Our new "flat"

I have so much to share it is hard to keep up! I am going to try to fit it all in, but I want to tell you all the details!

Monday: This was a very exciting day. The night before we found out our living placements. We are assigned to a complex in the city of Al Ain. Although living in the city on the beach would have been nice, Al Ain looks nice as well... and it's free so I can't complain. Al Ain is called the Garden city. It is the second largest in the emirate of Abu Dhabi and fourth largest in the country. It is built around a bunch of oases and has a ton to do.

Monday morning we were so excited as we loaded our bus to go check it out. They had buses for each complex. Our is called Muawjii Villiage. We found our seats and were on our way. Yet, we quickly learned that the AC on the bus was not very powerful and could not keep up during the ride. About 20 min. in and we were already soaked with sweat. On the way there we stopped at a gas station for a restroom break. It was in the middle of nowhere land. There was no food or anything inside, just a drink machine. Luckily the drinks were cold. The toilet was just a porcelain hole in the ground. This was a challenge! I was getting afraid this was a preview of Al Ain, but it wasn't! Here is a picture:

View on the way to Al Ain

When we arrived in Al Ain we stopped near a grocery store. We all went inside for some AC and get drinks and snacks. We had to bring them back on the bus and close the curtains because it is still Ramadan. They then began to hand us our keys. This process took forever because they had to go back and forth between buses and they were missing some people's keys. So we sat for another hour on the hot bus after a two hour ride. My pregnancy stated to kick in and I got very nauseous. I went to wait in the store, but finally we were on our way.

Driving through Al Ain to our place was very beautiful. It is amazing how green middle of the desert can be! When we pulled up we were pleasantly surprised. The complex has gated security and is very clean and new looking. There is underground parking and then building with two floors. We are in building E, flat 70. First floor and right near the fitness center and the pool. You go through big doors into your building and then find your door. As mentioned before, all very nice and clean. We couldn't wait to open ours!

The complex:

The pool: Three days a week for 3 hours has a women's only swim. All other times anyone can swim.

Men's Fitness Center. Women's in downstairs: 

The place is very nice and clean. When you walk in there is a small guest bathroom to your right and a hallway. Then to the right is a tiny kitchen. It is nice through with new counter tops and cabinets. We have to buy our refrigerator and stove... which will have to be tiny. To the left in the living space. Half of it will be our living room and the other half for dining. Also off the hallway in a little alcove for the washer/dryer. At the end of the hallway are two huge bedrooms, each with their own bathroom. There are no closets though,, so we will have to buy wardrobes. That is very common here. The bathrooms are smaller, but they will do. All the floors are tile and there are big windows, although we don't have a good view. But, as stated before, it's free! Also, the apartment was clean, except there looked like there was an explosion in one of the toilets. We told the manager, and after he saw it and had a very funny reaction, he told us it would be cleaned right away. Here are some pics:

Living Room area:

Kitchen;

Bedrooms:

It was funny to hear different people's reactions. In my complex there are mostly teachers... probably at least 20-30 of us new this year. There is also a lot of diversity with people from England, Ireland, Finland, and of course America. Many Americans were disappointed while the Europeans thought they were “lovely.” I head we were they only complex so far in Al Ain that people were placed in that have a pool and fitness center, so I'm very happy!

We had to wait a while for the people who didn't have keys to get some. We have made friends with a lady named LuShana. She has an 8 year old son with her named Xavier who has taken to Shawn. It was cute because he wanted to see our place and know where we were going to live so he can come over. They took awhile to get keys, but it finally worked out. We also had to wait for the other bus of people for our place to arrive because the bus driver got lost! Finally, we had to wait because there were some people complaining they were on the first floor and they wanted the second. Seems silly to me, after all they are all the same. They said it was for safety, but the whole place is very safe. Either way, it was a lot more waiting in the heat and another two hour ride home. We left at 8:30 in the morning and arrived back around4:30, and 99% of that time we were in the heat. Welcome to the desert!

When we got back we showered, got cleaned up, and then headed to the mall. At the mall, we bought ourselves local cell phones. It is very different how it works over here. First you buy the actual phone from a store. I got a cheap Nokia, looks like a Blackberry, and Shawn got a smart-phone so we can have GPS and internet access if needed. Then you pick one of two providers, Etisalat or Du. We went with Etisalat. We went to their store in the mall and you buy a SIM card. Then, because we are doing prepaid, you buy a card with minutes. Also, for Shawn's phone, he has to buy the data each month. He will have to bring it somewhere to have the data loaded on. Also, you don't really buy minutes, you buy units. Calls and texts use these units, but differently then minutes. As I said before, it is different but I am glad to have a local number and a way to contact Shawn. We also pooped by Carrefour for laundry detergent so I can wash clothes in the hotel. We ate dinner in the food court at the mall as well. The mall is interesting because there are a lot of people dressed in traditional clothing and the mall even has rules asking you to be modest, yet all the displays are mannequins wearing short skirts and such. There were even mannequins wearing American flag clothing and bags.

It was an adventure, but the next day was a rest day... nothing planned. Finally I could hit the pool!