dubai baby?

[umzeki]

moving to dubai for husband's job with 1 year old baby boy... does anybody have advice on child care, nursery schools, best area to live with a baby etc... and most importantly, what the hell you can do with a baby in that kind of heat? i don't want my child to grow up in shopping centres! help!

Hi
Try the website www.expatwoman.com. It has a forum dedicated to Dubai. They will be able to answer any of your questions. Also they have information regarding schools, hospitals etc, anything you want to know. I found it invaluable before I moved out and whilst I have been here. Personally I cant help with the baby stuff as DS is 11 and moving to high school in Sept - schools are a very emotive issue in Dubai ;)
Good luck and remember out here we say Insahallah (if god is willing) because sometimes he takes an awful long time. If you have more details of where your husband will be working, please post as this will determine where you live and then everything else. we can then give you more specfic advice. Traffic can be horrendous out here, but for most women who dont work getting about in the daytime is fairly easy and straight forward, hence the reason to live close to DH work if poss.
Its a great place and you will have a fab time. If I can help let me know.

Looking at a move to Dubai and have been reading all your posts re your move Starmummy! Umzeki, living abroad with baby really easy, have done that, but now the thought of uprooting 11 year old,nearly 10 year old and 7 year old much more daunting as we have schools question. I would really like to hear more about schools from you Starmummy as my eldest is in same year as your son. Is he staying at the same school or moving - I know some go all the way through and some don't. Recent e-mails to schools suggest it will be difficult to get place in Year 3 for my 7 year old.Any help very welome!

Hmmm Tarentella, I think you might have a problem. The website I refered to previously will give you peoples opinion of the schools and they can be very diverse. I suggest you decide what you want froma school and work out from there. Dxb schools offer Nat Curric. International bac, International GCSE's, american curric, australian, russian and japenese. Local schools are only available to Emiratis. For me as my son was moving very near to the end of year 6 nat curric, I wanted him to go to a school that followed thru to seniors. some schools here dont and they require tests for a place. Didnt want Ds to do that as soon as we got here after all the other children had taken tests earlier. People travel to get to school, its not a question of going to the nearest school. Also many parents move schools when another place comes up. I have made a friend here, her son is in the same year and school as ds and he is happy, however her DD couldnt get a place a the same school, and she isnt happy at the school she attends. There isnt a place in year 4 (Sept 07) at our school. So she is going to a different much smaller school altogether. However she will need to change as that school doesnt have a senior school.
Getting places can be hard. everyone recommends putting your name down as soon as possible. I am willing to discuss these things privately if you wish as I wouldnt want my personal opinions about the schools to become public IYKWIM? email me at jude underscore bonner at hotmail dot com. HTH. I am happy to answer any other questions as much as I can. There are other ladies on this board in the Middle East who can also help you (I hope).

hello starmummy and tarantella, i'm encouraged by your comments, especially that dubai is a great place. i'm a londoner coming from many years in rome - i'm concerned that dubai is kind of souless... not to mention stinking hot all year round. anyway, i think hubby will be working in media city, but he's happy to travel to work. the important thing is that the baby and i can get around to nursery, shops, pool, caffe's, beach, places to meet other kids and mums etc. just how do you get around in dubai? i'm told it's not a walking kind of city....

Hi Umzeki
My DH works media city. We live in Meadows, just ovet the SZR (thats the main road in and out of Dubai). It take me ten mins to drop him off in the morning on my way to school. I then keep the car for the rest of the day. You will need to drive to get out and about. To get to DS school in Jumeriah takes 20 mins and to the MOE (mall of the emirates, huge big shopping mall includ carrefour supermarket) take 10 mins from home). There are lots of mums and baby/tots groups. Loads of play areas and cafes and restaurants genrally love children and make special provision for them. also there are all the usual gymborees, tumble tots, music and language classes. As I understand it nurseries can be very difficult to find a place and as for schools, start looking and get your DC name down right away.
I like the meadows but would be equally happy in springs,Jumeriah Islands (nowhere near Jumeriah) Arabian Ranches is lovely but for some people its too far out as is the Green community. Living in Jumeriah and Umm Suqeim would be lovely however it is quite a bit more expensive, also the gated communities generally have communal gardens.
Apartments in the marina are spacious, my friend live there and she is very happy, as she lived in an apartment in London. for me I like a garden as I am used to walking out with my cuppa and looking over the fields. Breathe that cool air as it wont happen here! lol.
As for your point about what do you do in the heat, you adapt your lifestyle, we get up early for the beach, get there by 7am home again for 10am, got to sleep over the lunchtime and walk at dusk around the lakes and parks in places like the AR, springs, Meadows, etc. You will meet loads of parents doing this. Also the parks are lovely, you will be amazed. Creek Park with the childrens City interactive museum is just wonderful.
Just be prepared you will need loads of lightweight woolies. We went to the movies on Friday, it was 42 degrees outside with 45% humidity and inside the cinema it cant have even been 18 degrees. Brrrr, always have a bag with a cardie in, gosh I sound like my granny, bless her. Ds (age 11!) Was tucked up inside my over dress, lucky for him I had a tshirt underneath.
Anymore questions and I will do my best to help.

thanks starmummy, that's really useful info as we have to start getting our act together very soon, and yes, i won't forget my cardi... one more thing... do you know if houses / flats for rent are generally furnished or not? we are debating how much of our stuff to bring out with us!

Hi mzeki, I also live in Dubai, have been here for just over 4 years and ds was not quite 2 when we arrived here. All the info that starmummy has given is very accurate, you just adapt to the heat and the freezing cold shopping malls, restaurants, cinema's etc, I always have a pashmina with me!!

You will need to put your ds's name down at the school you want him to go to as soon as you arrive and even then it won't guarantee you a place, we were extremely lucky to get ds into our 1st choice school (we didn't apply to any others..so very lucky to get the place!!)

there are lots of mums and baby/toddler groups here so you will make friends easily and if you live near to starmummy I am sure that there are lots of families there, we live the other end of town, in old Dubai but we are near to dh work and school so not too far to travel. Look at the other website there is a huge forum regarding places to live and schools, coffee mornings etc.

Good luck with your move and Welcome or Marhaba as they say in arabic.

Hi Inthepink, its a bit hot a t the mo isnt it? Phew...... Love the sunshine though, it makes me smile to look at the windows everfy morning.
Hello Umzeki, Def schools need to be first on the list, it can be hard to find places, you just need to hold your nerve, people are moving out all the time. As for funished or unfurnished, generally they seem to be unfurnished, but furnished do come available. However we have a number of cheap furniture shops, apart for the ubiquitious Ikea. Also there is always stuff from people leaving, cars, furniture and white goods. Generally I would advise bring what you want to make your house a home. If the co are payiong for a container, fill it!!!!! You can always get rid of it here, people have garage sales, inclu TV's, curtains, kids toys everything.
It is a good idea to live near where the work is, it just makes it all a bit less stressful. School run times are not the same as rush hour so not quite as bad as then. As for school location, almost everyone has to drive to school or put the kids on the bus. Even the little 5 year olds go on the bus at some schools :0

Making friends is easy, 95% of people have relocatd to here so they all understand how hard it can be.
Good luck and you will love it when you get here, esp if you dont have to fly home in the school hols when the prices rocket ;)

Off to the movies now, Ds ha jeans and long sleeved t shirt today, tee hee. glad he remebered and I didnt have to remind him.