Total Eclipse of the Heart at the Expo

Sunday began with another lovely morning at the beach followed by lunch at the hotel. The sea here feels delightfully warm to me, although Ally and Cat assure me that it’s much hotter in the summer. The hotel pools are so hot they’re like baths! 
In the afternoon we set off to the Dubai Expo, which has been on since October and will finish at the end of March. It’s an amazing and huge exhibition with 192 Country Pavilions, lots of restaurants, and various live music and events. It’s beautifully designed with lots of green spaces between the pavilions, trees and plants. In the centre is the stunning colour-changing dome of the al-Wasl Plaza, with a circle at the top open to the sky.
There were so many pavilions that we had to choose just a few that we wanted to visit, and we used the Expo App that Linda told me about. When we arrived Ally and Cat efficiently circled our choices on the paper map that we received. There was so much to see! I have never been to an Expo before and it was so interesting to see the pavilions designed by each country, showcasing their country’s tourism and industry. 
Some countries had gone for the “basic option”, a small cube pavilion. An example of this is the St Lucia pavilion which was decorated very simply but beautifully with fabric draped into the shape of the Pitons, and colourful local dresses on display. 
However some countries had massive, purpose built pavilions which were designed individually. For example the Saudi Arabia pavilion is huge, and had different levels with video displays about the country and indoor waterfalls and a big revolving globe in a room where the light display even made your feet appear to leave tracks on water or sand as you moved!
The DEWA (Dubai Electricity and Water) Pavilion is all about maximising efficiency and has a “future house” attached with moveable walls, a drone-delivery hatch and a weight-measuring bathroom floor! 
DP World’s huge Flow Pavilion is about global trade but I loved its visual effects especially the amazing cylindrical waterfall which fell in all sorts of patterns; water was definitely a theme at the expo. 
Other pavilions that we visited were Qatar, Greece, St Kitts and Nevis; all unique and beautifully designed. 
We didn’t have time to go into the USA Pavilion but we saw the SpaceX Falcon rocket beside it, which was very impressive. 
The last pavilion that we visited was the Women’s Pavilion. My feet were very tired by this time but I was so glad that we went to it. It celebrates the important roles of women from around the world throughout history, with the motto “when women thrive, humanity thrives”.
By now it was completely dark and the Expo was all lit up with projections and light installations. 
We met Pete and Roisin for supper at the African restaurant area then went to see Boney M and Bonnie Tyler sing at the open air 80s night. 
This was very special, we hadn’t even realised that it was on until Roisin told us about it the day before. We danced and sang to Boney M’s greatest hits including Rasputin and Brown Girl in the Ring and By the Rivers of Babylon; there was in fact only one original member of the band performing (Maizie Williams) - I think that all of the original members have set up their own version of Boney M at some point! 
But the highlight of the evening for me was Bonnie Tyler. Many’s the evening on Duke of Edinburgh expeditions Carolyn, Shona and I amazed the pupils with our version of Total Eclipse of the Heart at the camp fire. It’s a brilliant song and here we were on a warm Dubai evening singing our hearts out with Bonnie Tyler. It was great! She also sang It’s a Heartbreak and Simply the Best and I need a Hero. What a perfect end to a perfect day. 

Afternoon at the Creek

On Saturday, after a morning at the beach and swimming in the Gulf of Arabia (how exotic!) we went to meet Pete and Roisin at the Bayt al Wakeel Restaurant at the Creek. The restaurant was very traditional, right on the water, and they kept bringing us plates piled high with delicious food until we could eat no more! Then we went on a boat trip up and down the creek on a little wooden boat which had a central seat like a bench. We saw the sun setting which silhouetted the mosques and boats and birds flitting and swooping about, it was very pretty. Then we crossed the river on another little boat and visited the Gold Souk. So much gold all in one place! Cat and I both got Palm-shaped charms for our bracelets in honour of the Dubai Palm where our hotel is situated. The Palm is a man made peninsula, and as its name would suggest it’s in the shape of a palm leaf with its fronds. It’s a weird thought that the location of our lovely hotel used to be nothing but water. Back across the river we went (on another little boat, this time I was overly confident when stepping into it and lost my balance, almost ending up in the creek!) and found our car, unfortunately we took a wrong turning in the dark which made us a bit late to meet Pete and Roisin at our hotel. It actually amazes me that Ally and Cat manage to find their way so well around the busy and bewildering roads of Dubai. Some of the roads have six lanes each way! I only recognise where we are when we are on the Sheik Zahed Road leads all the way to the Palm. Pete and Roisin were very gracious about our delay and we went to the Miss India Restaurant where we had a delicious meal and a very convivial evening sitting outside in the warm darkness, lit by little table lights and the stars above us on the black sky.

