Last night’s sleep was one of the best I’ve had this trimester. The back ache and swollen feet didn’t register. I didn’t get uncomfortable enough to wake up and managed to change sides only when I had to get up to go to the loo.

The loo trips only happened thrice too – instead of the usual 5 or 6, in half of which I have to walk holding onto the furniture for support.

But since the pain didn’t register, I could simply get up and go with minimum hassle.

The baby cooperated too. There was no rib tickling or kicks on my bladder. There was no crazy movements to wake me up. Just a little shove here and there to let me know it was okay when I’d get up to go to the loo.

Of course I won’t be able to sleep off stress when there’s a hungry, squalling baby in the crib in the middle of the night.

Just a little over 3 weeks left!

Related posts:

1. Terror strikes!
2. A change of direction
3. May Mayhem!

One just doesn’t know what Allah has in store for us.

So far this pregnancy has been the easiest. My toughest challenge has been to survive a mild case of PUPPP. Even the mildest case of PUPPP is no walk in the park. It was only my vanity that saved me from going insane scratching myself like a monkey. It was the fear of getting scars.

Having sensitive skin that scars easily I put ice on my stomach, lathered it with cream, then doused it with baby powder to dry it out – 20 times a day.

Now that’s terror I tell you.

No related posts.

No related posts.

My sister had a 7 hour transit in Dubai on May 17th. After tons of Visa drama where I tried everything and she tried everything and still all people had to tell us was that you needed at least 8 hours to get a transit Visa – meeting her turned out to be extremely simple.

When nothing worked out before-hand, we decided that she should first go to the visa desk and ask for a visa. If they refuse, to go try the hotel desk and ask for a room and I’ll go meet her at whatever hotel she’ll be at (if they gave her one). And if nothing worked out, we’ll just wave across the glass to each other.

Whatever happened, whether we got to meet or not, I told her I was going to be at the airport when her plane landed.

Since my trip home has been delayed, I wasn’t going to let the chance of meeting her get by me. My sister was in the same country as I was! There was no way I would have sat back and not done everything to meet her! Had I been going home two weeks later like originally planned, I might not have been so crazy to meet her. Either way, I did end up meeting her

Her flight got delayed and we ended up meeting for a grand total of two and a half hours (only =( ). 

But in true younger sister fashion, I went through her bag while she was freshening up in the loo. And because we didn’t have much time, we were talking even while she was in the stall Took her out to dinner after that where we lounged (read caught up) on everything that had happened in the past year since we’d last met.

From listening to hilarious stories of my younger cousins to seeing her enjoy her first taste of Arabic food. It was a memorable couple of hours.

Needless to say, I can’t wait to go home. I miss my parents and siblings! And my friends! Let’s not forget that I want to hit the beach like last time and shop! 

For those of you who have siblings living abroad who you don’t get to meet often, have you ever gone to crazy extents to meet them if only for a few hours?

That’s not the only thing that happened in May. Stay tuned for details of further may mayhem!

No related posts.

My best internship experience and I forget the company’s name. 

Have I changed as a person so much that what once was important to me is no longer important enough to remember it? Or have I squashed the dreams I once had and made my peace?

On a slightly lighter note: I’ve probably just seen new dreams for myself.

Either way, it saddens me to realize I can’t remember the name of the company that was (is?) the epitome of my idea of a perfect place to work at.

In case you’re wondering, yes I have a certificate to show, and a copy of all the work I did for them but I don’t want to look at them to remember the name. I want to remember it on my own.

Copyright by Cuppa Life

No related posts.

The Writing Base is about freelancing, writing and social networking. It is commentary on my experiences as a new freelancer.

Cuppa Life – where you’re at right now – is about life as an expat in UAE.

My third and oldest blog (though I’ve moved home twice before but have always brought along everything), Chronicles of a Chai Charsee is my personal blog.

The thing is that it’s been getting confusing between Chronicles and Cuppa Life, trying to decide where to blog what. Now that I’ve moved to the UAE, technically both blogs are about life as an expat. Living in UAE invariably influences all aspects of my personal life.

After a post asking my readers, friends and followers on what to do, its been decided that I will merge the two. From now on Cuppa Life has a new direction. It shall be my personal blog and my expat blog.

If you’re screaming in anguish already at the idea of having to endure my brain vomit, I promise I’ll try to control it

I won’t be moving my posts from Chronicles so if you want to *cough* snoop *cough* read through my previous entries and see what I’ve been blogging about since the age of 18, you’ll have to head on over there.

