Al Ain Wadi Adventure

Last Wednesday my place of employment had a team building exercise at Al Ain Wadi Adventure. I was pretty excited about the whole thing because I had wanted to go and taking my family would be prohibitively expensive. Besides the cost of getting in, whitewater rafting is 100 dirham for an hour bringing the cost of an hour of fun to 400 dirham not including food and entry. Of course there is the 100 dirhams for all day kayaking, but that is something that you have to actually be skilled for.

When my director told us that we were going, I was pretty excited as I probably wouldn't have gone otherwise. There were three levels of rapids ranging from pretty tame to reasonably thrilling.

There's a rock climbing wall which is 40 dirham for 20 minutes. Unfortunately, between the heat and being tired out with that being the last activity for the day, I couldn't fully appreciate the full 20 minutes.

There's the air park which you can climb on all day for one price of 50 dirhams and is largely the reason that I was too tired for the climbing wall. It was pretty cool and don't worry, they have a harness for people to keep them from falling.

Included in the price of the air park obstacle course is the zip line, which was pretty much fun. You can even ride it as many times as you want.

I don't know what the pricing for this thing was, but for you get to have someone strap you and your two closest friends to a log and let you swing back and forth for a while. The sudden drop was pretty exhilarating. I was in the first group and lulled the others into thinking that it wasn't that scary, but that was more due to being afraid to open my mouth for fear of what would come up. My advice is to avaoid doing this one directly after lunch.

They even have a wave pool that creates a 3.3 meter wave for surfing, but I would never be able to do that without lessons. pictures aren't all that impressive, so here's a video to show what this is like. (Despite what the title of the video says, this is Al Ain, not Dubai.)

I enjoyed the rafting the most and would like to learn how to kayak as that looks like better value. The other activities were fun, but with the heat the water activities were more enjoyable. I would definitely recommend going to Wadi Adventure and having someone else pay for it.

Surgery

About three and a half years ago I broke my arm mountain biking. I mean really broke it. We're talking both the radius and ulna broke completely in half with a bit of the ulna poking out. A few surgeries and a bone graft later I still have one more plate to take out. The ulna wasn't entirely healed when I left Japan so I had to leave it in and hopefully have it removed later. Because I won't be able to make it to Japan this year to have it removed before the bone begins to grow over it, I decided to look into having it done here.

The insurance company told me to have a doctor write a recommendation then they would likely cover it in the UAE or Japan, but definitely not the U.S. A good friend told me to talk to a coworker who recommended a great bone surgeon. With how slowly things here go and in the medical community specifically, I figured that by the time the whole process was completed, I'd be lucky to be scheduled for surgery by fall.

The doctor took some X-rays, had a look and told me that I should come back to have the blood work because once the insurance company approved the surgery, he had two weeks to schedule it. Last Tuesday, I went in for the consultation and blood work and figured I'd hear back a week later. On Saturday, while I was out with my kids, I got a call from the receptionist telling me that my surgery was scheduled for Tuesday, May 31st and I should be at the hospital by 7:30 am for an 8:30 surgery. Also, I needed to meet with the anesthesiologist the day before. I wasn't given an option to change the date. That WAS the date and time.

Not feeling confident that the receptionist told me everything I needed to know, I called back and was forwarded to the technician who did my blood work. She told me that I needed to take the medicine the doctor gave me an hour before the surgery. I explained that the doctor hadn't given me any medicine to which she replied that I needed to come in to the office to get the prescription, and go to the pharmacy to pick it up. As it turned out, not only was I picking up medicine for to take before the surgery, I was picking up the anesthesia injection to use during my surgery to physically hand to the anesthesiologist along with the CD with my chest X-ray on it. All of this was information the receptionist didn't feel necessary to communicate.

When I was in Japan awaiting surgery, I was in the hospital a day or two before the procedure and a few days after. In this case, I'll be going in tomorrow an hour before my surgery and leaving that afternoon. Wish me luck.

