Domestikatie

Budapest has been very high on my bucket list or a looooong time.  It’s completely justifiable.  I love this place!  I really do.  It warrants a return, next time for a long term stay.  It isn’t just the beauty of the place, it’s also the spirit and tenacity of the people.  They have been through a lot together, this city and its people.  There has been a city here since the first century BC.  Built by the Celts, early history includes being part of the Roman Empire, ruled by the Hun and part of the Ottoman Empire.  Budapest has been through 3 sieges, and survived the occupation of both Nazis and Communists.  While Berlin and Prague fought to topple communism, Hungary simply opened its borders and voted them out of power.  The Revolution of 1989 is considered the very first break in the Iron Curtain.  Ask any native over the age of 30 and they are happy to tell you what they’ve been through, and how proud they are of their city and their country.   The beatings this city has taken are not readily apparent in the beautiful buildings, bridges, and boulevards.  They rebuilt quickly and very well.

We had no specific plans save for dinner on our last night in town when wearrived.  Turns out that was a great choice.  We disembarked just before noon and checked into our hotel, located basically the other side of the Danube from where the ship had docked.  The Hotel Gellert was built as a spa atop one of Buda’s famous baths in 1906.  The baths are still in the basement, and are stunning in design.  Parts of the hotel still show the opulence of the early days, and parts reflect the last complete overhaul, completed during the communist era.  Our room was very comfortable, with a lovely huge window that served as a door onto our top floor carved stone balcony.  I loved it.

The cruise line had sponsored a city tour on the day we arrived.  It had been a cold and damp day, but we had seen the major sights.  We woke up to a stunningly sunny and (relatively) warm day on our first full day in Budapest, and opted to return to Fisherman’s bastion for some photos with actual sunlight to better showcase the beauty of this town. 

We then opted to see the labyrinth and the cave hospital – 2 things I never knew about until this trip.  The “Hospital in the Rock” was created from the natural caves beneath Buda Castle.  The history of this hospital begins with WWII, when the Castle District housed the Government.  At that time, a portion of the caves and tunnels were connected and fortified to be used as an air raid shelter.   On order from the Mayor of Budapest, and emergency surgical center was added.  The hospital was used extensively, and at one point housed wounded civilians and soldiers that numbered almost 10 times the originally intended 60 beds.  In fact, at times they opened up connections into the adjoining caves in order to place stretchers of the less wounded and those recovering.

Between 1958 and 1962, the communists expanded and added fortification again in order to withstand a potential nuclear attack during the cold war.  It was labeled “Top Secret” and was called the Emergency Nuclear Hospital and Bunker.  They have created quite a museum here, with original beds, surgical theaters and instruments from WWII era, as well as the instructions, decon chamber and gas masks from the Cold War.  Our local English-speaking guide was very knowledgeable, and the creepiness factor though high, serves it well.

After our 1-hour hospital tour, we walked a few hundred yard to the entrance of the labyrinths under the castle to continue to view the Buda underground.  This cave system is really huge!  It has many depths and connections, all the way over to the hotel we are staying in if you were to brave the entire distance.
On that end, there are chapels in the caves as well as several natural hot springs that bubble up.

Having had enough of the underworld, we climbed back up to the top of the hill and took the funicular down to the riverfront where we opted for a Segway tour of the Pest side.  What a kick!  I am going to write Santa a letter right now and ask to have a Segway under the tree.  As soon as I have a tree to put it under.  Whenever that may be.

 

The only negative of this trip so far was watching from the ship as Bratislava went by close to midnight last night.  I will have to wait to put a check in that particular box.  The positive of that was that a few of our new friends waited with us to see Bratislava castle.  (It wasn’t that tough to convince them really, it is a fun crowd we have managed to find on board.)  It was worth the wait.  The castle and the town were well lit and made us all smile.

Budapest welcomed us on Christmas Eve with snow and fog, and yet it was still beautiful.  We made a quick stop at the Christmas market before a city tour that oriented us to what is located where.  We are staying for a few extra nights and will be taking in the sights on our own time.  There is so much to see and do here.  I am looking forward to a much less frantic pace, and spending time in the famous baths here.  The fog lifted in time for us to enjoy the final night tour of city lights.  Words and photos cannot do this place justice.

