It's been a while since we've posted, mainly because we've been in a holding pattern. We are thoroughly enjoying ourselves out here at the Spaulding compound with the chickens and donkey and cousins. The kids are swimming almost daily, I have invaded Becky's craft room, and poor Jason has been working. He tries not to get irritated when he comes home from a long day at work and we're lounging around drinking pina coladas and swimming in the pool.
We have checked off almost everything on our international To Do list- passports are done, international drivers license obtained, Texas and US document authentications are done, UAE document authentication is being processed. Still to do- background check and multiple passport-sized photos for each of us.
I still don't have my flight information, but have been assured and emailed that the information will be forthcoming in the coming weeks. I have to keep reminding myself that A.) It's Ramadan and B.) Things run slower over there. We're still hoping for flights around August 10th, and have been planning around that tentative date.
Along those lines, we have planned our big Burgess Going Away party for August 3!! It is going to be 'MURICA!!!! themed. Cheesy 'Murica clothing is a must! If you didn't yet receive the Evite, it's probably because I don't have your email address. Email me or comment so I can add you.
You guys really should check out visitabudhabi.com. It's really cool.
Peace out!
Monday, July 8, 2013
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Recap
It's been a while since the last blog. Let me recap for you what the last month has been like for the Burgess household.
We decided to move in with my sister and her family for the next few months to save up for the big move overseas. In order to do that, we had to pack and purge at the same time- sort, sort, sort, pack, pack pack, then clean clean clean. Every night we were packing, sorting or moving stuff to storage. No down time at all. Throw into the mix that I had to pack up and move and clean my classroom as well as prepare little gifts and whatnots and end of the year stuff for school, and I have been exhausted. I was moving at home and at school. WHEW.
So, we're now out at Beck's house out in the country. It's nice and quiet and peaceful. I'm looking forward to doing a lot of nothing out here but sitting on the back porch.
Unfortunately, I can't start my nothingness until after tomorrow. Tomorrow is a fun-filled day carting around my kids going to the passport office, post office, bank, etc. I look forward to the lazy days of summer.
We decided to move in with my sister and her family for the next few months to save up for the big move overseas. In order to do that, we had to pack and purge at the same time- sort, sort, sort, pack, pack pack, then clean clean clean. Every night we were packing, sorting or moving stuff to storage. No down time at all. Throw into the mix that I had to pack up and move and clean my classroom as well as prepare little gifts and whatnots and end of the year stuff for school, and I have been exhausted. I was moving at home and at school. WHEW.
So, we're now out at Beck's house out in the country. It's nice and quiet and peaceful. I'm looking forward to doing a lot of nothing out here but sitting on the back porch.
Unfortunately, I can't start my nothingness until after tomorrow. Tomorrow is a fun-filled day carting around my kids going to the passport office, post office, bank, etc. I look forward to the lazy days of summer.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
UAE Resources
Jason and I are fanatic in our research for information about our big move. In our fanaticism, we have come across a few websites that have great information about international moves, living abroad, and UAE specific sites.
Abu Dhabi This website has so much information about what you can do and see in Abu Dhabi. I spent hours on this site the other night. They are building a Guggenheim, a Louvre, and a national heritage museum on an island next to Ferrari World (the world's largest indoor theme park) and a large waterpark. On a more traditional note, they also have camel racing. (We will not be in Abu Dhabi, but 90 minutes away. These things are a great weekend trip ideas!)
EscapeArtist.com has a cool article about living in the UAE. It addresses some of the misconceptions about living in the Middle East.
Stages of Living Abroad One of my awesome co-workers taught in South Korea for a year, and introduced me to the 4 stages of living abroad. I had no clue what she was talking about, but this link talks about the psychology of being away from everything you know. Now I get it.
UAE Interact is a website that was sent to us by the director of the primary school in which I will be teaching. It is full of information about what is going on in the UAE, travel, events, and everything. Jason and I spent 2 hours going through this website and its links.
Masaa alkhair wa ma:a salaamah
Rachel
Abu Dhabi This website has so much information about what you can do and see in Abu Dhabi. I spent hours on this site the other night. They are building a Guggenheim, a Louvre, and a national heritage museum on an island next to Ferrari World (the world's largest indoor theme park) and a large waterpark. On a more traditional note, they also have camel racing. (We will not be in Abu Dhabi, but 90 minutes away. These things are a great weekend trip ideas!)
EscapeArtist.com has a cool article about living in the UAE. It addresses some of the misconceptions about living in the Middle East.
Stages of Living Abroad One of my awesome co-workers taught in South Korea for a year, and introduced me to the 4 stages of living abroad. I had no clue what she was talking about, but this link talks about the psychology of being away from everything you know. Now I get it.
