Dubai expat life

Annual leave is great if it’s your own

May 23, 2012

One of the best things about working in Dubai, if you ask me is the annual leave (free trip home, baby!). Companies give employees 30 days of paid leave every year* + airplane tickets to their home country. Wonderful, isn’t it? While an expat in Japan, I didn’t have that luxury (as expats in most [...]

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No nudity in gym changing rooms

May 7, 2012

So I was back to my usual routine at the gym (toned down intensity, however) last week. It feels good to be back and I feel a surge of energy…right after the grueling muscle pain that lasted for days, of course. Not much has changed except that the weights have increased in number but it’s [...]

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Persimmon in Dubai

April 22, 2012

One of things I love living in Dubai is being able to eat so many kinds of fruits, no matter what the season is. Pretty neat considering we live in the desert. Look what I found at the grocery store: Persimmons! It goes by the name “Kaka” here, just a wee bit different to what [...]

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The 7 Stages of Cancelling Travel Plans

March 12, 2012

1. Fear – The trip to the airport on baby’s sleeping time. The probable cries of hunger and demand of feeding regardless if I’d be covered or not (boob flashing could get me in trouble so yeah, tough). The long hours on the plane, the number of diaper changes I need to make, yada, yada, [...]

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Finding work in Dubai, Part 2

February 29, 2012

You’ve read about the weird part, now on to the serious, no non-sense topic on how to find a job in Dubai. Here are some scenarios, tips and word(s) of caution. 1. First, beware of scams – NEVER pay any amount for those ‘consultancy’ companies offering to receive your CV and finding a job on [...]

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Finding work in Dubai, Part 1

February 27, 2012

A friend of mine is here in Dubai right now looking for a job. She is my best pal I haven’t seen in more than ten years. Now, we are enjoying time together (she’s staying at my house) and I really hope she’ll find a job so she can stay. I’m helping her search for [...]

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Five years and counting

January 13, 2012

Today, FIVE years ago, we landed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Honestly? I can’t believe we are still here. Not that I want to be somewhere else right now but when I look back at what I was thinking when we first set foot here, it’s unbelievable. We thought our stint would be short, like [...]

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Expat life and saying goodbye

December 27, 2011

Yesterday, I have discovered the single hardest thing about being an expat in a fab place so many people call home, including us. We gain friends, enjoy those friendships and develop deep bonds as the years roll by. We are all expatriates, people in a foreign land who share stories of the ups and downs, [...]

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