I LOVE Budapest.  This is by far the most stunning city I have been to in a very long time.  Every direction you turn offers another amazing view.  At this moment I cannot imagine a better place to spend Christmas with my love.  Merry Christmas everybody.

The concert we attended last night at the Kursalon in Vienna was fantastic!  It was a combination of music by Strauss and Mozart, along with some Viennese    Opera selections and accompanied by dance.  It was the first time Larry had ever attended entertainment in this genre and aside from the required tie, he claims to have enjoyed it.  It really was very good.  The acoustics in the beautiful music chamber were fantastic and the orchestra highly talented.

I have been to Vienna several times, but this visit was by far my most favorite.  We took a tour called “Hidden Vienna” and got to see some fun and also some bizarre things along the way.  One of the latter is the catacombs beneath St Stephens.  While initially they are not nearly as creepy as those in say, Paris or London or Rome… when you reach the very bottom level the creep factor ramps right on up.  The mass graves of those who died of the plague did it.

The evening tour was of Schonbrunn Palace and the Christmas Market on the grounds there.  We arrived with a couple of hours to kill before our tour, and I used some of that time to attend a strudel making demonstration.  Not at all what I expected, and I loved it!  I will be trying that style at home.

The Palace opened up after hours for the 40 or so people in our group to have a private tour.  Maybe they do that all the time and I don’t know about it, but I was pretty darned impressed with it.  I was once again drawn to the floors.  The workmanship and detail in the wood just captures my attention every time.  Photos were not allowed, but I found this online:

When we returned to the ship, it was Santa’s night.  Normally a crew member stands does the duty, but at the request of our cruise director (and with a bar tab used as bribery) the real Santa made an appearance.  My man just cannot help himself.  Let me just say that the experience with more than slightly impaired adults becomes an entirely different thing!  OMG! Both my face and my stomach hurt from the laughter.

 

We woke up in Passau this morning.  Situated at the confluence of 3 rivers (2 large and one teeny) it is an ancient town that burned to the ground in the mid-1600s and rebuilt itself from the ashes to become something completely different.  There were multiple options for the day, with most opting to go to Salzburg and meet the ship at Linz that evening.  We opted to stay in Passau, and it was an excellent decision.

The local walking tour groups were again divided up, and I lucked into another fantastic guide.  For a little over an hour we went up and down the hills (hill?) of Passau.  In addition to the local history, he threw in personal stories of life in a town that floods just about every single year.  At the town office there are flood water markers showing the flood of 2013 to be the second worst ever.  (The worst happened in the late 1600s.)  As a result of this history, the buildings along the front of the Danube have only shops on the ground level.  People may live on the next level up from the ground floor, but not on it.  So the city owns these buildings and rents the ground floor shops out very cheaply.  Most of these buildings are 4-5 stories, with apartments above the shops.  Out of necessity, the city has done a great job of design and has very good plans in place for flood days.  They have specially designed panels to fit into the windows and doorways to prevent the average flood waters (usually less than half a meter – a foot and half or so) from coming into the buildings, and the window above the entryway doubles as a door.  However, when you look at the flood markers, you see that during at least 4 floods in Passau’s history caused even the level above the shops to be flooded.  Our guide lived in one such building during the 2013 flood, on the first floor above the shops.  He described the flood plan, and getting in through the window/door first from a ready made bridge, and then from a boat.  He now lives at the top of the hill.  I can’t imagine why!

At the end of our tour there was a lovely Christmas market in the same vein as the one in Passau, only much smaller.  There was a fantastic wood shop and a truly great glass artist there.  Of course we were forced to make another purchase.  We left Passau at noon and cruised 6 hours to Linz.  Larry and I opted not to go into town, and instead enjoyed massages on board.  The goal is relaxation, and we are working hard to achieve our goal.

