I heart DXB

The great thing about having people visit you when you are living away from home, that is apart from just seeing them obviously, is getting to do all the touristy stuff you don't bother with normally. Having to show people the sights of your new home really forces you to see stuff you would probably never get around to seeing, and doing things you haven't yet gotten around to doing. This is exactly what happened to us this past weekend. Some of our friends' family are visiting Dubai at the moment from the UK, and we were invited on (ahem gate-crashed) some of their outings. It's been great actually.

[the "Big Red" sand dune]

1st national UAE barista championship

Organisers of the Specialty Coffee & Tea Convention 2009, the first international specialty coffee and tea event crafted for the Arab World, have announced that they have generated strong interest for the inaugural National UAE Barista Championship, which will be held on November 12, 2009, at the Al Bustan Rotana Hotel Dubai.

From ameninfo's website

Preliminary rounds...are set on November 10 and 11...The top six will proceed to the highly anticipated final round on November 12, a major highlight of the Specialty Coffee and Tea Convention 2009.

From the Speciality Tea & Coffee Convention website

This event, like several things in the past, has not been very well advertised so I only learnt of it yesterday. Nevertheless it's not too late to check it out if you are so inclined. I know Stu will be there :-)