It's been a very hectic week as I finish my job at ECAE today (Tues) and fly back to the UK in the early hours of tomorrow morning. As well as getting things sorted at college I'd also agreed to help out the comms agency who handle Masdar Institute and Masdar City. The two Abu Dhabi people were off to Australia to get married and the creative and studio is in London so I agreed to be the local 'go between'. We all thought it wouldn't be a huge task but, like everything, things overran and I have ended up with a huge amount to do. With the work being done in London on a four hour time difference and not working on Sunday it's meant being very organised and spending a lot of non work time making sure all is OK. Just to add to the trauma one of the key London people suffered a family bereavement so I have felt extra responsibility on my shoulders. It's always difficult picking up someone elses work and clients but hopefully I have kept everything on track. Poor John has also got to hear rather more than he might have liked to about the inner workings of his marketing department as I've been struggling with the various requests and differing time zones! Still it's been interesting work and the guys in London at Wordsearch are really excellent - they did my ECAE ad campaign as well and has given me even more insight into marketing and communications in Abu Dhabi, not to mention a better knowledge of the Masdar objectives.
As an added stress our flights were booked with British Airways so we had a nailbiting few days of not knowing if the strike was going ahead. The BA flights via Heathrow were half the cost of the Etihad ones so we chose them even though it meant two flights. I was pretty upset when I heard the news. John was an angel and immediately bought us some flights on Etihad as well so that we could be sure that we would be going home for Christmas. However, I did lie awake at night worrying about the huge cost. Mum, bless her, also offered to help out with the cost. I am so well cared for by everyone around me. However, in the end the high court put paid to the strike for now so we just have the snow and ice to contend with.
We had a lovely event on Saturday night when a few good friends came round for bubbly and home made cakes, sausage rolls but shop bought mince pies due to the lack of mincemeat mentioned earlier. So many new friends came along and it was amazing to think that, with one exception, they were not people we'd met through work. I can't think of a single person I know in Manchester that I didn't meet through mine or John's work! It was a lovely evening and our other neighbours turned up later, after everyone had gone and we had a super chat - great as I'd only met them in the lift on the way to work before now.
Today I said good bye to the lovely people at ECAE. I've really enjoyed the short time that I've been there and it has been very rewarding and good fun. With a press campaign running, some good PR coverage and a growing database of potential students I'd like to think that I made some difference. Everyone was so warm and friendly and I especially enjoyed working with Monika and Julie, Head of Student Services and Registrar, respectively. I'm going to keep a close eye on what's going on there and help out as best I can. I do hope it all bears fruit.
So now it's back to the snow and the familiar landscape of home which I'm very much looking forward to. I have one suitcase full of presents, table decorations and assorted delicacies and it will be so nice to spend Christmas with all our families - though a pretty exhausting schedule to fit it all in.
If anyone out there is reading this blog let me wish you a Happy Christmas and all the best for the New Year and please keep reading in 2010.
Tuesday 22 December 2009
Monday 14 December 2009
John on CNN
http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/tech/2009/12/13/jamjoom.uae.carbon.free.cnn
Hopefully - if technology works, you can view the online CNN story about Masdar city which features John, complete with hard hat and boots talking (briefly) about the project.
it also features J's boss, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, at more length.
Hope it works but if not copy it onto your browser and, if it doesn't load, then search Masdar and it should load then - it takes an age here but that might be the speed of the broadband!
Hopefully - if technology works, you can view the online CNN story about Masdar city which features John, complete with hard hat and boots talking (briefly) about the project.
it also features J's boss, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, at more length.
Hope it works but if not copy it onto your browser and, if it doesn't load, then search Masdar and it should load then - it takes an age here but that might be the speed of the broadband!
Christmas time in the rain
An unusual sight - rain from our window. However, it does make the Christmas tree seem a little less incongruous!
