Wahlen has stranded

Shortly before estimated arrival time we hit the ground at a sunny, 19 ° Stockholm Arlanda ... The flight went smooth - as soon as we left the ground and the seat belt sign was switched off (but for your own safty we recommend you to keep your seat belt fastened while seated) ... I stretched out on the four seats I was happy to get even on this flight ... In under the blanket, and yep, the seat belt also, clearly visible to the staff. ;)
Then I stayed there until they said it was time for landing, more than five hours later. So I can not complain of the sleep I got. Maybe not the absolute best, but one of the better aboard a flight anyway. For departure I was very tempted to pinch one of the blanket. Qatar Airways strikes at large and offers its guests very nice fleese blankets. But I couldn't take one, and why should I, do I really need it? As if I didn't have enough blankets as it is.

The way out went smooth too, even though I for a couple of seconds was sorry that I got in the wrong queue at passport control. Of course I would end up in the same queue as a "suspicious" black man ... and of course the only reason for him being "suspicious" was that very reason - because he was black... *sigh* He had his papers ready and in he went, and right behind him was I. The baggage was already on the carusell and out came my little flattened bag.

After an airport bathroom facelift I'm now sitting here waiting for my best colleague to come pick me up and take us to a conference call and subsequent meeting ... Well, here reality hits hard ... but first we'll get some nice breakfast!

It may have been a hasty decision, but certainly not a bad decision. I've had a wonderful weekend with good and much needed rest. If I look back I would probably have taken one of my trips out or rearranged the schedule a bit, but this is how it turned out and I am more than happy with what I got. Above all, I am pleased with myself that actually threw me into the adventure ... it's probably not for the last time! Look out - suddenly, it happens - and I'm back here with new adventures.

Thank you for following and a special thanks for all greetings, SMS, etc. on my birthday ... What a fab day I got! =)

Bye bye Dubai

After another hour or so in the sun I was packed and clean... Instead of spending the rest of the time in the lobby I decided to try and find the Electronical Shopping Mall... After not finding a taxi that knew what I was talking about and the hotel staff sending me to a very strange place I decided to take an earlier shuttle to the airport and go shopping there instead.

I shared a shutlte with a couple from India, on their way home from South Africa. The lady had earlier worked at a university in Sweden close to where I live. It's a small world sometimes.
The couple had a different terminal from me and they was dropped off first. When all their lagguage was off loaded the car didn't wanna start. It was totlly dead...
I took the airport shuttle to my terminal... and left the poor stressed boy with the broken down car.

Some small shopping later it was time to board the first plane - to Doha. 45 minutes in the air and now a little more then three hours wait for the next flight. So a little bit more shopping, but I must say Doha airport doesn't have much to offer...
Well, my waitnign time is almost over and soon I'm on my way back to reality. And I can tell you that - reality hits me hard tomorrow. Getting picked up at the airport in the morning and going straight into a full day meeting! But hey, I've had four nice days of sun!!

Ok, time to leave Doha now... See you in Europe!

Lazy-Day

This morning a year ago, I landed in Johannesburg and was invited to bubbles for breakfast, and it was the start of an exciting adventure!

Today is the last day of a new adventure. It will most probably be no bubbles this time, but that's fine. I don't do much today. Took a long and nice sleep in. Dragged myself down to breakfast just before it closed and then before it gets unbearably hot in the heat, I went up to the roof. When the sun was at its highest and the water bottle was empty I was overcooked and went back down to my room - I made sure to keep it for the day. However, the key stops working at 12 when it is actually checking out. So, not too fresh in my ceiling-clothes I had to go down to reception and get my card activated again! So much for respectable outfit! Well, atleast I wasn't naked...

It was nice to get into the cool room again. Will stay here for a while now when it's so hot outside. Then it's time to start packing and return to reality.
Have a few hours to "kill" between the time I leave the room to when shutteln to the airport leaves. Thinking of taking a trip to a shopping mall nearby that is filled from floor to ceiling of just electronics, cameras, computers and that kind of stuff ... Not that I plan to buy anything, but because it can be a great experience and that they have AirCon there! HAHAHA!
If I don't go - I will be probably pay the roof another visit to try to change the color even more ...

