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Guest blogging in Dubai by BigSis Kelly
Hi there, thought I would take a stab as a guest blogger on BrotherBillinDubai to give my views on living in Dubai.
This is really very similar to living in SoCal. Worldwide brands [Oakley, Billabong, Starbucks, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Chevrolet dealership, even a Hard Rock Café!] are abundant, even the mall stores whose names that I don’t recognize all have familiar stuff. The marina has a pedestrian zone, everyone seems to have a car, litter is hardly ever seen, everyone speaks English, and there are way more folks that resemble me than I expected. Everyone is friendly and happy to meet relatives of “Mr. Bill”. Formality is king here and instead of introducing himself as Mr. Moran, Bill said “I’m Bill” so he is known as Mr. Bill. I am “The Sister” to the guards downstairs (who were beyond excited to meet me & Nick when we showed up @ 1:30am last night! Who knows what they thought when Bill let them know we were coming in.).
Things that are different…
- The elevators have mistake proof buttons – you hit the wrong floor just push the button again and it unselects the floor. Also the lights in the hallway are automatic, so they go on when you exit the apartment or the elevator – pretty cool!
- The light switches turn on by pushing the bottom of the switch, and they seem never to be where they are expected. Kitchen & bathroom lights are on the outside wall prior to walking in.
- Typically everything is in English and Arabic.
- Make a phone call to a business and you’ll hear…”to continue in English push 2”.
- You can get your car washed by hand for ~$5 while you shop in the mall.
- The bus stops are air-conditioned.
- The central air-conditioning is for the building not the apartment, so there is no place to put an inlet filter.
- Stop signs are tiny compared to the ones in the states.
- It is illegal to pump your own gas.
Bill’s got a blow-up bed and a couch that makes into a queen sized bed…I’m sure he’d put them out for anyone who visits him in Dubai! BSK
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3 comments:
Interesting about the elevators...what a great idea! We were in Oregon in July of 2008 and apparently it is illegal there to pump your own gas also. The attendant said it had something to do with an outdated law that was meant to save a few jobs here and there.
So Brother Bill doesn't live in the middle of nowhere after all??? Well shoot. What the heck should I send in the care packages then? (I know I know Tapatio) :) Kelly - thanks for those details, that's the kind of stuff I love to know about. Can't wait to see you soon! xo sis kt
Forgot a few items...
- the escalators all appear to be off, but when you step on them they begin to work.
- there isn't a 'penny' as we know it so when the tab comes to 18.87 you pay with 20.00 and get 1.00 in change, there is a .50 which I will be brining home (exchange rate is 3.67 Dh to $1 so .50Dh isn't worth much.
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