A quick trip...

Because we are enablers of each other and both suffer from FOMO, we decided it might be a good idea to book a last minute weekend trip to Manama, Bahrain.  Even though we were going to Sri Lanka the very next week...and had a work event the first night of this possible weekend away making the trip time even tighter.

How do we come up with these ideas...and then actually consider acting on them!?

And of course, when we looked online and found an affordable way that we could make it there for a full two nights and still be back in Dubai for work on Sunday morning, we knew what our decision would be.

And so we booked.

Getting up well before dawn, we headed to the airport for a quick one hour flight to Bahrain and were at the InterContinental before 9am.  Amazingly, they were able to find us a "temporary" room to use while our actual room was being prepared, giving Geoff a few hours to get his work done and freeing up the rest of the day for exploring.

We had picked the hotel because of its serene outdoor area, with the intention of lounging poolside and reading our books and swimming for much of the weekend.

But...the weather was having none of it and decided instead to offer a day of winds and rain.

Unphased, we headed instead to the Bahrain National Museum.  Opened in 1988, this attractive museum explores 4,000 years of Bahrain history.

Not always the easiest to follow - at one point a little lost, we ended up squishing behind an exhibit to get to another part of the showcase - the Museum was attractively packed with lots of information and unusual artifacts.

Perhaps most interesting was the room that explores daily Bahrain life from birth through to death, detailing the birthing, school, work and wedding rituals and explaining the architecture and way of life for the Dilmun civilization.  Also fascinating were the old maps of the region which helped to explain its evolution, including the spread of religions throughout.

Our heads full with facts, we headed to Geoff's favourite breakfast restaurant, Lumee, to nourish our bodies.  And it - as always - did not disappoint - as we savoured this comfort food and warm beverages while warming up from the chilly weather.

That evening, we headed to the client party of Beth's old law firm to meet some former acquaintances and some new ones!  Even after all these years, they still know how to throw a lovely gathering and as we headed back to the hotel to get some much needed sleep, we felt confident that we had made a crazy but good decision to make the trip!

Till the end...

The interesting part of an attempted minimalist lifestyle with a smaller clothes collection is that you can wear things so often that they actually fall apart...

The Spectacular Louvre Abu Dhabi

In perfect timing, the Louvre Abu Dhabi opened to the public just before Fred and El arrived in Dubai.

So, naturally, we had to go and see it!

Armed with multiple articles about the best artifacts/artworks to see and the tickets we booked online to ensure entry, we headed out early in hopes of arriving as it opened and thereby missing at least a bit of the crowds.

Although busy when we pulled in, we were able to secure parking quite close to the entrance and our online tickets allowed us to walk right by the long line of visitors waiting to secure their entrance.

The only hiccup was the line-up for the audio guides. The staff were dealing with more than half of the new headphones not working, which they solved only by sending a staff member to the nearest mall to buy new Beats headphones.  El used her own headphones, and Beth and Geoff found that if you bent the cords in just the right way and held it like that with your thumb, then they would at least work out of one ear. And Fred, well he managed to find, and be accepted into, a live walking tour of the Museum, thus not needing the audio guide at all!

A few small growing pains aside, the stunning Louvre Abu Dhabi is undoubtedly well-worth a visit! 

The exhibit tracked the evolution of history, and is a true blend of east and west.  With Middle Eastern and Asian influences, Cabinets of Curiosity and some of the Western notables like Van Gogh, Monet, Degas and Da Vinci, it highlighted the evolution of the world with an international perspective.  

What was especially enjoyable was understanding the global influences that many of the well-known Western artists had used in their works such as Gauguin’s fascination with Japanese culture.  In addition, the commonalities between the different cultures was highlighted through a comparison of artifacts, such as the frequent use of gold for death rituals around the world.

The Louvre’s building, however, is perhaps the most impressive.  Surrounded by water, the 180-metre dome allows beams of light to shine down during the day, reminiscent of the overlapping palm trees in the UAE desert.    The various rooms and open air spaces are connected by small walkways, an ode to the city design of the traditional UAE.

Perhaps too busy to take in all of the nuances of the Museum – the map of the UAE integrated into the floors, the writings engraved into the walls – we look forward to heading back in a few months to check it out all over again!

