The time at home in the United States has gone fast. Almost 30 days...lots of family time, lunches and dinner with friends a two day running relay in the Wasatch Back, the Zoo, Lagoon and other various family activities and just like that, it is time to return to Dubai. I will be sad to go, I will miss my kids, grand kids, other family and friends, but I am also feeling the need to return to Dubai, my other home.
A common question I am getting while home..."Is Dubai that different from the United States or Utah?"
Pretty much everything is different, there are a few similiarities but that is it...very few. Any one from the United States would find that they could live in Dubai, comfortably. There are things you need to get used to that are drastically different in the UAE - the landscape, the call to prayer, the laws and customs of the country and its people, all the international differences that make up the country, etc. A lot of what you see, know or learn about the UAE, may not make any sense but one of the first important rules you need to grasp to successfully live in Dubai... Accept it for what it is and try not to figure it out. It is, what it is. Accept that and life in Dubai will be great !
While living in Dubai, you may not be able to find your favorite American foods on the store shelves, like cereal, real Oreo's, but in Dubai there are many good substitutes. There are some things I will never be able to find in Dubai, like real vanilla or poppy seeds, no matter how hard I look.
One thing that is similar between the two is the over abundance of fast food possibilities. In Dubai, McDonald's, KFC, Subway, Burger King and others are everywhere. Maybe not as accessible by a drive up service like here in the states, but you would never go without want if that is what you want to eat. The meat even tastes better in Dubai. I didn't believe until I tried it for myself and it is true.
The skies in Utah are blue and clear. I had forgotten how blue and beautiful they can be. And the mountains - breath taking - I missed them. The land is flat, flat and even flatter in Dubai, but they have amazing white sand beaches and an extraordinary landscape of skycrapers. When I left Utah, it was cold and overcast, but the weather has been stunning since to say the least. Everyone keeps commenting on the heat here in Utah, but I have found to it to be pleasant, comfortble. Perfect running weather.
In Dubai from May until October the heat can reach high temperatures of 120+ degrees and the humidity... just plan on feeling wet and clamy the instant you step outside, and your hair while the humidity is high -frizzy or flat. The good things is we all look the same. Due to the heat, humidity and sand swirling in the air, the overall air quality is hazy, poor.
When the sun comes up in Dubai, it is instantly hot and at night, right after the sun goes down, the humidity increases and it feels warmer than it was during the day. I wish it would be like Utah, at sun down the temperature drops and really cools off and the when the sun rises in the morning, it is cool and heats up as the morning wears on.
I really feel like I am living two separate lives, one in wide open spaces and another in a bustling, exotic city, which also includes a different set of people that we know and love.
Utah has a more relaxed feeling, Dubai is always in a hurry, very fast paced, lots of horn honking. Dubai is always in a continual state of motion, never sleeps, unlike Utah, that rests at night and re generates for the next day.
In Utah, we live in homes with basements, surrounded by grass, flowers planted in dirt and a vast variety of trees. For being a desert, the state of Utah is really very green and lush. Our homes sit on small to larger lots and most of them have backyards. People in Utah get to know their neighors and even socialize with them. In Dubai, people reside in villa's or high rise apartments. The villa's are hidden behind tall walls and gates. The people that live in the villa's or apartments rarely get to know their neighbors, and for the most part, rarely even see them. Most the villa's are large, some with or with out any yard. They are crowded closely to each other.
Dubai is in a desert, but what makes it different from Utah ? Besides the intense summer heat, Dubai has sand everywhere, no dirt and water is scarce, expensive. To make your yard "green" can cost a small fortune. People do what they can with pots, palm trees, and a few trees and it is impressive.
America is the land of abundance, we have more options on things here than anywhere else in the world. An example... On my TV in Utah, I have 150+ channels to pick a show from and then sometimes I still cant find anything. On my TV in Dubai, I have 7 English channels to pick from and sometimes the english is on sub titles. Some first run series are shown, like American Idol, etc, but then other quirky, one season failures are also shown more frequently. Internet TV is blocked so you get what you get. I watch TV in Utah, I very seldom watch TV in Dubai. There are times I will turn the TV on in Dubai for noise and notice later that the show is being spoken entirely in Arabic. I must be getting used to it.
Another question I have been asked while home - Do I feel safe in Dubai - Too be honest, I feel safer in Dubai than I do in Utah. In my neighorhood in Utah, and it is a great neighborhood, we have had issues for years with people breaking into cars and garages, stealing personal possessions. If I am out too early or after dark running, I dont' feel very comfortable being out by myself and very rarely will do it. The TV in Utah has been airing advertisements for alarm systems and how we are feeling the need to be safe and secure. I don't recall ever seeing such an ad in Dubai. Dubai is said to be one of the safest cities in the world. and I beleive it. Yes , they have their issues, but things that happen in Utah would rarely happen in Dubai. People behave - maybe because they know the harsh consequences that will occur if they don't. There have been many times when I have been out in the dark of the night or up early running and have never felt un safe.
One thing that stood out to Jeff and I, the minute we stepped off the plane in Utah, we turned to each other and said, " we all look and sound the same here". In Dubai, there are so many different nationalities, many varities of national dress, more languages spoken then I have ever experienced in my life. No one is the same, everyone is and looks different from the other. I love that about Dubai ! I like being different.
What is one thing I wish Dubai had that Utah has - Target ! I miss that store and wish Target would come to the middle east...please, please, please, I need you there with me. Carrefour does not feel my Target need and just is not the same. It does not even come close.
