So as I'm sure you all know, Samoa is in a pretty bad way at the mo after the tsunami and even though we're half a world away we wanted to do something. John, an amazing Samoan guy living in Dubai - organised SOS - Samoa on Saturday - a touch tourney to fundraise.
It was held at the 7s rugby ground and was well attended. Even made today's National newspaper! I didn't play - sold raffle tickets, cheered teams on (we had two teams from SIP) picked up rubbish! We did well money and donations wise - huge thanks to all!
Chris Cairns was there playing which sent our girls into a tiz! He's still in primo shape and still a nice guy!
Pics atached for your benefit!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
Back to normal...
Well London was great! We did a few touristy things but mosty shopping and relaxing! The weather was nice - we didn't get any rain and while there were a few cloudy spots, it was mostly about 22 degrees during the day which was a welcome relief from the heat here. We just enjoyed being together and eating what we wanted when we wanted (simple but true!)
The weather here has cooled a little which is nice - it's about 35-37 degrees during the day which is much more bearable. School was supposed to have started for the students on Wed but after 3.5 months of being off most of them decided to take two more days! So most schools had between 2-40 students turn up so I'm guessing Sunday will be the day most of them return.
Am enjoying the new role so far - school hours have been extended to about 7.30am-3.30pm s it's nice that I have a bit more flexibility than that.
The weather here has cooled a little which is nice - it's about 35-37 degrees during the day which is much more bearable. School was supposed to have started for the students on Wed but after 3.5 months of being off most of them decided to take two more days! So most schools had between 2-40 students turn up so I'm guessing Sunday will be the day most of them return.
Am enjoying the new role so far - school hours have been extended to about 7.30am-3.30pm s it's nice that I have a bit more flexibility than that.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Outta here!
Finally all the sleeps have been slept, the bag is packed (although it's only half full to leave room for shopping so doesn't really count) and the 5 day weather forecast has been checked!
Really looking forward to going but doesn't seem real - this week has been so hectic! Am loving the new job though - so interesting going into other schools and seeing what they do - some much good stuff happening.
Ramadan finishes this weekend - and while I respect this tradtion - it will be sooooooooo nice to have everything back to as nomal as it gets in this part of the world!
Not much else to say really - kind of been in limbo waiting for the school year to start and for Ramadan to finsih - and for the weather to get just a little cooler! Actually it is down to about 37 at 7pm now - much better for netbll!
Really looking forward to going but doesn't seem real - this week has been so hectic! Am loving the new job though - so interesting going into other schools and seeing what they do - some much good stuff happening.
Ramadan finishes this weekend - and while I respect this tradtion - it will be sooooooooo nice to have everything back to as nomal as it gets in this part of the world!
Not much else to say really - kind of been in limbo waiting for the school year to start and for Ramadan to finsih - and for the weather to get just a little cooler! Actually it is down to about 37 at 7pm now - much better for netbll!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Yes I'm Going Back To...London!
In 17 days (just a wee bit excited!) it will be our first Eid break - to celerbate the end of Ramadan and it's a different story this year from last. Last year I didn't have my passport due to residency pending but this year we're ging to London for the five days!
As you all know, I love London and had a magical time there last December. Brent has been once for a work conference, had an afternoon off and it was raining the whole time and he saw nothing! Well what do you expect for January? So it only takes 7 hours to fly there (through the night) and will be nice and "normal" after some of the exotic places we've been lately.
I'll get to be tour guide and we all know how much I love that! We've got a few things planned including a solid shopping day. I thank my stars that Brent loves shopping too! Have printed off street maps of all the good shopping areas - that have the shops on them in order and started highlighting places I want to go! Yay!
My dear Lisa, who I had so much fun with last time, won't be there - she's leaving London and tripping around for a bit before heading home to NZ. I miss her by 4 days but she showed me some great places (and shops!) last time so I can enjoy those again. (Safe travels hon!)
Work is going fine - school hasn't started yet - such a l-o-n-g break! Am liking my new position and enjoying setting up systems - will be interesting to see how it goes when we actually start going into schools.
We're halfway through Ramadan at the mo - I notice quite a few things that last year I was just too new and overwhelmed to. The shops shut halfway through the day for a while and the hours are all out of kilter! Makes it hard to plan to do jobs etc. Also people who are fasting are hot and tired and irritable - I don't blame them but last year just thought it was par for the course! This year I really empathise with them - especially in this heat.
We may be getting a break in Dec which would be great - we'll go to Japan. My beautiful cousin Liz has just had a baby boy so it will be great to meet him and see the rest of the gang. Plus we can go to Tokyo Disneyland and a bit of shopping! Inshallah that all happens!
Not much else to report - hope you're all well. x
As you all know, I love London and had a magical time there last December. Brent has been once for a work conference, had an afternoon off and it was raining the whole time and he saw nothing! Well what do you expect for January? So it only takes 7 hours to fly there (through the night) and will be nice and "normal" after some of the exotic places we've been lately.
I'll get to be tour guide and we all know how much I love that! We've got a few things planned including a solid shopping day. I thank my stars that Brent loves shopping too! Have printed off street maps of all the good shopping areas - that have the shops on them in order and started highlighting places I want to go! Yay!
My dear Lisa, who I had so much fun with last time, won't be there - she's leaving London and tripping around for a bit before heading home to NZ. I miss her by 4 days but she showed me some great places (and shops!) last time so I can enjoy those again. (Safe travels hon!)
Work is going fine - school hasn't started yet - such a l-o-n-g break! Am liking my new position and enjoying setting up systems - will be interesting to see how it goes when we actually start going into schools.