Getting ready for Christmas in the rain
Well I've been complaining that it was hard to get into the Christmas spirit when it feel like summer outside. Every day in meetings, puttng the date at the top of my notepad, I had to pinch myself to remember it's actually December. Then on the weekend when I finally got my Christmas tree, went Christmas shopping and sent out the invites for our mince pies and bubbly event, I got my wish! Not snow, but rain of biblical proportions - it was quite awesome, even for someone who comes from Manchester and is pretty used to rain!
It started lighly enough on Thursday, Friday was warm and drizzly, reminding me of childhood holidays in Brittany. We had planned to go out for dinner on Thurs or Fri to one of our outdoor favourites but ended up returning to the Mexican at the Sheraton, where we used to go before we moved into the apartment and were staying there. Fortunately they had turned down the air con from the summer as after a walk in the rain we didn't really need it!
John was working on Saturday, attending a messaging workshop at the Yas Hotel so I thought I'd take him as it would be fun to try out the new motorway to Yas Island. By the time we got there it was pouring down and the car was covered in dust and water. There were lots of pile ups on the motorway as the surface is not really designed for the wet, more to not melt in the heat. I also realised that I have no idea how the windscreen wipes work on the car and I didn't even know that I had one on the back window! Well it's never been a priority up till now. However, the Jeep really came into its own, since by Sunday everywhere was completely awash. The rain came down in sheets of water and all the roads were flooded. I thoroughly enjoyed sloshing my way through several inches of water though I didn't enjoy the traffic melt down which resulted. It took me an hour and a half to get home from work, which normally takes about 15 or 20 minutes. There were also drivers, similar to those in the UK when we encounger snow, who's response is to go at 10 miles an hour with their hazard lights flashing - only here they tend to be in the outside lane! The college came off really badly, being a flat roofed building made of what seemed to be porous concrete. The water poured in and damaged a lot of equipment as well as making offices in accessible. The roads and carpark had about 10cm of water on them and looked like venice. I got soaked just trying to get out of the car into a lake when coming back from a meeting. However, the clean up team have done an amazing job and within 24 hours they had it more or less back to normal. The VC closed the college today to students and staff could come in on a discretionary basis so most did.
It has been quite amazing and something which apparently only happens once every 4 or 5 years. Interesting that it happened during the Copenhagen talks when the world leaders are debating climate change - here in Abu Dhabi we were experiencing a one off rain event to equate with Noah's flood (though that did happen before the excessive consumption of carbon and fossil fuels.
In the midst of all this I bought a lovely Christmas tree from Carrefours and decorated it and rushed round all the Malls to try and buy presents which would be suitably UAE special but not too heavy to carry back to the UK! Difficult as all the special Christmas shops are full of European goods!
However, every shop is full of Christmas food and decorations so I had no trouble finding things to decorate the table with on Christmas day and I'll be able to buy things to eat for our drinks party. However, I couldn't find any mince meat so it'll have to ready made mince pies which is a shame I can make sausage rolls though, which is not something you see a lot of round here! We went to Spinneys once J finished work and stocked up on some very agreeable Australian bubbly that we are rather fond of! It doesn frustrate me that I can only buy wine when J is with me as he has the licence - we were getting dangerously low! We also went to have a key cut for the apartment so I could give the cleaner one whilst we're away and discovered that you have to have a letter from the police giving you permission! How you prove to them that it's your apartment I have no idea since nothing has your address on! Certainly a new piece of bureaucracy which I hadn't come across before!
Today things are drying out nicely, which was handy as J had a site visit up at Masdar and I didn't want him to get too wet.
It started lighly enough on Thursday, Friday was warm and drizzly, reminding me of childhood holidays in Brittany. We had planned to go out for dinner on Thurs or Fri to one of our outdoor favourites but ended up returning to the Mexican at the Sheraton, where we used to go before we moved into the apartment and were staying there. Fortunately they had turned down the air con from the summer as after a walk in the rain we didn't really need it!
