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Dubai Beach Club Review: Talise Fitness, Madinat Jumeirah

A strong instinct told me that I must have a look at the latest issue of Time Out Dubai while I was standing at the magazine stand the other day. To my amusement, The latest issue’s cover read: “Battle of the Beach Clubs”! The timing was perfect as I was planning to visit and review a couple of Dubai beach clubs this summer.

After reading the detailed description and comparison table for the different beach clubs, I decided to head to Talise Fitness, Madinat Jumeirah for my next review and make use of their fabulous summer offer.

Beach and Pool Access

The day pass gives you access to the 3km long private beach stretching from Al Qasr extravagant hotel to Jumeirah Beach Hotel, in addition to the two pools (one is at Mina Al Salam hotel and the other is at Al Qasr hotel).

Pros

The staff at the Talise Fitness club reception and the beach and pools were very friendly, attentive and helpful.
The facilities including the rest rooms were always clean and well-maintained.
The cushions on the deck chairs were very comfortable.
There are private cabanas available free of charge.
The tent-designed cabanas at the Al Qasr side of the beach can be rented for 500 AED per day.
The beach and pool are not too busy; average crowd.
Quiet beach, great for reading a book.
3km long private, enclosed beach means a lot of room for swimming and chilling in the ocean.
The loungers are within close proximity to the water.

I was informed by the water sports rental staff person that the weather in Dubai this year has been remarkably pleasant, compared to the usual scorching heat that hits the region at this time of the year. Normally, the temperatures soar starting June and up until the end of September. But luckily, the summer this year has started on a lighter note. And let’s hope that it stays that way for a while!

There even was a cool breeze at the end of the day as we approached sunset. And I found myself commenting on a Facebook status which spoke about cool weather conditions at a nearby venue, and saying that I was also enjoying the cool temperatures at the beach at Mina Al Salam hotel.

Unlike my previous beach trip when the beach was flagged and the waves were manic, this Friday witnessed quiet waves and cool water temperatures. But don’t worry, Talise Fitness beach always keeps the beach goers informed of the ocean and weather status. Check out their boards and signs with weather and water forecasts.

Where to have Lunch

The beach waiters can bring your food order from the pool bar straight to your lounger if you were too lazy to leave your comfy deck chair. You can also head to the pool bar and eat at one of the tables like I did. Or if you were with someone or a group of people, then you might want to have lunch at one of the many multi-cuisine restaurants available at both Mina Al Salam and Al Qasr hotels.

I went for a prime beef burger with a side green salad. And I had a beach punch mixed fruit mocktail.

My Friday Beach Buddy :) — My Friday Beach Buddy 🙂

I must say that the iced-coffee was a let-down, since it was basically ice cubes dropped into a glass of coffee. I think I was still craving the highly refreshing iced-coffee that I had at The Habtoor Grand Beach Club. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you can read all about it here.

As the time came close to sunset, I decided to go and try out the largest leisure pool in Dubai at Al Qasr hotel. Access to the pool is included in the beach and pool day pass. To get there, you can either walk, take a buggy, or the water abra. I opted for the famous Dubai lifestyle transport: the lovely buggy car.

It's time to hit the pool! — It’s time to hit the pool!

Dubai's Largest Leisure Pool at Al Qasr Hotel — Dubai’s Largest Leisure Pool at Al Qasr Hotel

The pool at Al Qasr hotel was designed to be not too deep with families and kids in mind. The water temperature at the pool is centrally controlled throughout the year to adjust to the changing weather temperatures. So the water temperature was just right when I went in for a swim. What’s unique about the pool at Al Qasr is that there are two wild ducks swimming and fluttering their wings on its expansive surface! The ducks (named Chip and Dale by one of the life guards) are imported from overseas to spend three months in Dubai (June, July and August) before re-breeding and then going back to their hometown. It felt so relaxing and soothing to swim in Al Qasr’s wide and elegant pool. And the pair of ducks’ floating on the water made the experience even more calming and peaceful.

