America here I come May 30, 2008

I’m off to Washington DC the day after tomorrow, people. Ingat kan lepas join this company, there will be no more jet-setting. For the last two years with my old company, I travelled almost every month. It’s now been 5 straight months without any overseas travel for me. I used to fly between Karachi-Muscat every other week and sitting in a flight full of blue collar workers was definitely not a pleasant experience. I can now put that chapter behind, as no more economy class business trips for me! So now, well, I am actually looking forward to step foot kat negara Uncle Sam again. I haven’t been there since I graduated 15 years ago. Yup, it’s been that long and I’m sure things have changed.

This trip was only decided 2 weeks ago. I had to rush to the US Embassy to get my visa done, with the interview and everything. And so much data to prepare for the 30-odd meetings I’ll be having over the 3 days there. And just last nite, I remembered that my secretary had forgotten to file for my exit permit. So today morning baru nak kecoh call our immigration officers to get it done. Harap2 tak sangkut kat airport nanti. Haru biru pulak. I will be traveling with my Qatari colleague who had gladly booked my seat next to his without my consent. I just hope I will survive the 14.5 hours flight without having to chat with him (read – i can’t stand this antique man’s mumblings).

So, wish me luck and hopefully I can squeeze some time for a little sightseeing at this historical city and of course, who wouldn’t wanna shop in America…

Home Sweet Home May 26, 2008

We have finally moved to our new house. Not really our own, but ours to live in for the next few years. The house is a 2-storey villa located in a compound. Over here, a compound means a bunch of villas in a gated community. The whole compound is dedicated to Hubby’s company staff. It has a clubhouse equipped with swimming pool, gym, tennis court, pool table, among others. So, no need to take any club memberships (unless Hubby gian nak main golf) and no excuses for the ’spare tayar’. Our neighbours on the same row consists of 3 Indonesian families and 2 other Malaysian families. So, it feels just like home. Petang2, kids play their bikes, ball and so on on the paved street.

The kitchen comes complete with a fridge, stove, oven, microwave, dishwasher, washing machine and dryer. Not to mention kitchen cabinets. Let’s hope nothing gets damaged (again!) during our stay here. The sliding doors at the dining area opens up to a reasonable sized backyard. More space for the kids to run around, but definitely not in the current weather which is steaming at 50 degrees celsius.

But hhmmm, the joys of living in a villa in the mid-east includes the non-stop dust a.k.a. sand that seeps through every door and window of the house. Yang ni je yang tak larat mak nak menyapu & mop nye. But nevertheless, we are so thankful and syukur Alhamdulillah for everything that we have, we could never ask for more…     

I’m So Pissed May 25, 2008

After a week of gradually moving our stuff from our hotel apartment to the new house, we finally checked out of the hotel for good last Friday. Before checking out, the hotel had to conduct an inventory of all the items in the apartment. After much checking and poking his nose in every corner of the 2 bedroom apartment, the housekeeping guy proudly declared three missing / damaged items.

The first item was a knife which I had never seen but unfortunately had signed for, according to the inventory list. Well, my mistake, so there goes 52 riyals. The second item was the iron, which was chipped at the edge when Ikhwan rocked the ironing board last two weeks. Oh well, my mistake again, so there goes another 145 riyals. Eventhough kat Carrefour the same iron cost less than half of that price. And last but not least, is the ironing board, which was in perfect condition, except for the cloth cover, in which the thin sponge layer had thinned into nothingness. Hello, dah lah bagi cloth cover yang tak berquality, not only the sponge had thinned within a week, I even hurt myself a few times while using it due to the poor condition. And I’m to blame for this?? Silap orang lah. What pissed me the most was the attitude of this guy, biasa lah kicap tak sedar diri bila dah dapat power sikit. In a rage, my Hubby asked if the iron and ironing board will be ours since we are asked to pay for them? Tricked by this unexpected question, member pun jawab yes. So apa lagi, we agreed to pay the whole 265 riyals and took the ironing board home with us!

We wouldn’t be so pissed if the customer service was good, and they have solid grounds for charging us. It’s not so much on the amount, but rather if the mistake is really ours. But too bad, Qatar is one country in which the saying ‘customer is always right’ is never heard of.  

Rancangan Tergendala May 18, 2008

 

Last Thursday, Hubby’s company gave away free tickets to the Emiri Cup Final. The game was held at Khalifa Stadium, and the final teams were Al Gharafa vs Umm Salal. There was a big hoohah on this event, with banners on the street and a so-called carnival starting from 3pm. 20 Toyota cars were being given away as lucky draws, including the Qatari ‘national car’ - Land Cruiser.

