Mamzar Beach

So, this week was a long week at school. I subbed in for some teachers for meetings, went to meetings, had other meetings, planned for students, blahblahblah. Long. And slightly irritating.

We left from school today to go to Mamzar beach. I hadn't been to the beach since I had gotten here, so I had asked some teachers from my department if they wanted to take a little afternoon trip. I must say that while the beaches here do not have boardwalks, they have a lot to offer. The sand on Mamzar is soft, although people need to take more care in cleaning up their cigarette butts. There are permanent wooden umbrellas here and there that one can set up unde\r. There is a little stand that sells beach accoutrements. We got there just as the sun was starting to sink. It had cooled off and there was a gentle warm breeze. It's a little odd to see an offshore oil rig in the distance, but what of it. The lagoon (for it was rather lagoon-esque) was quiet. There weren't many people there.

I have been swimming in the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean. I would say that the Gulf is rather unique. It's like warm bath water. It's light green and clear. After such a long week, I felt like I was in a spa, floating there merrily with my friends. A pleasant bunch they are, too. I am normally afraid of open water, but I'm trying to get over it. So I floated along, chatting happily about absolutely nothing. We sat on the beach and had a light picnic. The sun turned tangerine. The sky changed to hot pink and purple. And far off on the opposite horizon, the almost full moon just kind of hung gently over Sharjah.

We were some of the last to leave the beach. The life guard had gone. We floated until it began to get quite dark. Then I started to worry about the things I couldn't see in the water.

It was wonderful. I might as well have been in a spa, although I am sure spas aren't quite as sandy. I told my colleagues that we should make this a regular afternoon thing at least once a week. We should have beautiful weather until February I am told. Then it will start to get sickeningly hot again.

But not yet :)