Downside

This beach club has a very polished, glamorous and posh edge to it. It might not appeal to everyone.
The quietness of the beach makes it a bit on the boring side.
There’s no music or DJ playing. Which means that the only sounds you will be hearing are other people’s conversations or the sound of speeding jet skis.
The place lacks in character, soul and a strong identity. Its ultra chic and glamorous look leaves no room for a spontaneous feel.
The beach lacks the lively ambiance and fun vibe that I find and like about Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa’s beach club.
Jebel Ali Beach Club makes for a great escape from the city, since it’s located in an isolated resort. While you can’t get that same feel with Talise Fitness beach. Seeing the Burj Al Arab, Jumeirah Beach Hotel and the sky scrapers on Sheikh Zayed Road while swimming in the ocean, makes it difficult not to feel that you are still in the heart of the city!

Who Should Visit?

If you are looking for a quiet beach to relax after a long work week or would like to read your book in peace, then this beach club could be the right pick. But if you are someone who’s looking for a vibrant and busy beach atmosphere, then this beach club might not appeal to you.

Will I go again?

I must admit that I plan on going back for two reasons:

To see the beautiful orange and red hues of light as the sun sets at the beach. I didn’t get to see them this time because I wanted to head to the pool early.
To make the most out of their summer promotion day pass fees which lasts until September 10.

Bonus Tip

Free Wi-Fi is available at the beach and at all Madinat Jumeirah properties. So you can easily check your e-mail, or browse the web and Facebook from the comfort of your sun lounger 🙂

Summer Promotion

The regular fee for the day pass is 495 AED inclusive of a 150 AED food and beverage voucher. However, during the summer months until September 10, you can get the day pass for just 250 AED (without food and beverage) for adults. And for kids aged between 1 to 15 years old, the entrance fee is 150 AED. The fees are valid for both week days and weekends alike.

Timings

The beach is open from 9 am till sunset.
The pools are open from 9 am until 9 pm.

Contact Information

Should you require any additional information, you can contact Talise Fitness by checking their web site:

https://www.jumeirah.com/MJTaliseFitness

You can also read some facts about the beach club at the following Time Out Dubai article:

http://www.timeoutdubai.com/gallery/41718-best-beach-clubs-in-dubai?image=16

Dubai Spa Review: Zen Asia Spa

Zen Asia Spa is your local area type of spa. The one that is conveniently located within walking distance from where you live. And since I happen to live a few blocks away from their JLT branch, I decided to drop in one day to try their back massage treatment.

Facts

The spa offers a wide array of services ranging from Moroccan baths and slimming treatments, nail and hair care services, to waxing, threading and massage treatments.
They have two locations in Dubai; one in Jumeirah Lakes Towers and the other in International City.
They offer gift vouchers, loyalty programs, customized packages and children spa birthday parties.

My Personal Experience

I try to get a back massage whenever I get the chance and time. And I usually go for chain massage centers, reflexology centers, or hotel spas. This time however, I decided to try a place located in my area. Mainly to save on the time and hassle required to reach the place. But also because I heard and read a lot about Zen Asia Spa and I was curious to try it out for myself.

The Therapist

My therapist was a friendly lady from India. Her name was Fatima. I found out from her after the treatment that she is a physiotherapist. Therefore, she knows the right spots to exert pressure on the back or body. I prefer a strong massage and I asked for that when I called to book my appointment. I also informed Fatima about it before the start of the treatment.

Overall Impression

I have to note one thing that I found different from other massage treatments that I had in this country. The therapist was practicing some breathing techniques (not sure if they were intended or not), but this made me feel a bit uncomfortable during my treatment. It took away from the “professionalism” of the massage and place. It kind of set the line between the chain reflexology centers and the hotel spas and the “local area” massage place.

I don’t want to sound obnoxious and I didn’t go there expecting a five-star treatment or service. But at the same time, I was hoping not to feel a considerable amount of difference in the service level and quality of treatment.

Prices

The 30-minute back massage costs 85 AED

Will I Make Another Visit

Honestly, only if I didn’t feel like taking the metro or cab to another place. And wanted to just walk a few blocks (hopefully not in the mid-afternoon like this time) to get a reasonable massage.

Cons

After I had paid, the lady at the reception didn’t seem to care to reply to my good-bye or to even put some effort into maintaining a good relationship with a client who may decide to make another visit. I found this to be the case in many service establishments in Dubai. Except that for massage centers in particular, I think they should pay more attention to their friendliness and behavior with their clients if they wanted to retain them and grow their business. Maybe they could train their staff on customer service or any other related courses.

But I will leave the decision for you ladies to make. If you have tried Zen Asia Spa before, what did you think? what services did you try? which branch did you visit?

