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Published: April 16th 2006
Today we went horseback riding along the beach. Kai stayed with Teresa (their Sri Lankan maid).
The horseback ride started out at The Country Club. Before the ride, we spent about 30 minutes walking around the club and waiting. We also got to meet a camel. The day was sunny and hot, maybe 90 to 95 degrees (which isn't that bad, here, as in the summers it can get above 120 degrees).
When the previous tour came back, we (and a few other Americans from the base) got saddled up and started the tour going through a neighborhood. My horse didn't have a name placard above his stall like most of the others... so, I went through the desert on a horse with no name. 😊 The instructor gave no instructions, so I relied on Shawn's advice as to how to ride... which is pretty good since he has worked with horses a lot. Shawn was also smart enough to get a bottle of water from a shop along the way (the guide had swung by their and got a 7-up, but didn't do anything for the rest of us).
The tour then went straight out to the
beach/ocean. It was at low tide and we ended up going maybe 100 yards out in 4 to 8 inch deep water. The beach (does a beach have to have sand?) was a hard coral extending out very far. As we trotted along we saw the shoreline and also downtown Manama in the far distance. My horse was kind of slow and would often fall behind, so I had to prod him along every now and then... but then sometimes he would take off on a brisk trot (almost a run). Shawn showed me how to ride English style, and that helped take the bounciness away (when I did it right 😊.
After quite awhile following the shoreline (it was almost like we were out in the ocean, since there was shallow water all around us), we cut back into a sandy beach. In this area there was actually a lot of trash, but the horses appeared to be used to it. We went up over a sandy hill and then through some gardens and more palm trees.
Eventually, there were less gardens and more neighborhoods... until we were back on a street again with cars passing by
(some buses with children curiously watching as they passed us). The horses were also more sprightly as they knew the end was near and they could then rest and get some water.
About an hour after leaving The Country Club, we came back having made a big loop, half of which was on the ocean/shoreline.
We then had a long lunch at The Country Club (much longer than we desired because the service was horrible). At the restaurant, they initally played a lot of Madonna, but then switched to Ray Charles... we must of heard some of his songs three times. Not a fan of his work.
After that we went back to the villa and had a long nap (I slept about 3.5 hours). We then went to eat at the Lebanese Bistro restaurant... everything we tried was at least "ok" except the olives... which were pungent with spices and kind of bitter. We then went to a French pastry shop and had some very rich desserts.
From the dessert shop, we then went shopping at the Seef Mall for a bathingsuit for Augusta (since we were going to go to the beach today). Augusta
Beach with Manama in Background
Not sure what the fence/net is for. Maybe it is used to catch fish from the change in tides.tried on bathing suits at probably four stores, and we stopped at many more. But we did finally find one she liked. We also spent a few more dinars to watch toy vehicles (cars the day before, trucks this day) not work at the video arcade.... kind of funny since we would swipe the card (the arcades use cards instead of tokens or coins) and then start turning the wheel and trying to accelerate... only to see nothing happen. We then went back to the villa for the evening.
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