Kayaking in the Mangroves of Abu Dhabi!

So I am still really behind on my posts so here is one that I meant to post 2 months ago!!

So one of the last weekends I was looking for things to do on the internet that we have not already done that we could do in Abu Dhabi. Well I started searching things that I like to do in normal places and have not done in a while and came across a website via Google. I knew right away I wanted to do this but I was not sure that I would be able to get any of the guys to go with me! Well after some begging and organizing I got all the Latinos and Paolo to go with me kayaking in the Mangroves in Abu Dhabi. We ended up going at 10 am on a Saturday since the tour that we wanted to go on at night (full moon tour) was booked. The guys complained for a bit but then started to like it a little more once they got in the kayaks!

We were definitely a mismatched group that for sure did not look like we knew what we were doing but we still had fun doing it. Also, thinking back on it know I think I had less clothes on that day then any other . . . out of respect of their culture I really did not feel comfortable wearing shorts or tank tops outside in public though there are enough internationals there that do! For this I thought it was an exception and of course had pants and a t-shirt waiting for me back onshore!!

 

In all we paddled around for 2 hours which was the perfect amount of time since it was pretty hot out and we were all out of shape!! It was sooo refreshing being on the water and being around God's creation. It was sooo interesting because we were in shallow water within trees but yet surrounded by huge modern buildings! I was thankful for a time to just be quiet and look and listen and smell the freshness of my surroundings. Sometimes you just need to be reminded of the little things!

I am still alive!!

So I have kept saying that I would finishing writing about my adventures in Abu Dhabi over the past weeks but have not done so yet. One reason for that is I have worked for 55 days straight now and of those 55 days I was offshore for 31!! It has been a very tiring but interesting past 2 months to say the least!!

My last adventure offshore I had the privilege of being on a big ship that has a crane and space for 100+ people. The ship was brand new and there were accommodations for women and the food was great. The downside of the ship was that it was new . . . meaning that all the people were new and did not know what they were doing and it lacked a lot of things to be able to do the job. This means lots of time waiting to do your job because you need the support of those people!

Other than that issue everything thing went well with the job. The jobs had a potential to go horribly wrong since we were pumping a treatment that is a lot like cement which means there is a possibility of getting stuck. After the cement job we were supposed to then run a memory logging tool and then shot guns downhole but then 3 storms arrived. Since we were on a boat we could not work because to get to the platform you have to ride on the crane. When the wind is really strong or there is big waves the crane moves too much which causes the human basket to start swinging like a pendulum. Below is a picture of the human basket! You are just holding on and riding up 3-5 stories high!!

I ended up spending 9 days doing nothing waiting to go to the platform. It was nice for a little while especially because I was getting sick but after about 3 days of doing nothing I was time to start working again. One because that is why I am there and two it helps the time go by quicker. I ended up making a schedule for those bad weather days . . . waking up at 7:30, going to the client office to hear the program for the day and have coffee/sweet bread, email the base/home, work on some work stuff, eat lunch, check in with client again, go outside and look at the ocean/practice my Spanish with whoever wants to talk, watch a movie or tv show, eat dinner, email/call the base again, watch a movie or tv show, go to sleep around 10, repeat!! All this time the ship is moving about all the time. When you eating everything is moving on the table . . . when you sleep you are moving from side to side. Thankfully I never got seasick!!

By the time we were able to work again I already had 15 days offshore (usually the limit is 14 days). Since the weather was still not perfect there were no boats to go back to Cd. del Carmen, so I worked for a couple more days. By the 18th day of being offshore I finally came down from the platform/boat by helicopter which is always a bonus!!

Here are some more pictures of the platform.

 Me being a good supervisor . . . delegating what to do!!

Since being back down on earth I have just kept chugging along. I have been working in the office and trying to catch up with all the things I needed to do while offshore all the while getting more things handed to me and having to deal with problems with the units you are in charge of. All I know right now is that I am that much closer to going home!! My ticket is bought and now I am just wanting to get my permission to leave the country and re-enter since I will not be able to get my visa in time to go home. Hopefully all will go to plan!!

Oh and Feliz Cumpleaños to my favorite big sister Lizzie . . . hope you had a great one!!

Dubai!

So far being here in Abu Dhabi and now Dubai, the architecture is unbelievable. If you like crazy modern buildings then come to the UAE. There are so many buildings being built, and they are all trying to be taller than the other and the most extreme. They do not like just plain old square buildings. It is all about being flashy here . . . to show your wealth. This can be seen by the cars that are here and what type of stores you see in all the malls. The malls alone are crazy . . . having ski slopes, skating rinks, bowling alleys, crazy fountains, etc.

