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pinks

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EW GURU
Latest post on 20 June 2011 - 10:11
Just a thought, but on a purely health insurance note, I'd want my Mum to be here 'officially' as I don't think any travel insurance would cover her for more than about 60 days a year out of her home country... apart from the hassle and expense of border runs every month!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 19 June 2011 - 09:18
Neither DH or I (having moved separately a couple of times) have had any problem with packing stuff in original boxes, as the contents were quite obviously not brand new (slightly older models or, in the case of the coffee machine, full of coffee debris!)
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EW GURU
Latest post on 17 June 2011 - 19:03
The only time I have been asked to show the card is when I've printed out one of the monthly special vouchers from the website. You don't have to register it, but doing so enables you to log on and see the special offers. Saying that, I registered my card the first year they did them, and I've never had to do it again - I can still see the offers (although I do buy the books ever year through the website so I presume this is how they have my email address as a current subscriber).
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EW GURU
Latest post on 16 June 2011 - 16:16
Hi ladies. Thank you for the info. A bit of a long wait at the American so I will call well woman clinic and see if I can get a quicker one. I did here from someone at school that there is a breast surgeon at the City Hospital. Has anybody seen them? Dr Alexandra Economacos (known as 'Dr Alex') is the breast specialist and radiologist @ City, and she does everything from the scans to the biopsies - I've seen her twice and am going back for more! She's SA, and has even put up her own paintings in the consulting rooms to make you feel at home. She's wonderful.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 16 June 2011 - 09:37
Hi - has anyone used the spa at the RAK Hilton? I'm going this weekend and wondered if it's worth booking a massage there as a treat for myself? TIA
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EW GURU
Latest post on 16 June 2011 - 08:38
Mone75 - you state that "someone is dealing with it", so whatever you do, [b'>don't[/b'> do a border run as you will be liable for a large fine! Your DH needs to keep up the pressure with his new job and get them to sort it - make sure they are aware of any travel deadline you have. Visas with new jobs can often run into delays for one reason or another, but hang on in there! ETA - my last change of job took ages to sort out the visa (and that was with the AD government!) so technically I had no visa for ages, but as long as you don't leave the country and the new company is sorting it out, you will be fine. <em>edited by pinks on 16/06/2011</em>
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 21:55
http://www.wellwomanclinic.ae/philosophy.html Highly recommended. I second them! Should anything nasty come to light, they've got the best breast surgeon in the region there, plus they also use Dr Alex (she's the most wonderful breast radiologist at City Hospital) and all make you feel SO comfortable and stress free.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 21:46
I cannot beleeeve this. To try to take some of the stress out of the journey, Ma is travelling Club Class. IN ORDER TO CHOOSE HER SEAT TODAY, (A WEEK IN ADVANCE) SHE WOULD HAVE TO PAY GBP 60 OR 80 EXTRA EACH WAY. I'm shocked. She needs to be lower, not upper deck because she's just had a hip op, but would have to fork out at least GPB 120 to get a seat she wants. Therefore, I'm in Victor Meldrew mode. Seriously, don't worry. The upper deck seats go first, and if you've booked her assistance, they will know this and make sure the seat booked is accessible. If you phone up and speak to them re the assistance, you can ask and check. They'll put her where they can get her on and off the plane easily!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 20:37
Hello Pinks! I was just on the Adobe page comparing the types. It'd be nice to have Flash though it's not essential in my case. Same goes for Dreamweaver. So I guess it's the Premium or the Standard... Wonder how much those cost in a place like iStyle. Guess it's time to hit the shops. :) Edit: Just called Suwaidi Computers and they sell the STANDARD for 5900!!!! Yeah, I don't think I'll be buying anytime soon, sigh... edited by katnip on 15/06/2011 I know - extortionate! I just wrote off a whole job to pay for mine, but from then on it was profit... As MoT says, do use the 30 day trial version. The other pain in the *** was installing it - takes forever.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 19:04
Hi katnip It really depends on which one you buy, as they all have different packages in there on top of the basic PhotoShop, InDesign and Illustrator and hence the price differs wildly. There's everyhting from Design Standard, Design Premium, Web Premium, Production Premium, Master Collection, etc. I use it for my job and hence bought one of the more inclusive ones recently for an absolutely eyewatering figure, but got it back in the UK so I could claim my tax back on it! Check out adobe.com (or even Amazon) as that will give you a very good guide to the prices.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 15:44
Pink Pepper photography are doing a Summer course in Photography. I think Gulf Photo Plus in Knowledge Village do photography courses as well. DH has really enjoyed the Gulf Photo Plus courses over the past year. Also, have a look at the courses at DUCTAC (next to the library at MoE) - they have some great courses day, evenings and weekends, everything from dance to pottery!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 15:17
You can do it from here - all you need is their booking reference, and they should be able to link the request to it. We've never had any problems doing it that way.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 15 June 2011 - 13:19
You don't need to pay for Maharba services. BA have a special assistance department and yuo need to call them to organise a wheelchair at Heathrow at check in. She will be looked after from the check in desk all the way through until you take delivery of her in Dubai airport. The guys will also wheel her out to your car (I always pay them a nice tip). It's a superb service and stays with your booking. On the return I just make sure a few days before travel that it on the booking and when you arrive at check in at Dubai Airport you make sure they know you need a wheelchair and within a few minutes a very nice man will appear and stay with your mum until she boards and then the wheelchair brigade will be waiting for her at her destination airport too. Completely agree - DH always asks for wheelchair assistance from BA for both his parents, and they get looked after beautifully. I used the service once when I was on crutches, and couldn't fault the service - serious VIP treatment both ends!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 13 June 2011 - 21:51
London? Excellent! DH said try one of the evening/weekend courses available - he's just done several of the Gulf Photo Plus courses and they have been more men than woman (and all looked ok from what I saw!)