Iceland Review

So there's this water park in Ras Al Khiama, but the only thing is that it is an hour outside Dubai and you have to pass another water park to get to it. In addition, the prices were significantly higher than other water parks. The press on this hasn't been great either, including mine. I was curious to go, but the distance involved combined with the high price discouraged me. However, because no one was going to the out-of-the-way, overpriced Iceland, the park dropped its prices to a more reasonable 150 dirhams for people 120 centimeters (4 feet) and over and 100 dirhams for children under that. That was enough to get us there.
Looking at the website, the place looks pretty good. There seem to be a large variety of rides with spacious shaded seating. The website makes it seem like there are a lot of cool rides and tons for kids to do. As it turns out, it was pretty good. I thought that the for the money, it was pretty good.


The rides are pretty standard fare with a few novel rides thrown in to make it interesting. The tube rides end up in a pool of water only about three inches deep making it safe for smaller children. In case there is a worry, the park loans out children's vests for a refundable 50 dirham deposit.


Lockers are available for a 25 dirham fee and are accessible throughout the day via your wristband. In addition, you can put credits on your wristband for use of the food court. The meals there are good and reasonable priced. Also, there are creepy food statues.

There are little mini tube rides and a mini children's play area for smaller children.


They even have a soccer field with artificial turf and water sprinkling on it. When people organize teams, one of the staff will come over to referee.
While I thought the place exceeded my expectations, I still thought Dreamland water park was better. I asked my wife and kids which they liked better and everyone agreed with me. First of all, it was too hot. Even the water wasn't refreshing because it was like a bath. I realize that wasn't the fault of Iceland and am not using that to judge the park. Unfortunately, the lack of green space at Iceland versus the grass at Dreamland did hurt. Literally. The ground was too hot to walk on. The artificial grass (different from the soft, spongy surface of the soccer field) really started to hurt after a few hours. Wearing sandals was an option, but some of the rides ended far from where they started necessitating me making fun of my wife looking for her sandals. Eventually, I went back to the locker to get mine and just wore them on the rides.

Secondly, my daughter is under 120 cm (4 feet). That meant she was restricted from going on most rides, even though my wife was with her, she was wearing a life jacket, and the ride ended in 3 inches of water. When I took my son to the children's area, I was told he wasn't supposed to be there because he was over 120 cm, so we pretty much had to split up most of the day. To add to the insult, on some of the rides the staff tried telling me that he was under 120 cm so couldn't get on the ride. I should point out that when paying for the tickets, they measured him at over 120 cm, charged me accordingly, and gave him a wristband color coded to say that he was over 120 cm so he could get on rides. I later noticed that the measuring stick they staff at the ride was using was a few inches off the ground.

Third, the wave pool was pretty lame. Even my 5-year-old daughter was fairly unimpressed. Sure the scenery was nice as can be seen from this photo of my son posing, but even when the waves were on they were pretty small.

Overall, it was an OK experience. The whole thing is centered around a gimmick so the aesthetics were pretty good. If the amusement park, hotel and shopping mall ever get off the ground, it might be a bit more worthwhile going there. I'm sure I'd go back were it not for the superior Dreamland water park about 20 minutes closer. I think it's worthwhile to see once, but I don't think we need to go there again.

Japan Fundraising

Today the Hilton in Abu Dhabi held a flea market charity event to help raise money for Japan. The bureaucracy that allows fund raising in the UAE has finally given the thumbs up for the Red Cross to hold events. As a result, there are numerous events being held over the next few weeks, and my wife will be going like crazy to help organize and participate in the fund raising process.

The Japanese international School will be holding a Garage Sale, Bake Sale, along with workshops for traditional Japanese arts like origami, Kanji art, and demonstrations of Japanese drama and kendo (kendo from 10:00 to 11:00). This is scheduled for Saturday, the 30th of April from 12:00 to 3:00 pm at the Japanese School near the corner of 2nd and 29th streets, near the French School and AISA.