UAE Interact is a website that was sent to us by the director of the primary school in which I will be teaching. It is full of information about what is going on in the UAE, travel, events, and everything. Jason and I spent 2 hours going through this website and its links.
Masaa alkhair wa ma:a salaamah
Rachel
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Things I will miss the most
As I was walking back from the high school building yesterday, I stopped to take in the awesomeness that is my school. Treetops is a non-traditional charter school on a 22 acre campus. The K-3 buildings have the look and feel of a summer camp, with trees all over the place (never would have guessed, huh?), a pond with resident turtles (and snakes), a creek winding through the campus separating the 4-12 upper school from the K-3 lower school, and trails that are used as the track for PE, as backgrounds for Photography and Video class, as nature walks for elementary kids, and as a killer setting for capture the flag. There are wild daffodils and irises growing in the spring time right out my classroom window and greenery is everywhere.
My class only has 15 students of all makes and models, and their parents are actively involved in their education because they have chosen to send their child to Treetops. I'm going to miss this environment and the community spirit that inhabits the school. Hopefully I will be welcomed back into the fold upon our return from our family experiment/adventure, because it is an awesome place to be.
So, I will miss my school. Things I will also miss:
1. Big Red
2. QT Coffee
3. Starkhead
4. Chipotle
5. Baseball. They don't play baseball over there. At all.
6. Holiday decorations
7. Half Price Books
I will also miss people, but that will take a much longer blog, and I have 4 months to make that list and edit it.
Masaa al khair (good evening) wa (and) ma:a salaamah (goodbye)
Rachel
My class only has 15 students of all makes and models, and their parents are actively involved in their education because they have chosen to send their child to Treetops. I'm going to miss this environment and the community spirit that inhabits the school. Hopefully I will be welcomed back into the fold upon our return from our family experiment/adventure, because it is an awesome place to be.
So, I will miss my school. Things I will also miss:
1. Big Red
2. QT Coffee
3. Starkhead
4. Chipotle
5. Baseball. They don't play baseball over there. At all.
6. Holiday decorations
7. Half Price Books
I will also miss people, but that will take a much longer blog, and I have 4 months to make that list and edit it.
Masaa al khair (good evening) wa (and) ma:a salaamah (goodbye)
Rachel
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Let the games begin!
I'm sure that in order to move to another country, most people have the same hoops to jump through- such as packing, sorting, garage sale-ing, etc. But because I am going to teach in another country, I have to have my documents attested.
What does this mean? It means redundant redundancy. It means getting 3 different agencies to authenticate the same important documents. Seekteachers told me they have an agent that can do it. Sweet! How much does it cost? 994 pounds. Putting that into the flux capacitor and carrying the 5, that comes out to $1,527.78.
Uh. Maybe I can just do it myself. So, I began researching the process.
Step 1: Get 2 of the 5 documents notarized. But I have to create an affidavit first. Thank God that I worked in the legal field for 8 years. Then get them notarized.
Step 2: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, a $15 fee per document, a form for each document, and prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, Document Authentication Division. Be advised that there is a 10 day processing window.
($1,527.78 might be doable....)
Step 3: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, an $8 fee per document, a form for each document, and a prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Secretary of State of the United States, Document Authentication Division. Be advised there is an 8 day processing window.
(I mean, 994 pounds isn't real money......)
Step 4: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the United States, a $30 fee per document, a form for each document, and a prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington DC. Be advised there is a indeterminate processing window.
Ugh. GEEZ. I'm sure your brain is as fried by that thought as mine is. That $1,527.78 isn't looking too bad. But alas, I can't bring myself to pay that much money for something that I can do myself. By my calculation, it will be about $300, depending on how I ship the documents.
So, for the next few months, I will be waiting by the mailbox. I hope I don't die like George Costanza's fiance from licking the glue on too many envelopes.
Masaa alkhair wa ma:a salaamah
Rachel
What does this mean? It means redundant redundancy. It means getting 3 different agencies to authenticate the same important documents. Seekteachers told me they have an agent that can do it. Sweet! How much does it cost? 994 pounds. Putting that into the flux capacitor and carrying the 5, that comes out to $1,527.78.
Uh. Maybe I can just do it myself. So, I began researching the process.
Step 1: Get 2 of the 5 documents notarized. But I have to create an affidavit first. Thank God that I worked in the legal field for 8 years. Then get them notarized.
Step 2: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, a $15 fee per document, a form for each document, and prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, Document Authentication Division. Be advised that there is a 10 day processing window.
($1,527.78 might be doable....)
Step 3: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, an $8 fee per document, a form for each document, and a prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Secretary of State of the United States, Document Authentication Division. Be advised there is an 8 day processing window.
(I mean, 994 pounds isn't real money......)
