2017 – Flying business class on Turkish airlines

A night flight with Turkish airlines in a 777 in business class is in one word: ‘WAUW’!!!
Chairs were made into beds and I had more space to sleep than at home. A real chef came around to make us omelettes!!! Whoever would claim that TK is not a good airline, has to try it out. It is one of the fastest growing airlines in the world.

Thanks to our business tickets, we were allowed in the Marhaba lounge in Dubai and in transit in Istanbul in the CIP lounge. That lounge is the biggest lounge that I have ever seen. Like at a 5 star hotel, you have everything that you can ask for. Food corners, at least a dozen with cake, fresh juices, soups, Thai food, freshly baked pancakes, Apple computers, X-boxes, sleeping rooms with zen music, an electrical race track, PlayStations, a grand piano, a movie theatre with fresh popcorn, a pool table, a library, a masseur, they even have a golf simulator! I can’t imagine passengers complaining about their flight being delayed in this cozy environment!

2017 – Why Dubai should be on your bucket list

For starters: they have amazing prices, so you can take a ‘cruise-package’ with Dubai included. Even an ‘all-in’ with TravelBird is reasonable.
Dubai is where the old Arab world meets the extravaganza of the future. If you want to have your business go global, you need to expand to Dubai. You have the ‘Burj al Arab’, the only 7-star hotel in the world, the ‘Burj Khalifa’, being the highest building in the world, more 5-star hotels than any other country, President Trump has some of his golfcourses here, a lot of powerfull businessmen have residences in Dubai or elsewhere in the UAE. And not to forget…the shopping is amazing: The Dubai mall has any brand of clothes and any type of food that I can imagine and much more… an aquarium with sharks… Are you tired of the sun, and you want some snow… go to the Emirates’mall for a bit of skiing! Dubai is a mixture between New York and Vegas, but with an Arab touch and definitely a whole lot more of their yellow ‘bling’.

But you also have the possibility to witness the old Arab traditions. The local Emiratis, dressed in their crispy white dishdash, their beards perfectly groomed, their white keffiyeh that makes them look very stylish and clean. The ladies wearing their abayas or niqabs , stylish though underneath wearing the latest fashion, hair and make-up styled to perfection. Just looking at their designer handbags tells you a lot about their favorite couture designer…
Old and new brushing shoulder to shoulder in this cosmopolite city. It is definitively worth a visit. Lovely Dubai, untill we meet again…inshallah…

2017 – Our last day in Dubai

Since this was our last day, we decided to sleep in and have a lazy breakfast at the hotel. After soaking up some sun (27 degrees) it was time to pack our bags.
Wim was meeting his Southafrican friend, so I had booked a ‘desert safari’. The Toyota 4X4 picked me up at 14h00. There was 1 more family to meet and then we could go off-road.
Malar and her family were on holiday from Tamilnadu, near Kerela, India. They had a cute 6-year old son ”Krritin’. Their marriage was also an arranged marriage, but they were a handsome couple and they looked happy.
The dune bashing, camel ride, male dancer, belly dancer and fire show were a bit touristy, because there were 50 jeeps for the same desert safari. The atmosphere, the melon-apple shisha smoking and the genuine bedouin decor definitely made it worth the trip.

After a relaxing steambath and shower, we were ready to leave for the airport. Will the journey to Belgium be in business class again? I do hope so 🙂

2017 – Third day in Dubai

This morning I read on twitter that there was a polo game in the new ‘Al Habtour Polo club and resort’, next to the worldfamous Arabian stables. Since I always had a weak spot for horses + love to mingle with the rich and famous (loved Julia Roberts in ‘Pretty woman’ 😁), we decided to go and have a look. Our taxidriver had to use his GPS,  since he had never been there before and it was indeed in ‘ the middle of nowhere’! The clubhotel St. Regis was still under construction and the sheik would only come tomorrow, so except for a handful of tourist and the poloplayers, there were no VIP’s 😩.

The good thing is that we could easily talk to the players between chukka’s.. Polo, being one of the world oldest games, is one of the fastest and also one of the most dangerous games. Most poloplayers are Argentinian. To see how man and horse partner together to drive the ball through the goal is brutish, fascinating and beautiful. Today was only practice, but tomorrow the Mc Laren Cup will be played, sponsored by Mc Laren and Bentley.

