Mercure Grand Manama

Out of the widow Bahrain looks like lots of dust with skyscrapers on. Inside it is a strange mix of Christmas decorations lots of tour groups who look like they might be going on pilgramage, 25k rolexes in duty free, mcdonalds,costa and free internet to keep us amused. We've got 2hrs to kill - body clocks already out of sink! Am going to try and learn some nepalese from a podcast.

... the bus was keeping on at an average speed, so where exactly were we? Strained my neck to catch the nearest milestone, and when I caught sight of the nearest one, shocked was an understatement: it said Jeddah 775 Km. I had to frantically call Manoj ( my host at Jeddah) and say: dont expect me too soon.<br><br>As I sat back observing, I saw that we were about to bypass a small town. And as I took in the picture of a small Saudi desert town, I couldnt help wondering: Are there ...

... to the west and Qatar to the east. We didn't know where it was until we were due to fly home via the island. It's interesting to note the road bridge (King Fahd Causeway) which links the two countries and is 17 miles long. Soon to be surpassed by the Bahrain to Qatar 'Friendship Bridge' currently under construction at 25 miles - it will be the longest bridge in the world.

... br>Eventually she got a call and learned that the only flight that day was the one I already knew I'd be missing.  The next flight would be a day later, giving me less than one day in Seiyun.<br><br>It was at this point I decided that I just wasn't meant to go to Yemen (I had jokingly said this before to Mike).  I'm not really one to believe in fate, but sometimes you just have to take the path that's set for you.  You really have to start questioning the intelligence of someone who ...

... 15 91;&#1602; &#1575;&#1604;&#1604;&#1610; &#1601;&#1610;&#1607;&#1575; &#1608;&#1575;&#1604;&#1604;&#1610; &#1605;&#1575;&#1601;&#1610; &#1575;&#1581;&#1604;&#1609; &#1605;&#1606;&#1607;&#1575; &#1601;&#1610; &#1575;&#1604;&#1576;&#1581;&#1585;&#16 10;&#1606; &#1573;&#1604;&#1575; &#1602;&#1604;&#1608;&#1576; &#1575;&#1604;&#1576;&#1581;&#1585;&#16 10;&#1606;&#1610;&#1610;&#1606; &#1575;&#1604;&#1591;&#1610;&#1576;&#16 10;&#1606 ...

... m from the UK. To a non-native English speaker, I know it's a lot harder to pick up on accents. Actually, I sometimes can't tell the difference between a South African or Australian accent, so it's really not surprising. But I love knowing that I could fool people into thinking I'm a Brit! One phrase I'll have to keep in my arsenal for such occasions is "touch wood" (translation: knock on wood). A lot of people we know here, who have spent a lot ...

... Buggery Bullox. So most places are closed after 1pm in the arvo, and we shouldn't be eating or drinking in public, until the sun goes down. We went out for a nibble to a very schmick restaurant, and then home for a few bevvies and a catch up. I crashed and burned at 2:30am, leaving Paullie &amp; Kath up watching James Bond!

... to haggle with some taxi drivers. Unlike Dubai where every taxi is metered, here you have to fight for every penny to get where you want to be without being ripped off. Of course, the color of my skin indicates one thing, money. They always start off with 5 dinars, I start yelling at the guy "I walked here, like hell am I paying 5 dinars, 1 and a half dinars at best." They play up some BS government rule that says the have a minimum to charge and ...

... to Bahrain In Dubai, we had time to browse the Duty Free shops (wine prices are reasonable, scotch is typical) and have a cappuccino. The airport is a mix of people, ranging from full chalabi to westerners in shorts. Flying to Bahrain, we saw the Burj al Arab, one of the palms (manmade islands in the shape of a palm tree - you can buy a lot and put a house on it), and not much else, because it was very foggy. Breakfast was a croissant and a sweet roll. Upon arrival in Bahrain, our ...

... in Bahrain. I have personally never been to Iraq, and have never fired a weapon at anything that wasn't a paper target, or that I didn't intend to eat. I had never seen this guy before, and yet he was thanking me for what I had done. It shook me a little. What do you say to a guy who's entire family has been killed when he thanks you for saving his life, when all you did was make the jets fly so they could protect Americans? The whole event took place in less than three ...