Bureaucracy

When you live in Dubai, there is absolutely no way around the fact that dealing with bureaucracy and red tape is a part of your life. Maybe not everyday, but it is a constant when you are getting set up or doing anything involving resident visas, banking, driving, or really any unpleasant adult-like things that involve paperwork. So, for the past two weeks, my life has been consumed by dealing with bureaucracy. I FINALLY got my resident visa. YEA! But, with that comes endless driving around and visiting government entities and agencies and paying large sums of money at once. Not so yea...



So about two weeks ago we came to the conclusion that my derelict boss was never going to give me a visa (not to mention probably not pay me for February, but that's another story). He talked a convincing talk in January when I got back (he's really just a glorified used car salesman) and despite paying my January salary a week late, he put in a visa application for me sometime around the 1st of February. He said it would take two weeks, so I gave him two weeks and then asked what the deal was. The visa was not processed yet due to a 'title' technicality. That was my last straw. So, I told him I wanted my passport back and we talked to Jared's firm and re-convinced them to help me out on the visa front and sponsor me. They knew my situation due to Jared's sharing my continuous saga and agreed, but on the condition that we pay for it ourselves and that we do all the leg-work (or rather I do all the leg-work).



So now that I FINALLY had a sponsorship document, I began the process by going to immigration with all the paperwork to initiate my application. I had been to immigration before to file an extension to my visit visa in the Fall (in order to avoid a visa run since derelict boss still hadn't processed my visa) so I knew where it was and the basic layout. I asked for directions to the appropriate counter and was told I needed to go to the 'typing office' first to fill out my application. So I went into the "Ladies Only" door and was given a slip to fill out and then handed over all my documents to be photocopied and a fist full of cash. I waited for about ten minutes, then they handed me a very official looking "Resident Visa" application, along with multiple copies of all my documents. I went back into immigration into the "Ladies Only" room and took a number. I waited. Not too long, and then handed over my application and documents (along with another fist full of cash) to the abaya clad woman at the desk. She asked some questions and then stamped my passport with a "change of status" (ie, change from visitor to resident visa status). Then I could move onto Step 2.

Step 2 is to get a) a Health Card and once you've obtained that, b) a Medical Test (they don't allow people into the country and definitely not to have resident permits if they have infectious diseases, including but not limited to AIDS, Hepatitis, and Tuberculosis). So the following day I set off to Rashid Hospital (a government hospital) in Deira (old poor part of Dubai which of course is also a nightmare to drive in), and apparently the only hospital that issues Health Cards. I somehow didn't get lost and successfully parked, went in and found the information desk, which kindly drew me a map to the Health Card area (it was a huge maze of a hospital, which I could apparently just wander free in, weird). I found the counter, fortunately there was no line (it was pretty early in the morning though, probably around 8:30) and paid another AED 310, handed over my passport, resident visa application, and a passport size photo and the man handed me back a plastic card with my picture labeled "Health Card" about 5 minutes later. I planned to head directly for my medical test afterward (which also had to be done at a government clinic or hospital, although incidentally, not Rashid). The man suggested a clinic in a fairly easy location and showed me where it was on a map. Easy, or so I thought. I drove the 15-20 minutes to the clinic (Al Mankhool Clinic) and waited at the information desk. They directed me to another counter, but when I explained that I was there for my medical test, they pointed to a list of employers and indicated that the employer sponsoring me was not on the list. They rattled off the name of some other clinic and sent me away.

In the car, I feverishly looked for the location of the new clinic (Al Satwa Clinic) on my map and in my Resident's Guide. I couldn't find it anywhere, even with Jared on the phone looking it up on the internet from work. Frustration began to set in and I opened my trusty Resident's Guide up again and reread the section on "Medical Test" (which I had probably already read about 6 times). They listed two typical hospitals (both in Deira, the nightmare driving part of town) and I picked one that looked easier to get to on my map. I headed to Al Baraha Hospital (aka Kuwaiti Hospital) which was surprisingly easy to get to (easier than Rashid, that's for sure, and easier parking). I walked in the front door to information and was told Medical Testing was done "down that hall and in the building behind the little Mosque." Ok. I walk down the hall and out the door into a sandpit. Can't see a mosque anywhere, but continue across the sandpit (often used for parking in Dubai and this one was the same). Continue across the sandpit and finally see what might be a mosque (at least there was a pile of shoes outside the door, so that was a hint).



