First Day in Dubai

First full day in Dubai and I feel amazingly blessed. My flight got in at 10:30 pm local time. It took a long time to get through customs at 90 min. but finally I was through. I packed all of my belongings into two big boxes plus a heavy backpack and a carryon that totaled around 70lbs. I lugged that thing around heathrow for 6 hours. So I got to my flat around 12:30 am. I was met by Reg, my partner/boss/friend. Im going to staying with him until Jennifer moves out here. Reg’s boys got accepted to play in a soccer academy in the UK, which is quite prestigious Im told. So they will be living in a boarding school type of situation. Reg’s wife is moving back to her home in the UK to be with the boys and Reg will commute and develop our UK business. So Im quite fortunate and blessed to be living here.

I went to sleep rather quickly, as I had been up for 34 straight hours at that point. But the goal of staying awake is a strategy that I often use to combat jet lag. If I can stay awake enough the first night then when I crash, I crash according to the sleep schedule of the new environment. I only woke up at 7 am because of a low blood sugar then went back to sleep til 2:00 PM. Sleeping til 2 probably wasn’t the best for adjusting to the jet lag but it sure felt nice.

We had a meeting with Ali the other partner about all of our projects in the pipeline. I’ll share more in detail when the projects become firm. But I am very excited about the possibilities. It could be really huge. We are trying not to build too quickly. Instead we are trying to be a lean organization and build up through efficiency and foresight. Already there is a lot to do. Im thrilled about that. Im pretty ecstatic right now. Im staying in a place called Jumeirah Beach Residences. Im right across the street from the Ritz Carlton Hotel so that lets you know what type of neighborhood this is. This is what Wikipedia had to say about JBR. Jumeirah Beach Residence (also known as JBR) is a 1.7 kilometre (1.06 mile) long, 2 million square metre (22 million square foot) gross floor area waterfront community located against the Persian Gulf in Dubai Marina in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It is the largest single phase residential development in the world and contains 40 towers (36 are residential and 4 are hotels) . JBR's capacity is about 10.000 people living in its apartments and hotel rooms.

So after our meeting I went on a walk. They have this upper level called “The Walk” which connects all the buildings. In my 5 tower structure there are four pools, with the main one being this 25 meter long pool. There are an assortment of boutiques, stores, DVD rentals, coffee shops and restaurants on the walk. Just below the walk is the main strip, two stories down. The main strip is where the Ritz Carlton, Hilton, Sheraton and all the other five star hotels are. This was bustling with activity with all the restaurants open on a Thursday night (Thursday night is their Friday night since weekends here are Fri-Sat as opposed to the US’ Sa-Su). The walk was far less crowded then the strip and that lent a certain exclusivity about the place. I just love it. I passed a Fuddruckers, Ruby Tuesday’s, Chili’s, On the Border and a slew of other great restaurants. OH…plus a minute away from me is a 24 hour Subway and a 24 hour grocery store. Im pretty excited to be here. Plus Im within a one minute walk to the largest natural beach in Dubai. Its literally just across the street. Im not on the ocean front side. Instead I can look out my window from the 20th floor and see the marina. Jennifer and I stayed at a hotel across the street when she visited in March.

I just feel so incredibly blessed right now. I was having a really nice talk with God on the plane ride over and he greatly impressed upon me that I need to get ready for the ride of my life. I told him I didn’t really deserve the blessings and he empathetically reminded me that the blessings are for all of his children. All they need to do is remain obedient and the blessings will flow. It’s a pretty simple concept 1. Love God + 2. Love Others, like you love yourself = God’s incredible rewards. He won’t always reward you monetarily, but He’ll make you feel like whatever you have…is more than enough. Right now, I feel like I have way more than enough. It’s pretty cool realizing that you are in the center of God’s will. Now if I can only stay true to the course and not deviate (God told me again the blessings were conditional based on my obedience) that the sky is the limit. God will never take away a blessing but if you are not living your life right he can suspend future blessings til you get your act together. I pray I can keep my act together this time. The future has never looked brighter.

By the way this is my public blog. If you would like access to my private blog which talks more about my emotions and Jennifer’s point of view, please send me an email and I’ll add you to the list and send you a private link.