Hey there,
SLB decided we needed more tests in a week than normal, so I'm in the middle of taking those. I should be done with the majority of my tests and what not by next week, I'll provide an update then.
Just an FYI, I will be back in Alaska by the 1st of May and back in Texas by the 5th.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
A giant Mosque, SLB Dorms, Dubai: Part Deux
Readers,
I had not even thought about updating the blog until my Uncle messaged me earlier today. I am sorry it took this long for me to update, as I'm sure you have been frantically hitting 'Refresh' page on your internet browser to see if I updated.
I have been pretty busy with school recently, as we are delving into the more complicated tools (theory and operation wise) that we are to learn during this course.
If you go to the picture site you will see pics from the Sheik Zayed Mosque (second largest Mosque in the world) and various pictures from my second trip to Dubai.
I must say that I finally looked over some of my pictures, and realized quite a few of them are a bit slanted; sorry about this, I usually snap quick pictures and keep walking. I'm going to make a more conscious effort to take a few extra seconds each picture and not tilt the camera so much.
The Sheik Zayed Mosque, named after the late Sheik Zayed who united all the emirates to from the UAE, sits on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi and is an absolutely amazing site in this urban jungle. Like all things in this country, it is still under construction (the plaza at least, the mosque is complete). The pictures can describe the gold leafing, the crystal chandeliers, and the world's largest handwoven carpet better than I ever could.
The same day I visited the mosque, my class had to move to the Schlumberger Middle East & Asia Learning Center dormitory. Hooray... In all actuality, the place is very nice and has a variety of facilities to allow students to relax. However, the walled complex and constant security guard presence makes one feel like they are at a prison sponsored by IKEA (all the furniture is from IKEA, stickers are still on some of the pieces). This makes the commute to Abu Dhabi on the weekends a bit more difficult, but the site does offer a free bus to Dubai on the weekends.
Two friends and myself took advantage of this last weekend (April 3rd). After touring the Dubai musuem (similar to the East Texas Oil Museum in Kilgore), we went to the Burj Khalifah where the top was open! The viewing deck had not been open for more than two weeks, but we managed to buy tickets and make it up to the top. The experience was unreal, as the largest skyscrapers in the city looked minuscule. This is another case where my words cannot do justice to the experience; check out the pictures. We meet up with my friend Paul's old classmate and she showed us parts of Dubai we had heard of, but had no idea where they were.
During this experience, I learned Dubai is a lot like Dallas; the main things to do are eat, drink, and shop. The locals enjoy visiting various malls and walking around gawking at the expensive goods and escaping the heat by way of the strong air conditioning in each building. My friends (both from the northern US) wore sweatshirts inside, just to give you an idea of the temperature.
Unfortunately, this weekend has been taken over by radiation training. We might get Sunday off (our usual weekend is Friday and Saturday), but that doesn't seem to be set in stone.
I'm sorry again on the slow updates, but I'm a mover and a shaker.
Hope all is well on your side of the world,
Russell
I had not even thought about updating the blog until my Uncle messaged me earlier today. I am sorry it took this long for me to update, as I'm sure you have been frantically hitting 'Refresh' page on your internet browser to see if I updated.
I have been pretty busy with school recently, as we are delving into the more complicated tools (theory and operation wise) that we are to learn during this course.
If you go to the picture site you will see pics from the Sheik Zayed Mosque (second largest Mosque in the world) and various pictures from my second trip to Dubai.
I must say that I finally looked over some of my pictures, and realized quite a few of them are a bit slanted; sorry about this, I usually snap quick pictures and keep walking. I'm going to make a more conscious effort to take a few extra seconds each picture and not tilt the camera so much.
The Sheik Zayed Mosque, named after the late Sheik Zayed who united all the emirates to from the UAE, sits on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi and is an absolutely amazing site in this urban jungle. Like all things in this country, it is still under construction (the plaza at least, the mosque is complete). The pictures can describe the gold leafing, the crystal chandeliers, and the world's largest handwoven carpet better than I ever could.
The same day I visited the mosque, my class had to move to the Schlumberger Middle East & Asia Learning Center dormitory. Hooray... In all actuality, the place is very nice and has a variety of facilities to allow students to relax. However, the walled complex and constant security guard presence makes one feel like they are at a prison sponsored by IKEA (all the furniture is from IKEA, stickers are still on some of the pieces). This makes the commute to Abu Dhabi on the weekends a bit more difficult, but the site does offer a free bus to Dubai on the weekends.
Two friends and myself took advantage of this last weekend (April 3rd). After touring the Dubai musuem (similar to the East Texas Oil Museum in Kilgore), we went to the Burj Khalifah where the top was open! The viewing deck had not been open for more than two weeks, but we managed to buy tickets and make it up to the top. The experience was unreal, as the largest skyscrapers in the city looked minuscule. This is another case where my words cannot do justice to the experience; check out the pictures. We meet up with my friend Paul's old classmate and she showed us parts of Dubai we had heard of, but had no idea where they were.
During this experience, I learned Dubai is a lot like Dallas; the main things to do are eat, drink, and shop. The locals enjoy visiting various malls and walking around gawking at the expensive goods and escaping the heat by way of the strong air conditioning in each building. My friends (both from the northern US) wore sweatshirts inside, just to give you an idea of the temperature.
Unfortunately, this weekend has been taken over by radiation training. We might get Sunday off (our usual weekend is Friday and Saturday), but that doesn't seem to be set in stone.
I'm sorry again on the slow updates, but I'm a mover and a shaker.
Hope all is well on your side of the world,
Russell
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