Congratulations Dubai!

The opening of the Burj Dubai is today! Everyone will be queuing to go in it for weeks!

Mozzwatch

Living it up in Amsterdam in apartment number 2.  This one belongs to a very generous friend of mine who is putting the entire family up to a few days until we work out if we are going to rent a place here for a month.

Mozzle playing around on the swing covered in Springbok. He looks so proud you would think he caught it himself.

Mozzle on the underfloor-heated bathroom tiles - with his back directly against the wall heater.

NorthWest Airlines Bomber

Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the bombing attempt on Christmas Day by the Nigerian national who was educated in London and Dubai.

Kind of feels weird knowing he was a Masters student in Dubai at the same time I was.  If he was at the same uni I didn’t meet him.

I wonder if he was at Knowledge Village or Academic City?

I notice CNN has an article on their front page titled, ‘Yemem a safe haven for Al Qaeda’.  Can’t help but think sarcastically to myself, ‘It’s desperately poor, has THE lowest population education levels in the world, and it’s right next to Somalia. Who would have guessed it was so vulnerable?

Sometimes CNN seems genuinely surprised at things that don’t seem a huge stretch to me.’

Mozzwatch

In Amsterdam now in the snow listening to church bells as I am typing.

Mozz made the trip without any ill health effects – he came in the cabin with us.  At about 3 hours into the trip he started to get figety so I snuck him into the bathroom.  I let him our of the cage and use the cat litter tray (via a genius system that I devised)  and fed him some food which he scoffed down eagerly.

I am now expert on sneaking cats into bathrooms on planes.

Kelli as usual came out the other end of her 10th international flight with a spring in her step.  And she still looks about 4 years old even though she is 11 years old.

Richard and joke that somewhere there is a painting of her in an attic that is growing older.

Here are some photos we took since we got here.

Snuggling under the doona.

The Chosen One contemplates the snowy street.

More Snow

Snow Graffiti in Amsterdam

Snowy Birthday in Amsterdam

View from apartment window at 8am

Bloemgracht Bridge

One more thing I’ll miss about Dubai

The exquisite Arabian Mau street cats. Like the one I rescued and found a new home for.

Mozzwatch

2 sleeps to go and Mozz and Kell are ready for their 10th international flight!  They are now up to 1.5 virtual circumnavigations of the globe.

They are both in top shape and we have their papers (kindly organised by Snoopy Pets in Dubai) and their bags ready to go!

This picture was taken of Mozz a couple of days ago while he was chasing Kelli around the bathroom.

Things I will miss about Dubai

The desert

The palm trees

The camels

Dish-Dash

Silk Abayas

Hoopoes

Bul-Buls

Bougainvillia

Fresh hand-cut pineapple

Lebanese food

Cheap taxis

Over-the-counter antibiotics

Industrial-strength chemicals for everyone!

The weather in winter

Personal safety

Being at the top of the food chain because I’m female

Our swimming pool

Our pool man

Not having to cook  – anything

and saving the best till last…

The Emiratis

Mozzwatch

Mozzle is getting ready for his big flight next Saturday. He’s super fit and full of cheek!

Mozz has never flown in the cabin before so I’ve taken him to the KLM website and we have selected movies and put in our meal orders. (He’s okay with chicken or fish but abhors vegetarian.)

Kell is travelling incognito in the hold because she doesn’t want to be seen in public with Mozzle… totally understandable since he is an appalling attention-seeker.

This the two of them watching a bit of Blade Runner with the folks last night.