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 15:20
What a lovely idea! My friends bought me one when I left the UK, and I love it. I think it's the sort of thing you never buy for yourself. I think for a small one you're looking at about AED 1,100. It looks quite small, but ask them for a booklet (free) that shows you lots of ways to tie it and use it. There are Hermes shops in Dubai Mall (and Burjuman?).
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 15:11
I'm terrible - I always cook more than I need of things and then freeze a portion for those evenings I get home but can't be bothered ;)
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 15:10
Just resurrected this thread from 2009 and 2010! It's that time of year again - pool temp 38 degrees in the evening (Al Ghaf) - hot bathwater. The lifeguard admitted to me it was far too hot, but that Emaar are only running the chillers for 9 hours a day to save money. It's a pleasant temp at 8am, but still warmer than it should be, so guessing they are running it overnight. Time for complaints to Emaar as before... :(
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 15:04
Yes. Many people will say you can't reheat rice, but I've been doing it for way too many years (always microwave it until piping hot the next day) and I've never had any problems. ETA - or freeze it! <em>edited by pinks on 12/06/2011</em>
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 12:51
My DH (and his brother, when he's around) have no problem with me eating or drinking around them, but I don't eat around them, and drink water/tea/coffee out of their way. As lbakari says, if you do fast during that day too, iftar together is really good. I tend to eat when working as I have a long drive, but often don't eat at the weekends (though I cannot give up my coffee!). I was quite concerned before my first Ramadan here, but it really wasn't a big issue. <em>edited by pinks on 12/06/2011</em>
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 10:37
If I remember correctly (which I might not!), it was AED 750 inclusive for the three visits. More precautionary (as told to me by one of the owners of National pests) is to remove and wash your clothes when you get home after being on an aeroplane, and never put suitcases on a bed (either at home and especially in hotels), and when staying elsewhere, always check the matress by the bedhead - if there are any small black spots, leave the room!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 June 2011 - 09:41
Wash everything you can (60 degrees kills bedbugs), and as we have to wait a day or so for someone to come and spray, we got a clothes steamer from C4, which the pest control guys said was a great idea - we steamed everything in sight, and the mattress too. Don't cross contaminate things from one room to another (apart from when you put things in the wash). We used National Pest Control and they were super - the guys really knew their stuff and predicted exactly where the bbs would be, and where they wouldn't. Horrible experience - you have all my sympathies!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 10 June 2011 - 20:48
Are you meaning for a visa run? In which case, yes he can drive you there and YOU walk over the border, get your paperwork done and pop back to the car. Lots of threads on here about how to do it!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 10 June 2011 - 20:46
C4? I'm sure they juice anything and everything at their juice station next to all the fruit and veg.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 10 June 2011 - 12:55
Pinks where did you get your fillers done? I like the sound of the anaesthetic. I've only had it done once with Dr Simin and it was SO painful (no Emlar cream then) and I had little 'beads' under the skin, couldn't see them but I could feel them. So wouldn't recommend her! I saw one of the Viel brothers: http://www.lcas.ae/
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EW GURU
Latest post on 08 June 2011 - 12:04
thank you for your replies! pinks..the exchange rates used by banks here for transactions overseas are higher than the prevailing exchange rates...at least that has been my experience..and why carry cash? because we would like to experience t place, eat street food and the like...and I doubt they accept cc's:) shjbelle. I did check at a few exchanges here, and they do exchange from AED to SGD... Sorry, I meant why would you carry cash to exchange there... I fully agree with having the local currency in your pocket to enjoy street food! ;)
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EW GURU
Latest post on 08 June 2011 - 11:45
you can't change AED in Sing..only in certain places certainly not at the airport..what ppl tend to do is to change to USD here ( since it's pared) and change USD to SGD at the airport.. Just a question, but why would you (risk) taking cash to exchange? Surely just hand your cc or debit card over, or do banks charge heavily for currency exchanges here?
