Al Ain Overnight trip

We took an overnight trip to Al Ain, about 160 Kilometers from Abu Dhabi, a 2 hour drive that used to take 7 days by camel back in 1962 before the country became oil rich. Sheikh Zayed al Nayan was from Al Ain. It is a desert Oasis town.

Actually the drive is pretty boring, just like driving from Fresno to the Coast, here there are a lot of date palm trees and scrub brush before you get to the Sand. Behind the town is Hafeet Mountain. It is pretty desolate and you can drive to the top. We did and took several pictures along the way, one of Marta totally wore out by the heat, it was only about 104 degrees.

The Hotel we stayed at was nice, a Rotana Hotel, King room very nice and a Trader Vics restaurant where we had Lunch and Dinner on Friday Night. We actually stayed up to almost 11 pm ..wooo hoooo ...late for us old people.

I was so tire when we got home that I slept all afternoon saturday.. We took a lot of pictures, enjoy the albun, click on the link/picture to see all the shots

How do you blog when you are exhausted

We have not blogged much lately because we are so tired after work. Marta and I both work long hours trying to do a good job at our respective hospitals. Working until 7 or 8 pm seems to happen more ofthe then we like. Our friends here keep telling us to stop and we probably will because no matter how much we do, the work never stops. It is ironic that we are both doing the same type of job in Hospital Finance.

I can't wait though to go back to the Inn in New Hampshire. The heat here is starting to rise, along with the humidity. Last night we took our first short walk in about 3 weeks. At 9 pm it was still in the high 80's and the humidity was around 40% with just a little breeze. We did not walk long and stopped at an Oriental Carpet shop and Art bought a 5 x 8 handmade carpet from Pakistan. at 1000 local dhirhams...less then 300 US dollars. The service around here is pretty good, they had one of the workers carry it for us back to our apartment.

Speaking of apartments, we put a deposit down on the apartment we wanted. It is a brand new building and we chose one on the 10th floor facing the Emerates Palace Hotel and the Marina. The ones in the back of the building faced a lot more ocean, but the ocean around the back of the island is all face sand islands completely void of anything but future building sites. At night the Palace is lit up pretty nice. We plan on spending many an hour out on the balconey this year.

Bug Zapper

Today I saw our Hospital Bug Zapper, he carried a tennis racket like device with the blue electric bug zapper electrodes and he goes around the hospital and waves it at the ceilings towards any flies...

Apartment - We got to tour the apts. they are beautiful and of course Marta and Art do no agree..so today Art goes to work and Marta goes back to the apt. with the agent...let them make up their minds..I don't care anymore, I am too tired after work every day..the 45 minute commute each day is killer....literally.

Heat - it is Hot...end of storey and it is not even summer yet !!! sheesh...

Work - worse then America....poor work habits...today I go to a distant clinic that has no supervision and where clerks sometimes do no come in to work if they dont feel like it....No Policies, no Procedures...everything manual, no computers....and lots of complaints from patients. Time to use the STICK...the carrot will be raises....some make horrible wages and I need to get that fixed asap.

Evenings - Since Art works, we go out to dinner more often, we are both to tired to cook, so we go to different hotels to eat because only hotels can serve alcohol.

Get Away - Perhaps this weekend we will go to the Desert Oaisis for the Night, it is cooler there and there is a big mountain..Al Hajeet or something, a whopping 1500 feet....wooooo hoooooooooo....but a Hotel, a nice comfy bed, dinner out under the stars....that should be nice and uneventful....

Pictures...I need to take more....for this blog and All...oh well soon.

Job Opportunity - Marta needs to hire a whole financial staff...do you have hospital experience in any part of Patient Accounts and Revenue....She needs the whole gamut....benefits include free dates, sand, sun and fun....email us today !!!!

Bye for now

Observations

Driving is dangerous, no matter how careful you are someone is bound to hit you eventually. Heading to Dubai for a Cerner meeting you take a 5 lane ultramodern highway..it was pretty light traffic, I was doing 120 KPH in the center lane and people were buzzing past me, some on the right shoulder . There was no reason for this as 2 of the 5 lanes were pretty empty. Some cars were probably doing well over 100 MPH.

Heat - It 's all relative...99 with 50% humidity will be as bad as 140 later in the summer with 60
% humidity...U sweat upon opening the door !

Wonderful Local Friennds - Making friends with the local Emeratis takes effort, however I am finding it facinating, better then a college class...I am learning the customs. Today I met a guy my age who has 4 wives and is still smiling.....God bless him !

Expectations - Don't have any, explain everything 3 times and perhaps it will get done. The work here is 20 years behind our work lives we left behind in Fresno. The word Challenging does not even begin to describe work life !

USA friends - We have made many good friends, being in a different country away from friends and families forces you to either hole up with your computer or go out and meet people and experience new things... We had a fun weekend with 3 new friends last weekend and we pooped out after 1 day. Had a lot of laughs.

Bathrooms, OK mostly up to US standards, but public toilets are really bad...a tree or trench is better any ole day...flooded toilets are the standard it seems.

Maids - You gotta have one, for about $80 per month u can have ur entire house and laundry done each week...tipping helps her make $ to go home in July to visit her children...we learned that and the tips went way up...seeing your kids 1 time a year really sucks.

Chilis - Same crappy food here as in the US...never again..and they don't sell beer....

Cuban Cigars - What can I say, smoke em

Paperwork - We are having the same ole problems iwth our marriage certificate in getting an apt. An unmarried couple cannot rent an apt, we are married and have 2 original marriage certificates with raised letters and all , but these people need it to be 'attested' to by the Calif. State and the US State dept before they recognize it. So we are delayed another month...

Marta - I ask her all the time....when can we go home...soon I hope...July for me and August for the both of us....maybe u will see us in Fresno sometime this summer.