Tarts in London: UAE

Showing posts with label UAE. Show all posts

Each time I visit Dubai, I tend to have new visitors with me who want to see the biggest sights. This last time was no exception as it was Paul's first time.

In addition to all the classics like the Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa, I wanted to find something new to see. Share the old favourites of Dubai and explore some new, hopefully, favourites together. Our biggest new adventure was our desert safari, but there was still more to see!

We tried skiing at the Emirates Mall - while it was my second visit there, I actually had time to enjoy it this visit. Or at least get in more than 3 runs. We spent nearly 2 hours going up the lifts and spending 90 seconds skiing back down. It definitely piqued Paul's interest in skiing somewhere in Europe, so chances are we'll find ourselves on the slope again sometime soon.

We also checked out the Gold Souk (twice)! First time was close to Friday's call to prayer, so we found much of the market shut down. We went again on Sunday to much better results, lots of shiny gold everywhere attracting your attention, sellers calling you into their shops and vying for your business. Of course, we didn't walk away empty handed.

For the evenings, we focused on bars with the best views of the city.

First up was the Madinat Jumeirah. This is a huge complex with everything from a posh hotel, to their own souk and several bars and restaurants. Some of the restaurants you even take your own water taxi along the canals to reach. We checked out Bahri Bar which boasts some fantastic views of the Burj al Arab from the bar's terrace. There are plenty of other bars throughout if this one is too crowded since there are no reservations.

Our last stop was the Dubai Mall and Atmosphere bar. We had booked a window seat in advance to make sure we could get the best views and even catch the fountains going off. We enjoyed a glass of bubbly with the views, before finding out that our 2:30 am flight was delayed until 5 am. Luckily for us, the mall was open for Dubai Shopping Fest, so we passed our last few hours off in true Dubai fashion - with lots of shopping.

Before 2014, I had been to Dubai something like 5 times in the span of just over a year. It's quickly becoming a global hub, meaning that I had more and more reasons to go there.

Every time I've done a bit of sightseeing around the new, modern, and often times crazy sites like the Burj Khalifa and giant aquariums in malls and hotels.

And every time I've wanted to do the desert safari, but work conflicted with the schedule of getting out there.

So, for my first trip of 2014, I was relieved when Paul said he would tag along (finally!!) and he wanted to go out to the dunes. Instead of trying the dunebuggies you drive yourself, we went for the cruisers driven by true professionals where we would end up at a camp for some traditional Middle Eastern entertainment.

We were picked up at the hotel by our driver, grabbed a few other passengers and drove 30 minutes out to the desert. We let the air out of the tires and joined the throngs of others along for a ride. Since January was prime time for these safaris, meaning it's not over 100 degrees out, there were probably about 25 cars out doing the same thing as us.

Our driver warned us in advance that people get car sick and pointed out the brightly coloured bags just in case they were needed. That in and of itself made me queasy and I made a quick wish to make it to the camp without requiring the bags. He also said that because of the rain they had that week, we wouldn't be able to go quite as off the grid as usual - apparently the rain means you don't slide as well in the sand. Who knows, too technical for me!

Even without driving quite as extremely it was still an experience. You could perhaps compare it to a roller coaster ride, you get that same feeling as you come up to the crest of a dune, then look down at the steep drop and think - holy cow! (or something not as PG-rated). And while I hate roller coasters, I actually really enjoyed this ride and felt disappointed as we pulled back out onto the main highway to head towards our camp.

We missed the sunset as there were too many clouds in the sky to get the beautiful orange glow across the desert - this was the downside to the cool temperatures, the clouds that came along with it. So, we drowned our sorrows in plates full of Middle Eastern food - I ate enough kofta and hummus to keep me happy for weeks. I tried my hand again at hookah, and while I may have been an old pro during my time in Turkey, it wasn't so successful this time so I left it to Paul and our tablemates to practice the art of blowing smoke.

Then, after some belly dancing, we were back in our van on the main road back to Dubai and all the glamour of the city, with a pit stop for a new tire. Oh well - the dangers of desert safaris!

I am in love with Dubai. However, my love affair has one small caveat. The weather.

It was beautiful when I visited last week, especially coming from dreary London. Just try not to imagine the 50+ C degree temperatures in the summer.

Luckily though, there is plenty to do inside in Dubai to keep you entertained both in very hot and still hot, but not quite as hot weather.

In my two trips there, I have gotten to check out some amazing things. Some of which are so over the top, they can't be found anywhere else outside of Dubai.

Where to start? The malls. Enough can't be said about these. A lot of super high-end shops in some of the largest malls I have seen. Oh, and lots of American restaurants to make you feel right at home. PF Changs, Rainforest Cafe, Cheesecake Factory, Texas Road House, Shake Shack.... if I hadn't been doing this whole wellness challenge, my body would have been in for a beating (but a tasty beating).