After 2 weeks of class we had a long weekend so a big group of us from my class and the Frac class went to Dubai Thursday night and stayed for 2 nights. Dubai is a very interesting city . . . there are sooo many tall buildings but it is really spread out. There is a tram but it is really slow and does not work during the morning most days. And actually it is pretty expensive so you definitely need a car or use taxis every where.

The first night we all just hung out with each other and it was a lot of fun getting to know the Frac class more. Again I just sat back and thought to myself how crazy it was to be in the place that I was with the people I was with! Venezuelans, an Italian, a girl from Vietnam, a guy from China, Americans, and so many more cultures!

The next day ended up being a great but really long day!! The Latinos, Paolo and I went to Sky Dubai which is an indoor snow park where you can ski and snowboard. You think it would get boring since there was really only 3 runs but for not having snowboarded in years it was great practice for when I go see my best friend Sarah in Colorado this winter! It was crazy going from over 100 degree weather to 40 degree weather. It was actually a nice break from the crazy heat and ended up being a really fun time watching the other guys fall all the time on their skis . . . they couldn't help that it was their first time!!

After skiing and snowboarding for some time we went to a beer fest that was going on in town! It was so fun to go and see all the internationals that live in Dubai come together and celebrate good Irish food and great music! However it was a little overwhelming with all the people that were there!! You barely had any room to stand let alone move which usually freaks me out some but the atmosphere was just so great I did not mind to much!! After a couple of hours there the group of us went to the biggest more there which would take days to go to all the stores to see the fountain and light show. Next to this mall happens to be the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, that words cannot even express. I never got to go up the building since you have to have a reservation and you do not even get to go to the very top!

The show was nice but the best part was after when we went for a late night dinner at a Lebanese restaurant looking over the fountains! We ordered a sampler since we were not that hungry. When the food came out it looked so good and it was really good. We stuffed ourselves and then the waiter came out with more!! We probably had enough food for 8 people but there was only 4 of us!! We ended up not finishing everything but it was a beautiful night and overall an unforgettable day!!

The next day I got back on the bus in the morning to go back to Abu Dhabi early since I had a test the next day. I wish I could have had a little more time there to see all the things that the city has to offer!! Maybe next time!

Behind!

So I wanted to write something once a week when I was in UAE but of course after my last post my class got really crazy with lots of work and projects. When I finally got back to Mexico, my parents and sister came visit so that has made me even further behind. (That is not to say that them visiting me was a hinderance!!) Now I am starting work again so hopefully I will get back to my routine and finish all the posts that I have started!! However that routine will be a little slow because it seems that I am now about to go offshore!

All that to say be patient with my tardiness and soon all the stories from my adventures will be written about soon . . . I hope :)

Quarter of a Century!!

I can not believe that I am a quarter of a century already!! To be honest I do not feel any different at all . . . it is just another number now! However, I now can rent cars without any issues. I guess I am truly an adult now!

Looking back on the years I have realized that I have had my birthday in some very strange and interesting places. I probably only had my birthday 10 of my 25 years actually at my house. I have been at the beach, at camp (as a camper and staff), the bayou of Mississippi, Spain, Guatemala, a rig in Mexico, and now United Arab Emirates :) So many people asked if I wished I was home for my birthday, and I told them that it was normal not being there. This is not to say that I did not want to be with my family especially since they were all hanging out at the beach without me!!

The day of my birthday I did not really do much since Sunday is a work day here. The weekend is Friday and Saturday so Sunday is actually what our Monday is. Saturday was the day I ended up celebrating it with everyone and had a blast! Another unusually birthday that I will never forget!

I had a test in the morning that I got a 100 on which started the day off great! After that the Latinos from my class and I went to Ferrari World! It is an indoor amusement park with a Ferrari theme. Another example of how the UAE is all about the high class objects. One of the things that the park is known for is having the fastest roller coaster in the world. And in the end it was worth ever penny to ride that ride!!

The ride was crazy . . . you went from 0 to 240 kph (~150 mph)  in 4.9 seconds. You definitely felt all the Gs and your mouth wiggled uncontrollably! The park even made you wear goggles because part of the ride was outside and sand blowing into your eyes would not be a good thing! After the ride I looked a little tattered which you can see below. My hair was crazy, and I thought my clothes were going to ripe off . . . next time I know just to wear a t-shirt when riding this ride!

