A year of non expat life

Arriving home:

We arrived back in the UK a year ago on last Friday after almost 11 years abroad. Our return home was marred by 10 nights hotel quarantine due to covid and the restrictions that halted our plans to celebrate my 50th, Peter's retirement and our move. We also had huge delays with our container due to the back log and shortage of containers after the Evergreen ran aground, add to that the shortage of lorry drivers due to Brexit, it wasn't the best move we've had, but it was our last.

Here's my Tiktok video during quarantine

Home improvements:

We spent the first few months of our return deciding if we wanted to stay in our family home or move, but the rise in house prices and the costs to move are ridiculous so we've opted to stay put. We've since had a new kitchen, Peter is building a base for a new shed/summer house and if we can find a reliable builder, we'll be getting an extension done. There is also a lot of other home improvement plans in the making. I'll be sorting the garden out properly once the outdoor work is completed. 

Work:

I'm now working full time, term time only in a local secondary school. I go in for 8.30am and leave at 3pm and I have all the school holidays off. I'm loving it. I also signed with an agency and worked in a covid vaccination site and I've been offered more work on the European Golf Tour, although I've had to turn a lot down, due to location and working in the school where I can't have annual leave in term time. I'm, loving being back in work, everyone is really nice, but I don't feel I've particularly gelled with anyone, so I just do my job and go home, which is ok with me.

Family:

Our family has grown with the introduction of our grandson in November last year, they're a ferry crossing or a flight away. Our eldest grandchild is an hour away so lots of visits there.

Friends: 

Old and new, near and far. Lots of effort made by everyone to maintain these friendships now we're back.

Activities:

Dog walks, pub visits, cooking, holidays in the UK.

Future plans:

Apart from the building work our plans include Australia this summer, buying a camper van, exploring more of the UK and hopefully a trip to Vegas in October half term for our 20th wedding anniversary. We got engaged out there and haven't been back since October 2010 when we saw Cher at Caesars Palace. We don't have anything planned after that.

Life after expat life ends:

For Peter it's the change from working full time to retiring he's adjusting to. I'm not missing anything. I'm glad we had the experience, it's certainly been a fun packed 11 years in South Africa and Dubai, but I do like being home, in one place, family near(ish) by (apart from son in Australia) I'm back working, reconnected with old friends (missing the friends made abroad) but generally much happier just managing one life in one house, in one country.

Have you had to make any big adjustments to your life for whatever reason?

Life in the UK - 6 months on.

We moved to the UK in June 2021. Originally from the UK, we left in January 2011, 11 years ago for 4 years in South Africa and 7 years in Dubai.

We kept our house in the UK and rented it out, recovering it from tenants in December 2019. In 2016 we bought a flat in South Wales for somewhere to stay when we visited and I started spending more time in the UK, as the kids left home and school. 

Covid caused us to change our plans for our move to the UK. The plan had been for me to travel back and forth to Dubai or joining Peter on his travels, to have house/pet sitters until 2023. I relocated the cat and dog here in January 2020, made my first trip to Dubai in March 2020, then had a swift return to the UK as covid broke and borders closed.

By the time Peter visited the UK in September 2020, we made the decision to leave in June 2021 and for Peter to retire, 2 years early. 

Although we've returned to the same house we lived in before starting our expat journey, it is without kids, we have new neighbours, making new friends and keeping in touch with old ones. We can now spend more time with the ever growing family.

We haven't just moved back though, in many ways we've relocated, moved to a country that has changed in regards to the way things are done and whilst we've bought property, been landlords, kept UK sims, kept bank accounts, paid bills etc, the way in which things are done now are very different.

Also we've been used to doing things the Dubai way. From customer service, to buying and selling things as well us setting up utilities, paying bills. It's all done very differently. In Dubai, everything is paid up front, from house rent, buying a car, insurances, deposits for utilities and everything is linked to an ID card. 

Whilst we've been abroad we've continued to pay for everything up front in the UK, now we are back all the companies want us to have everything on direct debit. It's been easy to set things up as we've maintained a credit history and bank accounts here, plus we haven't required a visa to move here and have been able to buy a sim card in a local shop and not have to register it.

Here are some other things we find are different:

The UK is mostly self service, you pay for bags and no one packs them for you like they do in South Africa and Dubai.

The internet is consistent and you can make video calls freely through apps. Video calls were blocked in Dubai and internet was slow and limited in South Africa.

The TV freeview channels are great in the UK but it is expensive to watch the sport and movies. They were free on the basic TV package in Dubai. But British TV is driving me mad. The shows commissioned are very good for dramas and I do enjoy the soaps and quiz shows, however the amount of reality shows and shows with ordinary folk and minor celebs cooking, sewing, making pots, singing, dancing etc are driving me up the wall. Its lazy TV same format just a different topic. 

It is safer to drive on the roads in the UK, using your phone is illegal, seat belts are worn, no tail gating like you had in Dubai. Night time driving in Dubai was safer with everywhere lit up. In South Africa there was always the fear of being hijacked and driving at night was dangerous, mainly due to pot holes and animals wandering. Mind you I did a lot of damage to my car in the UK last year, when I hit a badger late at night. Car parking spaces are bigger in Dubai. South Africa had car guards who helped you park.

The weather is better in South Africa, not too hot, not too wet and not too cold. Dubai is too hot half the year and the UK is well...... you know.

Houses in Dubai are more expensive, houses in South Africa give you more for your money in terms of space but you have to pay for security. Houses in the UK are insulated, have small rooms, but easy to heat in the winter.

The post works in the UK and is delivered through your door. In Dubai you had to have a PO Box Number as there was no street delivery and in South Africa you'd be lucky if it didn't get stolen.

I don't have a preference in regards to where I live, although I did prefer South Africa to Dubai in regards to lifestyle and the weather. I'm just happy to be in one place for as long as we choose to be, our own home, no company in charge of visas, no flights to visit family (other than a son in Northern Ireland and one in Australia). 

We said once we returned to the UK, we'd decide if we were to stay in our family home or move somewhere else near by. We're having a new kitchen fitted and have plans for an extension in the spring as well as starting decorating. I don't see us moving for a good few years, if at all, as long as we can both manage the stairs as we get older.

Why are British houses so dirty?

This is a question my son was asked in school in South Africa.

I'm hoping the teacher meant 'cluttered' rather than dirty. However since returning to live full time in the UK, I can sort of understand why he was asked this question.

There is dust and dirt everywhere. I can't seem to clean our house fast enough. there is dust everywhere. not just dust, but bits of insects and damp and things that look dirty.

To be fair, our house was rented for the past 10 years and we had 2 sets of tenants who did not look after the house at all and on both occasions, a deep clean and many repairs have been needed. Every surface looks like this, this is 2 days after I'd cleaned the kitchen windowsill. Door frames, skirting boards and rails are covered in dust, as well as the sinks and window sills. I've been back in the house over a year now and I just can't get it clean. 

The houses in South Africa and in Dubai were open plan with tiled floors, there was more space to put things, everyone had maids (we didn't) but if I'm honest the number of times I saw a maid use the same water for the bathroom floor then the kitchen made me even more determined to do my own cleaning. In Dubai I spent most of my time sweeping up sand, not just from our feet, but from creeping in from key holes and frames.

Since returning to the UK, we have found the house small and cluttered. It's taken a while to unpack and arrange everything so it doesn't look so 'busy'. The carpets are hiding all the cat and dog hair now, but we bought a Shark, pet/hair picker upper vacuum cleaner to deal with that. Once we get the new kitchen, things will improve even more. 

But for now, we've discovered 'pink' and we can't get enough of it, and hoovering daily and dusting daily and getting rid of bits of dead insects that seem to be everywhere.

I don't tend to notice the dirt in other people's houses though, I assume they don't notice it in mine, but I notice it and off it must go.

National Reflection Day - A year and a bit of Covid and a relocation.

When 2020 started I'd already got our family home back from tenants after 10 years while we lived abroad. The plan was to prepare for Peter's retirement and our return to the UK. We moved the cat and dog over and the plan was for me to live between the UK and Dubai.

They sat by the front door in Dubai after their move from South Africa, after a day or two they're back to fighting.

Dubai was already closed when I left to return to the UK a year ago on March 24th. I returned because my MIL had to return home for lockdown to isolate due to her age and had no one to look after the animals full time.

They closed the Apple Store inside the World's Largest Mall.

We also have an adult daughter in a care home here. Hospital cases were high and with severe learning difficulties she would not have been ventilated if she'd caught Covid, staff members had already tested positive and whilst everything was being done to protect her, we couldn't guarantee that her quality of life wouldn't have been impacted if staff were isolating and numbers dropped.

Arriving into an empty Terminal 5 on day 2 of lockdown, after cancelled and rearranged flights, I was collected by a friend for the night as I had no way of getting across the UK to Malvern until the following morning. Dubai closed their borders that night. Other friends put plans into place for daughter and looking after the cat and dog if I couldn't get back.

On arriving home, I went straight out with a trolley to shop for enough food as I could carry for the next 10 days, so I could stay home and stay safe. Numbers of cases were low in Dubai and I was concerned that coming to the UK would put me more at risk of catching the virus. There were concerns raised about me travelling to the UK from some, not about my safety but about 'did I realise how serious this virus was and did I know that the UK had been preparing for it for a while.' I kid you not. 

I stood on the doorstep for 9 weeks clapping for the NHS, the delivery drivers, the shop workers, the refuse collectors, the post man and everyone else working in essential services. I stayed local, I stayed home. My friend picked up dog food, another dropped off a table and chairs for the garden. I managed to buy a car online from a garage in Birmingham which was delivered. 

I met a friend 'one other from another household' on the common with the dogs, sitting apart for an hour.

When garden visits were permitted there was wine in the garden on a Friday night then the chip opened and that was added to the menu each week.

There was post and parcels and flowers and letters, all written and all received. There were phone calls and video calls and jigsaw and book swops and crafts.

Then came the further afield visits, the days out in the garden throughout the summer with child 4 and his wife and our grandchild. I could visit my nephew, niece in law and great nephew, I could garden visit with the Things and my friend and her twins. I visited the other kids, created a bubble with one for a few weeks. I rescued a friend who was working full time from home with 3 year old twins whose nursery was closed. i spent the day with them in the garden creating a little calm oasis for the parents.

Then they opened the borders in Dubai, but I couldn't get a pet sitter and Peter wasn't given permission to fly until July. I turned up at Terminal 3 to collect him, it had closed, only T2 opened. 

We both quarantined for 2 weeks as per the guidelines, then had garden visits and visited our adult children. In Cirencester we were able to sit in the pub for a Sunday Lunch. We were permitted a garden visit with our daughter.

The UAE government requested PCR tests prior to arrival in Dubai, Peter had one locally and flew home, I had to travel to Bristol for mine.

A friend in South Africa found me a house sitter,  I spent a weekend camping with a friend, collected house sitter, tested and flew to Dubai, testing again on arrival and isolating until the result came through (36 hours)

Dubai had had a really tight lockdown with permission needed to leave the house and was busier in August than it had been in March. The roads were quieter though and unlike the UK I could get my hair and nails done, face to face at the Drs and have scale and polish and check up at the dentists. Too hot to sit in the garden and still not allowed in peoples houses, there was pub quiz and coffee shop dates. PCR test to leave Dubai and arrival into T2, car was waiting and I drove home.

Numbers limited in the malls.

Mask wearing compulsory outside also.

Attractions open but with restrictions.

I'd shipped our furniture whilst in Dubai, closed my bank account and sold my car. 

Back in the UK I isolated for 2 weeks, arranged food shop deliveries then resumed garden visits and Friday night wine, but now we could go indoors. My friends father died. I helped her clear the house, under the tier rules.

I registered with a GP, had appointment to see Haematologist, had blood tests, an iron infusion, more blood tests and follow up appointments over the phone. 

I had a weekend away with Bob to the seaside and stayed in a hotel, social distancing was difficult but I stayed away from the over populated areas.

Lockdown 2 no sign of my furniture and house guests for 3 months to look after the pets. I ended up staying a month longer in the UK than planned due to shipping company and had to fly to Northern Ireland for 2 weeks to stay with son and his wife, I had no where else to go and hotels were closed. Flew back to the mainland, supervised furniture delivery and train to Heathrow T2, via an empty Paddington station and out to Dubai. PCR testing on arrival now.

Birmingham Departure Lounge.

9am on a Monday morning at Paddington Station.

Finally back out to Dubai for a period of time to spend with Peter, I however had the opportunity for some work and so did Peter, which ended up with him stranded in Saudi for Christmas while I spent Christmas in a hotel on the beach on my own. Reunited for the New Year and then I ended up in hospital with a bad back, then scheduled surgery, then a week of work in Abu Dhabi for me staying in a hotel forming a bubble. Both doses of Chinese vaccine, Sinopharm. PCR test and flew back to the UK, into Lockdown 3. I caught the train home. House sitters left as I walked up the drive. 

Another 2 weeks isolation, friends phoning to check in with me, not seen any of the neighbours, other than the young couple with the baby next door. I see people on a regular basis on bin days, school runs (we live next to a primary school) local dog walks, but I'm not sure how long it would be before any of them noticed I wasn't there.

