What do you pack as carry on for a flight that is 16 hours in length? (And that's the shortest flight time I've come across, between LAX and the UAE, believe it or not.)
Thanks to my Mom, I had a second large suitcase. There is an option to pay for additional luggage, but I figured since I would be back home mid-December for ten days to two weeks, for now I would cram as much as I could that I needed on a minimum level to get me through the first two and a half months. For carry-on, things like my Galaxy tablet, prescriptions, my favorite bed pillow (for the plane and for my new living quarters), and critical paperwork.
Speaking of paperwork, it's not good enough to have official transcripts in a sealed envelope. The UAE, for reasons I do not yet understand (and may never understand), requires that your transcript be "attested". My brother turned me on to a service that does this ... it's expensive but still cheaper than me doing it myself, because the time and cost it would take me to do this would be extreme. You send your official transcript to this service in D.C.; they get it attested by the Department of State in the state your diploma is from (in my case, Nebraska); then it is attested by the U.S. State Department. Hand to God, the final document has Hillary Rodham Clinton's signature on it. Then the UAE Embassy in D.C. signs and stamps it for approval.
And for Tim, in order for him to be able to have health care when he is in the UAE or more importantly in order to take advantage of the Travel Allowance funds set aside for him (standard part of the job contract), our Marriage Certificate underwent a similar process. Those documents are now tucked away safely!
So, back to getting here in Abu Dhabi. I flew Emirates Airlines, one of the two UAE national airlines. Emirates flies direct (I think the only one) from LAX to Dubai. From Dubai, Emirates has a car service to get you to Abu Dhabi (about an hour and ten minute drive). The good news: my first flight there and my final flight home is in business class. Sweet. Leg room, seats that lie flat, lovely service, good food for an airline. Helped make the time go by a bit more quickly. My flight left at 4:45 p.m. on Saturday September 29th. I arrive in Dubai about 8 p.m. on Sunday September 30th (that's 9 a.m. California time).
Here's a photo from my seat, to give you an idea of the space. I was at a window seat; seats across are configured 2 - 3 - 2. I read, slept, and got through one movie over the course of dinner and breakfast. (Gotta love that with Emirates' entertainment system you can pause the movie you are watching and come back to it.)
Surprising to me, this is the route. Up and over Canada, near the Artic Circle, down and around.
And cool beans -- the both Emirates and Etihad airlines (the two national UAE airlines) have cameras on their noses on their bellies, so you can see what you are flying toward and over. So, here's a photo that is near Tehran.
The flight was on time ... yay!
As a visitor to the UAE, people and literature put fear into you about bringing in prescriptions. (Google the list of UAE banned drugs, even if they are prescribed in the US or other country.) I was told by the UAE embassy that I needed a notorized doctor's note and notarized copies of my prescriptions. A hassle, but figured it was worth it. Maybe on another flight I'll need those documents, but on my arrival to Dubai, only my passport and work visa was stamped. Guess that's better than having the documents and still being told to dump your prescriptions in the trash can next to you!
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