a new chapter!

We watched the Obama inauguration on Tuesday with Democrats Abroad at the Dubai Marina Yacht Club -- an event that attracted more than 200 (including Jack Carter, Jimmy Carter's son, who shared stories of walking down Pennsylvania Avenue) and lasted past midnight. It was an evening of history, excitement and a renewed sense of hope and one we won't soon forget.

Read more about it in the Gulf News. Chris Hansen, who is the president of DA and quoted in the article, is pictured above with Jon.

kayaking

Jon's Christmas present was promptly put to use in the Dubai Marina and then on our first trip to Fujairah - 1.5 hour drive to the other side of UAE on the Indian Ocean side. There is a marked difference in the terrain; instead of sandy dunes, you see sharp and uninviting mountains. But, of course, there is still a beach!

congratulations!

Congratulations to...


Lisa, John, and Cole Riggs - Looking forward to seeing Carter (born Dec 30) next time. If only he could have popped out a day earlier!


Nikki - Residency placement in London! (free place to stay!)

Herman - Landing a leading role in A Midsummer Night's Dream, a LIPA (Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts) production! For those of you in Liverpool May 6-8, the performance is open to the public.

kerala

We still owe a bit of an update from our India trip last month. We first went to Bombay for 3 days to visit Simi's parents (who relocated there from Bangalore in late November) and then met up with two other couples for a 8-day tour of the southern Indian state of Kerala. It was a great trip, albeit not terribly relaxing. Had forgotten how long it takes to travel from one city to another in India; 100km can mean 5-6 hours in the car and our itinerary was designed so we went from one place to another every other day. Ugh.

Nevertheless, it's a beautiful part of the country, with a unique cuisine (lots of seafood and coconut), countless tea plantations, beaches, wildlife reserves, Ayurvedic massages, and houseboats that cruise the backwaters. Definitely something for everyone.

After getting back, we were ready to take another vacation...which we promptly did, heading to the US one week after coming back :) December was a great month; because of UAE National Day, Eid al-Adha, our xmas holiday and New Year's, we spent less than 5 days in the office!

happy new year!

Here's wishing everyone a safe and healthy 2009! New Year's Eve was the day after we arrived back from the US, so we planned for a small get-together of friends who were also in town. Menu was hamburgers, peanut butter cookies and champagne.

Good thing we didn't make arrangements at a bar/restaurant in town; as a sign of solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza conflict, the Dubai government cancelled all NYE events, which included live/background music and fireworks.

Our trip back to home was really relaxing and much needed after a frenetic few months in NL and UAE. We spent 3 days in Houston visiting with Chacha & Chachi, Herman (who turned 21!!), Roma Auntie and Natausha. It's also where we finally understood the Wii phenomena; Nat and Cam indulged us one night with a Rock Band marathon til 3am. We then headed to Edmond for Xmas with the Womacks, which was great. Did A LOT of eating, drinking Dr Pepper, shopping, seeing family, watching movies and general lazing around. It was exactly what we needed.