Burj Khalifa

I’m feeling overwhelmed by what we have seen so far in Dubai. I didn’t really know what to expect from this city built in the desert, on the Arabian Gulf. We arrived in the early morning of Friday 25th and Ally and Cat hired a car and took us to the Frame. It’s such an impressively simple structure, golden in the morning light, towering over parkland filled with birdsong. It was a great way to look at the layout of the city, hazy with suspended sand in the atmosphere. Then we had lunch in our gorgeous Fairmont Palm hotel, sitting outside in the shade with a backdrop of sea and city, the towering buildings on the other side of the water dark blue-grey against the blue sky.
Later we headed to the Burj Khalifa. The tallest building in the world, I had expected it to be an amazing example of architecture, but it was so much more. It towers over everything of course, but it also feels very much a part of the surrounding city, in particular the beautiful harbour area beneath it. There are promenades, little bridges over the water, boats, play areas, seating areas, bars and restaurants. In the centre there are the fountains, which display a water and light show every half hour in the evening. Each is different and accompanied by different music. The one that we watched after dinner was “Time to Say Goodbye” which I first heard in an episode of the Sopranos many years ago. In those days of less sophisticated internet searches it took me many months to find out what it was and it has always been a favourite of mine. So there we were, standing beside the water, watching the fountains display, the keys of water towering above us as the music reached its crescendo. I was so happy and moved that I burst into tears and Cat had to give me a hug! 
When we ascended the Burj Khalifa earlier we had to queue to get to the lifts but luckily Ally and Cat had already booked our tickets. The views were stunning all the way around, and we were able to watch the sun setting into the Gulf, like a ball of fire. 

Ukraine

As well as waking up this morning to snow, we woke up to the news that Putin has invaded Ukraine from all sides, with the pathetic excuse that he’s responding to “threats” which is total nonsense. He has been determined to do this for weeks. Ukraine has 44 million people but since they are not members of NATO they stand alone. All that the west can do is impose economic sanctions and frankly I don’t think Putin could care less. All he wants is to go down in history as the president who got Ukraine back for Russia. He also doesn’t care about how many people get hurt in the process, whether Russians or Ukrainians. The roads west of Kiev are jammed with people trying to flee west. 

The reason I had time to blog about this is that the plane is still being de-iced so we are going to be about an hour late to Gatwick. Hopefully we will still be in reasonable time for our next flight. 

On the way to Dubai - PCR and Snow

James and I were back at Randox testing yesterday morning for our PCR tests in preparation for our holiday to Dubai with Ally and Cat. Of course tests probably won’t be required for much longer as most countries are now relaxing their Covid regulations as we all move into the “live with” Covid phase. But for now it’s still required for Dubai so at 9 a.m. we turned up to be swabbed. We had chosen the 12 -14 hour results option because our flight isn’t until this evening so we had plenty of time. However as the day went on I started to get a bit worried; James has had Covid in January so I felt that I would be the most likely one to catch it now. I was mightily relieved when both of our tests came through negative at about 7 p.m. and we heard that Ally and Cat had tested negative too. 

The weather has been very changeable over the last week or so, probably because we have been on the edge of the several of the storms that have been rampaging around the UK. I went for a lovely walk with Ally W in Kelvingrove Park a couple of days ago during which we were assailed by hailstones, bright sunshine and torrential rain! So I wasn’t completely surprised to wake this morning to heavy snow with our street prettily blanketed in white. James checked Glasgow Airport Departures and sure enough there were quite a few flights delayed because of the weather. Although we have a comfortable four hours between our flights at Gatwick, any snow-related delay could eat into this quickly. I need not have worried. The motorway to the airport was clear and we’re now sitting on the plane waiting for it to be de-iced. We will only be about half an hour late. What a relief. 

Two Old Trouts

The highlight of the annual Hill-Walking Club AGM is Andy’s report on the club’s outings during the past year. He accompanies his report with a slideshow of photos from all the outings, which really brings back memories. This year, because of Covid, his report covered the first three months of 2020 and then the last eight months of 2021. It was good to see the Andersons well represented at various mountain locations around Scotland. My favourite comment was when Andy showed a photo of Iris and me sitting beside a loch in the Trossachs, with a large sculpture of a fish behind us, reflected perfectly in the still water. Andy said, “Here are two old trouts!” and then after a pause for much laughter, “No, one of them is a reflection.” I thought that this was very funny. 

The AGM went well, and Ally was applauded in absentia for completing his Munros last summer. He was also thanked for rewriting the club’s constitution. I felt very proud. 

Imperial War Museum North

On Saturday we all went to the Imperial War Museum North, which is at Salford Quays. It is quite a new museum and is beautifully designed. We started with coffee and pastries in the café and I was excited to purchase an Eccles cake, for which Davie and Chanel’s area of Manchester is famous. It was very tasty; currants encased in sugary puff pastry. The museum was mainly about the First and Second World Wars and the displays were clear and interesting, with visual and audio testimony as well as photos and artefacts. Every hour or so there was an announcement to gather in the central area where there was an audio presentation accompanied by large photos projected around the high walls. The first one we heard was about life during the First World War and the second was a poem about peace. 

During our visit to Davie and Chanel there was a big storm in the South-West and London called Storm Eunice. It was not too stormy in Manchester, but the winds built up on Friday and there were twigs and small branches from trees lying on the roads. By Saturday lunch time it was very rainy and we were a bit worried that there might be snow on the road north, so we said our goodbyes to Davie and Chanel after lunch in a nearby Pret a Manger and set off homewards. 

There was a wee bit of snow just north of Manchester but we were lucky with dry weather and light traffic for the rest of our journey. We had a very pleasant evening and a Chinese meal with Marjory and Forrest. 

In other news, the Women’s Curling team won Gold in the Beijing Winter Olympics (Britain’s only Gold medal.) The Queen has caught Covid which is hopefully a very mild case, and we have a new storm on the way; Storm Franklin.