Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Dubai cruise to Singapore | February 2020
There are few places in history that have changed as much as Dubai has in such a short period of time. My several trips to Dubai in the 1990’s when I working on a television series “Holiday Destinations’ with Travel Television, what I saw was a nearly-barren desert with a handful of buildings popping up here and there, and a few construction cranes scattered around. The purely visual changes were impressive enough then! How were they able to turn a desert into the ‘City of the Future’.
The mixture of Middle Eastern and Asian cultures that make up the majority of the city make Dubai one of the most interesting places in the world for a high-end and likely very expensive adventure.
As of mid-2018, Dubai has experienced a major population boom. 20 years ago, that number was closer to 750,000, in other words Dubai has experienced a 400% population increase in 20 years. But the diversity of cultures and races is what makes Dubai so interesting. Only 15% of the population are natives of the UAE and 70% of the population comes from Asia.
It is not only rich due to its being a part of the Gulf, the oil well of the world, but the major part of their revenue of the state comes from prosperous areas like real estate, airlines and ports!
In February 2020, I went back to Dubai after 26 years and escorted a group on a Celebrity cruise to Singapore. It was an unbelievably exciting thought to be in the UAE again and amongst the most incredible architectural constructions that are ultra-modern in Dubai and Abu Dhabi! Dubai has the most impressive city skyline in the world and it sure looks like a city from a science fiction movie!
Our Celebrity cruise was going to take us to some ports many of us had not been to before which made us look forward to the cruise even more!
In Dubai, I arranged a day tour to see the highlights of the city. A desert safari is unforgettable and memories just linger on!
Abu Dhabi
A full day tour to Abu Dhabi to see the iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque and the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the first universal museum in the Arab world that translates the spirit of openness of cultures, and visit the market to buy local specialities.
Oman
Interesting history for me was that in 1698, Zanzibar became part of the overseas holdings of Oman after Saif bin Sultan, the Imam of Oman, defeated the Portuguese in Mombasa, in what is now Kenya. In 1832 or 1840, Omani ruler Said bin Sultan moved his court from Muscat to Stone Town on the island of Unguja (Zanzibar Island). No wonder, Muscat has a ‘Zanzibar feeling’ with its Mutrah Corniche, a promenade stretching for 3 kilometres along the waterfront. The port and harbour is on one side and the beautiful rock formations of the Hajar mountains and the Portuguese watchtowers on the other.
Mutrah Souk was the highlight for the group and we wanted to shop for perfume and things that we used to get in Dar-es-Salaam and Zanzibar. We had little time as ship was scheduled to sail early evening.
For a tourist, the Soul Muttrah may be a confusing experience expecting to find the magic of Arabia in the most historic seaside market of Oman.
The Kummah is one of the items that distinguish the clothing of Omani men from those worn by other Gulf nationals. The Kummah is a hint at Oman’s historic link with Zanzibar as it originates from Africa.
We were all interested in buying Frankincense, the resin that is extracted from frankincense trees in Dhofar in the southern part of Oman. The more transparent the resin is the higher the quality. Back at home in Tanzania, we used to call it ‘loban’ and my mother would very often burn some in the evenings which gave a lovely fragrance in the house. I also remember chewing Frankincense which was a little more difficult to chew than normal sweet chewing gum. Incense burners, Omani clay artwork, Wicker goods, Mandoos chests, Halwa (sweets) and so many other goods fill the souk with interested shoppers!
Days jut pass by as we enjoy the activities on board. Having lived in Mumbai for two years previously, I still felt there was more to see every time I return. Cochin was still an exciting and informative port to visit again. The city of Goa is far away from the port and the drive on the bus was tiring with the traffic, however, the visit to Bom Jesus was very interesting for all. The beaches in the south are the best and they are many of them. When you are on a cruise, one cannot risk driving too far to beaches as the ship is not responsible to wait for you to return if you do not participate in the cruise line tour. It is advisable to take a beach holiday to Goa as there are many clean and sandy beaches to see and spend a relaxing holiday.
We did drive to a beach for a couple of hours for a short lunch break and a walk!
Sri Lanka (Colombo)
Sri Lanka was another highlight for me to see as I knew many friends who were born in Ceylon, before it changed its name to Sri Lanka. We were docking in Colombo, a city where tourism has suffered greatly since the horrific Easter Sunday terrorist attacks in 2019. I felt for the locals and how it will help out thousands of people whose businesses have been affected. I could tell from our tour guide how they were suffering due to the attack and how pleased and grateful they were to see us.
There are so many restaurants where you can enjoy the local delicious food which is quite reasonable!
Back on board the ship ready to sail to Phuket, Thailand and then to Singapore! Everyone was disappointed when our ship captain made a decision that due to the threat of the Covid 19 virus spreading, he had made a decision to return to Dubai, and that we would spend the three nights on board the ship. Celebrity did offer return air fare to get guests safely home and also provided accommodation in 5 star hotels in Dubai for up to two nights.