After a day out and about in Dubai I returned to my hotel room for a bit of break before the start of my evening “Desert Experience”.
However, not long after returning to my room there was a knock at the door. When I open it I was greeted by a staff member who wanted to ‘freshen’ up my room! But I haven’t even made it ‘unfresh’ I thought. None the less, I acquiesced and allowed him to enter and do whatever was needed.
After he tidied up the clothes that I had strewn around the room upon before my return, turn down the bed and check everything in the room he departed. That’s service for you.
At the allotted pickup time, I headed down to the lobby to await my pickup for the ‘Desert Experience’.
It wasn’t long before I was bundled into a Landcruiser with 4 other tourists (all from Japan) speeding along the freeway to the ‘wilderness’.
Our first stop was just outside the ‘nature reserve’ so our guide/driver could deflate the tyres on our 4WD to allow better traction across the sand.
We then proceeded into the wilderness and our first stop, a falcon show.
Here we were learned about falconry and how these birds are trained to hunt for food for humans. Very interesting stuff.
We then returned to the 4WD for some ‘dune driving’, basically driving quickly over the sand dunes in the 4WD. It was a little rough and tumble but nothing too severe. It seemed like the highlight of the night for the guide/driver though.
We then all stopped so we could catch an Arabian sunset which is certainly something to see across the sands of the desert.
Apart from all the tourists running all over the dunes taking selfies currently, the desert is a remarkably serene place. The vastness of the desert, extending as far as the eye can see is certainly something unique.Kind of reminds you of looking out across the ocean.
After the lengthy stop for sunset photos we remounted our vehicles and headed off to the ‘camp site’ for dinner.
At the camp you had the option to take a camel ride (no thanks, been there done that before) or hold a falcon for a photo (line too long) or just mosey into the ‘camp site’ and grab a cushion on the mat (best option) and grab something to eat and drink.
Soon dinner was served and we all shared our travel experiences as we enjoyed the food provided.
After dark we were treated to a ‘belly dancing exhibition’ and then all the lights in the camp were extinguished so we could ‘star gaze’.
With everything complete and a fully belly we headed back to our vehicle for the return trip to our hotel (after re-inflating our tyres first). My companions slept while I passed the time in conversation with our guide/driver.
After thanking our guide/driver for the great evening we headed back to our rooms. I was pleasantly surprised to find this ‘snack’ in the my room, which I merrily munched on while getting ready for my final night away. Tomorrow would be an early transfer to the airport, followed by the long return journey back home.
A great way to finish a great vacation!
