A Day at the Races (well, an evening really)

I think we’ll start with a little test – what do you think this is a picture of the inside of ?

All will be revealed at the end !

Today I’ve been wasting my day in an idle and slovenly fashion, shopping, drinking coffee and watching horse racing.  It’s a hard life I can all hear you cry, but I don’t want you to feel sorry for me but to applaud my desire to keep you all constantly informed and up to date with the latest goings on.

I’ve drunk more coffee out here at weekends than I drink in a month at home – mostly because the coffee shops have free internet but you don’t get the code until you buy the coffee (although I “borrowed” one yesterday in a shopping centre by looking over someone’s shoulder…..don’t tell anyone though will you !) and you need free internet of course so that you can keep tabs on your family !

Keeping tabs on the family is bloody difficult when there’s a 4 hour time difference and to make matters worse, they keep getting up and moving around – still, we have settled into a routine of e-mailing each other, with the occasional text and Skype conversation thrown in, which seems to have to right effect (for now at least anyway).

Right, back to the story – the first cup of coffee was in the local shopping mall because it’s Friday……”obviously” I hear you all shout.  That’s right, not only does the UAE have it’s weekend on a Friday and a Saturday but it has it’s holy day first, so when I got to the Metro station to go exploring, it was shut.  Not proper shut, with the doors locked and everything, or even a sign up to say “Open at 1” but a shutter down at the barrier.  This might not seem much of a problem but I had to walk bloody miles over foot bridges and through tunnels to get to the barrier to then go back again to find somewhere to waste an hour.  This wouldn’t have been a problem had I not taken it into my head to run around the Marina this morning – I don’t know how far it is but it took 40 minutes of hard labour and now (and then) my feet hurt !

But eventually I was on my way to properly waste the afternoon wandering around my favourite place not to spend money – and make no mistake, I can not spend money anywhere, but this is a particular favourite of mine, and it would give me great pleasure to show anyone how not to spend money there if they were here……if you see what I mean ?

I didn’t spend money on chocolates…..

or in the Gold Souk (especially not in there – it’s supposed to be an authentic representation of an old fashioned Arabic souk (or market).  They have got the genuine article in Dubai but I haven’t gotten around to it yet – maybe next time…

I even took my own picture next to their fountain thingy…..for free !

All this before the main event of the day – horse racing at Meydan Racetrack (home of the Dubai Racing Club and the “Worlds first” 5 star hotel overlooking a racetrack.  I didn’t get as far as the hotel door before I was ushered off with all the other scumbags – I think I was lowering the tone of the place !

Besides, general admission is free, with a free racecard, and free entry into a “pick 7” competition.  Gambling is illegal over here, but to get the juices flowing you get a free competition to guess/ work out the winners of the last 7 races (there were 8 races today).  First prize……..anyone who gets all 7 right gets a share (tonight, because I think it goes up and down) of AED 137,000 – about £25k off the top of my head.  There are also prizes all the way down to 4 winners.  There are also other side bets – sorry, games of skill, which come with equally substantial prizes.

I am sadly sitting in my hotel room drinking the rest of the red wine I had left over from yesterday rather than celebrating my substantial good fortune at the races with a glass of red wine somewhere else – I have never been very good at picking winners (although I had the first one and was second with the second one – things went down hill after that but I did think shooting the third one in front of me was a bit harsh…..I refrained from taking pictures of the big green screen that they erected, seemed in poor taste really).

Anyway, this is me taking pictures of myself in front of the most impressive sporting grandstand I think I have ever seen……

and yes, you’ve guessed it, the picture at the beginning is the inside of this magnificent structure.  When they go to town they do it properly (which reminds me, I saw a Bentley Arnage with a parking ticket this morning but I don’t suppose the owner gives a toss really !)

Today’s inventory reads a bit like this:

Cigars:  3

Alcohol:  Half a bottle of red whilst writing this

Gym:  Nothing……apart from a 40 minute run this morning !

Money:  I have spent more on taxis than anything else today – about AED 70 in total.  AED 6 for my Metro ticket this morning, 13 for coffee and 20 for a sandwich and a bottle of water at the racetrack.  About £17 to be entertained all day.  I think it’s worth it, and it’s a nice treat – so ya boo sucks to you !

My photo of the day was a toss up between this one:

and this one – you can decide !

They hadn’t got anything big enough for my daughter otherwise this would have been winging it’s way to the UK as we speak !

Ad revenue:  An astonishing £49.06  “keep on Clicking” – I can feel the party happening as we speak !