I walked into a big white building with rows of typists and headed directly to the information desk. They sent me back out to pay. I go into the building next door which is labeled "copy center" and find the counter labeled 'cashier'. When it is my turn to go up an Emirati couple (dressed in full traditional dress) bust in front of me in line and start trying to push money through the window. I was sufficiently frustrated due to my morning of driving around and also start shoving my documents through the window saying, "Hey, I was first in line!!!" The guy serves the Emirati's first (typical here) and tells me I need yet another photocopy. I walk over to the copy counter and they photocopy my documents for me again. Back to the cashier counter to pay, then back inside the big white building and to information who sends me to the "typing area." Luckily I find a row with no one in it and hand my documents to the abaya clad typing woman. She pushes a few buttons on her keyboard and then picks up her personal mobile phone and starts talking. About 5 minutes go by of me sitting in front of this woman (who is supposedly helping me) while I watch her talk on her cell phone. I start staring her down. She points to the computer screen and says, "system down" to which I respond in a surely tone, "Should I go to another counter then??!" To which she responds again, "system down." I wait. Finally she decides her personal phone break is over and begins typing again. A couple minutes later she finishes typing and sends me across the hall to another desk, where a man takes two more passport size photos from me and puts various stamps all over the newly typed forms. He sends me to "Gate 3".



I walk to Gate 3 and I am pushed to the front of a line of men into an office with a fat Suddam Hussein-looking doctor who was busting out of his white coat. He looks at my paperwork and saying to me in front of the line of men waiting about 5 feet behind me, "I'm sorry, but I have to ask you when your last period was?" Not only am I at the end of my frustration rope, but now I have no self-respect or dignity. I respond, "Began or ended??" He concludes that I am in fact, not pregnant, so sends me on to Gate 4 where a very nice man at the desk compliments my smile and says I have the same smile as the x-ray technician who x-rays my chest for Tuberculosis. They then send me onto Gate 5, where I am greeted by a kind woman who immediately takes my blood and gives me a receipt, telling me to come back on Sunday for the results. Breathing a sigh of relief I drive home from the hospital, concluding there is no more that can be done until I pick up my medical test results (assuming I passed!).



I wait until Sunday and then go back to pick up my test results. I go back to Gate 3, they direct me to a desk when a man scans my bar coded receipt and prints my medical test results. I figure I must have passed, although it's all in Arabic. I ask the guy where I can find a bathroom and he sends me back to Gate 3. The Gate 3 guy tells me where the bathroom is, and I then leave because I am dying to get to immigration to get the process over with. Unbeknownst to me, I didn't listen carefully enough to the man at Gate 3 in my quest to find the bathroom, because he apparently told me that I needed to see another doctor for another stamp ("Free of infectious diseases" Woo.) and signature before leaving. When I got to immigration I was directed back to the typing office to now have my visa application typed in Arabic + an extra AED 100 for immediate service. I pay AED 500 and wait 30 minutes and then head back to the ladies counter. After a short wait, the woman tells me that not only do I need an additional stamp and signature on my medical report, but I also need the application signed by Jared's office (my sponsor). At near my wit's end, I head to Jared's office for the signature, then head back to the hospital yet again (for the 3rd time) and the man at the Gate 3 desk says, "I tried to catch you to tell you you needed to the stamp and signature." However, he did not try hard enough, it would seem.



Finally, with all my stamps, signatures, t's crossed and i's dotted, I head back to immigration again. Within 5 minutes I am seen by a lovely woman who is chatting with me about how she's currently studying law and prints a resident permit sticker with my picture, puts it in my passport, and says, "Congratulations! Now, you're a resident." Having spent 6 days (my boss couldn't get me a visa in 6 months... ironic), approximately AED 2000 of our own money ($600 USD) + AED 1500 of my boss's money, I exited immigration with a newly minted resident visa/permit and a huge wave of relief rushing over me. No more being an illegal alien/visitor.



Over the following two days I jumped through bureaucratic hoops of fire in getting my driver's license (equally convoluted in process, but faster and less time consuming) so that when our very first guests arrived on the 25th of February (Jared's Dad and Linda) I was an official resident and could legally and officially drive in Dubai. Now, onto the bank account and health insurance... Let the fun continue!