Step 4: Send all 5 original documents plus notarized affidavits, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the State of Texas, certificates of authentication from the Secretary of State of the United States, a $30 fee per document, a form for each document, and a prepaid certified self addressed envelope to the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Washington DC. Be advised there is a indeterminate processing window.
Ugh. GEEZ. I'm sure your brain is as fried by that thought as mine is. That $1,527.78 isn't looking too bad. But alas, I can't bring myself to pay that much money for something that I can do myself. By my calculation, it will be about $300, depending on how I ship the documents.
So, for the next few months, I will be waiting by the mailbox. I hope I don't die like George Costanza's fiance from licking the glue on too many envelopes.
Masaa alkhair wa ma:a salaamah
Rachel
Monday, April 15, 2013
Mid-Life Crisis?
Jason and I have always been interested in other cultures and seeing the world. Appreciating different cultures is something that we've stressed with our kids. Jason grew up moving around and living in many different places as an Air Force brat, and then saw a lot of the world in the Navy. As one of my friends has so lovingly pointed out, I am as "white bread" as it comes. I have no culture to speak of. I never went anywhere growing up, never experienced anything other than what the booming metropolis of Azle, Texas had to offer. As a kid, I wanted to join the PeaceCorp to experience the world. Yeah, that didn't happen. Jason and I have just lived vicariously through the Amazing Race, House Hunters International, and NatGeo.
Last May, I signed up with an international teacher recruiting company called Seekteachers. There were job postings from all over the world- China, Thailand, Chile, Dubai, etc. Dubai caught my eye. Most people know about Dubai, or maybe I just assume that everyone watches as much House Hunters International and Build It Bigger Marathons as I do. Either way, Dubai stirred my interest. Can you imagine living in a place with so much affluence that it's disgusting? We knew that there was a large ex-patriot community there, and that even though the government is bound by Shariah, it was a very Westernized Arabic city. We began the process of applying and providing documents and Skype interviewing.
But alas, I did not hear anything. I had a few leads, a few bites- No, I can't move to the UAE in 4 days- No, I don't want to teach in Nigeria- and then I was offered an interview with a school director in Al Ain in March. A couple of phone calls to London from a broken down cruise ship in St. Maarten ensued, and I received a contract.
We are moving to Al Ain, United Arab Emirates in August. Where is Al Ain? Check out the link.
No, I don't have to wear a burka. I basically have to dress like I'm Pentacostal while at school (long hair and Keds not required), but can wear what I normally wear outside of school (with the addition of a few undershirts).
Jason and the girls are super excited. We're all moving over, the girls are coming to school with me, and Jason will probably play PS3 until he's able to get his work visa and get a job.
Why is your blog entitled That's Funny Spanish, you ask? Well, we've been listening to learn Arabic audiobooks in the car and at home. Landry told me, "Mommy, that's funny Spanish." "That's because it's not Spanish, it's Arabic." "Why are we learning Arabic? Are we moving to Arabic?" "Yes, honey. We are moving to Arabic."
And on that note, masaa al khair wa ma:a salaamah.
Rachel
Last May, I signed up with an international teacher recruiting company called Seekteachers. There were job postings from all over the world- China, Thailand, Chile, Dubai, etc. Dubai caught my eye. Most people know about Dubai, or maybe I just assume that everyone watches as much House Hunters International and Build It Bigger Marathons as I do. Either way, Dubai stirred my interest. Can you imagine living in a place with so much affluence that it's disgusting? We knew that there was a large ex-patriot community there, and that even though the government is bound by Shariah, it was a very Westernized Arabic city. We began the process of applying and providing documents and Skype interviewing.
But alas, I did not hear anything. I had a few leads, a few bites- No, I can't move to the UAE in 4 days- No, I don't want to teach in Nigeria- and then I was offered an interview with a school director in Al Ain in March. A couple of phone calls to London from a broken down cruise ship in St. Maarten ensued, and I received a contract.
We are moving to Al Ain, United Arab Emirates in August. Where is Al Ain? Check out the link.
No, I don't have to wear a burka. I basically have to dress like I'm Pentacostal while at school (long hair and Keds not required), but can wear what I normally wear outside of school (with the addition of a few undershirts).
Jason and the girls are super excited. We're all moving over, the girls are coming to school with me, and Jason will probably play PS3 until he's able to get his work visa and get a job.
Why is your blog entitled That's Funny Spanish, you ask? Well, we've been listening to learn Arabic audiobooks in the car and at home. Landry told me, "Mommy, that's funny Spanish." "That's because it's not Spanish, it's Arabic." "Why are we learning Arabic? Are we moving to Arabic?" "Yes, honey. We are moving to Arabic."
And on that note, masaa al khair wa ma:a salaamah.
Rachel
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