I wish I had been able to say goodbye to my mother and grandmother properly, but oh well…
I was supposed to arrive in Dubai 7:25 pm, but my plane was delayed in D.C. for about an hour and a half so I arrived around 9 or so. I bought Marhaba’s Standard Meet and Greet Services, so I could have a Du SIM card when I arrived (totaling $39 USD). When the Marhaba representative gave me the SIM card, which was already paid for, she told me it would take 24-48 hours for it to be activated.
After the Marhaba representative took me through customs, we went to Du’s store to see if they could activate it any earlier. They could not. So I bought another one ($13 USD). I told my family I would call them when I got to the airport, and my plane was delayed and I didn’t want any of them to have a heart attack. I do not understand why Du could not activate the other card, since it was identical to the first one I bought at Marhaba. If each SIM card didn’t come with a 20 AED calling card, I would have been extremely upset!
Anyway, I would extremely recommend Marhaba. The Standard Meet and Greet was awesome. Even though the signs are in English and Arabic, it is easier to just follow someone who knows where they’re going. She even helped me find my luggage and a cart to use and I didn’t have to wait in the long customs line when I was with her. She followed me throughout the airport until we got outside to the taxi que (now, that’s customer service!)
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| AUD dorms |
It took about 20 minutes to get to AUD. When I arrived, my roommate was asleep, but she had been there for a day alone so she was ready for some company. She’s Nigerian, and she’s a sophomore so she knows her way around the city. She also knows where I should go to get a relaxer. I don’t think I could have had a better roommate!
