What a week...

Wow, what a week... here the fast forward version: First attempt to get my furniture at customs, second day spent at customs, got my things at the new apartment, moved in, cleaning crew, installing and settling in, kept working next to it, first BBQ under Jordanian sun, visited Umm Qais, writing blog...

OK we start at the beginning of the week. The relocation agent calls and announces that our container is on the way to Amman customs from Aqaba and that it would arrive on Monday and that I had absolutely to be there. I was on the phone with the lady from the relocation agency walking to my HR manager when I saw that she was on the phone as well. I wanted my HR manager to talk to the agent in order to make sure that I did not misunderstood anything and they could fix all the dates and details in Arabic. I told the agent that I would call back in a sec. So my HR manager hung up, looked at me and said:" You can take over the apartment tomorrow!" Me:"I need to be at Amman customs tomorrow all day." So we tried to postpone the customs as it was essential to have the apartment ready when the things arrived. So we call the agent and she said that it was not possible and repeated that I had to be there and yadda yadda... OK I called Katja to tell her that she would have to take over the apartment by herself (together with the HR Manager to be exact) and I would go to customs. We called the agent to confirm and to ask when exactly I had to be at customs.

One thing in between: Containers arrive at Port of Aqaba and are not cleared there but transported to Amman (in our case) where there is an own customs zone where customs is cleared. That's why I cleared customs in Amman and not Aqaba (which would have been 350km away from Amman...)

Anyway, we call and ask the time to show up and she goes: "Nine, maybe ten, maybe later...I don't know...!" WHAT?! We were expecting temperatures of 35° and I was not keen at all to spend more time than necessary at customs! So we agreed that I'd be in my office at 8ish and she'd call me. OK quick poll: Who was in the office at 8ish and who did not call and was not reachable at her cell phone? ;-) Around 830ish (offices open usually at this time) I called the land line to get hold of her. So she picks up and as if she did not forget anything she goes over friendly: "Hi Mr. Fabrisiu! (that's how they spell my name) How are you, I was about to call you (ja, ja...) we need to check where your container is... (WHAT!!???!? YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE MY CONTAINER IS?) "...it is on its way from Aqaba but not yet at customs... Once it arrives we will call you immediately." Second poll: Who waited and who did not call? So around 1045 I called back and believe it or not: "Hi Mr. Fabrisiu! How are you, I was about to call you... unfortunately container did not arrive at customs yet." Container did not made it to customs until 11 so I did not have to go to customs on Monday. In the meantime we were preparing to take over the apartment as the landlord was traveling in Palestine. So Katja went there to get the apartment but it was not cleaned and actually not really ready to be taken over. Long story cut short: Apartment to be taken bukra... In other words: big drama and hectic for customs and apartment with the result that both were postponed to bukra ;-) Welcome to my world ;-) The good thing was, that my man here in Amman was on holiday on Monday and back on Tuesday. So Monday we ordered another person to accompany me to customs because a) you must speak Arabic and b) I would never have found it ;-). So the poor man was waiting all morning for us call back and forth with the agent and at the end we'd to postpone to bukra...and by the way... bukra means not that it is there next day... so we confirmed with the agent that she'd call us at 0830 ish next day and with the landlord that the apartment would be ready next day, cleaned and somebody there to explain us how everything works. I do skip this poll as you already know the answer ;-)

Next day 0830ish. I call. Answer: "Hi Mr. Fabrisiu! How are you, I was about to call you!" "Any news?" "No, need to check where your container is..." (Deja vu?!?) I call you back immediately! (Another deja vu?!) So I hung up and waited. 30 minutes later our assistant drops by my office and says that I should leave my office in 10 minutes as my container was at Amman customs... (don't ask why she called the assistant to tell her and not me directly... whatever... I called our man and we left for Amman customs. Luckily enough I was told to wear casual and to be ready for a day outside waiting in the heat... Some 20/30 minutes later we arrived at destination. Imagine an area, maybe 1 square km or more big. Entry is a parking lot over crowded, entrance building with three rows of seats, left and right windows with holes in it to talk to the officer on the other side. In the waiting area it was not overcrowded but busy. People talking, yelling at each other, queuing up and trying to squeeze in between people who were already waiting (one reason why they were yelling), door open, no a/c, imagine me sitting there and waiting for my man meeting with the agent. After some phone calls and 15 minutes or so a young man appears with papers in his hands. he went to one of the counters discussed something and after 5 minutes he came back and we left towards a gate. Imagine myself just following and not having the smallest clue what exactly we were doing ;-) we arrived at the gate and entered the area. We walked in and the agent pulled his cell and started to call. He hung up and we walked towards some containers. Inside the gate it looked like an enormous parking lot for trucks and containers. All mixed and I was not able to find out the system behind (which does not mean there was none...). So we headed towards some containers standing on a unloading ramp. Container door open and the good spread over the ramp. Boxes, packs, plastic bags, everything... I already saw my things lying there too... we walked along the containers and could not find our container. The agent again pulled his cell and started to call and disappeared. My man and I left there, in the middle of gaziollions of trucks and containers, in the meantime around 11 o'clock and starting to heat up. No idea where he went... all the sudden he came back and said: "Yalla! (Let's go in Arabic)" We again followed him and believe it or not after having walked some 5 minutes and tried not to be hit by a drive by truck twice we found our container! It was there!!! All the long way from Binningen Switzerland to Amman Jordan. Closed, sealed and with all our goods in it... How would they be? All smashed? Did they survived the transport? I just wanted to see how my stuff was, but we had to wait for an official as he brought some big pliers to cut the seal. Seal was cut, door opens.... all looks as it left! Cool :-)

A group of people started immediately to unload all boxes and piled them up along the wall of the container and the big things were unloaded to the ramp. All boxes have two arrows to shows which side is up. Believe me, 98% of my boxes were with the arrows showing to the floor after they finished.... even the TVs...


So they finished and than everything stopped. Nothing happened. We were standing in the 50 cm shade the small roof on the ramp gave, inside the container (no joke) at least 50°C as the container stood in the full sun since it arrived. So we waited for one hour or more (I have no clue why and I did not dare to ask ;-) maybe because it was noon time. So around 1330/1400 an officer from customs arrived, looked around and after five minutes his was done :-) This was a bit a surprise and again this was very efficient! Fantastic. The officer left and we had only paper work to finish before we were allowed to leave customs. The packer started again to pack in (all boxes were flipped again...) and around 1500 or I got my final receipt and we were allowed to leave customs. We left in car and the container by truck.


In the meantime Katja got the apartment and third poll: Who was there on time and who took over an apartment that was not cleaned? ;-) It was not a tragedy at all as at the end of the day after moving in everything is dirty anyway.

After 45 minutes in the apartment the truck with a car full of (other) packer arrived. Those people belonged to the relocation company and they carried in all our belongings. So it seemed to become a very long day as I already spent many hours at customs and now they started to carry in all our things...

It took some three hours, everything was in, no bigger issue as they were very professional. Luckily enough they said that they'd stop and come back the next day to fix everything (wardrobes etc.) and that they'd be there at 0930. Forth and last poll for today: who was there waiting at 0930 and who showed up late ;-)

I went to work early to get done the most important things and left for the apartment to be there when they were assembling all our things (yes, the white Italian sideboard and my beloved stereo equipment ;-) But again, they were very nice, very polite and very professional. At the end of the day everything was assembled, working, nothing was broken (some plates and cups and other things did not survive the transport but the crew did not smash anything). They left and Katja and I were the first evening in our new apartment in Amman!


To be continued.... stay tuned. Take care wherever you are in this world. Big hug from Amman!