July 28, 2016
Hello dear friends,
After months of planning, weeks or organizing and days of details and packing and saying good bye, especially to Mom, we are finally on our way.
Our 15 hour non-stop flight from SFO to Dubai was quiet, smooth and comfortable. We were on the largest plane I have ridden in, an Airbus 380 complete with two whole floors, 486 seats in three classes and 26 friendly, helpful and well groomed cabin attendants. We were blessed to be on the upper floor in business class.
Business class seat in our Emirates Airbus 380
Our seats included a mini bar, iPad, full screen TV, toilet kit and a seat that slides into a flat bed. We were provided with a bed pad, a quilt and a pillow. All the window shades, surprisingly, are controlled automatically. Once they were closed after dinner, the cabin stayed dark until shortly before landing. I slept for 7 hours and Mark slept for 6. The bathroom even had washcloths so I could wash my face. We were feeling pretty good when we landed. United Arab Emirates gets an A+ from us.
A 30 minute cab ride with a friendly Sri Lankan driver pointing out the sky scrapers as we drove to our hotel, Dar Al Masyaf (meaning Summer Villas). After a lengthy check in, we were escorted to a boat dock and floated to our villa. The boat ride reminded us of The Venetian in Las Vegas. Mark thinks the whole place is like Disneyland. However, our room is very nice.
We thought we would go out for a walk, but just being outdoors a little while made us change our minds. The temperature at 10pm was 37C or 98F and the humidity is high. Our driver said no one spends any time outdoors here in the summer. We can see why. Now to bed.
Adventures with Julia 