Over the past few weeks, the Two Crabs have been exploring Bahrain's many new tourism and retail projects, including not one but two new five-star hotels: The Sofitel Bahrain Zallaq Thalassa Sea & Resort (above), and the Kempinski Grand & Ixir Hotel.  The Sofitel is one of only a handful of hotels that has a beach (many folks are surprised to hear that despite being an island-nation, Bahrain has almost no beaches).  The Sofitel also is becoming one of our favorite new Friday brunches in Bahrain, with great selection of food and fun entertainment.  The Kempinski just opened this week but promises to be very popular, especially by the fact that it is attached to the country's largest shopping mall, Bahrain City Centre. 

Another welcomed addition to Bahrain's grocery scene is Waitrose!  It actually opened earlier this year but we only recently had the chance to visit. For the uninitiated, Waitrose is the UK equivelent of Whole Foods in America. It was one of our favorite grocery stores in London.  Bahrain's Waitrose, located at the still-unfinished "The Lagoon" complex in Amwaj Island, is much smaller than any Waitrose I've seen in England. However, it has by far the largest selection of pork products we've sene here including fresh sausage and other goods.

After three months of 110+ F degree heat, the temperatures are finally breaking to the low 100s by day and mid 80s at night. Looking forward to exploring more of our island during the pleasant winter months!

A few new scenes from Bahrain:

 

Where were you on 9/11?  For my generation, it is undoubtedly the one moment in time that will collectively bind us together for the rest of our lives.

Ten years ago today, I was standing in front of the Pentagon.  Ten years. But it might as well have been yesterday.  The sights, sounds and smells are still burned in my mind as if it were yesterday: a giant black column of smoke billowing from the Pentagon following the crash of American Airlines Flight #77.  The sound of absolute silence, followed by thousands of screaming people running from the world's largest office building. The smell of burning jet fuel. The tears and prayers of a woman as she is carried out by her colleagues.  An Army officer stumbling towards, covered in white dust, breathless as he recounted how the ceiling caved in on him as he sat at his desk. A total of 2,977 victims were killed on 9/11, incuding 125 at the Pentagon and 59 on American Airlines flight #77. 

Less than a month after the attacks, I found myself aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, covering the U.S. bombing campaign on Afghanistan as an embedded journalist.  

Ten years later, we remind the world that we are still here.  Despite two wars, several terrorist attemps, and often divisive and heated domestic politics, we are still here. At the end of the day, we are all Americans. Today we remind the terrorists and their sympathizers that they failed. The United States of America remains, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Photo: The World Trade Center, as photographed by Mr. Crab during a high school class trip to New York City.