Another iron infusion, an invitation for UK covid vaccine, distanced dog walks with a friend. I'm just waiting for my son and his wife to collect the dog, the neighbour is looking after the cat and I'm back out to Dubai.

We'll both be back in the UK full time in June when Peter retires and we can start to discover our new normal together, in a different country, almost 11 years since we left, the kids have left home, we've inherited a cat and dog, gained 2 daughter in laws and their families and a grandchild.

I stood on the door step last night with a candle, one neighbour came out and we could hear church bells and see lights up on the hills. I've seen her less than 20 times in a year.

Thoughts on moving (back) to South Africa and everything you need to know about an International Move.

We're no longer moving to South Africa from Dubai, but we'd started the thought process and looking into costs, paperwork and pro's and con's of another move. So when we had difficulties with our tenants in the UK, we were already in the right frame of mind to be dealing with a relocation and as Peter's job is seeing him work half the year in South Africa, it seemed the right thing to do for me to spend that half in the UK, rather than in isolation in Dubai.

I've started to blog our repatriation here

Here is the thought process we went through:

16th February 2019
Here we go again, the 3rd time in the past 9 years we've had to ponder this question.

Should we move abroad? It's something we both asked ourselves in 2010.

The first time we were asked this question was September 2010, we said yes with no hesitation and 3 months later with 2 kids, our furniture and visas in hand we flew to South Africa to start a new life.

4 years later now with a cat and dog in tow and no kids at home anymore, we had 3 months notice to leave South Africa (government weren't renewing our visas) we sort of had the choice of the UK or Dubai, but chose Dubai because neither of us were ready to return home and Peter's job would've had him travelling to the Middle East anyway.

Both moves took us a good year to settle in fully, get to know the customs, ways things were done and to establish ourselves with friends.

The last year of our lives in South Africa, at the point where I'd settled, accepted my new identity, found my niche were spent with the will we, won't be moving until all of a sudden it was just announced and we packed up to start all over again.

To say that Peter's company caused us problems with the move was an understatement. Here's a summary of exactly what went wrong with both our moves and how things could've been improved.

HR in South Africa just assumed we would be able to do everything they did and in the same way, but no. I was not permitted to work and everything had to be in Peter's name, so dealing with a new job, 2 kids in a new school, trying to find somewhere to live and most importantly living with the fear of our personal safety it was a very trying time for us all.

The move to Dubai was much easier but HR here had no concept of what it was like moving to another country from a country that is not your place of birth and we were on expiring visas, having to make trips to the UK to get the new visa in order.

So when Peter came home from work mid February to say it was being discussed him moving to South Africa to take over the business there, the first thing I said was 'hell yes, but this time everything must be in writing and I will not allow HR top deal with the physical side of things this time other than the paperwork required for the visas, we will do the rest.'

I can pack in 2 days, our entire lives, the cat and the dog and ready to fly whenever I get the word.

We'll have to go back to the UK to obtain our new visas but once we know the move is actually going ahead, the T&C's for Peter's contract are in place, salary agreed, repatriation costs back to the UK, either when he chooses to retire (he's 65 in 2022) or the job comes to a natural end, are all in place. I can start the following:

• Look at export companies, I will itemise our contents for insurance purposes
• Speak to local animal specialists about the cat and dog, injections, paperwork and time scales for relocating the pets 
• Sell both our cars
• Give notice to the landlord
• Speak to the banks about keeping accounts open here
• Declutter the house
• Sell the garden contents (we have to return it to sand before we leave)

So here are some random thoughts on our potential move:

Pros                                                                                   Cons

Skype, voice over internet and VPN's work .                   Post doesn't work

Have friends there already .                                              Can't get PG tips or Aubergine Pickle

Time difference only 1-2 hours not 3-4 .                          Load shedding

Know how things get done .                                             Personal safety

Know where we'll live, on a golf course .                        Journey time to UK now 24 hours

Have a swimming pool .                                                   Hassles of doing the above bullet points

Cost of living much lower

Already have a sim cards, store cards, nail bar & hairdresser

Weather (apart from the winter, too cold)

Miss South Africa, always said we'd go back

27th February 2019
Haven't give the above another thought other than trying to work out how to book my return flights from the UK and include a trip to Australia to visit child 3, whilst working out how long we'd need to do a visa application from the UK and potential timescale.
We've also cancelled plans to holiday with friends in America, but there's another reason for that also. Our first grandchild was born and a son got married.
Then Peter phoned this morning to say that the 90% chance of the move had probably dropped to 70%, due to employment laws in South Africa, which we were aware of and would've been our biggest hurdle.

