Abu Dhabbling

Weekend in Cairo

2010-10-16T00:56:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, sorry for the sporadic posts! I will try to be better.

In this entry I'm posting a few pictures from my trip to Cairo in July. I visited my friend Anna, who after doing a short stint in Abu Dhabi moved back to Cairo to complete a 1-year intensive Arabic language program. Her Arabic is awesome and really comes in handy in a place like Cairo where it is the spoken language.

Anna and I took a long walk through the Khan el-Khalili bazaar where the vendors sell everything from clothes and shoes to rabbits and fish (smelly!).

We visited the mosque that President Obama visited when he came to Cairo for his big speech to the Muslim world. We had to wear these funny green capes inside the mosque. It's normal to have to cover up, but I am used to the black abbayas (dresses) and headscarves in the UAE.

On my last day Anna graciously took me to the Pyramids. We went in the morning so it was actually pretty quiet, and the vendors left us alone for the most part. We went inside one of the pyramids which was cramped, hot, and humid. If you are the slightest bit claustrophobic, then I would not recommend it!

I had such a great time in Cairo. The city is so vibrant and the people are very friendly. I highly recommend the delicious street food called kushari.

Cordoba House

2010-08-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

I feel compelled to weigh in on the debate about construction of the mosque & community center near Ground Zero. I will never know the pain of the families of the victims of 9/11. But after living and traveling in Muslim-majority countries for the past 3 years, I have come to know some of the 1.5 billion Muslims who live in our world today. These wonderful people, many of them dear friends, have helped me to understand and, through their generous and noble actions and words, revere the religion of Islam. Let’s put aside fear and ignorance and give the moderate Muslim voice a chance to shine through. President Obama said it best in his speech in Cairo: “The enduring faith of over a billion people is so much bigger than the narrow hatred of a few. Islam is not part of the problem in combating violent extremism -- it is an important part of promoting peace.”

Happy St. Patty's Day!

2010-04-15T05:09:00.000-07:00

I should have posted this entry back around, oh March 17th, but time seems to have gotten away from me! Being the charming American-Irishman that he is, Patrick has naturally befriended a lot of Irish folks here in the UAE. There is quite a large population of Irish living in the UAE, so much so that Ireland recently opened an embassy in Abu Dhabi. Up until this point the nearest embassy was in Riyadh. Patrick is buddies with the second in command at the embassy, who got us an invite to the St. Patrick's Day reception which celebrated not only the holiday but also the opening of the embassy. The Attorney General was on hand to say a few inspiring words in English, and some words we didn't understand in Gaelic. Sheikha Lubna, the UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, attended the event and out of respect for her, only juice was served when she was there. After she left, the Guinness started flowing and we certainly got our fill! I was feeling particularly Irish on St Patty's Day this year because my Irish citizenship paperwork had come through just a few days before (thanks, dad). Now I just need to apply for an Irish passport and I will feel like a really cool international traveller. Hope everyone had a great St. Patrick's Day! Here are some pictures from the reception.

Sign, Sign, Everywhere A Sign

2010-02-16T07:09:00.000-08:00

I was going through our pictures the other day and realized we have a ton of pictures of signs. What a great collection! Enjoy.

This last one is my favorite. In case you can't read it, it says "Take good care of your children." The one above to the left is also funny - my friend Katrina broke just about every dress code rule for visiting a Buddhist temple in Bangkok. My dad even makes a cameo from our trip to Dublin.

Boys' Day Out & Ladies Night

2010-02-09T06:02:00.001-08:00

Some of you might be wondering what we do for fun over here. Lately we've been taking advantage of the beautiful weather. While those of you in DC are snowed under, here we are enjoying the 75, maybe 80, degree weather. In addition to lounging around on the beach, we have started playing tennis at our beach club. It'll be a while before we are any good, but for now it's great fun and much needed exercise :). Patrick recently took some colleagues from the comment and business desks out for a "deep sea" fishing trip. Here is Rupert's son, Leo, commandeering the boat. They tell me they caught fish, but presented no evidence.

We had a great time at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship the other weekend. It still amazes me that we can get so close to the golfers (golf isn't exactly the most popular sport here, so the crowds tend to be small). Other things that we hope to do soon include kayaking and a trip out to the wildlife refuge on the Sir Baniyas Island. And maybe another round of camping in the desert/mountains of Oman. We did this last year and had a lot of fun. Although this time I think I will spend more than 28 dirhams ($7) on our tent.

And now we come to the nightlife. These days it is hard to resist the temptation of sitting outside and enjoying a beer and shisha. Another activity I've grown quite fond of is ladies night. A few of the bars around town devote one night each week where ladies can have free drinks. Absolutely free and usually unlimited. My friends and I have tested them all out, and our favorite is the unlimited red and white wine at the Tavern Pub. Sometimes even Patrick and his buddies will join us. Since there are so many more men in the city than women, ladies night is probably a good tactic to get men out to the bars. Well, they would probably just go there anyway. :)

'Round the girdled earth they roam

2010-01-24T06:43:00.000-08:00

Last weekend the words of the Dartmouth alma mater, "'round the girdled earth they roam," came particularly true when my roomie and good friend from Dartmouth, Laura Grip, came to visit me in Abu Dhabi. Grip and I hit the usual spots - the Zayed mosque, Emirates Palace, and the corniche, and had a nice lunch outside at the Captain's Arms. During our last stop of the day to the Heritage Village, we happened to run into another Dartmouth grad, class of '73, who played hockey at Dartmouth and is here on a temporary assignment to the education council. Patrick and I have met only one other Dartmouth grad here since we moved here, so it was quite a funny coincidence to randomly meet Jake while sightseeing. We made sure to capture the mini-reunion with a photo.

From Abu Dhabi we decided to "roam" over to Muscat, Oman for the weekend. The drive down was really long, mainly because I had mistakenly decided to wing it with regard to directions in and around the Oman border. We got a tad lost trying to find the expat border post (yep, it's different than the one for Gulf residents) and the little office where you buy your exit visa, but eventually we made it over the border and down the long coastal road to the beautiful city of Muscat.

Thanks to a great deal that I heard about from a friend, we were able to stay at the luxurious Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah resort. The resort is comprised of three different hotels literally carved into the mountainside, as you can see from the picture. Our room overlooked the ocean, mountains, and lazy river (my favorite part) that flowed around our hotel. Like any true resort, there were a plethora of restaurants and bars on the property, so we decided to stick around there on our first night. We took advantage of the happy hour special at the Long Bar and had some delicious local fish for dinner at Bait Al Bahr (house of the sea).

We spent most of the next day sunbathing on the glorious beach, but somehow managed to drag ourselves off in time to catch a shuttle into town to tour the Mutrah Souk (market). I've been to a lot of souks since we moved here, but this one was particularly neat. Perhaps it was the location right along the waterfront and in front of the rugged mountains. Or maybe it was the friendly Omani shopkeeper who spoke great English and gave us discounts on his jewelry. Did we barter enough? Probably not.

That evening we were tempted again by the alfresco dining options at the Shangri-La and had tapas and sangria topped off with some strawberry shisha in a tent. We definitely indulged ourselves.

The next day the trip back to Abu Dhabi was a bit quicker, I guess about 6 hours in total counting the border crossing paperwork. Grip headed back to the states the following day.

Now I wait in eager anticipation of our next visitor!

Journeys in Jordan

2010-01-07T04:10:00.000-08:00

Over Eid Al Adha back in late November, Patrick and I booked an Etihad Holiday to Jordan. What an amazing trip! The people were super friendly, the sights and countryside were beautiful, and I even got to use a little Arabic with the taxi drivers and waiters (emphasis on little).

We arrived to Amman, the capital of Jordan, on a Friday morning and spent probably an hour in the visa line at the airport. With visa in hand, we proceeded to Le Meridien Hotel in downtown Amman, which would serve as our home base for the 3-day trip. We had a really funny driver from the airport, who told us he had spent time with US soldiers in Iraq and really enjoyed those experiences. We chatted with him about Eid Al Adha, which is the holiday where Muslims slaughter goats in recognition of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac. He gave us a good laugh when he said, "It is judgement day for goats."

After getting settled in the hotel we ventured out to explore the city, but most of the sights were closed due to the holiday and the fact that it was a Friday, the Muslim holy day (like Sunday in America). At the amphitheater downtown we were followed around by large groups of boys. I'm not exactly sure what they wanted, but they seemed to be happy when we posed for a picture with them. Then we taxied over to Abdoun circle for shisha and an early dinner.

Le Meridien Amman is probably the nicest hotel we have ever paid for with our own money (my dad has put us up in a few nice places). Each night of our stay there was an elaborate wedding procession from the lobby doors to the elevators, which we later found out from our Jordanian friend here in Abu Dhabi is a ceremony where the guests are celebrating the newly married couple as they head to the "marriage bed." The procession involves a lot of singing, drumming, and dancing.

On Saturday we journeyed to the mystical town of Petra, which most everyone knows as the place from the Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and more recently from Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen. We did this trip in 1 day, which is doable but not recommendable. The bus left Amman at 6:30am and took about 3.5 hours to get down to Petra. Then we departed around 4:30 in the afternoon, leaving us plain exhausted when we got back to Amman around 8pm.

The really neat part about Petra is that it is a totally car-free town. The modes of transportation are: walking, horseback, horse carriage, or camel. It's about a 1km walk along the entrance, called The Siq, to the first big sight, The Treasury, pictured at left. The Treasury was immensely tall and the columns and details on the facade were beautiful. From there we visited the amphitheater and took a hike up the steps to the "High Place of Sacrifice," which had a great view. And no trip would be complete without some snacks, shisha, and conversation with a quirky Englishman. There are many more sights to see in Petra, but we didn't have much time left so we headed to the Cave Bar for a quick drink before the bus departed.

On our final day in Jordan we hired a slightly pushy driver, Abu Firas, to take us to Jerash and the Dead Sea. He wanted to take us to many more places for much more money, but we were really looking forward to a more relaxing day so we had to put our foot down. Several times. Finally he got the point and we were off to Jerash, which are beautiful Roman ruins north of Amman. I liked the hippodrome and the sprawling ruins across the green landscape. Here's Patrick doing his signature pose.

Our last stop, and my favorite part of the trip, was a dip in the Dead Sea. This is something that I think everyone should experience in their lives. It was so amazing to float so effortlessly in the water. Although you have to be careful about getting the water in your eyes and mouth because it is super salty! Patrick opted for the Dead Sea mud bath; I opted not. The mud smelled a little funny.

That night we smoked shisha and watched a football (soccer) match in a cafe, joined by hundreds of young Jordanians, so it must have been a hip place. Our cool driver from the airport gave us the tip.

Blog Relaunch!

2010-01-06T06:03:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone, Patrick and I would like to thank the loyal readers of Abu Dhabbling and apologize for the particularly long hiatus from posting. Due to popular demand (ahem, Mark) we have decided to relaunch the blog! We continue to learn new things and have crazy adventures in this wonderful country and surrounding region. Although I’ve gotten quite busy with work, singing group, Arabic classes, traveling etc, I will make every effort to post an entry every few weeks or so. Thanks and take care!

Incredible India!

2009-06-22T09:03:00.000-07:00

Earlier this month Patrick and I travelled to India to attend a wedding of one of my former colleagues from DC. We took an overnight flight into Chennai (formerly Madras) and after a quick nap went to the wedding hall for the 5:30am (!) service. The ceremony was really exciting, although I didn't entirely know what was going on. It took place in a huge room with a stage at the front where the couple and families sat under an elaborately decorated gazebo. There was a band on the side playing music and chanting, and hundreds of people sitting and talking in chairs in the audience.

