic paste, and many other ethnic dishes.  This goes back to being thankful for the opportunity to try new things.  I'll just have to make many trips to Dearborn to get my fill for middle eastern food.
8. Roundabouts.  Scary at first, but I have come to like them and find them quite helpful; that is if the rules are followed and you know how to drive on them.  Maybe where I'm going will end up having a few!
9. The kids.  Despite all my struggles with the students, Emirati kids are just like kids anywhere.  They are fun, intelligent, thoughtful, kind, and most of all they are extremely adept at reading emotions and adjusting accordingly.  They are not afraid to speak their mind and correct you.  They are open and honest and extremely loyal, once you earn their trust.  They will forever hold a special place in my heart.
10. Call to prayer.  I think I'll miss hearing that 5 times a day; it kind of became like an external clock.  It was always there, and something that I tuned out or ignored, but now that I won't hear it I think I may actually miss it. Not the 4:30 am one though!
11. Kandoras, abayas, sheylahs, and burqas.  I'll miss seeing men, women, and children dressed in traditional clothes and being proud of their heritage.  It's funny how the girls long for the day when they will be able to wear an abaya; it's such a huge part of their identity, and the boys will do anything to be able to wear their kandora to school.
12. Having Fridays off.  True, I'll go back to Saturdays and Sundays off, but for 4 years I've had Fridays off and I"ll miss that as a weekend day and making my weekly trip to Dubai for church.  Who knows how long it'll take me to adjust to having to work on Friday and not on Sunday.  I guess I'll just have to wait and see.
13. Public transportation.  I'd rather drive, but just having it available is something that I will  miss.  I even sort of got used to taking the metro in Dubai.  Now, the buses aren't all that fabulous, but there are taxis everywhere and the metro is fantastic.
14. Tagalog.  Having so many Filipino friends I was constantly surrounded by Tagalog and I will miss hearing it.  Unfortunately, I never learned any of it other than salamat (thank you).

Who I'll miss:

1. My church.  Wonderful encouraging Christians who I love and will miss dearly.
2. Kristie.  My beloved younger sister and one of the first people I met in Dubai.  She may be crazy, but I love her all the same and I will miss her terribly.  We spent just about every weekend together for nearly 3 years, we truly became a part of each other's lives.  She loves life and the Lord and it is a blessing to call her my friend and sister.
3. Vanny.  We met through Kristie and when Kristie left in the summer of 2013 Vanny and I became even closer.  We traveled to Turkey together and enjoyed each other's company.  She has taught me many lessons on how to stand up for myself and not always seek peoples' approval.  She has been a true friend in good and bad times and I am blessed to know her.
4. Jane.  We met through Kristie and I am so thankful that I got to meet her and develop our friendship.  She has such a kind and gently spirit and is always full of joy.  I loved being around her and seeing her constant smile.
5. Dave; the pastor at Redeemer.  I may not have known him personally, but I will miss the gospel centered sermons that always pointed me back to Jesus Christ.  He faithfully preaches the gospel each week and I hope and pray that I can find a church that has a pastor who is not ashamed of the gospel just like Dave.
6. Lucia (aka Bambie).  After Cindy left for Doha, she took me in and opened her home to me.  She became like a mother to me as she shared her life and faith with me.
7. Godly.  I just met him a few months ago and our friendship truly took off.  He is such an encouraging, kind, gently, and accepting man and I am so glad that I got to know him through Redeemer Kids.  He helped me through struggles and laughed with me through many good times.
8. Ronnie.  My brother.  So sweet, kind, loving, encouraging, understanding, and compassionate.  Many times I would seek his advice and prayers as he is such a godly young man.
9. Karen, Jeriel, Cecille, Sheba, Miranda, Glen, Linda, Whimper, and way too many more people to mention, who would always greet me by name and a hug on Friday morning.  True friends and brothers and sisters in Christ who I know I will see again in Heaven.
10. Alexandra.  I worked with her at ENS for 2 years, but only really got to know her this year.  We are both so alike that we clicked immediately.  I enjoyed spending quiet evenings at home just chatting with her, and traveling to Oman to enjoy a luxurious getaway.  Having a friend across the hall made the move at the end of the year a lot more bearable.
11. Fara.  Another wonderful friend who I am grateful to be able to call my sister.  She became such a part of my life and we were there to help each other through the struggle of our first year at ENS.
12. Deborah and Sophia.  I had the pleasure of starting ENS with Deborah and living and across the hall from her for a few months before she moved down the road.  We spent many afternoons and evenings at Al Ain Mall and I got to see Sophia grow from a 14 month old infant to a bubbly 3 year old.  I loved the fact that she called me "her Sara."  Definitely my favorite toddler in Al Ain and I am thankful to Deborah for allowing me to have a part in their lives.
13. Kevin.  Now here's a weird relationship, but we loved it.  Kevin was part of the best grade 4 team ever and we had a very interesting relationship.  There was lots of playful  flirting going on between the 2 of us, despite the fact that he is happily married to Rosalind.  He truly is a great friend; one whom I could really joke around with and he will be missed.
14. Peter, Heidi, Suzanne, Jenn, Maureen, and other members of the staff at ENS who helped me survive 2 years there.