John was working on Saturday, attending a messaging workshop at the Yas Hotel so I thought I'd take him as it would be fun to try out the new motorway to Yas Island. By the time we got there it was pouring down and the car was covered in dust and water. There were lots of pile ups on the motorway as the surface is not really designed for the wet, more to not melt in the heat. I also realised that I have no idea how the windscreen wipes work on the car and I didn't even know that I had one on the back window! Well it's never been a priority up till now. However, the Jeep really came into its own, since by Sunday everywhere was completely awash. The rain came down in sheets of water and all the roads were flooded. I thoroughly enjoyed sloshing my way through several inches of water though I didn't enjoy the traffic melt down which resulted. It took me an hour and a half to get home from work, which normally takes about 15 or 20 minutes. There were also drivers, similar to those in the UK when we encounger snow, who's response is to go at 10 miles an hour with their hazard lights flashing - only here they tend to be in the outside lane! The college came off really badly, being a flat roofed building made of what seemed to be porous concrete. The water poured in and damaged a lot of equipment as well as making offices in accessible. The roads and carpark had about 10cm of water on them and looked like venice. I got soaked just trying to get out of the car into a lake when coming back from a meeting. However, the clean up team have done an amazing job and within 24 hours they had it more or less back to normal. The VC closed the college today to students and staff could come in on a discretionary basis so most did.
It has been quite amazing and something which apparently only happens once every 4 or 5 years. Interesting that it happened during the Copenhagen talks when the world leaders are debating climate change - here in Abu Dhabi we were experiencing a one off rain event to equate with Noah's flood (though that did happen before the excessive consumption of carbon and fossil fuels.
In the midst of all this I bought a lovely Christmas tree from Carrefours and decorated it and rushed round all the Malls to try and buy presents which would be suitably UAE special but not too heavy to carry back to the UK! Difficult as all the special Christmas shops are full of European goods!
However, every shop is full of Christmas food and decorations so I had no trouble finding things to decorate the table with on Christmas day and I'll be able to buy things to eat for our drinks party. However, I couldn't find any mince meat so it'll have to ready made mince pies which is a shame I can make sausage rolls though, which is not something you see a lot of round here! We went to Spinneys once J finished work and stocked up on some very agreeable Australian bubbly that we are rather fond of! It doesn frustrate me that I can only buy wine when J is with me as he has the licence - we were getting dangerously low! We also went to have a key cut for the apartment so I could give the cleaner one whilst we're away and discovered that you have to have a letter from the police giving you permission! How you prove to them that it's your apartment I have no idea since nothing has your address on! Certainly a new piece of bureaucracy which I hadn't come across before!
Today things are drying out nicely, which was handy as J had a site visit up at Masdar and I didn't want him to get too wet.
Wednesday 9 December 2009
A busy week after the holiday
Back at work for both of us and an amazingly busy time as ever.
John had lots of visitors and ended up doing a presentation on their biofuels project to the Crown Prince's brother which seemed to go down well. He also met the US Undersecretary and a number of commercial VIPs. The Copenhagen summit has meant that he's been in demand from the media to talk about Masdar's work in relation to sustainability, carbon neutrality and all the wonderful, world saving research which they are engaged with. Hopefully it will mean some good press and broadcast coverage for the Institute and some great profile raising.
We both went to the inauguration dinner for NYU's Abu Dhabi campus which was a glittering event held in the courtyard of the Emirates Palace and attended by key local dignitaries (I was gatecrashing but J counts very much as a dignitary!)and academics from around the world.
We were also at the Emirates Palace on Saturday night, as John's partners at ATIC, who he is working with on a semi conductors research project, very kindly offered us some tickets to one of the Abu Dhabi classics concerts. This was a fabulous event with the whole Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra doing Mozart and Bruchner. I have to say that the acoustics at the EP auditorium are nothing like as good as the Bridgewater Hall but I think we are pretty spoiled on that account. The entire Bridgewater Hall (according to my aunty Brenda who has been on the backstage tour) is on springs, so you feel the music resonating through your whole body, you don't just hear it with your ears. However, we are so lucky to get such great cultural events out here and were thrilled to be invited. Even though we were a bit overdressed as the original programme stated black tie which has clearly been changed as a dress code since it was printed! Still J always looks good in his wedding suit and the waiters at the EP wear lounge suits or silk embroidered jackets so there was no danger of anyone asking him for a cup of tea!