My curiosity got the best of me, so I quickly befriended two Americans, who worked at the consulate in Chennai, and peppered them with questions about what was going on. At one point the groom pretended to walk away from the marriage, but then symbolically returned to the bride. At another point the priest dudes washed the bride's father's feet. Then the bride disappeared backstage for a while and came back out in a new outfit. Then the final ceremony involved, instead of exchanging rings, tying a necklace around the bride's neck. After the ceremony there was a receiving line to greet the families on the stage. There were about a million people in line, so I skipped that and went downstairs to the big breakfast, where we were served a variety of vegetarian South Indian foods on a big leaf. Yummy!

Later that night Patrick and I went to the reception, where we paid our respects to the family and enjoyed another delicious Indian meal. I also got to wear my sari which was so exciting! It was a bit hot and itchy and I had a hard time keeping it pinned on, but I felt beautiful.

In Chennai Patrick and I explored the old British fort, stumbled upon a religious parade at one of the famous Hindu temples, visited the shrine and tomb of Saint Thomas, enjoyed more meals on banana leaves, and had a few beers at our hotel - the Madras Cricket Club.

Our next adventure took us down the coast to the Mamallapuram temples. It was neat to see the various temples and shrines and the big boulder, which is naturally occurring.

From there we headed to the charming town of Pondicherry, which is a former French colony. The street names are in French and the language is still widely spoken. The town is most famous for the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. Visitors are allowed inside to meditate by the altar/fountain thing, and I must say it was quite peaceful. I think Patrick's favorite parts of the trip were riding around in the auto-rickshaws and getting blessed by an elephant outside one of the temples. We also toured the Ghandi memorial, beachside boardwalk, city center park, museum, and an arts & crafts market where I picked up some earrings, bags, and notecards. We stayed in this awesome colonial hotel and our room had a huge terrace and one of those beds that you need a small staircase to climb into - so cool!

It was a great trip and we hope to make it to other parts of India in the future.

More From Luxor

2009-04-16T11:14:00.000-07:00

I thought I would post just a few more pictures from Luxor. The sites are truly spectacular. If you can brave the heat and the street merchants, it is totally worth a visit!!

Baksheesh

2009-04-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

Go to Luxor and you'll hear the word "baksheesh" right away.

You'll hear it from the scores of educated, employable men whose best prospect is to sell you a ride on a falucca (sail boat), caresh (carriage), or to show you some hidden carving in the tomb of Ramses IV. All of them are trying to be helpful, but ultimately, they are looking for baksheesh, a tip ranging from an Egyptian pound to whatever you want to give, and usually for more than that.

It's troublesome but touching too. So many of these men take great pride in being Egyptian even as the state of their country is far more humble than the history they are trying to help you understand. They deserve more than backsheesh, but a society that is worthy or their energy and efforts.

But it wasn't the pharaohs who built those monuments that have lasted four and five millenia – it was guys like the Egyptians we met, trying to feed their families, depending on the "backsheesh" of someone with so much coin that he had enough left over to bury some of it with him when he died – or in our case, to take a weekend getaway.

Kerry certainly deserves some backsheesh for her sense of humor throughout the trip, exotic though it may have been. I can't imagine any other wife who would smile through having her luggage lost, laugh at being the only woman on a flight from Sharjah with a couple hundred unruly passengers, insist that staying in a hotel where the power goes out intermittently "isn't that bad", and fly back home at 3am only to drive three hours through rush hour traffic in Dubai to get me to work.

So backsheesh all around and thanks and a sigh of relief too that we have a comfy home, interesting jobs, air-conditioning, and can get a good night's rest back in Abu Dhabi after a whirlwind of a weekend.

Snow Falling on Cedars

2009-03-10T11:48:00.000-07:00

The really incredible thing about Lebanon is the mountains. And I don't think we feel that way just because we spent the majority of the past year stuck in the topographically-challenged desert. They really are spectacular. When you're standing on the sunny corniche in downtown Beirut, you can see the snow-capped peaks in the distance (I hope you can see in the picture here). Patrick kept comparing Lebanon to California, but the analogy didn't seem to resonate with the Lebanese, pick your own reasons why.

So on our last day in Lebanon, we decided to journey to Faraya to check out the ski resorts. After fighting through through the Beirut traffic again and winding our way up the mountains, we came upon something you might see in Colorado or Vermont - a legit ski slope - rather, several slopes - with mobs of people sporting fashionable skiing apparel and shiny skis and snowboards.

We had previously made the decision not to ski (based on Patrick's terrifying yet hysterical performance at Ski Dubai), so we went over to the Intercontinental to have lunch at the base of the slope. Oddly enough we ran into two women that we'd seen the day before at Byblos (Jbeil), and even more oddly enough, they live in Dubai. They invited us to join them for lunch, which we did and had a lot of fun. We found out that one woman was Welsh and one was Lebanese, and like us they are transplants in the UAE. They were there to ski for the weekend, but from the looks of it, I think they were going to be doing more partying than skiing.

All in all, our trip to Lebanon was wonderful and I would highly recommend it!

Jeita, Jounieh and Jbeil

2009-03-09T04:38:00.000-07:00

On our second day in Lebanon Patrick and I hired a driver to take us up the coast. After sitting through a lot of traffic on the way out of Beirut, we traveled first to Jeita to see the famous "grotto," or series of limestone caves with crazy looking stalagmites and stalactites. I thought they were really cool, but Patrick informed me that you can see the same thing in Virginia. Unfortunately the Lower Cave was closed due to the high water levels, so we weren't able to ride through on a boat. However, we walked through the Upper Cave, joined by what seemed like all of the school children in Lebanon.

After Jeita we traveled to the coastal town of Jounieh, where we took the teleferique (gondala thing) to the top of a huge mountain. The scary ride was worth the wonderful views from the top, pictured here.

The top of the mountain is actually a pilgrimage site called Harissa. There's a huge statue of the Virgin Mary, which is referred to as Our Lady of Lebanon. Next to the statue is a modern Maronite cathedral.

From Jounieh we traveled to our final and my favorite destination - Jbeil, also known in Greek as Byblos. Jbeil is basically a fishing village, but it happens to have a spectacular archaeological site, due to the fact that it was founded around 5,000 BC and has been inhabited by all kinds of people throughout history - Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, etc (Patrick would know the rest). We had lunch at a nice Lebanese place on the port and then headed to the ruins for a quick tour. I made sure to stop by the souk to pick up a statue of the Phoenician goddess of fertility. :)

Beirut!

2009-03-08T01:40:00.000-08:00

Dear family and friends, Patrick and I have just returned from a wonderful weekend in Lebanon. We spent our first day touring the capital city, Beirut, which is a bustling, modern city similar to the likes of Paris and NYC. Although many of the buildings were damaged or destroyed in the long civil war, much of the city has been and continues to be rebuilt.

A short walk from our hotel in the Hamra neighborhood took us to the beautiful campus of the American University of Beirut. The university buildings are spread out amongst clusters of cedar trees on a large sloping hill which leads down to the sea. The street running along the university, La Rue Bliss, is packed with students and small eateries serving coffee, crepes and zaatar sandwiches.

From Hamra we walked downtown to check out some of the sights, such as the bullet-riddled Holiday Inn and the derelict St George Hotel, which are an interesting contrast to the glamorous InterContinental Phoenicia Hotel where we dined for lunch.

After enjoying some shisha (nargileh) at the Place d'Etoile, we explored the Roman ruins, St George's Cathedral, and Mohammed al-Amin mosque, which people say looks like the younger sibling to the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

We also paid tribute at the grave of Rafik Hariri, the former prime minister of Lebanon, who was assassinated in 2005.

No trip to Beirut is complete without some dining and partying in the Gemmayzeh and Achrafiye neighborhoods. On our first night we met up with one of Patrick's co-workers for dinner and drinks at the very swanky MYU restaurant. On another night we enjoyed some delicious sushi and local Al Maza beer.

More to come about our excursions in the mountains of Lebanon...

al-'arabiyyah

2009-02-24T05:31:00.000-08:00

Exciting news - I finally got around to signing up for Arabic lessons! I have had four sessions so far, all of which have focused on learning the alphabet - both the sounds and the characters.

Some of the sounds are so different from the English language that I have a hard time saying them correctly. It helps greatly that I share an office with my Arabic-speaking boss and thus have exposure to the different sounds almost every day.

The letters are pretty crazy-looking but I'm close to knowing them all by heart. It is so exciting to be able to recognize certain letters on store signs when walking around town, or on products from the grocery store, and sometimes to be able to sound out the words. However, I know that I have a long way to go - when I'm watching TV with subtitles, several Arabic words will appear on the screen, yet they change before I can even pick out two letters.

My class is an interesting mix of people - 2 other Americans, 2 Venezuelans, 1 Norwegian, 1 German, 1 South African, and 1 Ukranian. Everyone speaks English, but it wouldn't really matter because the class is conducted completely in Arabic. The instructor, originally from Syria, is great.

It's definitely an exciting and challenging undertaking. I hope to continue the classes for some time to come.

Here's an image of the word al-'arabiyyah or "Arabic".

Super sun day

2009-02-01T08:07:00.000-08:00

Alas, Showtime sports is not showing the Super Bowl -- opting instead to show it "at peak viewing time" on Tuesday night. I think it means that they just didn't buy the rights to show the game live even though they advertised that when we bought the package. Oh well. As they say in this region "buyer-beware"

We won't see the big game but I was able to venture up to the Dubai Desert Classic with my buddy Shaemus Buckley to see some fantastic golf. We followed Colin Montgomerie, Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, and of course, the champion, Rory McIlroy, another Irishman, who got his first tour win up in Dubai.

It's tough to complain about missing the game when its 80 degrees and sunny on Superbowl Sunday, and you can spend the day at the beach. I see there's more snow of the way for DC this week.

Let it snow

2009-01-25T10:01:00.000-08:00

In the UAE, Snow is not just for our mega-malls anymore.

As much as six inches fell on the mountains of Ras al Khaimah this weekend in just the second time in recorded history that snow has fallen in the country.

Down at sea level in Abu Dhabi we just had thunderstorms. Check out some of the pictures here.

Happy Campers

2009-01-24T08:54:00.000-08:00

Instead of going to Beirut for the weekend as we had initially planned, we travelled to the mountains of Oman for a camping trip – and it was a good thing too since we there were some pretty fiesty anti-US protests in Beirut that same weekend.

Our fellow outdoorsmen, our friends Chris and Anna were much better campers and much better equiped than us, as our sleeping bags and tent, a glorified garbage bag, cost us a grand total of $15. The weather was much colder than we expected, but the scenery was much more impressive than we expected too.

After spending the night under the glorious tent of stars above us, we spent the next day travelling up and down several wadis – basically small canyons that rainfall has carved out of the sandstone and rock over the millenia. As much as the trip helped us to appreciate the great outdoors, it also made us appreciate the comforts of home, and the need for warmer sleeping bags the next time we venture up into the mountains...

Euro trip

2009-01-12T08:58:00.000-08:00

Since Kerry and I were all the way over on the far side of Europe, we figured we'd take advantage of that and try something new and different. And what could be more different from Abu Dhabi than Amsterdam? Well, not much. The weather was quite cold, and the social mores were, how shall we say, somewhat less conservative than what we're used to.

Of course we sat in some cafes but we couldn't go to Amsterdam without visiting some of its great museums. The Rijksmuseum in particular lived up to its reputation. We are also probably the only people to visit the city to stop in so many churches. In one of the older churches we were able to hear a wonderful organ concert, and we enjoyed the Amstelkring, a church hidden away in an attic that has been preserved since the time the Calvinists tried to outlaw Catholicism. But unfortunately many of these churches today, both Catholic or Protestant, appear to be lacking one essential ingredient- regular congregants.

