Thankfully, I don't have to deal with ministries and governmental offices very much. But a couple of weeks ago, I had to contact the ministry of health for some information, and it wasn't exactly the most helpful experience I've ever had.
Here's how the story unravels:
1) I find the phone number of the PR department of the ministry of health in Abu Dhabi. I give them a call. Someone picks up. I ask for the information I needed, he tells me I need to contact a division of the ministry in Dubai, and gives me the name of the person who could help me out. Okay...doesn't sound so bad. I ask for a phone number in Dubai, but the PR person in Abu Dhabi does not have it. Hmm. Isn't he supposed to know the number?
2) Next, I try to find the phone number of the person whose name I have. So I call 181 (which now became 199 by the way), and they give me the ministry's number here in Dubai. So I call...no answer. Call again...no answer. Call a third time...no answer. Call 199 again to ask for the number, to make sure I got it right. They give me the same number again. I call again...and just as I was about to hang up, a lady picks up. Success!
3) Or so I thought. I try to explain to the lady what I'm looking for...as I'm babbling away, I realise that she's put me on hold...I was on hold, while I was babbling away!!!! Like an idiot! So I wait, and wait, and wait....and waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiit....
4) I hang up, thinking that she's forgotten about me. I call again. Another lady picks up, she tells me she's transferring my call to the right department. As she's transferring me, the line cuts.
5) I call again, a lady picks up (is it the first one, the second one, another one? I'll never know), she tells me I need to call another department. I ask her if she has the number, she mumbles something then transfers my call. I wait. And wait. And wait. Finally someone picks up. I ask for the information again. She tells me I have the wrong department and transfers my call again.
6) So I get transferred for the....I don't know, I've lost track of how many times I've been transferred already. I wait. And wait. And wait. A man picks up. Tells me I have the wrong department, I should call another department. I ask for the phone number, he says he doesn't have it. I ask for the number of the person whose name the Abu Dhabi office gave me, luckily, the man has that person's mobile number. Okay. I'm getting somewhere here. My wild goose chase was finally leading me somewhere.
7) I call the person's mobile twice. No answer.
And that is where I'm at. Ten phone calls later, and I still don't have the information I need. I'll try again tomorrow. Wish me luck!
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
740 days...and counting
It's been 2 years (and 10 days) since I moved back to the Emirates. I can't believe it's been 2 years already! One thing I've learned about living in the UAE since I moved here is that time flies. I don't know why, but it seems that time goes by much faster here...
Is it because I'm getting older? Is it because I work harder here? Is it because there are no real seasons, which makes it seem like one whole year feels like just one summer? I don't know...
Last year, I was mostly nostalgic about having moved to the Emirates. My Montreal days were still fresh in my mind, and I was still at the stage where I was comparing my life here to my life there.
It's different now. The nostalgia is gone (except for a few waves here and there). Dubai has grown on me a bit...I have a few good friends here, but nothing like the friendships I had built in Montreal. There's a constant feeling of fleetingness with any relationship that's built here. It seems like the people I meet are here for a short while...they leave after 2, 3, 4, maybe 5 years. So they come here and try to live life to the fullest, keeping themselves busy with work, parties, movies, concerts, events, activities... which is OK in a way, but do they ever take the time to just sit and relax?
All this means that I never feel settled in Dubai...How can you feel settled when everything around you keeps moving? When everyone seems like they're constantly running after something (happiness? something else? who knows...)
And yet, in a way, I'm jealous of all these people who come here, knowing that they're only here for a short time. Because they have a plan. They have somewhere to go to after they've paid their dues here. They have a home to go to. I sometimes ask myself: what's next for me? Where do I go from here?
But I don't have an answer, because I've always said that home is where your family is, and my family is here. And moving somewhere new and starting from scratch becomes more difficult every time.
I don't know where this post is going...and after re-reading it just now, I realise that I am still a bit nostalgic...and that I have rambled on quite enough for one post...
So here's to hoping that next year, I'll still be blogging....and seeing how thing are going, I'll probably be telling you about my 3rd year in Dubai!
Is it because I'm getting older? Is it because I work harder here? Is it because there are no real seasons, which makes it seem like one whole year feels like just one summer? I don't know...
Last year, I was mostly nostalgic about having moved to the Emirates. My Montreal days were still fresh in my mind, and I was still at the stage where I was comparing my life here to my life there.