7 Years.

Today is mine and Jared's 7 year anniversary. That's a long time to be together. We could have a child in second grade. Scary. We celebrated with a delicious dinner at the French restaurant Refletts in the Intercontinental at Dubai Festival City and had a wonderful 8 course tasting menu that was unique and delicious. I even ate sea urchin. It really was a lovely night and definitely a special way to celebrate. And we'll continue celebrating in July when we go to Paris for 4 days. I think we probably get along so well because of our shared love of food and travel. Not sure if that's weird... Oh well. Here's to another 7 years...

Desert Sports and V-Day

First of all, let me just say, that I have the BEST boyfriend in the entire world. I know I do because he planned the most perfect impromptu (we had plans to go see a local rock band and do a non-traditional Valentines Day, but decided not to go at the last minute because neither of us were feeling up to a big night out) Valentines night, with no planning and preparations at all. I love him. So much. Anyway, enough about that for the moment.

This weekend we decided to engage in some of the desert sports that Dubai has to offer. Outdoor sports year round is definitely one of the benefits to an arid climate, and I have been dying to go watch Polo. I was turned onto Polo in Hawaii when I've been to visit my Mom and gone to see the Hawaiian Polo on the North Shore of Oahu. The whole experience is just fun (forget beautiful because the North Shore Polo is right on the beach), but everyone brings their blankets and beach chairs and sits along the sides with picnics, and the announcer does a great job of explaining the game to the uninformed, and then between the chukkas they have a dj playing music and sky divers landing on the field. Oh, and you can buy sweet and savory crepes and alcoholic beverages to drink (if you haven't brought a cooler of your own). So, suffice to say, after Hawaiian Polo, my expectations for polo are pretty high.

Then, three or four weeks ago, Jared and I decided to check out the Dubai Polo and Equestrian Club on a Friday afternoon because we had read that there's polo every Friday and Saturday afternoon from 3pm that you can go and watch. After about a 30 minute drive we found the Polo and Equestrian Club (it's pretty far out of town in the Arabian Ranches) and were a little disappointed because I guess since Polo is played so regularly here, every week isn't a huge event. It was very amateur polo (slow moving and constant stopping) and there were only about 15-20 people watching on the sidelines and no music and announcers (it must have been just a scrimmage). So we watched for about 45 minutes before Jared got bored and we left. I had been wanting to go back when there was an actual event because I thought it might be more along the lines of my previous polo experiences.

So, upon investigating the Polo and Equestrian Club website I discovered that there was a Valentines' Day Polo Cup tournament with the finals on Friday Feb. 12th from 3-6pm. So after convincing Jared it would be fun and bribing him with a cooler full of beer and picnic of hummus, sausage, cheese, and crackers, we ventured back to the Polo Club. It was definitely much more crowded and this time we had to pay AED 50 to park on the field. This was much more in line with the Polo I remember...

The games were much more serious and the whole field was packed, so that when we got there about 3:15pm we had to park at the very end. They had family fun activities set up on the terrace of the polo club (complete with a kids bouncy castle, those things are huge here for some reason) and then the opposite side of the field completely packed with SUV's and picnickers. There was even an announcer this time and a score board, so much easier to keep track of what was going on with the game and some music playing in between the chukkas. Overall a really fun atmosphere and so we stayed for two whole games and thoroughly enjoyed our little picnic.

Now Jared is convinced that he wants to take up Polo, although we've decided that it is probably the most expensive sport in the world (given that you have to own a horse). Oh well... Still a lovely way to spend a Friday afternoon.

Then on Saturday, we decided to continue the sport theme of our weekend and go watch the Gaelic Games Irish Football and Hurling Tournament. Our friend Derek is Irish and his wife Angela is half-Irish, so Angela invited us to come watch with her and her friends. Neither one of us had ever even heard of Irish Football or Hurling before, so we decided to go check it out (plus we figured there might be Irish beer involved..). The tournament was held at the Dubai Rugby 7's Stadium (also way out of town -- guess you can't build sports stadiums in the middle of sky scrapers). We met Angela's friends and had a couple of drinks while watching one of her friend's daughters Irish dance and then watched a Hurling match (probably the most dangerous sport in the world! The fastest field ball sport I've been told and no pads or gloves even though it's basically a variation on lacrosse. The Irish make American athletes look like wimps). Then after the Hurling match we watched an Irish Football match which is basically soccer, but you can also use your hands. No shin guards either. Those Irish are tough!