Its probably not a place we'll go back to soon but we learned quite a bit and appreciated our return to Abu Dhabi all the more for having enjoyed such a dramatic change in scenery.

An Irish Wedding

2009-01-12T08:43:00.001-08:00

The fellow above looks about as sad as any man I have seen since a fateful day in October at Atlanta's Christ the King Church. And perhaps he should since he's Kieran's cousin.

Kerry and I joined the Quinn, Roche and Bulter families for a delightful time in Kilkenny to celebrate a wedding and to celebrate our ties with Kerry's Irish relatives. The hospitality at the San Antonio bed and breakfast was terrific, the wedding was lovely, and the only thing the reception lacked was my wicked dance moves, which I was too tired too perform after an overnight flight from Abu Dhabi (besides I didn't want to upstage the groom).

After the wedding we traveled with the Quinn's to Dublin to celebrate the New Year. No, Bono did not remember us and invite us over to celebrate the New Year as we had hoped, but it was Kerry's first time in Dublin and it was fantastic to reaquaint ourselves with Irish history and our own Irish roots. Of course Kerry's family is from a more civilized part of Ireland. We will have to travel to Port McGee and Dingle over in County Kerry to see the Granfield's some day.

Merry Christmas from the UAE

2008-12-25T02:52:00.000-08:00

Yes, I had to work today. Here are Ross Andersen, Hassan Fatah, Sean McClain and me trying to figure out what we were going to write about. Thankfully, a glorious and generous Turkey lunch was ordered for later in the day.

The National also had some encouraging words for the holiday today:
http://www.thenational.ae/article/20081225/OPINION/947292774/1033

Journey to Hormuz

2008-12-22T06:50:00.000-08:00

Traveling in the Musandam Peninsula in Oman, separated from Iran by the straight of Hormuz, its no wonder that the name Hormuz comes from an ancient Persian word for the supreme Zoroastrian deity. If the straight of Hormuz were closed, it would freeze nearly half of the world’s oil deliveries, shutting down the international economy. But of course that’s not why the ancient Persians gave its name. As Kerry and I saw this weekend, it was probably for its breathtaking and brooding landscape, and its rugged extremes that remind you of how small you are in nature’s scope.

Kerry and I stayed in Khasab, Oman’s main port in Musandam. When we arrived we couldn’t find our hotel and asked a local Omani, Muhammad, for directions. He promptly offered to take us there if we let him get in the back seat of our car. When we asked to pay him or offered him a ride back, he only smiled and walked away. Such manners seemed par for the course in Musandam.

The next morning Kerry and I awoke to take a dhow trip through the “fjords” of Musandam, narrow inlets between jagged sandstone cliffs that rise out of the sea. We passed by Telegraph island as we travelled through, where the British camped while laying the telegraph from Basra, Iraq to Bombay, India that connected them to their empire. The boat captain, also named Muhammad, seemed to know how to call the dolphins in the area, as they swam behind the vessel’s wake.

There wasn’t much nightlife in Khasab, so we went to bed early that night and awoke to take a 4X4 into the mountains above the town. The mountain roads were treacherous, but we had a good guide, Fadil, a local whose grandparents were Bedouins in the area. He showed us fossils, ancient cliff drawings and dwellings, and seemed amused with our fascination with feeding the mountain goats. If anyone is planning a trip to Mussandam, book a trip into the mountains with Fadil.

Khasab is said to be a main point of smuggling between Iran and the rest of the world. Iran is just an hour or so away by speed-boat. But I don’t think they would call the trade with those across the straight that has been going on for thousands of years smuggling. Nationalities and borders seemed to matter less to people in such a remote part of the world, and we were happy to be welcomed among them if just for the weekend.

"Trip of a lifetime"

2008-12-05T08:20:00.000-08:00

Yes, that's what my mother called her visit to the UAE and it was such a joy to have her here. She has always described herself as a "world traveller" but that title was really just prophetic, until she arrived here to visit us in Arabia. We showed her all of the sites, the Emriates Palace, the Heritage Village, the gold souk and of course, the Hiltonian Beach club before we travelled up to Dubai and enjoyed "the ultimate afternoon tea" at the Burj al Arab, dined at the Emirates Towers, shopped at the Madinat Jumeriah souk and explored the Dubai museum.

We were surprised at how quickly she took to the culture and pace of life. Mom, thanks so much for making the trip.

One-Year Mark

2008-12-01T04:01:00.000-08:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Today is a very special day for us, as exactly one year ago Patrick and I departed Washington for the Dhabs! Well, for those of you that know the real story, I departed a day after Patrick, but that's a small point... :) We can't believe how quickly the year has gone by. And to think that for almost half of it, we moved from hotel to hotel, hoping and praying that the apartment would be finished.

Well, I can say now that we are happy and healthy and completely settled in. We lucked out with our apartment and are the proud owners of a whole new set of IKEA furniture. We have made wonderful friends from around the world and continue to meet new people as the population continues to boom. We have hosted several visitors so far, and hope to have even more in the coming year. We are both enjoying our jobs and have great colleagues to boot.

Tomorrow is also an important day, as December 2nd marks the date that the UAE was established as a federation, 37 years ago. There will be many celebrations starting tonight and going for the rest of the week. In fact, George Michael and Alicia Keys are in concert tonight.

We had a great visit with Patrick's mom last week, and will try to post pictures and details very soon!! In the meantime, here is a picture of us at the Marine Corps Ball, and at brunch with family friends who recently visited Abu Dhabi and Oman.

The Borgers of Arabia

2008-11-11T04:49:00.000-08:00

Whether you live in England, China or Arabia, there are some essentials that American expats just can't live without. For us, the NFL is one of them.

We subscribe to Show-time sports, and were told by the salesman that we would get “all nfl games. You will see red sox win super bowl.” As they say in this part of the world, from the Code of Hummarbi to the present, “buyer-beware”, particularly with a promise like that.

We get two games a week, usually from the AFC. For some reason the cable operators have a fixation with the Oakland Raiders, so we get their game every week. This wouldn’t be such a bad thing for Patrick since he has Darren McFadden on his fantasy football team. But unfortunately for Patrick, I am in 5th place in the league and he is in last (14th). A Canadian and three Brits are even ahead of him.

There is another cable network, Arab Radio and Television, that is supposed to carry three additional games. We are a bit wary now of promises to provide anything (apartments, tv programs, reasonable weather), but we are looking into it. We recently got a steal on a new HDTV they had on Ramadan special at Carrefour (kind of like Walmart) - it provides for optimal viewing.

In Khalidiya Mall, a new sports store just opened up where we were surprised to find that they sell football equipment and jerseys for the Patriots, Steelers, Dolphins and to our delight, the Washington Redskins. Patrick insisted that I get a Clinton Portis jersey and we also bought a football. We were tossing it around in the street back in September, but since it was still 100 and humid, we couldn’t last all that long. And in retrospect, you really aren’t supposed to be playing outside during Ramadan, so it was good we moved inside.

If you come visit us, you will feel right at home. In our guest room we have posted a large Peyton Manning fat head – perhaps the only one of its kind on the Arabian peninsula. And we have everyone over on Sunday evenings at 10pm (1:00 on the east coast) to watch the games, just like the Borgers did back in Bethesda.

Go Skins!

A Global Victory

2008-11-05T04:57:00.000-08:00

This morning I celebrated Obama's victory with other Americans and UAE residents at the American Business Group/U.S. Embassy election breakfast. It was so exciting to watch the results come in and then listen to both the concession and victory speeches with so many other Americans. There was much applause for both candidates. I proudly sported an Obama t-shirt, which one of Patrick's colleagues kindly picked up for him in the states, and was even interviewed by an NYU Film Academy student who is filming a documentary about the election.

From talking with residents here in the UAE and watching the extensive coverage of the election on CNN Global and BBC World, it is clear that Obama was the "world's" choice for president, and I am sure that many others share my hope and belief that Obama will restore America's image in the world as a great country that promotes liberty, justice and opportunity for all.

Halloween in the UAE

2008-11-01T23:08:00.000-07:00

While Patrick was in DC celebrating Halloween at Marc & Marcy's annual shindig, I was doing a little celebrating of my own here in Abu Dhabi. I attended two expat parties over the course of the night, in what I thought was a fantastic Avril Lavigne costume. Sadly, most people didn't think I was dressed up.

At my friend Sandi's party we had a few trick-or-treaters, the cutest ones being an Indian family who didn't have costumes and just wanted the candy. We invited them inside to show them the spooky decorations.

There were three Sarah Palin costumes, and I'm sure there were many more across America. My favorite costume was my friend Hallie's - she went as Juno.

Happy Halloween!

2-Year Anniversary

2008-10-23T06:12:00.000-07:00

Two years ago at the Ansley Country Club, the Father of the bride compared marriage to a roller coaster. He may have just been referencing the movie Parenthood, and not really aware of how right he may have been in describing the marriage of his daughter. He thought that their honeymoon in Istanbul was one of the big hills on the roller coaster. Little did he know that two years after that wedding day, they would still be in the Middle East, and in many respects, still on their honeymoon…

Here are some pictures from our “Second anniversary dinner.” Chicken Kabobs, couscous, asparagus, and some Prosecco sparkling wine on the menu…

Hilton Head Abu Dhabi

2008-10-19T09:06:00.001-07:00

The intense summer heat is finally over and Patrick and I have joined the Hiltonia Beach Club just in time. Here are a couple pictures of the two of us there (Patrick thinking he is some kind of Arabian muscle man).

The Hiltonia has a “family friendly” beach, two swimming pools, a massive slide, and a great gym and spa attached to its hotel on the Corniche. The blue green waters of the Persian Gulf face the club, and from the beach you can see the sky-scrapers further down the corniche, as well as the Emirates Palace Hotel in the other direction.

I think we will be spending our days off at the Hiltonia until it gets really hot again – since joining the Hiltonia cost a pretty penny, I think we will be there almost everyday! Its like the summer has just started since we can enjoy outdoor activity again.

Dubai's eye in the sky

2008-09-13T06:04:00.000-07:00

This past week I visited my old Omani traveling companion, Srini Iyengar, at the flying eye hospital at the Dubai airport. The leaders of Dubai have announced a blindness initiative, Noor Dubai, with the hopes of treating one million of the world's blind. As part of the effort, they gave a substantial grant to Orbis, the organization where Srini works as an eye surgeon. I was able to board their plane, complete with an inflight classroom and operating room, where so much of their good work takes place.

Thankfully, this is as close as I will ever come to performing surgery on anyone. Look for a story in The National in the coming weeks on the different technologies Orbis uses to perform surgeries and to teach doctors in various impoverished locations around the world to treat blindness.

Dubai Shakes

2008-09-10T05:41:00.000-07:00

Dubai experienced a mild earthquake today, 6.1 on the Richter Scale. Many of the high rise buildings, like the Emirates Towers, the tallest in the Middle East or Europe, had to be evacuated. Construction on the Burj Dubai, now over 2,100 feet tall, was halted for the afternoon. It was the first significant tremor since a quake in 2005, measuring 5.6 on the Richter scale.

The epicenter of the quake was off the coast of the UAE in the Persian Gulf. Usually such quakes are centered further north and inland in Iran, on the Zargos fault line that divides the Arabian tectonic plate from Persia and the rest of central Asia.

I was in a taxi on the way to Dubai for a story and I did feel a tiny, temporary shake, but I assumed that it was Kerry stomping on the ground down in Abu Dhabi, when she saw that I had left my breakfast dishes out.