After an educational morning, we headed to the St. Regis Abu Dhabi for a relaxing outdoor lunch to share our thoughts about the museum and take in the beautiful views. 

The drive back to Dubai was a quick one and we changed our clothes and headed out to City Walk's Grapeskin Restaurant for some wine and cheese.  As a last adventure, we dropped by a nearby Fashion Show for a final few pics before Fred and El headed off on the next stage of their travel adventure.

Wet and Wild Birthday Celebrations

After a busy day and a short rest, we met up with Fred and El for a belated parental birthday celebration.

To commemorate the occasion we headed to La Perle in Al Habtoor City, a new theatre experience by Franco Dragone, an artist well known for his work with Cirque Du Soleil and Celine Dion.  

Built specifically for this Dubai show, this "first of its kind" aqua theatre holds 2.7 million litres of water and transforms from dry to wet to dry again multiple times throughout the show.

The performers dived into pools of water from crazy-high platforms, walked upside down on the ceiling, sped multiple motorcycles around very small cages and mesmerized the audience with their array of spectacular tricks.  It was breathtaking.

After catching our breath, we headed to Dubai Opera for dinner at the new restaurant, Sean Connolly.

The restaurant embraces the pearl fishing theme that runs throughout the Opera building, with the restaurant's  fixtures and features embracing the colours and feel of the inside of an oyster.

Choosing to sit outside to enjoy the weather and take in the incredible view of the Burj Khalifa, it seemed almost like we planned it when it actually started to rain!  The prayers of the country earlier that week had actually materialized right during our dinner.  And the birthday celebration had now a fully developed water-theme!  

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Busy bees in the UAE...

Fred and El may have only been in Dubai for a few days en route to their trip to Vietnam and Cambodia, but they sure did pack in a lot while they were here!

After a full-day walking tour with “Nada” to check out old Dubai on their first day, the ambitious travellers met up with us for happy hour and dinner at the Four Seasons Dubai at Jumeirah Beach to share their learnings and take in the panoramic city views while breathing the ocean air.

The next day the four of us headed to the Etihad Museum to learn a little bit about the history of Dubai.  The magnificent building and its artifacts highlight how far the UAE has come since Britain announced in 1968 its decision to withdraw by 1971.  After multiple rounds of productive discourse between the Emirates, on December 1st, 1971, 6 of them joined together as a nation, with Ras-Al-Khaimah joining in 1973.

The Museum building is divine – with towering pillars and extensive technology to highlight the  country's advancements.  Perhaps the most powerful component, however, was the video right at the end that showed where the UAE was in the 1970s and where it is today.  It is hard to believe just how much progress they have achieved and world leadership they have taken in such a short period.

For the remainder of the day we headed over to the Design District for "Design Week", a celebration of UAE arts, culture and innovation.  From pop-can horses to complexes made out of old mattress springs to plastic robot displays to Swarovski crystal statues  to the best “spinner” chairs, it was awesome to see this area really come to life.  

It was so busy, in fact, that one restaurant’s kitchen “broke” and there were huge line-ups in two others.  

Hungry and eager for some calm, we headed back to City Walk for some Spanish tapas and sangria at Le Toro.  What a wonderful way to decompress!

The Enhanced Movie Experience.... x10!!

If the leather-seated Roxy movie experience (outlined in an earlier post) wasn’t enough, there is now a new movie-magnet in town.  

The Roxy’s Director lounge offers a private welcome lounge, fully reclining leather seats with movable tray tables, pillow and blankets, and an extensive at-seat food/drink service that can be called at any time during the movie with a press of a button.   

At what point will the luxurious experience usurp the movie all-together?? 

A sweet visit....

We were thrilled to have Molly and David "drop by" from Singapore for a visit.

Although we had to work for some of their visit, we did our best to maximize our time together.  From the first stop at the Apple store and a quick sighting of the Dubai fountains, we enjoyed wonderful lunches and dinners at Baker and Spice, La Farine and Armani’s Hashi, as well as a little shopping and a gorgeous boat ride to see some of the great sites of Dubai from a new vantage point -the Arabian Gulf.

Although we didn’t manage to snap too many shots of the visit (save the boat ride where the captain must have taken at least 100!), we hope that Molly’s milestone birthday was a great one… and that her new enthusiasm for Arabic sweets will bring them back again very soon!