In three hours I'm taking a cab to Bahrain, where I'll be heading on a plane (via London and Chicago) back to Minnesota. It will have been 10 months and 9 days (or 314 days) since I have been home.
I've been having a fabulous time in Saudi Arabia. Greg and Amy have been fantastic hosts and my cousins have been a load of fun. Their pets are pretty fun too, especially their dog Morrie (who enjoys chasing geckos).
I've been here since Friday, and the week in Saudi Arabia goes from Saturday until Wednesday so most of my time here has been during their week. While they've been at work (my uncle is an HR rep and my aunt is a reading teacher) and school I've been relaxing around the house, going to the beach, and working a little bit on my impending job search. I also got a chance to meet Clements, my aunt and uncle's assistant around the house. He's from India and a very nice guy.
In the evenings I'd do fun stuff with the family. Twice we went into Rahima, the non-gated town about a 5 minute drive away. We got dinner there twice, which was absolutely delicious (I'm a big fan of the Shawarma, which is basically an Arabian burrito). On Sunday night I also got the chance to see Emily and Gus in concert, singing and playing a few select songs.
All in all I've had a fantastic time here. The weather has been quite hot but it's also pretty windy. Because of the wind I've been in a "Shmal" (kinda like a sandstorm), but their idea of horribly sandy air looks a lot like a major city like Bangkok or Taipei to me.
Although I've been able to get on the Internet, I can't seem to access webpages on my personal computer. As a result, I can't post pictures until I'm back home, but I've got quite a few good ones.
Buuuut before I get home I've got a lot of flying to do. Later!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
In Bahrain with family
Between the last time I've posted and now, I went to the beach again in Phuket, flew from Phuket to Bangkok, picked up a suit in Bangkok, flew from Bangkok to Dubai, flew from Dubai to Bahrain, went through customs in Bahrain (which took an hour of waiting in line), got to the hotel in Bahrain, waited, and met up with my uncle Greg and cousins Ben and Gus.
My plane arrived at 8:30 AM and my uncle couldn't make it until 3:30, so I took some pictures around the hotel I'm staying at.
Downtown Bahrain.
The hotel has its own little ocean swimming area.
That's me, Gus, and Ben, giving thumbs up at a the hotel we ate at and that we're going to stay tomorrow night.
Me and my uncle.
We played some pool at Sherlock Holmes, an English pub. Gus wiped the floor with me.
In the cab on the way home.
So yesterday was great. Today we're going to see the Grand Mosque and maybe see a bit of the real Bahrain.
It's good to see some family.
My plane arrived at 8:30 AM and my uncle couldn't make it until 3:30, so I took some pictures around the hotel I'm staying at.
Downtown Bahrain.
The hotel has its own little ocean swimming area.
That's me, Gus, and Ben, giving thumbs up at a the hotel we ate at and that we're going to stay tomorrow night.
Me and my uncle.
We played some pool at Sherlock Holmes, an English pub. Gus wiped the floor with me.
In the cab on the way home.
So yesterday was great. Today we're going to see the Grand Mosque and maybe see a bit of the real Bahrain.
It's good to see some family.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
I may have a new favorite place in the world
Let me tell you something about Phuket: It is WONDERFUL. Today I had an absolutely magnificent day on this island. Let me tell you about it.
Yesterday, I took a plane from Bangkok to Phuket and took the bus then walked to my hostel, the Backpacker's Hostel. It's a really nice place in the largest town in Phuket, aptly named Phuket. After settling in and grabbing some eats around the area, I suggested to some fellow guests at the hostel that we rent scooters and cruise around the island. One guy, John (an Australian carpenter) was willing.
This morning I rented a scooter (200 baht, about $6 US). We decided first to head over to Patong beach, the most popular beach on the island.
The way they do paragliding in Phuket: You run off on the shore and a Thai guy grabs onto the parachute as you're taking off. He sits up with you during your trip. When the time comes, he steers you down on the shore where two other Thai fellows grab on.
After a brief run-in with the law (not me being naughty, John got a ticket for not carrying his Australian license with him), we went to Kamala beach.
We did not heed the "No Swimming" sign and swam. It was magnificent. After that we headed towards a national park.