Ramadan Kareem

2008-09-04T04:17:00.000-07:00

On Monday, the month-long Muslim religious observance called Ramadan began. Ramadan takes place every year during the ninth month of the Islamic calendar (determined by lunar phases), and is believed to be the month in which the Qu'ran was revealed to the Angel Gabriel, who later revealed it to the Prophet Muhammad. It is a month of fasting, and participating Muslims do not eat or drink (yep, not even water) from sunrise to sundown. Accordingly, all of the restaurants and cafes are closed during the day. They open up at night for Iftar, or breaking of the fast.

Companies and government agencies tend to have different operating hours during Ramadan. I learned this the hard way when Patrick and I tried to get my driver's license the other day and it was closed - whoops, should have called ahead. I also stopped by the Abu Dhabi mall after work yesterday and found most of the stores to be closed.

Ramadan is a time for prayer, charity, honesty, and self-reflection. This is the part that I will try to partake in (not the fasting, I'm afraid).

The holy month ends with a big feast called Eid ul-Fitr, which should be a fun time!

Ramadan Kareem! (Happy Ramadan!)

Picasso at the Palace

2008-08-26T23:48:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Patrick and I finally made it over to the Emirates Palace to see the Picasso exhibit, which has been running all summer and closes on Sept 4th. A total of 183 works are being shown, including painting, sculptures, and works on paper. They are all on loan from the Musee National Picasso in Paris. Some of the famous ones include "Self Portrait with Cloak" from the Blue period and the political "Massacre in Korea". It was a great exhibition and a nice break from the heat.

Olympic Wrap-Up

2008-08-25T00:52:00.000-07:00

In celebration of the Olympics we hosted a pong celebration with many of our friends. They hailed from nine nations: England, Sweden, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Iran, Canada, Jordan and of course the USA. As you can see, sport brings the people of the world together. Leaders across the globe, take note.

Although the UAE team did not come away with any medals this year, there were still a few notable highlights - Obaid Al Jasmi set a new national record and personal best in the 100m freestyle. Sheikha Maitha had a great taekwondo match against a South Korean who went on to win the gold. Other countries in the region also did well - Iran took its first gold in the men's 80kg taekwondo, Bahrain took its first gold in the men's 1500m run, and Tunisia took a gold in the men's 1500m freestyle.

Dubai's First Mortgage Law

2008-08-20T00:46:00.000-07:00

I think my dad would be interested to know that Dubai is about to issue its first law regulating the mortgage industry. According to an article in The National (shameless plug for Patrick's paper), the law is intended to give lenders more control and confidence and encourage more investment in Dubai. Among other things, the law will create processes for repossessing and selling property in case of default, which apparently is uncommon in Dubai but could become a problem when the housing market begins to level off. An interesting stat from the article - Morgan Stanley said recently that although property prices in Dubai had surged 79 per cent since the beginning of 2007, it expected to see a 10 per cent fall in prices by 2010.

In other building news, the Burj Dubai (picture at left) surpassed the KVLY-TV mast in North Dakota to become the world's tallest man-made structure. As of April 2008, the Burj was 2,063.6 feet high. There are varying reports as to how tall it will be upon completion, as well as the date of completion. It will feature residences, commercial space, retail space, and my favorite - the world's first Armani Hotel. As in Giorgio Armani. Nothing but the best for Dubai!

Toga, Toga, TOGA, TOGA!!

2008-08-12T21:42:00.000-07:00

Recently we had the pleasure of attending our first toga party in the Middle East. You might ask – where does one acquire a toga in Abu Dhabi? All you have to do is head to the fabric souk, Madinat Zayed, and order 4 yards of your favorite fabric. Patrick chose a navy blue color and I chose teal, which when donned, made me look much like the Statue of Liberty.

Patrick was in hog heaven – there was delicious Greek food, a toga fashion contest, a Greek quiz, and of course, karaoke. Sweet Home Alabama works surprisingly well as Sweet Home Abu Dhabi.

Thanks to our hosts for a great time.

UAE Olympic Team

2008-08-11T01:14:00.001-07:00

Hopefully some of you kept an eye out during the 2008 Olympics opening ceremonies for the UAE team. Eight UAE athletes are competing in a range of events such as skeet shooting, show jumping, swimming, and 400m run.

Perhaps the most notable athlete is the Ruler of Dubai's daughter, Sheikha Maitha, who will participate in taekwondo in the 67Kg category for women. She was the looker carrying the UAE flag at the opening ceremonies.

Best of luck to the team!

Oman's Arabian Coast

2008-08-09T02:19:00.001-07:00

Michael Jackson has a place in Oman. And when I arrived in the country, I was about as white as he is. Two days later, after having snorkled and spent time on a boat out in the Indian Ocean, someone could have mistaken me for one of those red monsters from Mr Jackson’s Thriller video.

Yep, the sun’s pretty powerful out there. And to enjoy Oman you’ve gotta spend time in its rugged mountains or in the sea that crashes against them.

I traveled there with my buddy Srini Iyengar, the brother of my College and Cambridge roommate, Madhu, who was in the region for a week’s respite during a year of doing surgeries in underserved areas around the world.

Srini and I decided to go to Muscat, Oman on a whim the day before we arrived . Luckily a Swiss student of Arabic we met on the hour flight from Abu Dhabi told us to take a taxi to Mutra from the airport – a great tip. We found a hotel there, The Corniche Inn, a cheap hole in the wall right on Muscat’s Corniche. But since it was a Friday and Muscat is more traditional than Abu Dhabi, almost everything was shut. So we climbed a fort that was also closed but had been so for several centuries.

As the city opened back up again on Friday evening Srini and I walked around the souk and sat in one of the kabab houses on the Corniche, asking people for ideas about what to do. Someone suggested the Shangri-La so we took a cab to the posh hotel, carved out of a cliff above the sea a dozen or so miles from Muscat. There, Srini tried smoking shisha for the first time, and we tried, unsuccessfully, to engage several elderly Omanis in conversation.

The next day we awoke early to look for a boat to take us out into the ocean. Since very few people travel to the east coast of Arabia during the first weekend of August there were plenty. For three hours we snorkled and sped around the winding, rugged coast seeing fish that you’d expect to find only in an aquarium. The water was actually quite refreshing for this time of year, far cooler than the Persian Gulf closer to home. For the afternoon, we went back to the Shangri-La where we had lunch and hung out by their chilled pools.

Alas, I was happy to get back to Kerry and to Abu Dhabi, which felt like Manhattan after being in Muscat for a couple days. Srini flew back to Lagos, Nigeria the next day for a week of surgeries before he travels to Uganda for a month. For Srini, Muscat probably felt like Manhattan by comparison.

July 4th Extravagaza

2008-08-06T01:09:00.000-07:00

Due to the mass exodus of expats from Abu Dhabi at the end of May to escape the hot summer weather, the U.S. Embassy in the UAE celebrates the 4th of July in April. However, quite a few Americans do stick around in the summer, and this being our first summer in the UAE, we took it upon ourselves to show our fellow Americans and, more importantly, non-Americans, how to celebrate the holiday right.

Luckily we had a co-host for the party, James, and you can see him in the picture below grilling some ribs outside our apartment (yes, it was hot). In addition to ribs, our party menu included burgers, beef franks, sausages, lamb patties, veggie burgers, potato salad, corn on the cob, chips, salad, and peach cobbler. And, of course, beer. Lots of beer.

Patrick and I put together a playlist of classic American hits, including many Springsteen and Skynyrd hits. I headed off to bed a bit early because I had a training the next day, and at about midnight I was awoken by an hour-long karaoke medley by Patrick and his friend Shaemus. As much as things change, they also stay the same. :)

Vacation's Over

2008-07-29T21:12:00.000-07:00

After months of job searching (er, sitting by the pool), I finally landed a job. I started work in mid May at AMIDEAST, a U.S. non-profit organization that seeks to strengthen mutual understanding and cooperation between Americans and peoples of the Middle East and North Africa. The field office here in the UAE provides a variety of services – English language and professional development training, scholarship and exchange programs (e.g., Fulbright), U.S. higher education advising, and test administration (e.g., SAT, GRE and TOEFL).

My job is to market and coordinate training courses for UAE businesses and institutions. For example, I recently organized a project management training in Dubai for an oil field services company, and a green building training in Abu Dhabi for an engineering firm.

I work with 16 women, and other than the country director, I am the only American citizen. The other women are from the Middle East, India, Pakistan, Philippines, and South Africa, so it has been fun to get to know them. Another plus is that the job is only 30 hours a week, so theoretically I should have time for other things, such as Arabic classes and cooking.

Here are two pictures of me and my colleagues – up top at our director’s daughter’s engagement party and below at a birthday party.

Our Home

2008-07-27T21:18:00.000-07:00

I know everyone is eager to see pictures of our apartment, so…drumroll please…here is our living room, kitchen, hallway/bath, master bed, and guest bed!

Most of our furnishings are from IKEA, surprise surprise, and I’m ashamed to say that we made over 10 trips to the store to order the furniture and purchase all of the bed, bath, and kitchen goods. Also, hardly any UAE apartments come with appliances, so we had to order those, too – washer/dryer (it’s a hybrid and takes forever to dry), fridge, and stove. We have a space in the kitchen for a dishwasher but are holding off on that for the moment.

We have some great prints of Washington DC hanging in the living room, thanks to my mom for ordering and shipping them. Also thanks to my mom, we have a fathead of Peyton Manning up in the guest room. :) Nothing brightens my day like Peyton.

For TV we chose a satellite company called Orbit, which has a package of great Western channels including one dedicated to U.S. news shows such as Hardball and PBS News Hour, and another called America Plus which runs The OC, Veronica Mars, Law & Order, etc. Unfortunately Orbit did not renew their contract with ESPN, but luckily we can sign up for a separate service to get American football games this fall.

The final things to do are to install curtains and internet. A few large pieces of cardboard from IKEA have been serving to block out the sun in the bedrooms for the past two months. Thankfully we will have navy blue curtains installed next week. We should be getting internet soon, too.

Our apologies

2008-06-23T21:21:00.000-07:00

We would like to apologize to our loyal readers for this hiatus in blog posts. As most of you know we recently moved into our apartment, I started a job, and we had a 10-day vacation in the states. We are back now and working on getting internet in our new apartment. More exciting posts are yet to come, so bear with us!!

Inshallah Tower

2008-05-19T11:54:00.000-07:00

We never thought we would have had to wait this long for our apartment.

Alas, the day is near that we will no longer be living in a hotel and will have a place to lay our heads that we can call our own.

But not yet. Not yet...

Last Thursday we got our keys, but of course, in true style of the way some things work over here, the AC had not been turned on. In any other circumstances we would have moved in anyway, but temperatures get above 105 almost everyday now.

We brought waters for the fellas from Ikea who brought over some furniture on Saturday and we took measurements of the place. Just as Kerry dutifully managed the KDE sorority house at Dartmouth, she knew what she was doing when she entered the apartment, checked out the fuse boxes, measured for appliances, and generally made me feel like less of a man.

Here are some photos of the building, the apartment, the neighbo(u)rhood, and the view from the roof.

We should be sleeping there in a couple of nights (inshallah).

Skiing...in the desert

2008-05-13T08:01:00.000-07:00

On Thursday Erin and I headed up to Dubai for afternoon tea at the Burj Al Arab (sailboat hotel) and shopping at the Madinat Jumeirah souk. The Burj is a magnificent hotel, inside and out, and the afternoon tea totally exceeded my expectations. We were served champagne, finger sandwiches, beef Wellington, scones, mixed berries, pastries and of course, tea, all of which were delicious. The Madinat Jumeirah souk not only has a great view of the Burj but is also a perfect place to pick up camel souvenirs – between the two of us we walked away with camel hand towels, key chains, magnets, notecards and notebooks.