I have been very busy with lots of exciting things going on at college. Our press advertising campaign breaks on Sunday so I've been running around sorting the ads out with our agency partner wordsearch, who've come up with some great concepts to promote teaching as a career in the UAE. I've always had helpful and clever support people to get the media booked and the ads sorted in the past so I very much missed the likes of Becky, Gemma, Tracey, Jenny and Lie Yan when it came to the final stages of the getting the campaign put to bed. Next week I need to sort out creating the versions for the Arabic press which should be a challenge - no chance of proofing any of those myself! We also had to make sure that we had everything prepared for what I hope will be a huge influx of enquiries. However, the Admissions department were well ahead of me on that one and have everyone briefed and (hopefully as we're talking technology here) the web site updated and the on line application form all set to go.
I also had the Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony, for our partnership with the Abu Dhabi book fair in March, happending on Wednesday. You might not think that this sounds like a very exciting press event - however, such things seem to be of great interest and we were able to invite His Excellency Mr Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, who is the Director of Abu Dhabi Education Zone to come along which also seemed to create a great deal of press interest. So in the end it was like an oscar ceremony with about 8 photographers all crowded round and snapping away. I hope we get some good coverage in the papers as a result but it was a very successful event. I really enjoyed working with Kitab on it and with their Marketing Manager Irum, who was so friendly and professional and helped me to find my way round what needed doing. It was an education and a great learning experience. I'm so relieved that it went well, despite there being no coffee (lots of food and juice but no hot drinks) and having to change the background slide at the last minute because the Director of Corporate Services felt that the logo wasn't big enough!
I had to break the news to the college this week that I won't be staying on after Christmas as I have finally decided to accept the role with Emirates Advanced Investments. It was a hard decision as I enjoy working at the college and the people are fabulous. However, the other job is a permanent one with the chance to set up the department (marketing and comms), recruit my own team, control my own budget and reports directly into the CEO. I may hate it but I think it needs to be given a go. I am hoping that I may be able to continue to do some consulting for the college to make sure everything is on track and stays that way. However, I am really hopeful that with what I've managed to do so far, they will see an huge increase in student numbers for next year and that's what it's all about.
John had lots of visitors and ended up doing a presentation on their biofuels project to the Crown Prince's brother which seemed to go down well. He also met the US Undersecretary and a number of commercial VIPs. The Copenhagen summit has meant that he's been in demand from the media to talk about Masdar's work in relation to sustainability, carbon neutrality and all the wonderful, world saving research which they are engaged with. Hopefully it will mean some good press and broadcast coverage for the Institute and some great profile raising.
We both went to the inauguration dinner for NYU's Abu Dhabi campus which was a glittering event held in the courtyard of the Emirates Palace and attended by key local dignitaries (I was gatecrashing but J counts very much as a dignitary!)and academics from around the world.
We were also at the Emirates Palace on Saturday night, as John's partners at ATIC, who he is working with on a semi conductors research project, very kindly offered us some tickets to one of the Abu Dhabi classics concerts. This was a fabulous event with the whole Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra doing Mozart and Bruchner. I have to say that the acoustics at the EP auditorium are nothing like as good as the Bridgewater Hall but I think we are pretty spoiled on that account. The entire Bridgewater Hall (according to my aunty Brenda who has been on the backstage tour) is on springs, so you feel the music resonating through your whole body, you don't just hear it with your ears. However, we are so lucky to get such great cultural events out here and were thrilled to be invited. Even though we were a bit overdressed as the original programme stated black tie which has clearly been changed as a dress code since it was printed! Still J always looks good in his wedding suit and the waiters at the EP wear lounge suits or silk embroidered jackets so there was no danger of anyone asking him for a cup of tea!
