Celebrating our 1st Wedding Anniversary

Many of my friends and family were quite worried about me coming out here because they know how much I don’t like to be on my own.  Most people also asked me ‘But what about Scott, won’t you miss him?’  Of course the answer is yes and I knew I would miss him but perhaps I wasn’t prepared for just how much I would miss him.

Living on my own

Being alone in a foreign country in a new job without your friends and family is always going to be tough. 

Scott and I have been together for about 10 years now and our relationship has always been about being together but also about doing our own things.  I’ve refereed hockey and spent my weekends travelling the country and Scott has played hockey and spent time golfing and drinking beer with his friends.  Inevitably being together always meant doing those things we love to do on our own, more and more together.  We made time for each other and it had always worked great so we both thought that 9 months was more than manageable if we put in enough visits back and forth and made sure we were in daily contact.

The reality is that it isn’t the same as being at home and especially when things are new and unsettling and you need someone to turn to … it is tough when you have to do that over a video skype call.

On the beach for the day of our anniversary

So I was really pleased that after 6 weeks of me moving out here Scott was already booked to come to visit me and it would be during the week of our 1^st wedding anniversary which I was looking forward to celebrating with him.

It was Scott’s first trip to the UAE and so we stayed in Dubai for a few nights – and whilst I had to work games for the whole week it meant that Scott got to see some of what Dubai has to offer at the same time as understanding the hockey structure and set-up here and meeting my new officiating community over here.

Anniversary celebrations

At the Jumeriah Beach Hotel on the beach

We had an amazing anniversary celebration.  Scott had a number of surprises up his sleeve.  The day before our anniversary he took me out shopping for a new outfit, which was great fun and meant I managed to get some new Manalo Blanik shoes, which I was really excited about! 

Burj Al Arab at sunset

Despite not having been to the UAE before Scott had managed to organise a surprise trip to the top of the Burj Al Arab for champagne high tea (the only 7* hotel in the world).  You need to have an appointment to be able to go to the hotel and so I was really excited when I eventually found out where we were going.  Scott had managed to keep it a secret right up until we needed to get a taxi there.  The views were spectacular and the high tea was fantastic!

View from Champagne Tea at the top of the Burj Al Arab

After the champagne high tea we went to the gold souk for some fun haggling over prices for diamond earrings. I was pleased Scott had remembered one of the rules I told him in my wedding speech … ‘I like shiny things’!  Whilst it was fun to haggle over diamonds in the souk the real diamond present I received from Scott took my breath away – back home in London he got an Olympic ring necklace made up for me and when he gave it to me he told me it was because I deserved it and had worked hard for it and he was so proud of me.  Beyond the fact it is really shiny and I love the necklace a lot it means more to me to know that even though I am miles and miles away working on developing ice hockey officials in the UAE, Scott is still proud of me and supportive of me following where hockey is taking me.

Champagne at the top of the Burj Al Arab

I’m very lucky to have such a supportive husband and perhaps being away from him has made me realise that even more!  I did however warn him that after such an amazing one-year anniversary I wasn’t sure how he could top it next year and that he better start thinking straight away!

At the top of Burj Al Arab

It was really hard to say goodbye again when Scott had to go back to London, but now he has been here and met my new officiating team and seen what the hockey and the job is like it is a lot easier.   

It is also just 6 weeks until Christmas and November will be so busy I will hardly be in one country for more than 5 days at a time.  So I should have lots to update him with and to write about in this blog if I can find a few spare hours!