Farwell Ireland, Hello Dubai

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As I write my final blog telling of the last part of my trip, I've been home for nearly 4 weeks. Much of what I write here will seem like old news as I've spoken a lot of my holiday since I've been back. But I hope that it will add to what I have already spoken about, if you care to read on. This last chapter will also form the official "diary" of my trip. How technology has changed the concept of atravel diary in recent years.

When I signed off on my last blog, I was spending a few days in the Wicklow Mountains just south of Dublin. I arrived there in wet conditions but after the rain cleared I enjoyed a day of taking in the scenery around the area. The Wicklow mountains resemble rolling hills more than rugged mountain caps, but it was nice driving past gushing rivers and through lush valleys and quiet villages, both in the mountains and on the coast of the nearby Irish Sea.

I spent a good few hours looking around Powerscout Estate Gardens. The gardens and historic house are just a small part of a larger estate these days. Much of the interior part of the house was destroyed in a fire in the mid 70s and the Slazenger family who owns Powercourt estate, have over the years, added two golf courses, a health retreat and the soon to be completed Ritz Carlton Hotel to the Powerscourt "Empire', in the hope of bringing in some much needed cash to fund the restoration of the house to its original state.

Anyway, back to the gardens. Being winter I virtually had the gardens to myself. The attached picture only shows a small part of the gardens. At least half a day is needed to walk past the historic tower and garden, the Japanese gardens, the pet cemetry, the Rhododendron gardens as well as the various lakes, fountains and rose gardens. The gardens are well kept and groomed all the year round and even the lack of colour in the rose gardens was a another reminder of winter, it was still a pleasure to stroll through out the various parts of the gardens.

I finished my last day in the Wicklow Mountains with a coastal drive along the Irish sea and back to Glendalough where I had been staying for 3 nights. Glendalough was founded as an early christian settlement by St Kevin in the 6th century. The tiny village of Glendalough has a pub, a handful of accommodation houses and the obligatory Irish craft shop. Tourists come here from all over to see the remains of St Kevin's settlement and many of the remains are still there. I spent a couple of hours wondering through the area as well as talking a couple of short walks around the town lakes.

Glendalough is a lot like Walhalla in Gippsland except without the dense Australian bush on the surrounding hills. Like Walhalla, being in a deep valley makes a peaceful and ideal getaway. The lakes have lots of walking tracks that I would like to get back and explore one day.

After Wicklow I headed back to Limerick to spend my last weekend with Greg, Michelle and Emma. After the clearing the morning mountain drizzle, in was a pleasant scenic drive back across Ireland back to Limerick and I had the chance to drive through medievil Kilkenny and to drop in on Michelle's family enroute.

I spent a quieter weekend in Limerick but did get the chance to see King John's castle, something I had been wanting to do since I arrived in Ireland a few weeks earlier.

King John's Castle not only depicted the history into the growth of the city of Limerick but also give an insight into other significant moments in Irish history and Ireland's long struggle with the British. Having been in France a few weeks before, it was also interesting to hear how Louis IV subtly encouraged the conflict in Ireland to distract for his own agenda for a larger European Empire, including his native France.

In those last few days I also thought about the many changes I had noticed since I had been in Ireland 5 1/2 years before. The single lane national highways had turned into dual carriageways around Ireland's main cities, new housing estates had sprung, new legislation banning smoking in the workplace had made all of Irelands public buildings (including pubs) smoke free and the entry to the EU of new countries had seen many immigrants come to Ireland from mainland Europe, making Ireland a more multicultural population. A booming economy will most likely see much more development again in the years to come.

I was impressed by the new self service scanning system that had been recently introducted to some Irish supermarkets, technology that I hope will reach Australia eventually. This self scanning and payment system is perfect for our lifestyle now where it is not uncommon to dash into the supermarket for just a handful of items. It has not replaced the majority of checkouts that are still manned by checkout staff but offers a more convenient option to our shopping. I took advantage of that facility on a number of occaisions.

But my time in Ireland was fast coming to an end and eventually I had to contemplate packing my suitcase and how I would get home more luggage than I had brought with me. Surprisingly everthing fit reasonably well, although I did need some extra space and Michelle saved the day with a small bag that was perfect for bulky items like shoes.

