We will bid farewell to Dubai in two week’s time... Looking back to the two years that we have spent here, they are not without any events or things that we will remember for the rest of our life....
I arrived in Dubai on the 1st of May, 2008... Knowing no one except for the colleague who had arrived 2 weeks earlier... The family didn’t arrive until the middle of June that year.
The first contact with the Malaysian community was when we gathered at a Lebanese restaurant for a dinner... We “wined and dined” until the wee hours...
One weekend I joined some friends who were going to the Blue Souq in Sharjah and Dubai Outlet Mall... I was beginning to like it here... despite the searing summer heat...
Then I was occupied with work... travelling to Iran for 2 weeks... until the beginning of June 2008.
When 3 leaders from PR came, I took that opportunity to meet other Malaysians... I found out later that Malaysians here welcome visitors... especially those who are going to stay here long, like myself.
My life was made complete again when the family joined me on the 13th of June, 2008. There we were... together in Dubai at last.
A few weeks after they arrived we attended the Agong’s birthday celebrations in Matrade and we met more Malaysians that day.
Before that, we had to enrol our two elder daughters into a school. I had done a lot of communicating with a number of international schools even before I arrived in Dubai. At last, one school, Raffles International School in Umm Suqeim, accepted them. They aced the assessment tests (English and Maths). They started their first day in school in early September 2008. And thanks to the host company that the school and the bus fees would be paid by them.
We celebrated our first Ramadhan and Eid holidays away from home that year... new experience for the family.
Perhaps, the most obvious thing about us that time was that we didn’t have our own mode of transportation. We didn’t have a car and I didn’t have a driving license. When we wanted to travel anywhere, it would be either by walking or the taxi. I knew it was quite hard for the family but at least they learned how hard it was to be in a foreign land and how to survive. Surprisingly I heard little complaints from them... especially Apit, my youngest child.
Nevertheless, we were lucky that we have friends who offered us a ride whenever there was a gathering or during the Eid celebrations... We were so grateful that we made a promise to ourselves, if ever we had the opportunity, and means, to buy a car here, it would be a big car.... So that we can offer other people a ride.
I had started my driving lessons towards the end of October 2008 and, after failing the first driving test, I got my Dubai driving license on the second test (valid for 10 years) on the 5th January, 2009.
The first major event that we joined was the Island Escapade, in early March 2009... Organized by MyUAE-Pro, in a small island off the coast of the Emirate Umm Al Quwain. About 300 Malaysians from all over UAE gathered there for a day of funs, games and get-together. Mabrook to MyUAE-Pro and the organizing committee for the wonderful and meaningful event.
We managed to buy a big made-in-Korea minivan later in the middle of March 2009 and all praise be to Allah, our prayers were answered.... and true to our words, to the best of our knowledge, we never denied any one who wish to hitch a ride with us. For a family of 5 like us, a car is a necessity... and the company didn’t provided us with it... one of the down-side of things for us in Dubai. With a car for ourselves, we were free to go anywhere... we wouldn’t have to trouble any one because we wouldn’t have to depend on our friends to take us where we wanted to go. And we didn’t have to depend too much on the taxis and other public transports.
When MyUAE-Pro had its first AGM and officially called MY-UAE, I was elected as one of the ExCo members. As I mentioned personally to the elected President, I was honoured to be elected to serve my fellow Malaysians... and I meant it.
Meanwhile, our two daughters had been settling well in school. They have made a lot of friends, really good friends. One of the wonderful things about Dubai and the international school is that they really open the minds of our kids. They befriended almost everybody regardless of religions, race, skin-colour, mother tongue, etc.
I was really grateful they settled in well because we had always thought that they would have a difficult time adapting to the new environment. They had proven their mother and me wrong. Their friends are consist of students who come from a well-to-do families... whose fathers didn’t have to rely on BizTrip allowances to make ends meet, they were still accepted as one of them. Frankly speaking, I am quite sad that they have to live Dubai and their friends.
July 2009 came, and I took the whole month off and took the family back to Malaysia for a holiday.... but 1 month was not enough... we only managed to go to visit a few relatives and a weekend trip to Singapore.
We came back to Dubai just a few weeks before Ramadhan... our 2nd Ramadhan in Dubai.
We joined the Ramadhan Bazaar.... we shared a table with a couple from Kelantan who were one of our good friends in Dubai. My wife made karipap, koci and etc.... it was our first experience as entrepreneurs and I think we did well.... and we got to make new friends too. The kids also helped in their own ways despite having to fast... well, except for Apit.
Ramadhan passed and Eid Al-Fitr came.... this time around, we didn’t have to worry about not having to join in on the celebrations. We had our own car. It was one of the busiest Eids for us.... we travelled around from morning until midnight, attending open houses... and as for every Eid, we held our own open house at our small 2-room apartment. The menu was, as usual, my Soto Ayam and Spaghetti... and a number other delicacies. Shukran jazilan to all our friends who had attended our open house...
The new school year started in early September 2009. Apit started his KG education this year. Once again, we were worried that he would not settle in, but once again we were proven wrong. He settled in well and seemed happy to start learning and making new friends. He didn’t have that “Day One” syndrome that most kids his age had.
With all the kids at school, my wife was left at home from morning until the early afternoon. She passed the time honing her baking skills (I bought her a Kenwood bread maker as a motivation) and chatting with friends and family back in Malaysia on the internet (YM, FB and etc.). I started a new assignment at home in the morning when not on BizTrips.... waking Apit up, bathing and dressing him... It’s more like a father-and-son thing... the Hilmy clan version of male bonding.
In late November 2009 until the middle of December 2009, we had some important guests... My mother, father and my two nieces came for a 2-week visit to Dubai. I picked them up at Terminal 1 and brought them to our apartment. It was a kind of small re-union for the Mat Zean clan. They couldn’t come at a better time because in early December, we had a long weekend due to the UAE National Day celebrations.
We brought them to places around Dubai, Abu Dhabi and we also joined the trip to Musandam, Oman... My sister said it was a motivational trip for my mother who had just recovered from a diabetic-induced complication.
When we were growing up, our parents used to take us to places such as Kelantan and Penang during the school holidays... and the roles were reversed when they came to Dubai. It was my turn to take them for sight-seeing and savouring the delicacies that Dubai had to offer. My parents particularly liked the Lebanese food as it lacked oil and served with complimentary pita breads and vegetables. Traditional Arab food is actually good for people who are health-conscious as it is cooked with less oil and salt... My parents even brought home some pita breads with them when they left Dubai.
In mid-January 2010, it was my sister’s, the Running-Mom, turn to come. She was running the Standard Chartered 2010 Dubai International Marathon (read HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE).
One of the highlights of our 2 years in Dubai would be our family trip to Istanbul, Turkey, during the New Year Holiday (2010). There’s another entry for that HERE.
New Gregorian year 2010... the news came that the company might not be extending my contract... so, the preparation to leave Dubai started... Frankly speaking, we had mixed feelings about leaving Dubai. We have made a lot of good friends here... The kids have settled down in school... they have also made a lot of good friends, including Apit. It’s really sad to leave, but we know that life has to go on... who knows, there could be better things for us in Malaysia...
One of our friends asked me, what would be the most memorable moments for me (and us) in Dubai... after 2 years. Trust me, I don’t have the answer for that... every moment in Dubai is a memorable one.... We will never forget each and every one of it. But the most important thing is the friends that we met and made here will always be in our hearts... I hope the friendship will continue for as long as we all shall live.
We will always cherish the memories in Dubai... who knows, we will come back in the future... who knows? ;-)
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