Patience!

In the Sandlands one learns patience. Having arrived on 6 November, and having learned from a website that my visa would be for sixty days and renewable for a further thirty days, I went to the Immigration Department yesterday afternoon to apply for my extension.

Ha! The website information was false, as I learned after a second two hours this morning at the teeming office. The authority is staffed by courteous, smiling officers in smart uniforms. But the only solution, given that my stay in the Emirates has been illegal since 6 December, is to take a trip tomorrow to Oman, pay an 'over-stayer' fine at the border, and then have lunch in the Sultanate before re-entering the UAE where I'll get a new stamp giving me a new thirty day stay permit.

Those who know of my extreme allergy with regard to bureaucracy should be reassured that I remain superbly calm about all this and look forward to taking some nice photos on my forthcoming unexpected outing!