In one sense I was look forward to heading home after over 5 weeks away but I also felt that sense of sadness about leaving the family as I sat on the plane leaving Ireland. I did leave resolving to try to come back every two to three years to visit my family and see Emma growing up. 5 1/2 years had been two long between visits.

From Shannon Airport it was off to Heathrow in the wee hours of the morning to connect with my flight to Dubai early that afternoon.

I had 4 1/2 hours at Heathrow between flights and that time allowed me to collect my luggage, walk to another terminal, check in with Emirates for my Dubai flight and negotiate Heathrow security ...without being completely overwhelmed by it all!! I should say Heathrow is as busy as ever and they are currently building a 5th terminal to help with the demand for space. I don't know how that will help traffic congestion though. Despite all passengers being on the Dubai flight in good time, once it was time to leave the flight was queued behind a dozen other planes and left late anyway.

But back to Heathrow security. I didn't have any problems dealing with post 9/11 security until I arrived at Heathrow. The Heathrow security experience was a little stressful..once passengers were near the passport control and security area, security guards hurried us along, made sure our drink bottles were disposed off and directed to us to the nearest baggage security attendant.

Only one piece of hand luggage allowed Madam, I am told. I found myself having to cram my handbag and bodybelt into my small carryon suitcase, which was already full...heck how was I going to manage that! I have to give credit where credit is due though, the attendant was helpful (it would not be an easy job) and suggested I could remove my bulky books and purchased CDs in order to fit the other things in and carry 5 loose books/cds in my hand. Hmmm....But it did the trick in getting all the bags into one and through security I went, loose books/cds and all.

The silliness of it all is that once you are beyond security/passport control and into the Duty free area, no one really takes too much notice of how much luggage you have or the extra Duty free goods you might take onto the plane. It did not take long for me to pull my handbag out, put it over my shoulder and store the books and cds in it. But this is the security we have to live with now, due to the previous actions of the extreme minority in the world. I was advised at Heathrow and have since read that this practice will eventually spread to all EU airports. I saw a travel booking site that gave May 2007 as the date where this type of security will be in force around Europe so travellers beware!!

Once the plane left heavy security and airport traffic behind at Heathrow, we were off to Dubai and a reasonable tail wind made up some time and we were only 25 minutes late landing at Dubai in the end.

It was after midnight when we did land in Dubai but upon looking out of my Hotel room the next morning, I saw a modern city around me. They call Dubai the city of contrasts and as I later found out the combined Arab and Western cultures made for an interesting city. I have also since read that one in six of the world's cranes are in Dubai. I would believe it as there is construction happening from one end of the city to the other...the tourist guides will tell you that nothing stays the same overnight. But more on that later...

My first point of call in Dubai was to visit the Dubai branch of the company I worked for. The ACER Dubai office was situated some distance out of the city centre and probably 25 mins drive from my hotel. Our office manager collected me from the hotel and in that 25 minute drive I had my first insight into the city of Dubai and how it fits with the other emirates that make up the combined nation the United Arab Emirates.

Contrary to what I had thought, the oil rich fortune of the Arab nations has not found its way into Dubai. Dubai has probably the least share of oil of all the cities the UAE and other parts if Arabia. Pearl diving has been a good source of income but the Dubai government identified a while ago that these resources would eventually run out and have been focusing their efforts on attracting international business and tourism to Dubai....the UAE has some of the lowest tax rates in the world. As I travelled out to to the office that first morning, I could see the evidence of strong grown of the city all around with the endless construction happening. The aim of the goverment is to have 10 million tourists visiting Dubai each year by 2010.

On the way out to the office I saw the recently completed Mall of the Emirates and the attached indoor ski run. If it is possible to believe there is a bigger shopping centre than Chadstone, than this centre dwarfs it. It is one of the largest shopping centres in the world. But it doesn't stop there...at the moment construction of the 'Burj Dubai' is well underway. This development will see, in 2008, the completion of the world's tallest building and the worlds largest shopping centre attached to it. It is not officially known how tall this building will be but it has been announced that the viewing deck will be on floor number 122! One would feel quite uneasy at the top of this building on a windy day.