That about wraps it up.  My amazing 4 year adventure in the UAE.  I can't say that I loved every minute of it, but I am thankful for every minute of it!

Saying Goodbye

The worst part of leaving is the saying goodbye part. For 4 years Al Ain, UAE has been my home and I have been blessed to make many true friends whom I hope will remain life-long friends. On the bright side, I now know many people from various parts of the world so when I travel internationally I know I will have people to visit and places to stay.

The goodbyes started on Thursday June 26 as I said goodbye to the teachers and admin at ENS and walked out the door. That wasn't the hard part as I have been looking forward to this day for many weeks, if not months. I will say that Una, the principal, was very supportive and encouraging and I enjoyed working for her. I will miss Jenn, Aimee, and Maureen but I know that I will keep in touch with them; at least through Facebook if nothing else. And Maureen is only in Windsor so we have already decided to plan a lunch date.

After leaving ENS, for the last time, on Thursday I headed to Dubai to begin my summer getaway plans with Kristie, Vanny, and Jane.  We had planned on staying in Dubai on Thursday night and then The Palm on Friday night. So I met Vanny at the hotel and then we went to the mall for sinner before Kristie and Jane joined us. They surprised me with wonderful going away gifts - a sand design of the Burj Al Arab with our names and a Longchamp bag - before we popped some popcorn and made coffee and tea for our movie watching night.

Friday morning dawned early with our human alarm (Vanny) waking us up at 6:30 so we would have time for breakfast before church. We got ready and walked over to the JW Marriott for breakfast before church. Now this is where things got emotional. I was not at all ready for Friday and having to say goodbye to my friends who became like family to me. The girls like to sit in the front, but I didn't really want to because I knew it would be hard for me, but they talked me into it so after chatting for a bit we entered the ballroom and walked to the front for service. We started singing and I started getting emotional and couldn't hold the tears back and walked out crying. Thankfully Whimper was a greeter that morning so she was still out by the door handing out bulletins and I walked up to her and just started crying on her shoulder. We walked into the bathroom, where we were joined by Kristie, so I could get myself under control. I just sat there and prayed and cried for a bit before I was ready to go back into the service. Thanks to God for calming me down and focusing my heart and mind on the service so I could worship Him instead of focus on leaving. After church I said many, many (too much as the Arabic people would say) goodbyes to sweet dear friends. It was hard, but I know that I will see them again in our eternal home. After many goodbyes, I just turned to Jane and said that we needed to go now. I didn't want anymore, I just wanted to leave. Maybe that was a bit selfish on my part, as I could have seen more people, but I didn't want to cry anymore so we left and headed to the Mall of the Emirates for lunch and our shuttle to the Rixos on The Palm.

When we arrived at the Rixos it was like we had left Dubai altogether, it was secluded and beautifully landscaped and manicured. We checked in and explored our rooms, fiddling with the electronics controls for the lights and AC, before heading out to the pool. We spent a few hours at the pool where Jane got a free swimming lesson and I ended up shooting some baskets with another guest and his daughters while Kristie and Vanny sunbathed. The pool we were at closed at 6:30, but the other pool was open until 7:00, so we headed over there for the last 1/2 hour. When that pool closed we returned to our rooms to get cleaned up for dinner. We put on our fancy dresses and went down for the buffet dinner that was included in our deal. It turned out that the buffet was having a Turkish night and the chef was from Turkey. Vanny and I got really excited when we found out that we could have Anatolian ravioli, since we both enjoyed it so much on our trip to Turkey. When the chef found out that we had been to Turkey he prepared the ravioli as well as some other Turkish dishes and brought them to our table. We spent a few hours just enjoying each other's company and the delicious Turkish cuisine before heading back to the room for movies and popcorn. We enjoyed the night, but stayed up way too late knowing that our human alarm was waking us up at 6:30 so we could have breakfast and go to the beach before checkout. We spent an hour at the beach before it got too hot so we made our way to the pool where we knew that the water would be chilled and feel refreshing. We enjoyed the pool for another hour before we had to go back to our rooms to get cleaned up and ready to checkout. After checkout we took a cab to the nearest metro station and boarded the train for Karama so I could have lunch with Godly and Merlin before heading back to Al Ain to finish packing.

