Talk about a trip of contrasts, Tanzania to Dubai. Rugged dirt roads to 6 lane super highways. We arrived in Dubai close to 5am, just in time to hear the morning call to prayer. We quickly made it through customs and jumped into a taxi and were at the hotel by 6am. They were able to get us checked into room around 7am, which was fantastic. We took full advantage of a much needed nap, so that we would be ready for our dune bashing tour later in the day.
OMG! The dune bashing was a blast. Really, it was so much fun. We were picked up by our guide, Mayan from Ocean Air Travels. After picking up a few more people, we drove about an hour to the desert. The area of the Arabian Desert called the Rub’ al Khali is the largest continuous area of sand desert in the world. To keep us entertained and to give us some knowledge about Dubai and the UAE, Mayan played host to his version of Cash Cab.
First stop is to an area to let some air out of the car’s tires and to use the bathroom. There are also 4 wheelers that you can rent and take for a spin, if you want. Air is let out of the car tires to provide better traction on the sand. Mayan turned up the tunes and we started sliding over the sand dunes in the Toyota Land Cruiser. It was a wild ride. We stopped to give our stomachs a little rest and were given the chance to do a little sand boarding. We were given instructions not to turn, just go straight down. I think everyone in our group got the hang of it.
We continued with another bit of dune bashing and on to the camp. At the camp they provide camel rides, hookah smoking, henna tattoos, falcon holding, belly dancing, and a great BBQ dinner. This tour was a lot of fun and I recommend it, unless of course you’re prone to motion sickness. Then yeah this might not want to be something you want to do.
Yes, another driver got stuck. 
Our driver had to lend a helping hand. 
Got up the next morning to go skiing. Yes, snow in the middle of the desert. Everything is possible in Dubai. Ski Dubai has an indoor snow park complete with a couple downhill runs, chairlift, sledding area, penguin encounter, among other activities. The ski rental, jacket and pants are all included in your 2 hour slope pass. We had a good time. We knew it wasn’t going to be challenging, but went for the fun of it and to see if we were in any kind of shape for ski season.
We then headed to the biggest mall in the world, the Dubai Mall. This mall is the biggest in the world. There is an aquarium, ice rink, about 1,200 stores and restaurants. Just crazy! Got a bite to eat and hung around for the fountain show. We then decided to take the metro back to the hotel, so we could have that figured out before our early morning time slot at the Burg Khalifa the next morning. It was good that we did, as we learned that they have a car just for women and children. We had no idea until Will was informed by one lady that he needed to change cars as he could receive a fine for being in that car. He quickly changed cars and I stayed put since I didn’t know if other cars were men only. (Apparently not, women can use whatever car they want.) It was then that I noticed all the signs informing you about the restricted car. There is also no sleeping or eating on the metro. Follow those 3 rules and you should be just fine. It’s extremely clean and safe, but depending on where you’re going it could be quite a walk to get back and forth to a metro stop.
We woke-up early as we had a 6:30am sunrise tickets at the Burj Khalifa. The Burj is the tallest tower in the world at 828 meters (163 stories), including the spire. The main observation deck is on the 124th floor. And yes my friends, Will went up. He did not go to the outside viewing area, but he stayed up, there until I was ready to come down. So, yeah!
We waited around for the hop on/hop off bus to start running. Dubai is spread out and the bus seemed like a good idea to get a lay of the land and figure out where we might want to come back and see. There is a live guide on the red route for the bus. Cecilia did a great job keeping us entertained and providing some insight of customs, history, etc.
The next day we had an all day tour of the capital of the UAE, Abu Dhabi. Luckily it was cooling off from the hot summer months and was only around 104 at the beginning of October. First stop of the day was the Shiek Zayed Grand Mosque. This mosque is open for tourists and is the 4th largest mosque in terms of area. A strict dress code is enforced and most all of the ladies in our group had to wear one of the tour company’s provided abeyas, as we were not appropriately covered. The mosque was impressive, beautiful, and it was interesting to learn more about the Muslim religion. As per the Muslim religion there are no statues or pictures in the mosque, but the building itself is just gorgeous.
Next stop was the Presidential Palace. This is where foreign dignitaries and heads of state are brought for meetings. Will enjoyed the library of knowledge inside the palace. That room had many first editions of ancient books. There was also an interesting art instillation that was there as well. After lunch it was time to take in some views. We were taken to one of the high towers in Abu Dhabi and had great views from the 74th floor. We had another great tour from Ocean Air Travels.
These art installations created great effects. 
We had a great time visiting Dubai and can’t believe the continued growth. Everywhere you turn a new skyscraper is shooting up and more artificial islands are being created. The crime rate is extremely low and no, you won’t be partying it up here. Places with a liquor license are few and far between here, but there are a ton of activities to do if you have the money.