Sunday we got up and went to the Garden Center for breakfast. It was our last traditional English breakfast we would have in the U.K. We have had a wonderful holiday, but all good things must come to an end and it is time.
Once we had shopped around the garden center and returned home, the kids played in the garden at Grandma's and then watched movies for a while. Barry and Stuart took stuff from the garage to the tip (dump). I just chilled for most of the day, which was really nice. In Al Ain we call these days 'Chill Days', which I love but typically the kids hate. You know it's time to get back to a routine when your 8 year old asks for a 'Chill Day'. He certainly got that on our last Sunday in England.
Dinner time brought us a roast dinner. The kids were wiped out and ended up in bed at a decent hour. When they were settled, we played a rousing game of Trivial Pursuit I can roll a mean die, but am total crap with trivia. Fortunately my partner is Cliff Claven, so we won.
Monday we went to Eastbourne to look for shoes and visit Granny, as well as see the bench at the cemetery that was in honor of Granddad Tom. We didn't stay long at Granny's as she was still recovering from her fall.
Once we were back at Highwoods the kids bathed while Grandpa played the guitar and I sang. We had dinner and turned in for the night.
Tuesday we finished packing and it turns out that 5 bags would go back with us rather than the three we came with. This ALWAYS happens. Once the packing was complete we headed to my favorite pub, the Queen's Head. It was the perfect way to end our holiday. Back at the house Grandpa played the guitar again while I sang. It seems we always get into our groove of music just when it's time for us to leave.
We left for the Premier Inn at Heathrow around 5 pm. It's always so hard to leave. It makes us all sad, we just start to plan the next gathering.
We arrived at the hotel around 7 pm. We had dinner, which might have been the worst meal we have had on our entire holiday. We were all a bit dissatisfied we went back to the room for showers and bed.
Wednesday we had a bit of a leisurely.morning. We decided against the hotel breakfast as the food from the previous night wasn't that great. Instead we went to the airport, turned in the car and got checked in. We had a snack from Wagamama's and then went to the gate to wait for the plane.
Once on the flight, Stuart had offered me his premium economy seat, but in the end I chose to sit in economy with the kids. Was reprimanded by the flight attendant because I was trying to help out the lady in front of me who had three kids, one being a tiny infant.
The flight was uneventful, except for the fact that I got to hold the 6 week old in front of us. She was an angel. We arrived at 10:30 pm Abu Dhabi time. I helped the lady get her kids together and then met Stuart and the kids outside of passport control. We got through baggage claim and passport control in record time. It only took about 45 minutes, total. Scott picked us up from the airport. We got home just before 1 am and Molly went nuts. The kids didn't quite know how to handle it. The cats finally made their way inside as well. Our zoo was back together.
The kids didn't go to sleep until after 2 am. They were sure to be cranky on Thursday morning as we had to get their school uniforms at 9 am. Waking up was sure to be fun. I didn't go to bed until 3:30 am. You know I can't go to sleep knowing I have 5+ bags to sort through and crap to put away. I got the majority of it done but then had to stop because of my weary back and dizzy head. Sleep was in order.
I forced myself to get up at 7:45 am and go to Abela for groceries. I didn't buy much as we were heading out to Sir Bani Yas Island on Friday. When I got home and had put away the groceries, I decided I should probably try to wake the troops that was very difficult.
Once everyone was awake, we went to pick up the kids uniforms. The system was slow and there were just a handful of people there. I'm so glad they give the newbies an opportunity to get uniforms before everyone else. It will be a madhouse the week before school starts.
After we got the uniforms, we went to the mall to buy Millie her birthday presents. Because Millie's birthday falls in the middle of our summer break, she doesn't get her presents from us until we get home. The last two summers we have just let her pick out her own presents. It's easier and she seems to enjoy it. She got a new scooter and a Wonder Woman shield she asks for every time we go to the toy store. We had lunch at the mall and then headed home.