Let me know what you guys think.

No related posts.

Till then, take care!

No related posts.

Friday prayers in UAE are a phenomenon. I don’t know about Dubai, but in Sharjah, the roads empty out and mosques fill up. So much so that men have to pray outside in the parking lot. While most mosques provide covering outside, the one near my house doesn’t. People still flock to it and pray outside in the severe heat under the merciless sun.

Friday prayers is also the only time you won’t get fined for wrong parking. Cars park on side walks, on the side of the roads and yet so many people still don’t find parking space.

This picture was taken on a Friday afternoon during the prayer. I’d gone out in the balcony and saw the view in the window from the building opposite ours. It’s a reflection of the mosque. You can see the people praying outside and the insane parking.

Related posts:

1. The View From My House.

Photo Credit: Pjvandi

When I moved here, my biggest issue was not having anything to do. Literally. I had no family and absolutely no friends. In short, I knew no one apart from my husband and his family. Combine that with not being able to start my Masters for various reasons and you have a very messed up female on your hands.

Predictably, I was depressed – at 22. That’s wrong on so many levels that it’s not even funny. Thankfully, I had seen my mother deal with living alone and taking care of the family while my dad was away at sea. I started off reading which used to be a favourite past time at home. I read so much I totally turned myself off reading for months. Before it happened, I wouldn’t have believed it possible.

Next came watching movies. I got tired of them faster than you could say ‘What a waste of time!’ Only Grey’s Anatomy managed to survive my divorce from TV.

All this while I was blogging and reminiscing of my days back home where I’d been offered a job and was starting out with part time freelancing. That’s when the proverbial bulb went off in my head.

I should be writing professionally! Once that thought had occurred, it wouldn’t back off. I researched for almost two months, went back home, recuperated, came back a lot more grounded and started looking for freelance work.

In the beginning it was just about keeping myself busy in a strange and new land. Slowly it became a passion with a focus. I know writing, I’ve been doing it for years. I’m good at it. Most of all, there’s no limit to the things I can learn!

That in itself is the biggest pull for me. It has become a habit for me to be up late, writing. Something about the quiet house gets my fingers flying. Now that I’m freelancing and most of my clients are US based, it’s pretty apt that my night is their day.

Of course the downside is that I haven’t seen early morning in a while except for when I wake up for Fajr. And that’s all of ten minutes

Right now my life is insanely busy. Hard to imagine huh? From having absolutely nothing to do, to having so much to do that I’m up at 4 am having just completed a project and am now writing a blog post.

To be honest, this post is to record my sense of peace. I have made my place in this new land with my (new) people. I’ve made friends and I’ve found work. Missing my parents, old friends and city is part of the package.

Have you ever had to de-root from the place of your birth and establish new ones in a new country where you didn’t know anyone? How was your experience? How did you cope?

P.S: There’s a really nice picnic spot behind the mosque in the picture.

No related posts.

Getting a driving license in Dubai is tougher than getting your MBA.

- Emirates Driving Intitute Instructor.

After getting my license 6 weeks ago, I’ve been, tentatively, let loose by my family on the roads of Dubai. My first drive was to my home from Ghurair centre, with my husband in the passenger seat, hanging on for his precious life – just in case. For the next few times, I drove on highways such as Dubai-Al-Ain Road, Dhaid Road etc. While my confidence grew with every long drive, I have yet to face extreme traffic. The kind that’s on Dubai-Sharjah road at 6 am.

From the little I have driven in Dubai, I’ve noticed a few things that seem to be taken for granted on the road.

1. If the car has an Abu Dhabi number plate, it’s expected that there will be reckless and attitude-ish driving involved and you’d be better off keeping a safe distance.

2. A four wheeler has the right of way even when it’s going the wrong way.

3. Seasoned drivers can sniff a new driver from miles away and will either avoid you or tail you before changing lanes. Unless you’re in a 4×4.

4. The left lane is for race car drivers – or those with lots of money to pay the fines.

5. Taxi drivers will give you the way if you’re a female driver. I think that is mostly because a lot of taxi drivers are Pakistani, and that’s how it’s done in Pakistan.

6. The above mentioned taxi driver will also keep a safe distance if he’s behind a female driver. This has more to do with lack of faith in your driving than courtesy.

I’m sure I’ll observe more and more things as the frequency of my driving increases. If you’re driving in Dubai, what kind of things have you noticed on the road?

Oh P.S! I drive a 4×4

Photo Credit: Dopesmulgar

No related posts.