While Jenise was here we made reservations to take what they call a Full Day Desert Safari. The company we went with comes highly recommended and provides a day full of adventure. Safari has nothing to do with animals in Doha, well other than camels. A day in the desert means dune bashing and that's just what we did.
This post is picture heavy but I couldn't leave anything out. Thanks to Jennie for sharing a few of hers with me.
Jenise and our drivers
Camel crossing sign on our drive out to the dunes...and they're not kidding.
We saw camels just hanging out on the side of the road. Other cars were stopped to look at them.
After driving about 30 minutes our group of 7 Land Cruisers stopped to prep the vehicles and let air out of the tires so we could properly bash :)
In the mean time we made sand angels...Brooks' idea!
Headed for the dunes
Just for the record our personal group of 11 was separated in to 2 different cars. One car was for extreme driving and the other was for careful driving. Nick, Brooks and Jenise took on the dunes 100% (along with Mark, Eric and Jennie). The other youngsters plus Jackie and myself were in the "take it easy" car.
This is our "take it easy" car at the top of the dune. Although we didn't miss a dune our speed was slower than all the others. And rest assured that our driver was taking great care of the pregnant lady in his front seat. He knew what he had comin' if something went south.
This is a pic of the car my sweet husband and Brooks were in. They LOVED it. Sand covering the windows. We were already at the bottom cheering them on.
First stop...absolutely breathtaking!
Our group...
Me and Jenise
The blueberries!
Hanging with a few of the drivers.
We stopped to watch these crazy fools fly over the dunes. There was a huge crowd up on top of the dune and at the bottom.
Off again into the desert
Next stop...climbing to the top for an amazing view.
You can see all the drivers at the bottom circled up. I
love that this culture sits in way that seems to be more personal. Every time we stopped for a break they would gather around each other and talk.
2 little buddies...
They have no idea the magnitude of God's creation in this picture.
They will someday, though.
Mr. Eric helping Brooks get to the top. The sun was setting...you can tell it was perfect timing to watch from the top. Surprise surprise...I didn't make it.
My man...
After another short drive through and over dunes we landed at a camel farm...in the middle of nowhere. This fella was just walking around.
Lots of babies
Black twins
How could Jenise pass up the opportunity to ride a camel in the middle east!?
Tea with our drivers. We're still no sure if this was planned or impromptu. We were literally sitting in the middle of the desert in a large circle, sharing tea. There was absolutely NO formality to it. It was plain and simple, which felt welcoming and truly authentic. A moment I won't forget and that I enjoyed.
Eric and Jennie enjoying their tea.
The bowl was full of boiling water. There weren't enough tea cups so they would sterilize the cup in the boiling water after each person enjoyed their small cup.
The locals/drivers were incredibly hospitable. They loved the kids!!
And to wrap up our day we ended up on the beach at a fully set up camp. They cooked dinner as we relaxed and enjoyed a coke. The boys never stopped. They loved every bit of this adventure. They had all kinds of running room and apparently sand never gets old.
Mark and Jackie
Boys playing like animals in the tent.
Eating classic Arabic food which was great.
This post is picture heavy but I couldn't leave anything out. Thanks to Jennie for sharing a few of hers with me.
Jenise and our drivers
Camel crossing sign on our drive out to the dunes...and they're not kidding.
We saw camels just hanging out on the side of the road. Other cars were stopped to look at them.
After driving about 30 minutes our group of 7 Land Cruisers stopped to prep the vehicles and let air out of the tires so we could properly bash :)
In the mean time we made sand angels...Brooks' idea!
Headed for the dunes
Just for the record our personal group of 11 was separated in to 2 different cars. One car was for extreme driving and the other was for careful driving. Nick, Brooks and Jenise took on the dunes 100% (along with Mark, Eric and Jennie). The other youngsters plus Jackie and myself were in the "take it easy" car.
