Pingu
Posts 1125

We looking at a possible move from Dubai to Muskat

Can anyone give me some info on hospitals there? I am preggers and DD is epileptic, so need a good gynae and neurologist if anyone knows before we make any decisions

Thanks

MuscatSarah
Posts 14

So Vera how are things going are you settled down in Muscat now? How are you finding things?

patty
Posts 296

txs desertrose.
The internations is open for all nationalities, there are also a lott of germans.
There is a group who organise scandinavien parties and festivities. I can bring ou in contact with one of the ladies who organise these things.

DesertRose1958
Posts 1904

patty
Posts 296

you said the things I was thinking. I have been in the middle east since 4,5 years, I am still in the I need to get used to Muscat fase. I am now here since august and its different. I just went back to Doha to get some of my cheap shopping done wich I could not find down here. Hope that I will find the things in future in Muscat.
I also hope I will find my hobbies on a short time.

Helsbels
Posts 1093

living here in Muscat is very very different to enjoying a short break ............ there are the same frustrations you get living in any other ME country as an expat. I've been here 3 years and although it's a much quieter place to live than Dubai, it's also very restrictive if you like nightlife (bars and restaurants) and decent shopping. the malls here are mediocre......with stores closing every week.....there's just not the same amount of disposable income for locals as there seems to be in UAE.

If you are an outdoorsy person it;s great, so many wadis and mountains to explore. but if you like the bright lights and big city atmosphere then it;s not for you.

I am at the Wave and love the development.......will be even better once the retail section opens up! Nice to walk on pavements with streetlights and not get hassled!

If you are moving here with dogs......beware.....this is not a country that likes or welcomes them.....there's one kennelling facility so we have a full-time live-in housekeeper to look after our dogs. Stray dogs are routinely shot.

Working - I had a job here but decided to take my career in a new direction and now work from home for myself. Have to be discreet about it but there;s plenty of ladies who have hobbies and then sell their items etc at the WG Fairs or seasonal bazaars. (silk paintings, greetings cards, clothes etc etc)

It's very easy to get bored here........i do regular exercise classes and have met some great people that way. You have to go out and seek out new friends, and when you arrive it;s good to join the WG to at least meet a few people.

hope i dont sound too negative but it's important to know that Muscat doesnt suit everyone!

vera
Posts 913

Thanks again DesertRose.

What does the expat ladies do if they are not working?

I'm afraid that I'll get bored and I like to feel a bit independent even if I don't earn a great deal...

DesertRose1958
Posts 1904

Hi Ladies when you're readly to exchange email addies just give me a shout and I'll put mines up for you.

Vera - Omani's abound in the hotels here as employees and unless you could bring something very special to the table I think you'd find it hard to get a job. This really is a land of omanisation, and its working.

Arabic - there are a few places. I think Polyglot is one of them.

Yoga - fantastic classes are run at the intercon gym be Debbie. She's wonderful at what she does and she could fill he classes many times over.

Horse riding - yes. There are stables in Qurum Garden as well as a few other place I don't really know anything about.

Swedish/German Groups - I think perhaps taking a look at the PDO website may help with that. Its the only think I can think of to suggest.

There are two school that cater for the American system of Education. One is the American British Academy and the other is TAISM.

vera
Posts 913

Hi again,

Been reading this thread with interest after the Christmas holiday.

At the sound of it I might be a SAHM, but will try to get a job when coming over; here in Dubai I work in hotel and mainly got the job because I speak Swedish and German and was hoping for something similar in Muscat otherwise I might be interested to study Arabic are there any language institutes for foreigners?
Otherwise I enjoy YOGA and horse riding, is that something I can practice in Muscat?
I’m sure DH and DD will be fine, I’m the one that might get bored…
Any Swedish or German groups that meet up?
DD is in an American school here in Dubai, but as she’s still only five it wouldn’t be a problem to move her to a British or International curriculum school.

Thank for all your replies so far it has been extremely helpful.