If you haven’t then I would recommend it as an option if you live in the JLT area, and would like to go for a massage but are tight on time.

After all, I am called the Rebellious Saudi Diva 😉

Dubai Beach Club Review: Habtoor Grand Beach Resort & Spa

Last Friday, I decided to check out The Habtoor Grand Beach Resort and Spa. Although the beach was flagged on that day, I still managed to go for a nice swim at two different times, with each lasting for around an hour. Yes, I’m a cancerian and we just love to be in the water 🙂

Facts About the Beach Area

For anyone who has never been to the beach in Dubai Marina (I honestly haven’t until this time!), you will notice that the loungers are located at a far distance from the water. I was told by a staff member that it is a government rule and that all of the beach clubs on that strip have a similar setup. It was a bit of a disappointment to me as I had previously gone to the Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa where the loungers are situated close to the sea shore. You can read that review here.

Resort Facilities

The resort has a wide number of facilities including:

Tennis and squash courts
Spa and state of the art gym
Fitness studio and classes
Junior Jungle Club for kids
Private beach with various beach activities
Water slides, outdoor Jacuzzi and pool bar
Main pool and a kids pool

Where to have Lunch

There are many options for lunch at the Habtoor Grand.

If you are alone or want to have a light lunch at the beach or pool area, then you could order a shawerma, burger or hot dog and other snacks from the “Al Manarah Beach Bar” or the pool bar.
If you want to try the famous Dubai brunch with barbeque and all, then you could have a nice outdoor brunch at XL Beach Club. That will cost you 260 AED per person. The brunch timings are from 1 to 4 pm.
If like me, you want to have a healthier meal at and sample one of the restaurants at the hotel…there are a number of cuisines to choose from. “Villa Romana”, “Al Basha”, “Fish Bazaar” and “Luciano’s” are some of the restaurants surrounding the beach and pool area at the resort.

Upon reading Pinay Flying High‘s tempting review on Luciano’s, I decided to go there for lunch and a break from the Dubai day in the sun! I’m glad that I did because the food was so delicious that I found myself looking for more tomato sauce on my plate when I finished eating 🙂

View from my table at Luciano's — View from my table at Luciano’s

My Must-try Tip

After my second hour in the water, I felt like I needed to have an energizing drink to keep my body hydrated. While standing at the beach bar, my eyes couldn’t stop staring at the tall glasses the couple standing next to me had. When I asked the lady what it was, she explained that it’s an iced-coffee with ice-cream and that it’s really good. So, that was what I decided to order to quench my thirst. And another couple who saw the bar tender make my drink ordered it as well! It was the perfect ending for my long day at the beach. As the coffee wasn’t too sweet (vanilla ice-cream only was used to sweeten it), and it was so refreshing after a day out in the sun.

Pool and Beach Entrance Rates

On Week Days: Adults – 150 AED, Children – 100 AED

Children ages: 4 – 15 years old, below 3 are free of charge.

On Weekends: Adults – 250 AED, Children – 125 AED

Weekends are Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Club Memberships are available and special membership rates apply.

Link

http://grandjumeirah.habtoorhotels.com/site/general/

My Dubai Beach Recommendation: Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa

I had previously written a review on the Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa UAE residents weekend package. You can read all about it here. Today, I was delighted to visit the lovely beach property again (yes, I rarely go to the beach) and spend the day at this relaxed and revitalizing beach.

I arrived to the beach at around 11:30…the weather was a bit windy today, but it was great for swimming and lounging by the sea.

It’s always a great feeling when you sink your toes into the warm grains of sand…

At around two o’clock, I decided to have lunch at La Fontana restaurant. You have the option of taking a cold or a hot buffet. I went for the cold buffet which includes a selection of salads. It’s unlimited so you are allowed to refill your plate 🙂

The salad selection includes a variety of Arabic mezzas such as hummos, mtabbal, and baba ghanouj, in addition to other Western salad dishes. This is what I had in my first round of salad 🙂

And finally, no trip to the Jebel Ali Beach Resort and Spa is complete without seeing our friends; the magnificent and outstanding peacocks!

Even if it’s on our way out; after a long day spent unwinding and relaxing at the beautiful pristine beach.

