Dubai, 2011: I’m so pleased to feature our first ever guest post. Anne O’Connell is a fellow writer who has been a good peer colleague whilst living in Dubai.

 Also, read on to take part in the ‘Dubai Connection’ competition! Jan

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I’m so excited to be on The CAT today as part of my whirlwind, week-long Virtual Book Tour celebrating the launch of my new book @Home in Dubai…Getting Connected Online and on the Ground. For all you newbies to Dubai, seriously, the best way to ‘get connected’ is just to get out there!

I’ll never forget the advice I was given by one of my first new gal pals when I moved to Dubai… “Just say YES”. When you first arrive in a new town if someone invites you out to lunch, shopping, dinner, dune-bashing or souk hopping, just say YES!

 What to do first?

There’s so much to do in Dubai once you find a place to live, get your phone and internet hooked up, finalize your residence visa and get your work permit so the quicker you get it done, the sooner you can get out there and enjoy all the art, entertainment and culture the place has to offer. @Home in Dubai will help you get through all that tough, ‘getting connected’ stuff, with loads of friendly advice from expats who have been there and done it before and wraps up with some great suggestions on how to get networking (professionally and socially) along with a round-up of the top online resources, including Dubai bloggers and Tweeters.

For a sneak peek at the book, visit www.athomeindubai-gettingconnected.com.

You can order the book via Amazon

 

The author, Anne O'Connell, who now lives in Thailand!

Everyone has a story – it’s competition time

No matter who you talk to in Dubai, everyone has a crazy Dubai experience to share (there are tons in the book… like the driving instructor who told my friend not to stop at a stop sign unless there was something coming… can you hear the crunch?). And, we want to hear your stories. For the next week, the Cultural Arts Travelogue will be running a contest to collect the funniest ‘Dubai Connection’ stories and the winner will receive a signed copy of @Home in Dubai…Getting Connected Online and on the Ground.

Happy Connecting,

Anne

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Contest Overview:

-          Only those subscribed to the Cultural Arts Travelogue newsletter, and ‘facebook fan page’ of the At Home in Dubai page can take part.

-          Story must be between 250-300 words.

-          To make things easier for you to share amongst friends, the competition is running on theCAT facebook.

-          Deadline for submissions is Dec. 20th, 8:00pm Dubai time. Send your submissions to info AT writedsaign DOT com

-          The winner will be selected by expat expert publisher and author Jo Parfitt.  No follow-up emails will be entertained by the participants.

-          The winner will be announced on New Year’s Day at 8:00 pm Dubai time.

-          The winning story will be published on the Cultural Arts Travellogue and on the @Home in Dubai website.

-          Only one entry is allowed per participant.

-          The story needs to be a real experience.

-          Entries from all over the world are accepted.