So How hot is 44 degrees?

[polarbear in dubai]

Hi All

So much to look at when considering moving the family from Sydney Australia to Dubai.

We're seriously considering it and appreciate all the comments about cost of living and jobs etc etc from all of you.

My wife has a couple of concerns:
1) how bad is it when it gets hot over there? 44 degrees sounds so hot, are you literally stuck inside for 3 months? or is the time people travel back to see family at home? With school holidays 1 thought is that mum and kids would come back to australia for 8 weeks or so.
2) If your a mum waiting for the kids to get home from school what do you do during the day? Obviously everyone different but just after some perspective
3) if we arrive say between november to january would we able to enrol our 3 year old into a preschool?
4) Has anyone experienced bring a 5 year old over and not being able to start school by the time they were 5 and a half (september) our boy is 5 in february ad if we stay in australia he'll go to school in feb next year (ready now) and we're worried if not being able to start until sep 09 would be an issue or if anyone has come accross this?

Appreciate any comments and thanks for your time

[sgilli3]

Originally Posted by polarbear in dubai

Hi All

So much to look at when considering moving the family from Sydney Australia to Dubai.

We're seriously considering it and appreciate all the comments about cost of living and jobs etc etc from all of you.

My wife has a couple of concerns:
1) how bad is it when it gets hot over there? 44 degrees sounds so hot, are you literally stuck inside for 3 months? or is the time people travel back to see family at home? With school holidays 1 thought is that mum and kids would come back to australia for 8 weeks or so.
2) If your a mum waiting for the kids to get home from school what do you do during the day? Obviously everyone different but just after some perspective
3) if we arrive say between november to january would we able to enrol our 3 year old into a preschool?
4) Has anyone experienced bring a 5 year old over and not being able to start school by the time they were 5 and a half (september) our boy is 5 in february ad if we stay in australia he'll go to school in feb next year (ready now) and we're worried if not being able to start until sep 09 would be an issue or if anyone has come accross this?

Appreciate any comments and thanks for your time

Hi and welcome to the forum (I am also from Oz)

I will try and answer some of your questions.

1.44 is nothing...the temp hovers around 50 deg cel over summer !!!
Once its hot..its hot, and I believe that when it is over 40 for weeks at a time that all days begin to feel the same, whether its 44 or 50. (by the way- the min temp at night during summer is 30 deg)

Yes, you can be stuck inside...but: you have air con inside, the cars have air con, the malls have air con etc !! Its walking to the car/ or into the mall from your car, that the heat knocks your socks off !!
You will get used to it...just be safe- drink fluids, and stay out of the heat as much as possible.
Its still possible to get out and do things- its just best to play etc, very early in the day, or very late in the afternoon.

Lots of people travel back to their own countries in summer...but not all. Myself, and my family are always here for summer.
There are activities to keep you busy..fun places in the malls, and activities in malls, plus loads of kids summer camps.


2). Its is no different to being a mum in your own country...what does your wife do now during the day?
I home school my 3 kids...so my days are obviously full.
If your wife as free time, there are coffee mornings, mum + toddler mornings, she can take the LO to the library for story time, swimming etc
She could volunteer at many places, take cooking lessons, take up a language etc.

3)You need to enrol for any type of schooling ASAP, as places can be very hard to get.
Ideally, your child will go to school either close to where you live or work, as traffic can be terrible here, and you dont want to spend hours on the roads doing the school runs.
Do you know where you will be living?- if so, start with schools close by.
We generally recommend you put your childs name down at as many places as you can. Most schools need a registration fee, and most schools will expect your child to sit an entrance exam too.

Schools are VERY expensive here, so make sure your employer will be covering school fees, or giving you the bulk of the money towards them.

4) Most schools actually start from 3 here..again different from Oz. Some schools will allow a child to begin a school year mid term, or at the beginning of next term (there are only 3 terms here).
One of the other posters on this board, knows someone who had to return to the UK as the child could not get a place here. (I believe they went back for a few months)-
At 5 (Feb), your child would be probably be in KS1 (UK curriculum), or Kindergarton (US)...which is loke Prep in Victoria.

Hope this helps a little

[flossie]

You're from Australia? Well wouldn't you have experienced 44 degrees? 44 degrees is HOT, as is 50 degrees. To be honest, though, it's not so much the heat than the humidity. It's very, very uncomfortable. We liken it to our time in UK in winter. We only went out when neccessary. We go from our airconditioned home to our airconditioned cars to the airconditioned destination. It is common for wives and kids to desert the husbands and come 'home' for the summer. (Just like I am doing, as we speak. Yes, it's wet, cold and windy here in Oz, but it sure as hell beats being stuck inside on the school holidays!!)

