Our last full day in Dubai was a bit of a rest ahead of the flight to Paris tomorrow afternoon (Fri 28 May). In keeping with Sandra's shop-to-you-drop plans, we first hit the Mall of the Emirates which we missed yesterday. The mall is not as big as the Dubai Mall, but boasts the only ski resort in the Middle East which looked pretty cool (but let's not worry about the greenhouse gas emissions there!).
On any holiday, it's the little, unexpected things that sometimes stand out as a memorable moment. One such was a simple visit to an icecream parlour at the Mall of the Emirates where the guys rolled up and feeze grilled the icecream. Sounds pretty simple, but they were an energetic bunch of young guys who tossed the icecream into the air and showed off a bit by throwing it across the room to one of their colleagues who was supposed to catch it (baseball style) in the small tub. Only thing was that the first attempt resulted in a dropped catch and a round of laughter from the kids as we were the only ones in the store at the time. We might have egged them on just a bit, because a second attempt also ended up on the floor on the other side of the store, a third attempt ended up going right out of the store and into the Emirates Mall. But it was the fourth attempt that was truly 'Funniest Home Video' material. The guys were so keen to make up for the failed efforts and wanting to impress us (now laughing hysterically) that one went out of the store so they could make a 20 metre pitch to catch the icecream. Well, that was the plan. Bloody funny when the icecream completely missed the mark and ended up hitting some poor lady in the head and covering her burqa in Lachlan's bubblegum flavoured icecream with gummy bears! (There's an internet upload restriction at the hotel we're staying at at the moment, but when I get a chance I'll post the videos ... very funny stuff!).
At the same mall, we were intrigued by these rather cool looking Arabian lamps (ended up buying a small one). The sales assistant, a very serious looking Arab, had Lachie (and eventually himself) in fits of laughter at the old pulling a dirham (local currency) out of his nose trick. Ah the simple things. (Footnote: Lach is getting called 'Harry Potter' a bit by the locals ... something about being a white kid with glasses. LOL!).
I got to be an international rail gunzle by encouraging the family to catch the train from the Mall of the Emirates, back to the Dubai Mall we visited yesterday to buy a few things before the trip to Europe tomorrow. Yes, they have a smartcard ticketing system that actually works and is easy to understand as a tourist (unlike some places I know!), and they're rather big on over-the-top, huge railway stations for a reasonably small train line. Still fun nonetheless.
So, salaam to Dubai. It was hot, but fun. Next post from Paris ...
On any holiday, it's the little, unexpected things that sometimes stand out as a memorable moment. One such was a simple visit to an icecream parlour at the Mall of the Emirates where the guys rolled up and feeze grilled the icecream. Sounds pretty simple, but they were an energetic bunch of young guys who tossed the icecream into the air and showed off a bit by throwing it across the room to one of their colleagues who was supposed to catch it (baseball style) in the small tub. Only thing was that the first attempt resulted in a dropped catch and a round of laughter from the kids as we were the only ones in the store at the time. We might have egged them on just a bit, because a second attempt also ended up on the floor on the other side of the store, a third attempt ended up going right out of the store and into the Emirates Mall. But it was the fourth attempt that was truly 'Funniest Home Video' material. The guys were so keen to make up for the failed efforts and wanting to impress us (now laughing hysterically) that one went out of the store so they could make a 20 metre pitch to catch the icecream. Well, that was the plan. Bloody funny when the icecream completely missed the mark and ended up hitting some poor lady in the head and covering her burqa in Lachlan's bubblegum flavoured icecream with gummy bears! (There's an internet upload restriction at the hotel we're staying at at the moment, but when I get a chance I'll post the videos ... very funny stuff!).
At the same mall, we were intrigued by these rather cool looking Arabian lamps (ended up buying a small one). The sales assistant, a very serious looking Arab, had Lachie (and eventually himself) in fits of laughter at the old pulling a dirham (local currency) out of his nose trick. Ah the simple things. (Footnote: Lach is getting called 'Harry Potter' a bit by the locals ... something about being a white kid with glasses. LOL!).
I got to be an international rail gunzle by encouraging the family to catch the train from the Mall of the Emirates, back to the Dubai Mall we visited yesterday to buy a few things before the trip to Europe tomorrow. Yes, they have a smartcard ticketing system that actually works and is easy to understand as a tourist (unlike some places I know!), and they're rather big on over-the-top, huge railway stations for a reasonably small train line. Still fun nonetheless.So, salaam to Dubai. It was hot, but fun. Next post from Paris ...
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