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EW GURU
Latest post on 08 June 2011 - 11:43
I know this is a generalisation, but I've always found you get better deals buying currency in it's 'home' country, especially for less touristy currencies that exchanges don't carry much of. You certainly won't get a worse deal buy buying it when you arrive, but just use a bank (or similar) and never a hotel!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 07 June 2011 - 14:55
No advice - just wanted to say I loved your thread title! (and would think that having both in bed / in front of the TV for a few days will be easier than one ill and one moaning that you're giving the other too much attention - good luck!) No doubt it'll be a Gonabit deal soon....
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EW GURU
Latest post on 07 June 2011 - 11:38
I believe BA is pretty standard on all flights, with one bag for economy, 2 bags for premium economy, and 3 bags for business and first - all 23kg each. It's worth remembering though, if you upgrade on just one of the legs, you get the higher baggage allowance on both legs. ETA - that's CHECKED baggage - you can also take a roll-on size in the cabin with you, plus laptop bag or handbag. <em>edited by pinks on 07/06/2011</em>
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EW GURU
Latest post on 05 June 2011 - 19:34
Wow - that took them a long time to clear. I passed it just after it happened at 5.30pm. Looked like one of the inter-Emirate coaches had hit the back of another one.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 05 June 2011 - 13:35
IMO the best counsellor here is also the best value - Helen Williams (do a search on here and you'll find lots of recommendations) - for a single person she's AED 450 for 1.5 hours (AED 500 for a couple). Highly recommended. Good luck!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 05 June 2011 - 13:32
is this the cupcake stand that is near waitrose?.. the cupcakes look yummy... They looked great... until I saw what they were called! It wasn't quite "Happy Ending", but close enough!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 04 June 2011 - 17:30
Hi Bronze - not sure about about an EW for China, but as for the advice, I think it depends where in China you are off to. My uncle and his girlfriend relocated to Linfen last October - that's in the northern industrial area - and it's about as far removed from Western society as you can get! Noone speaks English (luckily she's from Taiwan so acts as translator), accomodation doesn't come with bathrooms, and as a westerner you are not allowed to drive. However, I've had friends work in places like Beijing, and they havent had any problems. Hopefully someone here will be able to help, but if not, let me know and I can pass the questions onwards for you!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 27 May 2011 - 22:35
https://iforgot.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/DSiForgot.woa/wa This should be it (and on the first screen, select the smaller option below for the "I've forgotten my Apple ID")...
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EW GURU
Latest post on 27 May 2011 - 08:00
Don't think you're wireless wil reach that far... ;) Just updating mine before the off - see you at 10! x <em>edited by pinks on 27/05/2011</em>
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EW GURU
Latest post on 27 May 2011 - 07:58
Again, in the interests of research, we ate there last night. Perfect as always - couldn't fault anything, and the service was as wonderful as usual.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 27 May 2011 - 07:52
Yes, you can! If you each have music on your own laptops/PCs, then (this is assuming you have wireless), go to iTunes, Advanced, and "Turn on Home Sharing". That will allow you to see all the household's music when you all do this. If you need to use multiple iPods on one computer (Mac or PC) you can create dedicated playlists that will sync automatically to each iPod. First, make sure iTunes is set to update your iPod manually. With Manually manage songs and playlists now enabled, you’ll want to create a dedicated playlist for each iPod. Each dedicated playlist serves as a ‘virtual iPod’ within iTunes. Click on Library in the iTunes left pane Click on File - New Playlist Give your new playlist a name that you will easily associate with the particular iPod (for example, "Teabag's iPod") Create a new playlist in this same manner for each iPod Drag the songs you want from the iTunes library into the playlists you just created for each iPod (this is the pain in a r s e bit the first time, but you'll only have to do it once) If you prefer to update your iPods manually, you can leave the settings as Manually manage songs and playlists and manually update each iPod as desired. If you want each iPod to update automatically when you attach it, you’ll need to attach each iPod to its dedicated playlist. 1. Right-click on the iPod in the iTunes left pane and click on iPod Options. 2. In the pop-up window the iPod – Music tab will already be selected, so click to select Automatically update selected playlists only (if the automatic update alert appears, click on OK) and then click to check the dedicated playlist you created for that iPod. 3. Click on OK. 4. Attach each iPod to its dedicated playlist in this way. Each time you connect an iPod it will now autosync to its dedicated playlist.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 26 May 2011 - 09:25
Click on the link to go to the Classifieds section, and in the blurb at the top is a link that says CLICK HERE TO ADD...
