Abu Dhabi Science Festival

Yet another busy weekend draws to a close, and we all need an early night before school and work tomorrow. Yesterday was Friday Brunch in an Indian Restaurant on Yas Island, with two other families from school. The food was fantastic, and there was a playground right outside which kept the kids occupied whilst the adults "relaxed".

Today we were back at Yas Island, but this time at the Du Forum for the Abu Dhabi Science Festival. The Festival is running for a couple of weeks and consists of lots of interactive exhibits (think Manchester Museum of Science & Industry if you know it), plus a big selection of workshops that you can book in advance.

Archie and Flossie had a great time (Henry declined to come) doing the following:

1. Building and then racing a rocket powered car (involving air and water).
2. Watching a show featuring lots of "experiments" involving dry ice.
3. Making some "slime" out of various ingredients (and being able to take it home).
4. Learning about magnets, and doing lots of experiments with them.
5. Having a 3D video made of themselves.
6. Playing football with robots.

The great thing was that it only cost £10 in total for the four of us to spend the afternoon there, and the volunteers running the workshops were fantastic with the children, helping them out if they got stuck and being very patient with them.

An indication of how much we enjoyed ourselves is that we are going back next weekend to do some of the other workshops (and this time Henry is coming, no choice).

So if you happen to be reading this in Abu Dhabi and you have kids of any age, get along there to see what it's all about (it's at Du Forum and on the Corniche for the next week or so).

As always, thanks for reading.

 

 

 

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Today is the Day

In an hour or so Jo and the kids will be on their way to join me in Abu Dhabi, and I can't wait to see them. I moved out of my hotel yesterday, and into a serviced apartment on Yas Island, ready for their arrival. We'll probably be here for two or three weeks, as my visa still hasn't arrived, so the paperwork for our villa has been delayed.

View from the lounge window of our temporary home

Yas Island is where Abu Dhabi's Grand Prix circuit is located, and on a Tuesday evening they open the track to the public as part of a public health initiative. Anyone is free to go to the circuit and cycle, run or just walk round.

Given that I am right next door I decided to go and see what it was like. Between the taxi driver and myself we found the registration desk without too much trouble, and I was soon stepping onto the track.

The event is clearly very popular, with people of all shapes and sizes making their way round the track by one means or another. There were people on professional looking racing bikes zipping round very quickly, and there were people who had clearly come straight from work and rented bikes so they could take part. There was even an old gentleman on a very old bike, with a basket at the front, who would have looked as though his natural environment should be a quaint, old French village.

There were old people and young kids, including some being towed round in bike trailers and clearly loving the experience. I suspect we will spend many Tuesday evenings here once we are settled in, as it will be just a 15 minute drive from home.

Looking down the start / finish grid

Only half the circuit, about three miles, was open last night, so I spent a pleasant, if sticky, hour walking round. I'm looking forward to my bike arriving, and the evenings cooling a little, so I can spend more time here.

Oh well, time to do a couple of jobs in preparation for everyone arriving. As always, thanks for reading, and for your comments and likes.

PS: If you are a member of the Flickr site you can see more of my photos on there. Just click the Flickr icon which should be in the "About Me" section on the right of the page.

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