March 1, 2022

Hello, Dubai!  We attended a couples retreat in the United Arab Emirates for the 5 couples serving in the Middle East/Africa North Area.

The Church is always concerned for the welfare and sanity of the missionary couples - and they are particularly concerned about us in Middle East/Africa North (ME/AN) area of the world.  In Iraq there are not many Americans and we only have a handful of members spread across the Kurdistan Region.  The Church arranged for the 5 couples now serving to fly to Dubai and spend time together and meet with a member of the ME/AN Area Presidency to see how we are doing.  Here we are ready for takeoff!


The view from our hotel room… the architecture of Dubai and Abu Dhabi is pretty amazing!


Buildings so beautiful and precise…


We all gathered under the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, for dinner together on our first evening.  Seated around the table are (from the left): the Standages (stationed in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq), Jim & Barbara (Erbil, Iraq), the Kirkhams (Dubai).  Standing from the left:  the Dahles (Abu Dhabi), and the Hoers (Sudan/Egypt).  Though we and the Standages had met each other in Iraq (though we are geographically several hours apart), this was the first time all of us ME/AN couples met each other face-to-face.  We had done our MTC on Zoom and had only met virtually until this point.


Jim and Barbara at our couples dinner under the Burj Khalifa… it was also a marina area.


Of course Geri the World Traveling Giraffe accompanied us for dinner…

The marina hosted a light show every 30 minutes…


The light show a little later in the evening… we had a table right on the marina with a fantastic vantage point…


A portion of the beautiful light show on the Burj Khalifa itself….


Before dinner on the marina we had the afternoon for ourselves.  We explored the Dubai Mall - one of the largest in the world - and found the Cheesecake Factory!


 
Geri was excited to be eating again at the Cheesecake Factory!



Geri and Barbara at Cheesecake….

We enjoyed our American Cheesecake Factory experience!


The Dubai Mall has a giant aquarium inside.  We stopped on the outside of the aquarium to take a look…


Geri particularly enjoyed the shark and the stingray….


Many Muslim women wear black…. Here is a store with a wide variety of… well… black….


Sort of like Henry Ford… you can have any color as long as it is black….


Geri was excited to tell us she found the Zara store!


The Dubai Mall was home to some very amazing art exhibits…


The art waterfall from a different angle… it was relaxing to watch….


As an act of service we worked at the Dubai2020 Expo helping the Church’s FamilySearch team who had an exhibit there as well as hosted a lunch for Emirates leaders.


It was a hot day and we did a lot of walking and standing but we enjoyed helping.


Here I thought to take a pictures a little too slow but at least I caught a glimpse of Jim escorting a Sheikh to the luncheon.


We took a quick look inside the USA pavilion…. And really appreciated the conveyor moving sidewalk!


Fun displays in the USA pavilion.


An impressive exhibit inside the USA pavilion at the Dubai2020 Expo.


Geri thought she measured up very well next to Elon Musk’s Space X rocket.


Space enthusiasts Geri and Barbara share a moment at the Space X rocket.


Entering the Saudi Arabia pavilion at the Dubai2020 Expo…. we enjoyed the clever display….

Geri checked out Batman’s car from the latest Batman movie at the Expo…


A glimpse into Batman’s car… not too comfy looking….


Batman’s car looked most impressive from behind….


Part of one of the parades in the Expo….


Another spontaneous rather unusual parade at the Expo…..


Time to check the map and head to the Metro and back to the hotel…


We enjoyed riding the Dubai Metro on occasion as it was super clean and fast.


Luxury car dealerships abound in Dubai.  Here we are passing one of the many Ferrari and Maserati dealerships.


Several more of the artistic buildings…


Beautiful buildings galore.


On our last evening in Dubai we took a dinner cruise along the Dubai coast and marina.  It was a chance to break away from our group and spend an evening by ourselves.  It turned out to be the highlight of our time in Dubai.


The saxophone player added to the nice atmosphere as we cruised slowly along.


We were able to view many of the unique building from a different perspective on the cruise.


A most fascinating ’twisted’ building!


We passed right beside the twisted building on the cruise.


Beautiful views, beautiful giraffe.


I can’t imagine the floor arrangement of offices inside…


The cruise offered a buffet dinner which was delicious!


Many Muslim women have such beautiful attire….


Jim is so happy anytime he is on the water and near boats.

The cruise was a welcome respite from the desert and the dry land in the UAE and Iraq.


Jim enjoys the cruise and the unusual Dubai skyline.


Beautiful and relaxing. This has been a welcome few days.


Jim and Geri enjoy the marina atmosphere.


The Grand Mosque in Dubai.


The view from our hotel on our last evening in Dubai.

And of course we can’t forget that Dubai lies within the Arabian Desert.

The great Arabian Desert in which Dubai lies.


The ME/AN missionaries on our last morning in Dubai.


Our last breakfast together before we all head back to our respective posts in Abu Dhabi, Egypt, and Iraq.


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