I have been very busy with lots of exciting things going on at college. Our press advertising campaign breaks on Sunday so I've been running around sorting the ads out with our agency partner wordsearch, who've come up with some great concepts to promote teaching as a career in the UAE. I've always had helpful and clever support people to get the media booked and the ads sorted in the past so I very much missed the likes of Becky, Gemma, Tracey, Jenny and Lie Yan when it came to the final stages of the getting the campaign put to bed. Next week I need to sort out creating the versions for the Arabic press which should be a challenge - no chance of proofing any of those myself! We also had to make sure that we had everything prepared for what I hope will be a huge influx of enquiries. However, the Admissions department were well ahead of me on that one and have everyone briefed and (hopefully as we're talking technology here) the web site updated and the on line application form all set to go.
I also had the Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony, for our partnership with the Abu Dhabi book fair in March, happending on Wednesday. You might not think that this sounds like a very exciting press event - however, such things seem to be of great interest and we were able to invite His Excellency Mr Mohammed Salem Al Dhaheri, who is the Director of Abu Dhabi Education Zone to come along which also seemed to create a great deal of press interest. So in the end it was like an oscar ceremony with about 8 photographers all crowded round and snapping away. I hope we get some good coverage in the papers as a result but it was a very successful event. I really enjoyed working with Kitab on it and with their Marketing Manager Irum, who was so friendly and professional and helped me to find my way round what needed doing. It was an education and a great learning experience. I'm so relieved that it went well, despite there being no coffee (lots of food and juice but no hot drinks) and having to change the background slide at the last minute because the Director of Corporate Services felt that the logo wasn't big enough!
I had to break the news to the college this week that I won't be staying on after Christmas as I have finally decided to accept the role with Emirates Advanced Investments. It was a hard decision as I enjoy working at the college and the people are fabulous. However, the other job is a permanent one with the chance to set up the department (marketing and comms), recruit my own team, control my own budget and reports directly into the CEO. I may hate it but I think it needs to be given a go. I am hoping that I may be able to continue to do some consulting for the college to make sure everything is on track and stays that way. However, I am really hopeful that with what I've managed to do so far, they will see an huge increase in student numbers for next year and that's what it's all about.
A wonderful week in Muscat
We were very fortunate that the Eid holiday and the National Day holiday coincided this year so both Masdar and ECAE were closed for 10 days which allowed us to take a break which was well earned (in John's case anyway).
We had a day at home getting sorted out and John had his first Abu Dhabi haircut which seemed to go well (I haven't yet taken that plunge but then I've never been a big one for hsircuts!) The second day we got ourselves in holiday mode by spending the day on the newly opened beach. It is so cool being able to stroll across to the Corniche, hire a couple of loungers on the water's edge and spend the day relaxing in the sun and swimming in the sea. The water is quite cold at this time of year but nothing compared with the English channel, the North Sea or the River Wharfe! The only challenge is that it's a popular spot so you tend to bump into people you know and, when I'm so used to covering up, it feels very weird having a chat with someone whilst wearing a bathing costume!
We then went to Muscat in Oman for a week. We went once before when we were still in the UK but this time we managed to get into the Chedi, which is really the hotel in Muscat and frequently features in top hotels of the world lists. It was certainly very special and a lovely hotel, set in spacious grouds with pools and beach front and lots of fountains and ponds. The food was incredible and we managed to put away breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. The beach front seafood restaurant is probably one of the most beautiful restaurant locations I've ever eaten in and the main restaurant was also fabulous. We went to the Grand Hyatt for one dinner for old time's sake which was lovely.
The room itself was perhaps a bit too modern and minimalist for an old fogey like me though very Conde Nast traveller. I find integral bathrooms and stone walk in showers no substitute for separate marble bathrooms with a nice deep bath!
We went on two incredible trips. The first took us through the mountains and into the desert where our driver took us into the dunes in the 4WD and up and down some pretty steep inclines. We also had coffee with the bedouins and admired their camels and heard a bit about their way of life. I am keen to spend an overnight in the desert, a bit nearer Abu Dhabi, so that we can see a sunrise and a sunset, it is so beautiful and different to any landscape I'm familiar with. We also visited a water filled Wadi, but being a holiday it was absolutely packed with picknicking Omanis, who bring everything, literally including the kitchen sink (and cooker, water bottles, carpets and coffee urns) which they take up from the car park in wheel barrows. So we enjoyed the view over a chicken biriani at the outside restaurant but decided it was too busy to swim and, as a western woman in a bathing costume I think I might have caused quite a stir!