6th March 2019
All has gone quiet and Peter has said it's not going to be happening, it was a nice dream while it lasted but that's it, it's time to move on. I however think differently, this is what happened on 2 previous moves, lots of talk, don't say anything to anyone then all of a sudden it just happens and usually within 3 months of a decision being made, we pack and we go. So watch this space.........

15th August 2019
A move has been mentioned several times since the last update, but it's been based on assumptions. Over the past few weeks there has been a few announcements of people moving into new roles, which leaves us pondering where Peter will end up. We're due to renew our house contract in November and have to give 2 months notice if we want to move. As rent is paid upfront it's a bit worrying as to whether we'd end up paying for a house in Dubai for a year that we only live in for a few months. Moving countries is expensive, regardless of it being a company move. House allowance is paid monthly, but we'd have to find our own deposit as well as buying new cars, whilst waiting for deposits to be returned here.
I'm keen to move back to South Africa, and hoping it could potentially be a one way trip and we could retire there. I really haven't given too much thought to the job ending here and relocating back to the UK instead, but that could also be a possible outcome.

27th August 2019
A formal discussion for Peter in work, it's very frustrating. Our landlord has agreed to a 6 month or monthly contract but there's an admin fee of 7,500 AED (£1,500) Part of our rental agreement is that we return to the garden to a blank canvas so we have to demolish the fence, dig up the plants, lawn and tiling to sell. All this takes time and effort and I'm in the UK Sept 10th till the end of October. We also have to return to the UK to submit all our paperwork for our visa but need most of the documents completing here, medical and police clearance in South Africa as well as Dubai.

September 2019
We're not moving to South Africa (insert sad face) The salary offer was not good enough considering we don't pay tax in Dubai so there would be quite a drop in salary and as Peter retires in 2-3 years time, there's no reason to do so. He is however going to help out more in South Africa from Dubai, which means more travel for him, more complications with the cat and dog costs and boarding, so I'll have to curb my travelling for a while. The thought of being in Dubai now until next June is daunting.

October 2019
So I'm not staying in Dubai, things happen for a reason. We'd planned to give our tenants in the UK their notice late 2020 and for me to return to the UK, settle into the house and start looking for work. Our plans were changed on Monday (2 days ago) when the rental agents informed us there were issues with payments and the list of complaints from the tenants is getting longer, such as uneven kitchen floor tiles (they're slate and cemented) and poorly decorated (was freshly decorated prior to them moving in 2 years ago).

The plan now is I move back end of January into our family home, transfer the contents of the flat in South Wales (50 miles away) and put the flat on the rental market, buy a car. Set up utilities etc and return to Dubai in March to start organising the move to the UK with the cat and dog and sell the car. Spend April/May in the UK, board the cat and dog in the UK, return to Dubai, pack up contents, sell garden, find 2 bed furnished apartment for Peter. Return to UK with Peter joining me in June to wait for the furniture, unpack, get jobs sorted. Peter will return to Dubai in July for work and we'll decide what to do next in regards to keeping our relationship alive, will probably involve me visiting Dubai alternate months until he retires for good.

Our initial move from the UK to South Africa started on September 10th and we moved on January 18th. We will have had 9 full years outside the UK.

I've not published the post until now, as we wanted to make sure either a) the move was going ahead or b) we were staying put, in which case I've decided to share it with you anyway. At some point in time we will have to leave Dubai and go through this anyway, just back to the UK and the UK it is.

Week 29 - One Daily Positive Off to Germany

It's important to me that people know I haven't just spent the last 8 years living abroad in Dubai. prior to that we lived in South Africa for 4 years, it was a completely different experience than Dubai. As I'm spending week 30 in Germany I thought I'd provide a little context to the reason for my visit.

I'm staying with friends outside Munich. I first met Dirk in 2011 when he took me and a woman called Janet and her mother in a battered old Golf, off roading to a township in Pretoria, to visit a children living in poverty to see how we could help and support them with their educational needs. I'd met Janet a few weeks earlier when we both dropped off a Santa Shoebox at a charity. 7 years on, I'm still actively involved in the charity in South Africa and as well as Peter and I now living in Dubai, Janet and her wife Nicky and 2 boys are now living in Ireland and Dirk and his husband Jacques are living in Germany. We've all remained very close. Sadly Janets mother died on Friday, we often talk about that day when we first all met one another.

