This isn't the Monterey Peninsula!

The 15 hour 35 minute flight from SFO to Dubai over the north pole was very, very long. Emirates was fantastic and the descent into Dubai was beautiful. The setting sun and lights illuminated the sand colored buildings. The city appeared neat and tidy. I did not see any modern architecture until arriving at the airport, but that could have been because of my view from the plane. Everyone is friendly, the women are beautiful, and there were few people at the airport, which was clean, modern, oozed new money and had very cool architecture.…and then there was terminal 2. After a 20 minute tram ride , I arrived at terminal 2 where I knew I was a foreigner from the moment I stepped through the doors. Men were dressed in white and most wore some type of head covering. The women of all sizes and shapes were dressed in clothing to cover themselves and most wore scarves or had their hair pulled back. …. so I quickly went to the restroom and pulled my hair back. The bathrooms….oh my. Thinking I should have gone to the restrooms in terminal 1. The duty free shop was fun to browse. Arrived in northern Iraq after a couple more hours... I’m not in Carmel any more…that’s for sure.
 

The Dubai skyline

A little island near Dubai.  Many had interesting shapes.

....not in the US anymore!

A large, illuminated sculpture near the airport.

Look at the curved shape of the street light posts.

Many buildings are lit in bright colors like this mosque.

A woman selling something on the road at a signal. There are no lines to form lanes on the road!

My journey begins ...

 ... from the Monterey Peninsula to Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan!  

I will be teaching first grade students at an International Baccalaureate school.

Packed up

Ten days to ship

Ready for adventure with a send off from Michelle!

 Thank you to everyone who has helped me prepare 
for this journey . . .