The same but different

Today is the one-month anniversary of our arrival in Abu Dhabi. During our time here, we've discovered that while on the surface a store, restaurant, or even internet service might appear to be just as it was back in the states, it is in fact not the same at all. From little differences like all light switches having to be flicked downward to turn the lights on and the fact that voicemail and street addresses are not used, to more substantial ones like maniac drivers (it is routine to see cars turn left, blinkerless, from the far right lane) and internet censorship, we have discovered that while Abu Dhabi might have all of the trappings of a modern American metropolis, I think it's safe to say, "we're not in Kansas any more." This is, of course, obvious. Yet, there are moments when you might be forgiven for thinking you're back in America, whether it's while you're shopping at Gap in the mall, ordering a scoop from Baskin Robbins, or sipping a grande latte from Starbucks (both of these, by the way, are fortuitously located across the street from our apartment building).

Where the yuppie-Bedouins frequent.

PB & Chocolate is just as good as back in the states.

Notice the dusty car--this is, after all, the desert.

Even the Colonel has made it to the Middle East.