Tomorrow night Bss and the kids are finally arriving, so I was looking forward to this three-day weekend. Then this afternoon the university housing department called me about 2:00 to go see a new villa. It is just a little west of here, and I really liked it, so I agreed to move there.
So they handed me the keys and told me that I have to get out of this place before Sunday, so Bss and the kids are will get to travel all day tomorrow, then help move on Friday.
This blog began as a description of our life in Al Ain, UAE (United Arab Emirates). Brn worked at the UAE University Libraries Deanship for three years and Bss homeschooled our four children, D, B, P, and O. After returning to the the USA for five years, we are living in Abu Dhabi now.
2006/08/30
2006/08/29
Roundabouts of Al Ain #12
Sheikh Mubarak Roundabout
This roundabout is one block north of the Baladiya Roundabout.
The center of the roundabout is a statue of an incense burner, with beautiful landscaping and flowers.
This roundabout is one block north of the Baladiya Roundabout.
The center of the roundabout is a statue of an incense burner, with beautiful landscaping and flowers.
Roundabouts of Al Ain #11
Baladiya Roundabout
Baladiya is Arabic for Municipality, and this roundabout is just north of the Al Ain Municipality building.
These flowers that ring the roundabout look very similar to the impatiens that we had back home.
In the middle are these birds (ibises maybe?). When I first got here last year, I saw this and thought baladiya must mean birds.
Baladiya is Arabic for Municipality, and this roundabout is just north of the Al Ain Municipality building.
These flowers that ring the roundabout look very similar to the impatiens that we had back home.
In the middle are these birds (ibises maybe?). When I first got here last year, I saw this and thought baladiya must mean birds.
2006/08/27
Roundabouts of Al Ain #10
Diwan Roundabout
This is another roundabout/overpass combination, like the Jebel Roundabout, and it is actually on the same road, just one block closer to Abu Dhabi.
I can't say that I completely understand exactly what the Diwan is, because I get different answers from everyone that I ask. It seems to combine some aspects of government offices and a majlis.
This brownish round building is the new Diwan (the older one is right next to it, just out of the picture).
The upper level has two fountains:
And just the other side of the rail from the fountain are step fountains down to the road level.
The old Diwan is the square building to the left of the new Diwan
This is another roundabout/overpass combination, like the Jebel Roundabout, and it is actually on the same road, just one block closer to Abu Dhabi.
I can't say that I completely understand exactly what the Diwan is, because I get different answers from everyone that I ask. It seems to combine some aspects of government offices and a majlis.
This brownish round building is the new Diwan (the older one is right next to it, just out of the picture).
The upper level has two fountains:
And just the other side of the rail from the fountain are step fountains down to the road level.
The old Diwan is the square building to the left of the new Diwan
2006/08/26
Roundabouts of Al Ain #9
Zoo Roundabout
The Zoo Roundabout is just outside the entrance to the Al Ain Zoo. It is a huge roundabout, so it is hard to see details in this picture.
It has statues of animals (giraffes, zebras, deer) scattered around the landscaping.
The level of detail of the animals is pretty impressive. For example, check out the mane of this zebra, which no one is ever going to see from the road.
Not that it has anything to do with the roundabout itself, but something that I noticed that I want to point out: did you notice in the second photo that one of the posts in the r/a was knocked over? I didn't when I was taking it, but as I was walking away, I did.
Then as I got further away, I noticed the tire tracks in the grass and the skid marks leading up to it.
I couldn't figure out how someone had driven up there, since it didn't line up with the road leading into the roundabout, so I walked back further to see:
I have no idea what the guy (I'm guessing that it was a guy) was thinking here, but he apparently didn't notice the roundabout upcoming and didn't even hit his brakes until he was just a couple of feet from the curb. I'm betting that this was a pretty exciting ride, ending with a pretty close view of the zebra.
The Zoo Roundabout is just outside the entrance to the Al Ain Zoo. It is a huge roundabout, so it is hard to see details in this picture.
It has statues of animals (giraffes, zebras, deer) scattered around the landscaping.
The level of detail of the animals is pretty impressive. For example, check out the mane of this zebra, which no one is ever going to see from the road.
Not that it has anything to do with the roundabout itself, but something that I noticed that I want to point out: did you notice in the second photo that one of the posts in the r/a was knocked over? I didn't when I was taking it, but as I was walking away, I did.
Then as I got further away, I noticed the tire tracks in the grass and the skid marks leading up to it.
I couldn't figure out how someone had driven up there, since it didn't line up with the road leading into the roundabout, so I walked back further to see:
I have no idea what the guy (I'm guessing that it was a guy) was thinking here, but he apparently didn't notice the roundabout upcoming and didn't even hit his brakes until he was just a couple of feet from the curb. I'm betting that this was a pretty exciting ride, ending with a pretty close view of the zebra.
