Silicon Oasis (Threads merged)
Join Date: Mar 2006
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EK Sillicon Oasis
HEY Boyz. Who has applied? So its all to do with those who applied first or seniority? Is it an attempt to save money for the company? Shove all the flying workers in a new and cheaper compound? Imagine staring each other in the eyeball!
They R quite nice I must say, esp for the outbackers like me that like country (sand dune) living. However there R those villas for the city lot whom would like 7 families to look into their gardens.
I hear 15th we will hear our fate, YES / NO/ Maybe lets see....maybe I remain in Jumeira! Forget the Jane thing, at least no sand involved, sand could be errosive!!
They R quite nice I must say, esp for the outbackers like me that like country (sand dune) living. However there R those villas for the city lot whom would like 7 families to look into their gardens.
I hear 15th we will hear our fate, YES / NO/ Maybe lets see....maybe I remain in Jumeira! Forget the Jane thing, at least no sand involved, sand could be errosive!!
(I'm in a cynical mood today.)
Join Date: Nov 2005
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Im confused
Who is asking you to like the place? Why this innate reaction to bagging all things far and wide. You OBVIOUSLY don’t work enough. Productivity issues here….. me thinks.
Who is asking you to like the place? Why this innate reaction to bagging all things far and wide. You OBVIOUSLY don’t work enough. Productivity issues here….. me thinks.
Join Date: Jul 2006
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EK accommodation
Hello EK drivers,
I have a question concerning the company accommodation. I have been reading all the thread that i found concerning this subject but i didn't found the right answer.
Is there a difference of standard between the furnished and the unfurnished accommodation. If i choose the unfurnished acc is there any risk to receive an appartment of a lower standard (beside the fact it will be empty) ? And what about the shortage of acc ? any update ?
I will appreciate any inputs and i found this website just fantastic.
EKBBUS.
I have a question concerning the company accommodation. I have been reading all the thread that i found concerning this subject but i didn't found the right answer.
Is there a difference of standard between the furnished and the unfurnished accommodation. If i choose the unfurnished acc is there any risk to receive an appartment of a lower standard (beside the fact it will be empty) ? And what about the shortage of acc ? any update ?
I will appreciate any inputs and i found this website just fantastic.
EKBBUS.
Join Date: Aug 2005
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Essence is time
There's a differece between furnished and unfurnished,company accomodation and not.So,which one?
When you first join,you will go through a lot of courses and training-induction,conversion, bla bla bla....
My advice is :you don't wanna waste your time shopping around for curtains,sofas bla bla bla or looking for a suitable accomodation while you should be concentrating on these classes.
You wanna have a peace of mind.
EK gets a good deal from vendors.The allowance might not be enough if you were to go on your own.
Once you opt for own accomodation(thinking that you'll save money and get a better deal),there's no coming back...
When you first join,you will go through a lot of courses and training-induction,conversion, bla bla bla....
My advice is :you don't wanna waste your time shopping around for curtains,sofas bla bla bla or looking for a suitable accomodation while you should be concentrating on these classes.
You wanna have a peace of mind.
EK gets a good deal from vendors.The allowance might not be enough if you were to go on your own.
Once you opt for own accomodation(thinking that you'll save money and get a better deal),there's no coming back...
Last edited by CAT IIIB; 18th Jul 2006 at 05:00.
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Many different trains of thought, take the furniture and yes you will have a set up apartment/villa when you arrive, and that will be great less stress.
Chances are though that in 6 to 12 months the crap that the company gives you will drive you to distraction and you'll want to get rid of it and get something more your own taste, problem is EK won't just take it back so you will have to get rid of it yourself at next to nothing and still be liable for the value up to 3 years if you decide to leave early.
The allowance of around 30000AED will buy you most of what you need, but it will take time to organise and frustrating at best trying to get the stuff delivered and installed. That's just the way it is in DXB.
Or use the money to move your own things over and have that sense of security of familiarity that will make life a lot happier in the long run.
All your choice really.,
Chances are though that in 6 to 12 months the crap that the company gives you will drive you to distraction and you'll want to get rid of it and get something more your own taste, problem is EK won't just take it back so you will have to get rid of it yourself at next to nothing and still be liable for the value up to 3 years if you decide to leave early.
The allowance of around 30000AED will buy you most of what you need, but it will take time to organise and frustrating at best trying to get the stuff delivered and installed. That's just the way it is in DXB.
Or use the money to move your own things over and have that sense of security of familiarity that will make life a lot happier in the long run.
All your choice really.,
Like others have said the company issued furniture is crap, its basically IKEA stuff they bought in bulk about 10+ years ago. Like others i bought my own stuff with the 30,000 dhs allowance, and bloody glad i did. Yes, its true when you join you may want to concentrate on the work in hand on your course, but at least during the first 2 weeks its boring, non-type related stuff.
