Bahrain touch down

Ramadan Kareem from Bahrain!
We lucked in big time flying in here from Hong Kong with an upgrade to Business Class - “another steamed towel and a couple of chardonnays please” was a nice way to enjoy an 8 hour flight. Airport formalities were quite easy, Jude was finger-printed and photographed, and I bought a 2 week visitor’s visa for 5 Dinar (20 NZ bucks) and all was good - we knew that this was going to happen and all is in order!
My visa will be extended by the Polytech until Jude’s residency comes thru (I think), tho I may have to do a “visa run” by flying to Dubai for a night or three and come back - all paid for, no sweat.
Nothing can prepare you for the heat here, - I don’t mind it actually, but the first couple of days were late 40’s Celsius, with sunglasses fogging up instantly when you walk outside, and it feels like a bit of a furnace, but you don’t catch fire, so all good. We got more than a few looks when we went for walks, with cab drivers tooting (offering a lift) in disbelief.
We are now ensconced in the Gulf Hotel and Residences (check out http://www.gulfhotelbahrain.com/ ) - they take better pics than I do) and it’s very comfy thanks. Will prolly be here for a month til our chosen apartment comes available. The pool area is like an oasis, with swim up bar, waterfall, “viewing” deck etc etc, and there’s a fab gym for men and a separate one for ladies, on top of a collection of restaurants to choose from.
There are 65 new staff starting at the same time, so Jude is attending (cruisy) induction sessions here in the Hotel conference area complete with lavish meals from time to time. We’ve hired a wee Toyota Yaris (left hand drive auto) which has been great, with the AC cranked up and the GPS plugged in, we’re flying! Cost is about $NZ20 a day.
Manama (in fact the whole of Bahrain) isn’t that big, so with plenty of stunning architecturally significant towers , mosques and skyscrapers, you can’t really get lost. It is a really interesting place tho - plenty of luxury everywhere - the cars are amazing - I often say while out driving “sh%$ there are some nice cars here”. There’s an amazing contrast too - you can step out of a glass clad skyscraper and there’s dust and sand for acres, til the next building!!
Shopping ranges from the historical Souk (markets) to the many many malls, one offering 330 shops, with a Waterworld complex attached. The cost of living here is attractive - bearing in mind our accommodation is paid for, all we need to cover is a car/groceries and mobiles. Surprisingly mobiles are a tad cheaper than NZ.
With 650,000 people, it’s a small city as most people live above the ground, ie in apartments, with some nice villa compounds also. A US Naval base is a prominent fixture and no doubt the reason there are so many spunky Chevy’s, GMC’s, Cadillac’s, Mustangs etc everywhere.
Every 5th car seems to be a Lexus as well. We’re looking at picking up an ex Budget or Avis rental to buy once our papers are thru.
The area we hope to live in is popular with expats, with a huge range and diversity of restaurants, cafés and pubs on our doorstep. It’s also less sparse and barren as most other areas, has more character - and you can get absolutely any type of food, great quality, in an authentic setting and at a great price. Every type of fast food you could imagine is available also, with delivery free to your door.
Apartments here come with electricity, broadband, satellite TV included in the rent. All apartments have a Gym, and 99% have a beautiful pool -normally on the roof, and a doorman for security, - who will also wash your car once a week for $5 a shot. The one we are after is also serviced twice a week, and has parking underneath - shaded parking is to be appreciated here!
Ramadan
This is an annual religious festival taken very seriously by Muslims, which started on Saturday. It means liquor stores close for a month - don’t worry, we got here in time to stock up - a few people got trampled, but hey - no food or drink to be consumed during daylight hours - so all café’s restaurants are closed until dusk - then they go hard when everybody hits town , to “break the fast”. Strange but true.
So the Polytech has a special room where lunch may be consumed by non Muslims and eating in your apartment or hotel room, as a traveller, is fine.
Ps - I’ve just filled the car with gas from empty - $14! 
Pps - we’ve just heard we have got the apartment we had been after - cool! We move in 5 weeks. Because they consider themselves a pretty ‘exclusive’ apartment building I wasn’t allowed to take photo’s, but watch this space…

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