We touched down at Dubai International Airport around 5:30am and trundled into Terminal 3. I couldnt believe how vast, clean, spacious and quiet the terminal was. It was almost unnaturally quiet. It was only after a few minutes that I noticed the signs that said it was a ‘Silent Terminal, with no flight or passenger announcements. It was so incredibly peaceful. We literally breezed through customs. As we walked to the baggage carousel, we couldnt believe what greeted us. Our packs were slowly making their way towards us. With all the hype about lost luggage over the past few months – especially on Qantas flights – we were expecting something to go wrong. We shouldnt have worried. It was if our packs had stayed together the whole trip, like Ren and I sitting beside each other on the flight. 😊
We headed straight out into Dubais early morning heat, and it was a relief to get into a taxi with air conditioning. We made our way to Ralph and Ruthannes place in Arabian Ranches, and there was barely any traffic on the road. It was still very early.
Rising up out of the sand were monumental structures, towering towards the sky. Some were immaculately finished, others still under construction, while others had been abandoned jutting out of the sand like trunkless legs of stone. Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair. With the Dubai desert around us, I couldnt help but make the Ozymandias connection. 😊
Arabian Ranches is a bit of a labyrinth for the uninitiated, and our taxi driver got a little bit lost on the way. However, it wasnt long before we pulled up outside Ralph and Ruthannes spacious townhouse in an expansive residential neighbourhood surrounded by desert sand. It was fantastic to see them. Truly so. Wed bid them farewell months earlier during the Christmas holidays when they were preparing to move from Australia to Dubai, and here we were nine months later – half a world away from our last catchup in Melbourne.
We dropped our packs, freshened up and headed out for a coffee with Ralph at a nearby shopping centre. On our return, I embarked on a Lego adventure with the youngest of Ralph and Ruthannes boys. It was a challenge, but I loved it. Theres
nothing quite like following an instruction booklet to build a Lamborghini, and getting beaten hands down by an 😊
Ralph cooked us pancakes with eggs and bacon – far out, what a Id had breakfast a few hours earlier on the plane, but it was so nice to sit at a table. In the early afternoon we headed to ‘Atlantis, The Palm, Ralphs new workplace. Perched on the edge of the Persian Gulf, the place is an extraordinary feat of engineering, and it was great to see where Ralph now spends his days. We were there for lunch at Gordon Ramsays ‘Bread Street Kitchen and Bar. The place was popular and the meals were great. We shared a Caesar salad and the Sunday roast special, and they certainly didnt hold back on portion sizes.
Ralph took us on a tour of the events and functions area he manages at ‘Atlantis, The Palm, then drove us a short distance along the edge of the Persian Gulf to the futuristic ‘Atlantis, The Royal (which resembled a Lego design by Salvador Dali). In the we made our way back to Arabian Ranches and settled there for the rest
of the day. I continued the Lego build with my young nephew, then enjoyed Ralphs homemade chicken curry and dahl – both of which were amazing. We started on champagne, moved to ros and finished the night with a great pinot noir.
It had been a long day on the back of a long flight, and we were starting to feel very weary. We retired into of beds for our one and only night in Dubai. I woke at 3am and put the finishing touches on a report Id been working on since leaving Tasmania. After a final edit, I attached it to an email and sent it on its digital journey back to Australia. What a relief! I was finally on holiday.
We sat outside in the warm Dubai air and enjoyed a cup of tea before venturing out to the local golf club for breakfast.
