Dubai October 2015
Blog 6
Dubai October 2015
Having stopped in Dubai airport twice I had a real desire to see more of the place, this was possible when I was asked to teach in Dubai for two days. Normally people fly out on Wednesday have meetings Thursday and teach Friday and Saturday.
I had the idea that if I flew out overnight on Tuesday then I wasn’t missing any more time from the campus, I also still checked in on Wednesday, so the additional cost to the University was zero. This gave me an extra day to explore Dubai. Also an ex-colleague had relocated there the year previous so was going to be able to catch up with him.
At this point Mrs T surprised me with a belated birthday gift. She told me she would be happy to pay for me to play a round of golf on this day in Dubai if I could arrange it. Immediately my thoughts went to the European tour championship race to Dubai course. In my head I planned it out, land at 10am, check in, shower lunch and at the course for 1pm, get a round in before the sundown time of 6pm, perfect. I phoned the Jumeirah course and asked if I could have a one ball tee time at 1pm for this day. I thought nothing of their course, ‘are you sure?’
So I rocked up for my spell on the driving range and to use the locker rooms that are regularly graced by the greatest golfers on the planet. They gave me £20 voucher for the clubhouse bar afterwards as well. Within 20 minutes I understood the question, the temperature soared to 48C, this was reason no sane person was asking to play golf at this time. Things were so bad that I pulled the cart over at point and sat with a towel full ice over my head as I struggled to catch my breath. A very kind course marshall visited me at one point with the saviour of an ice lolly, I proceeded to rub it on my face.
After standing in a cold shower for twenty minutes after 18 gruelling holes I dragged myself into the clubhouse to spend my voucher. I ordered a pint of lager and small packet of crisps, (no advertising here but once you pop you cant stop) and gleefully handed over my voucher, if I had the energy I would have fallen off my chair when I was told that I owed them the equivalent of £4. I don’t think the world championship venue was prepared by an argument about how unreasonable it was to charge £16 a pint. I very nearly said the words ‘In my day’
After the shock of such an experience I decided to stop at the Dubai mall to get some dinner (I’d done my research they have a Cheesecake factory). Imagine my surprise when I walked into a mall in the middle of desert and people are skiing, they’ve got an effing ski slope!!!!!
The teaching was very enjoyable these students had come from all over the Middle East and North Africa to listen to me drone on. I liked the students, apart from one who told me I very much looked like Jonah Hill, I resisted the urge to fail him there and then!!!
Anyway teaching over, no hangover had, as I didn’t fancy the re-mortgage and short flight back home saw this very enjoyable trip pass without any further hitch. Next time I will check the local weather patterns before deciding to play golf, it was fun though!!!
