Al Diar Capital Hotel Abu Dhabi

Usually, one would go to bed early after having packed his luggage considering that one has planned a 24 hour trip to Africa the next day.

Well, I started my African experience in a slightly different way – I went out until 3 in the morning, just having 3-4 beers and surprisingly woke up the next morning with one of the worst hangovers of my entire life and my luggage still unpacked.

I managed ...

DUBAI! Like Vegas, only WAY more expensive.
The cheapest hotel within 5 miles of the Dubai Airport? $550 a night! The minibar might as well be a safe. The airport terminal is like a gleeming, brilliantly lit movie set. Dubai is home of the world's best hotel, the Barq el Arab, the only 5 star hotel anywhere. Brunch is $150, plus drinks, even alchohol! I managed to crash ...

Before going to New York, Jackie had never been out of Texas that she remembered. Then after a week in NYC, she was landing in Abu Dhabi in the Middle East. I reminded her that she was flying over or near Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran. I think she suddenly felt very far from home, which she was. For me and Lindsey, we were on our way back to Bangkok and felt like we were actually going home.

By the time that I actually boarded the plane it was 10:00 PM on Friday and I was pretty tired from a long day of traveling. The airline I was taking was called Etihad Airways, it's the official airline of the United Arab Emirates and it was going to take me to Abu Dhabi. The plane itself was huge and really nice. I was in coach which was way below my pay grade but each seat had its own little tv screen with about 70 movies, 100's of TV shows and a bunch of ...

... in such luxury. We also chose Etihad because it would take us West instead of back over the Pacific. So when we arrive back in Texas, we'll have circled the globe. 2 years, around the world. That's something. The airport in Abu Dhabi was interesting, but not as impressive as I've heard Dubai's is. And we didn't see the city at all, so it's not much of a visit to the Mid East. Maybe we'll layover on the way back and do some falconry.

... in sweat, even worse is during Ramadan you cannot drink in public during the hours of daylight. You might think that was bad for us but think about the construction workers or outdoor labourers who are working all day in this heat without even a drop of water, totally crazy!! We stopped along the Corniche to take in the views of the skyscrapers and beachfront, as well as the dhows moored up in the harbour. Then we got back into the car and headed out to a weird ...

... After walking for a while I catch a glimpse of my forearm. Large beads of sweat have formed on it and are reflecting the street lights. I'm soaked in sweat and I didn't even notice. I seem to be getting used to it. I realise that pretty much all I've done so far in this blog is comment on the heat, and you're probably getting a bit bored of it. Hang in there because there's only a couple of days of it left.

Bye-bye Dubai... What an opportunity! We came to Dubai early 2005 not really knowing what to expect, we were told all sorts of things about the country and culture which turned-out to be far from the truth. We arrived as newly weds, ready to learn and grow together which probably helped us in overcoming some of the challenges ...

I am on The Palm Jumeirah better known as the 8th wonder of the world and it really is fantastic, secluded beach, swimming pools and oh my gosh the apartment i am in is stunning....would definately recommend the company for anyone travelling in Dubai, called VH Dubai...i met up with a few people travelling in Dubai as well from a local website and because there are so ...

... came to terrible traffic. Turns out there was an accident, and there was some wreckage where some guys were shovelling sand or something over it. "Don't worry--they're just using that to mop up the blood!" I joked--before I saw the dark pools of liquid. Oh my gosh! They really were using it to mop up the blood! Yeah...you didn't want to know that, I guess. And that's why Little Liz hasn't been updating the T'pod!