Dubai ... you are wonderful (and fun)
This is going to be a long post because I haven’t had the chance to write about our amazing afternoon yesterday because by the time we got back to the hotel last night we were absolutely exhausted, having only had about 2 - 3 hrs sleep in about 37 hours, which ended with an action packed afternoon.
We had booked a couple of Dubai tours online before we left Australia ... one was an evening desert safari Jeep tour and the other was a half day city tour of Dubai. So yesterday afternoon we were picked up by our driver Ummer and we (along with a Swiss family consisting of grandparents and grandchildren) piled into our Jeep. Our drive took us out of Dubai into the desert some hour and a half away. There we got to watch some folk riding ATVs in the desert before Ummer let the air out of our tyres (down to 15 psi) and then we were off to 4WD the sand dunes. This was exhilarating, at times terrifying and nauseating all at the same time. Ummer was a skilled driver and we travelled as part of a group for safety. Along the way we had the chance to stop for photos at Fossil Rock and to stop for the daring to try sand boarding down a very steep dune. The dunes are incredible ... shifting red sands covered our car tracks within minutes of us tearing across them. The colour is an intense red-orange and the sand is fine and gritty - just ask Ian who had a spectacular tumble through the dunes when sandboarding! (IP - Jacqui kindly left out the part about me and the 4WD being really ‘nauseating’.)
After our dune bashing (and Ummer pumping up the tyres again) we made our way to the Bedouin camp where we were able to enjoy a camel ride (Ian ... not me ... my hip just wouldn’t do that), had the chance to get some henna tattoos (pass), the chance to try the smoking pipes shisha (again pass) and hold a falcon ... oh yes please! We were then provided a wonderful buffet of Emirati food which is very similar to Greek, Lebanese or Egyptian ... salads, dips, pita bread, grilled meats ... delicious. We were also entertained by a fire dancer, a traditional twirling dancer and a belly dancer. It was a wonderful evening ... and Ummer took us safely back to the hotel at the end of the night.
This morning we were up and ready to go on our next adventure ... our half day city tour which took in the sites of both new Dubai and the historical part of town as well. We ate breakfast in the dining room and then met our guide Ruhue and our fellow travellers on our mini bus. The first stop for the tour started at our hotel (so the people not staying here could enjoy the outside view - I did feel that it would be rude to show them the photos of the inside!) and then took in The Pointe which overlooks the hotel, the iconic Burj Al Arab hotel, one of the beaches, the Blue Mosque where we were able to go in as long as we were appropriately attired, a water taxi on the canal, the Gold Souk market (no I didn’t buy anything) and the spice markets before heading back to our hotel via the Burj Khalifa. Ruhue was a fantastic guide ... knowledgeable and friendly. The Blue Mosque was particularly beautiful and learning more about the Islam faith from Ruhue was wonderful ... they just want us to know more about their religion so that people do not have prejudice or fear. The souk are crazy ... vendors try to woo you into their store even when you have said no ... many times before. It was a great trip - 6 hours in total.
Back at the hotel around 3 pm we made a mad dash to our room to grab our bathers and gear to head to the Aquaventure water park (it’s part of the hotel, and open to the public) before it closed. We started with the River Rapids around the outside of the park in a two-person tube - mostly sedate, occasional rushes of water. Then Torrent River which was a bit the same with large waves to propel us forward rather than rapids. Shark Attack was a little scary in the dark tunnel before we came out into the middle of a tank full of sharks, rays and fish. Don’t worry, our tube was in a clear fibreglass tunnel that passes through the tank. Lots of pretty fish. Last ride was The Storm which was frightening - down, up, down, up, dark, swish, spray, spin, slide, spray, light, splash into the pool at the bottom. That was enough for me, so I got changed while Ian tried to tick off every remaining attraction. This included the two big drops, one down a steep open slide, the other where you stand in a tube and the floor drops away, sending you feet first three storeys down before you get spat out into a pool. When they closed the rides at 5.30 he was begging the attendants to let him on the only one slide he had missed. A fun way for us to finish the day.
