My husband and I are contemplating an international move. Currently, we're looking at Dubai as the job possibilities are extensive for both of us and it's an area of the world we have yet to explore.
Now finding information on countries such as Europe, Canada or the USA is pretty easy; websites, travel guides and forums are everywhere. Finding information on more remote or exotic locales is a little more difficult, so I thought I'd check out what research options there are out there for those of us on the move to a different part of the world.
This possibility of relocating to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), came up in conversation after my husband received some photos from a friend. While it wasn't the first place on my list, after doing some research, I'm definitely warming to the idea.
Our start began at Cultural Profiles Project, a Government of Canada project set-up to assist Canadians in understanding immigrants. It's a great place to read about everything you need to know about a specific country, including work life, religion, family life and climate. This site provides an overall view with quick, fast information.
Next, I surfed to Expat Exchange, a website devoted to those who are moving or have moved to another country. With active forums where you can ask questions and find out everything you need to know, it's a great place to hang out for a bit.
Even though this is still a relatively new idea, I thought I better take a look at job prospects, visas and other practicalities that we'll need to know. Let's take a look at employment first.
Monster is where most people locally look first, but did you know that Monster has a site dedicated to finding a job overseas? It's a great place to do some hunting, check out the salaries and options.
Once I found some jobs that looked interesting, I went back to the forum on Expat Exchange and asked a few questions, such as salary expectations and benefits that were not necessarily outlined in the job posting. A word of warning: watch out for job sites that seem legit. Make sure you ask around before you start paying for placement services. In countries such as the UAE, it's illegal to charge fees for job placements - something I didn't know until I asked. Again, this is a great reason to get hooked-up with an online forum.
With some knowledge under my belt, I headed over to Yahoo Groups, to find another forum that I could join. Under "Find a Group", I entered "Dubai" and found a huge assortment of groups looking for members. From some advice I received from Expat Exchange, I chose an active group and signed-up. Once on, I asked a zillion questions and researched the archives for some instant answers. I highly recommend Yahoo Groups. If you're interested in a topic, you can bet there are others out there who've already started a group. And if your topic has yet to be discovered, you can also start your own group - all for free. You gotta' love Yahoo!
Once I had some idea of how much we might make in terms of a salary, I turned to property and rentals. Going to Property Abroad, I found out what some upscale homes would cost. Knowing that we'd be renting, and hopefully including that fee in our employment contract, I then went to Escape Artist, a great, even if a little disorganized, website for the international mover. They had a limited selection for Dubai, but if you're heading to Europe or elsewhere in North America, then this might be a good place to start. Keep in mind that most of the properties listed are for purchase.
As it's difficult to find a really good resource that encompasses a wide variety of properties available overseas, I went to trusty Google and searched for "rental apartments Dubai". Naturally, I found a wide range of options which gave me some idea of how much it will cost for housing.
I also bookmarked a currency converter and have it handy whenever I need to see how much things cost in Canadian or US dollars. I use Bloomberg just because it's simple and fast.
The last bit of research I did was to download a video on the area. I'm a media girl who likes to see things up close. A great site to download or order travel videos of various countries is at Pilot Guides online. You may recognize the name from their television series that airs each week. I find their videos educational and a little more off the beaten track. For just $3.99, you can download one of their shows and view it for a week.
We have yet to sit down and watch the video, but I know it'll provide us with a more detailed look at our possible new home.
And who knows, maybe next week we'll be contemplating Russia! Stay tuned...