Once we were home, I continued to unpack. Millie's room quickly became a total tornado! The kids were asked to u pack their back packs. Anyone want to guess what that looked like? When I felt I had done all I could, and we were packed for our next little jaunt, I rested for about an hour on the sofa.
We decided to go to the rugby club for Family night and dinner. We caught up with some friends who had also returned from their holidays. Everyone was shocked to see Stuart and his weight loss progress. I know it really made him feel good. We said farewell around 8 pm, getting home and in bed so we could get an early start the following morning.
We were up by 6 am and took Molly to the Richardson's just before 8 am. The trip to the ferry in the West Country would be 3.5 hours. Since our ferry was to leave at noon, we knew we had to get moving.
We arrived at the ferry around 11:30 am and waited with a travel group to board the ferry. Once on the ferry, the trip was about 30 minutes. There were only about 3 other couples traveling on their own, and then there was the large group.
At the ferry dock we got on a bus which took us to the other side of the island to check into Anantara. When we were greeted at the front desk we were asked if we were with the group. When we said we were not, they whisked us away and got us into our room, which had been upgraded to a suite. It was very nice and the whole process was terribly efficient.
Once we had unpacked a bit, we decided to go to the lobby and book our dinners as well as some activities. We then went to the pool for a swim. We were the only people at the pool. After an hour swimming the kids decided they wanted to go to the Kids' Club. Naturally they were the only children in there. Stuart and I decided to have a coffee in the lobby of the hotel while they were bouncing on a trampoline and getting their faces painted.
Once back in the room we showered and dressed for dinner. We had booked to eat at an African restaurant located on a different part of the island. Supposedly the gazelle were to come up to your table while you ate. With it being so hot, we were not allowed to eat outside, which really upset Jack. I ended up taking the kids outside after we ordered so they could see some of the gazelles on the property. Even though we were very quiet, the gazelles still ran away.
Saturday morning we were up early to eat breakfast. We had an 8:15 am appointment to go snorkeling by boat. There are supposed to be dolphins and sea titles in this part of the gulf. Unfortunately we didn't see any, but we still saw a lot of fish and had a great time.
We snorkeled around a petrol delivery ship wreck. Jack actually got a terrible nose bleed half way through our time, which caused him to have to go back to the boat. When I convinced the driver that he as fine, we went back out to swim around the wrecked ship.
The journey out and back on the boat was about as much fun as snorkeling. Jack and Millie got to drive the boat for a bit. We were 4 of the 5 guests on the boat so a great deal of attention was given to us. It was great fun. Once we were back at the resort, we went to the pool for a while. There were a few more people at the pool on Saturday, but it was still rather empty. Stuart and I sat at the bar while the kids played foosball, ping pong, and swam.
After the pool we came back to the room and I made peanut butter and banana sandwiches. It's totally white trash, but it saved us a bit of money. Then we took the kids to kids' club for a couple of hours. Stuart and I hung out in the room and slept. We are so boring at times.
When we picked them up we headed to our most anticipated activity, the Wildlife and Nature Drive. We were told we would see giraffe, cheetahs, gazelle, oryx, and many other animals. Well, this event did not disappoint. Not only did we see all of the animals listed, we saw a cheetah eating its prey (a gazelle it had caught less than an hour before we saw it). We could hear the cheetah crunching the gazelle's leg bone. Ew! It was very exciting and totally worth the money.
Once we returned to the resort, we showered and road in a buggy to the seafood restaurant, where we were treated a bit like royalty. It seems when you are one of the few guests at the restaurant you get the utmost attention. And sometimes your glass of wine gets a bit over-filled, which is a nice little perk. The kids got a special treat of marshmallows and chocolate dipping sauce. It was a delightful dinner with fantastic service.
We were back to the room just before 10 pm for a much needed sleep. Anantara Sir Bani Yas has exceeded our expectations. Another day and a half and then we REALLY have to get back to reality.
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