I went with a friend and her daughter to the gold souq this week. We travelled on the bus as they had not been on one before and fortunately we got one of the newer buses and I think they will use it more often, now they have seen how clean and easy it is to use. It ends right at the gold souq, so it is very convenient. I could not believe how many little shops there were, in 2 1/2 hours we had only done a small portion and already we had found a lot of things we were interested in. No purchases this time, but we had more of an idea of the prices. We were so busy looking I forgot to take photographs, so will have to do that next time. Afterwards we met the guys for dinner in Souq Waqif which is just across the road and found a new restaurant which is my new favourite called Cinque Senses. We had never been in before as it looked so formal and expensive with high backed chairs and tablecloths. However, the food was Italian, not nearly as expensive as the big hotels and really great food. Above is a photo of Semifreddo with nougat and almond sauce - absolutely delicious. But everything else we had was excellent and when we left, the staff all line up at the door to wish us good evening. A really classy place and definitely one destined to be our new favourite.

On the way home we stopped off on the Corniche to have a breath of fresh air and to try taking some night time shots of West Bay. Everyone makes such a good use of the Corniche, especially after dark when it is cooler. You can see families out walking, people even jogging, and people just getting some exercise and being sociable, or just sitting and looking at the ocean.

Last night we didn't end up going on a road trip, the humidity has finally arrived. We had been told about it, but it really does hit you like a ton of bricks when you go outside, and your glasses instantly fog up. There was a leaving/thank you party for the family who has organized a lot of the desert trips. I just thought it was interesting that the hosts had moved their living furniture outside on the patio for the party! You just never think of rain ever here, so it is quite logical to be able to put good furniture and carpets outside as you would never have to move it inside in a hurry - in fact you could leave it outside most of the year. It might get a little damp with the high humidity now though. Good time for us to go on R&R.