This is our "take it easy" car at the top of the dune. Although we didn't miss a dune our speed was slower than all the others. And rest assured that our driver was taking great care of the pregnant lady in his front seat. He knew what he had comin' if something went south.
This is a pic of the car my sweet husband and Brooks were in. They LOVED it. Sand covering the windows. We were already at the bottom cheering them on.
First stop...absolutely breathtaking!
Our group...
Me and Jenise
The blueberries!
Hanging with a few of the drivers.
We stopped to watch these crazy fools fly over the dunes. There was a huge crowd up on top of the dune and at the bottom.
Off again into the desert
Next stop...climbing to the top for an amazing view.
You can see all the drivers at the bottom circled up. I
love that this culture sits in way that seems to be more personal. Every time we stopped for a break they would gather around each other and talk.
2 little buddies...
They have no idea the magnitude of God's creation in this picture.
They will someday, though.
Mr. Eric helping Brooks get to the top. The sun was setting...you can tell it was perfect timing to watch from the top. Surprise surprise...I didn't make it.
My man...
After another short drive through and over dunes we landed at a camel farm...in the middle of nowhere. This fella was just walking around.
Lots of babies
Black twins
How could Jenise pass up the opportunity to ride a camel in the middle east!?
Tea with our drivers. We're still no sure if this was planned or impromptu. We were literally sitting in the middle of the desert in a large circle, sharing tea. There was absolutely NO formality to it. It was plain and simple, which felt welcoming and truly authentic. A moment I won't forget and that I enjoyed.
Eric and Jennie enjoying their tea.
The bowl was full of boiling water. There weren't enough tea cups so they would sterilize the cup in the boiling water after each person enjoyed their small cup.
The locals/drivers were incredibly hospitable. They loved the kids!!
And to wrap up our day we ended up on the beach at a fully set up camp. They cooked dinner as we relaxed and enjoyed a coke. The boys never stopped. They loved every bit of this adventure. They had all kinds of running room and apparently sand never gets old.
Mark and Jackie
Boys playing like animals in the tent.
Eating classic Arabic food which was great.
What an adventure. We highly recommend it. Arabian Adventures is a professional company well trained and set up for everything. I'm so glad Jenise's visit prompted us to plan it. We'll do it again!! Thanks to the Picketts and LaRoveres for joining us. We had a blast and it wouldn't have been the same without them!
7 comments:
Awesome! Everything looked like a blast! What a taste of Doha for Jenise! I like the pic of all of you with the drivers and one is giving Barrett a kiss. Too cute! Great pics! And you look great by the way.
Incredible! I had to go back and look at your pictures a second time. They are beautiful! And sister, you make pregnancy look wonderful! You are so pretty WEW! Cannot wait to meet your little MiniMe!
Wendi, these pictures are amazing - what an adventure! I really want to do this! Loved the friendliness of the drivers, especially to the kids. What a great day out. Karen
How fun! I am pretty impressed that you were so adventurous this far along in your pregnancy, you are such a super star Mommy! Looks like a WONDERFUL day.
I agree with Ashley the kiss picture made me laugh and with Shannon you are too beautiful...no one should look that good out in the middle of the dessert 8 months pregnant!
What a special day! I'm so happy to see those pictures. My memories can't do it justice. It was breathtaking.
Love the new blog look! Glad you had fun with a good ole bestie! Wish I could join you on one of those crazy dune trips...looks like a blast. Caden enjoyed seeing his friends from "far far away on the airplane"!
Do tell of who did this new blog look. Love it! SO much to say - Barrett with the crazy hair and the boys bouncing all over the tent, thankful I didn't have to sand bash, though the pictures looked awesome, Jenise looking so laidback, as Jenise always does, you looking great - as I keep telling you, seeing photos of your new neighbors, and just thnkful that someone from back home could come and fill that void when the rest of us cannot! Thankful for this trip for both you and Jenise. Love the photos!
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