Abu Dhabi Day 3 of 7: Start the Course

"Sabah il-khayr" (good morning).Weather today 27°C, still cloudy and warm; music Jose Gonzalez, Damien Rice and Nick Drake. New photos on FB. Tip: you don’t have to be on-line to write a blog. Just type into a file and copy and paste later.

Just make the 10 minute walk to the office in time to pay another visit. This is not fun but later it eases and I still don't feel unwell. The laptop setup takes me until 8.30am but this is no problem as only 4 of the 7 delegates have deigned to arrive by then. Eventually, six turn up in total. They wear the trademark black and white, the 3 men in the dishdash, the 3 women in the abaya and a sheyla (a headscarf). All the delegates have very fuzzy course prerequisites but are really quiet and well behaved, unlike in England. I thought I was softly spoken but they all seem to speak in whispers.

We agree breaks for breakfast at 10.00am, 30 minutes, like in Scotland, prayers at 12.30pm, 15 minutes, unlike in Scotland, a brief break for coffee and a free cooked lunch, served when we finish the day at about 2.00pm. I ask one lad, Fawat, about his hours and he usually works 7am - 3pm with no lunch break. We start (and will end) with a 30 question quiz which is very unusual for such courses. A good idea though as it will measure how much they learn this week.

Later I compliment Reem on her sheyla, which is black but heavily embroidered with deep blue and glitter. She smiles. I reflect and ask is that OK? She replies that yes, it is in her case but to be careful as it may be misconstrued as flirting! I'd better watch my step. 

Finish the day at 2.00pm (I could get used to this) and enjoy a lunch of salad and prawn birianyi. Send back the sweet trolley. Back at the hotel there's no web access from the bed. Still very tired and fall asleep for an hour or more. I try the web again from the desk and it works. Wierd. Skype home, apparently it's illegal here and is viewed as telecoms theft. Visit the roof top pool for a swim (pictures on FB) and accept an invite out to a quiz night.

The quiz night is at the Hilton across town by taxi. Quite fun, I join the team Ken and Barbi, with Rick, the guy I'm working for, his wife Pam and her sister Barbara. Discuss working out here, that might be fun. We don't win but we're not last, then taxi (not limo!) back to my hotel at 10.30pm.

More blogging then bed. Up at 6.45am for a start at 8.00am; I wonder how many will turn up by then.