Wednesday, March 14, 2007
1001 Arabian Nights - The Cigar-smoker's Tale
Note: I'll never be able to blog my entire Dubai stay. Past travelogues have shown that I usually fizzle out at day 3, after an excited binge of photo posting and commentary. Fingers crossed though...
Things never seem good after a 7 hour flight. After some confusion with phones getting lost and people randomly leaving behind bags, we were out of Dubai airport and into a coach which crawled into the traffic. On the horizon we evenntually saw the outlines of the Burj al Arab come into view, and then our own hotel - the Jumeirah Beach. Looking like a frozen wave facing the sea. We had arrived early which meant bags on the patio and breakfast in the back. Only the patio was an enormous star shaped verandah overlooking the beachfront; and breakfast was at a restaurant that served over 140 dishes and ranged from Sushi to stew, smoked salmon to cereal.
We had to leg it to catch the next shuttle to the Mall of the Emirates, so that we could make our 12pm snow boarding discovery lesson on the artificial ski slope. What I discovered about snowboarding: turning around is very hard. Removing your board when you've face planted is very hard. Everything else was quite easy. Lunch followed, a brief stroll round the mall then it was back to the hotel to (finally) check in.
The view from the 20th floor. 360 is the little round building at the top. Yeah baby.
What can I say - the rooms were fantastic. All sea-facing, all huge (though the low ceilings made them a bit less so), opulent and very comfortable. The biggest kick for me was being 20 floors up and watching the tiny people move about on the beach and pool area. After a brief swim, a drink, and a game of dama with Randel, we all retired for a rest before dinner on the North Beach. Our outdoor buffet had welcome cocktails, was lit by torchlight, and featured a Pinoy band.
Oh yes, the entire hotel was nearly 100% staffed by Filipinos. It was nice to see their pleasantly surprised reactions when I met them with a "kumusta?" and to chat with them about Dubai. But more on this later. I sat at a table with the HR girls and with Andy B. (who was determined to out eat me at the buffet table) and shivered in my inadequate beach wear against the wind.
Sand, sea and Seventies music - a recipe for disaster.
By the end of dinner we had red wined and rum and coked sufficiently to warm us against the chill. By this time, as well, Steve T and the other senior managers had thrown away all semblance of shame and danced to old AC/DC and Pink Floyd standards the band was playing. A few of us sat on cushions and smoked cigars (Jamie magically produced them just as the night was winding down). Someone jokingly suggested we proceed to a club. I thought longingly of my warm bed, and was on my way there when I was intercepted by Lyna and others who hijacked me onto a waiting golf cart that whisked us out to 360.
360 was - is - a club which deserves a post of its very own. (And will get one, I promise) The Dubai experience had only just begun, and already I'd done more in one day than I have in weeks.
to be continued.
* * *
Things never seem good after a 7 hour flight. After some confusion with phones getting lost and people randomly leaving behind bags, we were out of Dubai airport and into a coach which crawled into the traffic. On the horizon we evenntually saw the outlines of the Burj al Arab come into view, and then our own hotel - the Jumeirah Beach. Looking like a frozen wave facing the sea. We had arrived early which meant bags on the patio and breakfast in the back. Only the patio was an enormous star shaped verandah overlooking the beachfront; and breakfast was at a restaurant that served over 140 dishes and ranged from Sushi to stew, smoked salmon to cereal.
We had to leg it to catch the next shuttle to the Mall of the Emirates, so that we could make our 12pm snow boarding discovery lesson on the artificial ski slope. What I discovered about snowboarding: turning around is very hard. Removing your board when you've face planted is very hard. Everything else was quite easy. Lunch followed, a brief stroll round the mall then it was back to the hotel to (finally) check in.
The view from the 20th floor. 360 is the little round building at the top. Yeah baby.What can I say - the rooms were fantastic. All sea-facing, all huge (though the low ceilings made them a bit less so), opulent and very comfortable. The biggest kick for me was being 20 floors up and watching the tiny people move about on the beach and pool area. After a brief swim, a drink, and a game of dama with Randel, we all retired for a rest before dinner on the North Beach. Our outdoor buffet had welcome cocktails, was lit by torchlight, and featured a Pinoy band.
Oh yes, the entire hotel was nearly 100% staffed by Filipinos. It was nice to see their pleasantly surprised reactions when I met them with a "kumusta?" and to chat with them about Dubai. But more on this later. I sat at a table with the HR girls and with Andy B. (who was determined to out eat me at the buffet table) and shivered in my inadequate beach wear against the wind.
Sand, sea and Seventies music - a recipe for disaster.By the end of dinner we had red wined and rum and coked sufficiently to warm us against the chill. By this time, as well, Steve T and the other senior managers had thrown away all semblance of shame and danced to old AC/DC and Pink Floyd standards the band was playing. A few of us sat on cushions and smoked cigars (Jamie magically produced them just as the night was winding down). Someone jokingly suggested we proceed to a club. I thought longingly of my warm bed, and was on my way there when I was intercepted by Lyna and others who hijacked me onto a waiting golf cart that whisked us out to 360.
360 was - is - a club which deserves a post of its very own. (And will get one, I promise) The Dubai experience had only just begun, and already I'd done more in one day than I have in weeks.
to be continued.
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