3 days to go till we move in

Well I've been here for nearly 6 days and we are due to leave the Sheraton on Sunday and take up residence in our new apartment and it's been a hectic few days. The apartment is amazing though way larger than what we need. We chose it for the fantastic views which take my breath away from every window. The Al Hosn Palace to the South, which is the oldest building in Abu Dhabi, now surrounded by a modern city scape and the view to the Corniche across the British Embassy compound to the North.
All completely empty and in need of the basic ingredients of life to make it liveable and in such a short space of time in a foreign city. The first thing I did was engage some cleaners, who then made no contact, so I bought all the cleaning stuff and set about cleaning the kitchens, all four bathrooms and the balconies, only to have the cleaners call tonight to say they are coming tomorrow! I guess I'll learn that round here is people say they are coming they will, but in their own time and without much warning!
I've got the cooker, fridge/freezer and the dishwasher connected. I still haven't bought a washing machine as I'm not convinced the hole is big enough though it might just be my inability with a measuring tape that's the problem. The TV is now connected to satellite and offers 350 channels including BBC Prime, Lifestyle and World so you can watch Bargain Hunt any time of the day or night should you wish to! The main thing is that we have movies (for me) and sport (for John) so it should be OK.
The curtain rails are being fitted tomorrow so there is a fighting chance of having curtains in the bedroom before we have to spend a night with floor to ceiling windows and only aeroplane eye covers to keep out the light.
John and I bought a bed and sofas on Saturday which are due to arrive Sat/Sun so if they do turn up we will at least have somewhere to sleep and sit though John has borrowed at state of the art air bed from a colleague so we do have back up.
In the meantime I have made numerous forays to Carrefours, IKEA and The One to buy crockery, cutlery, kitchen utensils, towels and the paraphenalia of every day life and am probably on the taxi drivers black list, especially today when I got a taxi complete with two wicker chairs!
Today we went to Etisalat to order the landline and internet connection. Very efficient but scarily bureaucratic. John had to come, furnished with the necessary 'letter of no objection' from
his employer and numerous forms. Hopefully we'll have a phone and internet within a week or so.
I like to walk in a new city to get to know it but the temperature at present makes this difficult. I have walked miles but at 40 degrees plus I tend to need a shower afterwards. Still it saves going to the gym!
John has had a very tough week. He is close to finalising a big research deal at the same time that the first 100 students arrive with all the necessary teething problems. He looks worn out and I try not to bore him too much with stories of taxis and IKEA! However, we does tend to have to hear everything that has gone on in my day! Tonight he has gone to an important dinner but hopefully he will get to relax at the weekend (which for us starts on Thursday night).
We think Ramadan starts tomorrow so that will be another new experience.