It's different now. The nostalgia is gone (except for a few waves here and there). Dubai has grown on me a bit...I have a few good friends here, but nothing like the friendships I had built in Montreal. There's a constant feeling of fleetingness with any relationship that's built here. It seems like the people I meet are here for a short while...they leave after 2, 3, 4, maybe 5 years. So they come here and try to live life to the fullest, keeping themselves busy with work, parties, movies, concerts, events, activities... which is OK in a way, but do they ever take the time to just sit and relax?
All this means that I never feel settled in Dubai...How can you feel settled when everything around you keeps moving? When everyone seems like they're constantly running after something (happiness? something else? who knows...)
And yet, in a way, I'm jealous of all these people who come here, knowing that they're only here for a short time. Because they have a plan. They have somewhere to go to after they've paid their dues here. They have a home to go to. I sometimes ask myself: what's next for me? Where do I go from here?
But I don't have an answer, because I've always said that home is where your family is, and my family is here. And moving somewhere new and starting from scratch becomes more difficult every time.
I don't know where this post is going...and after re-reading it just now, I realise that I am still a bit nostalgic...and that I have rambled on quite enough for one post...
So here's to hoping that next year, I'll still be blogging....and seeing how thing are going, I'll probably be telling you about my 3rd year in Dubai!
Monday, April 16, 2007
Blah...
I killed a bird yesterday. The stupid bird just flew into my windshield, as I was driving along the Abu Dhabi/Dubai highway. I saw it coming from the left, and it just hit my windshield with such force, I really thought my windshield would crack!
I was shocked for about 3 minutes, not really realising what had happened. Poor birdie. R.I.P...
That was yesterday morning, the start of what looks like is going to be a very rough week. Work, work, and more work....enough work to last me a lifetime...I've come to the realisation that I hate meetings. Not just because most of them are simply completely useless and a complete waste of time, but also because meetings usually mean that I have to stay an extra 5 hours at work just to try to catch up on the workload. And that was in fact the case yesterday.
And to top things off, I have a horrible back ache that's making me miserable, you know, the kind of back ache that makes you hurt when you take a deep breath...and that woke me up at 5AM this morning. I feel like I'm 70 years old!
And that was just Sunday! I wonder what the rest of the week has in store for me...
I was shocked for about 3 minutes, not really realising what had happened. Poor birdie. R.I.P...
That was yesterday morning, the start of what looks like is going to be a very rough week. Work, work, and more work....enough work to last me a lifetime...I've come to the realisation that I hate meetings. Not just because most of them are simply completely useless and a complete waste of time, but also because meetings usually mean that I have to stay an extra 5 hours at work just to try to catch up on the workload. And that was in fact the case yesterday.
And to top things off, I have a horrible back ache that's making me miserable, you know, the kind of back ache that makes you hurt when you take a deep breath...and that woke me up at 5AM this morning. I feel like I'm 70 years old!
And that was just Sunday! I wonder what the rest of the week has in store for me...
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
You can make a difference - Tip 8
It's been a while since the last You can make a difference tip. My friend S. has been busy....but also a little lazy I suspect.
This edition of you can make a difference tackles a hot topic (pun intended). We've been hearing about global warming for as long as I can remember, but Al Gore's recent documentary "An inconvenient truth" has brought the issue under the spotlight.
Here's what my friend S. had to say about this:
Reports reveal that human activities are behind climate change.
To avoid cooking our pretty planet to the max, switch off the lights, turn off your tv, and shut down your computer while you're out enjoying the sun, moon, stars and other mischievous activities.
Facts: The average home contributes more air pollution than the average car.
Leaving lights on for an extra hour each day over the course of a week releases 20 tonnes of green house gases.
Screen savers do not save energy.
On average, human activities release 70 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a day, every day! Emissions should be cut by 70% to 80% to simply stabilize atmospheric concentrations - and thus temperatures.
Why can’t climate change go unchecked? It's been a while since the last You can make a difference tip. My friend S. has been busy....but also a little lazy I suspect.
This edition of you can make a difference tackles a hot topic (pun intended). We've been hearing about global warming for as long as I can remember, but Al Gore's recent documentary "An inconvenient truth" has brought the issue under the spotlight.
Here's what my friend S. had to say about this:
Reports reveal that human activities are behind climate change.
To avoid cooking our pretty planet to the max, switch off the lights, turn off your tv, and shut down your computer while you're out enjoying the sun, moon, stars and other mischievous activities.
Facts: The average home contributes more air pollution than the average car.
