Spring Break

April has been a busy month!  It started off with spring break and then I had two groups of visitors the last two weeks in April.  So this weekend I'm finally catching up on some much needed sleep and trying to catch up on post for this blog.  Here are pictures from my spring break to Thailand.  This was my second time visiting Thailand.  The first time I visited Phuket.  This time I went to Bangkok and headed back to the beach to Phuket.

My trip started with my flight being delayed due to a sand storm.  Luckily I didn't have to deal with much of the storm once I got on the highway on my way to Dubai.  But for those who are wondering a sand storm is very similar to fog.

Take a look at my Thailand video!

My last visitor before the school year ends will be coming next weekend.  I'll be sharing photos from all of my visitors soon.

Color Run Abu Dhabi

During the last weekend in March I participated in The Color Run Abu Dhabi.  I had participated in a color run back home once and this race was very similar but also had some differences.  With the race being in Abu Dhabi and with Abu Dhabi having so many people from all over the world living here the color run wasn't just colorful because of the colorful powder they threw on everyone but also from the array of cultures and participants in the race.

Color runs always seem to have a very upbeat energy, but this time the energy was turned up a few notches.  You could tell that a lot of people participating had never done anything like this before and were extremely eager to start the race and get colorful.  Now back home people get into the spirit of the race and run a 5k.  Here people got into the spirit and walked a 5k.  I had never seen so much walking in a 5k in my life.  I guess people were a little more interested in the color experience than the workout experience.  

Speaking of the color experience, if you have never done a color run this is how it works.  You run or walk a certain distance and then you approach a color station.  Once you reach the station you run or walk through while volunteers throw color (food colored corn starch) on you.  Now the key words are run or walk through.  Well, like I said people really were excited and in the spirit which means that some people (mostly teenagers) become residents of the color station.  They couldn't get enough color.  I even saw some people rolling on the ground to get more color!  Most of these eager colorist got their fix at the end of the race during the after party.  I would have to say that this was one of the best 5k after parties I've participated in.  There was music playing, people singing, people dancing, and color flying all over the place!  I think people were dancing so hard they made it rain (literally not figuratively) for about 2 minutes.

All in all it was a great and fun experience.  Check out my colorful experience below!

Sister Visit

So my next post was supposed to be on the camel race I attended in February.  Unfortunately I'm still trying to open the file my friend sent with all the pictures and videos (I forgot my phone at home and had to use her camera).  So I will table that post for another day when I have nothing else to talk about.

For now let's talk about my first visitors!!!  At the beginning of March my two sisters - Asani and Briana, along with our friend Traci came to visit me.  I was so excited my family was going to see where I have been living for the past seven months.  Of course the time went by too fast, especially because they were only here from Friday to Monday.  That's not enough time when you're traveling internationally FYI.  I was just as tired as they were if not more by the time they left.  Check out our weekend together.

Our view. No, not from my house.  Our view from our hotel room in Abu Dhabi!

First stop, desert safari.

Dune bashing time.  EEEEE!

Desert photo shoot....

gone wrong!

Man down!  It's not easy walking up these sand dunes.

My attempt at sand boarding was a fail.  I wasn't on a big enough slope.  Therefore I didn't move at all.

Guess what day it is??  Not hump day, but we got enough time on the camel for some photos.

We were ready for some action on the ATV's. 

Time for entertainment and dinner.

Day one complete and we were ready for some sleep!

Ready to hit the road on day two.

Brunch time.  Coffee anyone?

Sightseeing in Dubai

Day Three, back in Abu Dhabi at the Grand Mosque

 Emirates Palace

Gold to go!  This is first gold ATM machine in the UAE.

On the steps of the palace.

Briana hugging my car.  She called it a clown car.  We definitely looked like clowns after packing ourselves and all of the luggage in there.

Last group photo after a great dinner at the souk.

That's it for this visit.My next group of visitors will be here at the end of April.  For now I'm getting ready for my Spring Break.  I'm heading back to Thailand.   Three years ago I had the opportunity to visit Phuket when a friend of mine was teaching English in Thailand.  This time I'll be in the city of Bangkok and then head back to Phuket to hang out at the beach.