Ramadan is finally over. Bob and I had been earnestly watching for the new moon to appear at sundown, signaling the new month. I'm sure it's tough being Islamic and not being able to eat or drink during daylight hours. Most restaurants complied by not being opened during the appointed time. The only thing worst than NOT having a Starbucks down the street is having a Starbucks down the street that isn't open until the sun sets.
We should move into our apt. by the end of the month. We'll be living in the Hilton Baynuna Tower on the 16th floor with a mesmerizing view of the Persian Gulf or what the Arabs like to call the Arabian Sea (much more romantic). Our apartment is the same size as our Houston house but it seems much smaller to me. I hope I can get all the furniture I shipped over into it.
Bob and I drove to Dubai last week-end (that's Friday & Saturday here; Sundays a work day) and saw a surrealistic city. It appeared to be a futuristic Hollywoodesc idea of a completely different planet. Huge, TALL skyscrapers with a crane on top of each one, all emanating out of a desert like some strange monster; each new building trying to outdo the next in unusual architecture and height. There is construction going on for the tallest building in the world here and the actual height is top secret - the Sheik, apparently, does not want to be outdone. With all the new building going on there seems to be a permanent dust bowl lingering overhead only relived by the breezes coming from the Arabian Sea and blowing the brown inland.
To escape the dust and heat we went to the gargantuan Emirates Mall in Dubai where, on one end of it, there is a huge indoor ski slope with everything from the bunny slopes to the black (difficult) slopes, to a kiddy sledding area, and a real loge run. . .Oh, and of course a ski lift. So while it might be 105 degrees outside it's a freezing 30 degrees inside. All the haute fashion names had their stores here. Basically it made the Houston Galleria look like K-mart. They've got money to burn here.
We also caught a glimpse of the 7-star (I didn't know they gave out that many stars) Burj Al Arab Hotel. That's the one that's shaped like a sail and situated on it's own little man-made island just off the mainland. Rooms are only $1500 a night. Like I said they've got money to burn here. It was a bit over our budget so we stayed in the 3-star, St. George Hotel, built just after the British occupation, - large rooms, worn carpets but a great view of Dubai Creek and right next to the old souk and gold souk. (souk=open air market area) After 2-3 hours exploring the souks and getting great offers for Rolex watches, we realized we were becoming quite dehydrated from not being able to drink water in public with temperature in the 90's. I don't know how the Muslims do it. We, of course did the tourist thing, and hired a private dhow to take us along the creek and while we sat snuck drinks from our bottled water.
The desert oasis of Al Ain coming up next.

I got caught yesterday lugging my bags of grocery back the hotel when the call to prayer rang out from the minarets. I’ve heard they used to have a guy up there chanting but now they just have speakers wired at the top. Somehow it loses mystique going from solitary male chanter to techno but I guess it gains somewhat in volume. You can hear it all over the city. I find it rather melodious and enchanting. Anyway, as I was walking by the Mosque I saw all sorts of men coming out of buildings responding to the call to prayer. It occurred to me, “where were all the women?” Is this an invitation only event and women (or kids) are not invited or were they just too busy cooking for the soon to be Iftar (the evening meal that breaks the day long fast of Ramadan?) Do women have to pray in solitude – what’s the deal? I'll get back with you when I find out.
By the way, even from a distance it is easy to tell the difference between a male and female. Males wear long white robes and females long black robes (abayas) – kind of black and white culture. I read in the local paper that the Islamic religion doesn’t require a full face covering just a scarf (shayla) covering a women’s hair. The Quran stated only Prophet Mohammed’s wives had to have their faces covered. So it’s an optional only deal here. About 20-30% of UAE national women choose to cover their faces in addition to wearing the black abaya. Traditionally, the gold colored burkha mask which covers the cheekbones, nose and brow was the favored form of face covering but the younger crowd is favoring the full black veil. It’s a kind of shear black face covering – one way viewing only. Personally, I’d go for the full black veil too. You can stare where you want to and nobody will know, plus you don’t have to bother with eye make-up. Bad hair day? - nobody will know.

It's day 3 in Abu Dhabi with Ramadan in full swing. So what does this mean? If you're Muslim then nothing must pass your lips from before sun up and Iftar (after sun down). If you're an expat then you can't do that in public. That means no restaurants are open until late - 7pm-ish. A lot of shops are open from 6pm. until 3am - grocery seems to be excluded. I'm glad our luxurious hotel suite has a kitchenette included and, oh, we can eat in the hotel restaurant. Which reminds me of our first phopah. Bob and I had brunch the first morning and were curtly reprimanded when the curtain by our table that I had opened was quickly closed by the head waiter. He quietly said, “It’s Ramadan, no windows open.” like we should have known better than expose our disrespectful behavior on the busy street below. Apparently us foreigners are allowed to eat but must do so in abject secrecy.
Bob's workday is from 8am to 2:30 but only during Ramadan. Back to regular hours after the next new moon. He's happy as a lark about the early dismissal and that the golf courses aren't closed for the big "R".