The train ride to Karama was way too quiet and sobering as I knew we were all dealing with too many emotions to be able to enjoy the time together. I just held Kirstie's hand and couldn't  even look at her without starting to cry and there was no way I was going to do that on the train, so we rode in silence not really looking at each other. We got off the train at Karama and waited in silence for Godly to pick me up. When he arrived I knew it was time to go and the tears flowed freely as I said goodbye to my 3 closest and dearest friends. We hugged for sometime and promised to stay in touch always before I again just had to go. I broke away from Kirstie's embrace and walked away, with tears still flowing, with Godly and I didn't even look back as they headed in the opposite direction to board the train to Deira City Center. And that was it. They were gone. I walked out, in silence, to get a taxi with Godly and head to his place for lunch.  

Merlin, his wife, was supposed to be cooking lunch but she decided not to because she didn't think she could make any Indian food without spice, so we went out instead.  Funny thing is we went out to an Indian restaurant and what they ordered was spicy!  We had something called sizzling chicken and it really was sizzling when they brought it to the table!  I think I would have enjoyed it, but the spice was just too much. After trying a bit, I asked Merlin if what she would have made would have been that spicy and she said it would have been spicier, so I guess it was good that we went out!  Too cool my flaming tongue we had brownies and ice-cream for dessert; I had more of the ice-cream than the brownie.  When lunch was finished we headed to a mall to meet Lucia and her husband so I could pick up my picture that he painted for me and then I had to say more goodbyes.  Although it was difficult to say goodbye to Godly, Merlin, and Lucia, it wasn't nearly as hard as it was earlier in the day.  We said goodbye with promises to keep in touch via What'sapp and Facebook and I got in the taxi for my final ride back to Al Ain.

The rest of the goodbyes that I needed to say took place in Al Ain.  I spent Sunday morning with Alexandra and Sunday afternoon/evening with Fara.  We didn't really do much, just kind of enjoyed each other's company.  Many promises were made to keep in touch always, whether it be through Facebook, What'sapp, or Skype, as we hugged, cried, and said goodbye.  Fara and I are talking about meeting up in Italy sometime soon (although I'm not sure if that will ever happen) and Alexandra and I are talking about a reunion at the Shangri-La in Oman.  If that never happens and I do end up traveling internationally again I know that I will have a place to stay in the UK and in South Africa.

And so my 4 years in the UAE ended.  I made wonderful friends who I will never forget and I had a life changing experience through it all.  For my last night in Al Ain, I went to bed tired and emotional, but found it too difficult to sleep as I was processing too many mixed emotions.  On the one hand I was sad to be leaving all my friends in the UAE and on the other hand I was excited to be returning home to my family in the USA, then there was anxiousness about not having a job and dealing with the inevitable counter culture shock that I have heard will come.  Thankfully I was able to get some sleep as I needed to be up at 3:00am for my 4:15 ride to the airport.  

It's been a great journey and I hope that you've enjoyed reading about it as much as I've enjoyed living it.  Now on to the next chapter in my life :)

Clearance Process and Preparing to Leave

The exit procedure for ENS was so much simpler than that for ADEC, mostly because all the signatures that I needed only involved me traveling all of about 3 minutes to the Boys' School. Now, once there things got complicated as the correct person had to be in the office or I had to try to track him down, but at least I wasn't running around town like I was 2 years ago with ADEC.  The entire procedure involved me returning my CD player and speakers to the school store, getting a signature from the main librarian stating that I didn't have any books checked out, getting a signature from the IT guy (not really sure why that was necessary), turning in my passport so my residence visa could be canceled, an apartment check to make sure I didn't damage anything (kinda hard to do in 6 weeks, but I guess it's possible), and getting a signature from the principal and the campus director. No problem and I could have had the whole thing done in one day if Ahmed (the IT guy) and Hussam (maintenance guy) would have coordinated their trips to Abu Dhabi. But all in all the entire process for school was a piece of cake. I wish the rest of what needed to be done went as smoothly as the school side.

