At long last! After 4 visits to the local immigration centre and a medical check up, I finally got my residence visa!
It's hard to forget the frustrations of going from one department to another department, receiving half-told or inaccurate instructions, being told to pay repeatedly and wondering if things are proper, being told to return on another day as some documents are lacking, etc. I would definitely remember a customer service staff who looked at her mirror more than she made eye contact with me while serving me!
Still, there are some staff who are more professional and helpful. Now, I'm just happy that I have finally got my visa! It's valid for 3 years. Think the repeated payment totalled to about S$1000. Not sure will fully maximise it though.
With the visa, one of the things that I would start doing is to register for driving lessons ;) Driving lessons here are slightly cheaper than in Singapore. Had 2 failed attempts back home. Was close to getting a license but chose not to retake cos needed to set aside money for my wedding then. Plus, I have a 'driver' who faithfully send me and fetch me around. After knowing my boyfriend (now hubby), I realised I have saved a lot on public transport!
Well, hope this time round, I could make it! And hope the instructor would treat woman students with respect! Don't anyhow scold, hor! Would need to be on wait list for 3 months but it beats not being able to "start my engine"!
Friday, July 25, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Stuff
Wasn't sure what to name the title of this entry cos it's a mixture of stuff i wish to write about... so, there you go.
One interesting thing to comment about is the speed of blog publishing here at Dubai. I'm not talking about a few minutes but days! My last entry took a week! (Thank God that i have not been so silly to re-submit my entry!)
Another funny (actually more irrirating) stuff is that my neighbour had a hen... or do u call that a rooster? whatever... it's those chicken-like animals that wake you up in the wee hours of dawn. Here, the rooster works really hard... It not only 'serenade' you in the expected hours but also in the morning and afternoon, as well at 12.30 am! And even at the midnight hours, it 'serenaded' for as many as 10 times in a row! Goodness!? Had that rooster got jet-lag or what?!
A housemate will be packing up and returning to her country tomorrow. No idea if she will return. Sad :( 1 less companion. Left me and another housemate. Will miss her jokes and cooking. She has always been the "main cook" for the lunch among 3 of us. After her departure, my housemate and i got more reasons to beef up our cooking skills. In a way, i have more opportunities to cook and learn cooking since coming here. It's a good thing. Never thought that i could cook curry chicken (for someone who doesn't take spicy stuff)! Ha! Even my mom find it incredible!
My laptop died in its sleep some days ago. It just could not be switched on no matter what kind of rescue techniques or CPR I tried on it. Here, there is hardly any repair services for IT stuff (heard that they would buy it, repair it and sell it to poorer states). Thank God that hubby promptly got a new laptop :]
A major thanksgiving: My flat has been officially rented out and at a price that surpassed expectations! God has truly exceeded what we have asked of and imagined. The flat matter being settled is certainly a huge relief. My thanks to my brother, who has been a great help in this matter.
In response to John's comment (and maybe some who had not expressed his comments but had similar thoughts), I apologize for not posting photographs or having any tag board. Truth is, I am rather hopeless when it comes to such stuff... The last time I tried to post a photograph, it ended up as a mess (and a mess that i have no idea how to clean up). Those who know me, you sure have assess to my Facebook, right? There, you can view photographs of me in Dubai ;) And those who don't mind giving me private tuition on how to set up and manage a tag board, do drop me an email, yea?
One interesting thing to comment about is the speed of blog publishing here at Dubai. I'm not talking about a few minutes but days! My last entry took a week! (Thank God that i have not been so silly to re-submit my entry!)
Another funny (actually more irrirating) stuff is that my neighbour had a hen... or do u call that a rooster? whatever... it's those chicken-like animals that wake you up in the wee hours of dawn. Here, the rooster works really hard... It not only 'serenade' you in the expected hours but also in the morning and afternoon, as well at 12.30 am! And even at the midnight hours, it 'serenaded' for as many as 10 times in a row! Goodness!? Had that rooster got jet-lag or what?!