Back to our room to freshen up, room service, blog and pack. Tomorrow we head to the airport. Sad to end the adventure, happy to go home.
We had booked a couple of Dubai tours online before we left Australia ... one was an evening desert safari Jeep tour and the other was a half day city tour of Dubai. So yesterday afternoon we were picked up by our driver Ummer and we (along with a Swiss family consisting of grandparents and grandchildren) piled into our Jeep. Our drive took us out of Dubai into the desert some hour and a half away. There we got to watch some folk riding ATVs in the desert before Ummer let the air out of our tyres (down to 15 psi) and then we were off to 4WD the sand dunes. This was exhilarating, at times terrifying and nauseating all at the same time. Ummer was a skilled driver and we travelled as part of a group for safety. Along the way we had the chance to stop for photos at Fossil Rock and to stop for the daring to try sand boarding down a very steep dune. The dunes are incredible ... shifting red sands covered our car tracks within minutes of us tearing across them. The colour is an intense red-orange and the sand is fine and gritty - just ask Ian who had a spectacular tumble through the dunes when sandboarding! (IP - Jacqui kindly left out the part about me and the 4WD being really ‘nauseating’.)
After our dune bashing (and Ummer pumping up the tyres again) we made our way to the Bedouin camp where we were able to enjoy a camel ride (Ian ... not me ... my hip just wouldn’t do that), had the chance to get some henna tattoos (pass), the chance to try the smoking pipes shisha (again pass) and hold a falcon ... oh yes please! We were then provided a wonderful buffet of Emirati food which is very similar to Greek, Lebanese or Egyptian ... salads, dips, pita bread, grilled meats ... delicious. We were also entertained by a fire dancer, a traditional twirling dancer and a belly dancer. It was a wonderful evening ... and Ummer took us safely back to the hotel at the end of the night.
This morning we were up and ready to go on our next adventure ... our half day city tour which took in the sites of both new Dubai and the historical part of town as well. We ate breakfast in the dining room and then met our guide Ruhue and our fellow travellers on our mini bus. The first stop for the tour started at our hotel (so the people not staying here could enjoy the outside view - I did feel that it would be rude to show them the photos of the inside!) and then took in The Pointe which overlooks the hotel, the iconic Burj Al Arab hotel, one of the beaches, the Blue Mosque where we were able to go in as long as we were appropriately attired, a water taxi on the canal, the Gold Souk market (no I didn’t buy anything) and the spice markets before heading back to our hotel via the Burj Khalifa. Ruhue was a fantastic guide ... knowledgeable and friendly. The Blue Mosque was particularly beautiful and learning more about the Islam faith from Ruhue was wonderful ... they just want us to know more about their religion so that people do not have prejudice or fear. The souk are crazy ... vendors try to woo you into their store even when you have said no ... many times before. It was a great trip - 6 hours in total.
Back at the hotel around 3 pm we made a mad dash to our room to grab our bathers and gear to head to the Aquaventure water park (it’s part of the hotel, and open to the public) before it closed. We started with the River Rapids around the outside of the park in a two-person tube - mostly sedate, occasional rushes of water. Then Torrent River which was a bit the same with large waves to propel us forward rather than rapids. Shark Attack was a little scary in the dark tunnel before we came out into the middle of a tank full of sharks, rays and fish. Don’t worry, our tube was in a clear fibreglass tunnel that passes through the tank. Lots of pretty fish. Last ride was The Storm which was frightening - down, up, down, up, dark, swish, spray, spin, slide, spray, light, splash into the pool at the bottom. That was enough for me, so I got changed while Ian tried to tick off every remaining attraction. This included the two big drops, one down a steep open slide, the other where you stand in a tube and the floor drops away, sending you feet first three storeys down before you get spat out into a pool. When they closed the rides at 5.30 he was begging the attendants to let him on the only one slide he had missed. A fun way for us to finish the day.
Back to our room to freshen up, room service, blog and pack. Tomorrow we head to the airport. Sad to end the adventure, happy to go home.
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