After spending a few hours at the park, Gustavo and I left to go out to eat at Belgian Cafe at the Intercontinental hotel in Abu Dhabi where we met up with Souhaibe. Though most of my class did not make it out the 3 of us had a great time eating good food and having good conversations. This is the second time that we went here but I love it and would not hesitate to go back again. The environment is my type of place . . . good food in a not so formal setting!

  

I guess when I went to the bathroom, the guys told the waitresses that it was my birthday so when I got back they brought me out this yummy chocolate tiramisu thing and sang to me!!

 

Here is a picture of our waitress friends that we have made over our last 2 visits!!

And right after the dessert, the rest of the gang showed up to hang out! One because it was my birthday and two because the next day was going to be the start of Ramadan, the Islamic fasting month, which I will talk about in a later post!!

Grand Mosque

So the first weekend free a group of people from my class and another class and I went to the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. It is the largest mosque in UAE and was just recently built about 5 years ago. My pictures do not give justice to the size or beauty it has. I have been learning that UAE is not afraid to flaunt their stuff/wealth!! This mosque is made from all Greek marble with murals of semi-precious stone. The towers have 24-karat gold on top. It also has the world's largest handmade rug that is all 1 piece and can be seen below (about the size of a football field). There is also other world records they have for this place!! We ended up having a tour guide to show us around which was really nice. They are really proud of the mosque and want it to be more than just a religious building but also a cultural center to learn about Islam and the heritage of UAE.

I have never really know much about Islam so I was excited to learn more to have a better understanding of what they believe. There are many similarities to Christianity which I was really surprised about. The tour guide helped us understand many of our questions that we had about it which was really nice. She also helped with the mess conceptions we usually have about the dress. I know that I always thought that everything that they wore was due to rules in the Koren but actually some of the dress is actually not part of Islam but actually is a culture thing. Here in UAE the women wear all black while the men wear all white. You still see a lot of head scarves that are red but that is normally people from Saudi. The women have to cover their heads but do not necessarily have to hide their faces. Only coverage of you head is Islamic law. Many women choose to hide their faces, however, because they feel uncomfortable or do not want anyone to know who they are when they go out in public!! To go inside the mosque I got to experience what it felt like in the all black outfit! All the women have to be in full attire. I never really figured out how to wrap my head to keep the scarf on it especially when the wind blew but in all it was a good experience. I actually felt like I fit in rather than stick out like I always do!!

Below is a picture of all the guys that went with us and of the 3 girls (a couple from my class and a few from another class) . . . of course the guys did not have to wear anything different! They would have though if any of them were wearing shorts. Again, I think it is so awesome of all people I get to meet. In this group there was 4, including myself, from the US, a Mexican, a Colombian, a Venezuelan, a Russian, a Frenchmen, and an Italian. I LOVE this about my job!!

And last but not least we went to a marketplace and shopped a little bit. At one time I heard my friend Paolo talking but could not find him . . . well I couldn't find him because he and Posi were in traditional clothing!! They were absolutely hilarious walking around together!!

Abu Dhabi, UAE!!

So I am finally here!! I can not believe it . . . I knew I always had a possibility of coming here for courses but never thought it would happen! It was a long journey!! It ended taking 2 1/2 days to get here!! I left on Thurs. at around 4 pm to Mexico City and then got on a flight to Frankfurt. I got to Frankfurt around 2 pm on Fri.!! My flight to Abu Dhabi was not till the next day so I got a hotel in downtown Frankfurt and walked around. It was such a beautiful day . . . so refreshing after being in the heat of Carmen for so long!!

I definitely want to go back to Germany sometime soon . . . it is a really interesting place and it is part of my heritage!! Being there now makes me want to learn German, but I doubt that is going to happen!

I ended up getting to Abu Dhabi around 8:30 at night and went straight to the training center. It took about 25 miuntes in the taxis and it was interesting looking out the windows at the landscape even though it was dark. All you could see were these towers with a green light. I would find out later that these were the mosques. Instead of being at home in the Bible-belt, I am now in the Koran-belt!! There are over 2,000 mosques in Abu Dhabi alone!! I will get to more of that in a later post.

The next day I started class and had my big presentation. Things went pretty well, and I was glad to just get it done!! Another thing about that day is I experienced what true heat is . . . I thought I knew what it was like but here it is about 110 degrees everyday and the heat is smothering . . . you step outside and you can't breathe!! Also I learned that it is flat and sandy . . . enough said!! Below are some pictures from outside my base and a picture with Carlos who works with me in Carmen being sad because we were not able to make it to our friend Karina's wedding back in Mexico.


