When I arrived at Dubai International Airport my handler was there to meet me as I deplaned. She was very nice but honestly, I didn't need her. I had been to that airport before and could have found my way without her. The best thing about having her though was the fact that I didn't have to wait in the enormous immigration line. This "handling" company had it's own line which was empty. Totally worth it just for that. Once out of baggage claim Anthony, a member of the AMK9 team, met me and provided me with a ride to the Avenue Hotel where I was staying. Anthony is from the Phillipines and had been working in Dubai for AMK9 for about 4 years. Very nice guy. As soon as we walked outside I was hit with a wall of heat/humidity. It was about 108 degrees that late in the evening....UGH!
Avenue Hotel Dubai
By the time I arrived at the hotel it was just after 9:00pm. I had to drop my bags off at my room and then head across the street to get some passport photos. I would need one the next day for my Afghani visa. It was a quick and rather painless process. I then went to my room for a good night's sleep.
I awoke the next morning and had breakfast at the hotel. They had some Americanized dishes but also some strange things I didn't recognize. The important thing was coffee and they did have that. I met Anthony and Ben (an American member of the AMK9 team) at 9:30am and they took me to the Afghanistan Consulate in Dubai so I could apply for my visa. It was a strange experience.
The consulate is a tiny room with chairs like the DMV or something similar in the States with one guy behind a glass windown in the front of the room. There was no taking numbers or anything. It was free-for-all craziness. I managed to work my way to the front of the line and hand my paperwork to the guy behind the window. Apparently he doesn't like AMK9 very much because Ben is friends with this guy's boss and anytime he gives us a hard time Ben goes over his head. Respect is huge for these guys so it pisses him off. I just started talking to him and found out he is an MD from Afghanistan. Why he is working there I have no idea. But he also told me his brother in-law is a veterinarian in Afganistan. So we had a little moment and then he approved my paperwork. We then had to go to a different room and pay (about $50). After paying we went back to the man behind the window where he took my receipt, my passport, a passport photo and my paperwork and told us to come back at 3pm to pick it up. It was a bit unnerving to leave my passport there but I had to.
Ben and Anthony took me back to the hotel. Ben said he would pick up my passport later and drop it at the hotel. I decided to exchange some US dollars into AED (arab emirates dirhams) and head to the Dubai Mall about a 20 minute drive from the hotel. I asked the hotel for a cab but it's not like the US or some other places I've been. They don't call a cab for you. You just stand outside and hail one. It was pretty easy (thank God) because it was so freaking hot I didn't want to stand out there very long!
Dubai Mall
Once at the mall I just walked around. I wasn't really up for buying anything so I people watched and went into some stores that we don't have in the States. The mall is the 5th largest in the world. It has an aquarium (inside the middle of the mall), an ice skating rink, a huge arcade with a bowling alley, a 22 theater movie cineplex, a hotel and it is next to the Burj Khalifa which is the world's tallest building. They have huge fountains outside in front of the Burj that has a water show kind of like the Bellagio in Vegas. I didn't stick around to see it though because it doesn't happen til after dark. The mall is very Americanized with stores and restaurants that you see in most malls at home. It was a little strange.
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| Aquarium in the middle of the mall |
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| Burj Khalifa |
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| Burj Khalifa |
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| Fountains outside the mall |
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| Amazing waterfall inside the mall |
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| Ice skating rink inside the mall |
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| Even Arabs like Five Guys! lol |
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| My Afghani visa |
Ben picked me up in the morning and dropped me off at the Dubai Airport. I got checked in, made sure I had an aisle seat, dropped off my bags and went off to wait at my gate. I met a guy at the gate that was also heading to Kabul. His name is Korey and he's an engineer from Texas. He works for a firm that does contracts in the Middle East. He had been back and forth from the States to the Middle East for the past 7 years. He was really nice and told me to meet him at the baggage claim after the flight and he would wait with me until someone arrived to pick me up. You don't want to be an American female standing around the Kabul airport looking like you don't know what's happening. Once my AMK9 handlers arrived Korey took off. I was so grateful he was there to help me.
Two AMK9 guys met me at the baggage claim. They took my bags and helped me navigate the craziness of the airport and the parking lot. Two more AMK9 guys were there waiting for me in the parking lot in an old Toyota Forerunner. They threw my bags in the bed of the truck and off we went. My driver was Zabi and the other guy was Frank. You have not seen craziness until you have seen driving here. OMG. I have no words other than chaos. There are no stop signs, no traffic signals, no round-a-bouts, no nothing. There is traffic going every which way, there are people on bicycles and mopeds going in all directions, there are pedestrians crossing wherever they want. I'm surprised no one got killed. Yikes! I absolutely will not be driving here...... Hopefully I will be able to get a video to post at some point. You have to see it to believe it.
I arrived at the compound in one piece. It was quite the experience. More later!
"Don't let fear or insecurity stop you from trying new things. Believe in yourself. Do what you love. And most importantly, be kind to others, even if you don't like them."
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