On project in Dubai...Part 4...

I end up working until 01h30 and, after emailing my report to the guys, shut the laptop down and brush my teeth before climbing into bed with the TV remote control, so that I can relax my mind a bit before sleeping.

I planned to wake at 8am and that's exactly what happened. A dead sleep, didn't even wake up once. Fuckin' marvellous...

Late the previous day, I had managed to connect the cell phone briefly to the Etisalat network and got some sms's in from some people, including SWMBO, who is worried about the globe on the garage wall (which we had already discussed on Skype).

I also go a SMS from Vodacom, welcoming me to Dubai and, if there are any problems, to send a SMS to +27821111.

It takes all of ten seconds to fire a SMS off to them that explains the problems I'm having with my connectivity. Almost immediately I get an acknowledgement that they will investigate and that someone would phone me within two days. TWO DAYS??? (btw, it's been three and I still haven't heard from anyone).

Anyway, I don't know what they did but since then I have had no problems remaining connected.

Back to today...

I watch Sky News for a while, with interest at what is happening in Libya and feeling pity for those poor buggers in New Zealand after their earthquake.

About 9am I hit the gym again, same routine as before, then back to check email and web, then get showered and dressed to go to breakfast. The hotel manual shows that they stop serving at 11h30, but when I get there at 11h10, I get told that they've already stopped. WTF?

Anyway, I grab my stuff thinking I'll grab a sandwich at the office. However, at the bottom of the hotel escalator, there's an Italian restaurant called "Barberas". Turns out it's named after the Indian guy who opened it, back in 1870...go figure. I decide to stop there and have a panini (tuna and cheese) and a Turkish coffee. I'd been wanting a Turkish coffee since coming back to the region and at AED15 (ZAR30), I thought "fuckit". It's better than any espresso cos it's like espresso X 10 and more aromatic. Very tasty.

So now, lunch over, I'll grab the Metro into the office for a couple of hours.


Part 5 to follow...