Desert diaries: Adventures featuring dune-bashing, sand-boarding, falcons and cuisine

I had never gone on a desert-safari, despite my Dad working in Dubai for a few years, so I was looking forward to spending some time in yet another natural landform. While I wouldn't want to live in the desert - my skin dried and flaked up and my back looks like someone let off fireworks on it; there was little greenery there and I need trees - I certainly loved every minute in the world's largest sandbox, especially sliding down sand dunes. See below for more pictures including me sliding down sand dunes in bin liners (new, unused ones, of course).

The garbage bin liner broke and you should have seen me trying to slide down with a shoe poking through it! There were a couple of sandboards/rollerblades but they were monopolised by other people, so we invested in bin bags. Please click on the pictures to enlarge. I need to share as much as I can! This is me atop the dune, trying to fight cold winds beating at me and get into the darn bin bags.

You can easily get lost in the desert - and the souq, which is the local market - and it was just like Tintin And The Crab With The Golden Claws or Lawrence of Arabia (drool).

The Middle East isn't all desert, thereare nice malls, sprawling city centres and high-rises...

I went dune-bashing, which is this fast roller-coaster ride in a four-wheel drive over sand dunes, some of which are like precipices! First, the driver let out the air from the tyres before entering the desert.

You can see pictures of what it was like from my car - a convoy of Land Cruisers go on this trip during good days when there are no sand storms. I think we I deafened the driver, with screech after screech. The first picture is down a VERTICAL dune slope and you should have seen us holding on for dear life! A very thrilling, high-speed ride with enough ups and downs for even strong stomachs.

 The sand was super-fine and flew in the wind. The driver served as hand-model for this picture.

Then, there was the amazing inland sea. They drove through the coast and you could see the other side, which was Saudi Arabia.

Any lower down the dune and I'd have slid down into the inland sea, which would have been fun, if wet and cold. Though there were people who tried!

 And lots of landcape to practise climbing.

I hunted for quicksand amid the treacherous marshes...

 And envied the camels their eyelashes....

Oh, and I held a falcon! With the glove and its eyes hooded, of course, else I wouldn't be typing this right now. As it was, its grip was iron and nearly squashed out my whole finger!

Magnificent birds of prey, those. I wish we weren't so cruel as to tie them up and treat them badly. These belonged to the Dubai Emir/Sheikh and are generally better looked-after than some of the others.

 

Oh, and the shopping! I didn't do very well clothes-wise, as the fashions didn't appeal much, even in Miss Selfridges, Next, Topshop, Zara, H&M and Karen Millen. Normally I pick up at least 3-4 outfits from each but the styles were different here. There were few bookshops, and the original antiques weren't for sale and I can spot fakes reasonably well, thanks to training from childhood. So only makeup remained and I indulged thoroughly!
And the cuisine - I loved everything, from Baba Ghanoush (Ha! Who goes within a mile of Arabia without eating it, though I make it at home?) to stuffed vine leaves to the famous Lebanese crispy zucchini in yoghurt. And other usual suspects such as fatoush, tabbouleh, mouhitabel, falafels, manakesh and tahini. I also tried Egyptian food with funny names such as Foul Iskandrani and Koshari. All absolutely delicious, of course.

Not that it was all ethnic; there were Dunkin Doughnuts, Applebee's and so on. I avoided Pizza Hut and went in for Yellow Cab this time.

These are only some of the photographs - I've uploaded more on YouTube and will share my album shortly.