Part I of Dubai/Abu Dhabi Trip

Happy New Year!!!! Hard to believe, but it's been 3 months since Kev and I moved here to Okinawa. We have both fallen in love with the island. We are always finding new things & sights to discover each day. The island is absolutely beautiful and we are so thankful we will be here for the next few years to explore all that Okinawa has to offer.

Anyway, since it's been awhile since I've posted to the blog--here's an update from our trip to Dubai/Abu Dhabi. Kevin and I flew to Dubai to visit my parents for the Christmas holiday. We had a blast on our 10 day trip.

We left Naha on December 20th and flew Asiana Airlines into Seoul, Korea for a layover. We had about 8 hours to kill and thought we could take a day trip into the city. Unfortunately, we failed to pack any "warm" clothing so when we landed in Seoul, we were not prepared to hear that the temperature was a freezing 34 degrees! All I had on was a light cotton sweater and Kev only had a sweatshirt. We didn't want to have to spend hours hanging out inside the airport but since we didn't have the proper clothing and knew we would freeze out in the cold, we had no choice but to stay indoors. Note to self: Korea is cold in the winter. If you plan to go outside, pack accordingly.

Thankfully, our layover in Seoul wasn't a complete bust. We were able to pass the time wandering around the airport. We eventually found a great little restaurant where we had some Korean hotpot soup. I had some spicy oxtail soup and Kev had seafood soup. The key ingredient of course was kimchee. :0

After the long day in the airport, we finally boarded our flight to Dubai on Emirates Airlines. Although we sat in Economy, we each had our very own personal touch-screen entertainment console with over a thousand movie titles, TV channels, and games (Imagine trying to get that in Economy on United or American Airlines!!) If you fly to the Middle East, definitely fly Emirates. They are a good airline with outstanding customer service.

Dubai is an interesting place. No where in the world can you see so much construction and building going on in one place. Day and night, construction goes on. It seems endless--they are literally building the Dubai skyline around the clock.

My father took my brother Julian, Kev and I into the city for a day to see the sights. We, of course, wanted to visit the infamous "Burj Al Arab" (It is afterall the only 7 star hotel in the world.) We didn't think we would get in, but my father used his charms to convince security to allow us in.

Here is a photo of my father, brother Julian and I at the entrance. If you look at the top of the Burj, you can see the helicopter landing pad.



This is a photo of the fountain inside the main lobby. There are multiple lobbies in this hotel.



And here is a view of the ceiling in the main lobby.



While in Dubai, we also visited the Jumeirah Palm Island(s). These are the man-made islands that are being developed off the shore of Dubai. Security here was tight so we were doubtful we would be allowed in, but we managed. We drove down the main "trunk" portion of the Palm and onto one of the "fronds".

Here's a view of the main "trunk". A luxury hotel is being built here, this is the building you see in the background.



This is just one of the many "mansions" being built on the "fronds." Each house is going for about $4 million dollars. Geez...what a bargain.



We also went to the Mall of the Emirates. Once inside, you can see why tourists like to visit this mall. It really is a shopper's paradise.

Can you tell I love to shop???!!! :)



The Mall of the Emirates is also home to "Ski Dubai"-the world's largest indoor ski slope. Hard to believe you can ski in the desert city of Dubai!



If you don't have ski pants or a jacket, don't worry. Everything is available for rent here.... :)