Hi all. I was in Dubai over the weekend on my way to Afghanistan visiting friends. It was a somewhat hectic trip over, flying through London which I hope I do not experience again. Heathrow is not a travel-friendly airport. In any event, I arrived in Dubai with many hopes to make it out to the dunes for a fun-filled day frolicking in the desert. I was not disappointed.Peter, Jeni and I with their neighbors spent Saturday afternoon driving through the dunes on our way to Fossil Rock on the outskirts of Dubai -- Patrick and his fiancé were on their four-wheelers (I know there is a more technical name for them....
) while Peter, Jeni and I rode "comfortably" in Peter's jeep as we raced across the sand. It was quite the ride (I love their "oh shit!" handles). If I had any issues with motion sickness I would have been in real trouble. We stopped along the way for several much needed breaks, where I was taught how to ride one of the bikes. I can proudly say I tried it ... I clearly need more practices as I almost jetted Patrick off the bike several times. We were laughing so hard that we had to stop several times. In any event, I hope to try it again when I have more time and more sleep to appreciate the experience. 
Fossil Rock was incredible. You can see the fossils of fish, shells and other random items. The way the rock was shaped, it appeared to be a large stone replica of a reef. We hung around for a while and stretched our legs, and then headed back to the cars before the sun set. On our way back, we ran across a nomadic herder on his camel. He was friendly, and clearly so was his camel whom I lovingly called Holy Shit as he tried to put his head in my window.
I promised Peter and Jeni I would stay longer on my way back from Afghanista
n. We plan to camp out in the desert with some of their friends for an evening to barbeque and have drinks under the stars.... which will be much needed after spending more than a month in Afghanistan.One last note before I end this message. The terminal I flew out of Dubai to head to Kabul -
- Terminal 2 -- is called the "Axis of Evil Terminal" due to the many regional destinations and beyond the terminal serves, such as Iran, Iraq, Syria, North Korea, etc. You get the pictur 
I will write more soon. I hope this finds you all doing well. I miss you and look for ward to sharing my trip with you when I am back Stateside.
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Local people in Dubai seem to be extremely nice and friendly. And I really mean that! We were taken by their hospitality and authentic interest in our country, religion, customs, etc… Our hosts were also very keen on sharing the knowledge about their country with us. We were lucky to be invited to the desert picnic with locals. We eat lamb in the tent (using nothing but our hands) and had coffee and deserts under the night sky full of stars. And at that time i realized that tourist are coming to see not only breathtaking Dubai property constructions, but also to view this ocean of sand because a desert is a living, vital place.
It is like another world. It is so calm and peaceful. It was one of those moments that I’ll never forget.
Thank you!
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