The resort offers a number of outdoor sport activities, such as horse riding, tennis, golf and various water sports. You can find all the information on their web site:

http://www.jaresortshotels.com/Hotels/Home.aspx

The day pass for the pool and beach access is AED 220 for adults. And AED 325 including an extensive lunch buffet with live cooking stations and an outdoor barbecue station.

Whether you are someone who is looking for a quiet day to relax by the beach and read a book, or if you are more adventurous and would like to try a new water sport or outdoor hobby, or are simply looking to chill by the pool on your day off of work, I assure you that Jebel Ali Beach Hotel will do its best to meet your leisurely needs.

Destination Unknown

The Arabian Travel Market is a travel focused exhibition that is held annually at the Dubai World Trade Centre exhibition hall. This year, the organizers focused the content from the show into five main areas:

Industry updates, trends and social media.
Air travel.
Accommodation and hospitality.
Inbound and outbound travel.
Travel agents and technology.

I found the layout of the stands at the travel show very creative and innovative. Most stands that took up a relatively big space had two story built stands with counters and seating areas where clients can sit and have something to eat or drink while discussing their business or personal inquiries. This made for a more relaxed and casual trade experience, and an unconventional way of networking with the exhibitors.

Honestly speaking, it was my first time to attend the Arabian Travel Market. I think. At least it was my first time since I moved to Dubai a little over three years ago. But walking in the busy exhibition hall – and getting annoyed at people pushing and brushing at me – took me down memory lane to the mid-90’s when I used to visit Dubai with my family. My mom being a highly active business woman in those days used to drag me and my sisters along to every single exhibition that was of interest to her and her beauty salon business. Of course, I didn’t always enjoy attending those shows since I had no personal or business interest back then. I was only a high school student at the time! Now though, I’m a lifestyle blogger who is covering main and interesting events in the city. So attending an exhibition wasn’t such a bad idea.

Back to our topic, the stands at the show represent different countries across all the continents. So you won’t be disappointed no matter what country you have on your hot list of places to see before you die 🙂 There were even some talks held at the Google stands on various technology related topics.

On my list (which is the same list that I’ve had since I was living with my parents and dreaming about traveling alone or with friends) were these three countries:

Turkey
Cyprus
Greece

They are not far away places from the Middle East region. But, I haven’t been to any of them yet. My main concern when approaching the exhibitors at the stands was the visa requirements. I’m a Saudi passport holder and therefore I require a visit visa for most countries. I was told that I would need a European visa for both Greece and Cyprus. But luckily, I know that an advance visa is not required for me to enter Turkey 🙂

Since I have great friends in Turkey, I didn’t bother going to their stand at the show. I did however have a nice chat with the lady at the Cyprus stand who later gifted me a lovely key chain and beaded souvenir (we call it mesbah in Arabic). Please correct me if I’m wrong.

As a last thought, I can confidently say that anywhere you go in this world depends in a great part on the company that you have with you and the times and moments shared with other loving people and friends. So as I walked down the exhibition hall alone today surrounded by a crowd of strangers, I couldn’t help but remember my Hong Kong trip and the loneliness some of its days brought to me. That’s why, the next time I plan on traveling, I will make sure to share that trip or at least most of it with a friend. I think the majority of you would agree that traveling alone for leisure can be an interesting experience, while a lonely one at the same time.

Where do I plan to travel to next? I think the answer is simple: to where the opportunity takes me. But essentially somewhere with a relaxed pace of life, a white sandy beach, where good friends reside (or live close by), and preferably where a prearranged visit visa is not required 🙂

The Arabian Travel Market is open until the 9th of May this year. Happy travel shopping and happy holidays!

LCF Nostalgia and Inpiring Designs…

Fashion Forward at its first season was the “it” event to attend and be seen at in the highly fashionable and glamorous city of Dubai. The event consisted of fashion focused talks by prominent individuals from the industry, cat walk shows from regional designers, and a number of social events and parties.

The event program ran over a period of three days. But since I am the type of person who lacks the amount of energy required to pull off a three day in a row social event, I decided to skip the first day. Nevertheless, I was at the venue for all of the second day events! I won’t get into detail of everything that I did, but I must say that I had a nice nostalgic flashback when I attended a talk by Toby Meadows from London College of Fashion. I didn’t get a chance to take a course with Toby when I did my course at LCF in 2009, but attending a talk by someone from LCF is always a great thing. He gave us insight and tips on how things work in the fashion industry in his talk titled: How to get a job in this industry.

