Who says Skype doesn’t work?

I hope I’m not jinxing it but I’ve finally moved into my new home and ….drumroll please….SKYPE WORKS!!!

Villa 52, St 41, Umm Suqeim

I'm sure I won't be hearing from the majority of you but just in case, wanted to let everyone know, I've foiled the UAE government and Skype works like a charm in my villa (touch wood - hope that lasts!!) Okay, so it wasn't really that big of a feat, but I'm patting myself on the back nonetheless. Free phone-calling for me (PC to PC anyhow) so if you want to chat, get a Skype account and add me.

What this also means is I finally have a home! St 41, Villa 52 in Umm Suqeim. I know that means nothing to anyone but it's funny to me. The directions I give to get to my house are as follows (and hang on to this in case you ever come visit - I'm only giving it out once!! just kidding): Go to Interchange 3, between Al Wasl and Beach Road. Going towards Beach Road, turn right at the mosque, 1st left, 1st left and 2nd right (I have no idea what streets those are). Sidebar: you also have to tell every delivery person you expect those directions. Between the language barriers and the actual confusion of the directions, I was lucky my dinner arrived before midnight last night - even after ordering at 8pm! I hear that once they have your number and deliver a couple times they remember where you live.

I live about a 2 minute walk to Jumeira Beach. I'm sharing a villa with an Aussie couple (Jeremy and Alysia), two British boys, Chuma and Stuart and a German guy (Achim). Moved in Friday and so far am very happy with them. They’re all really interesting, nice people so it’s been great. Nice to have interaction with people NOT from work! My only complaint is really more about the location, not about the people. The villa is basically next to a mosque. Muslims broadcast their prayers over a very loud intercom. And they pray a lot. Five times a day. First one at 5am. I'm going to have to learn to sleep through that (update: it took two days...sleep like a baby through all prayers)!

Anyhow, the flatmates welcomed me Friday with a glass (or a few glasses, to be more accurate) of wine (which, have I mentioned you technically need a license to purchase?) They were having a little get-together at their place, so Mila, Crissy and I crashed it. I suppose it’s not really crashing when you’re invited though AND you live there right? You have no idea what a joy it is to go home and just simply pour a glass of wine. You are not allowed to have it, buy it, transport it (legally anyway) unless you have a license. To get this license, your employer has to give you a “No Objection Letter” (you also need one of these to get a driver’s license….don’t ask me why). Once you get the letter, along with a statement of your salary, apparently you can then get a liquor license. The amount you can purchase per month is tied to your salary and evidently, the license has a microchip that tracks your expenditures. And that’s how you legally buy booze around here. The way we do it apparently is: drive an hour or so to Barracuda in Umm Al Umm Qaiwain which is another Emirate; buy as much as you possibly want (which when you really only go once a month at best is quite a bit in my house) or can fit in your car (which is also an issue when you drive a 2-seater Porsche) and then very carefully proceed back to Dubai. Definite jailtime if you’re caught transporting without a license. I’ll be sending my flatmates with orders. No need to run that risk.

Okay, enough about how excited I am to have a drink at home. I’m not an alcoholic but I am leaving work now to go home (use your imagination and envision what I’ll be doing when I get there!)

Ciao!