GOBSMACKED AND AWESTRUCK

September 17, 2020

GOBSMACKED AND AWESTRUCK

WHO HAVE WE MET AND WHERE HAVE WE BEEN?

Let's share our memorable stories, pictures and experiences of inspiration.

My Dubai Experience

I wanted to share with you one of my amazing experiences that had me ‘gobsmacked and awestruck’. This would have to be when my family and I travelled to Dubai, United Arab Emirates in 2012. We had heard so much about it and were curious to see it for ourselves. This destination certainly stood out in our minds from any other place we had visited. Not only did it offer such a pronounced cultural experience for all of us with their exotic foods, language, their dress, their music and their very uniquely-styled homes and architecture but above all, their wealth. This nation is a very wealthy one and this was demonstrated to all who visited via their 10 lane freeways, their very low fuel costs and their jaw-dropping exclusive cars such as Ferraris and Lamborghinis (everything there being tax free) occupying their roads. Shiekhs’ cars were actually marked with their ranking on their cars’ number plates. This was explained to us by our local taxi drivers whom we quizzed at every opportunity to learn as much as we could. An interesting fact was also the zero tolerance of alcohol in Dubai. This attributed greatly to their very low car accident rates to drink-driving.

However, Dubai is a class society and on the other end of the financial scale and standard of living, we saw many locals in their villages who lived quite humbly. Strict restrictions applied here for women to be dressed appropriately and this meant being covered from head to toe as per their religious beliefs which was predominantly Islam. Dubai has a diverse population with at least two million migrants being from India and therefore of Hindu faith. Christianity is also present in Dubai with Christians representing only13 per cent of the population.

During our 14 day stay in Dubai, we also learnt that many of the laws in the UAE are based on Sharia Law and this is something that everyone apparently needs to keep in mind. Like many Middle Eastern countries, the UAE has the death penalty for serious crimes such as murder, rape and treason. Public affection in shopping malls such as at the Dubai Mall and the Mall of the Emirates was marked as illegal on signs with an image of a man and a woman holding hands with a red cross printed across it. We couldn't believe what we were seeing. Footwear also needed to be appropriate in these malls and the sign showed that thongs were out.

Nevertheless, The Dubai experience with its oversized and elaborate 'everything' in the stores was unforgettable. The jellybean shop had far too many choices for our simple tastes - we were able to try flavours that we had never heard of before. Our seven-hour desert safari tour was definitely a comprehensive introduction to Arabian desert culture. The tour featured a heart-pounding dune-bashing session from our 4WD airconditioned jeep that was placed on a trail of seven other vehicles containing similar thrill-seeking tourists. This was an amazing experience. My boys loved every minute of it whilst my husband who was sitting at the front with the driver, unfortunately experienced vertigo as our car headed uphill and then downhill at such a speed. We laugh about this now but at the time, we all felt sorry for him as he continued to feel ill for the rest of the day. The tour also included a camel ride, a live cultural performance including belly dancing, a photoshoot in Arabic costume and a delicious exotic BBQ buffet dinner of Emerati and Mediteranian dishes when we finally arrived at our destination at a desert camp inspired by a Bedouin village. I was also really excited in experiencing a local artist decorate my hands and arms with henna. I wore this unique floral design quite proudly for days.

Dubai's Palm Jumeirah Island was an experience that we will keep close to our hearts. We enjoyed every minute of our exclusive stay at the Atlantis Hotel which was situated on the tip of the Palm. It had an amazing history of having been the royal residence of Sheikh Mohammad (an eight-bedroom suite occupies the entire top floor of the hotel). The spacious rooms, glittering skylines and the sweeping views of the Arabian Gulf were simply breath-taking and so majestic to the eye from our room on the 20th floor.

We were so awestruck when we stood in front of the Burj Khalifa. This is the tallest freestanding structure in the world with a total height of 829.8 m and a roof height of 828 m. The tower also features the highest number of storeys in the world, has the highest occupied floor in the world, has the highest observation deck in the world, has the elevator with the longest travel distance in the world and has the tallest service elevator. Wow!! Definitely something to see and experience if you are game.

Yes, our Dubai experience was definitely one that had us 'gobsmacked and awestruck.' I can't wait to go back to see more one day. Below are some memorable pics of our experience.