Shamal Shamazal

When I have heard the word Shamal I always have thought of the opening song to Laverne and Shirly…”Shameel, shamall, something, something incorporated..” Well, now I understand the true meaning.

Shamal is defined as..” a summer northwesterly wind blowing over Iraq and the Persian Gulf states (including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait), often strong during the day, but decreasing at night.[1] This weather effect occurs anywhere from once to several times a year. The resulting wind typically creates large sandstorms that impact Iraq, although most sand is picked up from Jordan and Syria.” I suppose they forgot to mention the UAE, we are often combined in with Saudi Arabia.

Yesterday was a beautiful day, hot enough to not feel cold in the pool, a sunny warmth that reminded us all that before long dramatic heat and humidity will drive us to run from one air conditioned area to another. When evening fell the winds picked up quite rapidly, I went outside to feel the warm air blow in front of our villa. When I awoke this morning a thick layer of sand was dispersed through the air. It almost looked like fog or smog but has a warmer hue of brown to it. Well, shamal or no shamal our day continued…

Today was a big day, both a Valentine’s party and Field Day for Jake. Field Day is typically done at the end of the American school year, but here, it has to be done before the heat rises to the extreme!

It is such a joy to see Jake enjoy these activities. I worried so much about taking him from a home and friends that he loved to a new and strange culture in the Middle East. He has transitioned so well and like me seems to enjoy the adventure of it all. The photos below show his happiness throughout our sandy, windy day!!


The street in front of Jake's school, ACS...

Jake's Valentine's party, deliveries in progress...

Happy with lots of treats!

The grass field at ACS, you can barely see the apartment buildings in the background that are normally seem clear as day.

Jake with Charlie Cook to the left. Charlie is my friend Terri's son, he is thrilled as he just got a leg cast off earlier this morning!!

Hoarding..An Expat requirement!

It’s been a couple of weeks from my last post, yes, we have been busy but I can’t tell you with exactly what. I think we have just been busy with everyday life here in Abu Dhabi, our routine is down and we plug along just like we did in the States.

School, gym, visiting with friends, homework, air shows, boy and girls nights out, Birthday parties, etc.

There are some major differences, but I have learned to accept them. For instance, the highlight of my day today was the grocery store. Jake, will only drink Welch’s white grape juice…..that’s it other than water, no other kind of juice will do. Just since we have lived here have they started carrying it in ONE grocery store. It is a mere $30dhs a bottle (about $8.00) very pricey..so I buy it occasionally for Jake. Today I burst out with joy when I came across the Welch’s white grape juice, as it was marked for only 9dhs a bottle!!! So, I did what any expat would do (or so I have learned since I came here) I hoarded! This word has taken on a new meaning since living here, when you find those unique things you have to have (especially at good prices) you literally clear the shelf. This rings true with goldfish, corn meal, frozen waffles and cheerios. Take what you can get, when you find it!! I learned this lesson the hard way when I had to borrow cornmeal from a friend for Thanksgiving!!

So I am now fully stocked with about 10 bottles of Welch’s white grape juice…oh there are also about 10 bags of goldfish in my pantry…..all I can say is thank goodness I have lots of cabinet space!!

Other than these small things daily life is pretty much the same. For instance, I finally got my driver’s license..the women behind the counter, although covered in abayas were just as unfriendly as they are at the DMV in the states. I registered Jett for 4-year old pre-school this week, I had to get up and wait in line just like I did back home.

However, after writing this I think about when we go home to the States this summer, I bet life will seem very easy there, after all this…I guess you just learn to live with what you have and since everybody else does the same, it seems normal...??

With all that said it is still shocking to me how easy our transition has been. There are stresses…VISA’s, housing, etc. but there are different stresses at home that we don’t have here. Overall, I am still thrilled at the opportunity to live here as a family, and if you told me I could leave tomorrow I would say no way..we still have too many continents to visit!!