A housemate will be packing up and returning to her country tomorrow. No idea if she will return. Sad :( 1 less companion. Left me and another housemate. Will miss her jokes and cooking. She has always been the "main cook" for the lunch among 3 of us. After her departure, my housemate and i got more reasons to beef up our cooking skills. In a way, i have more opportunities to cook and learn cooking since coming here. It's a good thing. Never thought that i could cook curry chicken (for someone who doesn't take spicy stuff)! Ha! Even my mom find it incredible!
My laptop died in its sleep some days ago. It just could not be switched on no matter what kind of rescue techniques or CPR I tried on it. Here, there is hardly any repair services for IT stuff (heard that they would buy it, repair it and sell it to poorer states). Thank God that hubby promptly got a new laptop :]
A major thanksgiving: My flat has been officially rented out and at a price that surpassed expectations! God has truly exceeded what we have asked of and imagined. The flat matter being settled is certainly a huge relief. My thanks to my brother, who has been a great help in this matter.
In response to John's comment (and maybe some who had not expressed his comments but had similar thoughts), I apologize for not posting photographs or having any tag board. Truth is, I am rather hopeless when it comes to such stuff... The last time I tried to post a photograph, it ended up as a mess (and a mess that i have no idea how to clean up). Those who know me, you sure have assess to my Facebook, right? There, you can view photographs of me in Dubai ;) And those who don't mind giving me private tuition on how to set up and manage a tag board, do drop me an email, yea?
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
The Difference in Dubai
Weather
Needless to say, most people know that Dubai is hot place to live in. When I first arrived, I found the weather quite similiar to sunny Singapore and tolerable. However, since last week, it got noticably hotter. I was out with my companions waiting for a cab. I felt as if my skin and feet were burning! Am I glad that we managed to hop into an aircon cab after a long wait! Unlike before when I would readily go out for groceries or shopping in the afternoon, now I think twice before venturing out. I have already tanned! With just twenty minutes of sun exposure out of 4 days in a week! The sun and UV here are indeed merciless! Have started applying sunblock on my arms, neck and even feet whenever I go out. Now, the next item I am gonna get is an umbrella. The last I checked at Carrefore, it was out of stock :( My housemates joked that perhaps we need to get a veil like the local ladies here...
Nowadays, even shower water gets close to boiling-point hot! And I have not even switched on the heater at all! *Sigh* The thought of going for showers feels punishing! Will need to prepare shower waters in advance to prevent my skin from getting cooked!
Don't believe the cold water indicator in washing machines here. Thanks to the weather, you get hot water when you opt for cold water to wash your clothing.
Despite my complaints, there are also good points about the weather. If I hang my wet jeans out in the sun, it dries completely within an hour. And this afternoon, I have just thawed my frozen chicken out in the sun :> I took it back after 20 minutes, just in case it gets cooked! :p
Taxi
For getting around, taxi is a more common mode of transport than buses. Some bus stops are actually airconditioned! Dubai is building the train line (they call it 'Metro') but it won't be ready until a few years more :( There are no sight of motorcycles here, probably due to the excruciating hot weather.
Here, it is a common thing that taxi drivers are new to Dubai. Thus, my hubby ended up guiding taxi drivers to our destinations most of the time. In terms of getting around, I have to say hubby is good ;) However, if you do not know how to get to your destination or have no idea of any nearby landmarks, all the best to you...
Another difference here is that the taxis driven by women serves primarily women passengers only. They will drive male passengers on condition that there are female companions.
Mosque Speakers
In neighbourhood and shopping malls, from time to time, you get to hear Muslim prayers or chanting. Though Singapore includes Muslim as one of its religions, I have not seen such an intensity in the Malay Kampong Glam area in Singapore.
Shopping Malls
Am sure that most have heard about the great shopping in Dubai :) Among the bigger malls, I've been to 2 thus far. 1 had been upstaged by the other. The other has less than a year to enjoy the honour of being the biggest shopping mall in Dubai, before it get upstaged by another bigger mall next year. The current biggest mall, Mall of Emirates, is so big that I can imagine it 4 times bigger than VivoCity... and I have not covered the entire place despite having been there for more than 3 times, thus it could be more than 4 times bigger than Singapore's VivoCity.