Vera

toots
Posts 238

Hello!!
I'm so glad I won't be the only one moving to Oman in the new year! Our ETA in Oman is probably in 1-2 weeks. I think I'm still in denial as nothing is packed yet. For anyone who is moving or who has moved Dubai-Muscat, could you recommend relocation companies please? Perhaps we could negotiate a group rate
DH has been very good and kept up his house hunting and might just have found us our new home. After living in the western concept of villas here in Dubai for 4 years, the initial shock of the size and designs of villas in Muscat does take getting used to.
Am very excited about the move, I think Dubai has worn us out although I shall miss my darling buddies here I know more can be made in our new home. Let us new Muscatians stay in touch, get together and share disaster moving experiences in the new year yes ?

Only thing I'm looking forward to is finishing my booze stash before we leave - FUN!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

wikkid
Posts 3365

Thanks DR - youre a wealth of info!!! I would love to meet up for a coffee once we are down there. Age is merely a number and Im always being told Im 30(odd) going on 80...!

We have a dog, however the bag goes where he does, so I wont be one of the guilty landminers! It is horrible though that people dont bother to clean up after their pets, but that problem isnt just in Muscat...

DH has been tasked with the job of looking at houses next week and hopefully will find something nice down there for us.... In the meantime, Im going to [once again, sigh] be stuck with organising moving etc... I can see a few bottles of vino required!

DesertRose1958
Posts 1904

Wikkid the service charge applies to the wave and its the norm for the landlord to pay it. I haven't come across anyone where the service charge is hidden in the rent so to speak. Electricity etc is for the tennant to pay.

I dont think you'll have any trouble meeting people, The Wave is a very busy place with people out walking etc all the time. I don't live there, I live 10 mins by car but I do own property there (and no that wasnt a hint, I have tennants ) and 2 of my children live on the wave. Of course there are downsides to it but right now the only one I can think of is the amount of dog poop that is to be found littering the place - and no, its not maids who are doing the dog walking. Well that and the inconsiderate drivers who charge all over the place not thinking about who could be round the next bend. However plans are afoot to crack down on the messing and the driving and I think it will change soon. I think living on the wave is the same as living on the likes of the lakes.

I would be more than happy to meet up with you though I might be a bit old for you, still I could show you around and introduce you to my daughter and she in return could introduce you to her pals. I also have a young expat friend living on the wave.

oh and the service charge is really what we owners pay to have the wave up and running, roads, flowers, security, cleaning, the parks, admin costs etc.
edited by DesertRose1958 on 30/12/2010

wikkid
Posts 3365

Definitely looking forward to the change from Dubai, although I will miss my friends. Having said that, its not like we are moving to the end of the world, or to a horrible place where nobody wants to come visit

JoyceB
Posts 2772

patty
Posts 296

thats all true but like every city it also has it downsites

JoyceB
Posts 2772

having just had our second mini break in Oman over Christmas all I can say is that I am jealous of any expats living there. We loved it and everything about it. The people, scenery, real Arab culture (which is lacking in Qatar) and so on. We just instinctively either like a place after a few days or dont and we felt so relaxed and happy during our few days there. The driving is far superior too!

patty
Posts 296

there are no expatwoman coffees but there are others, like awg and owg and others but we can organize that.
I also live in Azaiba and we can easilly meet at a caffee there.

About cars I really don't know, we took ours from Doha with us.

wikkid
Posts 3365

Sorry to hijack the thread - just wanted to say thanks to all you helpful ladies from Muscat with your advice. We are due to move there in the new year and Im really looking forward to it! I think we may end up in The Wave or otherwise in Azaiba - would love to be able to meet some new people when I finally get to Muscat. Are there any EW or similar coffee mornings etc?

Also, Ive heard that cars are pretty much the same prices as Dubai - is this true? \

DR1958 - with regards to service charges, you mentioned that the LL pays these. This is only for The Wave right? And what is covered in the Service Charge? I assume that electricity, water etc is for the tenant to pay?

DesertRose1958
Posts 1904

patty
Posts 296

ok I will try to answer your questions,
appartment no problem take a look at savills, Gulf propperty world Oman or Hamptons international, there are more but those I had in my favorites, I will post the adresses at the end.
A site that is used more frequently is Omanforum http://www.omanforum.com/
I don´t really know what we pay a month but it depends on how you use it and how big your house is, I think there is something about that on the forum.
Nurseries more then enough maybe this site is intresting for you http://muscatmums.110mb.com/.
I am also not certain on the % for importing the car but I know we paid something. It al depends on how much they think your car is worth. BTW you have to pay for a lot of things here. I know my friend from AD is still driving here numberplate, she told me they where allowed to drive theres for ceveral years (1-2).
There are 2 good sites on FB that can be intresting to get a feel for whats around Muscat where can I find and muscat buy and sell.

