Still enroute towards picking up Matilda we headed for Dhubai. But after sitting in the departure lounge from 8.40 am and being told of repeated delays we were finally told at 4pm that our flight was cancelled. We were put up in a nice hotel, with dinner. Then we were awoken at 3 am for a 4am pick up. Our new flight departed at 0740 for Dhubai. This meant our stop over in Dhubai was seriously shortened, but still we had an afternoon and overnight in Dhubai. Our main purpose of breaking the flight and avoiding the long haul was still achieved.
We stayed this time in a boutique Hotel in an old section of Dhubai where the old flat topped square buildings have been restored and the area made into an arts precinct with galleries and museums. These buildings had air towers which pulled the breeze upwards through the buildings keeping them cool. Some of these towers were still evident (see next photo) although no doubt many of them have been replaced with air conditioners.
Our hotel was called XVT Art Hotel and had art works everywhere. It was very atmospheric,with stone floors, a canopied bed and wooden shuttered windows. It was air conditioned however and had a modern bathroom. But the best feature was a courtyard with a shady tree, and a vegetarian cafe with great vegetarian middle eastern food.
It was a short walk to the river with eateries along the banks. We sat in the cafe and watched the water taxies on the river.
Next stop gold souk! I got my hands on a nice pair of gold earrings. But I could have spent a lot more!
Then it was off to Paris. I have not been to Paris before, although Joe has. But it rained the first day. Still some things must be seen despite the weather....
We have been pleasantly surprised by the vegan restaraunts in Paris! There are very decent restaraunts with food made specifically for vegans, not simply meat meals with a couple of missing ingredients. They look and taste good with dishes made from specifically vegan ingredients such as nut cheeses and seitan, tofu etc. We also noticed that the vegan establishments were always booked out. One owner told us that they have been growing rapidly and have expanded once and now need to expand again into the place next door. This supports the claim that the number of vegans is rapidly growing.
And at a nearby table tonight we spotted the skipper of one of the Sea Shepherd vessels (Paul Watson). He is clearly vegan, but I suppose that is to be expected of someone with such an environmental conscience!
The weather here is much cooler than in Singapore or Dhubai, or Brisbane for that matter. We now have room heaters rather than air conditioners. And it gets dark at about 9pm! What will it be like in Norway! The long twilight will be a new experience for me!
5 May, today we saw two "cathedrals" with very different purposes. The Notredam was not the most spectacular cathedral I have seen but certainly historic.
After commenting to Joe that it's is a pity that all this grandeur is dedicated to such nonsense, we proceeded to the Pantheon. This is a monument to great people of France. It is an entirely secular cathedral. A newly built cathedral was taken over by the government shortly after the French Revolution, and remade into a secular Pantheon - a gathering of France's human heroes. In the process the decor became much less ornate, quite minimalist. I thought this was a bit of a pity, with very plain glass replacing any stained glass. But they left a couple of religious paintings!
Below the main building there are crypts of the heroes of France - including Voltaire, and the Curries. There seems to be an emphasis on people with ideas!
I think we should have more secular monuments! I found it quite inspiring. We discussed whether we have suitable people in Australia yet to honour like this, and we came up with explorers, Nobel Laureates, some outstanding campaigners for female and aboriginal equality.....
6th May
We have heard from the shipping agent that the vehicle is not arriving in Antwerpen until 11th May. So we have few days to kill. So we jumped on a train to Amiens. Amiens is a beautiful small town in the Picardy region of the north of France. It is known for its cathedral, and it's waterways.
It is the regional centre for the memorials to the battles and of the Somme. Consequently it is a bit if an Australian gathering place. Next day we hired a car and started a bit of a tour of the battlegrounds.
There are cemeteries everywhere, with hundreds of Australian gravestones in each one. There is no glorification of war here, just many, many tombstones. It is very sad.
But the countryside is beautiful, although quite flat.
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