Carrefour do a a nice line in blow up beds, i know many guys like me who lived on these for more than a month after joining.
At least you'll furnish the place to your taste.
EGGW
Carrefour do a a nice line in blow up beds, i know many guys like me who lived on these for more than a month after joining.
At least you'll furnish the place to your taste.
EGGW
Join Date: Jun 2004
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Go with El Peligroso's advice. I did all of what he advises and it worked a treat. Bring the furniture with you. Buy the white goods, or silver if you're posh, here in Dubai.
And like EGGW, I also bought a 'blow up' but unfortunately it didn't last a full month though. Come to think of it, it wasn't a bed..........
And like EGGW, I also bought a 'blow up' but unfortunately it didn't last a full month though. Come to think of it, it wasn't a bed..........
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accommodation shortage ?
Thanks for all this answers ! i think i will go for the unfurnished company accom.
What about the shortage of accommodation ? Any update from an insider ?
What about the shortage of accommodation ? Any update from an insider ?
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What shortage?
We've got 560 new villas fully comissioned 20km out in the desert! Although I think a few guys were in temp accom waiting for them until fairly recently.
One thing's for sure, you wont know where you're living until the day you turn up, and its too bad if you don't like it, so I wouldn't bother loosing any sleep over it!!
Maybe you're thinking of Etihad? They have families living in hotel rooms for months on end!
We've got 560 new villas fully comissioned 20km out in the desert! Although I think a few guys were in temp accom waiting for them until fairly recently.
One thing's for sure, you wont know where you're living until the day you turn up, and its too bad if you don't like it, so I wouldn't bother loosing any sleep over it!!
Maybe you're thinking of Etihad? They have families living in hotel rooms for months on end!
Join Date: May 2004
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Arguments on both sides here. I took the allowance and am glad I did. The furniture is basic and serves a purpose. If you come here now you will most likely end up in Silicon Oasis. I have moved here and am glad I did. It serves my purpose.
The pro's are that it is a four bed villa. It is new and detached. If you take the allowance you will end up with an empty house with no beds or anything. If you are happy living like that then fine. You have the headache of then having to go out and buy everything from a cooker and fridge to a bed and sheets. You generally dont ship your stuff staight away as you dont know where you will be living, therefore it may be on average a month before you shipment arrives. THe best way to describe your furniture is functional. At least if you go straight into your villa furnished you can make a bed and sleep. I have been here some time now and have still a few items that are EK furniture. The one thing to think of though is that they have a retainer for this furniture. You have a value which decreases per month. If you decide that EK is not for you (I think inside 3 years or 5 years) you end up paying them money. The soft package is crockery and cutlery. This becomes yours after 12 months. The hard package (beds, fridges etc) yours after 5 years. I think it may have changed a little since I joined.
My shipment arrived and I was glad I had both my furniture and the EK package. After a few months you will start buying things here. I still have colleagues who have the full set of furniture. Each to his own and no offence to any Canadian here ;-) After 5 years the package is yours to do as you wish.
Silicon Oasis, for those who knock it, is actually very nice. I was very sceptical about moving. I work on the pretext of not fixing things which are not broken. But I am glad I have made the move. I lived near the airport before and have definitely downsized. You expand to the size of your property anyway. I have sold alot of my stuff (EK furniture included) The pros here are that I have not been stuck in traffic for the last 6 weeks. It takes me 15 mins to get to work (airport or trng college) or up to Jumeirah or Mall of the Emirates. NO TRAFFIC !! They are putting a Spinneys in the middle of the compound. In addition a ladies and gents salon. A restaurant and coffee shop in addition to some other shops. I know that I will not have to move for 15 years (god forbid if I last that long).
On the con side this area is under construction. The villas themselves are I think finished. The landscaping is very nice but still on the go. The big gardens are now gone. (I have one of them) This will become a mini city in itself. I have lived near a University campus before. They are putting in alot of shops bars and restaurants to cater for Academic city. The rub being that it will be under construction for the next couple of years. But where in Dubai isnt under construction.
Hopefully I have given an unbiased view. The furniture allowance serves a purpose and is ok. Its a good way of making a start here. If you are single no problems. If you are married then I can guarantee your wife will look in her own little way, deciding in about 5 minutes flat, which item will go first. Within 18 months if the average guy still remembers what the furniture looked like. He might just find an item or 2 in the house which is from the original package. The guys who take the money have their own goods from the start. However if you want quality then it will cost you and 30,000 does not go far in Dubai now. You will also buy functional furniture and will end up buying more within a couple of years.
THe choice is yours!
