Greetings from the UAE

Traveling on Etihad Airlines

We have been in the UAE now for nine days. Although there are some adjustments with our move we have been warmly received and work with a wonderful company and group of people. After the reasonably comfortable fourteen hour plane ride from Chicago to UAE, we arrived in Abu Dhabi. While arriving at the airport we met twenty other teachers and their families also arriving in Abu Dhabi at the same time. We made a long luggage caravan through the airport, customs, and eventually to our drivers waiting to pick us up.


Now I won't lie, when we stepped outside of the nicely conditioned airspace of the airport lobby, it was like

walking into a Finnish sauna where water is collecting at the roof of your mouth and the pores on your skin immediately begin releasing gallons of water. What makes it bearable is that everyone is sweating buckets just like you and then after a few days you adjust more to the climate. At this time of year there is very high humidity and heat and should only last for a couple more weeks.

Our hotel lobby

As this move requires a lot of coordination with two government agencies and two large corporations there are a multitude of requirements and procedures to complete. Fulfilling these requirements is one thing we have been doing since we have arrived. To best be able to complete these requirements ADNOC has graciously put us up in very nice hotels, with full service, swimming pools, gyms, and laundry service. Kaaren and I have been enjoying our fresh fruit, tabulli, fresh mozzarella cheese, guava juice, sweet melon, saffron rice, and curry lamb, and I can not forget my Turkish coffee for meals.

This week we have been busy in our classrooms preparing for the students that will be here this next Sunday. Both of our schools our only a few years old, with my elementary school having eight hundred students! I will be teaching Second Grade with English, Science, Math, and Social Studies. The other subjects of PE, Art, Music, Arabic, French, and Islam will be taught by those respective teachers. Kaaren has seventh and eighth grade Physics and Chemistry.

There are still a lot of details, fine tuning, and planning ahead, but with God's help everything will get done and we will have a great time. Bismalla Raman Rahim, Saba il-khair (In the name of God, the merciful and compassionate, good night)