I would love to post all of the good pictures that I managed to take on the two days that I attended the event. But unfortunately my laptop is acting up and it’s taking me ages to open the image files because of the technical issue. So until that is resolved, I will only be posting a few pictures from the event. I was able to attend the following shows:

Dima Ayad
Ezra
Toujouri
Michael Cinco
Amato
Ayesha Depala

I personally could see the great amount of hard work and effort in all of the designers’ work. Each designer had a unique signature style that was clearly reflected in his/her collection. And I’m proud to see that level of work showcased by designers from this region. I also greatly support local talent and home-grown concepts and events. Since I’m from the region and I grew up and lived most of my life here.

Fashion Forward’s after party was as glamorous and fashionable as the event itself. We all chilled at Fort Island listening to funky and lounge tracks. Beauty was the key word that night; beautiful faces, designs, and most importantly a beautiful spirit.

Kudos to the organizers of this highly successful and well-structured event. Thank you for all the effort you extended and we can’t wait for season two!

Taking a Short Break.

Dear blog readers and followers,

As you may have noticed, I haven’t written any new posts for a while. It’s not that I haven’t done anything interesting in the past week or so, or am suffering from writer’s mind blockage or apathy or anything like that. Mainly, I haven’t been feeling too well for the past few weeks. That was due to the weather change and to me doing too many things and not getting enough rest. That’s why I decided to take a short break from blogging and the whole rat race (as people call it). Mind you, I still managed to check out a newly opened cafe in my area (to maybe write a review about it), and I had to keep checking and responding to my e-mails, and of course my Facebook page. I also continued to post stuff on that page in an effort to keep things going. Even when I wasn’t feeling too good myself.

But I believe that something good comes out from everything that happens to us in our lives…Taking a short break helped me reflect on my priorities in life and maybe add some balance into other areas of my life. For the past couple of years, due to personal circumstances, I have been focusing mostly on my career. And since that hasn’t been going too well for me, I think it’s time to re-arrange my priorities in life. I’m not saying that I will write less blog posts or put in less effort into my career path (because I’m not even sure I can do that after all this time and effort that I’ve invested in that area), I just plan to put in more effort into other places that I might have neglected all those years in my search for financial and personal freedom and independence.

What are those other areas you might ask? well, I will leave that for you to figure out. I think it’s easy to know what they are once you read my about page and find out some simple facts about me and my personal life.

One main positive thing that came out from this short break and the connection with other blogger friends was to realize that we should not loose ourselves in our chase for material or success-related goals. We should always be reminded that life is a game and we should have fun while playing it. We should stay grounded and stay true to our selves. We should keep our sense of self-integrity and keep our standards high no matter how bad the going gets tough.

Most importantly, we should try to always help others along the way when we can.

Finally, I would like to mention that a few things need to be revised in my blog. Mostly concerning the topics that I write about. I have driven myself into extreme stress and exhaustion by trying to cover as many interesting topics as I could. And the time has come for that to end.

That’s why I need your thoughts and ideas on what you would like to read more about in this blog?

Here are some options to get you thinking, but any other ideas or views are welcome too.

About me and my perspective on life and things from a Saudi woman’s point of view (note: I live in Dubai, UAE)
A review of various events taking place in Dubai (you can specify the types of events you like to know about most)
A review of restaurants or cafes that I go to
Topics/events related to my job search and trying to make it in Dubai (mainly publishing/blogging/journalism)
Would you like to learn more about Saudi/Middle Eastern culture (as that’s where I’m from and where I grew up and lived most of my life)
Daily life stories and rants
Simple stories or deep thoughts and ideas

Or would you like me to keep the blog as it is and keep doing what I was doing earlier, which was basically a combination of all the above points?

Do let me know by commenting on this post what you would find most entertaining to read about in this blog. I will keep this discussion open, so please feel free to comment any time you read this. There is no deadline for your thoughts and ideas.

Thanks a lot for passing by and following my blog, and I hope that I will continue to offer interesting and helpful posts to my readers and followers. If you think otherwise, do let me know as well!

Love,

Nada (The Rebellious Saudi Diva)

The Ultimate Blog Party!