Also, the Intercontinental is hosting a Ladies only coffee morning on Thursday, the 28th of April from 10:00am to 2:00pm. The cost is 50 dirhams and will include refreshments. There will be Japanese crafts for sale along with a silent auction for traditional Japanese items.

For those who don't have the time or inclination to attend these events, but would still like to help out, here is a great web page that lists all the organizations that are collecting money for Japan relief in Abu Dhabi.

For those that are disappointed in the recent lack of entries regarding fun family outings, ridiculous cars and excessive extravagance, please be patient. We've been busy trying to raise money for Japan. I'll do my best to get back to researching the best place to go ice skating in the desert as soon as I can.

Japan Relief

As everyone knows by now, Japan has been hit by a terrible tragedy. Fortunately for my wife and I, our family and friends are located in the south western part of Japan. They are well away of the from the triple threat of earthquakes, tsunamis, and nuclear catastrophe. Unfortunately, many others are not and while the situation is mostly under control, they need help.

I've been hearing a lot of comments complimenting the Japanese people on how they have refrained from rioting or looting. My wife was confused by this. Ahhhh, the naivete of the Japanese who have no idea why a person would vandalize an unsupervised vending machine or loot in times of chaos. It's a sad statement of society when we have to compliment people for behaving in a civil manner.

With this tragedy, people in Abu Dhabi have been attempting to step up to raise funds for Japan. The Japanese ladies association and has been busy making traditional Japanese crafts such as origami Mother's Day cards and origami shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day. My wife spent loads of time making these things and arranging to raise money at a college in Abu Dhabi (not where I work), and selling them. The ladies raised loads of money in anticipation of the local Red Cross giving permission to raise money locally for the Japanese Red Cross for relief efforts.

Unfortunately, the local Red Cross has yet to give its decision and it doesn't look like they will anytime soon. It is illegal for any organization to raise funds locally for Japan without permission, so all the money raised for Japan relief efforts will now be given to the local university's Japanese Club. The Japanese Ladies Association also had a fundraiser planned in a local elementary school, but now it looks as if it will have to be canceled due to legal issues.

A similar thing happened in Dubai where people have been asking the local Red Cross for permission to raise money for Japan but are "busy" right now and will give an answer "later." According to sources, when the people who were trying to raise money kept calling to get an answer, they were told to, "quit calling or the answer will definitely be no."

As with anything in the UAE, I'm sure there is a very good reason why the local charities are taking the extra effort to carefully consider the pros and cons of allowing charitable organizations to collect money for the victims of this disaster. Individuals are welcome to make donations themselves. However, it is illegal for me to suggest that people make donations to the Japanese Red Cross through bank transfer. In addition, it is illegal for me to suggest that people who want to donate via credit card make a donation on the Hunger Site.

On a side note, I want people to know that it is illegal for readers to write suggestions in the comments section for places where those wishing to donate can help out, even if it is written anonymously.

Masdar City

The UAE has been working on Masdar City, a carbon neutral area of Abu Dhabi, for the past several years. While the goal of having zero carbon emissions has gone by the wayside, they are still working to utilize clean technologies to cut the amount of energy used by the city. I've been hearing about this project since I got to Abu Dhabi a year and a half ago, but only recently realized that people can actually go there now.
The project is due to be fully completed by 2022 when it will reach its goal of 40,000 residents. Right now it is only a few blocks big and is in the pilot stage. There are a few restaurants and cafes along with a bank and an Etisalat shop. It is interesting to go to for a visit. We parked our car and got into one of the little automated taxis that took us to the entrance of the Masdar Institute.

Once in there, you can wander around the little town to look at the architecture and get a bite to eat at one of the restaurants or a coffee at the cafe. There weren't a lot of people there today, mostly people who were there to gawk at it like we were.

Without getting into things too much, I would recommend taking the trip out and wandering around for a little, if just to ride in the emission-free, driverless taxi. Go to view the city of the future.