@Vera, in what system is your dd? schools enough just long waiting list so sign up quick.
With the after school activities depends on what you like. Tennis, golf, taekwando ect its there. Swimming difficult and what I have heard ballet also.

http://www.hamptons.ae/en-ae/International/Oman/
http://www.engelvoelkers.com/om/
http://www.gpw-oman.com/Home.aspx
http://www.sav-oman.com/default.php

dimplesbabe
Posts 42

hi everyone... we may be moving to Oman also in the new year.. is it possible to get an apartment in muscat? one which would have a shared pool? and roughly how much would you pay per month? is elec and water expensive? desertRose1958 you also said u have to pay duty on ur car.. is it a % of the cars worth? any feed back would be great.
is there a website i can look for accom on?
i have a 7mt old son so schools are not a problem for us (yet) any feedback would be fantastic.. form what u have said so far im kinda excited about the move...
thanking you in advance... and hope u all have a Happy Xmas...

dimplesbabe
Posts 42

hi everyone... we may be moving to Oman also in the new year.. is it possible to get an apartment in muscat? one which would have a shared pool? and roughly how much would you pay per month? is elec and water expensive? desertRose1958 you also said u have to pay duty on ur car.. is it a % of the cars worth? any feed back would be great.
is there a website i can look for accom on?
i have a 7mt old son so schools are not a problem for us (yet) any feedback would be fantastic.. form what u have said so far im kinda excited about the move...
thanking you in advance... and hope u all have a Happy Xmas...

DesertRose1958
Posts 1904

Hi Vera. you wont be able to sponsor a maid unless your husbands sponsor agrees to it, and should that happen you'll pay about 800 rials to an agency for recruitment purposes. There are agencies and agencies and one I wouldnt ever go near again is Al Haider. It is awful, just simply awful. However one that I used recently, Al Miladi, was excellent.

If you decide to employ a houseboy or maid illegaly just keep in mind that you know nothing about why they are working illegally; and if you are caught regardless of why they are working illegally you will be in deep doo-dah. And yes people are checked up on and more so of late.

If you wanted to work in the hotel/tourism industry it would be very difficult to find a job. Oman is red hot on omanisation and there are lots of omanis working in this industry. There are even 2 colleges dedicated to the industry and just as there are Asian waiters and the likes in hotels - there's also Omanis doing the same job. I think it would be safe to say that to get a job in this industry you would have to have a skill that a local wouldn't have, knowledge of a particular foreign language for eg, but even then it would be difficult. This is very much a country where if you don't work you don't eat and if a job is found for you as a local you take it.

hth
edited by DesertRose1958 on 18/12/2010

vera
Posts 913

Thank you Mrs K for all the info. Do you know if there are maid agenies around like in Dubai?
Does anyone know the cost of sponsering a maid? I don't want to break the law.

Ms. K
Posts 2688

The areas that are good for living depend upon what you like and where school/work is located. Budget is also a factor.

Schools again depend on your personal preference particularly when it comes to curriculum. There's an American school, British school, and French school, but others as well. I've heard good and bad about all of them.

It isn't difficult to export/import your car. You'll have to pay duty at the border, but you should negotiate the rate.

I'd say it is fairly difficult for a European woman to find a job in the tourism industry, but not impossible. I know a German woman who works as a tour guide.

There are plenty of part-time maids out there, but you'll be employing them illegally and this is dangerous especially if something goes wrong (e.g. she steals from you) and you report it. I have a houseboy who comes in 3 times per week and I pay him Dh400 a month.

There's plenty to see and do in Oman especially if you like the outdoors. The Omanis are very friendly, family oriented folks.

vera
Posts 913

I have quite a few questions as we will most likely move to Muscat next year?

Which areas are good for living?

I have a 5-year old daughter which schools are good?

Is it difficult to register your car from Dubai to Oman?

Is it much to do for children (afterschool activities)?

Is it difficult for a European woman to find a job (within hotel/tourism)?

Are maids available for part-time or how much would a full-time maid cost?

We are excited about the move and have visited Muscat before and think it will be a nice place to live as a family.