L’aventure commence

***UPDATE***

I read what I wrote below, and it’s awful. I don’t know where to begin to edit it. Read at your own discretion. I’m still so tired, that I don’t how to tell you to read with caution. Someone else do it.

***End Update***

I’m tired.

I arrived at the guest house where we’re staying. I’ve called Tina. We were able to Skype from my computer to her phone. For some reason, the network here isn’t letting me Skype from phone to phone.

Then — after she got home from being out — we video Skyped computer to computer which is much better than iChat. The picture quality and sound quality are so much better. My brother discovered that when he was in Vietnam. I personally never use video chat, but I tell you, when you’re halfway around the world and the person you love is on video chat, it makes a world of difference.

I was telling Tina how there was definitely a general disregard for etiquette in Abu Dhabi, that almost seemed universal until today. Whenever I’ve traveled, there’s a certain politesse of waiting for the rows in front of you to deplane before you go. And I’ve never been on a flight when someone tried to smoke in the lavatory.

As soon as I got to Abu Dhabi, there were more rude people than I have ever traveled with. For instance, as soon as the guy called for business travelers and priority members to board the plane, the entire crowd barged through the gate. My jaw hit the floor. There was one man who got out of the queue and smoked a cigarette in a non-designated area.

Annnnnnndddd(!) some dumb shit in the bathroom on the plane during the last 20 minutes of the flight. And when he was confronted, he tried to deny it. I could smell it from where I was sitting.

But I made it! I’m in my room now. Settle a little.  I took a shower, where this miniature gecko looking lizard attacked me from behind the faucet. Here’s a picture from my phone:

The shower reminds me of the shower I used for four months in the Philippines. There was always something jumping out at me.

There was one day, a spider was running around the house. It was so big, when it ran through the room, I could hear its eight legs padding across the floor. I am not exaggerating in any way.

The way the city is laid out reminds me a lot of the Philippines too. There’s no real method to the city layout. There are white concrete walls everywhere marking off territory, but you can literally see over the wall into someone’s shanty shack. I’ll take pictures to give you an idea.

There will be lunch served at noon here at this mission guest house, which I’ll go have. I’m hoping my dad’s flight is late so I can snooze this afternoon.

That’s it for now.

Thanks for reading.

Damn, I’m tired.