Abu Dhabi 301

Thursday and Friday last week were the hottest days since I've been here in Abu Dhabi. The class finished early last Thursday, and excitedly I decided to walk back to the apartment which is 3 blocks away. I looked at my watch, 16:45. Perfect time to have an afternoon walk while enjoying the sunshine and cool breeze. Then I walked out of the front entrance and phieeuhhh...warm afternoon breeze welcomed me instead of the oh so cool breeze I was expecting to accompany me walking down the street. Where did my cool breeze go? 'There goes my perfect afternoon walk' I thought. But still I've decided to walk, so I then walked in that heat, and quite hot it was. Welcome to real UAE!

The next day, not only was it hot, it was also dusty. So dusty that it seemed like fog. What happened ? Sand storm or we can also say desert storm. Don't worry, this kind of storm won't affect anything in the city except that fine sands are all around the corner. Warning!! Don't yawn or laugh out loud in the streets at that time. Not because you're not allowed to, but just because you won't want to swallow any sand blown by the wind, would you ?? Hehehe...

Talking about warning, it reminds me about the taxi's driver behaviour. Don't get surprised if they really can speed. From one traffic light to the next which is only one block away, they can speed up to 100 km/h in less than 10 secs. Always braze yourself when they brake and stop their vehicle before the red light. They do have safety belt at the back seat, but too bad, those are accessories only.

And with those speeding cars along the streets in Abu Dhabi, you really need to be aware when you cross the street. Especially for us who uses 'the wrong side of the road' as opposed to 'the right side of the road'. One of the important thing to consider in safety wherever you travel all around the world is that every country has they're own road system, driving habits, and which side of the road they are driving. The right side...or the left 'wrong' side of the road. From the places I've been, UK, Aussie, South East Asian country, and Japan, all are using the left side of the road, while US, France, Oman, and UAE are using the right side of the road. So...we just have to get used to the system and always check right left right or left right left before crossing the road.