And the fun continues…..

So as we continue on with the fun, we will start with viruses. No not the kind the human gets the kind the computer gets. It seems that the new Anti-virus software the company installed, Symantec End Point, is not completely up to date on its database. We commenced to getting multiple virus attacks everyday. We did everything we possibly could to keep up with them but they just kept coming. As we would scan and delete they would reappear and start the process all over again. We also had some that didn’t even show up in the scan and they were spreading like wildfire. I got back on the phone with Dubai and told them what was happening and they started looking into the problem. While they were doing this, we downloaded free scan software to see if it would locate and clean the hidden mysteries. Well sure enough it started finding them left and right and seemed to be doing the job. I reported this also to Dubai and they began to look in to the situation. Symantec finally came through with an updated database but we still had issues. It appeared that a virus had attached itself to some system files. It had buried itself so deep that there was no cleaning it.

So while the merry virus technicians played I decided to take a well deserved break and spend a couple of days R&R in Bahrain. I left Thursday morning after spending an hour or so on Skype with my lovely bride, and left the Western Park around 8’ish. I stopped to top of the tank and grab some coffee on the way out of town. The drive was a short hour and I was at the causeway by 9. The first half is a breeze it’s when you get to the entry point where the fun begins. The drive over the first half of the causeway is about 15 minutes so I was in line by 9:15. First you wait in line for your exit and immigration out of Saudi. Next you go through a Police checkpoint to verify you have your papers and vehicle permit. Once through this you wait in line again to go through customs, insurance and immigration on the Bahrain side. There are a lot of frustrated people, honking, yelling, moving in front of each other and sometimes it becomes quite comical as they jockey for position. So as the sun got higher in the sky, it became hotter and the time began to drag by. Slowly we made our way through the line car by car. During this time they are remodeling their lanes so that didn’t help any. Imagine if you will, once you reach the first area on the Saudi side you go from 2 lanes to 6, then once you are through that you go to 4 and then to two. So trying to cram a bunch of cars into two lanes is quite a miracle. Finder benders are not uncommon and then you watch as they haggle over who hit who.

Finally at 10:45 I was through the lines and on my way across the last causeway into Bahrain. I was at the hotel around 11:45 and knew that check-in was after noon so I didn’t bother. There is a restaurant that serves real pork sausage and bacon and some really nice American style food. So I decided to stop by for a nice lunch first and then check-in. Since I had been there before I knew exactly where it was and just breezed right in. The lunch crowd was lite so I had no problem finding a table. I decided on a nice glass of cold iced tea and a Country Fried Steak with all the trimmings. As I sat and waited on my order, I noticed that ESPN was showing an old 1997 Basketball Championship which featured the Rockets. I got engrossed in that and soon enough my meal was there. It was absolutely delectable and I think I finished everything but the big pile of potato’s and cream gravy, it had to of been at least to huge potato’s worth. So I finished up my last bit of tea and paid my bill which was only 6 BD which is equivalent of about $16. So I headed back to the hotel to check-in. The process was painless and I was in my room getting everything unpacked. I sat down and started reading my book just so I could try and relax from the journey and before I knew it I was dozing off. I slept about 30 minutes and decided it was time to start my adventure.

Before I left I had checked the Movies and times and found two that I was definitely going to watch. Bahrain has like 5 malls and only two of which have theaters and the third will be open sometime this summer. So I headed to the Seef Mall to see when the movies would be showing. It was a quick 10 minutes up the road I found a parking space and set out to find the theater. It was on the second level and I found it with no problem. As I walked into the foyer area, I noticed that all the movies and times were posted under their posters. I found the movie and went to pay. Now this part will get you and is something that definitely needs to be done in the US. When you pick the movie, you then get to pick your seat as well, how cool is that? So of course I like to sit in the back so I can get the full view and I picked a spot that was perfect. Ok, ok I know your all wondering what I went to see, it was the new Star Trek movie. Was it ever good and the special effects were definitely awesome and the sound was in the new Digital Dolby Surround and let me tell you it puts standard Surround sound to shame. This has to be one of the best yet and it has some surprises which I was not expecting. If you haven’t seen it yet shame on you get there now! Anyway when the movie was over I found Starbucks and bought a couple of bags and a cup to go and headed back to the parking garage. Well apparently I made a wrong turn and ended up back outside so I sat down and called Diane and we chatted for awhile. She accompanied me while I made my way back into the mall and found my way back the way I had come. Eventually I found the car and headed back to the hotel. Oh one thing I forgot about the theater, I got a large drink and medium popcorn for like $3.75 tell me that isn’t awesome ? Anyway I got back had some chicken wings for dinner and headed off to bed around 8:30. It is hard not to go to bed that early when you do it everyday.

Sleep came very easy and I slept until 7:30 the next morning. My plan was to go back to Rics for a nice American breakfast. I got up showered and dressed and headed to Rics. Again the crowd was lite especially for a Friday because that is when everyone comes from Saudi and other places, our day off. It is worth the drive just to eat and turn around and head back, yes it is that good! So I perused the menu and found a nice Tex-Mex favorite, Huevo Rancheros. If you don’t know it is wonderful, corn tortillas with re fried beans, egg, cheese, and salsa poured all over the top. It was yummy and I had a side biscuit with sausage gravy (did that for you Dath and Bob) and it was just as good. Well after that, a large Grapefruit juice and two cups of coffee, I was plenty full and ready to scout out another day. Before I headed back to the mall, I stopped by the room and stuck the Laptop, MP3 and other electronics in the room safe. So I headed back to the same mall and got there in short time again. I parked and found my way back to the theater but they were not playing the movie I wanted. So I went back to the car and found my way back to the exit. I asked the parking attendant where the other mall was and he gave me instructions. Now you have to realize that nothing has a street sign or address in Bahrain or Saudi so you have to go by landmarks. Well it was pretty simple and the mall was only about 5 minutes away and I found it with no problem. So once again I parked and made my way in. I found the theater and sure enough the movie was playing and it started in about 15 minutes. So I got my ticket, picked my seat which was exactly in the middle of the screen towards the back. I made my way to the concession stand and got my popcorn and drink and headed fro my seat. Well I was the only one in the theater so I just enjoyed the quiet and darkness for a short time.

Once again I am sure you are on the edge of your seat wondering what I was going to watch so….. it was Wolverine which was the new series about the X-Men characters. This was the first of many to come about how each of the characters had grown up and discovered their powers. Once again it was an awesome movie with great effects and sound. If you are a Marvel Comics fan you will want to go see this one and hope the rest are as good. After the movie I decided it was time to do a little sight seeing. I drove around the city and took some shots of interesting Architecture that I know Christopher will like, and some other interests that you hopefully will find as fascinating as I did. After about an hour or so driving around, getting lost a couple of times, and finally had enough and headed back to the hotel. Since I still had a couple of hours, I pulled out the book and was engrossed by it and before I knew it, it was time for dinner. I headed down to get a burger and some fries my last meal in Bahrain. I watched a little golf and read some more while I waited for my dinner. It was good but not like the one you get from Grand Prize. I paid my check and headed back to the room. Some quick packing of things I would not need in the morning and then hit the hay. Again sleep came easy which was great because wake up was at 3 AM.

Let me finish up, it was a quick trip through the menagerie only a few cars making their way back to Saudi that early in the morning. I made it back to the apartment by 5:15 and had time to drop of my bag, grab my work boots and head to the site. Oh and the viruses did not go away while I was gone so I have spent most of the day scanning and cleaning again. Hope you have a great weekend and check out the pictures.