Andrés Ponders the Pines

Bright Beginnings!

Pau in his favorite area - the sand!

Miss Gillian gives Leon a hug.

Costa

Nathan puts on his shoes.

We studied the weather. 

Miss Fara and Miss Rebekah

Orange friends

Visiting KG1-C

Blue Chase

Qasr Al Hosn Festival

I took the family to Qasr Al Hosn for Abu Dhabi's cultural festival and to see an amazing acrobatic/equestrian performance called Cavalia. It was the best performance and event we've attended since living in the UAE.

Emirati boys show off their rifle tossing skills.

Miniature abra or boat-building

Boat builders from Dubai 

Pau likes "doing jobs"

Creatures found in the Gulf 

Emirati women in a traditional souq or marketplace. This traditional face covering is common here.

The black robe pver their clothes is called the abaya. The head covering is the shayla. I am not sure what they call the veil.

These men are weaving palm leaves to make roofs.

First Tomato of 2014

Fiesta

Yesterday we had a big party. What an awesome turnout: 35 adults and 18 kids not counting us! Barbequed beef, chicken, lamb, veg, all manner of side dishes, plus latkas made by Gielyn. . . . and five chocolate cakes. Yum.

Masdar City: PRT

We took a trip to Masdar City - Abu Dhabi's (some day) carbon neutral "cleantech cluster" in the desert.

Our goal was to ride the PRT - Personal Rapid Transport. Phase 1 of Masdar City is built on a podium. The ground floor is devoted to these little robotic cars. The development was supposed to be a car-free zone so that you'd park in one lot and then get around on the PRT's. The cost of building an entire urban development this way, raised off the ground, proved inefficient. So this first phase will be the only one with the PRT's.

They are pretty fun to ride. Even if they only take you from point A to point B and back again.

Masdar City: Celebrities

It turned out that today was a festival at Masdar City. We got to dress up for a celebrity photo shoot.

Crown? check 
Sword? check

"Don't forget to photograph Solar Panel Man."
And yes, he knows he's wearing two different shoes. That's Pau's latest fashion statement.

Masdar City: Architecture+UrbanDesign

Giant Jenga