Thanks to Sandier Pastures helpful and entertaining posts, I found out about The Ultimate Blog Party. Which is basically a virtual gathering for all types of bloggers from around the world. It’s an opportunity to meet new bloggers, discuss relevant topics, and of course drive more traffic into your blog. The party also includes online live events on Twitter and Google+ for any one interested to join. The first step in joining the blog party is to simply write a party post about yourself and your blog, and then add the link to the list of blogs under the matching category for your blog topic.

So, here’s a brief about me and my blog:

My name is Nada, I’m originally from Saudi Arabia and I live in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. I started this blog in September of last year and I have been blogging regularly since then. I like to consider myself a lifestyle blogger. I mainly write about daily life events and stories. Mostly, I cover various types of events taking place in my city; Dubai. These events could range from art or fashion exhibitions, live music shows, publishing related events, or self-development seminars and talks.

The main reason I started this blog was to advance my writing skills and add more credibility to my CV and profile as a writer. I have been on a long journey to change my career path and shift my entire life and lifestyle for the past five years and this blog reflects this journey and my thoughts and trials and lessons learned throughout it. My main goal is to become financially independent as a writer and a blogger. Since I love what I do and I want to continue writing for the rest of my life! Through blogging, I also get to attend a lot of interesting events and meet great and exciting new people.

I always felt like I was a creative person, and working in IT support when I was living in Saudi Arabia surely didn’t match my creative flair. Nor did my college major in Business Information Systems. But I believe that it’s never too late to chase your dreams and follow your passion. Even if there are many obstacles along the road and unexpected challenges.

My journey started when I moved to London to take a course in Fashion Media and Communication at the prestigious London College of Fashion. Followed by moving to Dubai three years ago, where I continued to pursue my new career path and aim for an editorial role in publishing. I’m still working towards that goal in addition to my new-found passion: blogging. Ideally, I would like to get paid for what I write in both my personal blog and in print. I’m not sure how long the road ahead of me is, but what I’m certain of is that I’m enjoying every second of my journey and learning experience.

On a more personal note (yes, believe it or not; the above wasn’t personal enough!), I’m also enjoying the simple freedoms that my new life in Dubai has to offer. Growing up and living most of my life in Saudi, to relatively over-protective and controlling parents meant that I had to argue and fight my way into many simple things. And believe it or not, I still do! Yes, the fight to be free is an endless one when you are Saudi. But at least these days, I don’t have to convince my parents to go to a music concert or party. I can simply buy my tickets and head to the venue!

Although I call myself “The Rebellious Saudi Diva” on my about page, most people around the world will understand that the description is only relevant to my personal background and Saudi culture.

I think I’ve said enough about myself and my blog for now. I hope that you will find my posts interesting and entertaining. And that you will continue to support my journey by following my blog and liking my Facebook page (the link can be found on my blog’s home page)!

This is a picture of me at Tiesto’s recent concert in Dubai:

And did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there?

You may have noticed that I have been covering a lot of music shows in my recent posts. You may have also taken a look at my about page where I mention some facts about myself and how I am 30-something. So you might be wondering why I am living a 20-something lifestyle in my early thirties?

While most people my age could be settling down by getting engaged or married, or possibly already have a bunch of kids at school age, I’m still celebrating my spontaneous twenty-something- like days! I like to contribute this to the fact that I grew up and have lived in Saudi for most of my life. And must add; to somewhat over-protective and controlling parents. Who seemed to give a good amount of importance to people’s opinions and judgmental views. You can’t completely blame them though. Saudi society is quite fierce and tough when it comes to conservativeness and liberality. It’s a very complicated topic that I would need to dedicate a whole post to explain it, and it still wouldn’t be enough!

For now, I just felt like I could use some justification for my sometimes immature and crazy behavior 🙂 Like making sure that I don’t miss out on any cool concerts in town and dragging my “more responsible” and mature friends to them.

So I basically didn’t get to do many things that people in their twenties would do. Although I did argue my way around to some cool concerts in Bahrain when I was a teenager (yes, I was rebellious since then!).

Sometimes, I wonder if my late-lived twenties phase will ever end. Because I enjoy it so much that I would never want to live a different lifestyle!

Moving on to Train’s concert, I used to listen to the amazingly talented American pop rock band as a teenager growing up in Saudi. Yes, my parents were not that strict :p So to me, their show was more of a trip down memory lane to my 90’s in Saudi. When life was much more simpler and easier. When all I cared about was which magazines I wanted to get with me from Bahrain when I went there in the weekend. Yeah I was a weird teenager too! But doesn’t everyone love and long for the 90’s? I personally would go back to those years at any given time.

Arriving to the concert venue, me and my friend were surprised at how quiet it was! there wasn’t even any music playing at some point. And while I expected to see other 30-something Train nostalgic fans at the concert, all I seemed to see were teenagers and a generally younger crowd of people who didn’t look like they were old enough to sing along to “Drops of Jupiter”! My friend had also pointed out that it was her first time to see a five year-old girl at a concert 🙂

Nevertheless, Train put on a great show and sang many of their new and old hit songs. Such as “Hey Soul Sister” and “Meet Virginia”.

They also got the crowd engaged in some songs by asking random people to come up on stage and sing or dance along with the band.

At the end of the show, the band left the stage before coming back to sing my all-time favorite hit for the band: “Drops of Jupiter”. I was glad that I didn’t leave when my friend decided to leave after they left the stage the first time, as I would have missed them perform the ever popular and great track “Drops of Jupiter”. I think I was going to break down and cry when I saw them leave the stage before singing my song!

You must have guessed that I was the only person in that young crowd who was super excited and singing along to “Meet Virgina” and “Drops of Jupiter”! Yes, Dubai makes me feel old. But I stand my ground and continue to act and behave like a twenty-something 🙂

I must confess that I did manage to record some good video clips at the show. But since I am still not familiar with posting videos on this blog (more like, don’t feel like uploading them on you tube as I found out that this needs to be done), I will not be sharing my priceless Train videos for now. Who knows, I might get the motivation required to actually upload videos one day 🙂

So, was my one hour and 15 minutes or so of 90’s music nostalgia worth it? I’d say hell yeah! It was worth every second of the warmth and simplicity and joy it brought to my forever 90’s soul.

Since I’m having issues with my photos, I will only post the links for my favorite Train songs. And I will try to upload more images once I sort out the technical glitch.

Enjoy and long live the undying 90’s spirit!

Strike a Pose at the World’s Richest Horse Race ;)

I wasn’t feeling at my best on the day of the world’s richest horse race – The Dubai World Cup. Mainly because I had started to experience all sorts of symptoms of a cold and have been taking echinacea supplements for a week or so to help prevent further developments of my sickness. But since I was running around all weekend getting ready for the concerts and the Dubai World Cup and dancing the night away at the various indoor and outdoor venues of Dubai, I barely had any time to rest and let my body regain the energy it needed to go on.

But as I have completed three years living in Dubai on this very day (April 1), and have not been to the Dubai World Cup ever since I moved to this city, I knew that I couldn’t afford to miss out on this highly acclaimed and significant event.

So there I went dragging my extremely exhausted and dehydrated body to the lush green race courses at Meydan hotel in Dubai. Where I had been for my social dinner with Jack Canfield. Only this time, I got to spend a whole day outside at the apron views section of the event doing one of the following things:

Trying helplessly to snap good pictures of the speeding horses that passed (flew) by at the course, while standing in a front row next to all the photographers and who knows, maybe there was a blogger or two in the crowd!
Watching the people in the surrounding area and studying their outfits, hats/hair pieces, shoes, hair styles, and everything else that caught my attention. While at the same time making mental notes of what I should be wearing next year at the World Cup!
Pretending to be high society (which I believe has nothing to do with material wealth) and not really enjoying it that much 🙂 Yes, I’m a simple girl who likes to do fun things and random activities. But a change is good every once in a while!

After the final race, the champion was announced: American-based Animal Kingdom won the race. You can read all about it here. A number of acrobats and performers made an appearance after the race was over. Then there was an extravagant display of fireworks ending the ceremony, before everyone headed over to the stage area where Seal would be performing for the after-race party. Unfortunately, my friends had to leave and I was also too tired to stay, so I wasn’t able to see Seal perform.

I will leave you with some random pictures from the event, in addition to some thoughts and tips in case you planned on attending the Dubai World Cup next year. First, I would try to get VIP tickets, or any other type of tickets. As they would offer a better view of the race course and a more enjoyable experience. Especially if you don’t like busy crowds like me. Another tip would be to invest in a unique outfit and hat for the event and enter the Jaguar Style Stakes competition where you can win amazing prizes such as a Jaguar for a year!

Check out the competition details on this link:

http://www.dubaiworldcup.com/jaguarstylestakes