There is a strange mall here that really surprised me. This huge mall is situated in the midst of desert roads! You can be driving for an hour on roads where you see only sands and dried up shrubs and then suddenly, you see this shopping mall. Despite its obscure location, its huge carpark is almost full on off work days. Even on week nights, there are a good number of shoppers.
I have been on roads where the surroundings are true blue deserts. It reminded me so much of the scenes in the movie, No Country For Old Man. I have seen camels wondering in the desert too! :) Wonder who feeds them and how they survive. They looked so thin :s
That's about all for now. Very soon, there may be more developments and I will post again!
Needless to say, most people know that Dubai is hot place to live in. When I first arrived, I found the weather quite similiar to sunny Singapore and tolerable. However, since last week, it got noticably hotter. I was out with my companions waiting for a cab. I felt as if my skin and feet were burning! Am I glad that we managed to hop into an aircon cab after a long wait! Unlike before when I would readily go out for groceries or shopping in the afternoon, now I think twice before venturing out. I have already tanned! With just twenty minutes of sun exposure out of 4 days in a week! The sun and UV here are indeed merciless! Have started applying sunblock on my arms, neck and even feet whenever I go out. Now, the next item I am gonna get is an umbrella. The last I checked at Carrefore, it was out of stock :( My housemates joked that perhaps we need to get a veil like the local ladies here...
Nowadays, even shower water gets close to boiling-point hot! And I have not even switched on the heater at all! *Sigh* The thought of going for showers feels punishing! Will need to prepare shower waters in advance to prevent my skin from getting cooked!
Don't believe the cold water indicator in washing machines here. Thanks to the weather, you get hot water when you opt for cold water to wash your clothing.
Despite my complaints, there are also good points about the weather. If I hang my wet jeans out in the sun, it dries completely within an hour. And this afternoon, I have just thawed my frozen chicken out in the sun :> I took it back after 20 minutes, just in case it gets cooked! :p
Taxi
For getting around, taxi is a more common mode of transport than buses. Some bus stops are actually airconditioned! Dubai is building the train line (they call it 'Metro') but it won't be ready until a few years more :( There are no sight of motorcycles here, probably due to the excruciating hot weather.
Here, it is a common thing that taxi drivers are new to Dubai. Thus, my hubby ended up guiding taxi drivers to our destinations most of the time. In terms of getting around, I have to say hubby is good ;) However, if you do not know how to get to your destination or have no idea of any nearby landmarks, all the best to you...
Another difference here is that the taxis driven by women serves primarily women passengers only. They will drive male passengers on condition that there are female companions.
Mosque Speakers
In neighbourhood and shopping malls, from time to time, you get to hear Muslim prayers or chanting. Though Singapore includes Muslim as one of its religions, I have not seen such an intensity in the Malay Kampong Glam area in Singapore.
Shopping Malls
Am sure that most have heard about the great shopping in Dubai :) Among the bigger malls, I've been to 2 thus far. 1 had been upstaged by the other. The other has less than a year to enjoy the honour of being the biggest shopping mall in Dubai, before it get upstaged by another bigger mall next year. The current biggest mall, Mall of Emirates, is so big that I can imagine it 4 times bigger than VivoCity... and I have not covered the entire place despite having been there for more than 3 times, thus it could be more than 4 times bigger than Singapore's VivoCity.
There is a strange mall here that really surprised me. This huge mall is situated in the midst of desert roads! You can be driving for an hour on roads where you see only sands and dried up shrubs and then suddenly, you see this shopping mall. Despite its obscure location, its huge carpark is almost full on off work days. Even on week nights, there are a good number of shoppers.
I have been on roads where the surroundings are true blue deserts. It reminded me so much of the scenes in the movie, No Country For Old Man. I have seen camels wondering in the desert too! :) Wonder who feeds them and how they survive. They looked so thin :s
That's about all for now. Very soon, there may be more developments and I will post again!
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