The second trip we went out to sea on a small boat to see dolphins and whales. This has to be one of the most brilliant things I've ever done and I really didn't think we'd get to see as much as we did, as these are wild creatures and the Arabian Sea is a big place. The skipper was constantly on his phone to other boats and eventually they tracked the sea life down. We say two pods of huge whales, right on the surface next to the boat and dozens of dolphins. The dolphins lept out of the water, rode the waves and generally put on a terrific show - it was amazing. I couldn't believe that they were just doing all of this for the fun of it, oblivious to our presence. I'm afraid I failed to photograph any of it but it was enough just to have seen it.
The rest of the time we lazed about, eating, drinking, reading and swimming and just enjoying each others company away from the stress of life in Abu Dhabi. I also managed to go out running a bit to try and ensure that I didn't come back resembling one of the whales which we saw!
All in all it was a terrific week.
We had a day at home getting sorted out and John had his first Abu Dhabi haircut which seemed to go well (I haven't yet taken that plunge but then I've never been a big one for hsircuts!) The second day we got ourselves in holiday mode by spending the day on the newly opened beach. It is so cool being able to stroll across to the Corniche, hire a couple of loungers on the water's edge and spend the day relaxing in the sun and swimming in the sea. The water is quite cold at this time of year but nothing compared with the English channel, the North Sea or the River Wharfe! The only challenge is that it's a popular spot so you tend to bump into people you know and, when I'm so used to covering up, it feels very weird having a chat with someone whilst wearing a bathing costume!
We then went to Muscat in Oman for a week. We went once before when we were still in the UK but this time we managed to get into the Chedi, which is really the hotel in Muscat and frequently features in top hotels of the world lists. It was certainly very special and a lovely hotel, set in spacious grouds with pools and beach front and lots of fountains and ponds. The food was incredible and we managed to put away breakfast, lunch and dinner every day. The beach front seafood restaurant is probably one of the most beautiful restaurant locations I've ever eaten in and the main restaurant was also fabulous. We went to the Grand Hyatt for one dinner for old time's sake which was lovely.
The room itself was perhaps a bit too modern and minimalist for an old fogey like me though very Conde Nast traveller. I find integral bathrooms and stone walk in showers no substitute for separate marble bathrooms with a nice deep bath!
We went on two incredible trips. The first took us through the mountains and into the desert where our driver took us into the dunes in the 4WD and up and down some pretty steep inclines. We also had coffee with the bedouins and admired their camels and heard a bit about their way of life. I am keen to spend an overnight in the desert, a bit nearer Abu Dhabi, so that we can see a sunrise and a sunset, it is so beautiful and different to any landscape I'm familiar with. We also visited a water filled Wadi, but being a holiday it was absolutely packed with picknicking Omanis, who bring everything, literally including the kitchen sink (and cooker, water bottles, carpets and coffee urns) which they take up from the car park in wheel barrows. So we enjoyed the view over a chicken biriani at the outside restaurant but decided it was too busy to swim and, as a western woman in a bathing costume I think I might have caused quite a stir!
The second trip we went out to sea on a small boat to see dolphins and whales. This has to be one of the most brilliant things I've ever done and I really didn't think we'd get to see as much as we did, as these are wild creatures and the Arabian Sea is a big place. The skipper was constantly on his phone to other boats and eventually they tracked the sea life down. We say two pods of huge whales, right on the surface next to the boat and dozens of dolphins. The dolphins lept out of the water, rode the waves and generally put on a terrific show - it was amazing. I couldn't believe that they were just doing all of this for the fun of it, oblivious to our presence. I'm afraid I failed to photograph any of it but it was enough just to have seen it.
The rest of the time we lazed about, eating, drinking, reading and swimming and just enjoying each others company away from the stress of life in Abu Dhabi. I also managed to go out running a bit to try and ensure that I didn't come back resembling one of the whales which we saw!
All in all it was a terrific week.
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