Overnight we cruised to Melk.  As many times as I have been to this region, I haven’t ever had the opportunity to see Melk Abbey.  Both of us took advantage of the cruise offered tour of this active Benedictine monastery and private school.  I am SO disappointed that they no longer allow photography inside.  The floors are inlaid wood floral and paisley design, made of 3 different kinds of wood.  They are amazing!  I went online and the only image I found was this one.  It gives you an idea, but this design was only in 2 rooms, and was NOT the prettiest one.

The walls are hand sculpted plaster.  The building itself was rebuilt in the Baroque style in the 1600s, because the Prince wanted to update the original Gothic architecture in typical “keeping up with the Jones’s” style.

As I write this, we are on our way to Vienna where upon arrival this evening we will hear a live Strauss and Mozart concert in one of the historical concert halls.  Tomorrow Schonnbrun!

P.S. We are having so much fun, and have met some really great people along the way.  This river cruise line has an amazing staff, and I believe that a quick wit and great sense of humor are requirements for employment.  We have laughed so much!  In addition to an overall summary of highlights, I am planning a “blooper reel” of sorts to try and convey the hilarity that has ensued on this trip.  Please stay tuned.

My only fear about this trip was a concern that it would become as ABC trip (Another Bleeping Cathedral/Castle or in this case Christmas Market.)  That was a serious possibility until Regensburg.  The Christmas Market at Thurn and Taxis Palace was the real deal.  It was the opposite of the same thing once again.  The little shops were individually made of wood, and fires built for warmth burned in fire pits with adjoining seating or in fire barrels with bar tops throughout the market.

In previous markets we had to search amongst the mass made junk to find a few treasures.  Here, the items were all handmade and local.  The vendors had genuine smiles, and joked with the buyers and with each other.  There was a group of carolers singing in the interior square of the palace.  It was a good sized market – not too small and not overly huge, and the pathway through the stalls wound through the woods surrounding the palace.  Both the setting and the feel were what I had hoped for when we booked this trip.

We had all day in Regensburg, and it was the first time since we got on the water that we had the opportunity to spend as much time as we wanted.  The day began with a city tour, and this time they divided up the cruise guests into active, normal, and gentle walkers groups.  I opted for active, Larry opted for gentle, and we each had the perfect experience.  The guide for my group was hysterical, with some great stories to interject along the way of the ‘official’ tour.  At least one of them was off color, (but not at all inappropriate).  At the end of the tour, the groups met in the square in front of the cathedral.  Larry and I wandered off to find the nearest biergarten (not surprisingly one of the couples we have become friends with found the same one moments later and we shared lunch).  We had free time for the rest of the day.  We wandered aimlessly through the streets of Regensburg after the Christmas Market, and ended up back onboard about sunset.

I have added Regensburg to the list of places I would like to return to and spend more time in.  It’s a lovely little town, and not overly commercialized.  Its setting, perched alongside the Danube and surrounded by hills covered with the Bavarian Forest, is beautiful.

Our morning begins with a tour of Nuremburg that includes highlights of former Nazi strongholds, and the location of the Nuremburg Trials.  You may recognize this infamous photo that was taken in 1937 of the Hitler Nuremburg rallies.  These rallies were held annually in Nuremburg, at a purpose built venue.  The venue included a reflecting pond to make the colosseum look larger than it was, and a huge flat field where once a zeppelin landed.  Hitler basically created his stages to give the illusion and feel of power.  His goal was to generate fervor amongst the crowds, making the people feel the strength of the group at the same time as the helplessness of the individual.
The Nuremburg rally grounds were originally huge, over 50 square km, but are now preserved on 8 square kilometers.  Soccer practice goals line the edges of the once packed zepellin field.

Along the tour route, we came upon St John Cemetery, or the equal cemetery.  The plots here were laid out in a grid, with each plot being the exact same size as the others.  It is orderly, and very well maintained, and actually quite beautiful.  It dates back to the 1500s, and is extremely well preserved and tended.

The in-laws had stayed overnight and caught up with us at the bug Christmas Market.  Nuremburg claims to have the largest and first one in Germany, and can trace its beginnings back to the 1400s.   The market had some beautiful handmade wooden toys and puzzles, and of course I had to purchase something for our granddaughter.  There was also food, mostly meat.  The guys basically ate their way across the market.  I got an order of some beautiful local mushrooms, sauteed in garlic and served with crusty bread.  That was plenty.  No more meat for me for a while!