Bus

My wife likes to take public transport. From the time that we first moved to Abu Dhabi, she's been taking the city bus to find out where the various buses go. She would spend the one dirham to get on the bus and ride it to find out where it went. Within a month or two, she had the Abu Dhabi Bus system mapped out.

With me having time off from work, she was able to finally fulfill a dream: to take the city bus from Abu Dhabi to Dubai and back. Nevermind that we have two cars and that she could drive if she wanted. Even the friend that went along with her when answering her husband's question of why she didn't just drive said, "I think she just wants to take the bus."

The Abu Dhabi and Dubai guide book that my visiting friends left here says that the bus generally isn't for tourists as it isn't very convenient. Still, my wife was undeterred. After going to the Abu Dhabi bus terminal and buying the card necessary to get on the bus then paying to put the necessary fare on the card, she was off. She had been warned that the laborers who take the bus can sometimes have a ripe odor, but she said that it wasn't too bad. She got there with minimal difficulty and was able to get to the Dubai mall.

After shopping with her friend for a while they headed home. In order to get back to the Dubai bus terminal to get to Abu Dhabi, they had to change buses in Dubai at some point. In getting off the first bus, the card reader wasn't working, so they had to just get off the bus without scanning their cards. When the second bus arrived, my wife and her friend couldn't scan their cards to get on the bus. It's a cashless system so they couldn't just pay their fare. The upshot was that they couldn't get on the bus. They had to take a taxi to the Dubai bus terminal to purchase new cards as the terminal is the only place a person can buy them.

In the end, the bus ride was fairly cheap but the experience left my wife shaking her head. My wife summed up the experience by saying, "The guidebook says that tourists shouldn't use the bus but it should say can't use the bus. There's no way a tourist would be able to use the system." Ah, yes. Yet another argument for choosing Dubai for your next vacation.

Balloon Ride

My friends are still in town an still having me drag them all over. Yesterday we had to get up at 4:15 so I could drive them out to the desert for a sunrise balloon ride. The price was a little expensive at 950 dirhams but the ride itself was fantastic. The staff was friendly and they made the ride enjoyable. I would highly recommend that if you're in the area and don't mind spending the money, that you try Balloon Adventures Emirates.

Ferrari World

Yesterday, we went to Ferrari World on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. I've been past it a few times, but it took having friends come to the UAE to finally get there. Seeing as how it's only been open for about two months, I guess I haven't been too lax.

We were able to get on the Formula Rossa, the World's fastest roller coaster right away and even ride it again within about 5 minutes. The coaster has a great big acceleration followed by a few twists and turns.

The other roller coaster, The Fiorano GT Challenge was also pretty good. For this one, the coasters race each other while going above and below each other's tracks. We were able to ride this one a few times with no wait and at one point I had my own coaster and my friends had their own.

The V12 water ride is supposed to be a tour of the inside of a Ferrari 12 cylinder engine, but it was just a spooky ride in which the stinky raincoats don't keep you dry. Here is a picture of one of my friends after the ride looking like she peed her pants.

The simulators were incredible. The thing is that you have to sign up for the next available time. My suggestion if you want to ride these simulators is to go to them right away and get a time because they are very limited. You can pay an additional 70 dirhams to ride one of the professional level simulators, but my friend who rode one said it wasn't really worth it because there was a safety feature that kept stopping the ride every time he hit the brakes too hard.

There were a lot of rides for the kids, too. There were little street simulations that the kids could drive around on. While there weren't that many rides, I could see the rides they did have keeping my kids entertained for hours.

The food was pretty reasonable, too. There were a number of restaurants serving a variety of food. You could go the cheap option, but if you wanted a nice meal, you could get one. I got a freshly made 12-inch pizza along with some really nice bread for 55 dirhams.

The shows and simulator rides were really well done. The 3D movie ride we went on after eating made me a little queasy, though going on after filling up with pizza and bread probably wasn't the best idea.