I must admit I can think of worse ways and worse places to celebrate a birthday!
Without detracting from the present, but the thought did hit me - "What adventure awaits this day next year! =)

City Tour

For this morning I had booked a private driver to take me around town and show me what this emirate has to offer. It started out well, but after a while you could tell he wasn’t very interested in talking – to something else then his cell phone. But he took me to all the places I should see around here; The biggest Mosque in Dubai, The Worlds highest building, The worlds one and only 7 star hotel, The Palms – an island build as a palm tree with a 6-star hotel at the end.

What hit me was that the magnificent skyline with all the sky scrapes and amazing buildings are far from finished buildings. Lots of it is standing still since the big world financial crash a few years ago. I wonder if they will ever finish them. Big parts of town are construction sites, so they need to get it going to make it look good.

After the three-hour tour I was dropped off at The Mall of Emirates. The big mall the most people have heard about, due to the indoor ski slope they have there. I didn’t go skiing; I’ve had enough of snow for this year thank you very much. But I had a look at it through the windows. I must admit it’s amazing, but at the same time rather stupid… People seamed to like it though, there were lots of people running around in overalls and boots… I wonder how cold it is in there.

I sat down to have lunch while I was studying the map of the mall. It’s an enormous place, with not only the Ski Dubai, but an indoor amusement park as well, and loads and loads of shops of all sorts. My favourite shop was the department store. I enjoy walking down the aisles checking it out.

A little bit further down I saw a sign saying “Taxi”, without thinking about it I walked out that door and into a taxi and I was on my way back to the hotel. I’m not really a good shopper, am I??

Back at the hotel I spent a few hours on the roof, by the pool. That was really nice.

Tonight I will have dinner at the hotel, for the first time since I arrived I will have the dinner included in my half board that I have actually paid for already. After dinner I’ll have a quiet evening at my room and just relax. Just as I planned when I bought the trip!

New PHOTOS

Days of water

It was rather hard to wake up this morning. When the alarm went off I wanted to stay in bed, but since I had an appointment with a group of very clever creatures I had to get going. Fueled up with pancakes and juice and off I went. I must say I’m happy for my experience of “Africa Time” … cos I have need for it here.

So I went to Dubai Dolphinaruim. Maybe not what I would have chosen my self, but when the guy from yesterday suggested it I thought: Why not? Lets do something different. And it was a good show, seals and dolphins jumping, singing and playing around. It was me and a lot of kids and their families.

After the show I went for a stroll around Creek River Park in the heat. Trying to find as much shade as possible under the palm trees. Every here and there I passed this signs saying “Refreshments”… but whenever I came to the kiosk it was closed… like walking through the desert and seeing water, but when you get there it was just a vision.

After a walk in the heat I had lemonade at the Dolphinarium while planning for the rest of the day. Plan was to go to a mall where it was cool. I got a taxi, and just as I walked in to the car I changed my mind and asked him to take me back to the hotel. Why should I go to a shopping mall when I’m not even a shopper – and has another mall booked for tomorrow?

Back at the nice and cool room I had a rest before I put on the training clothes and went to the gym. After a good workout I relaxed on the roof by the pool. Not in the pool though since the doctor said I wasn’t allowed in the pool due to my eye… For the first time since I arrived I felt cooler winds blowing up there. Nice!!

For the evening I was booked into a Dhow Cruise on the Creek. Got picked up – a little late as usual, and after picking another couple up we headed for Al Khor and our boat. It was a pretty dull arrangement. We sat on the boat and got entertained by a very bad magician, the spoke Arabic or Hindi or something all the time. Later, dinner was served. Nothing fancy, but not too bad. I would have thought that there would be some kind of guiding of where we were and what we passed, but nothing – just a dinner on the boat. At least I had good company. Shared table with a great couple from Durban.

We can call this the day with water theme… let’s see what tomorrow brings!

I'll try get the pics to work now. If the link doesn't work try and copy paste the adress from yesterday.

