This current entry is clearly an avoidance tactic. We got the key to the storage unit (several days later than we had hoped) and we have quite a few boxes that need to migrate there. I asked about using a building owned trolley/hand truck, but apparently there isn’t one in the building right now – you have to request it at least a week ahead. I’m leaving for BE in the wee hours of Sunday morning, so any such requests won’t be made until after I get back. The only real problem this presents is that Sarah’s room won’t be set up – at least not to the degree that I’d hoped. Luckily our office/den is and there is a sofa bed. Sarah will just have to cope (and help schlep boxes when she gets here in August). 😉

One topic that I haven’t hit on yet is finding a place to live and the getting one’s UAE temporary residency. Coming as a visitor from the U.S. is quite easy. Just show them your passport at immigration inspection. A visa is required, but a 30-day visa is stamped in your passport upon entry.

For those who are here long-term, residency is the key that opens all of the doors. This has been quite different than our move to Belgium, as Richard’s office helped getting the visa, but after that we were on our own. The Human Resources office here has been a guiding light in acquiring the residence necessary to settle in here.

Renting an apartment – We really have no idea if finding a place to live is the same experience for everyone. What is the same is that one cannot officially rent a place – apartment or villa – unless you are a resident or your company is willing to front the money for you. We fall into the second category. If you have to wait for your residency to rent, then you must find some type of temporary housing – either short term monthly rentals or perhaps a place your employer provides – a friend who used to live here lived in a hotel suite (of the employer hotel chain) until her husband’s residence came through. Residency aside – a very real reason we needed the backing of Richard’s firm is that the rent for the year (!) is due upon signing the lease – or at least the guarantee for it. The guarantee is provided by paying one third of the annual rent and then two more checks (from your bank account that you can’t open until you are a resident) for the next two payments. In a word, YIKES! This is a lot of money that most of us don’t have – especially if your child is enrolled in a liberal arts college in the U.S. That Richard’s firm put up the money (we pay back rent in monthly installments deducted from his check), made moving in possible.

As far as finding a place, we’d contacted a real estate company in January and we came to look for a place in February. We were a little surprised we were only shown two places – luckily the second one is pretty much what we had hoped for – a very view of the Dubai Marina, garage parking and lucking out with a garage area storage unit (that came open yesterday) – and we have a view of the building where we didn’t rent as part of our view across the marina! We chose the Dubai Marina because as I’ve said, this was a concession to me and it’s got the easiest access to the main road to Abu Dhabi from central Dubai. Our landlady is quite helpful, which we appreciate. She’s invited us for lunch in August, which we are looking forward to – homemade Indian food – Yum!

Residency – unlocking the UAE door – Richard’s firm fast-tracked his residency. The visitor visa is good for 30 days. If the residency process isn’t completed within the 30 days allowed on this visa you need to leave the UAE – a drive to scenic Oman will be on your agenda – not being funny, it actually is nice. The re-entry will give you another 30-days visa and then start working on the process. Make sure you have the proper documents before you leave if the process has started (to prove you have it in process). If you don’t then you have to start again. The best is to just stay in the UAE long enough for the process to be completed.

Richard had to be a resident before I could be one, unlike the U.S. when families can process at the same time. He is my “sponsor” and his name appears as such on the new document in my passport. I’m also not allowed to work – that’s not such a difference for temporary residence in other countries – BE and the US included. Most of the process is done by the “sponsor” (with help from his office manager and his connections). I only had to show up for the biometrics (photo and fingerprints, x-rays and blood test) at the end of the process. It takes about a month for the process to be completed.

It certainly is nice to be designated a “VIP” when finalizing your residence. I have NO idea how this really works, nor does Richard. I met someone from Richard’s Human Resources office and took a taxi to the office/clinic where the blood test and x-rays were taken. We arrived and another man who met us just inside, took my forms with “VIP” stamp on them, talked to someone at one counter and then pointed me towards another counter. I then went to the room where blood tests were taken, then over to the x-ray waiting room. The waiting rooms are separate for men and women, so my “escorts” waited outside. I’m afraid that I’m showing my age, because the x-ray technician asked my age before I went in. The only other person she asked was a woman that I would have thought was in her 70’s, sigh… I was told that my test results would be available in 3 hours.  Escort I said that someone from the office would pick them up.