I would have to say that for the 195 admission, it is well worth it. First of all, we got there at 1:00pm, an hour after opening. I thought that it would be a good idea to go on a weekday, but according to the staff, it hasn't been busy in the new year, even on the weekends. They said that in December there was a 3-hour wait for the Formula Rosso. I would wholeheartedly recommend Ferrari World and would even say that it would be good, if not expensive, for small children.

Burj Khalifa

Yesterday I took my guests on the Big Bus Tour of Dubai which culminated in us going to the top of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. Keep in mind that by top, I mean to the observation deck which is on the 125th floor out of 140. The tour was changed around from last year which was confusing for us as what I remembered about the Dubai tour conflicted with what their map said.

We had booked our reservation time to go up the Burj Khalifa over the internet. Our reservation time was 5:30 so we made sure to get there by 5:10 to allow plenty of time for any problems. We went to the counter and sure enough, we got our tickets that were booked for 5:30 February 7th, two weeks from the day that we wanted.

We were dumbfounded. We explained that it must've been a computer error but then we were directed to the voucher that I had printed out saying the date. We tried to exchange our tickets. We tried to ask for our money back but we were told that we had to try to sell the tickets to someone else. The most infuriating thing about the situation was the staff member's self satisfied smirk that he was giving us as he was being as unhelpful as possible.

Doing the only thing that we could do, we went to the counter to try to buy more ticket for the following week when we'll be back in Dubai. Sensing our frustration, another member of staff asked if he could help. When we explained our situation, he had a quick chat with a woman, who gave him a nod and then he escorted us through the gates.

When we got back to Abu Dhabi we checked out the web site and found the problem. The day that we wanted was booked so we clicked the "next day" button on the website. When you click that button, the system spits out a random day. I urge you to go to the website by clicking on the above link Then click "next day" at the bottom of the page. Sometimes it will actually give you the next day. Other times it gives a random day. Ours was February 7th. Granted we should have checked the date more carefully, but we didn't expect a date two weeks in the future.

In the end it worked out thanks to some helpful people who have probably encountered this situation before. It's a shame that this had to be contrasted with the staggering level of unhelpful staff. Lesson learned. If someone won't help, ask someone else.

Yas Hotel

While I did the Yas Triathlon on Friday, my wife and kids checked us into the hotel and were cheering me on from the hotel balcony. Because they checked into the hotel while I was warming up for the race, I had no idea where the room was. A couple of times I thought I heard them cheering but was unsure of where it was coming from.
The hotel itself is beautiful and has great aesthetics to it. We were able to get a pretty good deal of 553 dirhams (US$150) for a night before tax and service charges. The only drawback was that with the triathlon starting midday, it was difficult to arrange check-in with warming up for the race, but having my wife there made things easy. It was nice being able to take a five minute walk to the hotel, drop my bike off, have a shower, and come back for the awards and post-race food.
The room was stylishly decorated, but all the walls within the room were made of frosted glass, including the shower and toilet. In the shower, there were two knobs to turn on the water. One of them turned on the water on the adjustable shower head. The other turned on the rain shower that came out of the ceiling. When my wife went into the shower to wash my daughter's feet, guess which one she turned on. I'll give a hint: it was the one that surprised her with a deluge of water from the ceiling.

Because the track goes in and around the hotel, there were a number of great vantage points from our room and the various bars, restaurants and common areas. I went for a walk around the hotel and saw the rooftop pool with bar and various other outdoor restaurants and cafes. We'd had some food provided by the triathlon organizers and weren't that hungry so we chose to eat in the room where the kids were comfortably watching television. There was one bar overhanging the track, that would be really cool to watch races from. I was planning on going there for a drink with my wife, but by the time the kids were asleep I was pretty tired from the day I'd had and just wanted to go to bed.I was glad that we stayed, though I don't think that we got everything out of staying in the hotel that we could've. Having the room right there during the race, was a huge plus but I wish I'd had more energy to do a little more exploring or enjoy a drink in the bar.