2006/08/25
Roundabouts of Al Ain #8
Sheikha Salama Mosque Roundabout
This roundabout is named after the Sheikha Salama Mosque, which was built in honor of Sheikh Zayed's mother. You can see the mosque in the right of the picture below and you can see some more pictures of it in this post from last year.
The roundabout is centered around a spectacular fountain.
One side of the roundabout is taken up with the mosque, the other three sides are covered in fountains.
This roundabout is named after the Sheikha Salama Mosque, which was built in honor of Sheikh Zayed's mother. You can see the mosque in the right of the picture below and you can see some more pictures of it in this post from last year.
The roundabout is centered around a spectacular fountain.
One side of the roundabout is taken up with the mosque, the other three sides are covered in fountains.
2006/08/22
Fire wrap up
Thank you to everyone for your nice comments of support (and use of the cleaner - I may get back to you about that Jen, thanks) after the fire. Just a quick update and wrap up.
On Friday I ended up having five people come to help (apparently word got around that there was money to be made), so the most of the work (and all of the big stuff) was done in just by early afternoon. Most of the first floor still needs to be painted, and the end of the house that had the fire is now completely empty. I finally got the kitchen cleaned up yesterday and all the laundry rewashed.
Beginning of the week I went to the housing department and they have agreed to let me move, but first I had to get a copy of the police report. So I went out to the Maqam police station and there discovered that despite the fact that there were at least a half-dozen officers present, the police did not file a report on the fire. So I spent about four rather pleasant hours with an investigative sargent practicing my Arabic and helping him practice his English.
Yesterday I went back to housing, but they have put off showing my new places until next week, so it looks like Bss and the kids (who will get here next week) will get to help us move.
On Friday I ended up having five people come to help (apparently word got around that there was money to be made), so the most of the work (and all of the big stuff) was done in just by early afternoon. Most of the first floor still needs to be painted, and the end of the house that had the fire is now completely empty. I finally got the kitchen cleaned up yesterday and all the laundry rewashed.
Beginning of the week I went to the housing department and they have agreed to let me move, but first I had to get a copy of the police report. So I went out to the Maqam police station and there discovered that despite the fact that there were at least a half-dozen officers present, the police did not file a report on the fire. So I spent about four rather pleasant hours with an investigative sargent practicing my Arabic and helping him practice his English.
Yesterday I went back to housing, but they have put off showing my new places until next week, so it looks like Bss and the kids (who will get here next week) will get to help us move.
2006/08/17
Way Too Much Excitement
So, you ever have one of those days when everything goes exactly like you planned, except for one thing? When I got up this morning, I knew what I wanted to do. Get up early, go take some pictures of a few roundabouts before traffic gets too bad, come home, eat some breakfast, read for a while, take a nap, clean the house. And that is exactly how my day went, except that between the nap and the house cleaning, there was the small matter of the house fire. Fortunately I'm fine and the cats are fine and Bss and the kids are still on vacation, and we really didn't lose much more than a few toys and things that happened to be in that room.
This happened in a one of the rooms that I'm not using right now to save power. The door to that part of the house was closed. I was sleeping on the couch, when I heard breaking glass. I thought it was one of the cats knocking something over, so I got up to check the kitchen, and then I smelled smoke. So I opened the door to check it out, and was almost knocked down by a huge cloud of black smoke. I could just see the fire through the smoke. In just a few seconds the entire downstairs was filled with smoke.
So I called the fire department so that they could come put the fire out. It only took about six phone calls by me and five by my neighbors to get them to understand where to come. So almost a half-hour after I first called they finally arrived and put the fire out. There really needs to be a better method of addressing houses here. If someone here had been having a heart attack or stroke or been cut badly, they would have died before help arrived. If you are a free market-loving libertarian like me, you will no doubt not be surprised that it is easier and faster to get a pizza delivered here than the fire department. Once they arrived, the fire brigade was very fast and professional and had the fire out in just a few minutes. One of the firemen was even a student at the university.
So then I got to clean the house, almost like I planned. When the smoke cleared, the entire downstairs was covered in this black stuff from the smoke. You can see the outline of where the carpet was before I took it up. These pictures are from part of the house furthest away from the fire. The rooms closer to the fire were even more thickly covered.
Working together, the watchman for our villas and I got the living room and dinning room cleaned in only about six hours, so that only leaves five more rooms for tomorrow. Fortunately I have two more people coming tomorrow to help with the cleanup.
If you have been reading this blog for a while, you may be thinking that this sounds familiar. Yep, this is the second electrical fire that we have had here this year.