I am excited to share all me experiences here!! Look out for more posts and most likely more frequently since I have a little more time on my hands!! I am excited to see what I learn about this amazing culture and share it with everyone!!

Dream Team

After my course in Tulsa, it has been crazy here at the base. I have been in charge of 4 units, plus have to make time for studying for my 2 entrance exams and finish my paper and presentation for my second school. Thankfully I was guardia for this week so I had to go early and stay late which helped me get more things done and the units have not had as much work either.

In the end I got everything done and passed both exams, so all was good!! It is crazy that I will be going to Abu Dhabi in just a few days now!! It is very surreal, and I am really excited to learn yet another culture!!

Something abnormal of the week was that I got to play basketball a couple times. The first time of the week was just the normal pickup game that a group of people do every week. It happened to start raining in the middle which was fun but I had to be really careful, 1 because I have not played in a long time and 2 the conditions were really slippery!! The 2nd time was that weekend when SLB was asked to make a team for a tournament hosted by our clients. It was serious . . . we had jerseys made and all!! So instead of sitting at my desk all day on Sat. I took a little break and went with 2 other engineers from Coiled Tubing and 4 from Cementing to the Pemex sports complex!! We first played one of the design segments in Pemex who we happen to play a lot with and are good friends. I played really well for being out of shape and not having a good feel!! I ended up having 2 blocks that game and 9 of the first 13 points, which included a 3 pointer!! We won that game and then played in the championship game against another segment of Pemex. They were a lot taller and bigger! If we had not had played just 30 minutes before I think we could have beat them. I had a couple more blocks and scored a couple of points but nothing would fall for me . . . oh well we got a second place trophy!

The absolute crazy thing about the tournament though was that I ended up being the so called MVP of the tournament! I definitely was not the best person but I guess being a girl that blocked quite a few guys and scored helped my case!! Supposedly there was a coach from the women's league there and wanted me to join their team . . . if I only had time I might say yes if they ever asked me to play!!

Tulsa Trip Take 2

One great thing about my location is that there is soooo much opportunity to learn. There are so many more types of operations here and most of the new technology is here as well. Because of this the managers are not afraid of someone leaving for a week and going to a course. Well that's exactly what I got to do last week. I got to go to a CT logging course since all the engineers that do know how to do it don't want to go offshore anymore!! Most likely I will not get to have that many jobs using it, but it is nice to know that I can bring something special to the group when the time is right. Plus it was a really nice break from normal work especially since the week before leaving for Tulsa was absolutely crazy and hard for me!! Also it is just nice to go back to the comfortable, English speaking US once in a while!!

My way to Tulsa ended up being a little adventure (another for my long list of airport adventures)! My plane out of Cd. del Carmen was 20 minutes late which caused us to be 1 hour late getting to Houston. Normally that would have been fine but when you have only a 2 hour layover and have to get through immigration, baggage claim, customs, and security its not so good. When I got off the plane I had already told myself that I was going to miss my flight and started to figure out how I was going to get to Tulsa. Well after getting through immigrations in only 5 minutes I thought maybe I did have a chance of making it if everything aligned! Well everything aligned all right! I went through immigration, baggage claim and customs in less than 10 minutes. Then I thought for sure security would hold me up for at least 20 minutes but when I got there I was the next in line to go (I think this mainly had to do with taking the normal stairs when there was a large church group going up the escalator)! I then got on the tram to another concourse and speed walked to my gate where I made it in time by 10 minutes! Thank you Jesus ;) I do not think that will every happen again, especially in a huge airport like Houston.

When I finally got to Houston I took the apartment shuttle with a group of truck drivers from SLB that just arrived as well to go to a driving school. These guys were good ole boys from all over the US!! Once we arrived to the apartments I went into shock. Compared to the apartments I stayed in the last time this apartment was a palace. There is plush carpets, granite counter-tops, flat screen TVs, a swimming pool, workout center, sand volleyball court, etc (2 pics below). Just after those 15 minutes I realized I wanted to stay longer then a week! After I snapped out of being in shock, I went to dinner with 3 of the guys from the shuttle!! It was the most random group of people. There was of course me the tall, white woman half the age of most of them, the Mexican that has lived in the US pretty much his whole life, and 2 black guys from the swamps of Mississippi!! We ended up eating at a "Mexican" restaurant (I ended up eating there 3 times . . . so much for getting away from Mexican food for a bit)! I had a lot of fun discussing with the Mexican man, Reyes, about how this was not normal food for Mexico and what our favorite food was. Then our very American waiter completely butchered the punctuation of pollo (po-yo not polo) and said it was pork (actually its chicken)! It was only day 1, and I was already having a fun time!


