We started off with a wonderful English breakfast in the nearest mall. The one with the massive Marks and Spencers in it. Yes, I have to say it was a damn fine.
We then ended up walking for miles and miles and miles down the corniche, which is the water front. It was really lovely. Fridays are the weekends so lots of families were out and guys were playing football and cricket. There were lots of Pakistani guys and Afghan guys walking in groups up the paved area of the sea front and lounging about, relaxing on the grass. Michael told me that guys are not allowed onto the actual beach unless they are wearing proper western style beach shorts. This is a dress code which is used to keep males, who are wearing their local Shalwar Kameez, off the beaches. These guys, (supposedly) just stare and take photos of women on the beach and it has become a bit of a nuisance for some of the women. They probably haven't got used to the social etiquette of being on a beach, having come straight down from an Afghan mountain.
At least the beach shorts rule can keep it under control, maybe! ( I didn't ask if Emirati guys also had to wear shorts to go on the beach. I doubt it.)
Anyway this walk was a great way to spend my last day and I think we walked up and then back down the beach front for over 3 hours.
Tickling a camel in the underpass which went under the road towards the beach side. M said it's like a furnace down in this tunnel in the summer months.
check out the rather tiny coffee pot feature in the background!
Football. What lovely sand!
love the spelling of Byky and the pictures in case you don't understand.
We then went for one more Ethiopian meal. I had my fill of Tibs and Injera , the flat crumpet like sourdough. I've found out that Orthodox Christian Ethiopians fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, so if I ever manage to get myself to Ethiopia I will find lots of vegan and veggie tibs too for meatless variety, which they eat on these two days. Yum, yum yum. But the meat was delicious too.
Then we got a taxi back to the Emirate's Palace to meet some of Michael's friends for drinks. It was a fun evening and a great way to end my holiday.
I had a great time and it was lovely catching up with my old friend Michael and if he stays in the UAE i will definitely visit again, but the place is not on my agenda for independent travel. It's not a traveller's destination. Plus I just felt that every single person I met was from another country. Nearly every conversation and transaction for the week was made with a non-local. This was a bit strange. But hey, I think that is what living in the UAE is like. It's a country made up of workers from all over the world trying to make some cash and wiring money back home to support their families.
If only the foreign workers could send some of this back to their families. I managed to get a tourist snap of this gold dispensing ATM in the Emirate's Palace.
I looked in the dispensing compartment just to make sure some mad fool hadn't left a bit of bullion behind.
Guess what....?!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment