Shopaholics

With no special activities on the list today, we started with a bit of a lie-in. By the time we got up, we decided we should have only a light breakfast, since we had a lunch reservation in the Burj Al Arab’s Al Muntaha restaurant.

So, we headed down to the beach area by buggy and found a nice continental breakfast buffet for a reasonable price. The setting was idyllic, outside by the water. The temperature was lovely and cool, too. A helicopter fired up its engines and we say it lift off and fly away from the Burj’s helipad. What a way to get around town. Talk about leaving and arriving in style.

Afterwards, Sarah took Eloïse to a nearby playing area, while I went back to the hotel to do a spot of on-line research. Our trusty Minolta A2 camera started having electronic viewfinder problems yesterday and looks like it’s on the decline. We wanted to take advantage of being in the UAE to pick up a reasonably priced alternative, so that necessitated some on-line research prior to visiting any shops.

Sarah returned at about 12:30 and we began to prepare for lunch. At 13:00, up we went to the 27th floor, where a window table enabled us to look out over the water. The view was still partially obscured by the haze, but it was still spectacular.

The food was amazing, too: easily the best meal of this holiday and one of the best I’ve ever eaten anywhere. I had the Wagyu beef filet and Sarah had the sea bass. I noticed that the children’s menu even featured Wagyu hamburgers.

Eloïse shocked both us and the restaurant staff by biting a chunk out of her water glass. Amazingly, she wasn’t hurt, and the one large piece of glass and several smaller shards fell onto her lap or the baby seat on which she was perched. We wonder if the glass already had a hairline fracture, as nothing like this has ever happened before. Whatever the reason, we’ll be trying to give her exclusively plastic cups from now on, or a straw to drink through at the very least.

I got back down to the room before Sarah, who left when Eloïse started to tire of sitting in one spot. The floor manager (each floor has its own) handed me computer-printed copies of De Volkskrant and even De Telegraaf, the latter of which I hadn’t requested. No Boston Globe for Sarah, unfortunately. I was also given a complimentary copy of the Burj Al Arab DVD I wrote about yesterday, by way of an apology for the inconvenience associated with the newspapers.

I discovered why the laptop can’t print: in their zeal to upgrade all of the computers to Vista, they either overlooked or deemed unimportant the fact that the new version of Windows doesn’t have a driver for their custom fax/printer device. I had to get a member of the IT staff to print an important e-mail for me, which contained important camera shopping advice from my good friend, Peter.

Armed with that sheet of paper, we all piled into a taxi and went to the Mall of the Emirates to see what was on offer. Peter had recommended the Canon 400D to me, but he called it by the North American market name of Rebel XTi, so when it came to looking around the shops in the mall, I thought that no-one carried it.

From the models that were on sale there, I quickly decided the 400D was the one that suited our needs and the budget we wanted to spend, so that’s what we came home with. Only back at the hotel did I discover via Google that this was, in fact, the very same camera that Peter had recommended.

I purchased a UV filter and circular polariser to go with the camera, along with a 16 Gb CF card. That ought to provide all the storage we need for our future trips.

With the bulk of our purchases mounting up, we decided we had better buy another case in which to lug all of this stuff home. Accordingly, another case was acquired.

We had dinner at the mall, as none of us had the energy or inclination to seek out anything more sublime. The food was actually good, in any case.

The queue for taxis was very long. As we filed along, getting ever nearer to pole position, I noticed another yellow Lamborghini (why are they always yellow?) and a rather nice V10 Audi S8, the first I’ve seen.

The queue of cars at the Fuck Off Centre was very long, as each of which had to have its occupants justify their attempt to enter the hallowed grounds of the Burj. Eventually, we were back at the hotel and able to dump our stuff in the room.

All in all, today more than made up for the many times we visited a mall during this trip and left empty-handed. Shopping in Dubai is such an integral part of experiencing the city that it was fun to indulge for a change, and it’s not like we have no use for the things we bought.

Turn-down service today provided complete his and hers sampler sets of Amouage scents. Very nice. Sarah was also presented with a vase of roses and a cube full of potpourri, in honour of Mother’s Day. For some reason, they gave this to her on the British Mother’s Day, or Mothering Sunday as it’s known there. Mother’s Day in the UAE (and other Arab countries) isn’t until the 21st of the month.

Soon after we returned to the room, there was a knock at the door and our butler entered with a plate of gourmet chocolates, made in-house by one of the chefs. Mmm. Delicious. What a nice touch. He also brought us the bill for our stay, the only thing so far given to us that we’d rather not have had.

To unwind after a hard day’s shopping, the three of us climbed into the jacuzzi and bubbled away the tension.

Tomorrow signifies the final time we will check out of a hotel on this trip, as we say goodbye to the Burj Al Arab and while away the day to meet our 01:30 flight on Tuesday morning.

Before we know it, we’ll be back in Amsterdam. The current weather forecast for Tuesday is for rain and a high of 6°C. Back to reality, we go. It’s the right time to leave, though, as we’ve done all we came to do and the season is changing. Life here will be impossible soon, as far as we’re concerned.

It’s been an incredible trip: fulfilling, educational, eye-opening, exciting and diverse. The region is full of contrasts and disparate elements that blend in harmony, rather than jar in discord. If only people were as friendly and accepting everywhere.

I’ll doubtless have some reflections to share once the cold light of Amsterdam cements my perspective. For now, I’m going to enjoy my last night in our sumptuous suite and hopefully awaken to a crystal-clear view of Palm Jumeirah in the morning.