The next day Patrick joined us and we made a trip to Ski Dubai. Yes, Ski Dubai. For just under $50 you can rent ski equipment and a warm outfit and spend two hours out on the slopes (indoor), cruising down either the green/blue run or the black diamond. There’s also a café mid-way up the “mountain” where you can go for hot chocolate. They really thought of everything. The whole experience was so surreal – and something that you just have to try while in Dubai.

Abu Dhabi is also building its own ski slope at Marina Mall, so there’s no doubt that I’ll be trying that one out too.

More Fun in the Sun

2008-05-13T07:41:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lapse in postings...last week Patrick’s sister Erin came to visit, so I was busy showing her around town.

As no trip to the UAE would be complete without a jaunt in the desert, I arranged for a desert safari trip with my favorite tour company, Cyclone Tours. We were worried about the heat (temps are reaching 109 F these days) but luckily the sun had mostly set by the time we finished dune bashing and reached the camp for camel riding, dune surfing and dinner. Erin was a natural at riding a camel and, as you can see from the picture, made a few friends at the camel farm. There was a nice breeze at the camp and the stars came out in full force.

"Majid" turns 30

2008-04-26T08:33:00.000-07:00

Patrick celebrates his birthday this coming week, but I doubt the celebration will be as festive as the birthday carnival at the Emirates' Palace for the cartoon character, "Majid", this past weekend.

The security guards from Abu Dhabi Media invited Patrick and I to attend the carnival, where over 6,000 people, mostly young families with children, were treated to cotton candy, popcorn, and music from the cartoon characters. It was like an Arabian disney world.

I can't imagine how hot it must have been for the characters in their big suits since the temperature was close to 100 degrees again yesterday.

Majid is a fan favorite over here. He plays soccer, likes to travel and has a buddy named lazy boy. It seems even the parents at the festival had found memories of watching Majid when they were children. Attached are a few photos of the celebration.

Not just for military exercises and oil tankers

2008-04-19T11:21:00.000-07:00

When you say the words Persian Gulf, what do you think of?

If you are reading back in America, you probably don't think of white sandy beaches or Germans having no shame wearing speedos in their middle age. If you're reading from Arabia, then you're probably thinking, wait, isn't it the Arabian Gulf?

However you want to label it, the Gulf is wonderful for swimming this time of year. The temperature is a perfect contrast to the midday heat. The Gulf is also hypersaline, so you can float quite easily on your back, kind of like in the Dead Sea of Great Salt Lake.

Today, Patrick and I spent the day lounging around in the Gulf. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

As Gilbert goes...

2008-04-19T11:04:00.000-07:00

We used to wonder whether Gilbert would be back before we'd be in our apartment. Well, now we know the answer to that.

So there's a new set of odds. Will the Wizards still be in the playoffs by the time we are in our apartment? Who knows...

Long-Awaited Launch

2008-04-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

After months of preparation and hard work, the newspaper that Patrick works for - The National - launched today. I gave the first issue a good read and was very impressed by the quality and variety of news stories. It's also fun to know a bunch of the reporters! Check it out at www.thenational.ae.

Here is a photo of Patrick with Roland Hughes, one of his co-workers, at the printing press on the day of the first edition.

Hen Zoo, Abu Dhabi Style

2008-04-12T03:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I attended my very first hen zoo, more commonly known to Americans as a bachelorette party. The bride, Caroline, is a friend from England and she will be married to an English lad in Thailand in about two week's time.

You might think it would be difficult to throw a good party in Abu Dhabi, but Caroline's friends managed to come up with a brilliant plan. The party started in the swanky Marina Village, which is around the corner from Abu Dhabi's flagship Marina Mall. The Village has its own private club and spa, and we were allowed access due to a connection with the spa owner. The club has an absolutely breathtaking view of the Persian Gulf, and we lounged by the pool for the better part of the day. Then we showered up for some pampering at the Beauty Spot salon, where we were treated to hair styles and mani/pedis.

After the beauty treatments I parted from the group to spend some QT with my over-worked husband. The girls fearlessly headed to the Embassy nightclub at the Emirates Palace for a night of dancing and lounging at a VIP table.

Unfortunately the only picture I have is this post-party pic of my crazy hair-do, but you can get an idea of what kind of night would be in store for the girls. Rumor had it that Montell Jordan, singer of This Is How We Do It, would also be partying at Embassy.

Red Bull's Barons

2008-04-10T07:27:00.000-07:00

As Avon Barksdale would say, "That's how we do."

The American pilots put on quite a show today on the Corniche in Abu Dhabi at the Red Bull Air Race. One of them was disqualified for flying too close to the ocean and the others probably should have been.

The show of courage by all the pilots from Russia, South Africa, Britain, Hungary, and France, wowed the crowd assembled in front of Marina Mall and on the corniche beaches.

Words won't do it justice so check out the videos.

Camela Anderson

2008-04-03T07:53:00.000-07:00

On the heels of Abu Dhabi fashion week, thousands of contestants from all over Arabia arrived in Abu Dhabi this week, trying to achieve a dream. No Irish-Italian muts here. Only 10,000 purebreds.

The camel fashion show kicked off this week in Abu Dhabi. The contestants were judged by the purity of their color, the smoothness of their hair, the shape of their hump, and of course, the size of their chest.

Its a cruel world out there, and only one can be declared the most beautiful of them all. Hopefully these three are still in the running to be Arabia's next top camel.

100 degrees

2008-04-01T11:09:00.000-07:00

Today hit the 100 degree mark for the first time this year. It actually didn't feel that oppressive, which is good considering that the final time this year it hits 100 will probably be in October.

The heat in the spring is also dry heat, while the summers can get quite humid. Anyone who has spent summers in Atlanta or DC knows how much humidity adds to discomfort. In those two cities it probably only reaches 105 or so at worst, where as in the Dhabs, we are told it will hit 125.

Yes, its going to be a long summer.

A day at the races

2008-03-30T11:47:00.000-07:00

We are only now beginning to recover from our day at the Dubai World Cup.

With seven events and purses for the top three races each over five million dollars, the event is the richest in horseracing and perhaps the signiture event on the Emirates’ social calendar. The day at the races was a far cry from my sorority Kentucky Derby parties or the Derby parties we held in Glover Park.

We sat in the Maktoum Terrace section of the grandstand, under cover from the blazing sunshine. Patrick purchased the tickets back in December and it was good since the World Cup’s 80,000 tickets were sold out. We also had access to the Paddock lawns, where you can view the horses on their way to the gate. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, the rock-star/ leader of Dubai, was also within view.

While the race and venue lack the history of Churchill Downs, Pimlico, or Belmont, the World Cup is creating a mystique and history all its own. It appeared that every British expat in the Gulf attended the event and that every designer dress had been purchased off the racks. To get the ladies interested a fashion contest was staged for the best dress and bonnet. My Mom and I grabbed cheap hats at the Mall of the Emirates the day before but next year we will be better prepared.

In the UAE betting is banned but there would be no day at the races with at least some speculation on who would win. With your race-card, everyone is given a sheet where you can “select” the winners of each race. Those who pick at least four out of the seven race winners are eligible for prizes. I got three out of seven, while Patrick seems to have a knack to pick the horses that place second.

We left the event before the biggest race of them all in order to avoid the horrendous traffic back-ups that Dubai is famous for, but we didn’t miss much. It seemed that everyone knew that Curlin, a former runner for the triple-crown in the US, would come home with the 6 million dollar prize.

After the race my parents left the UAE for a couple days in Paris on their way back to the US but I doubt that even in that city of fashion they will see such a decadent display as they witnessed yesterday in Dubai.

Whirlwind Week

2008-03-27T08:22:00.000-07:00

My parents arrived late Saturday night for a week long visit, and it has been a wonderful yet busy week so far! We visited the Emirates Palace Hotel, Grand Zayed Mosque, Heritage Village, Cultural Foundation, Al Hosn Palace, Gold Souk, Madinat Zayed shopping center, three shopping malls, and Patrick's office. My favorite part of the trip so far has been a guided tour of Al Ain, the second largest city in Abu Dhabi. In Al Ain we visited the oasis, the Al Ain museum, and the camel, livestock, and gold souks (markets), and dined atop the Jebel Hafeet mountain, which is about 1200 meters above sea level. My dad enjoyed seeing the dunes along the drive from Abu Dhabi to Al Ain. Tomorrow we're off to Dubai for some sightseeing and the World Cup horse race.

This picture of my mom and me dressed in the abaya (long black dress) and head scarf was taken at the Grand Zayed Mosque. We had come to the mosque armed with scarves and dressed in loose conservative clothing, but the tour guide asked all the women to put on an abaya. I suspect that it is easiest just to make that the standard. I enjoyed being able to feel the material, which is quite light. The mosque was absolutely beautiful, and I would recommend that UAE residents and visitors take a visit.

A day in the desert

2008-03-21T01:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Patrick and I went on a desert safari with a married couple from England we have met through the paper, Alex and Angela.

We rode camels, had a traditional desert BBQ, and went dune bashing in the vast open desert outside of Al Ain. As the sun set we were entertained by a belly-dancer and smoked shisha under a clear desert sky. It was one of our best days since we've been here.

I'll let the pictures and video speak for themselves...

Welsh for a day

2008-03-16T11:43:00.000-07:00

On St. Patrick's Day it is said that everyone is Irish for a day. Well, we get to be Irish everyday.

So on Saturday we got to celebrate what it means to be Welsh.

What does it mean to be Welsh? We weren't really sure either. Before coming to Abu Dhabi I probably couldn't find Wales on a map or know its capital (Cardiff).

After Ireland was knocked out by Wales in the Six Nations Rugby Cup, we decided to root for Wales against France in their quest for the title.

We joined a couple hundred Welsh to watch them take home the title. Of course, there are no Welsh pubs and I have never heard of a Welsh jig, but PJ's, Abu Dhabi's Irish bar, was swelling with Welsh pride after their team earned "The Grand Slam" of rugby (still don't really know what that means) for the first time since 1977.

The Welsh sang their national anthem and hugged and kissed each other just as fans of the Atlanta Braves or Washington Redskins would have if they had won the title.

Watching rugby gets Patrick a little fired up. I think he believes he would have been a good rugby player if it were a big sport in America. I think its best that he stuck to swimming.

Desert Cinema

2008-03-15T02:10:00.000-07:00

Just down the road in Saudi Arabia there are no movie theaters. Here in the UAE, however, cinema is a big cultural attraction. Going to the movies is more of a social occasion here, as the local clientele feels free to answer their phones and make conversation during the film.

Most popular American movies eventually come to the theater at Marina Mall or Abu Dhabi Mall. Patrick and I have seen Charlie Wilson's War, There Will be Blood, Kite Runner, National Treasure, and a couple others.

Perseopolis, a movie based on a graphic novel about revolution and women's rights in Iran, was in the theater for about two days before it was mysteriously pulled from the theaters. This was not for lack of interest. When we went to see There Will be Blood on the same day, dozens of local women in their abayas queued up to buy tickets to Perseopolis.

Yesterday, Juno opened in Abu Dhabi. After seeing what happened to Perseopolis, we were quick to see the movie in case its controversial themes of teenage pregnancy caused the movie to be pulled from the theaters. The acting was fantastic and the treatment of the subject nuanced and humorous at the same time. I wonder if some of the humor could be translated into the Arabic sub-titles.

As the summer heat approaches-- Thursday the temperature was well into the 90's-- we will certainly be going to the movies more often and we are glad the UAE has such an open policy.

Paris, Milan... Abu Dhabi?

2008-03-14T07:46:00.000-07:00

Abu Dhabi celebrates its first fashion week starting tomorrow. Models and designers from all over the world are gathering at Emirates Palace to kick off the event. As part of Abu Dhabi's strategy of becoming a cultural capital for the Middle East, they are putting out the red carpet for the fashion industry in what they hope will be a yearly stop on the fashion circuit.

