The perfect travel base
Sarah Chant‘s teaching career in Abu Dhabi is an ongoing adventure.
What inspired your move, and how long have you been there?
I’d heard a little about living and teaching in Abu Dhabi from friends and it sounded like the perfect combination – a real adventure, perfect travel base and an income that meant we could travel.
What do you do there?
I work in an international school as a teacher and Nathan [her partner] works from home. We document our travels on exploringkiwis.com, where we provide tips and tricks.
What are the greatest advantages to living there?
The UAE is an amazing base to travel from. Last year I visited 25 countries. We enjoy having Dubai an hour up the road and often visit for a taste of excitement.
Disadvantages?
Processes and procedures can be a bit of a challenge. Visas can take a long time to be issued and this left us with a raft of challenges such as an inability to get the internet connected, frozen bank cards and cancelled SIMs.
How expensive is it compared to New Zealand?
Alcohol costs more here (as it’s a Muslim country, it makes sense), but milk is a similar price to what we’re used to and meat is a fair bit cheaper. We use an app to get ‘‘buy one, get one free’’ deals on our favourite restaurants and takeaways are really affordable.
What do you do in your spare time?
We often head up to Dubai and we’ve been trying to explore other parts of the Emirates. Last weekend we flew our drone out in the desert and the weekend before that we went snowboarding inside the biggest indoor skifield in the world.
What’s the local delicacy and would you recommend it?
The local speciality would have to be the shawarma. They’re like the kebabs that we get back home, only they come with garlic paste and chilli sauce.
Easiest way to get around?
Public transport here is relatively limited but taxis are cheap, reliable and plentiful. Rental cars are well-priced too – we pay under $450 each month and fuel is cheap as chips.
What’s the shopping like?
Fantastic! We find Abu Dhabi to have a larger selection of brands (they have a lot of the American and British labels) and also a wider number of sizes on offer.
Best after-dark activity?
If you enjoy heading out, bars run ‘‘ladies nights’’ throughout the week where women drink for free – it’s a great way to see Abu Dhabi’s nightlife without it costing you a fortune. The malls really come to life late at night too so that’s normally where we head.
Best time of year to visit?
Summer is unbearably hot and many of the residents head away to escape the heat. It starts to cool down again from October (though that’s a relative term) and stays nice until April.
What are the top three things you recommend for visitors?
Top of the list would be the Grand Mosque – it’s a gorgeous structure. You can join a free guided tour and gain an insight into this peaceful religion. Try a desert safari where they’ll take you out for dune bashing, camel rides, henna, cultural experiences and an Arabic barbecue. You can’t leave the UAE without seeing the glitz of Dubai. Cars are cheap to hire and the roads are good, so pick one up and make the trip over.
Besides family and friends, what do you miss most about home?
Initially we missed being able to head out in the car on a tiki tour but we’ve adjusted to having a destination in mind when we go for a drive, rather than the aimless wandering we’d so often do. I also really miss pies!
How easy is it for you to get back to New Zealand?
It’s a 14-hour flight to Australia and then another 4 hours from there. It takes over 24 hours to get home.
For Kiwis looking to move there, which industries are seeking fresh talent?
Teachers are always in high demand throughout Abu Dhabi. Contracts in other industries aren’t as easy to come by as they used to be but if you have time on your hands and experience, chances are you’ll find something.