Language Barrier

When we decided to move here my first impulse was to learn the Arabic language. My mother immigrated to the US from Germany and even though she had a better than working knowledge of the English language she made every effort to learn it in depth. I felt I should do the same. A friend gave me a copy of Rosetta Stone and I did try but to no avail. I found it very difficult to understand the words and meanings. I was told that once I arrived I would find it much easier as I would be exposed to the language and would pick it up. Not so much! The problem is that living in a resort area means that I hear no less than 5 different languages every day- by lunch time! Even the "locals" aren't local. So many of the people working here are from somewhere else that they don't speak Arabic either. Our real estate agent is from Italy and has lived in Dubai 8 years doing business and does not speak Arabic. We were told that only 6% of the Dubai population are actual UAE natural citizens! I believe it. Most fortunately English is the universal language. It seems that no matter where someone originated from, most every one speaks at least some English. A lot of the people here speak English more proper than me- my mother calls it the "Kings English". So you will hear a waiter from Malasia or Egypt taking a meal order from people from Russia or Germany and they do it English. When I am walking down the street or in a mall the most prominent language I hear besides English is Arabic. So I will make another effort to learn some phrases and words. While I love where I live I am certain it is not an accurate reflection of the country as a whole and I want to be able to communicate at least minimally. Thanks for setting a good example, mom.