We saw some elephants on the side of the road. They had elephant rides available but I passed. I had a perfectly fine mode of transportation as it was.
We got to the national park, which (according to our map) has a waterfall. However, there was an admission fee for the park and John had spent all his money on his unexpected ticket, so we decided to head back to our hostel in Phuket. We took a thirty minute break, did a 7-11 run, got some gas, and headed towards the southern half of the island. On the way there, John and I got separated: he was speeding ahead of me and took a turn which I didn't see him take. So I finished my touring of the island by myself.
I forget the name of this beach but it was beautiful.
This is at the Karon Viewpoint, where I buckled down and asked someone to take a picture of me. Now I have proof that I was actually in Phuket (unless you think there's some photoshop conspiracy).
This is Promthep Cape, which is advertised as the best place to see the sunset on the island. I got there about 4:30 and the sun didn't set until 6:41, so I grabbed some eats at nearby foodstands, did some souvenir shopping, took a few pictures, and hopped back on the scooter.
This was taken from the Promthep Cape Alternate Power Station, which is about a 5 minute drive away. They have a couple wind power stations there.
Here's the pic I got of the sunset. Clouds were blocking the horizon, but still got a decent snap.
(I have a few more pictures on my Facebook album, take a look.)
So here I am back at the hostel, a little sunburnt, tired, and satisfied after a full day. I was thinking about going to Phi Phi Island tomorrow, but the weather doesn't look very promising. I might just have a laid back day around here, which would also be pretty fun. (I could put up my other Bangkok photos too!) On Tuesday I'm heading back to Bangkok and then flying to Dubai then Bahrain. I'll keep y'all up to date!
Yesterday, I took a plane from Bangkok to Phuket and took the bus then walked to my hostel, the Backpacker's Hostel. It's a really nice place in the largest town in Phuket, aptly named Phuket. After settling in and grabbing some eats around the area, I suggested to some fellow guests at the hostel that we rent scooters and cruise around the island. One guy, John (an Australian carpenter) was willing.
This morning I rented a scooter (200 baht, about $6 US). We decided first to head over to Patong beach, the most popular beach on the island.
The way they do paragliding in Phuket: You run off on the shore and a Thai guy grabs onto the parachute as you're taking off. He sits up with you during your trip. When the time comes, he steers you down on the shore where two other Thai fellows grab on.
After a brief run-in with the law (not me being naughty, John got a ticket for not carrying his Australian license with him), we went to Kamala beach.
We did not heed the "No Swimming" sign and swam. It was magnificent. After that we headed towards a national park.
We saw some elephants on the side of the road. They had elephant rides available but I passed. I had a perfectly fine mode of transportation as it was.
We got to the national park, which (according to our map) has a waterfall. However, there was an admission fee for the park and John had spent all his money on his unexpected ticket, so we decided to head back to our hostel in Phuket. We took a thirty minute break, did a 7-11 run, got some gas, and headed towards the southern half of the island. On the way there, John and I got separated: he was speeding ahead of me and took a turn which I didn't see him take. So I finished my touring of the island by myself.
I forget the name of this beach but it was beautiful.
This is at the Karon Viewpoint, where I buckled down and asked someone to take a picture of me. Now I have proof that I was actually in Phuket (unless you think there's some photoshop conspiracy).
This is Promthep Cape, which is advertised as the best place to see the sunset on the island. I got there about 4:30 and the sun didn't set until 6:41, so I grabbed some eats at nearby foodstands, did some souvenir shopping, took a few pictures, and hopped back on the scooter.
This was taken from the Promthep Cape Alternate Power Station, which is about a 5 minute drive away. They have a couple wind power stations there.
Here's the pic I got of the sunset. Clouds were blocking the horizon, but still got a decent snap.
(I have a few more pictures on my Facebook album, take a look.)
So here I am back at the hostel, a little sunburnt, tired, and satisfied after a full day. I was thinking about going to Phi Phi Island tomorrow, but the weather doesn't look very promising. I might just have a laid back day around here, which would also be pretty fun. (I could put up my other Bangkok photos too!) On Tuesday I'm heading back to Bangkok and then flying to Dubai then Bahrain. I'll keep y'all up to date!
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