Exploring Museums

Thursdays are my day to volunteer in the pediatric playroom at the hospital.  With it being summer, there's very few patients each week, so today I was able to leave early, which gave me the opportunity to do a bit of exploring around the area.

I first tried to visit the Maritime Museum but, even though it was opening hours, the front entrance was locked.

So I took a few pictures and then moseyed on over to the Modern Art Museum (in 115 degree heat, but thankfully it wasn't far).

A lovely lady named Fatima showed me around.  I didn't take a lot of pictures but just enjoyed visiting a place that, in all these years of living here, I've never been to.

I love the style of the old buildings and wish people kept this way of living as it has so much more character than what we see being built today.

Really loved this peacock made from rusty gadgets.

Check out that tail.

Just across the parking lot, there was an old building that is apparently being renovated.  The grounds were really dirty and smelly so I just took a few skyward shots.

 

 

It's my plan to make myself get out at least a couple of days per week to explore all the places I've not been to.  Summer is a great time to do so since so many people have traveled, the roads aren't so crowded and places are nice and quiet.

Hope you have a great Thursday!

Fun and Food

One of the ladies who works for the hospital group I volunteer with invited a bunch of us (staff and volunteers) to her place so we could meet her mom who is visiting from India.

That's Neelam behind me and her mom is to the right.

We started with salad, snacks and appetizers while waiting for everyone to arrive.

And then to my surprise, we played games.

First up was the bangle game where you had to find as many pairs as you could in 45 seconds.

Not as easy as it sounds since there were teeny little golden designs on some of them.  

Next we played Bingo and I won twice, by being the first to get 5 numbers and then with a full house.

Since there were prizes involved, that meant I got two gifts.

 

And the final game was to see how many matchsticks you could stack on top of a bottle opening in 45 seconds.  Again, not as easy as it looks.

This time I tied for the most with two other ladies -- we all got 22, so then it was time for the playoff, but this time we had only 20 seconds and had to stack them using only one hand, picking the matchsticks up one by one.

I managed to win with 10 matchsticks and received two gifts which I promptly handed over to my two opponents. :)  A win-win for everyone.

Such fun!

Lunch and dessert was then served before we wound down the afternoon and all started to head home.  It was such a lovely time, lots of good food, meeting some new folks along with Neelam's sweet mom, as well as playing fun and challenging games.

Hope you are having a fun weekend.

Dubai: Day Two

Friday morning started out a bit hazy.

We first had coffee in our room and then took a walk around the grounds before being joined by our friend, Yamanaka, for breakfast.

They decided they wanted to see War for the Planet of the Apes in 4D -- that means wearing 3D glasses while the seats move for extra effect.  I've never been a fan of Planet of the Apes so chose instead to spend several hours on my own.

So, I walked and walked and walked some more.

There's much to see inside.

And outside the mall.

Shortly before meeting back up with the guys, I sat and had a dairy free strawberry lemonade yogurt sorbet with fresh fruit.  So refreshing.

After resting up late afternoon, we then headed out to old Dubai for the evening.

Where we walked some more.

And took a boat tour.

We ended the day with Lebanese food.

When we got back to our room, I checked my health app.

I'd say I definitely got in my walking for the day.

Best wishes for a great new week.

Dubai: Day One

On Thursday we flew to Dubai where my husband had several meetings scheduled.  We always catch an early morning flight so that we are able to make a quick trip to The Dubai Mall where we visit our favorite bookstore, Kinokuniya.

And then we have Nordsee seafood soup and sourdough bread for lunch.  Even though I don't eat seafood anymore, this has been a tradition for us since our first trip to Dubai together so it's one that I maintain.

Back at the hotel, while he was taking care of business, I found ways to entertain myself.

A little crochet.  A little drink.  And a walk around the hotel grounds.

Although Dubai never does get as hot as Kuwait, it can be very, very humid during the summer.  Fortunately, the weather was actually pretty good while we were there.  

The hotel is actually right across the street from the airport, but because of all the landscaping, it feels like you are in a lush, tropical environment.

That evening, our friend, Yamanaka, treated us to Japanese food and drink.

It's always nice to get away for the weekend and Dubai is a great place for just that.

Hope your weekend has been a good one.