We had such a wonderful time back home for the holidays! To further our fun, we decided to stop over in Dubai for two nights on our way back to Doha after the Christmas break in Florida.
I realized as I sat down to write this post that I never posted anything about our other trip to Dubai. When Carol/Mia was here visiting in October, our tourist visa ran out. That means we had to leave the country and then come back in on a new tourist visa. Bobby already had his resident permit so he was exempt but our family resident visa was still in process. Carol and I took the kids to Dubai for the day. Unfortunately, I accidently left my phone and camera in Doha so we have no pictures. :( That day we went to the Dubai Mall which is the largest mall in the world. Inside the mall is a zoo and aquarium that we took the kids to see. Outside is a large fountain display that dances to lights and music like the Bellagio in Vegas. We were able to eat lunch in front of the fountains and enjoy the show. Just next to the mall is the tallest building in the world called the Burj Khalifa. We weren't able to go up to the top because the tickets were sold out but it was quite a site even from the ground. We did take some pictures with one of the kid's ipods so when I am able to put them on the computer I will add them to this post.
It seemed like a great idea to get over the jet lag in Dubai instead of in Doha, but it turns out that part was a mistake. We arrived in Dubai in the evening (around 7pm) which is 9 hours ahead of Florida time. Despite this, Natalie, Avery, and I were tired even though everyone slept pretty well on the plane. We kept everyone up until midnight so no one just slept a couple of hours and then woke back up. Chase and Bobby weren't tired so went out for pancakes at 2:30 am. We hadn't set an alarm (big mistake). When I woke up the next day and looked at the clock, it was 3 PM!!! Agh! We only had one day in Dubai and we were totally sleeping it away!!!
We quickly woke everyone and headed to the Mall of the Emirates. Inside the mall there is a snow and ski resort. The kids and Bobby and I had a fabulous time sledding, snow tubing, seeing penguins, and enjoying hot chocolate. We decided not to ski since it was already so late.
I realized as I sat down to write this post that I never posted anything about our other trip to Dubai. When Carol/Mia was here visiting in October, our tourist visa ran out. That means we had to leave the country and then come back in on a new tourist visa. Bobby already had his resident permit so he was exempt but our family resident visa was still in process. Carol and I took the kids to Dubai for the day. Unfortunately, I accidently left my phone and camera in Doha so we have no pictures. :( That day we went to the Dubai Mall which is the largest mall in the world. Inside the mall is a zoo and aquarium that we took the kids to see. Outside is a large fountain display that dances to lights and music like the Bellagio in Vegas. We were able to eat lunch in front of the fountains and enjoy the show. Just next to the mall is the tallest building in the world called the Burj Khalifa. We weren't able to go up to the top because the tickets were sold out but it was quite a site even from the ground. We did take some pictures with one of the kid's ipods so when I am able to put them on the computer I will add them to this post.
It seemed like a great idea to get over the jet lag in Dubai instead of in Doha, but it turns out that part was a mistake. We arrived in Dubai in the evening (around 7pm) which is 9 hours ahead of Florida time. Despite this, Natalie, Avery, and I were tired even though everyone slept pretty well on the plane. We kept everyone up until midnight so no one just slept a couple of hours and then woke back up. Chase and Bobby weren't tired so went out for pancakes at 2:30 am. We hadn't set an alarm (big mistake). When I woke up the next day and looked at the clock, it was 3 PM!!! Agh! We only had one day in Dubai and we were totally sleeping it away!!!
We quickly woke everyone and headed to the Mall of the Emirates. Inside the mall there is a snow and ski resort. The kids and Bobby and I had a fabulous time sledding, snow tubing, seeing penguins, and enjoying hot chocolate. We decided not to ski since it was already so late.
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| A view of part of the snow dome from above |
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| All geared up and ready to go! |
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| Chase is ready to go, too! |
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| snow caves |
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| Ice Dragon |
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| These Florida kids were pretty excited to see snow (even if it meant coming to the desert to see it) |
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| Even Dad is excited about the snow |
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| Natalie |
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| Avery |
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| Chase |
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| Chase at the top |
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| A view from the top heading down |
Avery and Mommy decide to have a race to the bottom. Here we are getting ready to start...
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| Avery |
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| Mommy |
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| Rounding the last curve..... |
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| Mommy has taken the lead! |
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| Super close race, but the heavier opponent won. "Let's do it again!" Avery says. |
Next we headed over to the tubing hills
After a few runs down the tubing hill, Avery wanted to go on a little "ride" on a tube
And then, a little "warm up" in the gondola
What snow day would be complete without a little sledding?
And a visit by some penguins....
We next headed over to the Atlantis resort on the Palm. The Palm is a series of islands that from the air are in the shape of a palm tree. It was dark by this time, so we couldn't actually tell. The water park and aquarium were already closed by the time we arrived so we checked out the big water tank and ate dinner at an asian restaurant. (it turns out all our kids LOVE anything covered in teriyaki sauce!)
We had to leave first thing in the morning for our flight back to Doha so we then headed home for bed.
Unfortunately, this time it was Avery who wasn't very tired. She fell asleep quickly but then woke up by midnight and was up until 5:00 am. (so of course, so were Bobby and I and even Natalie for part of the time). It turns out all of us being in one hotel room with some sleeping and some unable to sleep was a bad idea that we hadn't thought all the way through. Oh well, live and learn I guess.
We are settled back in here in Doha and the kids are all back at school. Miss everyone already!
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| Natalie and Chase getting ready to ride double |
After a few runs down the tubing hill, Avery wanted to go on a little "ride" on a tube
And then, a little "warm up" in the gondola
What snow day would be complete without a little sledding?
And a visit by some penguins....
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| Entrance to the Mall of the Emirates |
We next headed over to the Atlantis resort on the Palm. The Palm is a series of islands that from the air are in the shape of a palm tree. It was dark by this time, so we couldn't actually tell. The water park and aquarium were already closed by the time we arrived so we checked out the big water tank and ate dinner at an asian restaurant. (it turns out all our kids LOVE anything covered in teriyaki sauce!)
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| Very cool glass sculpture in the lobby at The Atlantis Dubai Resort |
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| Not the best picture, but a rare one of Bobby and I |
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| Chase loved all the sharks in the tank |
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| SHARKS! Did you say Sharks were in here? |
We had to leave first thing in the morning for our flight back to Doha so we then headed home for bed.
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| Dubai skyline at night |
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| The Burj Khalifa (the tallest building in the world) |
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| Room Service at 11:30 pm? Sweet!! Can you tell Natalie is thinking "seriously mom, no more pictures!" |
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| Quesadillas, french fries, and fruit. Yummy!! |
We are settled back in here in Doha and the kids are all back at school. Miss everyone already!
Great fun!! The snow looks just as good as going to Colorado!!
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