The key to a stay of utmost serenity- Adagio Al Barsha
As I write this in my apartment on the 24th floor of Adagio, my home for the last 44 nights in Dubai, I can hear the call to prayer from two mosques in Al Barsha and the cement lorries and cranes on the next door building site which is in operation 24/7/365! Its 5.30 am. So much for serenity!
So why was I staying here for 44 nights? What was it like? First the back story...
One of many retirement gifts from my colleagues at the Oil & Gas Academy
On February 14 2021 I retired from my job as Training Specialist , Supervisory Development at The Oil & Gas Academy in Bahrain where I had worked for 11 glorious years. My plan was to fly to the Philippines that night to Palawan where I had rented a house and my friends had unpacked my air freight. Then I discovered I could not enter the Philippines due to COV 19 and as I had to move out of my company house I started 14 months of staying in hotels and apartments in Bahrain, Dubai and Oman.
Another full suitcase packed by me in another hotel- Adagio
It sounds glamorous, it is expensive, but it's actually very lonely. The worst part is packing up each month, giving away what you do not have room in your suitcase for and flying to the next destination. This is all made worse in the COV 19 pandemic with endless PCR tests , quarantine and the like.
Trying to get an appointment with the MOI in Bahrain
In between I have been constantly emailing the Philippine Embassy in Bahrain, The Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) in Manila, The Ministry of Interior ( MOI) in Bahrain, Gulf Air and my brother to finalise my Pension which will start in September 2023 . I have had to arrange Medicals, get a Flexi visa, Get a 30 day visa in Dubai three times, Pay overstay fines twice, get my visa extended and the like. I think it's been one of the worst years of my life.
Everyone at Bapco was saying goodbye and thinking I was in the Philippines!
After 44 years of work I had counted down the days to my move to Palawan and then that was delayed with no end in sight. Even now the PRA cannot tell me when I will have my Entry Exception Document ( EED) . Likewise I still do not know when I can meet with the PRA in Manila to process my SSRV ( Special Resident Retiree’s Visa) . The good news is that they have assured me that once I meet them I can move on to Palawan . Here I will rent another property ( Daniw had to sell the first one in March 2021) . Finally I will be reunited with my air freight, the furniture Jhoanna purchased for me and the 57 cases of freight that I sent by sea and I have been paying storage for since.
If you want to find out more about the SSRV click here:
In a nutshell "the Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV) entitles the holder to reside during his lifetime in the Philippines, permitting multiple entry privileges, so long as the requirements of the visa remain in the Philippines. The SRRV is issued by the Bureau of Immigration upon endorsement of the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) "
Source: https://www.bing.com/searchq=SSRV+from+PRA&go=Search&qs=ds&form=QBRE ( accessed 14.02.21)
On the positive side, my coach, Jane Harders , advised me to stay calm and see the delay as a positive opportunity to transition from my busy working life to my new relaxed retirement life.
You can read more about my life "Transitioning since Awali" in this blog:
https://thebritishkabayan.blogspot.com/2021/12/transitioning-since-awali.html
I certainly managed to do that here in Dubai between 15 December and 15 January! I have written and vlogged about the first two hotels, IBIS Albarsha and IBIS Styles, Jumeira already:
Adagio -the Blog!
One of my Kabayan, Roselyn, in Café Java bids me farewell
So in this Blog I want to say farewell to the wonderful staff here at Adagio , my home for the last 44 nights in Dubai.
The Adagio reception desk- you cannot see Jovie as she is so small!
From the moment I walked past the Adagio entrance and decided to enquire about prices and availability in December I was given a warm room by Jovie , the reception and Sales team. She showed me an apartment, told me they had apartments available form 2 Jan, contacted the Sales Manager to get me discount, and took my deposit when my Credit card did not work online. Once I moved in she did printing for me, kept my laundry for Joshua to collect at 10 pm and return at 8 am, and arranged replacement kettle, frying pan, room cleaning, garbage disposal and repeated Maintenance visits to adjust the AC. They were also kept busy scanning the ID's of my constant stream of guests like Erickson, Joshua, Jeboy, MK, John Ric, Thang , Jack, Myanmar, Jeroy and so on.
Meryenda in Café Java, home of the blog for 44 days
The team in Café Java gave me coffee, breakfast , lunch and dinner (when I just wanted a snack and could not be bothered to cook in my apartment). One of their cubicles became my new Blog office and the amazing pastries kept me motivated to write, as they had at IBIS Al Barsha ( same Indian Pastry Chef for Café Java at Adagio and Chill café at Ibis Al Barsha)
Bazz assured me if I keep fasting and training in Bahrain I will look like him
When I put on too much weight and did not get enough exercise I headed to the gym on the seventh floor where they recommended Personal Trainer Bazz who signed me up for 12 one hour sessions, three days a week for a month.
My gym routine on Mon, Weds and Fri at 9 am
I was also offered a special discount for 10 massage sessions in the SPA where the Thai Masseurs repaired the muscle sprain from the gym, relaxed me when I got too stressed trying to get admission to the Philippines and kept me amused.
For special occasions, like my final night, which happened to be Valentines Night there was 365 restaurant in the Novotel next door.
The amazing Valentines buffet in 365 restaurant at Novotel Al Barsha
It certainly has been a very enjoyable stay and very relaxing. I have done so many things like visit Expo, Green Planet, Miracle Gardens and Ain Dubai and made many vlogs. Best of all I had a chance to spend time with my Pinoy friends here in Dubai like Jeboy, Joshua, Erickson , MK and John Ric and of course my Indian friend from Bahrain, Thang!
I look forward to hosting you all in Palawan one day and showing off my new ripped 80kg physique, inshallah!
In the meantime you can follow my travels on the social media below- do not forget to like and subscribe.
This is The British Kabayan signing out form Dubai , and this really is the last time!
Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
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