Optometrist

It finally happened. After over ten years of wearing the same glasses, they finally broke. I normally wear contacts and have been wearing the glasses only at night before I go to bed for the past eight years or so. Still, it was time to get a pair of glasses that wasn't too costly but that I wouldn't be embarrassed to wear outside the apartment.

While this is changing very gradually, when it comes to health services, I tend to be pretty picky. (I still go to the same dentist in the States that I've been going to since I was 13 years old.) I think I get this from all the horror stories I heard about Japanese doctors and dentists while I was living there.

When it was time to get new glasses, I was dreading the prospect of having to go through the process. I needn't have worried. Marina Mall, the nearest shopping mall had about a dozen or so shops. Unfortunately, at the time I went, before 11:00am on a Friday, only one of them was open. I refuse to go to shopping malls after 12:00 noon on the weekends, but from the looks of it, this shop was the only one that was open before 2:00pm. Because I wanted to have a better selection, I decided to come back.

My wife suggested that we go have some dinner there that evening and I could get my glasses. I reluctantly agreed because I didn't want to have to worry about it on Saturday. As we were circling around looking for a parking spot, my wife realized why I had my aversion: shopping malls in the evening on weekends are similar to holiday shopping in the States.

In the end, I looked at a few shops, found some frames I liked, and brought them to the original shop to have the lenses put in. I felt that the original shop, Barakat Optical, were really good about giving me advice about the lenses and had my glasses ready within 15 minutes. The shop I bought the frames at, Yateem Optician, had the virtue of having a specific frame that I liked, though the lens prices were a bit more expensive. Little by little, I am losing my fear of getting services done in Abu Dhabi.

Kids Biking

My kids are off of school this week. Since they don't have to get up early for school tomorrow, I thought I'd take them on a bike ride around the Formula One racetrack on Yas Island. It seems that the event has really built up. It's a lot more organized since the last time that I went. Now it's been expanded to cycling and running and is called "Yas Training Nights." It's most Tuesday nights from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, but you should go to the web page (click on the name above) to find details. You can also view their page on Facebook. When I inquired via Facebook as to whether or not I could run along behind my kids while they ride their bikes, the reply was "No, cyclists must go counter-clockwise and runners must go clockwise for safety reasons." Because of that, I brought my bike to cycle with the kids. I'm pretty sure that the person who sent me the reply must not have understood my question because there were plenty of parents with small children walking behind them while the kids cycled. Once I got there, the people I asked would have had no problems with me walking behind the kids.
I was pretty happy that my kids rode the whole 5.55km circuit. Some nights they have a shorter circuit which might be better for really young cyclists. I can recommend it for getting your kids out of the house on a Tuesday night. Just make sure to bring a helmet for everyone riding. Another plus, it's free of charge. Again, for details go to Yas Training Nights.

Mechanic

I took my truck into the Chevrolet dealer to have the 40,000 kilometer maintenance done on it. Because it wasn't a major job, I was expecting it back a day or two later. That was until the mechanic working on it called me to inform me that my SUV had a leaking gas tank that was going to cost close to 7000 dirhams in parts and labor to fix. Further, the guy at the dealer (rightfully so) refused to release my truck because it was dangerous to drive. While I agreed with the sentiment, I felt that forcing me to pay 6000 dirhams for a new fuel tank when I knew that I could get a used one for a lot cheaper annoyed me.

Ever since my Jeep was clipped by a bus, I was put into contact with a mechanic who will take care of any mechanical or body problem with a car. Any problem that he can't fix, he will outsource. Best of all, he will pick up and drop off the vehicle.

The short story is that I was eventually able to arrange for Nasser the Mechanic to get a gas tank for my truck for 1800 dirhams and 700 to install it. If anyone is looking for a mechanic in Abu Dhabi, I can recommend him.