We enjoyed the Gaelic games and it was just nice to get out of town for awhile. Although, it was hotter than we realized and drinking cider (for me) and beer (for Jared) in the sun can certainly do a number on your level of hydration, so when we got home we both went to bed by 9!

Then Valentines Day was Sunday. We had been planning on having a non-traditional Valentines Day this year since we kind of did our romantic celebration on Thursday night when we went out to Buddha Bar (Jared's favorite bar with a giant 30 foot Buddha statue in the middle) for cocktails and Asian apps. My friend from work Phil is roommates with members of the house rock band at the Majestic Hotel, the "Rock Spiders." So we had been planning to go see them on V-Day for something different. However, after our weekend of drinking while watching sports in the sun we were both feeling severely dehydrated and exhausted and not up to a big night out. So we decided against going out and had a more traditional Valentines Day at home (traditional for us -- we always stay in and cook a nice dinner. We hate going out to eat on Valentines Day since you can pretty much count on poor service and even worse food, similar to New Year's Eve). So, we made the decision to stay in at about 3:30pm and so Jared promised to cook dinner for me for when I got home from work. For such little preparation time he made me the most amazing meal! He knows that the way to my heart is through my stomach, so skipped the flowers this year (massively overpriced in Dubai) and cooked my favorite food. He made me grilled fillet mignon and green beans with homemade rosemary pomme frites. Absolutely amazing! I could not believe when he told me he was going to make homemade frites (fries are probably my favorite food in the world, see previous posts on my McDonald's fries dependency here). And after the Super Bowl wings he's gotten really into deep frying and used a 'double fry' method and they turned out superbly. Better than any restaurants I can remember. And not to overlook the steak, but it was cooked perfectly as well. Just amazing.

My plate. I just have to brag about my boy's cooking skills. Fillet and frites are the way to my heart.

Then for dessert Jared picked up Valentines cupcakes from the newly opened Bloomingdale's at the Dubai Mall. Bloomingdale's opened about a week ago and they have transplanted New York City's Magnolia Bakery within it. Vanilla with the richest butter cream frosting. Hands down the best cupcakes we've had in Dubai (and trust me, we've sampled around. we LOVE cupcakes). So, unexpectedly and with little notice, Jared planned the most perfect Valentines night I could possibly imagine, on the 8th anniversary of our very first date. Happy Happy Dubai Valentines Day!

Super Bowl

Super Bowl is probably one of our favorite 'holidays' of the year, coming in close behind Thanksgiving and Christmas. So, we weren't going to let a little thing like the fact that we're 9 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time stand in the way of celebrating such an occasion. No, we went to bed at 8:30pm on Super Bowl Sunday (a work day for us) and set our alarm clock for 2:15am to get back up in enough time to prepare our nachos, wings, and pigs in a blanket (only the essentials this year, since it was just the two of us) before kick off. When I think about getting up in the middle of the night to watch a 3am football game (that our team wasn't even playing in... and we didn't even get the commercials), it seems obscene. But then I think, it's the Super Bowl and we've got to cling onto as many of our American traditions as we can while we're here. It was definitely well worth the fragmented/sleep deprivation and our little feast was delicious. Just like home... almost.

Jared was super enthusiastic that I wanted to take his picture cooking in the middle of the night..

It does seem wrong that we were literally deep frying wings at 2:45am, but Jared wouldn't have it any other way. Wings may be his one true love.

Jared in action.

The finished product. Nothing like hotdogs wrapped in crescent rolls, deep fried chicken wings, and copious amounts of sharp cheddar (and please note the wide variety of condiments, which you know are absolutely essential to any Super Bowl) washed down with a Heineken to make you feel like home. Unfortunately, I only made it until sometime mid-3rd quarter (disappointing half-time show if I do say so, and we obv. didn't get the Puppy Bowl, damnit). After inhaling 5 hotdogs and 1/3 of a bag of cheese covered Tostitos I went into a bit of a [food] coma and then fell asleep on the couch just when the game started to get good. Still love love love the Super Bowl. Although, hoping to be in a better time zone for next year's game!

Fireworks and Camel Burgers..

