Once Upon a Ramadan

Our move halfway across the world was daunting to say the least, but we were not prepared for the commencement of Ramadan a week later. We arrived on the 3rd of September and Ramadan started on the 12th. During this time public eating, drinking, smoking, and displays of affection are prohibited. PDA - not a problem...smoking...fine, but EATING! Eeek. We hadn't checked out of the hotel yet and luckily the hotel restaurants still serve food, but block the view with curtains so that Muslims do not see people eating. The next day we had planned to move into our villa, but air freight had not arrived so I had nothing to cook with and nowhere to eat during the day.

The most fun part of Ramadan is the reduction of working hours. Our cable/internet took weeks to set up because we were scheduled as the last appointment of the day - 2:30 and by the time it was our turn the other appointments had ran longer than they thought so we were moved to the next day. Logically you would think that we would then be the first appointment of the day. No, no, no. Remember logic doesn't translate into arabic. We would still have our 2:30 appointment and surprise, surprise, no internet man.

As if the driving weren't bad enough, during Ramadan, the crazy drivers who haven't eaten all day become maniacs as the sunset approaches. Now that's fun. Even the radio stations warn listeners to stay off the road because the iftar (breaking of the fast) drivers are racing toward dinner.

On the last day of Ramadan which coincided with my birthday, we headed to the mall to shop for a coffee table and some end tables. After selecting the tables and paying, the worker asked if we wanted delivery on the morning or evening of the 22nd of Oct. It was the 12th. I told him I wanted it next week, and of course they were unable "because of Ramadan". But it's over I told him. Yes, madam, but we are backed up from when it was still happening. Fabulous.

It wasn't all bad though. Kel's company hosted an iftar at a hotel on the beach. It was held in a huge, air conditioned tent with carpets all over the floor and mini tents inside. The food was delicious and the views were gorgeous.

Friday Market

Even though becoming a resident here has been a bit challenging, we have had some fun. A couple of weeks ago we decided to head out to Friday Market in search of some rugs. The villa is all tile and we wanted some cushion for Dylan since hel'll be crawling soon. We were told that Friday Market had tons of rugs, produce, pottery, and other souvenir type items.

We head out on Saturday morning with only a vague idea of where we're going. Some friends went with us who've been here for a little over a year, so we felt somewhat more confident in finding our location. However, they'd never been either, and it's not like you can mapquest with any kind of success here. Roads are rarely named, and the maps are so outdated they are not extremely reliable. Most directions are given by way of landmarks. At the round about near the Dubai Land Advertisement turn left....at LuLu's Hypermarket go straight....when the road dead ends, take a right. The signage on the roads leaves something to be desired as well.

Despite all this I was excited about the drive because we would probably see camels (I hadn't seen a single one since we arrived over two weeks ago) and we were going through the mountains. Great picture opportunities!

About 30 minutes into the drive I finally saw my first camel! There were a group of them laying in the desert, but of course I can't get a picture because we're driving 120 km/hour and we pass by too fast. Not long after the mountains emerged. I've never seen mountains that looked so gray. I don't think I saw one spot of green.

We still hadn't arrived at the Friday Market and communications in the car were starting to break down. Just as our frustration level peaked, the Friday Market appeared on the side of the highway (literally). No parking lots -just gravel on the side of the road.

After "parking", Dylan is loaded into our snugli thing since I don't think the stroller will work and we begin scoping out all the rugs. There were at least 25 stalls lining one side of the highway with rugs. We finally agree on a color scheme and start looking for a pattern we like. The guys working the stalls make clicking noises at you to get your attention. We follow one and he holds a rug out of the way and we are in a back "room".

I'm not sure it crossed our minds before we left that this would be an open air market. The stalls had two side walls and a ceiling. The lack of AC was apparent quickly. Of course, since our timing was planned so well, we arrived at one in the afternoon. The heat in the stalls was stifling, but in the back room it was like a greenhouse. It's decided that someone will sit in the air conditioned car with the baby while the rest of us look. Kel and I find a rug we like and as we're admiring it laying on the floor, it dawns on us that we forgot to measure our rooms. Nice. After several scientific methods of approximating the dimensions - walking across the rug counting steps, holding arms extended...we decide on the size we think we'll fit.

Then, the bargaining begins. We start at half of what the guy tells us and move slowly up. He tells me that this rug is so high quality that my son will have it for his children. Uh huh. With the price agreed upon we take off and head to Fujairah which is on the opposite coast of Dubai. We walked along the beach and could see Iran in the hazy distance across the water.

We drove north along the coast and stopped at Le Meridien for a late lunch. It's a beautiful resort right on the beach with an amazing pool area.

I'm sorry there are no camel pictures yet! I'm working on it!

Dylan's 5 month update and pictures

I can't believe it, but Dylan is already approaching 6 months! The time is flying by and he's growing so fast.

He rolled over from his back to his belly on August 31st and there's been no going back. He is now exclusively a belly sleeper. I know he'll be crawling soon. He pushes up on his arms until they're straight and can stay like that for a decent amount of time. Today he kicked one of his legs and moved a little bit. I know I'll be chasing him around the villa in no time. I'm going to have to go buy the gates for the stairs! He also can sit up for about 30 seconds and then he tips over. He's learned to put his hands down to brace himself, but his head makes him a little top heavy.

He loves his exersaucer and plays with his toys. He loves to beat his rattle against the exersaucer. He reaches for toys and attempts to move closer to get them. Everything is going into his mouth now. I'm having a difficult time with that because I'm such a germ freak. I guess I'll have to get over it.

