Overnight Sunday the seas moderated and we came into the channel, past the breakwater and into the Dubai harbour and our berth around 8 AM. The forecast for the day was a high of 91 with about 70% humidity...pretty awful. And it was, awful, weather wise. That's why the catamaran cruise was such a brilliant idea. It was lovely, peaceful, and very scenic winding our way around one of the palm islands off the Dubai coast. It was marred only, and yet again, by very rude people who bumped into you, or moved right in front as you were taking a photo. Just very inconsiderate. Other than that, the cruise part was nice and well worth the money.
As a side note, we had very specific guidelines, no, rules to follow for this port because of the cultural differences...no drugs along, no alcohol, no shoulders or knees uncovered for women, and no overt displays of affection. We were to wear loose fitting clothes covering most of our bodies. These rules were distributed twice, printed and delivered to us, without exception. Yet, of course, one of the dancers...female...showed up in a strapless long dress with a lacy cutout midriff! And, she was on our bus, boat, and sat next to me during our high tea at the Burj Al Arab...where the Sultans hang out. Oi! She did have a scarf with her as a coverup, but for her a bed sheet would have worked better. It was hot and, of course, as soon as she got on the catamaran, the scarf disappeared. Yikes. (I'm adding a photo of part of our group onboard the catamaran .)
After our two hour boat ride, we bused on over to the Burj Al Arab where amazement took over. And after our collective initial confusion over which side bread and butter plate to use, and who serves what (we used the plates to the left and allowed the cute young guys to serve us everything) we settled in and enjoyed High Tea. High Tea varies from country to country and often within countries as well...for some it's a full meal with many very separate courses and for others it's more like a light luncheon. Sometimes it's more self serve once the course has arrived, but in this particular case, the servers were supposed to serve each and every item, first and second helpings as well as sauces. Some folks at our table never really grasped that concept while others of us were happy to do the when in Rome thing early. (Here's photos of our table setting.)
We took many pictures of the opulent rooms and settings...real gold pillars, beautiful mosaics, lush fabrics and finishings, fanciful fountains, rich tiles and carpets, and deep saturated colors all around...reds, golds, gorgeous blues, and purples. Just an awesome place. We thought of Mark when we saw the cars...Rolls Royce's, too many Lexus's and Mercedes to count, Aston Martins, and a few we didn't know the names of...here are two photos...of a hotel space and one of the golden elevators...really! And one car pic...
Dubai itself is booming. Buildings are sprouting everywhere and every block has its own mosque, cell tower, and speakers so as not to miss the call to prayer. Cell towers can be plain or poorly disguised. There was one in an open sandy area trying to look like a pine tree! Someone made a poor design choice there.
All in all a nice day with exposure to places very different from our norm...although we did spot a water park...named..."Wild Wadi Water Park".
Back at the ship on Tuesday night we bombed at trivia and came in second with many other teams. Called it a night early because of heavy seas again and the recurring headache.
PS. Had to cancel a couple photos as they wouldn't publish...sorry...will try those later...
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