Sun, Sea, Sand...

and MOUNTAINS!*

What more could you ask for?

Big lie in this morning and ended up looking at and commenting on blips on my phone! Caught up with Milli who blipped aloo parathas on New Year's Day. Well, I never thought I was one to be influenced by a picture, but I suddenlyREALLY wanted to eat an aloo paratha, so G went down to a restaurant (very close by) who makes them and brought one home (it was so big, we shared one). DELICIOUS it was!

She then reckoned that the Volvo needed a run out as it had been in the garage since 23 December not doing very much; so off we went - heading for the mountains of the East Coast, but first checking out an extremely busy part of town in Deira that we would never dream of going to on a normal day - Nasser Square... boy has it changed. And getting to the East Coast - that was just the same. So much development; new dual carriageways; old roads re-surfaced, big flag poles in small towns etc etc...

My blip is of Dibba which is almost at the tip of the Arabian Peninsula - on the Arabian Sea side. A sleepy little settlement where not much happens except for tourists who visit on the weekend. Well. Not having been there for several years now, it now has a mini-Marina, a fishing village and a canal!!! This bit of sea that is still relatively easily accessible is as far north as you can go without a passport. A check-point has now been set up as the view we see in the distance is actually in Oman.

Checked out one of the many new 5* hotels which are coming up not far from here. 5* by name but not service! And then on the way home - saw something that really did tickle me. A blow up reindeer of all things, with a man sitting next to it on a chair. G has a picture.

Got home later than planned, but it's been a good day. Means I just have to work extra hard tomorrow to get weekend things done. Hope yours has started well... I think my body is finally in this time zone as I am VERY tired and it is just coming up to midnight. :)

*The Hajar Mountain range runs from the Northern tip of the Arabian Peninsula all the way down to Yemen. Hajar means Stone in English so they are rather appropriately named.