DUBAI AND COMING HOME

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Hello,
This will be my last blog on this trip and I wish to thank so many people for reading it and sending comments and messages. Our second day in Dubai, we wandered over to the beach which was quite beautiful, but much too hot to enjoy. On the way through the hotel, they were offering a class on vegetable sculpture, but I had no time to go to it. At the beach, we hung out under a cabana and looked at the view while getting hotter and hotter. July & August are their hottest months which was good in some ways because there were not so many tourists.
From 4:00 until 10:00pm, we were scheduled to go on a desert "Safari" and we hadn't a clue what it entailed, but the butlers highly recommended the outing for us. So, we piled in the Landcruiser with a German man and his two sons. The trip out of Dubai took us near the big sail hotel and the business section with the tallest building being built. It took us about 30 minutes on the way to Abu Dhabi to get out of the city and into the desert. The driver stopped at a service station and let a lot of air out of his tires. Then, we began to emulate those "Dune Buggy" days in California in the 1960s. It was great! For 1 1/2 hours, we ran up and down and all around those sand dunes. Chrissy and the German boys loved it. We stopped to see a camel farm and the sunset. Then, right about dark, we arrived at an "Oasis" for a barbecue, camel riding, sand surfing, etc. It was still hot, but much better than in the city. Chrissy tried to get up on the camel, but it was too high even sitting down. It was just as well as it looked extremely precarious when the camel sat back down after the ride. She settled for a picture with the camel. It was fun to wander around the encampment as the drivers prepared the barbecue dinner of salads, curry and barbecued lamb, beef and chicken. After dinner, there was a very pretty belly dancer who tried , without success, to get Chrissy to dance with her. A very enjoyable evening, but we were covered with sand when we got back.
Our last day, we took a taxi to the old section of town called Bur Dubai. This was where everything was until they started their off-shore drilling for oil in the 1960s and 70s. Most of the buildings looked like they had been built around that time- along with new skyscrapers going up daily. They have restored an old fort as a museum and it was very informative and comfortable since it was mostly underground and cooler. Dubai was only really used as a stopover on a trade route from the Middle East to India for most of its history. Their specialties were gold jewelry and pearls from the Gulf of Persia. Then, when they discovered oil, everything started exploding and doesn't seem likely to stop or even slow down at all. After the swimming pool was in the shade, Chrissy went for little swim. The lifeguard was quite impressed by her love and of the water especially that she can actually go to sleep while floating. Who knew she was so talented? In the early evening, we went to the "Mall of the Emirates" which has the permanent ski slope and playground in it. Pretty spectacular! They had every high end store that you could imagine. They even had named one part "Via Rodeo" after Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.
Back at the hotel, we had to make plans to leave the hotel by 6:00 am. The butlers woke us at 5:00 am so we would have time for breakfast before we left. They had also arranged to have a VIP service handle everything at the airport. So, no waiting in lines to check in, hanging out in their beautiful lounge with refreshments before boarding, being escorted all the way to the gates in a little cart. We did feel like VIPs by then and were wondering ourselves who we might be. We came back down to earth, both literally and figuratively, as we entered the States and became just part of the endless queues waiting for customs and baggage. We arrived in Columbus about 11:00 pm and were so happy to be met by Alex who was keeping our house and business. We still seem to be adjusting slowly. We had a wonderful time at church yesterday and the service really put the trip into the right perspective for us. We are so thankful that we were privileged to share in the work in Tanzania, to go on a real safari and to have those extra 3 days in Dubai to crown it all. We are, indeed, a blessed family!
Next trip? Who knows? Chrissy wants to go see her good friends in Honduras for Christmas. We'll see what God has in mind. Until next time, go out and enjoy this wonderful world God has created for us all!
Shirrley, Jim and Chrissy

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Photos

Vegetable Sculpture
This was a chicken complete with potato eggs in her nest

View of the beach
Not too many sunbathers at 115 degrees

On the way to the desert for our "Safari"
There were enormous electric lines going everywhere.

A stop to rest a bit
The three beside us were our fellow passengers

Playing in the snow
They have to rent the coats and winter gear.

Waiting for the plane in the VIP lounge
Very nice!