High Tea, Desert Safari Dinner and Flying High In Dubai

The last couple of days in Dubai have been inspiring, amazing, breathtaking and really life changing.

I’ve spent countless hours eating, laughing, experiencing Dubai with people who were once complete strangers, though now, I’m fortunate enough to call them friends.

On the day of arrival, I made my way to the beautiful JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in Dubai which I was lucky enough to call homethis week. We lunched at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding, jumped on an Abra and crossed Dubai Creek to wonder through the magical Gold Souks and dined at the incredibly delicious China Grill at the The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi Beach Resort and Marina devouring dim sums and stunning cocktails.

The last two days have been totally heart stopping.

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We stopped by Cakes by La Farine for an impressive afternoon high tea which was highly commended during the Time Out Dubai Restaurant Awards. Located on the ground floor of the JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, this gorgeous cafe & bakery bakes fresh bread daily and also serves ‘the best baguettes in Dubai’. La Farine also features a mouthwatering range of homemade pastries, a wide variety of boutique teas and beautiful bespoke cakes crafted by their awesome cake artist.

Check out that marvellous menu – an assortment of delicious cakes, sandwiches, canapés and teas.

These fresh pretzels have definitely stolen my heart away.

We made our way to At The Top, Burj Khalifa. At over 828 metres (2,716.5 feet) and more than 160 stories, the view of Dubai from Burj Khalifa deck is freaking magnificent.

Not only is the Burj Khalifa the tallest free standing structure/tower in the world, it also boasts the highest restaurant on earth called At.mosphere [which I’m hoping to dine at later this month].

Hey fishy fishy!

How cool is the Dubai Underwater Zoo & Aquarium. Located inside the world’s largest shopping complex, the Dubai Mall, this aquarium is filled with over 70 different marine species including some 300 sharks and rays.

Say hello to the King Croc. Born in Queensland, Australia, the King Croc weighs over a whopping 750kgs, is over 5m in length and has 60 pearly whites the size of your average index finger. Woah!

Ah yes, this would be the best cultural experience of my life to date. The Dubai Desert Heritage Dinner Safari with Platinum Heritage. We were whisked away to the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. Climbing onboard a 1950’s Land Rover, our hilarious and memorable host Hassoum took us over the bumpy sand dunes and explaining to us the way of life of the Bedouins just as the sun set.

Seems like Hassoum watches So You Think You Can Dance, getting his boogie on in the middle of the desert. What a character, definitely a highlight of the safari.

He pulls the car aside by a tree called the Firebush. The sap in the leaves are used as a natural anaesthetic for traditional medical procedures and the branches used to make baskets. Who said there’s nothing in the desert.

We arrived at a magical spot within the reserve, where we were welcomed with sparkling date juice and seated on Persian rugs and pillows to watch a falcon demonstration. The falcon handler explains how significant and prized the birds are to the Bedouin culture, working with them as food hunter/gatherers.

This is Insect the Falcon, perched on my arm. Calm and composed. Not a bird you want to mess around with.

Fresh Arabic coffee was offered just as we arrived at the camp. As the sun set, Hassoum took us around the camp. Henna tattoos for the ladies, bumpy Camel rides, fresh Kabez/bread making, devouring delicious lamb and rices dishes, tabouli and hummus, and ending the fantastic night smoking on aromatic shisha pipes.

With a 4am start the following morning, we made our way into the cold desert to our hair-raising Hot Air Balloon experience.

Strapped in and flying over 4000m in the air, the view of the Dubai Desert was simply breathtaking. I seriously urge you to try this.

The last week has been mind-blowingly exciting and fun. I’ve put on a few kilos [ pants are even tighter ], participated in some awesome experiences which I can now tick off the bucket list and made some new amazing life-long friends. Could not be more grateful this very moment.