I've gotten several requests to show the view from our apartment which looks out to the Arabian Sea.


My son, Chris, who seems oblivious of his spectacular surroundings as he's mesmerized by his own internet game.


This is the British Embassy compound. Spy that I am, binoculars work well observing the many formal garden soirees or when some distinguished sheik arrives.


The whole length of the Corniche [waterside] is in view. A panoramic camera is needed to capture it all. The Cultural Center and Marina Mall are in the distance. If you look closely, there's a flagpole which was the world's tallest freestanding flagpole for two months until Dubai, Abu Dhabi's rival, built a taller one. Also in the distance is the Emirates Palace, self-proclaimed 6-star hotel which charges $4000 a night and never has to make a profit because it's wholly owned by the sheik's family. The Red Bull Air Races took place outside our windows last week. The contest consisted of airplanes making unbelievable maneuvers between huge blown-up cones on the water complete with 360 degree vertical flips. An ex-U.S. airforce top gun pilot was one of the contestants.