Sand Diving: January 2009

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Mom and Dad Visit Abu Dhabi!!!

Well, after a two week visit in Abu Dhabi, I think, by the time they left, my Mom and Dad memorized a view of the basic rules:

1) Take short showers, hot water only lasts in the summer when it is 115 outside
2) Leaks are a regular thing around here, $8,000 a month rent in Abu Dhabi doesn't get you the swanky..all bathrooms work, no leak house, like it gets you in the states
3) Watch where you step, there are no safety regulations here, so pipes can be sticking out anywhere and holes can be right in the middle of a sidewalk!
4) Watch where you step around camels
5) Remember exacly where you are by landmarks and buildings, as nothing has an address here and cab drivers rarely speak good English
6) Leave time for figuring out Abu Dhabi events, signs are never in English that tell you where to go and what the schedule is and if you ask anyone a question..the answer is ALWAYS YES, even if they have no idea what you are saying!!
7) Locals only work when they want to, sometimes they show and sometimes, they don't!!
8) Always stock up on wine at the Duty Free in the airport, alcohol is hard to come by in Abu Dhabi and very pricey!!
9) Check your camel's saddle before you get on, make sure the girth is tight!!

The Camel Festival..thousands of camels, and a great event, however, since all signs were in arabic we had no idea what was going on!!!

Dune Bashing trip...camels stink!!

Dad riding a camel with a good saddle...Mike got on one and the saddle fell right over..ouch!!

During the Dune Bashing..at a camp in the desert..this is the coldest I have ever been since we have lived here!! This was right before Mom tripped over a pole and fell down, landing on her wine glass..lots of blood but thankfully no stiches were neccesary..the dune bashing made us all a bit dizzy!!

Dad, reliving his college days with the shesha pipe..ha, ha!

Mom and Dad with us on the Ferrari site visit...

Dad...trying to be funny with the workers..they just think he is crazy!!!

Our last day..Atlantis, where thanks to Mike.. we got the VIP treatment!!

Ferrari World Site Visit

Finally I was able to go see Mike at work!! They do not allow children anywhere near his worksite but when my parents visited last week I finally arranged enough time without the kids to go see him!!

Many friends that I have not spoken to in sometime ask me what brought us to Abu Dhabi...well this is it! Sometime ago Mike got into the theme and water park business (the business I was raised in). About a year ago he was approached by a consulting company based out of Tustin, CA that he had gotten to know over the years. This company, ProFun has the pre-opening operations contract for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. The first ever Ferrari theme park that is being built on an island called Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. There is also a Formula 1 racetrack being built on this island, shopping, housing, hotels, etc. Mike is on this pre-opening operations team, consulting on the contruction of the park from an operations prospective. He will also oversee the water park and potentially the Warner Bros park that will be built on the island as well.

Below is the model of Yas Island. The circle in the middle is a large mall, the red structure is Ferrari World, over to the left is where Warner Bros and the World's largest waterpark will be.

Mike..showing us the overhead photo of the island...This island is located about 20 minutes from the city center of Abu Dhabi.

There are about 40,000 laborers involved in these projects..they all live in these work camps..or trailers. Most are Indian, that have come out here to work, leaving their families behind and sending them their earnings. See the rows of stacked trailers...