Fireworks over the Creek

On Saturday, we decided to check out the Dubai Shopping Festival. The Shopping Festival is a month long event to promote shopping in Dubai (big shocker). All the stores have big sales and promotions and they have little carnival/fair like activities with flea market-esque stands and rides and bouncies for the kids down by the Creek. They also have a parade every single day for 30 days and fireworks every single night over the Creek (Allegedly Dubai's economy is shot, but imagine how much it must cost to put on a 15 minute fireworks display, and a good one at that, for 30 straight nights??). We weren't so interested in the fun fair aspects, but wanted to check out the fireworks and also thought it might be fun and relaxing to go for a walk down by the Creek on what was actually a pretty chilly night (extremely unusual here).

Yum. Camel Burger and Camel Milk Shake.

We had also read about a restaurant down by the Creek in Bastakia (the old town section of Dubai, with the old houses and architecture) that has recently started selling Camel Burgers. Obv. we had to try it asap. So we parked down by the DSF (Dubai Shopping Festival) festivities and walked around for a bit to check it out. Pretty much just stand after stand of cheap watches interspersed with ghetto looking (definitely not OSHA approved, that's for sure) kiddie rides and carnival games. Not too many western people. So we got bored of that fairly quickly and walked to Bastakia further down the Creek and found the Local House Restaurant for dinner. Jared had to order both the Camel Burger and Camel Milk Shake. I ordered the Camel Burger but wasn't brave enough for the Shake yet (my previous experiences with Camel Milk were not so pleasant), so ordered the Cow Milk Shake. Camel meat is notoriously tough and not tender at all, but somehow they tenderized it and the burgers were actually delicious (notwithstanding deplorable service). They also came with surprisingly good fries (we could see the kitchen from our seat and expectations were not high after we saw them pull the fries out of the freezer and put them into the fryer), and a small salad for equivalent $10 USD a piece. So, since we weren't home to cook our New Years Resolution "new recipe" of the week, I am letting the camel burgers slide through as our new food item of the week. Delicious. Can't wait to eat some more camel!

Walking through Bastakia at night is so beautiful I couldn't resist taking pictures of the traditional Windtower Houses all lit up. So pretty. Probably one of the least superficial areas of Dubai, which is why we love it so much.

Another View of the Windtowers...

Panoramic View of Bastakia with the Bastakia Mosque in the background (the notorious Mosque that when I visited Jared for the first time in Dubai in November 2007, we were taking pictures of when the call to prayer came on, and Jared in his typical overreacting manner started yelling, "Jen, get out of there, hurry, get away from the Mosque, quick, Let's go!!")....

DSF Parade

So, the Shopping Festival Parade was just too good to pass up posting pictures of. As we were walking back down the Creek to the carnival area from dinner we suddenly heard marching band music and hurried over to the road just about the time the parade was about the pass. A very short parade indeed, but definitely fun and notable.

The Emirati Marching Band. Surprisingly talented, and who knew Emirati's could play instruments, let alone have a Marching Band!

Coincidentally, the band stopped and did a little number right in front of us.

Next came the human shopping bags, naturally. The parade of course, is purely meant to promote shopping, so, the theme was pretty commercial/materialistic heavy.

Even bigger human shopping bags. We knew we were in for some fun when they passed...

More DSF Parade

So, as it turns out, the Marching Band that led the parade was the most normal part of the parade. Because psychedelic drugs are so highly illegal here, it seems like the aim of the parade was to give bystanders that same high on drugs feeling, minus ingesting pills. What better way than a woman on stilts with a shopping bag hat (what else?) and crazy swirling skirt with streamers...

And it just got better when these guys drove by in lit up carts with jump suits covered in rope lighting, and giant lit up balloons advertising that this is the 15th year of the shopping festival (and the UAE has only been a country for 38 years... priorities here are clear.) To me they looked like skeletons... with baseball hats.

The whirling dervishes... wee.

This guys looks like he's straight out of Wonderland (Alice's). 10 feet high butterfly man with a hat covered in plastic fruit. I'm not exactly sure what they are trying to portray with him. Maybe just scare the kids.

The Bird People Marching Band took up the rear. Also not sure how they are related to shopping, but, they had a lot of spirit. Oh Dubai.

Rare

Friday night was probably the loveliest night I have ever had in Dubai. After inadvertently being out until 2am on Tuesday night (the equivalent of Wednesday night in the US) going to a Ladies Night (ladies drink free!) at an Irish Pub called Fibber Magee's we decided we wanted a fairly quiet weekend. So, Friday we decided to go out to a nice dinner and have a sort of 'date night' (forget that Valentine's Day and our 7 (!!) Year Anniversary are a week away). As is kind of a general theme here, finding a really good restaurant is hard, and specifically finding a good steak house. Jared has been to a bunch of different ones here and nowhere has even come close to meeting his expectations (which, admittedly are high, compared to our favorite steak restaurant in Boston). So Friday we decided to try a new one called "Rare" at the Desert Palm Resort, outside the city.

