I Saw Dolphins Today and It Was Magical

I saw dolphins today and it was magical.

Khasab, Oman is a short, three hour scenic drive from Dubai. The winding drive along the coastline after you cross the Oman border security is breathtaking.

This was my second drive to Khasab and I think I enjoyed it even more than the last time.  We took our two daughters, along with their spouses and an exuberant grand daughter on a half day dhow cruise to Musundam.

Musundam is exquisite. Crystal blue green water and sheer rocky cliffs and only accessible by boat. Besides snorkeling, enjoying the water and seeing ancient fishing villages, the crew told us that the possibility of us seeing dolphins on our dhow cruise were pretty high - 98%. Great, I thought - 98 % is doable, it could happen.

The dhow crew were not wrong.

As the dhow turned into a cove, we could see dolphins playing the in the water. Pretty soon the dolphins were all around us. Dolphins were swimming in front and on both sides of the dhow. There were so many dolphins we didn't know which ones to watch ( we especially liked the babies). All of us on board the dhow would run side to side - it was as if they were entertaining us. Even though we were in the dhow, it felt like we were swimming and playing with them.

It was truly a magical moment for all of us on the dhow. To see these amazing creatures so close and personal, playing and swimming in their natural habitat.

When our other daughter and her husband come to visit we will be back, taking another dhow cruise in Khasab and I hope the opportunity to see these amazing creatures is still 98%.

Magical, beautiful and so worth the three hour drive.
 

Enchanting Istanbul - Let the Traveling Begin

Living in Dubai we are close to many cities and countries that years ago, Jeff and I only dreamed of visiting. Now we can make those vacations a reality.
One city high on my "bucket list" as a must see was Istanbul, Tukey.

Our daughter Taeler and her husband Mike were coming to Dubai and when we talked about what we could do for her birthday we thought, "why not go to Turkey ?! It's close and fairly inexpensive.

 

Our idea became an reality  - we spent four packed days totally immersing ourselves in nearly 3000 years of history. Breath taking "old" architecture, mosques, bazaars, yummy turkish food and lots of walking sum up our Istanbul adventure.

We bought an Istanbul Lonely Planet travel book, made a 4 day plan and stuck to it. We saw all the recommended sites such as Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, the Basilica Cistern under the city (so cool), the Blue Mosque, Kariye Church, tour of the Golden Horn and whiring Dervishes just to name a few things.

We changed our hotel accommodations at the last minute and stayed in the Sultanahmet historic district - most of the sites we needed to see were within walking distance and it ended up being a good change. Our hotel accommodation was priceless, infact I would not even call our room a "hotel" which is clearly misleading but added to our overall Istanbul experience. Our room was old and tacky but clean.

The shower had no enclosure and ran all over the bathroom, making everything wet, but we were only in the room late at night and then we would be up early, on the go the next morning until we could not walk or stand any longer.

We experienced four days of yummy turkish food. When we asked for a recommendation, the locals would walk us to their favorite restaurants which ended up being delicious ! Taeler had to have baklava every day and even then she could not get enough of it.

There is still so much to see and do, but before we knew it it was time go home. Things I would recommend to anyone that takes a quick trip to Istanbul:

• Stay in the Historic District. The accommodations may not be the best, but you could not get any closer to what you came to see and the local eating establishments in the historic district are amazing.
• Plan your trip and stick to the plan. There is so much to see you really need to plan out each day. Buy an Istanbul travel book.
• Ask for directions from the locals. There are so many alleys and narrow streets it is easy to get lost. The Turkish people were so good to help us when needed. Even when we did not ask for help they would offer.
• Pay to see the Whirling Dervish ceremony - awesome !
• Go off the beaten path, exploring and walk it. We witnessed sights and things that many tourists were missing.
• Wear sensible shoes. They may not look great or match your outfit but after four days of walking up and down cobble stone roads, you wish you had your sensible walking shoes.
• Carry both euro and lira. Some places only take one or the other we found out.
• Enjoy the food and eat local.

We were exhausted by the time we got on Turkisk Air to fly back to Dubai but each one of us loved the enchanting city Istanbul and would definitely come back.

Jeff and I are already planning our next vacation - where will we go.....Nepal, Jordan, Israel, Singapore, the Maldives. It is so hard to decide. But one thing we know for sure, we will go back to Istanbul, that's for certain.
Istanbul should be a must see for everyone. The enchanting city of Istanbul - we loved it!

 

Real or Knock Off ?