We asked a couple, who were like us, dressed for the occasion, how on earth to get a taxi in the middle of the desert. Thankfully they offered us a ride in their car. Ceren and her husband are from Istanbul and Ankara, and Ceren’s husband works in Dubai for Tekso refrigerators. They liked living and working in Dubai. Summers were horrible, but they live in an apartment near the Marina, so it was not too bad. Ceren showed me pictures of het friends snowboarding in the streets of Istanbul just 10 days ago. Wauw…

They kindly dropped us off at the Marina and we had a lovely ‘steak frites’ dinner at ‘Fournil de Pierre’.

After that we walked along the shore and visited some more exclusive hotels, the Westin and the ‘One and Only’. Very luxurious  and expensive!

We ended up in the world famous Barasti beach club, the hot spot in Dubai (  http://www.barastibeach.com) to party

the night away…

2017 – Second day in Dubai

On the 2nd day in the ‘Las Vegas of the Middle East’,  we change hotels, from the old part of town, at the Creek, to the very trendy marina. Dubai is a city like no other! You can’t be indifferent about Dubai. It is a cosmopolitan city with a widely diverse population from many different backgrounds. Our taxidriver ‘Anwar’ for example arrived 7 years ago from Peshawar, Pakistan, together with his cousin. He said that life was not easy in Dubai, but it made good money and it was safe. In march, he would return back home, since his sister had found him a wife. He has never seen her, not even a picture!  He was very excited, but did not yet know what kind of job he would start back home. There are more than 80% expats in Dubai. (The majority from India, Pakistan and the Philippines). Emiratis do not ‘have’ to work, since they get money (up to 5000 usd) from the government. All Emiratis are supposed to be provided a home and children are to receive a home upon marriage. There is free healthcare and free education. The evolution of Dubai is crazy.  25 years ago, it was a desert with only a handful of buildings. Now Dubai is crammed with the largest skyscrapers in the world, hotels, super cars and artificial islands.

It really is a ‘must’ on your bucket lust. Wim has been here over 15 times, so he has walked on dustroads where now you have luxury hotels and fancy shopping malls. It is my third time and I love the feeling of security, of feeling safe – you can leave your cellphone on your table and nobody will steal it. You can walk on the street at midnight and nobody will bother you. But what I love even more is that everything is ‘spic-and span’ clean. The pictures above show nice huts on the beach with toilets and ‘inside-and outside showers from Grohe’ – an example for our beaches in Belgium.

 

 

2017 – First day in Dubai

Having arrived at Dubai’s biggest airport in the world at 3 am, we decided to sleep in.

This morning we strolled around the old town,  looked at all the amazing buildings and ended up at Dubai mall.

But the highlight of the day was to go to the new opera and enjoy the musical ‘Cats’. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical has enchanted over 73 million people … now I know why…The new opera house is also worth seeing and will become without a doubt as famous as the Sydney opera house. The design of the Dubai opera takes its inspiration from the traditional sailing vessels of the Arabian Gulf, the classic wooden dhows that are synonymous with the world-famous Dubai Creek.

 

 

2017 – Goodbye Oman and why it should be on your ‘bucket list’.

The sultanat of Oman is a teeny, tiny country in the Middle East that, for the most part, nobody has heard of. Poised between the glitzy excess of the Emirates and the rigid conservatism of Saudi Arabia, Oman provides a political stable and heartwarming country. Nature is truly jaw-dropping, mind-blowingly beautiful. Whether it’s the infinite, golden desert or the stunning, secluded beaches. The dramatic rocks, their own Grand Canyon, the wadi’s or the ravines that fill with water and become true oases.

But the most important are the Omani’s, their hospitality, generosity and kindness are famous across the Middle East. Till we meet again…Inshallah…

2017 – Grand Mosque, Al Bustan Palace and Shangri-La

This morning we went for a visit of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. Breathtaking! The dimensions and the details are awe-inspiring. 20.000 worshippers, acre upon acre of cool, white marble reflecting the harsh sun and an exquisite Persian carpet in the main hall that took 27 months to hand weave.