We had an 8pm reservation but didn't know how long it would take us to get there (it was out past Dragon Mart, Chinese mega-store/mall which I must do a post on sometime... going is an experience like no other), so decided to leave the house about 6:45pm to give us plenty of time, and we also thought we might explore the resort a little if we had extra time. Well, we got there by 7:10 and after exploring for about 30 seconds (it's a small resort and it was dark), we decided to get a cocktail on their terrace/veranda which overlooked one of their four polo fields (we were later informed by the general manager that the Desert Palm is the only purely polo resort in the world).

So we each ordered a drink with a fun name like "Lynchberg Lemonade" (Jared's) and mine was called "Serendipity" which had Pimm's as the primary alcohol, so I knew I'd love it. They brought us a bowl of mixed nuts with our drinks and turned on the portable heater (it's been very chilly at night here lately) and we were able to lounge with our drinks overlooking the dark polo pitch in complete silence, with the Dubai skyline in the far distance. Everywhere at the resort is green and all feng shui with fountains and an infinity pool. More than anywhere else we've been in Dubai, being at the Desert Palm truly felt like an escape and was completely relaxing because it's probably the most green we've seen here and also the most quiet and serene since it's outside the hustle and bustle of the city.

After enjoying our drinks and the lounge furniture for 45 minutes, we moved into to our table at the restaurant. It has a nice atmosphere (not tacky like 90% of places here), but what really got us was the food. They had all varieties of red meat from North America (!), including Colorado Ribeye and Canadian Elk Loin and Bison (in addition to Australian beef, which is what you typically get here). Jared started with the Carpaccio of Canadian Bison and I started with a Lobster Pancake. Both starters were amazing and then we both had the Colorado Ribeye (we couldn't resist ordering the American beef), which was hands-down the BEST steak we've had in Dubai and honestly not that far off from our favorite Grill 23 in Boston (although I fancy fillet more than ribeye). I know I am going on and on about the food, but it was just so shocking to both of us to find such a good restaurant in Dubai (our expectations have been seriously lowered after almost 6 months here). Definitely the best meal I've had out in Dubai.

And what really rounded out and made the whole night so lovely was the personalized and engaged service we received. Toward the beginning of our meal, the general manager of the resort came over and introduced himself and asked how things were going. That in and of itself was not all that unusual. What was unusual though, was that he stayed to talk with us for 5 minutes, before coming back and bringing Jared his business card and telling us to phone or email him if and when we were planning on coming back so he could take care of us. So, we thought that was all very nice, but that would be it. After dinner, however, we decided we wanted to stay a bit longer on the terrace to have some Moroccan tea and sheesha (I was driving so wanted a bit more time to relax after my two drinks). While we were eating the terrace had filled up and the couch we had been sitting on before was taken. The general manager happened to be out there sitting at another couch and saw us and invited us to join him and his assistant on the next couch area over. So, we agreed, and then proceeded to have a 20 minute conversation with him about living in the Dubai, the different restaurants and resorts here, and the difficulties of finding a good meal. He was interesting and engaging and telling us all about the resort (now we can't wait to go back for Saturday afternoon polo and cocktails!). After he finished his glass of wine he left us to enjoy the live acoustic guitar player who was playing covers of tons of great American songs. So we decided to stick around and listen to the live music for awhile, and soon the guitar playing was talking to us and asking for requests, etc. So I requested "Message in a Bottle" which he promptly played for me. Just fantastic.

Then, to cap off the night, after we finished our tea and sheesha, we asked for the bill and the waiter told us that the manager had taken care of it (the bill for the sheesha and tea, not dinner, which we had already paid for, although that would have been totally unbelievable). Unreal. Never before have we had such an absolutely perfect night in Dubai. I wish all my nights here could be so lovely.

Fog

Woke up this morning to super thick fog. Wanted to share a picture. Fog is so completely unusual (and weird) here because we are always surrounded by skyscrapers and construction, and in the fog you can't see any of that and could be anyway (in some rural area in a field for all you can see). I do love the winter in Dubai!