Dune Bashing

After our first night camping in the Empty Quarter, we wanted to try some desert driving for ourselves, but were a little timid after getting our trucks stuck initially. Neither my friend nor I had any experience driving in the desert. We saw another inexperienced driver get his car incredibly stuck which made us even more nervous. We looked along the main road for some beginner friendly driving and had a short drive in some sandy salt flats.

My son started getting bored so we found a secluded place and set up camp. I figured that there was no point in dune bashing myself if I was going to be too worried about getting stuck to do anything. Only my daughter was interested in going so we gave Gulab, the guy who helped get our cars out of the sand the day before, a call. We met him at his office at the base of the Moreeb Dune. He had given us his card and said that we could choose between having him drive our truck or his truck. He was vague about his pricing, but as it turned out, an hour in my truck was 150 dirhams (about $50) and an hour in his truck was 500 dirhams. Previously, I had decided that having him drive my truck only to be worried about him messing it up the whole time wouldn't be worth it. In the end, I wanted to see what my Chevy Trailblazer was capable of and asked him to drive my vehicle.

First he let some air out of the tires for traction in the sand. I wanted him to give me lessons, but he said that he would show me how to drive and the next time we come out he would instruct me. In the meantime, he was explaining what he was doing and why.

He took us around in some rolling hills before heading towards the sandier dunes. We stopped for a few minutes at a camel farm so my daughter could see the camels.
It was fairly exciting, especially since it was my truck at stake and not his, but he was careful and I could tell that he knew what he was doing.

After the ride, he stopped at a tire center to get the tires filled again. The most terrifying part of the ride was the drive back down curvy two-lane roads.He mentioned that he would take it easy because my daughter was in the truck and because it wasn't his vehicle. I would imagine that for 500 dirhams it would be a much wilder ride. I was glad to have him drive my truck to get an idea of how to drive it in the desert better. At some point, I wouldn't mind trying dune bashing in the desert with his instruction. However, the next time I go there I want to try it in his truck to see what he can do when he really tries.

Empty Quarter

We had a four-day weekend for National Day and the Muslim New Year so I went camping near Liwa in the Empty Quarter, one of the world's biggest deserts. If you have an aversion to getting sand in your tent, I would advise against camping in the Empty Quarter. Fortunately, I've conditioned my wife to not worry about it.We arranged to meet up with some friends that live in Ras Al Khaima that we knew from Fukuoka, Japan. We went to some forts in the area that we read about.
Afterward, we drove to the Moreeb Dune area and after got our trucks stuck. Within minutes, a guy came out to help us get out of the sand and gave us his card saying that he would take us out dune bashing if we wanted. We told him maybe later and decided that was a nice enough place to camp for the night. Looking back at Moreeb Dune (otherwise known as "Big Red"), we could see and hear trucks driving up and down it. It has a 50 degree incline and goes up about 120 meters. At certain times of the year there are organized drag races. (For some videos of that, click here.) In the photo below, the little dots on the dune are trucks driving up and down.We went hiking in the dunes and noticed that it was a popular place for people to drive 4x4 trucks and dune buggies. This lasted until late at night, so unfortunately, we didn't get to experience the quiet of the desert the first night.

We were hoping to do some dune sledding, but the sheets of cardboard didn't really work out. Next time, we might bring some sleds meant for sand sledding. We did have fun playing in the sand dunes. Seeing my kids in the photo below gives an idea of the scale of the dunes.I brought a shisha pipe and in the evening, smoked some shisha tobacco. You can see my brand of choice below.
It got fairly cold in the night and in the morning, everything was covered in dew. There was a blanket of fog that stuck around until about a half hour after sunrise.The first night was fun but we wanted a more serene place to camp the second night. Soon after sunrise, we packed up and moved on to the next place, hoping to get in some dune bashing sometime during the day. For information on how to get there, here is a map courtesy the Abu Dhabi Motors Club.