The pro's are that it is a four bed villa. It is new and detached. If you take the allowance you will end up with an empty house with no beds or anything. If you are happy living like that then fine. You have the headache of then having to go out and buy everything from a cooker and fridge to a bed and sheets. You generally dont ship your stuff staight away as you dont know where you will be living, therefore it may be on average a month before you shipment arrives. THe best way to describe your furniture is functional. At least if you go straight into your villa furnished you can make a bed and sleep. I have been here some time now and have still a few items that are EK furniture. The one thing to think of though is that they have a retainer for this furniture. You have a value which decreases per month. If you decide that EK is not for you (I think inside 3 years or 5 years) you end up paying them money. The soft package is crockery and cutlery. This becomes yours after 12 months. The hard package (beds, fridges etc) yours after 5 years. I think it may have changed a little since I joined.
My shipment arrived and I was glad I had both my furniture and the EK package. After a few months you will start buying things here. I still have colleagues who have the full set of furniture. Each to his own and no offence to any Canadian here ;-) After 5 years the package is yours to do as you wish.
Silicon Oasis, for those who knock it, is actually very nice. I was very sceptical about moving. I work on the pretext of not fixing things which are not broken. But I am glad I have made the move. I lived near the airport before and have definitely downsized. You expand to the size of your property anyway. I have sold alot of my stuff (EK furniture included) The pros here are that I have not been stuck in traffic for the last 6 weeks. It takes me 15 mins to get to work (airport or trng college) or up to Jumeirah or Mall of the Emirates. NO TRAFFIC !! They are putting a Spinneys in the middle of the compound. In addition a ladies and gents salon. A restaurant and coffee shop in addition to some other shops. I know that I will not have to move for 15 years (god forbid if I last that long).
On the con side this area is under construction. The villas themselves are I think finished. The landscaping is very nice but still on the go. The big gardens are now gone. (I have one of them) This will become a mini city in itself. I have lived near a University campus before. They are putting in alot of shops bars and restaurants to cater for Academic city. The rub being that it will be under construction for the next couple of years. But where in Dubai isnt under construction.
Hopefully I have given an unbiased view. The furniture allowance serves a purpose and is ok. Its a good way of making a start here. If you are single no problems. If you are married then I can guarantee your wife will look in her own little way, deciding in about 5 minutes flat, which item will go first. Within 18 months if the average guy still remembers what the furniture looked like. He might just find an item or 2 in the house which is from the original package. The guys who take the money have their own goods from the start. However if you want quality then it will cost you and 30,000 does not go far in Dubai now. You will also buy functional furniture and will end up buying more within a couple of years.
THe choice is yours!
From the 'single' perspective: I took the allowance after talking to mates who were already here. I was initially in Temp accom (about 3 weeks) and am now in a 3 bedroom unit. During the initial 3 weeks I sourced the bare essentials : crockery, cutlery, mattress etc (I didn't take the starter pack either). When I made it into the permanent it took about another week-10 days to finish off. I did get the full 30K, and whitegoods etc are comparitively cheap here. Curtains (lined and blackout for main bdrm) were 3K. On the basis that I am planning to be here for a while, so want to be comfortable, I ended up spending around 65K setting up. That includes lots of 'luxury' items though like LCD TV, high end stereo and a bar (essential!!!). For the 30K you can still comfortably furnish to a much higher standard than the supplied furniture, provided you take some time to shop around. Also, a delivery time in Dubai is advisory only. Have fun.
Join Date: Jul 2006
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waow ! it is nice to receive so much inputs from everbody ! Uplink unfortunetly i have no kids for the moment so i will not be one of the lucky dude who is going to have a villa in Silicon Oasis ! I just hope to have a nice 3 bed appart on Cheikh Zayed ! and after all i have read i will go for the allowance ! Any good website to have an idea of the cost and level of furniture ? And thanks again !
! I just hope to have a nice 3 bed appart on Cheikh Zayed ! and after all i have read i will go for the allowance ! Any good website to have an idea of the cost and level of furniture ? And thanks again !
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good luck!
try http://www.ikeadubai.com/content/main.asp
my wife firmly believes that the ikea world index is vastly superior to the big mac alternative
try http://www.ikeadubai.com/content/main.asp
my wife firmly believes that the ikea world index is vastly superior to the big mac alternative
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Dear Muttley crew,
Yes I understand that but EKBBUS also wrote:
"And what about the shortage of acc ? any update ?"
Meaning that he was also exploring the possibility of finding own accomodation.
And for your information, I don't 'work' for the management.
Yes I understand that but EKBBUS also wrote:
"And what about the shortage of acc ? any update ?"
Meaning that he was also exploring the possibility of finding own accomodation.
And for your information, I don't 'work' for the management.