Next stop Al Bustan Palace:

Stepping inside this Ritz-Carlton hotel is like being wrapped in a blanket of incandescent, shimmering gold dust. It is at once luxurious and comforting as the chandeliers glisten and the piano softly serenades guests, while Mustafa, the coffee man who has worked there for over 30 years, welcomes you with some dates and Omani coffee. His craft spans spice stalls and centuries to immerse guests in new experiences and the local way of life.

What I will take back is the warm welcome of the doormen, who sorted out our little issue with the taxidriver and the warm welcome by Mr. Rahil Khan. He showed us around the hotel and told us that he has worked in Riyadh and Dubai and many other places in the world. When he left the Ritz-Carlton for another hotel group, he missed the RC feeling so much, that he returned to the Ritz-Carlton family. He took out his little RC bible with the 12 service values, since they are all proud to be Ritz-Carlton. The motto is:’We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen’…

We visited the heavenly sixth senses Spa where princess Camilla stayed on her private Beach.

In March and in April they have an Indian wedding coming up, so the whole hotel with the 250 rooms are all reserved.

Thank you Mr. Khan, I will never forget the delicious Ritz-Carlton chocolate cake (since the scale will remind me 😉)

Last but not least: the Shangri-La:

After a drive into the mountains, in the middle of nowhere submerges the Shangri-La resort, like a fata morgana in the desert. The energetic Mrs. Fatima welcomes us and decided to show us around by golf cart. The resort is enormous with its 3 hotels, Al Husn, Al Wawa and Al Bandar. It took her 3 hours to take us around and still we did not see everything. Fatima is lebanese, born in Brazil, a truly fascinating lady… I will take with me the ‘lazy river’ at the Al Waha family hotel. The adventure zone is a true paradise for kids. There is just too much to mention.Check out their website on http://www.shangri-La.com/muscat/BarrAlJissah. They even had a gallery with classical cars! Most special to me though was the ‘Shangri-La’s’ Turtle Care Programme. There is a dedicated ‘turtle ranger’,Mohammed,to teach the guests about the hatchlings and to protect the nests from any threats. He has assisted over a 50.000 hatchlings from just over 1000 nests, and all the guests are invited to watch the sea turtles make their way to the ocean.

Since 2006, the Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah resort and Spa has welcomed over 2.781.365 guests to the resort, and is looking forward to developing tourism in Oman.

We stayed and enjoyed the beach for an hour and then it was time to say goodbye to Oman.

 

 

 

2017 – Day tour excursion

Today we went on a long trip, but we had our fantastic driver/guide’Ahmed’ from Zahara tours. Ahmed is Omani and he delighted in explaining Omani Culture and History. For example: Did you know that Oman is ranked as the ninth safest country in the world, according to the World Economic Forum? (With Finland rated as the safest followed by Qatar and the UAE). Omanis above the age of 22 years old, are entitled to subsidised land. Oman is a rich country, being an oil producing nation, and the Omani’s love their ruler, Sultan Quaboos bin Said al Said. Unfortunately he is already 76 years old and has no children, so everyone wonders what will happen if the Sultan passes away.

We visited Nizwa and walked through the ancient capital of Oman, visited the fort and the air-conditioned souks and tried some delicious dates and ‘kahwa’, Omani coffee flavored with cardamom.Then we went up the mountain to Jebel Shams. The name means ‘Sun mountain’ and the highest point lies at 3010 meters. They call it the Grand Canyon. On the way back we made some more stops and returned to the hotel safely after a 500 km long drive. But it was worth it!!!

Tomorrow an early visit of the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and two more site visits at the Bustan Palace and the Shangri-La.

2017 – The Chedi Hotel in Muscat

Today we were invited to a site visit at the Chedi hotel (www.ghmhotels.com). A truly fantastic experience!!! This is our first site visit in Oman. The luxurious ‘zen’ feeling, the natural chic decor, the great food and the supercharming Mrs. Lore Koenig (who knows her staff by name and makes you feel sooo welcome) make this hotel one that you want to visit again and again. The staff really touches your heart and their concern for your happiness and well-being is genuine. This will secretly be my favorite in Muscat…hope to visit again one day…