And as if shopping weren't enough, let's throw in something else that's completely over the top.

An aquarium in the mall?

A ski slope in the mall?

2 lifts and ten minutes (max) to ski down. But, who can say they
have been skiing in the desert

The world's tallest building?

Dancing fountains in the desert?

They dance to everything from Middle Eastern music
to Mariah Carey

All of the above and more. Like I said, Dubai malls rock. And therefore, we spent an inordinate amount of time in the mall.

And if you just can't quite make yourself spend your entire trip in the mall, perhaps you'll fancy heading out to the Palm Jumeriah for a visit to the Atlantis.

I recognised it as soon as we drove up. It is over the top in so many wonderful ways, from the crazy beautiful blown glass sculpture to what it's most famous for.

Yes, another aquarium. And if looking just isn't enough, try looking at the fishes while enjoying dinner at the Ossiano Restaurant. A bit pricey, but it's certainly a novelty and the food isn't half bad.

Oh Dubai. Until we meet again - so much more to see and eat!

Last year, I wrote about my trip to Abu Dhabi but failed to share my experiences in Dubai. Why you might ask? I made the rookie mistake of taking a camera that wasn't charged. Charged just enough for one night in Abu Dhabi, but that's about it.

And because of that, I just never wrote about it. Because if there's no pictures, it didn't happen, right?

Luckily, I was able to make the trip back again to Dubai this week. While I did enjoy last years short flight from Istanbul much better than the loooong trek from London, I was definitely not complaining about the weather. When we visited last year in May, it was already a balmy 40 degrees celsius with lots and lots of humidity (my hair hated it). This time, it was more like 23 degrees and felt like heaven compared to both last time and our cold London winter.

While this wasn't my first trip, it was one of my co-workers. So, there were some repeats from last time and some new things. More to come on my favorite things in Dubai, but today, I will share my fear-facing trip to the top of Burj Khalifa.

Despite partaking in activities such as hot air balloon rides and paragliding, I am scared of heights. I hate glass elevators, never enjoyed those really tall escalators at the Rangers Ball Park in Arlington and usually super tall buildings fall into this same category of tall things that make me anxious.

BUT, it's the tallest building in the world and I have now been talked into going twice. I still can't figure out how they did it, but despite the shaky and ear popping elevator ride, the scary wooden floors you can just about imagine falling through and the fact that you are on the 124th floor (and still not to the top), its worth it.

Burj by day via Instagram

I've now gotten to go both in the daytime and at night, and for me, the night was by far the best. Sure, you can see tall buildings in the daytime, but its just a vast dusty desert. I enjoyed seeing everything lit up a night, you completely forget you're in the middle of the desert.

View of Dubai by night - 5 years ago, none of that was there

Burj by night

If you time it just right, you can also catch the Dancing Fountain at the Dubai mall from your spot above - in the evenings, its usually every 30 minutes, so just stake out a good spot on the glass and wait.

At the Top of the Burj - oooh, sparkly Dancing Fountain

And above all, please don't be the person to lose your camera/iphone/video camera through the slits in the glass. That may have been the scariest idea of all!

Quick Facts:
- The Burj is the tallest structure in the world at over 2,700 ft and 160 stories.
- It took just 6 years to complete the building from start to finish
- If you laid out all the rebar used in construction, it would go 1/4 of the way around the world

The Logistics:
- Make a reservation to go to the top. It usually books up in advance and its also much much cheaper if you buy in advance.
- Be prepared to wait in line, even if you've bought advance tickets. Oh and then you have to wait in line again to go back down (that is what happens with just 2 elevators!)

This week, I am travelling in the UAE for work. I don't think I knew what to expect going into it - a desert? An over the top city full of modern skyscrapers and wonders? The epitome of the Middle East?

In a way, it is all of these, but yet, it has still completely taken me by surprise. I am awed by the city itself, so many unique skyscrapers, unexpected offerings, embracing of their own culture and of visitors to it.

First stop on our UAE journey - Abu Dhabi. Most people think UAE = Dubai, but forget about the capital city an hour and a half from Dubai. My coworker and I only had 24 hours to kill there, but between our meetings, we made sure to make the best of it.

Best place to grab lunch in Abu Dhabi? By the beach of course. That is if you don't mind the 100+ degree Fahrenheit weather. I did not realize it was possible to burn by sitting in the shade for 45 minutes.

View from my hotel window - so much construction going on everywhere!

On the way out of town, we stopped by the Grand Mosque, which had caught my eye driving into town. It's hard not to catch anyone's eye. From the highway, you can tell it's enormous, but even that doesn't prepare you for the sheer size of the place.

A few interesting statistics?

It can hold up to 40,000 worshippers at a time. Yes, all those zeros are correct.
It contains the worlds largest carpet.
It also contains the third largest chandelier in the world (wonder how this compares to Dolmabahce?) and among all the chandeliers there are millions of Swavorski crystals.