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EW GURU
Latest post on 25 May 2011 - 08:44
Waitrose (Marina) had Alpro in two days ago - think it was because they were very low on their own brand. In order for soya milk not to split in hot drinks, you need a sweetened version, so even the Waitrose (I like their organic version) sweetened one is good for this. I always used to wonder why Starbucks used the sweetened version, and I when I asked if they had the non-sweetened one, they told me why. I've sinced experimented, and it's true!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 24 May 2011 - 13:22
AXA have a family cover - they also do annual worldwide cover inclusing the USA as standard which some don't. I've just renewed my policy with them and check prices and cover with several comapnies - not sure what their family prices are, but single cover was good.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 19 May 2011 - 15:09
There's a silver lining for every cloud... you'll be able to have a fabulous lunch out with me instead!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 19 May 2011 - 12:39
Hi - no they are not part of the activities. Sorry, don't have a list, but I remeber them being normal Dubai 5* hotel spa prices. I think I remeber calling them and then they emailed me a list (I was lucky enough to be taken for one night some time ago!) Again, I remember breakfast and lunch being half buffet/half a la carte, and dinner was all a la carte. Enjoy, you lucky thing!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 19 May 2011 - 10:09
Did you apply for tickets on the official London2012.com website? If you did, the response is: "If you applied for Olympic Games tickets prior to 26 April 2011 your application will be processed and, where demand for tickets exceeds supply, London 2012 will use an automated random selection process ('ballot') to ensure the fairest possible distribution and allocation of tickets on a session-by-session basis. If you are successful, payment will be taken between 10 May 2011 and 10 June 2011. Please ensure you have sufficient funds available between these dates. A notification will be sent to confirm which tickets you have been allocated by 24 June 2011."
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EW GURU
Latest post on 18 May 2011 - 19:44
Haven't seen him, but DH and I saw other therapists there a couple of years ago - AED 600 per hour. Really didn't like their approach as it was all very backwards looking rather than dealing with the present and how to move forwards... Helen Williams (search, you'll find a huge amount of threads on here praising her) is fabulous - AED 450/500 per hour and a half (depending if there's one or both of you in the session) and IMO has a much more rounded approach to problems without all the navel-gazing. Good luck.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 18 May 2011 - 15:02
I had Restylane for my nasolabial lines and am very happy with the results (14 months and like Littleone, only just noticing a slight reduction). If you research the products, I think you'll find Juverderm is for initial signs of ageing and hence is injected through incredibly fine needles just under the skin. Restylane is designed for deeper lines (i.e. perfect for mouth to nose) and is injected deeper under the skin - I was given dentist-like anaesthetic injected into my gums first, so felt nothing. Would I do it again? Absolutely!
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EW GURU
Latest post on 16 May 2011 - 13:49
Only 40 mins from LHR too... and 40 minutes on the fast train into London (Waterloo). Homesick now... :(
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EW GURU
Latest post on 16 May 2011 - 13:39
Huge out of town M&S at Camberley... and you're 10 minutes from Yateley and my Mum's cakes, jams and preserves! (Would stay out of Farnborough itself though).
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EW GURU
Latest post on 14 May 2011 - 13:10
Yes, they are in the Fine Dining book. Tell them when you book you are going to use vouchers, as they have different deals on different days, and there are a few exclusions (and not Friday brunch)
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EW GURU
Latest post on 12 May 2011 - 15:11
They don't have to be, but it just makes things quicker/easier. I did something similar with me being here, my uncle in HK and the solicitor in the UK, just means getting copies of the document sent to all concerned, signed, witnessed and with ID.
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EW GURU
Latest post on 11 May 2011 - 13:42
Just remember EVERY other woman there will be so self conscious about her body, be it stretch marks, wobbly (or very) wobbly bits, etc., etc., that you will be the only one worrying about yours. Slap a couple of layers of fake tan on, take a sarong, and enjoy your holiday!