HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

Today my dearly beloved mother turned ... okay Mom I won't tell them how old you are! A milestone birthday though and the saddest part is that myself and my two brothers could not be there to celebrate with her as we are all sitting in Dubai! Sorry Mom but you know we would be there if we could! We will all make it up to you when we see you soon! Enjoy your time with other part of the family and your party!

You were always there as we grew up

You're as lovely as they come

In the lottery of life, we got the best

We're so proud that you're our Mum

You didn't study for this job

Or have to pass an exam

So how come you turned out to be

The World's Greatest Mum.

So Mom...I want to thank you for your patience... your encouragement... your strength... your generosity... and your unconditional love...love you always! Happy Birthday and may you have many, many more!!!


That was then...16 years old



This is now... mmm...still will keep you all guessing!

Well...life has been a tad bit busy!

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM! Also to all those Mother's celebrating I hope you got thoroughly spoilt!

Yep! Surprisingly enough it has all been go, go, go the last couple of days which makes life more interesting in Dubai! So, firstly the drivers license saga... I am pleased to announce I am now a legal driver in the UAE! Peter, the boys and myself drove through back to Abu Dhabi on Thursday (now a week ago!), I had a sense of de ja vu! I could not believe we had to do this trip again but after going through the process and now having the right documents it took about 2 hours to eventually have this id card in my hand! The proof...


On Friday (also a week ago now!) afternoon we went to a South African Freedom Day celebration at a hotel called the Le Meridian Mina Seyahi. What a blast! I was so homesick! We meet our one and only SA friends, Bruce and Celeste there and drank in true South African style! It was extremely hot and humid and the venue was running out of alcoholic drinks...I mean, really people, do you not know that South Africans have a reputation for drinking!!! There was a potjiekos competition, Johnny Clegg and the likes blaring out the speakers, over 2 000 expat South Africans mingled around, drinking, drinking and did I mention drinking! The afternoon also included a drumming session (Bryce also enjoyed a session!), lots of South African accents and a buffet including lots of salad and meat! Peter eventually dragged me away at 20h30! We were expecting my Aunt Gwen and Uncle Tommy from Glasgow on their way back to South Africa after visiting my cousin Cheryl in Edinburgh for almost 8 weeks. Aunty Gwen was lucky enough (and so was Cheryl) to meet Prince Charles on this trip! Anyway, we were expecting them to arrive at 00h30 in the morning so we eventually got to bed at 02h00! So a very long day (although we did nape between 21h30 and 00h00 before leaving for the airport - lucky for Peter's alarm on his cell phone because mine didn't go off otherwise my aunt and uncle will still be stranded at the airport!)




Peter went off to work on Saturday while I took my Aunt and Uncle to the "Mall of Emirates" - a huge shopping centre situated about 10 minutes from us and it also has Ski Dubai, the hugest indoor skiing slope in the world. Peter had Sunday off so we went to briefly have a look at the beach, do a bit more shopping and take pics of the Burj Al Arab. Monday morning I braved the Dubai traffic and drove my aunt and uncle back to the Airport - driving in Dubai is a real experience and you have to have eyes literally in the back of your head as there are some shocking drivers out there! Anyway, I got there and back safely which is what counts! It was so nice to have you here Aunty Gwen and Uncle Tommy - miss you already - see you July!

This picture at the Burj Al Arab with Peter, Logan, Aunty Gwen and Uncle Tommy.
I have also been creative the last few days, making cards but will add them to the blog shortly so you can see. On Friday I went to an Art & Crafts day, did my first cardmaking workshop for one person but I suppose it is was a start! Got a few leads so lets see where that will "lead" me.

Anyway, that is it from me for a while...until later...

The saga continues...

Well, the good news is that I eventually got my resident visa! Woo hoo! Which now means that I can get my drivers license! Double woo hoo! Except...the saga continues...

Yesterday morning Peter and I went off to the Dubai traffic department to get my drivers license only to be told that they will not issue it because my resident visa is issued in Abu Dhabi, another UAE Emirate which is about 140 km's drive away. Peter's office is based in Abu Dhabi and therefore, the reason why it was issued there. Peter and I were absolute sure that there was a law that came through at the beginning of March that you can get your license issued in any Emirate but obviously not!

So Peter decides we will take the drive to Abu Dhabi after work as the Licensing Department in Abu Dhabi closes at 20h00. So if we left around 17h30 we should make it in time before they close. Well, how wrong were we! We did get there at around 18h45, got some forms in Arabic and trying to understand the procedure that the information desk was giving us we eventually find out from a very nice Emirate man that we need to get my driver's license typed into Arabic at a typing office. Okay! So off we rush to find a typing office - one thing about the UAE is that no one uses a physical address here - it blows my mind! Basically, if you follow that road, you will get a building and if you turn right there after the next building you will find it, etc. What more can I say...easy to find! No problem! Wrong again!