196 Sunday Struggled with a hangover, had breakfast and said goodbye to the Bride and Groom from yesterday's wedding. Took child 1 out to Cheltenham, then home to watch the World Cup final. the evening was spent in, eating chocolate and drinking tea. This photo of the 3 stooges is Peter and his two golfing buddies who have been friends since the mid 80's.

197 Monday Visited my MIL and spent the day in Bath In the evening child 2 and 2a came to Monmouth for dinner.

198 Tuesday Collected child 5 from Cirencester and took a drive out to Cheltenham. Called in to see a friend in town and left with our dinner to cook in the flat as it was late.

199 Wednesday Collected child 1 from Gloucester for the day and in the evening went for dinner with Saturday's Bride and Groom and friends.

200 Thursday We drove Mum to Blackpool where she's staying for the week with her brother and sister in law, we had a little paddle in the sea and then we then drove back to Manchester before going to visit one of Peter's old friends.

201 Friday Arrived at the airport at 7.30am and took 2 hours and 40 minutes to reach the gate for Peter who flew to Istanbul for the weekend and me to Munich for the week. Peter's flight was at 10.25am, mine was at 1.35pm. I spent the time uploading names onto a data base for this years recipients for the Santa Shoeboxes. The evening was spent catching up on our adventures since we last saw one another.

202 Saturday I woke early but it was 10am before we headed off for a drive to visit a castle and a Christmas village, it's Christmas all year round there in the shops. We ate dinner out then chilled out for the evening. if the rain stops we'll head off to watch some fireworks in the village.

Either my Daughter in Law or DIL's to be are just too polite or they're using my son's to get their message across, either way, I think I may have nailed this 'How to be a good Mother in Law'

My Sunday Photo - The Best Man and Me

One Daily Positive Week 16

I got out of sync with numbering the days for Project 365, thankfully it was only a week's worth that I needed to alter the day on.

It was a bank/public holiday on Saturday, Eid Al Miraj, as it fell on a weekend not everyone was given the Sunday as an additional day off. Peter was therefore off work on Sunday and it threw me for the rest of the week, especially as Peter worked from home on Wednesday also.

Eid Al Miraj is the night Allah took Mohammed on a journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and then onto heaven.

Peter is away next week in Kuwait, so it'll be anther quite week, with trips to the dog park, pool and coffee shops.

105 Sunday My car was fixed and ready for collection. Peter went on home to watch the grand Prix after a coffee and I walked round the local mall and met a friend for lunch. In the afternoon and evening we chilled out in the garden and had a BBQ with a friend who stopped over on his way back from working in China. 

106 Monday Woke up to thunder and rain, not a lot, but also discovered I'd left the garden sprinkler on ALL night. Walked Bob, popped out for coffee, tidied the laundry room, went for a swim and cooked dinner for the next 2 nights. Had my pre op in the evening for my bone marrow test and completed the paperwork for medical aid approval. Joined friends for dinner by the beach. 

Would you eat your dinner up there? We didn't BTW.

107 Tuesday Took Bob to the dog park and gave him a bath in the garden late afternoon. Bob ripped a claw, took a bit of persuasion for him to allow me to clip it. He also decided to jump up on my car bonnet and climb over to get to the boot, lots of damage to the car and no idea why he did it. Visited the pool and had an early night. Been feeling exceptionally tired recently, like I have the flu.

108 Wednesday Woke at 4am, after going to bed early after a fantastic sleep. Collected Peter from dropping his car at the service centre. I posted a parcel to child 3 and 3a in Australia and met a friend for coffee. Pub quiz and dinner out in the evening.

This is PO Box xxxxx Near container Terminal 3, Opposite Weir Engineering.

Yes, that is part of our postal address

109 Thursday Spent the day as usual cleaning and sweeping the balconies, went for a swim and had another early night.

110 Friday Up early at 5am which is my usual time. Took Bob for a walk and sat in the garden for a couple of hours before we went to Abu Dhabi to the Louvre. Every now and then this thought goes through my mind, often triggered by road signs or Iconic buildings 'What am I doing living in the Middle East?'

111 Saturday Slow cooker on and off out to Dragon Mart to buy a shed and coffee. Nothing else planned for the rest of the day.

On the blog this week:

My Sunday Photo - Keeping cool for Summer in Dubai.

PoCoLo, Best Boot Forward - Why I'm out of control in my life

Triumphant Tales - Boat trip and visit to the Creek, Dubai

Tweens Teens Beyond - When the kidults come for a visit