Abu Dhabi to Dubai: Got up early and went to the Co-op to get a new camera. Found a pretty cheap Yashica that is working well so far. Got on the bus to Dubai stopping at the Grand Mosque on the way - home of the world’s larget chandelier (three of them) and the world’s largest carpet. Women need to wear abayas and scarves and men in shorts need to put on dishdashas. I heard some Italians commenting that it was like the Vatican and having to wear modest clothing inside. Very international crowd there. Beautiful grounds.
Got to Dubai - looking very Oz-like in the distance. If Abu Dhabi is the land of construction this is the land of over building. Amazing high rises and complexes - a shopper’s paradise. Settled in the hotel which by the way is the site of the recent assassination. My room is right down the hall from the killing room! I was watching reports about the new suspects in the case and they showed surveillance camera footage of the lobby. Took a nap and then it was showtime!
A very well attended expo hosted by the Consul General of the Embassy. Non-stop talking for three hours. Most of the people were expats - lots of Indians looking for graduate degrees - some kids finishing high school - one kid whose dad had graduated from the U.
Then a group went out for a drink to the Meridien Village - a hotel outdoor restaurant and bar. It was cocktail night and you could order a second cocktail and if you guessed heads or tails correctly, you got it free. I won my second Asian Boost cocktail and walked swimmingly home. A colleague and I planned to go down the hall and get a picture of the killing room, but there was a worker standing in the hall. We greeted him and kept walking - the hallway ended. We had to come back passing him. We tried to quietly snap a picture but he said - Please no pictures. We scurried off noticing the “Do Not Disturb” signs on several other doors in the hallway.
Today is a day off - plan to do some sightseeing and will meet my friend, Baharoon, tonight.
