Greetings from Dubai! It is now Wednesday and I am feeling rested. We are settled into our room and are taking a day to adjust to and adapt. It's only 99 degrees with 29% humidity - that's quite pleasant here! We are grateful!
The trip went well. Our 22 hour adventure to get here started at 1:30 Monday when our friends, Ned and Linda, picked us up to take us to the airport. Our small plane to Chicago was full but on time. We went from Chicago to DC on another full flight and then had a 13+ hour overnight flight into Dubai. The economy section was only about half full so we had the 3 seats to ourselves. I had a movie on my screen and the map on the screen by the empty middle seat. So, I was able to watch the statistics along the way and still enjoy watching movies. I don't sleep well on planes...mostly dozing on and off. The headset was too big and not snug enough, so I had to hold it most of the time in order to hear well. Andy was quite amused and kept laughing and shaking his head at me. He does sleep on planes, fortunately with his mouth closed!
We went north out of DC right up the east coast. Captured this picture of Manhattan and Brooklyn. (The black at the top of the pic is the wing of the plane.). When we got to Boston, we turned right, out over Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. After hours and hours over open water south of Greenland, we passed over (as far as I could tell) Ireland, Great Britain, Holland, Germany, Czeck Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iraq, and Iran.
The plane averaged 660 mph ground speed at 35,000 to 39,000 feet. The lowest outside temperature was -79 degrees - I needed to wear my jacket most of the way! Tailwinds were in our favor up to 68 mph. Aren't you glad you asked?
I managed to watch 5 movies - a new record for me....The Longest Ride, Little Boy, Far from the Madding Crowd, Still Alice, and Wild... Wild was just finishing as we pulled into the gate! Nice!
These pictures are over the UAE...on the final approach into Dubai International (which is now the busiest international airport in the world).
These are the maps that showed up on the screen as we got into Dubai. They give an overview of the ME... The plane is right over the UAE.
We went through customs, through screening, got our bags (all four of them arrived), and then went through screening again. All fairly quickly. Our friends were waiting for us at the coffee shop. Great to see friendly, welcoming faces. Lots of chatter on the short ride home.
We were unpacked and in bed by 10:00 local time. After sitting inactive for 22 hours, I couldn't sleep. Up until about 3:00 I think...then slept until noon! Seems funny that it is Wednesday already. I may have to run to the Mall...I managed to forget a couple of basic hygiene needs...not much else on the schedule today. Glad to be here and grateful for safe travels. Several of you sent such nice notes and encouragement! Thanks! We appreciate all the support and prayers.
The adventure begins!
PS Keep in mind I blog so I can remember the details as well as to keep you involved! Humor me and keep reading!
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