Then the next day class started. It was really interesting, I learned a lot, and meet some really nice people. In all there was 5 people in the class including me. There were 2 Mexicans supervisors that work in Colombia, 1 supervisor from Algeria, and 1 supervisor from Canada . . . I was the only engineer and had 10 years less experience with Coiled Tubing then the other guys! It was great though because they taught me a lot of the practical things, and I helped them with the software and design considerations. Thankfully most of the course though was hands on, which I definitely loved! We learned how to disassemble and make-up a new tool that maybe with some luck I might be able to get here. It is hard to get into to much detail because I do not know where to start!! Pretty much CT logging is when you have a big cable (7 wires with metal sheaths) inside the Coiled tubing. Wireline, another segment, can then place their tools on our string to be able to get the tools in locations of the well where wireline can't run to. I learned all the tools that are involved and how to set up all the surface equipment, how to make wire connections, etc. Below are some pictures to just give you a little taste of what I did.


Unfortunately, I did not get to meet up with the Dyson's who took me under their wing the last time I was town, but I was able to talk with them a short time. I also got to call a lot of other people that I had not talked to in a verrryyy long time. I apology to all my friends and family for being such a horrible communicator and not keeping in touch better. I also got to see my instructors from my last course which was really nice since one is being transferred to Malaysia this week! All in all it was a great trip though waaaayyy to short, but I know in a veerrry short time I will be starting another adventure!

PS . . most likely the next post will be when I am in Abu Dhabi!! What a life I have!!

First Class

So for my last days off I kind of spoiled myself and did more than I usually do. Again I almost talked myself out of going/doing anything because I am a pretty boring person at heart and enjoy just chilling out reading and watching TV/movies plus it is no fun doing things by yourself all the time. Instead I bought my bus ticket to Merida and booked my hotel before I could change my mind. I decided I needed to get out of Carmen and see something different for a couple of days. I have heard many good things about Merida and how pretty and interesting it is.

The first thing that made my adventure first class was buying my bus ticket for the primer bus line of ADO since I would be in the bus for around 5 hours. The seats were like big lazy-boy recliners and had tons of leg room which was soooo nice having long legs and all!

The second very first class thing is since Merida is a colonial city and the downtown has a lot of old buildings and houses, I ended up picking a hotel that used to be an old colonial house. It is called Casa Mexilio. It was the best decision I made because I absolutely loved it! I ended up spending a lot more time there reading and just having some me time especially at night on my rooftop terrace. You will see why from the pictures below though it does not give it justice! To me it was first class but without the cost! So if I were you and you are traveling around Mexico I would try to find a place like this that is interesting and has history because most likely it will cost less or about the same as a hotel chain and you will have better memories. Plus you are helping support a local business! This hotel was owned by an American that happens to be from NC . . . small world right!!

Since the hotel was near the center of town I just walked a couple of blocks and I was at the pretty colonial style churches and buildings. I just walked around and sat at the square and also did a little shopping. I bought a cute little shirt for my nephew made from a plant fiber which this region is known for. Again something very beautiful and relaxing!!

While searching for things to do in and around Merida I ended up emailing a golf course that is just outside of Merida to see if walk-ons could play since it was a private course. The guy I talked to said it would not be a problem at all so I decided to go ahead and go play no matter the price! Well, when I got there I realized that this was the Yucatan Country Club!! It was sooo beautiful and luxurious I did not know what to do with myself. I definitely did not feel like I fit in at all . . . not to say I did not like it!! It was pretty expensive but I do not get to do this stuff much and decided to give myself a little present. Also now i can say that I have golfed in another country! My green fee included golf clubs, cart and caddie . . . having a caddie was another first for me!! He was a really nice guy and I had to practice my Spanish since he did not speak English. It was so nice being outside though it was really hot, and I actually did not play that bad for a person that does not get to play that often!! The first 4 holes I was 2 over par!! Of course the inconsistency came back really quick! I do not know if I would do it again but I now have another adventure I will not forget about!!

As you can see there was lots of water and lots of sand which is not really shown in the picture. I bought a bag of a dozen used balls and had only 3 remaining at the end of the day!! Guess that happens when you are not using your clubs!!