Pops in Dubai!

We finally had our first visitor!  Our friends Kai and Freya have had 832 visitors since August while we waited patiently for our first.  It's quite surprising that it turned out to be my dad because when we left 9 months ago, he said, "I won't meet you in Dubai, but I'll meet you somewhere in Europe."  Hooray for him taking the leap and flying 14 hours to see us.

Photo highlights

This is what he looked like an hour or so after arriving,

but he sucked it up like a champ and went out to see the sights.

Largest mall in the world, largest fountains in the world,

and tallest building in the world (next to the tallest hotel in the world, not pictured).

Dubai loves its superlatives.

My mom's been obsessed with going on this dinner cruise.  It's supposed to be the best in Dubai, so we tried it out.  The food was delicious, but the cruise was so slow I just wanted to step on the gas and floor it down the creek.  Awkward.  After my dad's review of the cruise, my mom decided it's not something she needs to do when she visits, thankfully.

Casey's boaty glamor shot.

The beautiful Madinat.  I'm obsessed with this place.  It's the most beautiful hotel I've ever seen with a million restaurants, shops, bars, etc.  It's so big, you can take a boat where you need to go if you don't want to walk.

Our fearless leaders.

Our first camel sighting.

Dinner on the beach near this beauty, not too shabby.

<3

 I love this building!  The architect snuck a giant cross on the on the other side that you can only see from the ocean.  That's a bit cheeky for me, especially in a Muslim country, but it's still one of my favorite building ever.

Fuzzy, but still my favorite picture from the trip.

Spice souks!

Every vendor pretty much has the same thing.  We didn't buy anything, but I wonder if one vendor is better than another.  The colors are stunning.

We took an abra from the spice souk to the gold souk.  1 dirham each, $0.27.

The amazing Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi!  I'm also obsessed with this place if you can remember from this post.

I got in trouble for taking this picture because it's the VIP entrance, but it's the prettiest side.  There's a helipad over here in case someone wants to take a helicopter to the mosque to pray.

In case you're wondering, this is the 8th largest mosque in the world with the largest carpet in the world...

We had our first sandstorm the first 5 days my dad was here.  It wasn't crazy like it was in Mission Impossible, just really hazy and tons of sand in the air.  It was so bad we had to cancel our first camel-riding adventure, but luckily they had an opening for later in the week.

Jumeriah Mosque, one of the first places we visited when we moved to Dubai in August.  If you're interested in seeing the inside of the mosque, check it out here.

Dad learning about Islam.  

I got to do the traditional pre-prayer wash in the fountain :)

CAMELS!  Finally.  I've been dying to ride camels since we got here but I usually feel sorry for them.  Not these camels.  They're living the high life.  They live at Al Sahra Desert Resort with the sweetest people ever.  They are extremely well fed, only work 80 minutes a day, get daily baths and pretty much just relax 98% of the time.  They were really sweet and gentle and I'm obsessed.

Dad on a camel - woot!

Our amazing guide.

This guy is the camel whisperer.  He loves the camels like his own babies and trained them to walk with just a little rope.  Normally, camels have a huge metal ring drilled through their noses so you can guide them, but he didn't want to do that to these guys.

"Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey!"

Dad drinking camel milk, another thing he said he wouldn't do.

Camel milk is very nutritious, more so than cow milk.  It's a bit salty but has so many  health benefits I think I could get used to the taste.

And, last but not least, some Instagram faves...

 

Spice Souk

Pretty colors

Largest carpet in the world.  Holla.

Prettiest mosque there ever was.

One thing I didn't get a picture of was my dad going to the doctor twice.  He came with a nasty cough and I think all the sand made it worse.  He had to get two breathing treatments and about 3 prescriptions.  Going to the doctor in a foreign country is probably not his idea of vacation fun.  He was a trooper, though.  Even through his sickness and the sandstorm, we managed to have a little fun.

Can't wait to see the rest of my family in August (and can't wait for Shannon to visit in November with my mom and Carolyn...hint, hint).  Counting down the days!