We're halfway through Ramadan at the mo - I notice quite a few things that last year I was just too new and overwhelmed to. The shops shut halfway through the day for a while and the hours are all out of kilter! Makes it hard to plan to do jobs etc. Also people who are fasting are hot and tired and irritable - I don't blame them but last year just thought it was par for the course! This year I really empathise with them - especially in this heat.
We may be getting a break in Dec which would be great - we'll go to Japan. My beautiful cousin Liz has just had a baby boy so it will be great to meet him and see the rest of the gang. Plus we can go to Tokyo Disneyland and a bit of shopping! Inshallah that all happens!
Not much else to report - hope you're all well. x
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Back into it...
Well it's been full on ever since we got back and the holiday is a very distant memory now! We had a week in the office getting ready for induction, then a week oreintating the new people - which included an old friend of mine Dave, and Kalala's sister in law Beks! So great to have them here and they are part of a very cool group.
This week has been mixing last year's and this year's group together and getting used to working in my new role! I miss the girls I worked with last year - feels very weird not to be sitting with them - but am excited about the new challenges. One so far is that we don't know how my new role is really going to work - so need to all sit down and nut it out.
It's still quite warm here - all the people who have come over from NZ are loving it of course!
Not much else to report - still here, just ticking along... :0)
This week has been mixing last year's and this year's group together and getting used to working in my new role! I miss the girls I worked with last year - feels very weird not to be sitting with them - but am excited about the new challenges. One so far is that we don't know how my new role is really going to work - so need to all sit down and nut it out.
It's still quite warm here - all the people who have come over from NZ are loving it of course!
Not much else to report - still here, just ticking along... :0)
Monday, August 3, 2009
Back to "normal"
So I'm home - in Al Ain - unpacked (that took a few hours!) and have set up my new office. Why? My job has changed this year and I'm now doing cross-cluster advisory work in ICT and SEN so I need a base - the spare room has been tranformed. It was good to have that to carry on with when we got home so I wasn't flat after the holiday.
The holiday was amazing - I don't remember being away for so long like that before. If you've read the blog you've probably guessed that I really liked Santorini and Istanbul, Turkey was great as well. Greece (apart from the islands) and Egypt - I wouldn't be in a rush to do them again. At least now I know and can say I have been there, done that.
Another lesson I learnt is to pack, divide by half, repack and divide by half again! I took FAR too much stuff - when will I get it right?
Have some friends arriving here this week to work for us - quite exciting to get to see them again and help them settle in. Have been trying to get others to come (you know who you are!) but they have prior commitments - which makes me realise how lucky I am to be doing this and how it was obviously meant to be.
It's quite warm here - feel sorry for the people retruning from NZ - taking me a while to adjust - be harder for them!
The holiday was amazing - I don't remember being away for so long like that before. If you've read the blog you've probably guessed that I really liked Santorini and Istanbul, Turkey was great as well. Greece (apart from the islands) and Egypt - I wouldn't be in a rush to do them again. At least now I know and can say I have been there, done that.
Another lesson I learnt is to pack, divide by half, repack and divide by half again! I took FAR too much stuff - when will I get it right?
Have some friends arriving here this week to work for us - quite exciting to get to see them again and help them settle in. Have been trying to get others to come (you know who you are!) but they have prior commitments - which makes me realise how lucky I am to be doing this and how it was obviously meant to be.
It's quite warm here - feel sorry for the people retruning from NZ - taking me a while to adjust - be harder for them!
Monday, July 27, 2009
Cairo
Well after two nights of middle of the night at the airport, we were shattered when we landed in Cairo Sunday morning at 3am. However to come to our lovely 5 star hotel and be staying in an amazing executive suite is making up for it a little bit :0)
We slept most of yesterday and lazed around - unpacked and repacked our bags (due to having room to do it), got laundry done and had an amazing meal in one of the 8 hotel restaurants.
Today we had a personal tour of the Pyramids etc. Much nice to get in a car with a driver and your own guide than a bus load and plan out your day based on what you want to see. We started at the Giza Pyramids which were cool but my highlight was the Sphinx. We then moved on to some earlier pyramids a bit further out, had a nice lunch and visited a papryus place where we learnt how ti's made and brought some.
Our tour guide wanted to show us so much more - such a cool guy - but we were so tired and came back to the hotel early. However we'd seen enough for this trip and we can return anytime.
Tomorrow we're going to catch the hotel shuttle to the centre of the city and check out the bazaars.
Impressions of Cairo? Hot (I'm so gonna die back in UAE), brown (EVERYTHING is) and dirty - rubbish everywhere. Shame really coz it could be so much better. Who knows, I might change my tune tomorrow :0)
We slept most of yesterday and lazed around - unpacked and repacked our bags (due to having room to do it), got laundry done and had an amazing meal in one of the 8 hotel restaurants.
Today we had a personal tour of the Pyramids etc. Much nice to get in a car with a driver and your own guide than a bus load and plan out your day based on what you want to see. We started at the Giza Pyramids which were cool but my highlight was the Sphinx. We then moved on to some earlier pyramids a bit further out, had a nice lunch and visited a papryus place where we learnt how ti's made and brought some.
Our tour guide wanted to show us so much more - such a cool guy - but we were so tired and came back to the hotel early. However we'd seen enough for this trip and we can return anytime.
Tomorrow we're going to catch the hotel shuttle to the centre of the city and check out the bazaars.
Impressions of Cairo? Hot (I'm so gonna die back in UAE), brown (EVERYTHING is) and dirty - rubbish everywhere. Shame really coz it could be so much better. Who knows, I might change my tune tomorrow :0)
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