We said goodbye to the in-laws and headed back to the ship at midday to begin the trek over to the Danube.  We spent the night on the Main-Danube canal, a 106 mile long canal connecting the Main River to the Danube.  It runs through southern Germany, from Bamberg on the Main to Kelheim on the Danube.  The creation of this commercial waterway allows boats to traverse between the North Sea and the Black Sea, and connects 15 different countries.  It is one of the largest civil engineering projects ever undertaken.  There are a total of 16 locks taking boats up and over the Alps (the lower ones) reaching an altitude of over 1300 ft above sea level, and making it the highest such waterway in the world.  We joined the ship at a point about 1/3 the way through the canal and journeyed 2/3 of it to the Danube.  This included the highest portion of the canal.  It’s an interesting ride in many ways.  For instance, the locks are 12 meters (+/- 40 ft) wide, and our boat is just over 11 meters wide.  It was pretty disconcerting to open the balcony curtains and see concrete directly off the rail.

 It was a bright sunshiny day as we left Nuremburg, but once we pulled into the first lock it looked as though there was an eclipse.  The walls of the lock were 25 meters (about 80 feet) high.  This was the first of 3 such locks taking us up 24.7 meters each and over the European Continental Divide.  There is considerable history on this lock, dating back to the year 793 when Charlemagne decided to open a route through the center of Europe for his battle fleet.  He had a channel excavated between 2 rivers in Bavaria (tributaries of the Danube and the Main) but heavy rains collapsed the banks, and he abandoned the plan.  In the 1830s, Ludwig I of Bavaria began a canal following much the same route as the modern canal, and his remained in use until WW2 but could not compete against the railways and was abandoned.  The project was picked up again by a Bavarian company, with the intent to build a much larger canal that would be able to accommodate commercial vessels.  The bulk of the work took place between 1960 and 1990, and the official opening of the canal was in 1992.  As a result, people can now comfortably cruise all the way from the Netherlands to Romania!

  

The wifi is not dependably strong, so my plan to post daily is somewhat affected…  I will do as much as I can when I can.  Uploading text is much easier than images.  I will be keeping these short, and will do a large summation at the end of the cruise, once I am  home with plenty of solo time to edit, and wifi strength to upload lots of photos….

In a previous life I sent (or tried to send) a fair number of people to Prague, and felt I had a pretty good grip on the history and sights of the city as a result.  I was delighted to have a local guide that was native to the city, grew up during the communist era, and was a participant in the Velvet Revolution.  What a wonderful insight she was able to share with us as we t
oured the city.  Prague is a hilly city, and the Old Town is in a lower section on a bend in the Vlatava river.  The view of old town from any of the surrounding hills encompasses over 100 spires. It really is picturesque.  Sadly our tour day was dark and overcast, so I have no photos that we took to
share with you.  We had one chance to take a photo of the incredible view of Old Town with so many spires coming up.  I am amazed I cannot find the view we had in some stock photo on line, but alas I cannot.  This one comes close though…

We saw the usual spots on our bus tour of city center.  The dancing house in real life is just as lovely as the photos I have seen.  This was one of my favorite photos to include when I did a slide show of Prague.  It offers something a bit different from the standard churches and synagogues.   I knew Prague had a lot of churches… in fact, 120 of them.  During the communist era most of those churches, as well as the Abbeys and Monasteries, were abandoned or went unused, except for the occasional clandestine worship service.  Communism as most know, does not allow for religion.  However, according to our guide, an exception was made at St Vitus cathedral.  In exchange for cleaning the windows of the Presidential Palace,  one priest was allowed to hold the occasional mass.  The sheer size and number of windows he had to clean to the satisfaction of the officers is a testament to his faith.  Our guide did not know the number of masses actually held over the years, but the followers were also faithful.  When word got out, they filled the pews.  Today Prague remains largely Catholic, with only a few of the aforementioned churches being protestant.  A not insignificant number of synagogues also Grace the city and skyline.   Our evening in Prague ended with a lovely Italian dinner, and a late evening massage, before we stumbled back to our room to sleep.

