Amazing what a deadline can do to motivate you!

This is the way real men wash windows.

Wow,
it's been quite the month for us. In addition to regular holiday obligations, we've been busy doing our best to see and do all those things we've always meant to see and do. Without doubt, one of the real highlights of the month for us was being able to attend Liam's black belt awarding ceremony. Liam achieved a black belt in both Karate and Kobudo in December. He has worked extremely hard these last two years and a bit and has had some great senseis guiding him along the way. It's been fun to see him grow and learn this new art form and I get the impression that he'll be continuing his studies for some time yet. You can watch highlights from the ceremony below.

Karate Black Belt

Kobudo Black Belt

Family celebrations on Yas Island

Christmas in the UAE continues to get more Christmas-y every year. It seems like the displays in the store are getting more and more elaborate and you hear 'Merry Christmas' almost more than you'd hear in North America. Santa's got a shop at the mall around the corner and Christmas carols have been playing in the background of almost every store we visit. Liam and Lucy performed in a Christmas program at one of the local malls along with other students from their music school. It was exactly like any Christmas program you might experience at any mall in the Western world except for the moment when they halted the carol singing for the call to prayer.

An art display at an off island gallery.

A privilege to be surrounded by so much beauty.

For our own celebrations, we invited a number of families we've come to know for refreshments, singing and a little reenactment of the Nativity. We probably had too many people at one time, but no one complained. We've met some great people here and, as with every place we've lived, the hardest thing to leave will be the friends we've made. On Christmas Eve, we were invited to the Koffeds, a family we've come to know pretty well over the last few years, and on Christmas day we've a couple of more families to share in the festivities. Julie cooked a pretty amazing turkey and there was more than enough food to keep everyone satisfied. The kids were all happy with what they received for Christmas, but one of the most gratifying aspects of this season was how happy they were to give. Visiting with family and reflecting on the reasons for the season, I don't know if we could have asked for more this Christmas (it was even white with a pretty thick Abu Dhabi fog).

We took a day to recuperate from our Christmas festivities and then we were off to Dubai to visit Global Village. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but imagine, if you will, a massive county fair put on by countries from all over the world. It operates about half the year because of the weather. There was much walking and considerably more shopping than I had planned on, but some of the stuff was just too cool.

It's just like a county fair, really.

We finally took the boat around Global Village for the sake of our feet.

For New Years we went desert camping with the Koffeds and the Belnaps. It was about three hours to Liwa where we camped. Liwa city is a green oasis nestled amongst some of the most spectacular sand dunes I have ever seen. We camped for two nights, and over that time we were able to play on some spectacular sand dunes. Everything you could want from a desert camping experience was ours for the taking. There were spiders, a pretty intimidating snake, a tiny scorpion, a campfire visit buy a dune buggying local and, of course, camels. We were so glad to spend the time with friends and have a truly unique experience. It's not something we're likely to every forget. Well, now it's time to get back into the routine of things. It'll be hard to come down off the high of the last couple of weeks, but you really need to pace yourself when it comes to high adventure.

The things you see on the road to Liwa.

Because it makes sense to have a playground in the middle of the desert.

Our campsite get a visitor.

Or two.

It was a hike up that dune, but it was worth it.

A view of our campsite and the morning mists from above.

It's been a while, but we've actually got some adventure to share.

As you've no doubt noticed, there's been a bit of a lull in the adventuring of the Frank family. After the first year of excitement, we made finding a routine our goal for that second year. Well, it looks like we'll be ramping up the adventure over the next few months. My contract comes to an end in June and we've decided that it's time to make our way back east. The experiences we've had here have been absolutely incredible and we've grown in ways we could have never anticipated, but all adventures come to an end and we're determined to go out on a high note.

This week Liam tested for his black belt in Karate. The test started at 6 am and went until almost noon. As you can see from some of the pictures, his training has really paid off. We're going to take a little break from Karate for the remainder of our time here, but, for those keeping track Liam's at a black belt in Karate and Kobudo, Lucy has her Brown 3, Miranda has her Purple Belt and James is at Yellow and I stalled out at Green. We've really enjoyed the Karate club here and the experiences it has given to all of us.

Ouch!

Does my son intimidate me? A little.

It was our third National Day in Abu Dhabi and it just seems to get bigger every year. We took advantage of the four day weekend by spending some time in Fujairah camping on the beach. We travelled with a number of families and had a great time. The water was gorgeous the weather perfect. However, unbeknownst to us, the particular beach that we chose happened to be the party beach which meant a whole lot of Arabic karaoke all through the night. On the plus side, because I couldn't sleep, I was awake to watch one of the most incredible sunrises I've ever seen. The kids played, barely pausing to eat. Exotic fish were seen and a lucky few even  spotted sea turtles. The jelly fish stings were plentiful, but didn't keep people out of the water. Liam stayed a second night with friends while the rest of us hurried home to watch the fireworks. This was the first time we were able to see the National Day fireworks since we arrived. Not likely to see anything like it again. It's going to be hard to give up the apartment and its view, but we're grateful for the time we've had here. 

You're only supposed to see fish like this in an aquarium.

Gleefulness!

Our campsite.

This almost captures how pretty it was. They call it 'Snoopy Island' for obvious reasons.