A few of my friends and I ventured into Karama - a older part of Dubai that is famous for "knock off " everything. As soon as Lori and I stepped out of the car, we were approached by a man that got very close and whispered....Rolex, Chanel, Gucci, Dior....we have it all.
Wow - like wolves on fresh meat. We had not even closed our doors yet !

We ignored him and met up with the other members of the purse shopping expedition.

One of the women I was with knows this section of the city fairly well and can bargain with the best of them.
First stop, a purse shop...inside on the first floor there are hundreds, okay, maybe thousands of hand bags, scarfs, wallets, etc. They even had a whole display of Uggs? ! Uggs in Dubai....doesn't seem practical but what does in this country.

One of the store keepers said, "first floor, this is the cheaper stuff "...even though there were Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Kate Spade, Chanel, Mark Smith, Gucci, etc., hanging all over..."would you like to see the good stuff ?" Does that mean real ? Sure why not we all said . The store owner took us to the back of his store to an old white door with a lock on it, unlocked it  and said, "watch your step at the top - small hole". The stairs were narrow, dirty, scary and there was a huge hole at the top on the landing, not a small hole as previously advised. One false step and you would be quickly back on the first floor. The one aisle we stood in was very narrow and crammed with goods. Beautiful purses, wallets and scarfs surrounded us.

Please, please - no one light a match, I thought to myself.

Is anyone else claustrophobic? Alright, it is time for me to go back downstairs.

Once back down stairs, the store owner asked, "would you like to go to my secret location ?" " I will drive you." Were we crazy?  Go for a drive to a secret location?  Okay, why not !? We all climbed in his metallic blue Honda and sped away to the "secret location". We ended up in an old apartment building blocks away from the store, it was run down and really not fit for living in. The apartment was filled with name brand purses, wallets, scarfs, shoes, jewelry. We kept asking - "real or fake" and "is this plastic or leather?"  Most of the purses smelled like leather but you never know. Once we all got inside the apartment, the dirty door was bolted behind us. I have to admit - that made me just a little nervous. Are they keeping us in or others out ?

The store owners brought over the merchandise we liked from the original location. Let the bartering begin ! When we were all done - I was very happy with the cute Prada bag and red Louis Vuitton wallet.

Real or fake - I don't really care ! Good price, very interesting experience and out with friends.

On the way to our car, we again were approached by multiple men, whispering to us about their goods. Maybe we will come back and visit their stores in the future, but not today.

I used to shop for a purse in Target but this was as different a purse shopping adventure as I had ever experienced.

Purse shopping fun in Karama. Yippee !!

Earthquake ? ! In Dubai

Before I moved to Dubai, I was assured that the UAE is one of the safest places to live. Besides the low crime, the chance of an earthquake, flooding, tsunami, hurricane or tornado are very rare. In fact I was told, it would never happen. The only thing that happens in Dubai are sandstorms.

Today @ 2:00 PM, our residential apartment, the Princess Tower, began to sway and shake back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Not for a few minutes, but over 5 minutes. Finally the swaying stopped, then it started up again. Here we go again. The swaying made me a little nauseous. Could this really be happening ?!

Come to find out, a 7.8 earthquake had hit Iran and we could feel it in Dubai.

Jeff and I sat and looked at each other in disbelief. Were we really feeling an earthquake shake and sway our VERY tall apartment building. Yes we were !!

On the 58th floor, the building really sways ! I could only imagine being on the 101 floor of the building.

When the swaying and shaking started up again, Jeff and I hurriedly found our shoes and made a decision to get to the ground floor - fast. Not thinking clearly, we got in the elevator with other nervous tenants that had come from higher floors. They wanted to validate what they felt. Yes we felt it too.

The elevator usually clips along so fast that your ears pop as it speeds up or down, Not this time, the elevator struggled to get to the ground floor, each of us commenting that we maybe should have taken the stairs instead.

Finally it made it to ground level - yippee -the door opened and we all popped out never happier to be on the ground floor.

The residential towers all around us had been evacuated. Nervous residents and workers standing around, talking on their phones or wondering what to do next.

I love my new apartment on the 58th floor, but after swaying and shaking I am now a little nervous and had so many questions. Is this super tall building earthquakes proof ? How far can one tall building sway ? How much swaying can one tall building experience ?

Tremors are expected to be felt in the future because of the magnitude of the earthquake ( 7.8) . Now that I know what to expect, I am even more nervous. 

Don't ever say "never". I was told earthquakes are never felt in Dubai. The "never would happen", happened today.



 

Arabian Castles, Old Forts and Sandstorms

 

The city of Al Ain borders the country of Oman and at its peak it held an important position in the ancient trading route from Oman to the Arabian gulf. It is an old city with 18 old forts, countless burial tombs and an over abundance of cool watch towers. One day does not give you enough time to see but only a few of them, if you are lucky.