I love Surprises.  I also love Larry’s delight when I have the chance to surprise him.  Though it may not be the best of etiquette to invite the inlaws along on one’s honeymoon, I could not resist the chance to set up a surprise meetup with Larry’s sister and brother in law, who live in Germany.

It was a 4 hour bus ride (including the 1/2 hour break just before the border) from Prague to Nuremburg, where we are to embark on our cruise.  The drive is through pine forest covered hills, and the terrain, with the short needle pines, reminds me very much of Oregon.  Our 30 minute stop is at a way station with wifi, where I send our arrival time and location over to my co-conspirators.  Our stop in Nuremburg is at a small Christmas market, specializing in handicrafts.  I’m slightly concerned because I think it may have the kind of things I might be interested in.  Luckily, only 2 of the stands are actual handmade local items, and I am interested in neither.  As we are browsing a ceramics store, I hear Larry yelp, and then his sister’s giggle, and know they have found us.  Our afternoon in Nuremburg is spent laughing and catching up with family.  We skip the welcome cocktail party on board in favor of dinner with the inlaws.  The dinner is a typical German meal involving 3 kinds of meat, 1 kind of sausage, 3 kinds of potatoes, and 3 kinds of cabbage.  LOL.  There is more meat on the platter than either of us has seen since we left.  We consumed our fair shares, and our bodies rebelled in a most unpleasant way.

After dinner, we eventually find the boat (after a misdirection from Waze, who stills swears that road has not been turned into a pedestrian path) and are welcomed aboard by our cruise director, who was in on the surprise.  He had emailed me the GPS coordinates so we could make our way onboard without too much difficulty.  We have a top level suite with a balcony, and it is perfect.

Still Loving Life.

So here’s is how we got here…

Before we got married we had a honeymoon plan:  A suite on Holbox Island for at least 2 weeks… no phone, no internet, no contact with the outside world at all.  The perfect honeymoon.  And then life happened.  Larry’s plan for post-retirement consulting gig didn’t fire off until the 10^th of April.  According to the plan, he was supposed to have finished his first short term gig prior to our April first wedding date.  Yeah… best laid plans, etc. etc.  Honeymoon delayed.

Fast forward to the end of April when I go to visit my new husband for a pseudo-honeymoon during which I had planned a surprise trip to a very nice B&B in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.  I flew into Portland, OR and made the 4 hour drive through the Columbia Gorge to the tri-cities area of eastern Washington where he was working.  Immediately upon arrival he asked if I had spoken with my daughter and I said no.  The Columbia Gorge is pretty intense.  No talking or texting while driving!  He suggested I call her right away and so I did.  RD version… my daughter needed some help and we ended up with our granddaughter to care for.  So… honeymoon delayed again.

Life happened, Abu Dhabi happened, and here 20 months later we are just getting around to our honeymoon time.  No agenda, nobody else to consider, no worries…. We are doing it right!  Hitting 2 of my bucket list destinations – Prague and Budapest – and 1 of Larry’s bucket list to do items – European River Cruise.  And we begin today.

Our flight from the sandbox to Prague had a layover in Milan and was relatively uneventful. We arrived in Prague and our 25 minute ride to the hotel took us past some beautiful parts of town. 

Prague is centuries old, with its origins in the late 800s.  It was not of strategic interest in any of the world wars so most buildings have remained primarily intact.  The architecture is relatively preserved, intricately detailed, and phenomenal.  We found that to our delight, our hotel is in Old Town.  (The the building housing our hotel is from the communist era, and possibly the least attractive monstrosity in the area, but nevertheless the location is fantastic.)

We dump our luggage in the room and head straight out to explore.  Prague is a fairy tale city filled with stunning architecture and touched with whimsical detail in every view.   Even the shop window displays make you smile… (this one depicting Larry in our first ski trip together in high school.)

We walk the 3 or 4 blocks from our hotel to the Astronomical clock and Old Town Square, where there is a giant Christmas tree in front of the Church of our Lady of Tyn, and a Christmas Market has been set up in the square.  We hit a street vendor for a grilled sausage and some hot ementhal to split for lunch, accompanied by the requisite local beer and a cup of mulled wine.  It is the perfect beginning to our trip.