Leaving lights on for an extra hour each day over the course of a week releases 20 tonnes of green house gases.
Screen savers do not save energy.
On average, human activities release 70 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a day, every day! Emissions should be cut by 70% to 80% to simply stabilize atmospheric concentrations - and thus temperatures.
Why can’t climate change go unchecked? This video says it best (for your viewing pleasure: have your glow sticks handy).
To be honest, I didn't realize that I, personally, was contributing so much towards global warming...I'm usually good with switching unnecessary lights off, and I spend all winter with my air conditioning switched off, but my computer is constantly switched on at home...And I'm sure that offices and malls could make the effort of putting the air conditioning down one or two degrees (why should I be wearing sweaters in the middle of the scorching summer??), and we could all make the effort to recycle more (or, in my case, start recycling!)...A little goes a long way...
This edition of you can make a difference tackles a hot topic (pun intended). We've been hearing about global warming for as long as I can remember, but Al Gore's recent documentary "An inconvenient truth" has brought the issue under the spotlight.
Here's what my friend S. had to say about this:
Reports reveal that human activities are behind climate change.
To avoid cooking our pretty planet to the max, switch off the lights, turn off your tv, and shut down your computer while you're out enjoying the sun, moon, stars and other mischievous activities.
Facts: The average home contributes more air pollution than the average car.
Leaving lights on for an extra hour each day over the course of a week releases 20 tonnes of green house gases.
Screen savers do not save energy.
On average, human activities release 70 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a day, every day! Emissions should be cut by 70% to 80% to simply stabilize atmospheric concentrations - and thus temperatures.
Why can’t climate change go unchecked? It's been a while since the last You can make a difference tip. My friend S. has been busy....but also a little lazy I suspect.
This edition of you can make a difference tackles a hot topic (pun intended). We've been hearing about global warming for as long as I can remember, but Al Gore's recent documentary "An inconvenient truth" has brought the issue under the spotlight.
Here's what my friend S. had to say about this:
Reports reveal that human activities are behind climate change.
To avoid cooking our pretty planet to the max, switch off the lights, turn off your tv, and shut down your computer while you're out enjoying the sun, moon, stars and other mischievous activities.
Facts: The average home contributes more air pollution than the average car.
Leaving lights on for an extra hour each day over the course of a week releases 20 tonnes of green house gases.
Screen savers do not save energy.
On average, human activities release 70 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a day, every day! Emissions should be cut by 70% to 80% to simply stabilize atmospheric concentrations - and thus temperatures.
Why can’t climate change go unchecked? This video says it best (for your viewing pleasure: have your glow sticks handy).
To be honest, I didn't realize that I, personally, was contributing so much towards global warming...I'm usually good with switching unnecessary lights off, and I spend all winter with my air conditioning switched off, but my computer is constantly switched on at home...And I'm sure that offices and malls could make the effort of putting the air conditioning down one or two degrees (why should I be wearing sweaters in the middle of the scorching summer??), and we could all make the effort to recycle more (or, in my case, start recycling!)...A little goes a long way...
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Boys and their toys
A very interesting and amusing documentary about 4 of the richest men in the Middle East and how they live. Click here to view it.
I still can't, for the life of me, figure out how to embed videos on my blog. I've tried with YouTube, I've tried with Google Video...to no avail! Can someone attempt to explain to me what I'm doing wrong? I'm not that technologically inept!
Anyway, back to the documentary...It follows the lives of 4 filthy rich men:
I still can't, for the life of me, figure out how to embed videos on my blog. I've tried with YouTube, I've tried with Google Video...to no avail! Can someone attempt to explain to me what I'm doing wrong? I'm not that technologically inept!
Anyway, back to the documentary...It follows the lives of 4 filthy rich men:
- Sheikh Maktoum Hasher Maktoum al Maktoum, a member of the Dubai ruling family, who brought the A1 race to Dubai.
- Sheikh Hamad bin Hamdan al Nahyan, known as the "Rainbow Sheikh", a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family, whose eccentric vehicle designs are out of this world.
- Mohammad bin Sulayem, the famous Dubai rallye-driver, whose car collection is worth more than 10 million dollars.
- Sheikh Mohammed bin Issa al Jaber, the self-made Saudi billionnaire hotelier, with luxury properties all around Europe and parts of the middle-east.
It's like "Lifestyles of the rich and famous"...the Arab edition! Check it out...it's quite mind-boggling...and entertaining.
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