So, kitorang sekeluarga pun tak melepaskan peluang to experience the Qatari football lah konon nye. Game started at 7pm, so lepas Maghrib, we made our move from our new house which is a stone’s throw away from the stadium. When we reached there, there were no signages as to which gate is for which tickets. So together with the crowd of hundreds of people, we were shoved by the pak guard from gate to gate to the ‘family entrance’. Unfortunately, this was never to be found. So, berkerumun lah manusia2 yang bertiket who were denied entrance. For what reason, I fail to comprehend. Stadium dah penuh katanya. Hello, why on earth would the organizers sell tickets in excess of the stadium’s capacity if I may ask?? Bengang jugak lah some of the fans who actually bought the tickets (unlike us yang tiket free) siap datang fully dressed in their cheering gears hoping to catch their favourite team in action.

So, our little adventure ended just there. After lepak-ing outside the stadium and people-watching, we decided to head home and grab our dinner at Bennigan’s using the complimentary vouchers that my company gave. Indeed, there are free things in Qatar after all.   

New routine May 10, 2008

Oh boy, the past week has been really hectic for me. From the moment Hubby & kids’ visas were ready, the rest of the week was a whirlwind for me. We had to rush here and there, but I guess this is one of the things one would categorize as a ‘good problem’.

Hubby had started work last Thursday. Since it’d take me 30-40 mins in the morning rush hour to drive them to school, plus the same amount of time to make my way back to West Bay where my office is located, we had no choice but to use a driver to send them to school. On the first day, I rode with the kids to run thru the routine with the driver. And make my expectations clear, of couse. Then after office, I had to quickly pick them up at Ila’s place at Al Sadd as there was no one home if the kids came home with the driver. Thank God the drive went smoothly (confession : I’ve hardly driven since I got my license…!) 

We had decided to take up Hubby’s company provided accommodation. We went over to check it out, a compound located near Hyatt Plaza. The best thing is, this place is 10 mins away from the kids’ school. And this sort of house would cost us a bomb kalau sewa sendiri. Subject to the usual paperwork etc. we really hope we could get this place finalized in a week’s time. Meanwhile, there’s lots of shopping that needs to be done as the house only has fiited furnitures i.e. cabinets, wardrobes and basic electrical appliances. First things first, the beds need to be purchased if we are to move in!

Today, Hubby’s niece arrived from KL. She had just finished her final exams yesterday, and flew over to help us out for a few weeks while my maid’s visa is being sorted out. This process cannot begin until and unless Hubby and kids’ RPs are ready. I am thankful for the extra helping hand, and most importantly, someone to stay with the kids when they come home from school. Her trip here was also done hurriedly as my beloved Mum could not make it here due to other commitments back home. And we were not keen on getting a temporary Indian or Sri Lankan maid / baby sitter..!

So, for the next coming weeks, our routine will change a little bit. Hopefully the driver is reliable and responsible…      

Spring Cleaning May 3, 2008

Another weekend has gone by. Same old same old. Life without a house maid is horrific. Weekends have become a time to catch up on housework. Dah more than 5 years ber maid, hah rasakan. Basuh baju, lipat baju, gosok baju. Cuci pinggan, cuci periuk, cuci toilet. Sapu lantai, kemas katil. Bangun pagi prepare kids’ breakfast and lunch boxes. Sampai diri sendiri pun tak pernah sempat breakfast. Ye lah, career woman lah katakan. Lepas siap kan diorang punya hal pepagi, nak siap pegi keje pulak. Now ni still naik shuttle gi keje so kalau lambat kene tinggal pulak. Part kutip toys yang bersepah all over the house jangan cerita lah. Everyday is like a train wreck. Dah berbuih mulut but does anyone listen? Since we are still staying at a service apartment, at least ada lah cleaners datang cuci rumah twice a week. But that’s not enuff when you have 3 hyper active kids. And I’m definitely not satisfied with the cleaning service provided by this hotel. Coz I can still see stains on the floor and dusts by the window. Puak kicap kalau buat keje, what do you expect. Keje cincai, langsung tak thorough. Nasib baik I’m not paying for any of these.

My maid now tengah standby to come over, as soon as my Hubby and kids’ residence visas have been ironed out. She is either happily enjoying her time at my parents’ house watching the likes of Bawang Putih Bawang Merah on TV, or, feeling pressured by the highly organized and methodical way of doing house chores over there. Hopefully this stumbling block will get sorted out soon before I go crazy with more housework!