Lots to explore.

It seems the only time I get in picture is when someone wants to make fun of me.

I will miss the camels.

Mountains!

Yup, that's a camel staring at us from that truck.

Over the next few months, we're determined to visit the rest of the Emirates and take in a few of the sites that we haven't seen yet. We'll need to pace ourselves if we want to survive these next few months. We're still not sure where we'll end up or what we'll end up doing after we leave, but where would be the fun in a certain future?     

For those two or three people that were wondering where we've been

Well, I thought that someone else would take up the torch of this blog. I pride myself on the degree to which my children are literate. They are all very good readers and writers and I was sure that one of them would have jumped at the chance to give their spin on our family adventures here in Abu Dhabi. Alas, twas not meant to be. It has been a few months since my last posting. In that time, our lives here have only become more routine. After two years in this place, I have to admit that we’re quite comfortable with our surroundings and are rarely surprised at what we see. I don’t even bother to turn my head at a passing Ferrari any more. Speaking of Ferraris, one of our little adventures over the summer was a day at Ferrari World on Yas Island. If you haven’t heard of Ferrari World, I can’t really blame you. After spending the day there, I’m not quite sure what the market is for the world’s largest indoor theme park. It was basically one big Ferrari commercial, but the thing about Ferrari is that they’ve never really needed commercials. Not many people buy one after seeing an advert on TV. Anyway, the whole time we were there, I felt like we were being pitched on how great Ferraris are, but it felt like a bit of a vain pitch, because I’m never going to be that product’s demographic. It was pretty spectacular--indoor water flume, world’s fastest roller coaster, and a few other nifty attractions. It was fun to visit, but I don’t know that we need to go back, not unless I want to feel really bad about my current ride.

Not sure if the Ferrari camel has a name

After a long hot summer, we all got back into a nice routine with school and work. The apartment has been great. Sure, it would have been nice to move in here at the beginning, but after the cockroaches and the bustling lifestyle of our last abode, we can really appreciate what we have here. 

At the end of September, I started my coursework in my doctoral program. Two months of no rest and very little free time. It’s hard to describe, but in some ways it has kept me sane. I love what I’m learning and though I feel a little slow on the uptake, it’s been totally worth the stress and the late nights. Julie and the kids have been incredibly understanding about how lame their dad is in the evenings and on Saturdays. I’m in between semesters right now, but the work is ongoing. I feel like I’ve got a lot to catch up on in the education field, but there is some time to do it, and I’ve got an incredible support system backing me up.

A couple of weeks ago, Mom and Mike came to visit for a week. I was in the midst of a lot of work and wasn’t able to spend quite the time with them that I would have liked, but they made it perfectly clear that they really didn’t come to see me. The kids had a great time with their grandparents, and what time Julie and I had with them was great. We got to spend some time in Dubai and made a valiant attempt to put Abu Dhabi in the Guiness Book of World records for sandcastle building. There was some great food and some great visiting time and we were glad they came.

A few of our castles at sunset

These sunglasses are just about the right size

We’re not quite sure what the future holds, but our goal is to try and make the most of the time and opportunities here. Hopefully there will be lots of adventures to document in the not too distant future.

Where we are and what we've been up to.

We finally conceded our apartment to the cockroaches. Threw up the white flag, made a calculated retreat. Surrender is another word we could use. Usually, I like to stand my ground especially when the opponents are so tiny. But I have to admit to being overwhelmed by their numbers. I am a man who likes to hold his ground. It’s a matter of pride. Some might call it integrity. I starting to see that waging that war as long as I did was foolishness more than anything. Defeat is a word with such negative connotations, but it’s not always bad. Defeat teaches humility. It teaches prudence. It gives you perspective. And, in rare circumstances, defeat can even give you a little more square footage and a better view. Would that all my losses were so profitable.

Our new views. It's refreshing to see the water.

I hate the process of moving, but I also hate stating the obvious. Everyone hates the process of moving, but we all love the promise of being settled. That’s what I’m reveling in right now—the promise of being settled. We’re still a few weeks out from things having their place. It didn’t help that our bookcase couldn’t make it into the elevators of the new place, so we’re still tripping over discretely placed piles of young adult literature and picture books. Libraries tend to grow quickly in this home. Books multiply like tribbles around here, which makes our relationship with Ikea more one-sided than I would like it to be.

It’s hot outside and it’s Ramadan, which means there’s not a lot to do outside. Ramadan is a holy time in Islam where, for a month, Muslims fast everyday from sun up to sundown. They do this so to better understand and feel for the poor. No restaurants are opened during the day, and, except for small children, there is no eating in public until after the sun goes down. It makes for very quiet days and very lively nights. It’s a good thing my kids are fine with indoor type activities. I’ve raised a brood of geeks and bookworms and it does come in handy sometimes (though they haven't watched enough Star Trek to get the above tribbles reference. I'll have to remedy that).

Wii Summer Olympics is something you can do inside that's almost active.

So is piano practice.

They do see the sunlight everyday as we walk from our new place to karate. I miss the convenience of having the dojo in our building, but I do enjoy being followed by my own army of martial arts experts. No one has messed with me since I started going out with them. Who would dare?

Turns out that stop motion film making is also a perfectly acceptable indoor activity.