mamabeal adventures: January 2010

I had not had Christmas with Melinda and her family for several years, so this year I wanted to go up and see what a Davis Christmas was like. I really enjoyed the whole experience and specially the fact that I did not have to be in charge of anything. It was a very relaxed experience and very enjoyable.

Christmas dinner on Christmas eve.

special Christmas dessert.

Doug and I enjoying the program

The Christmas Angel

shepherds.

Part of the Nativity scene

Christmas eve late Santa and his helpers have been busy getting ready for Christmas morning.

Christmas morning: the presents have been opened.

We rarely have snow before Christmas. But this year we had freezing cold temperatures and on Dec 18 we got a whopper of a snowstorm that left us inside for a few days till we were able to dig out from our 20 in of snow. Natalie and Quincy were supposed to fly out on 19 Dec, but finally got out late on Dec 20. Church was canceled and we got to have church at home.
Enjoying the cinnamon rolls while keeping warm inside.

Tradition on snow days: Cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate.

The storm is raging all night long.

the morning after. Isn't it beautiful.

Our deck. We could not open the door.

It stopped snowing about 20 in. This my staircase.

clearing the drive way the first time so the car can get back in the garage.

We can get out again at least through the garage. Good job Quincy.

One of Natures wonders right here is our own back yard: Great Falls The Waterfalls on the Potomac river before it reaches Washington DC. It was a very cold day to be there, but how spectacular.

I arrived the day before Halloween, and Porter was so excited for his first real trick or treat. We got to the party, and here he is sound asleep. He slept through the whole party and the Trick or Treat part too.

We all took an Abra tour at the Madinat Jumeira. it was a very relaxing experience, sailing along the man made canal, the hotels shopping center and apartment buildings and the Burge Al arab in the back ground.

An hour long boat tour through The Marina and then into the Ocean and back to the Marina. a very fun trip.

A beautiful shopping center built in the Italian style.

The villa where we go to church.

We took the new monorail to the Atlantis hotel where they have a huge tank of all kinds of fish.

A foggy morning at the beach.

A birds eye view of Jumeira beach where we live. Para sailing was a lot of fun. I would like to do it again.

All of these pictures are from the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. it is the most beautiful mosque I have ever seen. I would go again if I had a chance.

An oasis with farming among the mountains.

The oldest mosque in the UAE

Old castle near Fujeirah. It is being restored and they are also restoring the village that used to surround the castle.

A resort on the east coast of UAE near Fujeirah. the East coast of the UAE is pretty much cornered by Russian tourists. We had a lovely lunch here and a dip i the water.

More dusty mountains with a little water and vegetation here and there in the valleys.

A few camels and a little dune bashing thrown in for good measure on the way to the Wadis. We kept going across the borders between UAE and Oman all day long, but it was very informal.

We were supposed to see pools of water in some of the Wadis ie dry river beds. This was the only one we found and out guide told us not to go swimming in is as it was poisonous. It was an interesting tour. We saw lots of mountains and dry valleys and some oasis where they grew crops and had animals. The mountains seem very porous and you would probably start an avalanche if you tried to climb it. one thing we learned is that you do not plan a picnic at an oasis where they raise goats unless you want to share your lunch with the whole fly population.

We sailed all day in and out of these fjords. It was absolutely beautiful and spectacular. Out guide would make the sound of a dolphin and shortly after the water would be teaming with dolphins. It is hard to catch them on a picture but I can assure you we saw a lot of them. It was such a wonderful relaxing day with so many beautiful images. It was a long day but very worth it.

If we had not booked this tour through a reputable travel agency a crew like this could have made you a little squeeze. This are of the UAE and Oman used to be the headquarters for pirates.