Happy Thanksgiving

We had a traditional Thanksgiving Day Feast!!!! Turkey (I had a leg - my favorite), Mashed Potatoes & Gravy, Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potato Casserole, Homemade Cranberry Sauce, Corn...a nice glass of homemade wine...and Apple Pie & Pumpkin Pie a la mode...we followed up the meal with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and the Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Now I am packing for my Oman trip. I leave at 6am. I am thankful that even though I was away from my family I was still able to celebrate Thanksgiving here with friends!

Holiday Spirit

Happy Thanksgiving and Eid Mubarak...



The Christmas Tree is up and decorated in true Holiday Spirit...
Makes me miss home and feel at home simultaneously...







I will be home for Christmas in one month...

Jumeirah Mosque

I also went to the Jumeirah Mosque and sat through a noon prayer, which was very interesting. The building itself has beautiful architecture and is quite peacful and calming.

Desert Camp Entertainment

Here is a picture of the Desert Camp...



There were four entertainment shows at the desert camp.
The first was a belly dancer.



Then there were Turkish Whiriling Dervishes



Then there was an Egyptian dance with sticks (of which I dont have any photos).
And then there was a number that involved musical instruments, two belly dancers, and two people inside a horse costume.

Desert Safari

While in Dubai I went on a Desert Safari that consisted of Dune Bashing, a Camel Ride, and a Barbque. The dune bashing was exhilirating, going up and down the dunes sliding sideways. It was crazy and scary fun...None of the pictures or video really showcased the experience well. Then we stopped for photos.



Then it was time to head over to the camp. First up, was the camel ride. If you have never been around camels, i should start by saying that they make this awful growling/groaning sound. They dont sound pleased to be walking back and forth with loads of strange tourists on their back. And the way that they get up is by putting their back legs up first which means that you fling forward as though you are going to fly right off them. Then when they are up, you realize just how tall they are. It was really cool! Then into the camp for dinner & drinks!

Dubai

Well, I had a great time in Dubai...although, I think that it is a little more hyped up than it actually is...Hands down the most fun that I had was learning how to snowboard. I know what you're thinking who goes to the Middle East to learn how to snowboard? But Dubai has a Ski Park in the Mall of the Emirates. I had a blast, even though I fell on my ass about a hundred times and was in some real pain by the time I left. Not to mention my hardest fall was on my last time down the mountain and I hit my head quite hard (I actually had whiplash). But over the course of four hours I made my way from the practice area all the way to the big slope.

Ski Dubai has 5 runs that vary in difficulty, height and gradient, the longest run being 400 meters with a fall of over 60 meters.

A Day at the Market - Sweets

Of course, the market also has little shops to pick up sweets to take home...



And nuts, which are also a big part of the diet here...these shops are in every market...



Also, there are little shops with very elaborate chocolates that are given as gifts. The picture below is of an example of how the chocolate is packaged and displayed and put out for guests at home...oh, and in case you're wondering these packaged chocolates are really yummy too!!!! (Although, for some reason a lot of the chocolate candy bars - i.e. Snickers - don’t really taste the same as they do back in the states)