The fashion show will showcase the work of Italian, French, and American designers as well as focusing on regional designers like Rabia, and the Saudi, Amina al-Jassim.

We might take a peak to see who is in attendance. Who knows, maybe even a certain New England Patriot may also be walking the streets of Abu Dhabi. He was brought up Catholic so maybe we'll see him and that Brazilian girlfriend of his at Palm Sunday Mass.

The Car Crash Heard 'Round the World

2008-03-13T02:56:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday, the UAE witnessed probably its worst car accident to date - a 200-car pile up on the highway between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, causing 25 car fires and leaving 3 dead and 300 wounded. Authorities say that the accident was likely caused by a mix of early morning fog and unsafe driving - speeding and not maintaining a safe distance between cars. Ironically this accident comes just after the March 1 introduction of the unified federal traffic law, which will heavily penalize drivers for traffic offenses such as wreckless driving, racing, not wearing seat belts, and more. It is really a shame about the number of car accidents that happen over here, and my heart goes out to all the victims.

Shave and a hair-cut, two bits

2008-03-08T03:55:00.000-08:00

No, haircuts aren't that inexpensive here, it only seems like it.

Today I traveled over to the gents saloon for a trim. And, yes, its saloon, not salon over here.

The saloon advertises "natural viagra" on the outside, but I didn't know enough Urdu to inquire about that. I did get a snappy cut and shave for only Dhs20-- a little bit more than $5.

When I get my haircut at these indian "saloons" they always seem a bit amused that an American has come in to get his hair-cut. They are quick to ask me all sorts of questions about life in the USA but when the clippers are out its strictly business. Instead of telling me about their brothers Melvin or Carlos as barbers have a knack for in the US, they cut hair like they are sculpting a piece of marble-- and if you have seen my unruly frop of hair lately, that it isn't.

Included with the hair-cut is a head and facial massage. It scared me a bit the first time the barber started rubbing my head but now I know what to expect. I'd suggest that the Santini brothers or old Spiro at the barber shop next to Strosnider's Hardware in Bethesda take a business trip to Abu Dhabi to see how its done.

A Glimpse of UAE Life

2008-03-06T04:33:00.000-08:00

This morning I went to a really neat event organized by the American Women Network (AWN). In celebration of International Women's Day, the AWN organized a cultural exchange (in fact, the second annual cultural exchange) between Emirati and American & Canadian women. The event was held at the General Women's Union, which is a non-profit established by Sheikha Fatima for the advancement of women in the UAE. First we listened to a panel presentation by Emirati women. The panelists included an engineer, MBA student, health professional, environmental scientist, and an IT professional. The presentations covered all sorts of topics - gender issues, education, balancing family & work, health issues, travel opportunities, etc. The women were bright, confident and extremely proud to share the accomplishments of women in the UAE. A neat statistic that they shared is that 24% more UAE women move on to higher education than men. There was a great Q&A session where the women patiently and graciously answered all of our nosy American questions. Next the General Women's Union staff took us on a tour of the gallery and the handicraft workshops. Older women were demonstrating different traditional crafts - embroidery, weaving, cooking, etc. Then we finished off the event with Arabic coffee, tea, dates, and other UAE treats, and got to speak directly with the panelists. I am so happy to have met and learned from these women. Turns out they are not so different from me!

Abu Dhabi 90210

2008-03-01T05:45:00.000-08:00

On Thursday night Patrick and I went to a beach/ birthday party at the British Club here in Abu Dhabi. The event was a cross between something out of Beverly Hills' Beach Club on 90210 and an E.M Forester novel. Anyway, it was a great time.

Today we spent time lounging around on the Corniche, reading and enjoying the abundant sun. Patrick is off to work for another busy work week starting tomorrow so its good we had some time to relax.

Attached are a shot of Patrick discussing the american presidential election at the Beach Party and a shot of "the countryside" outside of Abu Dhabi.

Scotland vs. Ireland

2008-02-23T02:16:00.000-08:00

Patrick can't decide whether he is Irish or Scottish. I think he secretly likes Scotland because he studied there and his Scottish accent is "spot on," as the Brits say, while his Irish accent is as "shocking" as his English accent.

As Ireland took on Scotland in the six nations rugby tournament, Patrick had to decide where his alliegance really rested.

Accompanying us to watch the match were Shaemus and David, two co-workers of Patrick from Cork, Ireland. Both Shaemus and David came to Abu Dhabi from areas of Ireland not far from where Patrick claims his family is from, Dingle, near the ring of Kerry.
Regardless of where the Granfield's have their roots, its certain that Patrick has been touched by the blarney stone.

Ireland ended up winning the match convincingly and Patrick was already talking trash to the Scotland fans in the house. At least we know he can be on the side of the team thats winning-- as opposed to his rooting for the Washington Redskins.

Dubai's global delights

2008-02-23T01:47:00.000-08:00

After our delicious lunch, Patrick and I visited the "Global Village," a temporary exhibit in the outskirts of Dubai showcasing the cultures of various countries around the world. However, it would have been more aptly named "Asian Village" since all of the countries displayed were from Asia, with the exception of the Czech Republic and a series of waterways and bridges reminiscent of Venice, Italy.

The Epcott like exhibitions featured foods and handicrafts from countries I am unlikely to ever visit, including Saudi Arabia and Iran. And I didn't even have to cover up!

There were hundreds of Indian laborers visiting the village on their day off and very few westerners. The 5 dirham entrance fee allowed the visitors to be truly global and not just rich tourists and westerners.

Although the merchants wanted us to us to splurge on carpets (Patrick must have an expression on his face which says "sucker" in every language) we only bought two pomergranate juices in Iran and a piece of grilled corn on the cob.

I also insisted that we ride on the ferris wheel, even after men were seen replacing wires to get it moving again. Atop the ferris wheel there was a great view of the rides, stands, countries, and exhibits as well as the surrounding desert.

On the bus ride back to Abu Dhabi Patrick befriended an Egyptian accountant visiting his cousin and we were accompanied by dozens of Indian workers singing along to tunes from a crackling Urdu radio station.

Diplomat in Dubai

2008-02-23T01:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Patrick and I traveled to Dubai to meet a high school comrade of his from DC. Robert Bond is a foreign service officer stationed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. As much as I wanted to speak with Robert about his travails in "the Kingdom" he was busy yucking it up with Patrick about the old days at St. Anselm's. He invited Patrick to travel to Riyadh, and after hearing his stories I think Patrick will take him up on the offer! They also discussed plans for a St. Anselm's reunion on a boat in the Nile sometime next fall.

Saturday at the Souk

2008-02-16T03:26:00.000-08:00

Patrick and I visited the fish souk today in an area of Abu Dhabi known as "Meena." The smell of fish was so strong I could only last a few minutes in the market as we sidestepped puddles of fish guts. If you are wondering where all the Ocean's fish have gone, they're lying belly up at the Abu Dhabi fish souk.

From Winter to Summer Overnight

2008-02-14T05:23:00.000-08:00

Patrick and I arrived back in Abu Dhabi to find it sunny and 80. The bout of "cold" weather is over and I suppose it won't be back for another year.

The wedding in NYC was a blast. It was wonderful to spend time with my family and share some of our tales from the Gulf. Here are some pics of us.

It's definitely good to be back. On my way to boot camp, I smiled to myself when the taxi driver began blaring an old Tupac album. Because Patrick was still out of town, I had a fun ladies night with some friends at a bar called Oceans. And, more importantly, I have a job interview next week!

Happy belated Valentine's Day!

Midnight Plane to Georgia (erh.. New York)

2008-02-09T06:31:00.000-08:00

Early Thursday morning Patrick and I boarded a 2:00 in the morning flight from Abu Dhabi direct to New York. Patrick met a Tibetan Buddhist monk on the way and I watched four movies. Believe it or not, the 15 hour flight did not seem nearly that long.

We're in New York for a family wedding until early Tuesday morning. Its good to be back in the USA for a bit but we already miss the Dhabs. We will post some wedding photos later.

Wild Horses

2008-02-03T05:11:00.000-08:00

This weekend we may have missed out on the Super Bowl, but we did have Tiger Woods staging an incredible comeback against Ernie Els to win in Dubai and the President's Cup arabian stallion races in Abu Dhabi.

At the race track in Abu Dhabi there is no betting, as gambling of any sort is supposed to be "harem" or prohibited by Islam.

Instead, you "select" the winners. Without putting any money down, you pick the horses you think will come in 1st through 5th place. If you pick them correctly, you win the jackpot. If nobody picks them correctly, then the jackpot builds for the next race. This way, they figure they can prevent woebegone Irishmen from spending their days at the race-track instead of at the newspaper office.

Also, Arabian stallions are a different breed of horse from the thoroughbreds that race in the Triple Crown in America and in the "fourth leg" of the triple crown, the Dubai World Cup.

Patrick was able to sit in the press box at the H.H The President's Cup to watch the races. Dynamite, a horse trained and sired in Abu Dhabi, was the winner of the 1,000,000 AED race-- the first Emirati horse ever to win the event.

In March we are going to the Dubai World Cup with a $5,000,000 purse for the winner.

Desert Classic

2008-02-02T06:27:00.000-08:00

Today we were very lucky to attend the Dubai Desert Classic.

We saw some of the world's best players, including Ernie Els, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, and of course, Tiger Woods.

After a couple days of wind and sand the shamals abated to give us a great day of golf in the sun. As you can see from the pictures, we were able to get quite close to many of the players, including the man in the pink, the greatest golfer that has ever lived.

Sandstorm Correspondent

2008-02-01T03:42:00.000-08:00

Its not that bad.

Shamal, the Night Visitor

2008-02-01T02:24:00.000-08:00

There are days when Abu Dhabi doesn't seem that far away from anything. You can choose between Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks, you can hop on the internet, and even follow the US presidential race from CNN. The sun is shining and you can hear "Sweet Home Alabama" over at the Irish bar.

Then there are days like today when you wake up to a sandstorm or shamal, with only the call to prayer to pierce the desert winds. Shamals are winds that blow from the mountains of Kurdistan and northern Iran through the Gulf region. The internet has been spotty the last couple days because of damaged cables coming to the Middle East and India, and it appears that the Superbowl isn't being shown on live TV. On days like this Abu Dhabi feels every bit of its 6,976 miles from Washington.

Coming to the UAE (and staying)

2008-01-28T04:36:00.000-08:00

There are days when I feel like Eddie Murphy in "Coming to America."

Knowing that my 60-day visit would expire tomorrow, I ventured to the UAE immigration department this morning to appy for a 30-day extension. After the 30 days are up, you have to do what they call a "visa-run" and leave and re-enter the country. I've heard that most people do this via a a four hour drive to Oman and back. Luckily I'll be traveling to NYC in February, so I'll get a new 60-day stamp upon return. Hopefully within that 60-day period I'll be able to get my residency visa. Because I do not have an employer yet, Patrick will be my sponsor. He likes to hold this over my head.

My visit to immigration was a bit different than my visit to the US Embassy. All of the signs were printed in Arabic and few people spoke English. Luckily, the guard spoke a little bit and directed me to a little photocopying/typing "hut" where I met a firendly fellow who was also applying for a visit visa extension. He gave me a run down on the process-- make two photocopies of my passport, go back to the department to get a "computer number", go back to the typing hut to get my application printed in arabic, and then go to the insurance hut to get a month's worth of visa visit health insurance.

After paying the various fees I waited in line and got the new stamp on my visa. The staff person new this phrase in English: "Congratulations, you are finished."

I can only imagine how much trickier the residency visa will be, but luckily Patrick's company is helping us with that.