We started him on some solids about 2 weeks ago and he is loving it! He tries to grab the spoon himself and ends up covered in food. He eats sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, bananas, and pears. He didn't like broccoli by itself, but when I mix it with carrots or sweet potatoes he's fine. I've been making his food myself and really enjoy it! It's cheaper and I know exactly what's in it.

He's on a pretty good routine now and sleeps from about 9pm until 7:30 or so. At his checkup a week before his 5 month birthday he was 14.1 pounds and 24 inches long.

He laughs now and loves it when you play airplane with him.

We're looking forward to 6 months so he can go to the pool. The baby pool here has a nice canopy over it and the pools are cooled so they stay comfortable. It's still pretty hot here, but the mornings and evenings feel pretty nice.

He knows his name and usually looks at Kel when I ask him where daddy is. He is looking forward to a visit from Grandma Debbie in a few weeks and will be back in Houston for his first Christmas!

Stay posted for the 6 month update!

Don't drink the water

Preface - I apologize for these early blogs because some of them are out of order due to the fact that it took three weeks to get internet access in the villa.

After the AC "repair men" leave on the first day, Kel and I decide to take a shower so we can run some errands. We had originally planned on getting out earlier in the day, but the guys were supposed to be there "in five minutes". Anyway, we jump in the shower and as I'm shaving a leg, the water slows to a trickle. I look at Kelly and he's washing his face. Luckily, I had finished everything else and aside from one hairy leg I was clean.

I turn the faucet off and on - nothing. Ok, great. "There isn't any water is there?" Kel asks.
"Don't think so. Let me dry off and I'll see what I can get out of the sink." I am able to wet a wash cloth (barely) with water so he can rinse off his face. Figures. No big deal, we'll call the maintenance people tomorrow and it will be fixed. There's nothing that can be done tonight.

First thing in the morning I call the Ranches maintenance people. I tell them the situation and ask what time someone can be out there. I know what you're thinking....they'll be there in 5 minutes, but no, I get the worst response possible in Dubai..."they'll be there as soon as possible". I start yelling at the guy about how I need running water now because I have a baby. He won't give me an approximate time and I ask for a three hour window. "Madam, I cannot give you a time window, they'll be there as soon as possible."

I give up and realize that I'll probably be sitting at the villa without a shower until the evening. However, I was pleasantly surprised when the workers showed up about an hour later. I explain the lack of water and of course I have to show the guy how nothing comes out of the faucet. He goes back outside and lifts this big steel cover and points down in it. "It's too low."

I was under the faulty impression that our water came from pipes. Apparently there's a cistern in the front that is filled from who knows where. From what I could understand, the automatic sensor was not functioning and the water fell below the intake and therefore we lost water pressure. I was a little concerned about the cistern being in the carport - I'm thinking leaking oil and crap from our cars, but then I notice it has a plastic shield that fits below the steel manhole cover thing.

The guy goes to some other little box outside and turns something then he starts clanging the metal stick he used to get the cover off down in the cistern on the pipe. It starts filling up, but now the pump has to be reprimed and started.

They open this little metal storage box and start working on the pump. They need to rinse off part of the pump so one of the guys turns on our outside faucet. He lets it run for a minute while checking on the pump. I'm watching from the step when I realize that the water running down the dirty driveway is headed to the uncovered cistern. I shout at the guys that I don't think that water is supposed to get in there and they both start yelling at each other (I don't understand what they're saying) and one turns off the faucet and watches the water as it comes periously close to flowing in. The flood ebbs and the nasty water misses the cistern by about an inch. The cover is raised a bit, so the ledge helped keep the water out. What would have happened if I hadn't been out there? I'm sure we'd be sick and not know how.

I told Kel that we will not be drinking the tap water anymore. Bottled water here is so cheap anyway.

Chillin' in the desert

After the Young Frankenstein looking electricity handle was slammed down and the electricity hummed on, we discovered that we had a "few" AC problems. No central air. Ok, no problem. It will be easier to cool the villa with 4 units. Ha! Maybe if 4 were working. Out of the 4 only 1 is functioning normally.

The AC "repairman" arrives with his little entourage. They first decide to check the filter by standing barefoot on my kitchen counter. How else would he get to the filter in the ceiling? The group moves upstairs and the boss man sits on our bed making phone calls while his little workers are climbing like monkeys out on our 2nd floor patio trying to get to the roof. Ladders are for sissies.

After an hour one of the guys comes down and reaches his hand up to feel the air flow. He nods his head at Kelly and Kelly puts his hand up. The flow of air is only slightly cooler than the air outside at 2 in the afternoon. Kelly shakes his head no. The guy mutters to himself and heads back upstairs. Again he comes down and decides that it will be easier to feel the air if he's standing on top of my living room chair. (ladders are for sissies, remember?) He is kind enough to take off his disgusting sandles, but when I see his feet I wish he hadn't.

After 3 hours of repairs, the boss man comes to tell us that he doesn't have the right part for one of the units. It takes many hand motions and repetition for us to finally understand that while our downstairs AC unit was sort of working, it now must remain off and there will be no AC. I'm not really sure what was accomplished in the 3 hours of labor, but I'm trying to be patient. They will return at 11 the next day.

At noon I call. "We're 5 minutes away." At 1pm I get a call and the AC guy is stuck at the gate because the guard won't let him in. Kelly is at work and I'm without a car so I have to walk to the gate with the baby and wave to the guard. I love this place!

The boss man has a different worker with him and I'm surprised to see that this guy likes the ladders. Finally the unit is on and appears to blowing cold air. The boss man comes downstairs and begins to climb on my chair to test the air. I tell him to get off my furniture and get his damn ladder.

Another 3 hours and I'm beginning to think that maybe we'll be able to make it through the day needing only one shower and the baby can wear clothes instead of just a diaper.