The past few weeks have seemingly moved by at light speed, and suddenly it has been a month since I posted.  I am so sorry.  We went back to the US for Thanksgiving, and got back home with no recovery time for National Day.  Then my husband was Santa.  Tonight we leave to take an actual vacation together (but that’s another story).  Regardless of the speed with which it all moved, it has been a positive and educational time for both of us.  This is a composite of 2 posts I had completed but not edited… talking about a few things we have learned along the way the past month…

Change your expectations and you will change your experience…  In order to help assuage the fears of our families in response to the move we made, my husband and I agreed to come home for Thanksgiving this year.  It was almost precisely 24 hours between the time we entered Abu Dhabi International airport and the time we walked outside at Phoenix Sky Harbor.  Exhausted but smiling, we exited baggage claim with our oversized (and Christmas gift laden) suitcases to begin our holiday at home.  By the time we finished laying out our plans, we realized that we were pretty jammed for time.  We had intended to stay busy, but I think we could have planned in a bit more down time and still enjoyed ourselves.  The highlights of our trip were being able to see some snow – a dusting in our home town of Flagstaff and an actual snow storm at the in-law’s place in Forest Lakes.  The genuinely happy faces of our families (including kids, extended family, and our granddaughter) made our hearts smile, and enjoying life with the ever changing and growing annual Saturday after Thanksgiving crowd really put the icing on the cake.  Everything was just about perfect, and SO much fun!  Also fun?  Hanging at my folk’s house for a surprisingly relaxed extended period (refer to first sentence of this paragraph.)  Our plans do not have us returning to the area for quite a while, so the memories made this trip will have to last us a while.  We are grateful that they are primarily positive.

Cab Drivers make great tour guides… On our return home we opted to stop overnight in San Francisco as opposed to making the trip all the way through.  Those of you who are FB friends with my handsome hubby saw the slide show he posted about the experience.  He had some GREAT photos.
From my perspective it was a fantastic and fun few hours we got to spend together.  He had never been to San Francisco before, so my goal was to get him to see as much as possible.  With his gimpy ankle I did not take us on any hilly walks, just caught BART from SFO straight to the pier.  Turns out he had never before been on a subway either.  (??)  Anyway, we walked a few blocks so he could get a few good views of Coit Tower and the Transamerica Building, and then we grabbed a pedicab to Pier 39.  Our pedicab driver had lived locally for 15 years and had some great suggestions and colorful stories about the local life.  At Pier 39 we got a great view of Alcatraz and the Golden Gate, and of course the ever present sea lions.  Then it was on to Fisherman’s Wharf for dinner at a classic – Alioto’s.  We scored a window table and were able to watch the sunset reflect off of the Golden Gate – beautiful!  From there we walked (slightly uphill) to Ghirardelli Square for dessert.  Still I did not think he had seen San Francisco enough to really get it, because looking at the hills is not the way to experience them.  So we grabbed a cab back to the BART station.  I explained the situation to the driver, and asked him to take the ‘scenic’ route to whatever BART station was on the red line.  A few verification questions later we were off.  Man did this guy do his job!  UP and DOWN, and all around.  Pointing out views in both directions and ending up at the most scenic of BART stations, with trees and shops in every direction lit up for Christmas and music playing all around. 
What a glorious ride!  And my guy got a much better feel for the city as a result.  A subway train ride back to the airport and quick shuttle to the hotel and we had almost enough sleep before we had to return to the airport for our 16 hour flight back to the sandbox.

The United Arab Emirates is very proud of its existence…  We arrived home for National Day – the UAE’s equivalent of 4^th of July.  December 2 is the anniversary of the date that all 7 Emirates signed the agreement to become a united country.  The UAE is a very young 45 years old.  The people are proud of their accomplishments to date and were out celebrating for 3 full days.  The roads were lined with lighting reminiscent of Christmas in most American downtown areas.  Many buildings were lit up in designs that ranged from simple words or the national colors of red, green, black and white in a specific area up to animated light shows that bounced around the sides and top to bottom.   Streets and parks downtown were jammed with families sharing picnics, people singing, and cars covered in silly string.  In fact, kids sat on street corners waiting for lights to turn red so that they could give away free cans of silly string for others to squirt (it’s called Aerosol Web or Streamer Spray here).