So off we head to a typing office, to get what we think are the right documents and head back to the Licensing Department at around 19h30 (traffic is a nightmare and isn't it so true that when you want a traffic light to change it takes forever!) only to be told by the very nice Emirate man that it is the wrong documents! So fustration reigns! We now have half an hour to get to the right typing office in the middle of Abu Dhabi city centre which is about a 10 km drive there and back and be back by 20h00! So we get back into the car and head off to try and find the right typing office! Well, you can just imagine how we were feeling at this stage! Peter and I both felt we were part of an amazing race team trying to find clues along the way, it is still hot at 33 degrees and traffic is still a nightmare! Well, as you can imagine, the odds were against us and we never made it in time. We only found the right typing offices - there was a whole street of them - behind that building that the Emirate man told us - after stopping off at various buildings, asking various people who had no clue what we were talking about, eventually after we were just about to give up Peter spoke to another typing office who graciously explained where we needed to be - two ladies, I must add and guess what! At 20h45 we found the right typing office! Unfortunately we did not make it back to the licensing department in time!

In all this going on we still had Logan and Bryce with us, moaning that they were hungry, irritable because they are confined to the car, they are tired and each time we keep trying to put them off to explain that we have to race again time to get what we need! We eventually only managed to get them supper at 21h00 and Peter and I had a much needed Cafe Latte from Starbucks! We left Abu Dhabi - mission not accomplished! We got home at 23h00 - so what can I say, tired and fustrated we have to put it down to an UAE experience which I am sure there will be many!
This was our second trip to Abu Dhabi - the first was last week Thursday to get visa's for my aunt and uncle visiting this weekend and I took pics of the Sheik Zayed Mosque. It is the third largest mosque in the world - beautiful building - facts about the mosque which has broken a few records:


The carpet laid out on the vast expanse is the "World's Largest Carpet" made by Iran's Carpet Company. The carpet measures 5,627 square meters, and was made by around 1,200 weavers, 20 technicians, and 30 workers. The weight of this carpet is 47 tons - 35 tons of wool, and 12 tons of cotton. There are 2,268,000 knots within the carpet.

• This mosque also holds the largest chandelier. There are seven imported chandeliers from Germany. The largest chandelier has a 10 meter diameter and a 15 meter height.
• The Mosque is large enough to accommodate more than 30,000 worshippers.
• There are four minarets on the four corners of the mosque which rise about 107 meters in height.
• There are 57 domes covering the outside yard and the main building as well. The couryard is paved with floral marble designs and measures about 17,000 square meters.

Abu Dhabi is a beautiful city and true to its Arabic influences. Unlike Dubai which has these huge high rise buildings, Abu Dhabi has only a few high rises in the main city centre.

So I will update with the continued saga...

4 card ideas with one stamp!

Hello again! Not much to report from the emirate of Dubai! Although tomorrow (24th) is our wedding anniversary - 9 years! Well done babes for putting up with me for so long! We both need a medal of endurance!

We will be off later on Thursday afternoon to visit another emirate called Abu Dhabi about a 140 km drive from Dubai to get my aunt and uncle their visit visa. They will be visiting us for 2 days next weekend.

So, I did more creating and came up with these 4 cards using one stamp keeping with the theme of the same colours but still managing to make 4 different looking cards.

I hope that these cards will inspire you to get creating!

Exploring Dubai...

We had visitors from South Africa! My brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Rowly and Janet with their 4 boys (yes 4 boys!) visited us for 4 nights on their way back from a holiday in the UK. We had a wonderful but very busy time with them doing all the sightseeing we could do in their full 3 days here! The "Glanville Villa" was stretched to the limit but everyone seemed comfortable when it was time for bed. Quite an interesting thing fitting 10 people into a villa that is meant for 4, maximum 6 people but I think we did really well.

So on the first day that our visitors were here we spent a wonderful day at Dreamland (again!). The boys (including the adult men - Peter and Rowland!) love it as there was so much to do there and they spend 6 hours having races on super tubes and relaxing next to the swimming pool. As you can see by these photos - Rowly and Janet catching up on some much needed sleep!


In the evening we went to the Mall of Emirates. A huge upmarket shopping centre in Dubai where we had dinner. Not a good thing to go on a Friday night because it was extremely busy! One of the advantages about shopping in Dubai on the weekend is that all the malls stay open on a Thursday and Friday until midnight! We didn't stay that late but got home at least around 23h00 after a very long day out!

On Saturday we went around to my family so that Rowly and Janet could say hi and on our way there the adults decided to do an Arabian nights tour. What an absolute wonderful experience. My eldest nephew, Vincent was kind enough to babysit Bryce, Logan and his brothers! Well done, Vince, we really appreciated the break!