The scenery is quite different from Dubai, more green, hidden wadi's and ancient villages. The ancient villages date back to 1,000 BC. Isn't that so fascinating!  I was walking among structures that are ancient. Visitors are allowed to get up close and personal with many of them, as long as we are respectful and abide by the rules.

Because the temperature is lower in the summer in Al Ain than along the coast, it used to be a summer retreat. It would take four to five days by camel to reach the city, but now it is a pleasant hour drive on a fairly new highway. Just make sure you have your passport with you at all times. If you happen to cross over into Oman, you will need it to get back into the UAE.

We ventured off on a recent Saturday to explore more of Al Ain, the "old stuff "... to see forts and other historic sites. Little did we know that a terrible sand storm was blowing in. Even with hard blowing winds we ventured on.

 

 

First stop, the camel market on the road to Al Ain. I love the camel market. You can get up close with the camels, taking their pictures (sometimes the handlers ask for a few AED). The camels and their handlers are "hanging out" waiting for perspective buyers to show up.

We couldn't resist stopping at the camel market souk and purchasing a "camel blanket" . The camel blanket can be used for many different purposes - a table cloth, blanket, bed cover,etc. Just make sure you ask for a "complete" blanket not one with a hole in the middle . The blankets with the hole in the middle, would be used specifically for camels, so their humps show in the middle. Of course you have to haggle with the shop owners to get a good price. We got two camel blankets for 60 AED. Pretty reasonable !

 

The camels in the picture above are for sale, camel blanket and all - for a mere 5,000AED each. It's a steal, too bad I do not have any place to keep them. These camels certainly won't fit on my balcony and who knows, maybe one of them is afraid of heights. I could spent the entire day with the camels, but it's time to move on.

 

After the camel market, we spent the day exploring castles, old forts and even drove to the top of Jebel Ha feet. The highest peak in the UAE. The drive is normally spectacular . Edmund's Magazine listed the drive to Jebel Ha feet as one of the best driving roads in the world, but today, because of the sand storm blowing, visibility was low and the view, not as spectacular.

 

 

 

There is so much to see and experience - every weekend we could venture off and experience things that we had never seen before. Another day will need to be spent in Al Ain. And as hard we tried, we never found the burial tombs. We will be back in the future.

 

One the way home, the intensity of the sandstorm had increased and was blowing sideways. Sand was covering the four lane highway and piling up like snow. Visibility was low and made the driving scary. Thank goodness we drive an SUV and can put it in four wheel drive if  and when we get stuck (like we did earlier in the day). I loved our day in Al Ain but was never happier to be safely home.

 

Even with the sand flying , we had to stop and take a picture of the road sign below. How often would I see this sign in Utah? Hmm....never !

 

 

 

The Garden of Eden ...In Dubai ?

Dubai's latest and greatest outdoor

destination opened on Valentine's Day, 2013 - "Dubai Miracle Garden". 

A little garden of Eden has bloomed in Dubai

Dubai Miracle Garden is dubbing itself as the largest natural flower garden in the world (is anyone surprised) and it contains more than 45 million flowers. Some flowers have never before been planted or grown in the United Arab Emirates. The owners of Dubai Miracle Garden are hoping to get the Guinness World record, "largest flower wall".  Keep your fingers crossed!
Dubai seems to be stocking up in Guinness World Records and this could be one more .

For 20 Dirhams (@ $5.00 USD) you can enter the Miracle Garden, walking around enjoying the beauty. The flowers are shaped into stunning designs and shapes. They have also shaped the flowers into pyramids, domes, birds (the giant peacocks are especially nice) stars, hearts, etc. Anything you would or would not imagine has been shaped with flowers. 

Little garden helpers in safety vests are running around, blowing their whistles when small children and adults get to close to the precious flowers. Give a man a whistle and they have power.

Besides the flowers, they have also done some fun things with umbrella's and cars.  Anyone have a car that they don't know what to do with ? Make it into a flower bed or a planter and stick it in your front yard. All the neighbors will be jealous.

The Miracle Garden was a site to see and worth the 20 dirhams that is charged to get in. With the cost of water high in Dubai, it must cost a lot to keep all 45 million flowers blooming.

Due to the hot intense heat that Dubai suffers through in the summer, the Dubai Miracle Garden will only be open October - May. I am so happy that we ventured out to see this beautiful garden in the middle of the desert. 

Elephants at the Dubai Miracle Garden ? These large pachyderm's are located right outside one of the gates. Hmmm...what could this be ? Only in Dubai !