Come September, it's still bloody hot, but the kids are back to school (only for half days because it Ramadan) and by the evening it's cool enough to go for a swim. By October it's getting really nice and from then on it's gorgeous until the end of May/beginning of June. The Aussies seem to cope better than those from colder climates.

2. Hmmm, what do I do all day? (You sound like my bloody husband!!) I take the kids to school, come home, clean for a bit, go to the gym, might meet some friends for lunch. Doing the grocery shopping is just about a full time job because I have to go about 3 supermarkets to get a week's worth of groceries. I don't really know what I do all day because everything takes so bloody long to do in Dubai. But by the time I've done anything it's time to get the kids, come home, do homework, go for a swim, get tea, have baths, bed. Really, my day to day life isn't that different to being in Australia. Bills still need paying, the toilets still need cleaning, etc etc. I don't have a maid, though. Not sure how the women that do fill their days though. Not knocking them, really. It can be very, very hard to move here and suddenly find you have no family support. Especially if you come from a very close knit family like I did. Was a very hard time, emotionally.

3. If you are planning to come in January/Feb, you can still enrol your child at school I THINK!! I know there is a cut off date, but I'm almost certain it's after then. Be warned, though. School places in the younger years can be very, very hard to come by. Apply to as many schools as you can as soon as you can. Even if it's 6 months before you're coming. Also be warned the schools are very expensive. My kids' school is around $12,000AUD for year 2. It's around $17,000 for year 7.

4. Not sure about your last question. The cut off for most British curriculum schools is September. So by my sums, your little boy will be due to start grade 1 in September '09. When you leave your school in Australia, your child's current school will have to sign and stamp a transfer certificate to state what year he is currently in. The ministry of education states that a child cannot be put up to one year until that child has finished the previous year. For children from the Southern Hemisphere, the Ministry has decided that the schools can assess the child in question and place them in the appropriate year. Be warned, though, that some schools do not seem to be aware of this and will insist on your child 'repeating'. I have two children. My oldest ("gifted" their words, not mine) daughter 'repeated' when we got here because that would keep her in with her peers. Even though she is very bright, she did not find it boring as the school provided work for her that was challenging and extended her. Due to WA changing the law between the births of my kids, my son had to wait an extra year before starting school. This meant that if he was to 'repeat' he would be in a class with children at least a year younger than him. As he is a very tall child, this was quite a disaster. He got 'put up' so that he was with children his own age and he progressed really well from there. So my advice to you is to not worry so much about what year in school your child will be in, but to make sure he is in the right year for his maturity and age. I suggest you contact the schools because each curriculum has different starting ages etc.

Hope this helps.

[flossie]

Snap, Sgilli!!!

[sgilli3]

Originally Posted by flossie

Snap, Sgilli!!!

Ahhh, too funny!!!
Always in sync you and.... I lol
PS- glad to hear you enjoyed your Hungry Jacks- bragger !!

xx

[flossie]

Originally Posted by sgilli3

Ahhh, too funny!!!
Always in sync you and.... I lol
PS- glad to hear you enjoyed your Hungry Jacks- bragger !!

xx

Might even have a dimsim tomorrow.

Oh, and I'm off to Perth for the day...........Witchery! Here I come!!!

[sgilli3]

Originally Posted by flossie

Might even have a dimsim tomorrow.

Oh, and I'm off to Perth for the day...........Witchery! Here I come!!!

Now you are being downright nasty!
have a great day, and will "chat" again soon!

[alli]

I'll answer your questions as best I can:


My wife has a couple of concerns:
1) how bad is it when it gets hot over there?
I come from Sydney too. In all honesty, the heat is fine - its the humidity. it is insane. Heat is easy to deal with, but when you sweat like you are in a sauna and your clothes stick to you, your glasses immediately fog up when you go outside...that's what gets you. I really haven't found it ridiculously hot, though. I can deal with it. I tend to leave windows etc open to let fresh air in, and I'm fine with a cold washer and a fan. They have fans with built in water misters here so that's a nice novelty! Apparently it gets cold in winter, so I am looking fwd to that very much! Bring lots of loose cotton clothing. Heaps of people go home during the summer, but this is only my 2d month here. I find the europeans have much more difficulty with the heat than we do. Be prepared to sweat alot and always have tissues/hanky/face wipes in your handbag

2) If your a mum waiting for the kids to get home from school what do you do during the day? Obviously everyone different but just after some perspective

Whatever you do at home, you do here. On the upside, it is really cheap to get your nails done, so indulge in that once a week

The rest I dont know cos I havent got kids.
Good luck!

[polarbear in dubai]

Hi All,

Thanks so much for the response - really appreciate your comments and you taking tim out to help me out

Another question whilst I've got you: when does it get dark over there an when does the sun rise? Do they have daylight savings like in Australia?

[polarbear in dubai]

Thanks all for your comments

Hey when does the sun rise and go down? Do they have daylight savings like Australia?

Cheers