Several fireworks shows were planned across town, and we were lucky enough to snag a front row seat aboard the boat of a friend as it sat in the Marina directly across from the Emirates Palace Hotel which hosts what is rumored to be the best of those fireworks shows.  Before the fireworks began, we were treated to an air show put on by the UAE Air Force and Etihad Airways.   Sadly, we viewed part of this from inside a cab as we tried to make our way through traffic that backed up for miles on every street in every direction.  But… as we were sitting at a stoplight, I looked up and witnessed a plane in what appeared to be free fall, twisting and turning, and spinning, as if the engine had been shut off.  I see no other explanation for the gyrations.  It scared me!  Then suddenly, the plane was off to the west like a shot, still trailing green smoke.  I was so enthralled I forgot to take a picture!

We arrived at the Marina and joined our friends on board the boat, settling in for a long night.  We suspected that the traffic going back was going to be even worse than coming over.  The plan was for pre-show barbecue and cocktails, then fireworks, then sit back and relax for a while before attempting the homeward trek.  The fireworks did not disappoint!  From our vantage point we could see as one show began at the other end of the beach, on Al Marayah Island.  It ended as the second show, about mid corniche began.  The second show ended and we waited for the platforms in the water right in front of us to light up.   Word was passed down the pier that our show would begin in 15 minutes…  As we sat waiting, we witnessed people on the other side of the small bay begin to gather along the waterfront.  Tourist Boats filled with partiers came around the jetty and stopped several hundred yards south of us until a line of them had formed, effectively blocking most of the boat entrance to the marina.  Still more people lined up along the entranceway to Marina Mall, and along the rooftops of the villas adjacent to it.  Still more people were on the rooftops patios and the beach of Emirates Palace hotel…  Then the show began!  Wow.  I have seen longer shows, but I do not believe I have ever seen one that used more fireworks than this one.  I was dumbfounded.  Directly in front of our spot we initially saw 3 platforms.  There were in fact a total of 11.  Each one put on a show, sometimes in sync, and sometimes individually.  The whole thing was highly choreographed and simply incredible.  At one point, we thought a mistake had been made as fireworks shot out into the water.  Then suddenly it was if the water were on fire!  I hadn’t seen anything like that before.

We were right about the traffic going home.  It took us over an hour and a half and  that was after we got in the taxi – it took almost an hour just to for the cab to get to Emirates Palace Hotel to pick us up!  

Final lesson – Santa is a rockstar…

And then came Santa… When I researched how to do a blog, one of the suggestions was not to use your own name, or the names of those around you.  That said, I think there are 3 people actually reading this thing, and at least one of those is my mother.  So I think it’s safe.  Those of you who are facebook friends of Larry’s may have already read his story of Santa this year, as well as the history of how he came to be playing Santa year in and year out.  Then I came along, and last year I joined in as Mrs. Claus.  Moving over here we did not think it would be necessary to bring his Santa suit.  We simply thought he would take a hiatus for a few years and jump back in whenever we got back to the states.  For some reason, we assumed there would not be a big demand for Santa Claus here in Abu Dhabi.  We were wrong.  WAY wrong.  These people do Christmas like everything else – over the top.   So when we came home from Thanksgiving visit, we brought back a Santa suit.