World Future Energy Summit

2008-01-25T03:00:00.000-08:00

This week I attended the World Future Energy Summit held here in Abu Dhabi. The conference was hosted by Masdar, a company that aims to explore, develop and commercialize future energy sources, and hopefully my future employer. On the first day of the conference the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi announced a $15 billion investment in projects including carbon management, renewable energy infrastructure projects, sustainable development, education, and R&D. Very exciting. Most of the press about Masdar, however, revolves around its plan to build a "green" city in Abu Dhabi that is completely carbon-free and waste-free. No cars will be allowed in the city; rather, people will be transported around by light rail, electric pod cars, and Segways.

In another exciting part of the conference, I got to reconnect with the president of the NGO where I used to work - the Alliance to Save Energy. Kateri gave a presentation on energy efficiency policy in the U.S., and after it I got to catch up with her briefly. I've included a picture of her giving the presentation. She was actually one of few U.S. presenters. Most were from the UK, Norway, Germany, and Italy, which makes sense because these are some of the countries that are leading the sustainability movement.

The exhibition that accompanied the conference was all glitz and glamour. Exhibitors offered chocolates and coffee, and BP even had two violinists to charm the crowd. Japan's exhibit featured ELiiC - the world's fastest electric car - which was designed by students at a Japanese University. Enjoy the picture!

Boot Camp!

2008-01-21T01:13:00.000-08:00

Hello from sunny Abu Dhabi! Thankfully the rains have gone, and now we are enjoying nice, cool weather. I am still hunting around for a job, so to help fill the time, I have joined an exercise "boot camp." The group was organized by two American women - one who has lived in Abu Dhabi for about 15 years (a friend of my Aunt Joan's) and another who has been here for about 5 months, whose husband works as a military liaison at the US embassy. There are two women in the group from the US embassy, a couple Canadians, an Australian, and three men. We meet twice a week and exercise on the corniche, the stretch of land along the northern shore of Abu Dhabi (we definitely get a few stares from male pedestrians). The class began with a fitness evaluation, which we will complete again at the end of 4 months to compare the results. Let's just say that I have a lot of room for improvement. I am so sore from yesterday's class that I could hardly get out of bed this morning! Luckily our next class this week is cancelled due to the big Elton John concert, so I'll have some extra time to recover.

Abu Dhabi Golf

2008-01-19T03:54:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, Kerry and I attended the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship.

We saw European tournament champions like Luke Donald, Justin Rose and our favorite, the Irishman, Padraig Harrington.

Watching from the 18th green, we saw Harrington take a shot out of a bunker that went right over our heads, landing about ten feet from us. This allowed us (Kerry) to get a thorough look at the defending British open champion as he chipped it back on to the green.

With the exception of a little sunburn which might even been welcome after this past week's rains, it was a great day for golf in Abu Dhabi.

On the town

2008-01-19T03:45:00.001-08:00

Yes, this may look like a Gap add.

But its just another Thursday night out in the Dhabi. Although after going for drinks at the Emirates' Palace Havana Club, we may be staying in for the next couple weekends.

When it rains it pours

2008-01-16T06:32:00.000-08:00

Traveling to Dubai in the driving rain yesterday was one of the more harrowing experiences of my life.

The usual ninety minute trip was turned into a nearly four hour ordeal. Passengers yelled at our bus driver to slow down. Only after witnessing many accidents that had to have resulted in fatalities, he finally did. According to the Gulf News, there were 4,000 traffic accidents in Dubai alone.

I finally arrived at the IDEX exhibition in Dubai just as it was closing down. Here, some of the world's most sophisticated security and defense technologies were on offer. Yet, in the convention center parking lot there was two feet of standing water. Perhaps drainage systems will be the highlight of next year's convention.

If climate change is a reality, and this week's storm in the UAE seems to be one more piece of supporting evidence, this desert is going to have to make serious adjustments. As some cities in the Mid-Atlantic and Southern regions of the United States are horrendous at dealing with snow, the UAE seems incapable of dealing with rain.

Granted, it rained for three straight days. But in a city like Dubai, home to dozens of the worlds 100 tallest buildings, it seems farsical that they have not built sufficient drainage to keep the city open, and keep drivers alive, during a prolonged storm.

What's worse is that many drivers here seem to believe that if they drive with their hazard lights on they can continue to drive at or above the speed limit even in horrible conditions

I was literally "rained in" for the night in Dubai. In one of an incredible series of kind acts since he has been in country, Mr. Ken White offered me a spot on his couch at the Crowne Plaza. I woke at 6:30 to take the bus home to find that most buses were not traveling. A charitable Egyptian cab driver offered to get me out of the city and then flag down a car traveling to Abu Dhabi. He did this without charging me anything extra. Finally, four hours after leaving Dubai, I arrived back in Abu Dhabi, more thankful to see Kerry than ever.

James Langdon, the Paper's Features Editor had a good spin on the recent weather: Perhaps this storm will help the UAE appreciate that great American who once sang: "The Highway is jammed with broken heros on a last chance power drive..."

Shameless

2008-01-16T06:05:00.001-08:00

Over the past three months I've gotten photos with George Foreman, Bono, Richard Branson, and now, the former Secretary of Defense and Maine Senator, William Cohen. The best advice I can give for getting a photo op with one of these folks is to leave your shame at the door. Being a little shameless to begin with, I don't have much to lose.

Secretary Cohen was dinning with some business partners in an Italian Restaurant at the Emirates Towers. I was dining there with some exhibitors who were promoting security technologies at the Idex convention in Dubai. I recognized Cohen from the days I used to see him walking his dog outside the National Archives when I would walk to work at the National Gallery of Art. Perhaps there aren't many others who would recognize him, and fewer would think its a big deal. I guess you can take the boy away from the beltway but you can't take the beltway out of the boy.

Secretary Cohen was the perfect gentleman, taking time to ask questions and greet me and my host, Mr. Ken White. To his credit, Mr. White was far more bashful than I was. We still managed to get a shot of the three of us to send to the St. Anselm's alumni magazine.

The President in Abu Dhabi

2008-01-14T04:42:00.000-08:00

President Bush arrived in Abu Dhabi yesterday to give the keynote address of his Middle East Tour. He spoke directly to Iran, as they are only 150 miles across the Persian Gulf. The President also toured Sadiyatt Island, the location of the Louvre and Guggenheim, currently under construction. The Masdar center for renewable energy was also on his itinerary. At Masdar, they are constructing a waste free city and working on cost effective strategies to harness Abu Dhabi's abundant sunshine as an energy source. "It's amazing, isn't it?" Bush observed at the Masdar facility. "This country got its wealth from the ground, and it is now reinvesting in alternative forms of energy."

Leaving Abu Dhabi, President Bush reportedly declared, "the development in the UAE is great." He didn't have to come here to find that out. He should have just read our blog.

Resident Alien

2008-01-13T09:22:00.000-08:00

Today I got my UAE residency visa.

Now, on to more important things. Like a liquor license. And my wife's residency visa.

Someone at work told me that I look like an Irish freedom fighter from the 1970's on the visa. Hey, its a good look for me.

Dubai's rain and snow

2008-01-12T07:18:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time at dinner that we weren't able to get the last bus back to Abu Dhabi.

No worries, we were able to get a clean room at a discount hotel near the Burj Dubai and visit some more of the sites in Dubai.

As we ventured out this morning we witnessed our first rain storm in the Emirates. Because rain is so infrequent (it hasn't rained since February 2007) the drainage systems aren't the best. Still, motorists drove their Mercedes and Jaguars through the standing water.

The weather was even more wild inside the Mall of the Emirates where we visited their infamous indoor ski slope.

Undeterred by rain and snow, we ventured on to the Burj Al Arab for lunch, the iconic sailboat shaped hotel. Little did we know that you need to make a reservation about a month in advance just to get into the Burj al Arab. We went down to the Ritz Carlton instead for an afternoon snack. I know, it's a tough life.

Here are a few shots of today's Dubai adventures.

St. Anselm's of Arabia

2008-01-12T07:11:00.000-08:00

On Friday we took the bus back up to Dubai to meet one of Patrick's former students' father, Mr. Ken White.

Ken and his friends John and Chris joined us at Vu at the top of the Emirates Towers. These buildings are the tallest in the Middle East and Europe until the Burj Dubai is completed.

The food was as great as the company. After dinner we went up the stairs to the 52nd floor to the Vu bar. Attached are some pictures of the towers at night, Mr. White and a silver camel outside the Tower.

Our First Visitor!

2008-01-08T07:30:00.000-08:00

Today we greeted our first visitor to Abu Dhabi-- those of you in DC will recognize his smiling mug-- Clark Griffith. He wasn't in town to see us, but we were happy to see a friendly face nonetheless. Clark arrived with a cohort of sharp looking GW MBA candidates. Patrick looked slightly out of place when he arrived in his cords and beard. When he introduced himself as an columnist for Abu Dhabi Media, students were hopeful for a front-page feature. Alas, Clark's head shot on the blog is as close as any of them will come.

The students came to the luxurious Shangri-la hotel for a meeting and reception with Booze Allen Hamilton-- a high powered US firm shaking the palm trees of Abu Dhabi. There was a great view of the grand mosque from the shores of the Shangri la's one kilometer private beach.

We were happy to hear about Clark's adventures in the UAE thus far-- dinner with the Sheikh of Sharjah, skiing down the slopes of Ski Dubai, and navigating around the construction and drinking laws.

Clark paved the way for a fellow Texan also visiting Abu Dhabi this month, George W. Bush, who will arrive this weekend.

Abu Dhabi Chill

2008-01-07T03:40:00.000-08:00

Today is predicted to be the coldest day of the year-- it might not reach 65 F. Also, there have been rumors of rain arriving soon.

A fog comes in from the Persian Gulf most mornings, appearing a little like the mist on the San Fransisco Bay. Alas, two hours after the sun is up, the fog has burned off and left no measurable precipitation.

Sheikh Khalifa requested that the residents of the UAE pray for rain. Abu Dhabi has seen no measurable precip. since last February and apparently, even for a city that relies almost exclusively on desalinated water, this is a considerable drought.

This morning heavy jackets and scarfs were an order for most Abu Dhabians. Everything is relative I guess. Perhaps this afternoon we will see umbrellas.

Attached is a picture of the Corniche after the fog has burned off.

Football (no, not the best kind)

2008-01-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

We arrived in Dubai to see two soccer games, but ended up staying for just one. As you can see from the videos and pictures, there was enough excitement in the first game to contain us for quite a while.

We saw a Brazilian team, Internatzionale, play a German team, Stuttgart. The Stuttgart supporters were far outnumbered by the rowdy and festive Brazilians. Every Brazilian in the UAE must have been at the game, cheering, singing, and dancing in ways that might make the Sheiks grimace.

Of course, we decided to sit with the Brazilians and paint our faces in support of their cause. Such rabid support took a lot out of us so we sold our tickets to the second game, featuring Inter Milan, one of the worlds best teams. The purchaser thought we were crazy for missing that game. We told him we had to get up really early to see the Redskins play (and Patrick has to work tomorrow). These folks just don't understand how real football is played!

Dubai and back again

2008-01-05T08:59:00.000-08:00

We hired a cab to take us to Dubai this afternoon for the soccer games. After our journey, we thanked our lucky stars that we are living in Abu Dhabi and not Dubai.

Dubai is enjoyable to see for the sheer size of the development taking place there. The hustle and bustle and energy of the city are frenetic. What they have accomplished in just a decade is very impressive. Yet, it is a city that appears "under construction" in all of the areas we visited. Sure, Abu Dhabi has some pretty impressive construction too but the city is compact and self-contained. Dubai is as sprawling as any American city with traffic that makes DC or Atlanta traffic look like the Autobonn. There also didn't appear to be a single blade of grass in Dubai whereas Abu Dhabi is filled with parks, mangroves, and green spaces.

