Job Discussion Forums

housecat · Joined: 03 Jan 2007 Posts: 104 Location: usa

Might I ask you guys to do me a favor? Can you please discribe one typical work day and one typical free day? I'd like to hear from married people, single people, and children with and without children, and a day in the life of a foreigner child.

I'm looking for something of how you experience your life. I understand that most foreigners join hotel clubs, but is there anything other than this or shopping? What is the club/shopping experience like?

Thank you!!

kiefer · Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 268

Housecat,
I would love to talk about me especially to someone who A. references cats and B. the Beatles.
But could you be more specific? Do you have a particular UAE city in mind? Start there.

housecat · Joined: 03 Jan 2007 Posts: 104 Location: usa

[quote="kiefer"]Housecat,
I would love to talk about me especially to someone who A. references cats and B. the Beatles.
But could you be more specific? Do you have a particular UAE city in mind? Start there.[/quote]

Wink

I think I'd like to be in Al Ain. I have a five year old son and I'm a single mom. Does that help?

like2answer · Joined: 21 Sep 2006 Posts: 154

Single female - no children

BZZZ BZZZ "Dang, it's 6AM and I gotta go to work".
7 - gotta get on the road fast or I'll hit school and work traffic.
7:05 - get to car and drive 30 min to work on a bad day, 15 min on a good day. Listen to the Beatle's Greatest Hits on the way.
7:30 - Ahhh, this Starbucks coffee on campus sure is good.
Lesson plan, check emails, chat.
Four hours of classes. The students actually listened and did their work. Ah, what an excellent day. I like my job. I had no meetings nor did I have any rude emails from management. I think I'll stay here for years!
3:30- I like going home. My free apartment/flat is sunny and nice.
3:45- I found parking. I'm so happy.
3:50 - putter around home. Clean stuff. Check TV or internet for news bits
5:00 - work out
7:00 - have dinner with friends
9:00- go home
10 - go to bed

BZZZZZ - "What? Oh right. It's Friday. I don't work today or tomorrow. Nice"
8:00 - get out of bed
9:00 - meet friend for breakfast (non - ramadan). Sit in the sun and eat food and chat about world topics. Try to avoid talking about work.
11: - home, do laundry, ironing, dusting. Wonder what I'd do if I had a maid.
2:00 - eat some sort of food. Remember I have no food in the house so go shopping.
4:00 - maybe watch a DVD, TV, call a friend, go to the movies, walk around a mall.
6:00 - work out
8:00 eat dinner alone. Think maybe I should move back to my country to get a boyfriend/husband.
8:30 Think better of the above idea and think I should just stay single and happy.
9:00 - check emails
10 - go to bed

Yes, very exciting life... but just as exciting as my life would be in any country I lived in. Some people go out drinking, dancing, finding hook ups. Some people go to church, work for Feline Friends (helping cats), and help children. How you are in your country will be basically how you are here.

Tumblashu's parents · Joined: 09 Jul 2008 Posts: 40

Single mom means you won't get a work permit. As far as I know.

like2answer · Joined: 21 Sep 2006 Posts: 154

What does "single mom" mean?
Never married. Correct -no work visa probably.
Divorced mom - need a waver from X hubby.

housecat · Joined: 03 Jan 2007 Posts: 104 Location: usa

[quote="like2answer"]What does "single mom" mean?
Never married. Correct -no work visa probably.
Divorced mom - need a waver from X hubby.[/quote]

Uhem. Divorced mom, then. Don't need waver--have sole custody. Thanks very much for the one, very good, reply so far. Thanks also for the lesson in the importance of semantics.

Please, tell me more!

kiefer · Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 268

I'm waiting for part 2 of Liketoanswer's answer. Single female with child AND prefers not to hire a live-in maid for a couple hundred bucks a month to take on all child rearing responsibilities.

(On a side note, non appropos to this thread--anyone new to the Dubai/Sharjah scene need a kitten or cat? PM me. I do work for Feline Friends and I'll hook you up)

LTA?

housecat · Joined: 03 Jan 2007 Posts: 104 Location: usa

[quote="kiefer"]I'm waiting for part 2 of Liketoanswer's answer. Single female with child AND prefers not to hire a live-in maid for a couple hundred bucks a month to take on all child rearing responsibilities.
LTA?[/quote]

I'm not REAL sure I get that, but it sounds a bit sour. I can't immagine a single mom wouldn't hire a maid--but I'd think that she'd need someone to get the child from school as she'd likely not be able to leave work to do this, right?

I think stating that a single mother might hire a maid to, "take over all parental responsibilities," is crass no matter how you meant it. If I'm nieve, please allow me to stay this way.

Umm Banat · Joined: 18 May 2007 Posts: 28

Hi Housecat,
Even though you have sole custody, you are very likely to need a waiver from the father before you can sponsor your child into the country.
This can make things tricky especially when dads are missing, whereabouts unknown.

Be careful to check out the school / college you are thinking of going to.
Some are great, some dreadful!

Expat family life in Al Ain is good for kids. They will have a busy social life. yours will be what you make of it.

UB

veiledsentiments · Joined: 20 Feb 2003 Posts: 17644 Location: USA

herenow · Joined: 19 Jun 2007 Posts: 22

Like2answer I think you described it about right. That is -- life in the UAE is much like it is anywhere else. You have your habits. Some days work and leisure are great and some days you wonder what is the point.

The big difference is that as you go about your daily life here, you get to interact with or just observe people from alot of other cultures going about their lives as well. I can't imagine a more enriching experience for children than the ability to meet and make friends from a variety of countries and cultures.

Also, there seems to be a lot of holidays and the UAE, because of its location, makes a great place to live while having relatively easy access to other countries if you like to explore.

773 · Joined: 29 May 2005 Posts: 213

Hi housecat,

Here are a few more things to do in Al Ain that I can think of offhand:

- 9-hole golf club (green!!!), soon to be 18-hole (they also have a driving range and an instructor there who gives lessons to newbies)

- The Rugby Club, which has children's and adult rugby teams, a swimming pool, gym, scuba diving lessons, quiz nights, etc.

- Jebel Hafeet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jebel_Hafeet)

- Hash House Harriers

- Natural History Club

- Movie theaters (2 that I know of)

- Choral Society

- Camel and greyhound racing

- Al Ain Zoo

- Al Ain Museum

- Hili Fun City (for children)

Also, you can go desert camping, take a drive over the border to Oman, visit camel markets, ice skate at the Al Ain Mall (for kids mostly), and, hmmm...I am sure there is other stuff I am forgetting. Anyone want to help me out?

kiefer · Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 268

The operative word is "all" in "all child rearing responsibilities. Perhaps it's a good thing being fluent in Tagalog and English or English and Sinhalese, but when your kid actually prefers the maid tuck them in at night, I'll be crass and suggest that's neglect. It happens.

colt · Joined: 27 Jan 2007 Posts: 86 Location: Milky Way

I know from personal experience, you will need documents from father relinquishing his custody. These documents will have to be "authenticated" by some government entity in you home country. The middle eastern countries are enamored with government agency stamps all over official documents. This may present a problem as not all western countries have a process for authenticating documents other than notarization. I got a stamp maker to create an elaborate stamp, and then put postage stamps on the document and stamped away with phony stamp. The visa people were satisfied with that.

Good Luck!