This happened in a one of the rooms that I'm not using right now to save power. The door to that part of the house was closed. I was sleeping on the couch, when I heard breaking glass. I thought it was one of the cats knocking something over, so I got up to check the kitchen, and then I smelled smoke. So I opened the door to check it out, and was almost knocked down by a huge cloud of black smoke. I could just see the fire through the smoke. In just a few seconds the entire downstairs was filled with smoke.
So I called the fire department so that they could come put the fire out. It only took about six phone calls by me and five by my neighbors to get them to understand where to come. So almost a half-hour after I first called they finally arrived and put the fire out. There really needs to be a better method of addressing houses here. If someone here had been having a heart attack or stroke or been cut badly, they would have died before help arrived. If you are a free market-loving libertarian like me, you will no doubt not be surprised that it is easier and faster to get a pizza delivered here than the fire department. Once they arrived, the fire brigade was very fast and professional and had the fire out in just a few minutes. One of the firemen was even a student at the university.
So then I got to clean the house, almost like I planned. When the smoke cleared, the entire downstairs was covered in this black stuff from the smoke. You can see the outline of where the carpet was before I took it up. These pictures are from part of the house furthest away from the fire. The rooms closer to the fire were even more thickly covered.
Working together, the watchman for our villas and I got the living room and dinning room cleaned in only about six hours, so that only leaves five more rooms for tomorrow. Fortunately I have two more people coming tomorrow to help with the cleanup.
If you have been reading this blog for a while, you may be thinking that this sounds familiar. Yep, this is the second electrical fire that we have had here this year.
2006/08/16
Roundabouts of Al Ain #7
Tawam (or Twam, you see and hear both) Hospital Roundabout
Tawam Hospital is a very large hospital on Khalifa Street/Abu Dhabi Road in the far west of Al Ain. This is the last roundabout on the way out of town (or the first, if you are arriving from Abu Dhabi). From what I have been told, the hospital itself is primarily for Emiratis (it has a royal wing), though expats can go there if they are referred by another hospital.
This is a huge roundabout. Compare the size of it with the size of the Deer Roundabout (with the same magnification):
I couldn't get the whole thing into a photo:
but you can see that it has four horse statues, two black, two white, behind a hedge, with palm trees and funky lamps and flower lined walks. Behind the hedge is a large pool that was probably a fountain at one time but now has decayed very badly and is empty.
The expressions on the horses seem a little funny close up (to me any way, and I don't have a lot of experience with horses, so take my impression as you will), either mad:
or happy:
or confused:
I have to admit, I do not like the design of these lamps, and they really seem out of place here with the statues. You can see one of the buildings of the hospital in the background.
While not in the roundabout itself, there are also statues of deer between the entrances and exits of the roundabout:
I also noticed that one of the caretakers/groundskeepers left his water and boots (I took these Friday morning, so I hope that he had the day off). I noticed that I forgot to get any good pictures of the flowers, but the grass and the flowers were beautiful and well maintained.
Tawam Hospital is a very large hospital on Khalifa Street/Abu Dhabi Road in the far west of Al Ain. This is the last roundabout on the way out of town (or the first, if you are arriving from Abu Dhabi). From what I have been told, the hospital itself is primarily for Emiratis (it has a royal wing), though expats can go there if they are referred by another hospital.
This is a huge roundabout. Compare the size of it with the size of the Deer Roundabout (with the same magnification):
I couldn't get the whole thing into a photo:
but you can see that it has four horse statues, two black, two white, behind a hedge, with palm trees and funky lamps and flower lined walks. Behind the hedge is a large pool that was probably a fountain at one time but now has decayed very badly and is empty.
The expressions on the horses seem a little funny close up (to me any way, and I don't have a lot of experience with horses, so take my impression as you will), either mad:
or happy:
or confused:
I have to admit, I do not like the design of these lamps, and they really seem out of place here with the statues. You can see one of the buildings of the hospital in the background.
While not in the roundabout itself, there are also statues of deer between the entrances and exits of the roundabout:
I also noticed that one of the caretakers/groundskeepers left his water and boots (I took these Friday morning, so I hope that he had the day off). I noticed that I forgot to get any good pictures of the flowers, but the grass and the flowers were beautiful and well maintained.
2006/08/14
Roundabouts of Al Ain #6
This is the Deer Roundabout, which is named the Deer Roundabout even though to me it seems pretty obvious that the two animals at the top are Arabian Oryxes (Oryxs? Oryxi? Anyone know what plural form of Oryx?).
It also has four waterfountains, which are a very common feature here in Al Ain.
Unfortunately, like too many of the fountains and roundabouts, it also has a fair bit of decay.
It also has four waterfountains, which are a very common feature here in Al Ain.
Unfortunately, like too many of the fountains and roundabouts, it also has a fair bit of decay.
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