In one of our shorter trips – counted in days that is – we ended up in Dubai Friday evening. One of those things we felt we just had to do. Neither of us had ever been to the Middle East, and John’s been wanting to see Burj Al Arab for a long time. Long flight but we used a couple of upgrade certificates, and enjoyed comfy seats all the way there and back.
There are many rumors circling on the Internet about how hard it is to get a good shot of Burj Al Arab. They are all true! We tried everything and almost(!) paid $100 each for beach access. And even then we were told “no professional cameras”. Long story short – we got some shots after Isabella presented a very disappointed face, and John whipped out his tiny point’n’shoot camera. At least until it was a bit darker 🙂 The building is spectacular – no doubt about it. Of all the buildings John’s seen around the world, this it probably the most impressive.
Dubai is great for shopping (or so we hear). There were many other activities but none that really stood out. So in an effort to try something new, we decided to go hot air ballooning. “Pickup is at 3:30 AM, sir”. Wonderful! But in the end it was worth the short night, and after Isabella got comfortable with the burner and the sound it made, we all of a sudden found ourselves drifting 4,000 feet over the desert enjoying a gorgeous sunrise. The ride lasted little less than an hour. We flew over one house (talk about “in the middle of nowhere”), gazelles, and luckily wild camels (actually dromedaries). Found them again once on the ground, and wondered how the sheik had justified paying 2.7 million dollars for an animal like that. Apparently it won the sexiest camel beauty contest… No comment.
We left Dubai Sunday just before midnight after enjoying some actual vacation time at the pool. Isabella slept almost the entire way back to SFO (we touched down in Washington D.C. both ways). We both felt pretty rested and have not been jet lagged. As usual Moses enjoyed being spoiled by Cory, but he’s always very happy to greet us when we’re back.
Around here Isabella’s school is winding down. Starting Monday they’re off 12:30PM every day until 2nd grade is over for her Friday June 5. She’s off until August 21. John’s still looking for work. He had three phone interviews this week and is scheduled for a face-to-face next Thursday with a Cisco division. Seems things are getting better although most still seem to believe the unemployment numbers will get worse before they start declining again. He passed his written test (certified professional photographer), and is now on to the practical part.