After National Day, all of the malls were suddenly decorated, with trees 2 and 3 stories high.  Santa visiting areas were created with beautiful whimsical Santa chairs, surrounded by amazing decorations.  Santa sees not only kids, but also parents, nannies, and anybody else who wants to jump in.  The biggest difference is that the decorations don’t go up until after National Day (about the 5^th of December this year) and Santa does not arrive at the malls until 10 days before Christmas.  (That’s refreshing isn’t it?)  Also no endless loops of carols.  Just a few interspersed here and there with the standard muzak style pop tunes normally running in the background.  The exception to all of this was Santa Larry.  He showed up at The Club on the 8^th, and at the American Cultural School on the morning of the 10^th, then back to the club that night.  He was Santa for 12 straight hours!  Holy Sweatballs Batman!  Lare estimates approximately 1200 kids on his lap and 14 pounds of water weight shed that day.  It was a big success.  He is truly the best Santa ever.  The kids love him, and they get to tug on his beard.  I think the best part was that several of the smaller ones were at the school, and then later at The Club.  To see the same guy both places made believers out of them!  He chatted about how the reindeer didn’t like the heat, so he left them at home and travelled by magic instead.  Then there was the little girl who said all she wanted for Christmas was for her little sister to get out of the hospital.  Larry told her that Santa was doing everything in his power, and so were the doctors.  She climbed off his lap and took her piece of candy, and I thought Larry was going to lose it.  He took a few deep breaths and then called for the next kids in line.  I continue to be amazed by this strong and gentle man I married.  What an adventure we are on.

And speaking of adventures… as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, we are hopping a plane tonight.  I had to get this post finished and up so that I can take you along on our journey.  The next couple of weeks I hope to be able to post a series of short travel blogs as we make our way down the Danube.  I hope you will tune in.  (All 3 of you.)  

AND BONUS! In case anybody has ever wondered what Santa’s exercise routine looks like – here it is:

 

Abu Dhabi is a highly populated city in a relatively small area, primarily on an island.  In general, the set up is similar to Manhattan Island, only in a much smaller scale.  Also similar is that it’s a city of taxis takers and walkers.  With the weather as nice as it is now, I have switched from being almost entirely the former to almost entirely the latter.  Abu Dhabi is designed on a grid system, with separate communities within each grid of primary streets (more on that in the next post).  In a previous post I shared the walk I took in the evenings.  What I did not share is the fact that it is designed to have a separate area for bicyclers (one lane in each direction, separated from the road as well as the walking area) and a runner’s track (padded to lessen shock on the legs).  These 3 options run parallel to what they call the Corniche, which is basically the beach front.  All major east/west-ish roads run from the east/ northeast (within sight of the Grand Mosque) to their end at the Corniche on west/southwest end.  The photos below show the basic design, with the Corniche Road running along the water front.  You see the walkway and bike path on the water side of the road.  There is a continuous public park, with different walkways and the padded jogging path to the city side of the road.  Parking areas run between the park and the buildings. 
To legally cross the major streets, one may choose to take a crosswalk, or one of the couple of pedestrian bridges, OR use one of many pedestrian underpasses.  From where we live, any walk will usually begin along the Corniche.  Along here the pedestrian crossings are primarily via underpasses.  They are usually built at corners of the major roads that come to a ‘T’ intersection with the
Corniche.  The tunnels will go to/from either side of that street as well as under Corniche Road.

The entrances to the underpass tunnels vary in size, but are all quite grand, with water fountains at each entrance, and the option of either stairs or a ramp on most (ramps only at a few of the smaller ones.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Each of the underpasses is decorated with a tile motif, and no two are alike (at least none that I’ve seen!)

Some of them have large painted tiles

Some have mosaics of 1 inch tiles.

The tunnels beneath the roads serve as both an easy way to get from one side of the road to the other, but also as a great guarantee of shade during the summer.  They are quite safe (monitored by the ever present Abu Dhabi CCTV system) and kept amazingly clean by the city cleaning crew.

 

 

 

I’m very impressed with both the design and the maintenance of the public areas in this city.  It is so outdoor friendly, and that is a godsend to me.  My initiation into life here was pretty rough.  I arrived at the worst possible time of year and frankly was not at all sure I could pull off living here.  Still, by forcing myself to get out and about I could see that there was a clear invitation created by the designers of this city.  There simply HAD to be life at the end of the tunnel (pun intended).  Heck they even provided extra creature comforts….       …One I haven’t ever noticed in a facility of it’s size in US (or even some much larger).  Seems a reasonable addition to me.

I am going to enjoy the next several months here.  Moving forward, October through April are definitely our home time, and the time for friends and family to come visit us.  You will love it here.