PHOTOS

First day

The first day in Dubai is about to end. Since I got to my room at 4.00 am I over slept breakfast. Took a stoll around the hotel to check it out. Roof top pool and a nice gym and downstairs a number of restaurants. Inbetween 693 rooms.
Visited the tour company in the lobby, which resulted in a desert tour later in the afternoon and evening. After a small brunch from the coffeeshop I met another man that really new how to sell things to do. And all I wanted to do is ask if there was something in the area to have a look at. Now most of my days are "fully booked"...
He suggeested I got to a local market for a few hours beofre it was time to go to the desert. He put me in a taxi and off I went. A short ride later the driver dropped me off at an area that looked rather closed and empty. Hey, it is midday Friday... Everyone is at the Mosque.
Well - I took a small stroll back to the hotel. It wasn't too far, but when it's 45° and mid day - even a short walk is hard...

When I got back I went to the gym and believe it or not - amongst other things I did - I ran!!! I can't run!! but I did!!

A shower and an hours wait in the lobby later the car was here to pick up for the desert safari tour. Four of us from our hotel and three already in the car made it packed. It was a rather disorganized tour with a driver that didn't spoke to us, not even answered questions. Well well, after some stops and wonderings what was going on we found our selfs rollercoasting on the dunes in a 4x4... That was pretty cool.
The tour ended at a camp where you could go camel riding, quad biking and sand boarding. I didn't do any. I went to the bar and had oads of water!!!
A bit later we got food and entertainment sitting in the dark desert. It was nice and cool. Strange how you can say it's cool when the temperature is still over 30. =)

I think I will find sand in all my things for days to come...


Have a look at some pix here: https://picasaweb.google.com/carwahl/Dubai2011

Suddenly it happens,

After months of head over heels of work, long hours, many days, a lot of travelling and a lot of meetings (will not tell you how much because then I'll just have a law-abiding section riders after me), the body and mind said stop. I believe it’s gone well so far, been a bit tired and drained and unfortunately completely cut off from my surroundings, but I guess that unfortunately is what happens in this kind of situation. When this week began, however, my energy was gone. Spent a lovely weekend with good friends and felt really relaxed after that. But that feeling changed - it got bigger and different. I did not work very well and when I woke up on Tuesday morning with a bright red, watery and irritated eyes felt like it was time to slow down.

Since the work situation is like it is the plan was to work much of the weekend - the weekend being a long weekend off for most people due to two public holidays, Thursday and Monday and a “squeezed in Friday” that’s just tells you to take a holiday. One day of holiday gives you five days off. When I got home Tuesday evening, totally drained, with my irritated eye and a juicy my brain, I made a decision. I would not be working this weekend - not even on Friday. Why would I do that? Why should I wear me out like that?

That evening I had two words in my head - run away! I wanted to run away for the weekend. Started to think about where to go. Where could I find some peace of mind and stop thinking about work, get myself going and energize? The idea of ​​total solitude at a neutral site was attractive!

After some aimless surfing on the web, I suddenly sat there with a planned weekend ahead of me. Should I press the button!? Of course I should - and I did. The result: a long weekend in Dubai, a city that has attracted and is now reality a few days.

Right now I’m on the train going to the airport. I’m looking forward to a weekend of sun and warmth, relaxation and just taking care of my own time! So many times my colleague and I have been at the airport recently and each time we’ve said the same thing: "Imagine the day we may come here to go on holiday instead of work!" Sorry O, that day is here for me today!

The only fly in the beaker is my red eye. Turned out to be a corneal ulcer that may, very possibly may have a tendency to inflammation to it. So with me is a crème that I will smear on 4 times a day and drops to be taken every two hours... The doctor dismissed me from all swimming in the ocean and pool, and sauna. Sauna won’t be problem, but to not be able to have a swim when it’s 40 degrees can be a bit tougher. May well try to keep my feet cool ...

Now waiting is the check-in and after that a lunch in peace and quiet at the airport before Qatar Airways takes me to Dubai via Doha. Estimated arrival time is 3:10 Friday morning local time.

Fingers crossed that the hotel will welcome me at the time! At its worst, I guess I'll hang in the lobby a few hours ... It'll be all right when we get that far. Right now I sit back and breathe easy and enjoy a few hours in the air. Hoping for good food and good drink, and perhaps even a good movie.
See you ...