Thursday, March 31, 2011

up to date again - end of March

Hi guys


As you may or may not know, Cath, Emma and I recently headed off to Dubai for a week to catch up with Cath's fam. That's been our big news. But seeing as I haven't updated this blog since Christmas, there are one or two other smaller stories to tell that I've put up too.


Alas, never get a woman to do your work for me and awhile back when Cath was trying to organise something, she hogged the computer and said she'd upload the photos for me... this has resulted in the entire formatting of all the latest few posts going completely haywire.


I know, I know, you're used to a certain standard with me and I have let you down.


I am sorry, I will never again let her touch my blog. Bloody woman.


Anyhoo, the blog is now up to date to the end of March.


Enjoy...

Dubai 4 - On top of the world and a fountain display


So let's start by showing you from the outside, what we went up.

Doesn't really look that big, I suppose, until you consider that the buildings next to it are like, humungous skyscrapers!




Another thing on our list of To Do's was to go up the tallest building in the world. Which we did, as you will see...





View from the top, well floor 125 anyway, that's as high as we peasants can go.


It's high enough.






Only 1 and already on the top of the world.








"Is that our building?" "I think it is dear."






Time for a hug for a baby stranger. After a few pushes first of course. She is SUCH a bully.





Emma loved playing with the design on the way down and out.





When we saw a shop called "More", we had to stop and pose. It's Emma's catchphrase after all.







In the mall, another photo op.


Cath's alma mater.


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In the mall, they also had an aquarium for shoppers to walk past, or

pay a few bob and walk under.

Emma was fascinated.


She even sat down to watch more carefully.





This is the view from the main floor...


There was a rail to keep people back, but it didn't keep Emma back. She snuch under and... yep, went and sat right at the glass to watch the sharks. Eventually she was rumbled and was made to move on.






View from outside of tallest building. Too big to fit into one photo. You really have to bend your head back to glimpse the top.



Okay be honest, who's sexier: Me, or arab guy?



Apparently they have a lights and water display every night, so we waited around, Cath with the video camera, me taking pics.




And then it began, and it was worth the wait...




Some classical piece as the background music...





Peaceful and yet powerful...





A great show.


Resulting in me, and the other watchers, getting nicely sprayed!



There must have been about a ton of water displaced, blown over us.








These okes enjoyed the show too.

Dubai 3 - Waterpark and more shopping


Cath's mom was eager to show us that there were people with actual houses in Dubai - cos it seemed like everyone lived in tall buildings for a while - so we headed off to a friend of hers for a visit and some tea.



After the visit we walked around a lake, taking Emma for a stroll. I had turned over on my ankle a day or two earlier and wasn't able to keep up with the ladies, so I just took some photies.

Lunch time at the flat... she was off her food but still managed to make quite a mess.
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Trip to the waterpark


That's one big arch!
The decor in the building, matched only be the beauty of my girls.


Dolphin lights.

The girls lounge around in the tubes.


This one on the left shows someone going down the Leap of Faith, which is quite intense. It's a steep drop that left burn marks on my lower back.




Moving Emma from 1 pool to another proved difficult. She loved our first beach...


... but she loved the second one too, and had great fun on the slides. This is us about to climb in at the top...


... and coming out the bottom.


She must have said "more" about two dozen times in one minute.

Then we went to a scarier slide, one that splashed up a lot of water in our faces, although I shielded her eyes. Emma still said "more"but I could tell she wasn't as keen.
So we headed to another slide...

At the top, a sense of great expectation. "Let me GO dad!"
1-2-3... wheeeeeee!




One last pic before we left the park.


As we were leaving, we saw the sun setting over the world (the islands) and the palm.



Back at the flat, Emma found a trolley and decided to head for some shopping, taking in all the way from the lifts to our flat door.
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More shopping the next day...stuffed camels are very popular apparently.


Emma wasn't so fussed by the curios, but Cath was looking for a bagain.


Found this spot for a group pic - nice. I like!



That 7-star buliding again.



This was the... no, actually it just looked nice so I snapped it.


Little angel running around the mall.

The World according to Valkenburg

As if Facebook, gmail and hotseminakedswedishblondes.com weren't taking up enough of my time, now I'm writing a blog!

Oh well - it just goes to show - any idiot can write a blog.