Kevin gone Local and Local Driving

This morning we saw a great example of how the locals drive. This guy was trying to sneak down a road that was closed by hopping over the median. What he didn't know was that there was a big hole in the median (under construction.) This is the back end of the car that you see! Look just to the left of the cone at the white piece of car sticking out of the ground!!

Kevin decided to try the local attire (along with the rest of the Logistics team.) He and his crew have installed around 900 banners in the past week. He is working from 8 pm to 8 am. His first game of hockey on the "square circle rink" is this Friday.

Anniversary in the Middle East

Rick and I had a wonderful dinner at the Sheraton Hotel last week for our 24th anniversary. It was an amazing buffet dinner and we went home very full. The hotel has a traditional Arabic tent so we had our picture taken there.

We have a Lebanese family staying in one of our apartments for a couple of months until things settle down. The dad and one of the daughter is working for us. Today we had lunch with the mom and she is going to give Debbie and I some cooking lessons. There are so many vegetables in the grocery store that we don't recognize but are probably really good. Now we can get some instruction and try some new dishes. Looking forward to it.

I think today was one of the most humid days so far. We are looking forward to September and cooler weather - should get back down to the 30's!

Quad Bikes on the Dunes

Today was overcast so we took advantage and went to the Dunes to ride the quad bikes. Lots of fun had by all. Kevin will probably be back every weekend if time allows. On the way to the Dunes, we stopped at Al Wakra beach and took pictures of the Dhow harbour.....no the Dhow isn't sinking. We saw two herds of camels on the way home but couldn't get close enough for good shots.

Aspire Academy

Just a few shots of Aspire Academy. This is an academy for young aspiring athletes (ages 9 - 14) who train and go to school here. We can only dream of such a facility in Canada. Kevin was drooling when he saw it. There is indoor soccer (football), swimming with diving platforms, gymnastics, track, etc. All of this for maybe 200 kids!

Weekend in Dubai

Rick brought Kevin's hockey bag with him so he was late getting through the luggage check as they couldn't find Kev's hockey sticks. It was a long wait standing around the airport. At one point a group of musicians came through to entertain us. (see picture)

It wouldn't be difficult to get use to spending a weekend in great hotels once a month. The service here at the Intercontinental is outstanding. We did some shopping for Rick yesterday and spent the day relaxing around the pool. Last night we went on a two-hour dinner cruise on the Dubai Creek. The dinner was a buffet style "international cuisine." The bar on the 10th floor of our hotel overlooks the city and Dubai Creek and featured a jazz duo. Very realxing evening. Back to reality today and home to Doha.

Weekend in Dubai

Time for some r & r. I flew to Dubai on Friday night for some rest by the pool and shopping today. Rick arrives tonight and we are all very excited to see him. The joke at work is that I have gone to Dubai to find "anyone named Rick" to come back and act as my husband!! Apparently they think he is a figment of my imagination. Dubai looks like an incredible city. I was reading this morning that 80% of the cranes in the world are in Dubai and Doha! It is so bad that they have having "crane crashes." Tomorrow night we have a 2 hour Dhow dinner cruise on the Dubai Creek. Hopefully we can see a bit of the city before we leave. The humidity here is not quite as bad as Doha but it still makes for foggy pictures. More pics to follow!

We're Back!

We're back! The other space was constantly causing me grief so I switched to a new site. Kevin has joined us after a fabulous week in Ireland. Brianne and I are so jealous. Kevin and Hayley had a wonderful time with the Kelly family. Kev enjoyed the trip to Dingle, the home of his Great Grandfather. We had a great Canada Day party with our staff. The humidity now is incredible. When you step outside it is like walking in to a sauna. It is still a different type of heat from home. Our chilled pool is a nice break away from the heat. The Games countdown is close to the 100 day mark. I have my own little 4x4 vehicle to get me around town these days. The summer driving is easier as many people leave the city. We are still waiting for Rick to join us. Hopefully it will be at the end of this week. It is strange to know that everything you own is in a container unit. We won't get any breaks between now and the Games, other than weekend trips (if we can fit them in.)

Enjoy the pictures. We will be back soon!