AFTER LONG SILNCE...PART 1

HANNES WITH OUR KAR.....


IBN.BATUTA MALL SO BIG THEY TAKE YOU FROM ONE SIDE TO ANOTHER WITH A GOLF CART...NOGAL WITH STARBUCKS COFFEE IN HAND TOO

HANNES IN FRONT OF "RED BUS" WE DID THE REAL "TOURIST NUMBER" FOR A DAY

DUBAI VERSION OF "SUN CITY HOTEL".................

DUBAI CREEK.

TO ALL COMMENTS ( Jinny, Clydene, Gesi and B) ON WHY I WAS MISSNG IN ACTION,THANKS AND HERE GOES....

Sorry for taking so long to update the blog BUT hannes has started with his shifts...They are so good that tonight was the first time he worked since I arrived. I could not have planned this visit any better. Friday was the normal Muslim religious day and his shifts had not stated yet. sateday is the 2nd day of the weekend. Sunday he was not on shift until tonight. we did all the tourist stuff. Is so nice to see him so well rested but he is rearing to go now.
We did Emirates mall by ourselvs in our own car. I nearly crapped in my pants for the traffic but hannes did it the real Dubai way. it is frightning......You have to stay left (fast lane) until your turnoff and then move over to the right to exit the freeway (8 lanes) This happens with very little warning. We also do not know all the roads and off ramps so well so we really did a few sight seeing trips (heavan only nows where we were at times) You weave into the rffic with speed and precision...... I will stay in the taxi's for a wee bit longer....The prado is very big and I must say I feel very safe inside but keep hanging on to the handles just in case. I look like a stuffed animal at times i am sure as my face has very little xpression except absolute fear and only because it is unknown. The cars also use their hooters very regularly as showing hand signs is strictly forbidden......The cars luckily are sound proof so nobody can hear what we say to them and you have to say it without facial expression too.......new one for me too as I love to show how I feel. Try it at home some time and tell any one (Taxi will be good and easy...) in traffic he is an A HOLE with out expression or eye contact........
Gees i thought I have learned a lot but this driving will be another lesson. Luckily I may not drive until i get my Dubai license for insurance purposes. (I sure as hell will not attempt these roads withour insuance coverage) Some tanuilizer might be needed too....For me to get a Dubai drivers license I first need my residence visa.
Will tell yo all about the visa later in this bog entry.
I had lekker krispy kreme dougnuts for breakfast on my first morning here. They are so nice and you have to take a dozen as you save so much money. Six cost 16 Dirhams and 12 cost 18 Dirhams.... So u see I am money wise and always buy 12...........................Hannes and I polish them in no time at all.
We went ut to dinner with friends on my first evening here and we had such a laugh. We should have seen the "writing on the wall" form the start. First 2 palces we went to were either fully booked or not open. The last restaurant we tried had space.................Plenty of space...Did we notice this....NO..... Well dinner was a total fiasco. Food was poor and sevice was even worse. Hannes got the real tail end here. The waitress buggered up his oder every tme. From his drinks order (I mean how difficult is mango juice...) to his food...He was not his accomodating !!!! self either.....I think the Dubai fairy just gave us a miss that night......It was bad and very expensive.
No bleddie wnder the place was so empty to start off with.........
Lesson: never eat in empty restauant.

I love a hose pipe and Hannes has constructed one for me to wash my "HUGE" balconies with. It is a "gardena connection in the bathroom hand shower numbr" It is fantastic. My neighbours top and bottom might not be so happy as I did the full washing nuber yesterday. I hosed the verandah's and windows and railing and all......... was so much fun but I was sopping wet after I finished. So now I can also say we have a outdoor shower in the apartment.........................Hannes still thinks I am crazy but he liked it that i still get excited about a hosepipe. It snakes through the apartment from tap to verandah....... Now I dont have t rinse the verandah with a bucket.... Remeber the vrerandah is so small one bucket of water rinses the whole veradah down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are so smart (Hannes and I) we do not use aifreshner.......At the grocery stores they have a "perfume" counter. These perfumes are cheaper than airfreshner......So we spary perfume in the loo... Ijust think is so over the top don't you? You just have to test them but most of them are really good. So I have a male and female pefume in every loo...You can choose your own brand. Oh and thet are colour co-oredanted toot to suit the bathroom colour scheme....... Don't ever trust gifts of unknown perfumes from Dubai...........................You are warned they might just be my "toilet spray"
We also only drink Starbucks coffee at home too.................That is my all time best........ I trotnto starbucks and have my coffee grounded and take it home......

At Ibn. Battutta Mall (very close to us) they take you from one side to another with a golf cart asit is so big........ I nomally ask hannes to ark far away from "Giant" (grocery store) jut so that I can buy a starbuck's take away and hop on the golf cart to shop.......AND IT IS FREE......

If We thought GOING TO EMIRATES MALL ON A SELF DRIVE WAS CRAZY THE NEXT DAY WE WENT TO KARAMA BAZAAR............on a self drive. I was so prud of yself as I directed hannes purely from memory on how to get there. It is double the distance of Emirates mall from us. I went to see Reza ( my first take me to your leader friend) just to check on new stock........found oe very nice handbags too...... Clydene reza sends lots of regards and want to now when you are comng to Dubai again????????????????

I did al my Visa aplications for residency an boy oh boy.......I needed a medical and had to get to foreigh affairs. Foreigh affais moved building and no taxi driver knew this. Hannes was not the most friendly persons with all this sclepping around. we decided to take a taxi to do this and not drive ourselves as we were like 2 lost farts with trying to get there. Arabic is also not hhe easiest language to read.............................On he forms it is written in Arabic as wherewe have to go.......You just have to trust one helava lot..... Foreigh affairs the first day was closed by the tie we found it..........they clse at 12. The next day bright and early we set ot again to do this......Fond it easy this time around and now you take a number and wait your turn. Lucky ladies have a seperate que.....(We do not have to be in the same que as men........) This is great as the ladies que is short. Most men here do it for there wives so I did not have to wait long. You pay 150 Dirhams (x by 2.8 to get to rand) for a stamp (like postage stamp) and a rubber stamp onto yur paper owrk. I had to do 2 stamps......so for me 300 dirhams. After they have stamed your papers yo get a sweetie........ How cute... Then off to do my medical. That is only and HIV test... All they care about..... hart conditions or diabetis or other stuff dont scare them at all. If HIV is positive you are deported immeadiately............
I should have my visa on Monday "INSHALLAH" Remember here you always say Inshallah. It means god willing but I have come to realise it actually means "possible but I don't think so......"
It will be wonderful if I can gt it as it makes my life very easy. I can then book my flight on the internet and leave at a day's notice and not wait 5 working days for a visitors visa. I can then also get my drivers license ect.
Ending this one now and will continue with part 2 innext blog... NO More space here................
PS. Spell check not working ................deal with it......