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Our second day in Dubai was filled with relaxation by the pool, followed by excitement in the desert. Both parts were thoroughly enjoyable, and while the weather was a bit cool for spending time in the water, we were thankful for the overcast skies while in the desert.

Since our second day was a Friday, Nathan told me that there wouldn’t be much open, due to it being the day of rest. As such, we decided to relax at the hotel pool until our driver picked us up for our desert excursion. (We considered going to the Hilton Dubai Jumeirah resort, but the shuttles were inconveniently timed and the weather wasn’t great for beach-going. Although, if there hadn’t been a bar by the pool, we probably would have hailed a cab…)

The pool had some nice views of the Dubai Creek area, with the primary skyline of the city in the distance. Since I had taken some nice nighttime shots of the skyline the night before, I was happy about getting some descent ones during the day, as well. We enjoyed the views and drank Stella Artois while I blogged and did some research online.

When our driver picked us up for our desert safari at 3:30 p.m., we learned that we were to share the Toyota Land Cruiser (reinforced with additional rollover protection) with three Indians from Hyderabad. They were pleased to learn that I am living in India at the moment, and decided they believed me after hearing me using some typical Indian expressions in casual conversation.

After about an hour’s drive, we stopped at a gas station for a final bathroom break before heading out into the desert. There were a number of other Net Tours Dubai SUVs there, along with vehicles from other tour operators. 

We then headed out into the desert. Our driver expertly navigated the dunes, giving us an excellent ride and pushing the envelope enough to be a blast. One of the Indians kept asking him to get crazier, much to the chagrin of his friends. Nathan and I listened in amusement.

After a short time, we stopped for pictures, and for the driver to let some air out of the tires (For better traction, presumably. All the vehicles in our caravan did the same thing. They also loaded the vehicle with bottled water, which was a bit disconcerting at the time.). This also seemed to be a staging area, because we waited until a few other Land Cruisers showed up, before starting a caravan to head further into the desert.

After another hour or so riding the dunes, we arrived at the Bedouin camp where we would enjoy the rest of our evening. Camel rides, شيشة‎ (Shisha, or hookah, with flavored tobacco. Nathan and I agreed that they had apple flavor on offer. I’m quite sure that Bonk! would have thoroughly enjoyed it, and I wish he could have joined us there.), falcons, traditional Arabian food, and belly dancing rounded out the experience.

The camel rides were pretty hilarious. I am tall enough that I could straddle the camel when it was laying down, so it was pretty easy for me to get on and off. Standing up and laying down, though, is a very jerky process, and it’s easy to be thrown off if one isn’t holding on tight. Luckily, I didn’t have too much trouble, and I was giggling to myself throughout my short ride. Nathan took pictures but didn’t ride himself, as he’s been around enough camels in Cairo to be annoyed by them now.

Unfortunately, after being there about an hour, I started to feel a bit unwell, and so I was happy to head back to civilization. There was a bit more adventure on the way back to the road, as our driver turned off the headlights and took us over some more dunes. We eventually made it back to the main road, and were dropped back at the hotel for the evening.

Since I didn’t eat much at the Arabian BBQ, and Nathan was hungry again, we ordered room service and enjoyed a bit of the wine Nathan brought from Egypt. I had the club sandwich, which was unique in that in addition to the traditional constituent parts of the sandwich, it also included an omelet. Quite tasty, though.

All in all, it was a very pleasant way to spend a Friday.