So the afternoon started where we got picked up by the tour company at 15h30. What more could we ask for to be chauffeur driven. Unfortunately, the airconditioning the car was not working too well so we did suffer a bit because it was hot! Our first stop was at a place called "The Big Red" a huge sand dune in the desert. This was the meeting point for all the cars and I think we counted around 25 landcruisers once everyone got there. Off we went, one car after the other through the sand dunes. The ride of our life! It is hard to explain but let me tell you, Janet and I were in the back seat and I think our eyes were closed most of the time and I know I screamed out a couple of times, fearing my life! It was like we were on roller coaster ride! Of course, Rowly and Peter were grining from ear to ear with all the antics that the driver was doing! A couple of times we were sliding on one side with sand spraying right over the car where you couldn't see anything and a lot more!

After about a 45 minute ride through the desert, with lovely views and sand dunes for miles! We stopped for a break so that the cars could cool down and we could take in the view. In Janet's case a desparate pee behind a sand dune! We headed off to our destination which was a reeded area with low tables, persian carpets and pillows. Before we sat down to a lovely dinner and a belly dancing show, myself, Janet and Rowland went on a camel ride. Also a very interesting experience with the camel getting up and back down to let us off. We eventually got home around 22h00 to the house still standing and most of the boys in bed. Vince you can come and babysit at anytime!

On Sunday we spent most of the day shopping at a mall called, Ibn Battuta while Peter went back to work. In the evening after supper and getting the boys to bed, myself, Rowly, Janet and Peter went on an evening, informal city tour of Dubai. We visited an area called Al Karama, which is a market but not in the sense of tables and wares but more like shops in an area of this suburb. A lot of "rip offs" of designer stuff ie, perfume, handbags, clothes, watches, etc. As we arrived so late we only had about an hour to shop before the shops started closing at around 22h30. We did some more sightseeing and got home at 00h30. Peter went straight off to bed, I watched Rowly and Janet pack and eventually got to bed at 01h30, Janet at 02h30 only to be woken at 04h45 to leave for the aiport so that they could catch their flight at 08h30! So I think we were all feeling exhausted on Monday, I know I was! I think I am still recovering!

Anyway, it was lovely to have the family around for a while. Missing you guys already! Not sure what I am going to do with myself now - anyone want to come and visit?

I am hoping my resident visa will be issued soon. I went for my blood test on Saturday last week, in amongst all the excursions so lts hope it is a step in the right direction! Holding thumbs it will be this week or sometime next week so that I can get my independency back and become more mobile!

Well thats about it for now but I'll be back!

We went fishing - well Peter went anyway!

On Monday afternoon Peter, the boys and myself went fishing at an area along the Dubai Marina. We drove along a construction site to get there (wherever you go in Dubai at the moment it is a construction sight no wonder there are so many jobs available here in that type of field!). Once we were there it really was a great place - right on the beach. Peter fished along the breakwater rocks and myself, Bryce and Logan decided to take a dip in the sea. Bryce tried to do a little fishing but got a bit bored after a while. It was actually so great to get into a sea where your toes haven't frozen in the first minute! The water was cool enough to swim and not like bath water. It apparently gets like that in the middle of summer. You can also clearly see the bottom as you walk out and it takes a while before it gets deeper and there are no huge waves crashing onto the beach so very safe for the boys to swim in. It might also be because we were there during low tide.

Although the fish were elusive we had a wonderful relaxing hour and a half just being out of the house (myself and Logan anyway!).

I still don't have my resident visa which means still no chance to drive our car but I am hoping the wheels are in motion and that it will be issued soon. One thing we are looking forward to this weekend is the arrival of my brother-in-law, Rowland and sister-in-law, Janet with their 4 boys. They are staying with us for 4 nights so it will be a chance to do more touristy things with them and at least have some more family around for a little while before they get back to SA on Monday.

Here are pics of our new car (a Hyundai -Santa Fe - which I have managed to drive around the block!), some scenery shots of the Dubai Marina along the beach we were at and the boys trying to fish! Logan watching the sun go down.





Me, also watching the sun going down (not my best pose but that's what you look like after a dip in the sea and the salt sticks to you like glue!) Bryce took the picture - not bad for a 7-year old photographer!

Feel free to leave any comments - it will be nice to know that someone is reading my blog!

Until later...

Doing what I do best!

So, I got down to being a bit creative over the last couple of days - have my moments of being inspired as I am so out of routine that I have to get myself motivated to get things done. Let me know what you think...

Still not sure what I am going to be doing with my business. At the moment I am still waiting for my resident visa to be issued (I have been speaking to a few people and it has sometimes taken up to 6 months for their visas to be issued!). Not sure if I am going to survive that long without having a car!
Peter is hoping to go fishing with the boys tomorrow so that will be a lot of fun for them. I will sit on the side, relax and read my book. That is if I can survive the weather. It is getting hotter here - today it supposed to be 33 degrees (feels like 40!) with humidity of 54 %! I heard Cape Town is also having a heat wave! Don't know if I am going to survive the summer! Thank goodness for airconditioning!!

Until later...