Utah, thanks for welcoming me back and Dubai thanks for letting me live in your city. Both are great, just different, so different it is hard to really explain. You need to experience them both to really understand it and I am so grateful for the opportunity.
Life is good, isn't it !
A common question I am getting while home..."Is Dubai that different from the United States or Utah?"
Pretty much everything is different, there are a few similiarities but that is it...very few. Any one from the United States would find that they could live in Dubai, comfortably. There are things you need to get used to that are drastically different in the UAE - the landscape, the call to prayer, the laws and customs of the country and its people, all the international differences that make up the country, etc. A lot of what you see, know or learn about the UAE, may not make any sense but one of the first important rules you need to grasp to successfully live in Dubai... Accept it for what it is and try not to figure it out. It is, what it is. Accept that and life in Dubai will be great !
While living in Dubai, you may not be able to find your favorite American foods on the store shelves, like cereal, real Oreo's, but in Dubai there are many good substitutes. There are some things I will never be able to find in Dubai, like real vanilla or poppy seeds, no matter how hard I look.
One thing that is similar between the two is the over abundance of fast food possibilities. In Dubai, McDonald's, KFC, Subway, Burger King and others are everywhere. Maybe not as accessible by a drive up service like here in the states, but you would never go without want if that is what you want to eat. The meat even tastes better in Dubai. I didn't believe until I tried it for myself and it is true.
The skies in Utah are blue and clear. I had forgotten how blue and beautiful they can be. And the mountains - breath taking - I missed them. The land is flat, flat and even flatter in Dubai, but they have amazing white sand beaches and an extraordinary landscape of skycrapers. When I left Utah, it was cold and overcast, but the weather has been stunning since to say the least. Everyone keeps commenting on the heat here in Utah, but I have found to it to be pleasant, comfortble. Perfect running weather.
In Dubai from May until October the heat can reach high temperatures of 120+ degrees and the humidity... just plan on feeling wet and clamy the instant you step outside, and your hair while the humidity is high -frizzy or flat. The good things is we all look the same. Due to the heat, humidity and sand swirling in the air, the overall air quality is hazy, poor.
I really feel like I am living two separate lives, one in wide open spaces and another in a bustling, exotic city, which also includes a different set of people that we know and love.
Utah has a more relaxed feeling, Dubai is always in a hurry, very fast paced, lots of horn honking. Dubai is always in a continual state of motion, never sleeps, unlike Utah, that rests at night and re generates for the next day.
In Utah, we live in homes with basements, surrounded by grass, flowers planted in dirt and a vast variety of trees. For being a desert, the state of Utah is really very green and lush. Our homes sit on small to larger lots and most of them have backyards. People in Utah get to know their neighors and even socialize with them. In Dubai, people reside in villa's or high rise apartments. The villa's are hidden behind tall walls and gates. The people that live in the villa's or apartments rarely get to know their neighbors, and for the most part, rarely even see them. Most the villa's are large, some with or with out any yard. They are crowded closely to each other.
Dubai is in a desert, but what makes it different from Utah ? Besides the intense summer heat, Dubai has sand everywhere, no dirt and water is scarce, expensive. To make your yard "green" can cost a small fortune. People do what they can with pots, palm trees, and a few trees and it is impressive.
America is the land of abundance, we have more options on things here than anywhere else in the world. An example... On my TV in Utah, I have 150+ channels to pick a show from and then sometimes I still cant find anything. On my TV in Dubai, I have 7 English channels to pick from and sometimes the english is on sub titles. Some first run series are shown, like American Idol, etc, but then other quirky, one season failures are also shown more frequently. Internet TV is blocked so you get what you get. I watch TV in Utah, I very seldom watch TV in Dubai. There are times I will turn the TV on in Dubai for noise and notice later that the show is being spoken entirely in Arabic. I must be getting used to it.
Another question I have been asked while home - Do I feel safe in Dubai - Too be honest, I feel safer in Dubai than I do in Utah. In my neighorhood in Utah, and it is a great neighborhood, we have had issues for years with people breaking into cars and garages, stealing personal possessions. If I am out too early or after dark running, I dont' feel very comfortable being out by myself and very rarely will do it. The TV in Utah has been airing advertisements for alarm systems and how we are feeling the need to be safe and secure. I don't recall ever seeing such an ad in Dubai. Dubai is said to be one of the safest cities in the world. and I beleive it. Yes , they have their issues, but things that happen in Utah would rarely happen in Dubai. People behave - maybe because they know the harsh consequences that will occur if they don't. There have been many times when I have been out in the dark of the night or up early running and have never felt un safe.
One thing that stood out to Jeff and I, the minute we stepped off the plane in Utah, we turned to each other and said, " we all look and sound the same here". In Dubai, there are so many different nationalities, many varities of national dress, more languages spoken then I have ever experienced in my life. No one is the same, everyone is and looks different from the other. I love that about Dubai ! I like being different.
What is one thing I wish Dubai had that Utah has - Target ! I miss that store and wish Target would come to the middle east...please, please, please, I need you there with me. Carrefour does not feel my Target need and just is not the same. It does not even come close.
Utah, thanks for welcoming me back and Dubai thanks for letting me live in your city. Both are great, just different, so different it is hard to really explain. You need to experience them both to really understand it and I am so grateful for the opportunity.
Life is good, isn't it !
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