The analogy of Dubai being the UAE's New York and Abu Dhabi being its Washington is quite appropriate.

Attached are a couple pictures of Dubai, including the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest skyscraper which will be completed in 2009.

More on our soccer experience to come...

So it shall be written, so it shall be done

2008-01-04T08:25:00.000-08:00

That is the attitude of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President of the UAE and ruler of Dubai. This attitude has given birth to the Palm and World Islands off the coast of Dubai, and the construction of the tallest building in the world, the Burj Dubai.

This weekend the Emirates celebrate the second anniversary of his ascension to power in Dubai. To celebrate, Sheikh Mohammed has invited four of the world's top soccer teams to compete this weekend: Internatzionale, Stuggart, Inter Milan, and Ajax. Tomorrow we will attend Sheikh Mohammed's celebratory games and visit Dubai for the first time.

The Abu Dhabi Caucus

2008-01-03T23:49:00.000-08:00

People pay close attention to American politics even here in the UAE.

Among those who can speak English, there is a palpable curiosity about this particular election because of Barack Obama. "Are you going to take Obama?", I have been asked a few times. Since "take" in conversational speech means to whoop back in the USA, I first thought they meant, "are you going to find Osama." After they clarified their question I realized they were asking about our election. They were curious about this phenomenon, Barack Obama.

"Do you think the American people will elect a black man?" This is also a question the immigrants here have asked. We will have to wait and see on that one. Inshallah. The triumphs of Obama and Huckabee yesterday will be talked about at Friday prayers today and certainly, "New Hampshire" will be added to the vocabulary of many an Abu Dhabi immigrant.

Attached are two pictures I took this morning as I walked along the Corniche.

Kull Sana Wenta Tayyeb!

2008-01-01T13:09:00.000-08:00

Or Happy New Year!

We celebrated New Year's eve with a bunch of friends from the newspaper and made a few new friends on the 15th floor of an apartment building downtown. The only difference between typical New Year's eve parties in the States and those in Abu Dhabi is that there is no "ball" or apple to watch on TV. Abu Dhabi shares its time zone with Dubai and Muscat but with few other cities in the rest of the world. Alas, there is no equivalent here of Dick Clark or "New Year's Rockin Eve." But can Dick Clark ever be replicated?

We started off the New Year with a hungover move to our home for the next three weeks, the Howard Johnson Diplomat. The three stars guide books give the hotel are generous. There is a discotheque on the 17th floor and I am writing this entry in large part because its thumpin' beats are keeping me awake. We'll have to purchase some ear plugs tomorrow.

The good part about the "Hojo" is that its minutes from the Corniche, a wonderful prominade and park alongside the Island's northern coast. We walked along the Corniche today and saw loads of children and their families having barbeques, flying kites, playing soccer and cricket. The design of the Corniche reminds me a bit of Chicago's Michigan Avenue, except there are palm trees and its immaculately groomed. There are also dozens of fountains where you can dip your feet in play in the water, which I imagine in the months to come will be a welcome relief.

Attached to this posting are some pictures of the Corniche and of our own New Year's rockin' eve.

Bye Bye 2007, Bye Bye Meridien

2007-12-30T08:37:00.000-08:00

All good things come to an end. 2007 was a very good year-- the first full year of our marriage. As 2007 (no, not our marriage, sorry guys) fades away, so too does our time in the Meridien. We move to the less posh Howard Johnson on January 1st until we move into our apartment .

We will always appreciate the Meridien's showmanship when it comes to the Holidays. For New Year's they have graced us with a large blow-up apple and snake and a life-sized Noah's ark. The connection between the two? Other than their associations with Old Testament tales, I'm not really sure. There are also angels hovering above the courtyard outside. I thought the post-modern artistic designs weren't supposed to arrive in Abu Dhabi until the Guggenheim opens up in 2010? Well I guess its a preview.

We wish all of your a safe and happy New Year-- and we hope to see all of you in Abu Dhabi in 2008!

PS Prediction for today's skins game: Skins 30, Cowboys 17

"America is everyone's dream land"

2007-12-29T09:33:00.001-08:00

While the events of America's past decade may put us ill at ease about our standing in the world, I am happy to report that America is still widely respected and admired, even here in the heart of the Middle East.

Most of the Muslims we talk to here are immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, or Egypt. All of them have a dream to one day visit America. By no means do they wish America any harm. Instead, they want what every generation of immigrants has wanted out of America-- an opportunity for a better life.

In most cabs we get into our chat begins with questions about where we come from. When I tell them "Washington, DC", their faces usually light up (I do get an occasional look of disgust). Then they excitedly point to their radio and say-- "Washington!." The radio program giving them news from Pakistan and throughout the Middle East, comes out of Washington, DC, Voice of Ameirca. It is on Voice of America that they can find the most balanced coverage of news and events in their homeland, and in their own language, whether its Pashtun, Hindi, Urdu, or Arabic. Of course, the events in Pakistan the learn about from Voice of America have taken on a special meaning in the past few days. The UAE has issued new limitations of visas for relatives in order to prevent an influx of refugees should the circumstances in Pakistan deteriorate.

The young man who does housekeeping for us at the Meridien is from Dhaka in Bangladesh. He is a Muslim and he is one of the most cheerful and hardworking people I have ever encountered. Today I asked him about his opinion of America. Perhaps he was just hoping for a better tip but I believe what he told me-- "America is everyone's dream land." Certainly, after all that has happened over the past decade, that made me proud to be an American.

The UAE was established as a federation of states in part because it wanted to follow an American model. The choice of the name United Arab Emirates was a conscious choice-- to mimic the United States of America. Of course, the UAE has many problems as a haven for poor immigrants from all over the world-- and for immigrants who are not so poor at all, like Kerry, myself, and all of the folks I work with at the newspaper. Still, it is inspiring to know how much of an inspiration the United States remains and will remain as long as we stay true to our founding values.

I have attached a picture of the long line at McDonald's at the Abu Dhabi Mall and a picture of the Emirati flag at their heritage village, the equivalent of our Williamsburg.

Document Authentication

2007-12-28T04:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to the southern part of the island to visit the US Embassy for the final step in the "document authentication" process. Documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, etc must go through a series of stamps and approvals before another country will trust that they are authentic. First you have to get a special copy of the document from the state in which the event occurred. Then you must get it authenticated by the State Department, which was easy for us living in DC. The final step is authentication by the Consul at the US Embassy here in the UAE. These documents will be used in our residency visa applications.

As one would expect, the US Embassy was beautifully architectured and extremely well-protected. I wanted to get a few photos, but I probably would have been arrested had I done so (there were quite a few signs indicating that photography was prohibited). There was a long line of non-Americans waiting to get into the embassy, and I was quite embarrassed as the guards insisted that I cut in front of them for my screening. After two thorough screenings, I parted with my mobile and water bottle and headed to the embassy. There was an even larger crowd of folks inside the embassy, presumably waiting for visas to enter the US. The embassy staff work behind thick, dark slabs of glass. It only took me about 20 minutes to get my papers processed and get back on my way.

Another requirement for the residency visas is a medical exam. Patrick and his friend Chris went to get theirs yesterday. Unfortunately they arrived behind a pack of Chinese men and had to wait for hours. It was especially unfortunate for Chris, who is deathly afraid of needles. The medical exam involves a blood test and chest x-ray. We have heard that if there's anything wrong with you - whether it be AIDS or hepatitis - you will not be granted a residency visa.

In other news, we've gotten word that our apartment will not be ready until Jan 20. We've extended our reservation at the Meridien for a few days, and then will likely need to move to a slightly less posh hotel. Unfortunately they have removed Christmas Town. I've posted one more pic in honor of it.

Hoyamal

2007-12-26T05:55:00.000-08:00

As Kerry has written before, Abu Dhabi was just a small pearling colony a couple generations ago.

How times have changed.

One of the companies that has invested in Abu Dhabi Media Company, Aldar, has created a marketing strategy that wisely links Abu Dhabi's past with its present.

The campaign is entitled "Hoyamal", named for the rallying cry of the city's pearl divers who would yell "Hoyamal" after arriving to the water's surface with a choice pearl. The call inspired the island's poor divers, whose descendants now manage the largest soverign wealth vehicle in the world, along with comapnies like Aldar and Abu Dhabi Media. This video is a testament to the strength of their strategies for branding, growth and innovation, and the distance the island has traveled over the last fifty years.

Maybe its just propaganda but at least its well done and entertaining.

Christmas Day

2007-12-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

After recovering from our Christmas eve dinner, Kerry and I awoke to attend Christmas brunch at the Hilton. They had a wonderful sushi station, beef tenderloin, mushroom ravioli, and creme brule. Santa Claus made a visit and a bunch of English kids told us what they got this Christmas. It seems remote control ferraris and skateboards are popular with the English tykes. One of the English children informed us that this was the first Christmas where he didn't have to wear his "woolens."

We met a really nice family from Halifax, Nova Scotia at brunch and made plans to keep in touch. Lo and behold, we saw them at Christmas Mass! The Mass was packed full of all sorts of nationalities, and the prayer call from the Mosque even welcomed us. Although were not sure they were saying Merry Christmas.

Tonight we will head to karoake, a great Abu Dhabi Christmas tradition.

Christmas Eve Dinner

2007-12-24T11:35:00.001-08:00

Too full to comment...

Seasonal Epiphanies

2007-12-24T05:19:00.000-08:00

Spending the Holiday season in the Middle East, one becomes aware of how much this time of year is about epiphanies: For Muslims, the epiphany of Abraham's model of faith in the celebration of Eid-Al Adha-- for Jews the epiphany of God's providence in keeping the temple lit-- for Christians, the epiphany of the nativity in all its humility and truth.

Our last few weeks have been filled with epiphanies-- learning the do's and don'ts of Islamic culture, figuring out whether the cab driver speaks Pashtun, Hindi, Urdu, Arabic, or none of the above-- the epiphany of finding yourself in a taxi belonging to a "retired" member of the Afghan Mujahideen. Surely, the epiphanies of this journey have just begun.

Through your thoughts and prayers and words of encouragement and support, we appreciate the epiphanies of friendship you have been to us throughout the year and throughout our lives.

Merry Christmas!!

Patrick and Kerry

McArabia

2007-12-23T05:00:00.000-08:00

While there is plenty of tasty western food around, including the McArabia value meal at McDonald's, the local food is light, fresh, and delicious.

At the heritage village we had Tabouleh, Hummous, a bunch of other stuff I ordered without knowing what it was. It was incredibly cheap and scrumptious.

After our appetizers we had lamb chops and chicken kabobs. A nice glass of wine or a couple of beers could have capped it off really well, but alas, we were at a local cafe and had no such luck. In any case, we were quite satisfied with our water and diet pepsi. The total bill for our lunch, under $20. That was a real value meal.

Here is a picture of our meal which looks like it came from Travel and Leisure or Gourmet magazine.

Heritage Village

2007-12-23T04:11:00.000-08:00

Today Patrick and I visited Heritage Village, an exhibit that replicates the simple nomadic life in Abu Dhabi before the oil boom. At that time Abu Dhabi was inhabited by Bedouin tribes. The Bedouins were attracted to the abundance of wildlife on the island - Abu Dhabi, translated, means "Father of the Gazelle" - and of course the freshwater. They lived in palm or "barasti" huts and practiced animal husbandry, fishing, small-scale agriculture, and pearling.
Unfortunately the Heritage Village was partially closed - on a normal day you'd be able to visit the museum, purchase spices such as saffron, a UAE specialty, and watch craftsmen demonstrate their metal work, pottery, and weaving. We were still able to walk around and snap photos of the animals and enjoy the view of the corniche, the stretch of land across the northern tip of the island. As you can see, the weather was lovely!