Talking About the Same Things in Different Countries

Sign pointing to the shopping carts and wheel chair ramp

As I have traveled in different countries and lived in different cultures, I have been amused by the different ways we say things but mean the same thing.  For instance, after moving to Hawaii, I went to the local Walmart and asked for a "buggy," you know--the thing you put your items into and push around the store.  I quickly found out no one knew what a "buggy" meant but they certainly had "wagons" for carrying around the items you want to purchase.   When I moved to Italy, I found the "carrella della spesa" is translated "shopping cart." In the UAE, the stores have a "trolley."

In Europe I also found that WiFi (wy-fy) is pronounced WiFi (wee-fee), very fast as to sound like one syllable.  In the UAE I hear it pronounced both ways.  It tend to use the latter here as I got used to saying it when I lived in Italy.  In the UAE, the cell phone is a "mobile" (pronounced mo-bile with a long i as in the word style) while in Italy it is "cellulare" which translates to cell.  

The other day I was watching a British television program and the woman in the show exclaimed over a large yard (or garden as it is frequently called here) telling her husband "you will definitely need a sit-on for this garden"---meaning a riding lawnmower.  And speaking of British, the trucks here are referred to as a "lorry."  Of course this makes sense as the British were the first westerners to come to Abu Dhabi to drill for oil.  They also made their imprint on trash across the globe as I find people of all nationalities here throw out the "rubbish."  When I tell my gardener (who I think is Pakastani) or the maintenance man (who I think is Lebanese or Syrian) to discard something in the "trash" the head goes sideways and the brow creases with lack of understanding.  I have to correct myself and translate to "rubbish."  Then, I get the head nod "oh yes, I understand."

When I landed in the airport in New Delhi, India, I looked for the exit signs to no avail.  The large "Way Out" signs were amusing.  And then, I happened to notice when I was leaving the airport rental car garage at the Abu Dhabi International airport, the exit signs were also "Way Out." I had never noticed until I returned from India.   I find this very amusing as I can only imagine this term being a southern expression.  Akin to a Southerner saying "fixing to" when they are getting ready to do something or "cutting off the light" instead of turning it off. (I have been severely teased about these two expressions.)

However, I have found some expressions that I believe are solely used in this region --- or I must say by Indian people who live in this region.   Here they "sieve the flour" instead of "sift" it, and the flour is "self-raising" and not "self-rising."  When someone asks for a "pay raise," they are asking for a "pay rise."  Makes sense I guess.   One wants a rise in pay.    My former Sri Lankan taxi driver, asked me if I was going "up and down" when we were discussing a trip I was making.  He meant "round trip."  My former Sri Lankan maid always called the vacuum a "Hoover" no matter the brand, and she carried a "box" instead of a suitcase when she traveled and put the "box" in the "boot of the car" not the trunk.  After letting down the window of the car, she would "pull up" the window not "roll up" the window.

Hereabouts the vegetables even have different names.  Green, red, and yellow peppers are "capsicums," and cilantro is "coriander." Capsicums is actually the correct name.  They became known in the west as peppers because Spanish explorers mistakenly believed them to be related to peppercorns. (not chilis).  Upon some google research, I found out that cilantro is actually referring to the stem and leaves of the coriander plant.

I make a point of recording these English language differences and find them quite amusing at times.  Some times I have to scratch my head and wonder.  And then, other times the expression will make perfect sense or at least I can figure out how the word came to be used in that way.

Difference.  It is what makes the world go round----and frankly, quite so fascinating.

Return to Abu Dhabi

I have returned to Abu Dhabi after a 2 1/2 month long sojourn to the US.   Because this country is changing so rapidly, even a few weeks away one finds a multitude of changes has taken place during the absence.  This trip was no exception.

Some of the changes I noted:

The massive road construction project about three blocks from my house looks completed but the new roads are not open yet.  And my husband tells me the amount of traffic turning into the one way service road the wrong way has increased substantially.  Unfortunately the new construction is doing away with a popular intersection that leads into our neighborhood.   A service road has been constructed running parallel to the main thoroughfare which happens to be one way ---out of the neighborhood.  Every morning my husband meets three or four drivers heading the wrong way---the new intersection is much farther down the road so going up the one way street is a short cut into the neighborhood.  He attempted to play chicken a few times trying to hold his ground and finally gave up the fight.  Too many cars are breaking the rules.  So he just moves to the right and makes the road a two lane!   Such is the life.

The garbage bins have been replaced by new recycle bins---one for regular waste and another for recyclables.  This is a first in the UAE.  I am so glad to see this initiative.  Although I observed on my morning walks that no one is using them properly.  I think I am the only person in the neighborhood saving my plastic and paper and putting in the recyclable bin.

The gym added a couple of new high-tech pieces of equipment.  I especially like the new treadmill that has a video screen on the panel where you can watch a video of an area as you are running.  For instance, I played the video for the run on Haleakala on Maui.

 The views are breathtaking and the video takes you all the way to the summit.  I chose this one because I have been to the summit to watch the sun rise and then cycled down the mountain.  Click on the link to see the sunrise.  Spectacular!



Abu Dhabi is finally getting street names and building numbers!!!!!  After a couple of years reading about the project and the impending numbering of building and getting actual postal addresses, it is finally here!  The signs are going up in the city.  Not sure if the buildings are numbered yet but I love the new street signs.

 Also not sure if people will know how to use them.  It will be hard to change old habits……… "I want to go to XYZ store.  It's on Electra (also known as 7th Street and Sheikh Zayed the First Street), next door to Patchi and opposite Al Safad Restaurant near the intersection at the Skateboard building with the BMW dealership on the ground floor and KFC opposite the dealership")  Get the picture?  It would be easier to say XYZ store at 2020 7th Street.  But who will know how to get there now?

The weather is beautiful, and we have had some rain----which only happens a few times a year.  I took a photo of the cloudy skies the other day just because it is such a rare occurrence.  It was followed by rain (really a slight drizzle which reminds me of the rain in Hawaii).  Then, yesterday it really rained.  I actually turned on my windshield wipers.  Unfortunately, people do not know how to drive in rain.  It sort of freaks them out.  One person will be going 20 mph and another will be flying by clearly not aware of the dangers of wet roads that have no drainage system.  Accidents abound on rainy days.

Completed Residence 

A couple of new houses are going up in my neighborhood.  These were empty lots when I left a few months ago.  And then other houses that have been under construction for a long, long time are finally finished.

A new Mosque is going up near our house and the Minaret is now standing tall against the skyline. Will be interesting to hear the call to prayer again when this mosque is complete.  We do not have a

mosque close by our house, and we actually miss hearing the call to prayer every day.  Some times in the early morning or late evening when the neighborhood is still, we can hear the call to prayer off in the distance at a mosque in a distant neighborhood.  When we lived in the city, a mosque was only a few doors down so we heard the prayer call all day every day.  There was always something strangely comforting about it.

The Abu Dhabi International Airport has new taxis now.  The new taxis are more like a first class limousine service in a van.  They also have taxis equipped for the handicap and elderly, which is much needed in the area.

And then  some things never change……….

The crazy driving!  The crazy parking!  The roads full of construction!  The new buildings going up everywhere!

Such an experience to live in this part of the world!