We then left this office and went – in Escort 2’s car – to the biometrics center. Both of these men were either Indian or Pakistani (I apologize for this cultural faux pas, but I really don’t know any sub-continent languages) and chatted away happily with each other. I’ve long ago decided that it’s just easier on everyone if I don’t torture people who speak limited English by making them speak English (the driver/Escort 2 really didn’t speak much at all) and just go along for the ride. We arrived in a neighborhood, rather than the more official looking area of our first stop, and walked over to another building. Escort 2 took my papers, walked down the street with a man who was standing outside. Escort 1 and I went in and waited in the waiting room, he on his side of the room, me on mine. The woman at the reception desk noticed that I hadn’t given her anything, but Escort 1 explained that we were waiting for the papers. Escort 2 comes in with them and we hand them to her a few minutes later. I had my “just in case” sweater along to cover up my arms. It wasn’t important how I was dressed for the clinic visit, but there is a request that you are properly dressed for the photos, i.e. long sleeves (or at least not showing your shoulders) and long pants will do. The young woman who took my picture asked me to remove my glasses for the photo – no problem. She then told me where to sign, but didn’t seem to realize that I’m legally blind without them and really did need to put them back on to be able to do so – ah youth…

Again, I have no idea how long this would have taken without Escorts 1 and 2 to guide me along, but this was a rather painless process that was just over an hour. If I include the waiting time, the roundtrip metro time was only slightly less. The card has been delivered to Richard’s office.

In case you were wondering – because of her age, Sarah is not included as a family dependent on Richard’s visa/residence. The powers that be know she exists, but when she enters in August it will be on a 30-day visitor visa. This is fine as she heads to her Japanese study course in Osaka before the end of that month.

Driving – I’ve also touched on this in the Public Transportation post. Yes, I can drive – well, will be able to do so once I get my UAE driver’s license. Residency is also required to get a UAE license. I have a valid U.S. license and this has been translated (again by the very helpful HR office at Richard’s firm). I won’t need to take either a written or behind the wheel exam. That’s as far as I’ve gotten as we’ve put the process on hold until I get back from Belgium in August.

 We have leased a car, but Richard uses it quite a lot for the commute to Abu Dhabi, so I have limited access to driving. The very good public transportation gets me where I need to go, so it’s not likely we’d get a second car.

 Banking – We met the HSBC bank representative during our house-hunting visit, so all of the paperwork was filled in prior to our move. Within the first two plus weeks, Richard was a resident, so he was able to open the checking account. HSBC is an international, not UAE bank, so it is only allowed to have eight offices – in the country! This past week when my name was added to the account – because I’m now a resident – the bank representative came to our building for me to sign the papers. His job is to travel around Dubai to see clients at their place of work or residences as there are already eight offices established and we do not live close to one. Bank machines are plentiful, but not branch offices. We have bank cards and the balance is automatically deducted once a month. Apparently when there was the economic crisis several years ago, a lot of credit card balances went unpaid, so this automatic balance debit system was put in place.

Checks are still used – mainly for large amount payments, as in the paying of the rent. They look pretty much the same – but the signature line is not the lower right corner, but the bottom line (okay, it’s not rocket science, but we really weren’t sure and Richard has only written checks for said large amounts. We hadn’t thought to ask at the bank, because the check book came by courier after we opened the account).

Phones – Some “perks” can have a downside – Until you are a resident, it’s a pay-as-you-go system for a cell phone/gsm. I will be changing over my phone plan once I get back from BE in August. I still have money on the phone and will lose it when I change over, so I’m not in a hurry.

We have a land-line that’s working now. It came with the cable and internet hook-up – again which can only be installed if you are a resident. A different phone cable is needed and I only got the right one the other day.  We haven’t really worried about this being connected as we have cell phones. I guess I should learn the number! 😉

Richard’s office gave him his phone. The positive side of getting a company phone is that you get a postpaid phone account right away. The downside is if the guy who had the phone previously owed money and left the country owing said money. The creditors are very conscientious about calling and reminding you – but it’s a pain in the butt if it’s not your debt. It took Richard several weeks and quite a few conversations with the office manager to straighten this out. In case you were wondering, the guy is no longer with the firm and he will be arrested if he tries to re-enter the UAE without having paid this debt.

Mail Delivery – Residency is also required in order to get a Post Office Box. I’ve touched on this in one of the other posts. Mail delivery is difficult because only a limited number of buildings and homes have direct delivery. Residents of the Dubai Marina need to go to a central post office area for their mail. There are very few street addresses. Lots of nice residential buildings, but without street names and numbers for the most part, mail delivery is nearly impossible. There are no postal/zip codes. We’ve opted to get mail at Richard’s office in Abu Dhabi. I’m slowly but surely changing over our change of address with the various banks/credit cards, etc. This may take some time – and understanding of this part of the world…