Emirates training week 2 from Cairo: the accommodation, the study routine and the questions I should have asked before I arrived
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#1 Cairo, Emirates training, end of week 2, and I have read every training thread on here twice so this is the version for the first fortnight specifically, because the threads mostly start at fire week and the first two weeks have their own surprises.
Arrival
Met at the airport by the company, bus to the accommodation, key, room, flatmate (a Filipina from my batch who has become my study partner), a welcome pack, and the first bus time for the next morning. The accommodation is clean and the rules are exactly as the threads describe: sign in desk, no guests overnight, quiet hours. It is a dormitory with a good gym.
Week 1
Induction, the company, the uniform fitting (the hat sits differently than you think, and the grooming lecture is two hours long and precise), the ID, the bank account, the medical file, the aircraft types. The pace felt slow and then on Thursday they handed out the SEP manual for the first type and the pace stopped being slow.
Week 2
SEP on the first aircraft type began properly. Doors, slides, equipment locations, the drills. The exam is next week and the pass mark is 90. The flashcards started on Monday of week 2 and I wish they had started on Monday of week 1. The batch splits into the people who study out loud together in the kitchen and the people who study alone in the room. I am in the kitchen group and I intend to stay there.
The routine
Bus at 6:20, classes 7:30 to 4, gym at 5 (30 minutes, because the threads said so), dinner, study 7 to 10, sleep. One day off at the weekend, spent on laundry, groceries and flashcards. It is not a holiday. It is not meant to be.
The questions I should have asked before arriving
- How much cash to bring for the first month before the first salary. The answer is more than I brought. Uniform shoes, tights, the specific lipstick, a phone SIM, taxis, and food beyond the accommodation meals.
- Whether my Egyptian bank card would work in Dubai (partially, and with fees). Bring a card that works internationally.
- What the accommodation kitchen has (basic) and what it does not (a proper kettle, a rice cooker, decent knives). The girls who brought a small kettle are the popular ones.
- How cold the training centre is. It is cold. Bring a cardigan that goes with the uniform.
- That the door drill is easier if you practise the words at home before you touch the door. I did not. I am now.
For the Egyptians and Arabic speakers
There are a lot of us in the batch and the accommodation, and the Arabic on the aircraft is an asset on the Gulf and North Africa routes. The Gulf Arabic dialect difference matters less in training than in the cabin. Learn the greetings the Gulf way anyway.
Fire week is week 5 and I will write it up. If you are arriving next month: kettle, cash, cardigan, flashcards from day one.
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#2 Three batches ahead and the kettle advice is the best thing on this forum. The study out loud in the kitchen group passes. The alone in the room group mostly passes too, but slower and sadder.
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#3 Fire week survivor from Curitiba. You will be fine. The words before the door, exactly as you say. Practise them in the shower, on the bus, anywhere. The door becomes a formality when the mouth knows the sequence.
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#4 Also from Cairo, applying again, and this is the first training thread from an Egyptian. The bank card point is exactly what I was worried about. Thank you for the honest cash answer.