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A different world

26th November 2008 by Helena 2 Comments  

""It seems like a different world to the one we arrived in. When I first had to have documents translated from French to Arabic by an official translator it felt like an insurmountable task. Find the translator (there is only one in Abu Dhabi which translates from French), locate it, get there (relying on ‘coming right now Madam’ Suda as we didn’t have a car) and so on.

This morning I took the news from the school that I needed yet another useless bit of paper translating calmly. I had all the info stored. I knew how to get there, which illegal parking spot I could park in and they will have the documents by tomorrow. In fact it ouccurred to me as I was driving there how much can go wrong on a small errand (red lights, traffic jam, getting lost, no parking etc) and what a nice feeling it is when it all goes right.

Soon after we got here someone told me that it takes four months to settle into life in Abu Dhabi. My mother pointed out that it may not be worth battling to stay somewhere that takes so long to settle in to. She has a point. But now that I think we are over the worst I am very happy to be here. The sun is warm, not ferocious), our house is lovely and my job is great. This morning Leo ran into school and immediately started playing with a friend. Long gone are the days when he used to weep and hang on to me.

""And to top it all I am going to see Alicia Keys and George Michael on Monday. Last time I saw George Michael Wham! had only just begun and he was at the Camden Palace along with Andrew Ridgley.

“My friend Andrew fancies you,” said George. I didn’t fancy him so politely made my excuses.

Now that really does feel like a different world….

Copyright: Helena Frith Powell 2008


Filed Under: Abu Dhabi, ageing, blog --> Tagged With: different, world

2 thoughts on A different world

  • Patricia Rodriguez says:
    26th November 2008 at 3:08 pm

    What a beautiful family picture…your kids are simply adorable.

  • Josephine says:
    29th November 2008 at 12:48 pm

    Yes, I love seeing your family as well. I think you are all truly amazing settling into another culture and language! I remember when I’ve travelled overseas and spent days in culture shock too afraid to leave the hotel room. What an incredible education for your children!

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Helena Frith Powell was born in Sweden to a Swedish mother and Italian father, but grew up mainly in England. She is the author of eleven books, translated into several languages including Chinese and Russian. She wrote the French Mistress column The Sunday Times about life in France for several years. She is a regular contributor to the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, The Times, Daily Telegraph, Tatler Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar.

Helena has been the editor of four magazines, including M Magazine, a supplement for the Abu Dhabi-based National Newspaper and FIVE, a high-end fashion glossy, also published in Abu Dhabi. Helena was also editor-in-chief of 360 Life, a quarterly glossy magazine published with the Sports 360 Newspaper in Dubai, part of the Chalhoub Group.

Helena contributes regularly to UK-based newspapers and magazines and holds a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Cambridge. She is working on a thriller set in Sweden as well as a novel about the relationship between Virginia Woolf and Katherine Mansfield called Sense of an Echo.

In 2022 her short story The Japanese Gardener came second in the Fish Publishing Short Story Prize. One of her stories was also shortlisted for the Bridport Short Story Prize. When she’s not writing, she works as a headhunter for the media and entertainment industry for the Sucherman Group. 

Helena, who was educated at Durham University, lives in the Languedoc region of France with her husband Rupert and their three children.

Bibliography

More France Please, we’re British; Gibson Square 2004

Two Lipsticks and a Lover 2005; Gibson Square (hardback)

All You Need to be Impossibly French; (US version of above) Penguin 2006

Two Lipsticks and a Lover; Arrow Books (paperback) 2007

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (hardback) 2006

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (paperback) 2007

So Chic! (French version of Two Lipsticks) Leduc Editions 2008 (also translated into Chinese, Russian and Thai)

More, More France; Gibson Square 2009

To Hell in High Heels; Arrow Books 2009 (also translated into Polish)

The Viva Mayr Diet; Harper Collins 2009

Love in a Warm Climate; Gibson Square 2011

The Ex-Factor; Gibson Square 2013

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles; Gibson Square 2016

The Arnolfini Marriage; Amazon Kindle December 2016

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles (paperback); Gibson Square spring 2018

The Longest Night; Gibson Square spring 2019

 

 

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