I had to make the dreaded trip to Etisalat a few times. Thankfully they opened a new branch in Al Ain Mall so I didn't have to go to the main branch, which is a horribly time consuming experience. I made my first trip to Etisalat a month before my scheduled departure (I learned my lesson the first time around) to schedule cancellation of my service.  While there I inquired about switching my post-paid phone plan to pre-paid and I was told I'd have to go to the main branch 3 days before I was leaving. Ugh. Knowing that things and rules change from day to day here I decided to wait a few days and then go back and ask again. Turns out my strategy worked because I talked to a different person who told me it was a simple procedure that could be done the day before I left and they could do it there. What a relief!  So I waited a few weeks until I had paid my bill and then went and switched to pre-paid with no problems at all.

Two weeks before I was scheduled to depart I decided to return my car so I could save some extra money. I had Alexandra to take me to work and the bus when she couldn't bring me home and then there's great public transportation for getting around Al Ain and to Dubai so I figured go ahead and turn it in early. Little did I know that I actually should have turned it in a month early due to the fact that it takes 30 days to get a refund of the deposit. I'm not quite sure why they don't make these things known, other than for money. Thankfully the guy has agreed to credit my US account when I send him my card info. I couldn't do it there because the card that I have is expired, so it was no help in the matter. I'll just have to make sure that I get him the info when I get home.

Figuring out my salary and gratuity was a whole separate issue that was quite frustrating. Ammar sent me the information and it didn't seem to match what I figured I should be getting so I went to talk to him. He showed me the numbers and calculated everything and it turned out correct. My issue was it didn't include the 1000 for being a coordinator. Unfortunately that's not part of anything other than my June salary so that's where the confusion lie. Once I got that figured out there was nothing to do but wait for the money to be deposited so I could start sending it home. Thankfully my salary didn't show up in my account when it was supposed to (I know that sounds crazy, but let me explain) so I went over to talk to Ammar. In addition to assuring me that it would be deposited that day he nearly gave me a heart attack by telling me to go to the bank and withdraw it immediately so the bank won't freeze it. I told him they shouldn't freeze my account because I don't have any loans or credit cards so it shouldn't be a problem. Shouldn't, but it was happening; 2 other employees in the same situation as me had their accounts frozen so he was warning people to take the necessary precautions. So I anxiously waited for the text to come stating that my salary had been deposited in my account so I could go withdraw it. The only problem was I didn't have a car and I couldn't get in touch with Alexandra. Thankfully Suzanne gave me her keys, but unfortunately I couldn't fit in her car so she ended up having to drive me. We went to the branch at Al Ain Mall, but the line was out the door so she took me to a branch on the way to Abu Dhabi where I was the only customer and had no problem withdrawing my salary and getting reassured that they wouldn't freeze my account when the gratuity came. When my gratuity arrived three days later I promptly went to the bank to withdraw that and send it home. The only difference this time was that the teller told me that the money had to be in the account for a day before I could take it out so he told me to come back after 5. Now it was 3:30, so I didn't object or question the fact that withdrawing it after 5 wouldn't be a day after it was deposited, but I just left and sat at a coffee shop and read until 5 when I could return to the bank. Back at the bank I was told that I needed to see the manager so I could close my account. I told them that I had just withdrawn all my money a few days earlier and I didn't have to see the manager or close my account, so after discussing this with the manager he decided to give me my money. What an ordeal!

At some point during the whole end of school stuff, we were told that they changed the end date for teachers from June 30 to June 26 and we could change our flights if we wanted to, but we would have to pay any charges. I decided to see what it would cost so I got in touch with the travel agency that booked my ticket and told them I wanted to change my ticket from July 4 to June 30, and I would like to know how much it would cost. The travel agent got back to me the next day quoting 1250!  There was no way I was going to pay that much, so I just let it go. A few days later she emailed me back and told me she had been searching and found the last remaining seat available for 500 dirham extra plus the 300 dirham change fee. I decided that I could manage 800dhs to be home 4 days sooner so I told her to book it. A few days after that I called Etihad to try to choose an exit row seat. They still had a few remaining so I paid the 450 dirham to secure an exit row seat with extra leg room. So, with that added to the 800 for changing my flight date I ended up spending the 1250 that I originally didn't want to. What I'll do for a somewhat comfortable 14 hour flight!

I think that about wraps up the exit procedure and getting ready to leave. All that remained was packing, getting rid of stuff, and saying goodbye.