On of our lunch breaks, we drove out to see Palm Jemierah, one of the three sets of Palm islands being built along the Dubai coast. The palms consist of a number of man made islands that make up the shape of palm when viewed from the air. Some highly priced apartments are being built on the islands. Unfortunately security prevented us from driving right through the roads that will link the palm islands together, but it we were certainly close enough to see the palm shape sprouting out into the ocean.

Alan showed us from a distance another series of man made islands that will make up "The World". When finished these islands can be viewed from above as the countries that make up Earth, very similar to a global model of Earth. For a small fortune, it is possible to purchase one of the islands of "The World".

I spent a couple of good days in the office but at the end of it all, at the start of the weekend, which is Friday and Saturday in the UAE, Alan dropped me off at the Madenat Jemeirah resort, another example of the UAE wealth at work. This resort is made up of a series of luxury apartments and are linked by some beautiful man made resorts. In the complex also are a number of popular restaurants and a few small shops selling jewellry, clothing, paintings, rugs etc.

In the goverment's efforts to build up Dubai tourism, there are no shortage of shopping centres around the city. As well as Mall of the Emirates, I visited 4 other large shopping centres and managed to spend money in all but one of them. With a variety of markets and shopping centres around town and the city's low taxes, the Dubai shopping festival is now held for about 5-6 weeks each Dec/January. I was lucky enough to be there for the festival and did manage to pick up a couple of good bargains. Even though I did not buy there, the one centre I found interesting was the Mercato shopping centre near the beach. This centre was built in an Italian Renaissance style and at times I felt like I was walking around little Florence.

Once a sleepy diving village, Dubai has grown in leaps and bounds since the 70s/80s and to a point where the roads can't cope with the traffic. There is no train system in Dubai, although the Dubai Metro is under construction and should bring some welcome relief to commuters when it opens in 2009. There are buses but they are irregular and timings unreliable due to the traffic. I did catch a bus once in Dubai and I could see that the demand for transport far exceeded the supply and many frustrated travellers not getting onto the already crowded bus would have to wait a couple of hours for another bus. The traffic congestion is such that a 45 minute trip on the weekend would take at least 2 hours during the week.

I did get an idea of the traffic when I caught a taxi from Madenat Jemierah to the Global Village, 25 kms away on a Thursday afternoon. The trip took 50 minutes largely due to the slow moving traffic. Fortunatly though taxi travel is cheap in Dubai and this trip cost the equivalent of $15AUD, over 50% of the same trip in Melbourne. I ended up using taxis quite a lot.

A taxi driver saved the day one day actually. Having been able to do lots of walking around Paris and Dublin, I thought I might take a walk along this "road" to another shopping centre on the Friday morning. It was quiet due to the weekend but after 20 minutes I knew the map had taken me the right direction but this "Rd" was actually a three lane expressway with a footpath next to it. What was I going to do..all i could see was an overpass in front of me and I wondering where I could make a graceful escape to find a taxi rink. Fortunately for me, a taxi driver did pull up. What where you doing he asked? Indeed what was I doing. He drove me to the shopping centre I had been looking for and just as well, it was 5-10 minutes drive away. Again the ride was not all that expensive but a tip to the driver was definately in order after he got me out of that predicatment. After I that experience, I knew walking in Dubai was not a means to get anywhere quickly and that Dubai was full of motorways named "Sheik ......Rd". Hmmmph road indeed!

I was due to fly home on the Sunday morning but I saw quite a bit in the couple of days I wasn't working. I caught a taxi out to the desert to see Global Village. Enroute to the village, there was plenty more construction to be seen. In another 2 years, the entire area will be just part of the larger Dubai city..There is a huge demand for accommodation and the apartments being built out in the desert (actually when you think about the entire city is built on top of desert) are selling off the plan before construction even begins.

Next door to Global Village they are building Dubailand, a themepark that will be twice the size as Disneyland. Global Village itself is a development in progress. It only opens for 4 months during "winter" but grows each year. Its like a world expo with a number of pavilions representing countries all over the world. The village food court was a good chance to try new cuisines and I enjoyed my meal from Beirut.

The winter in Dubai means lovely weather with temperatures of 25 degrees each day. In that climate I also enjoyed a half day city tour looking at the various beachside resorts, the mosques, Dubai creek and the history of Dubai in the Dubai museum. We finished the tour with a visit to the city centre souks or markets. The gold souk, hundreds of small shops selling gold jewellry, is something to be seen. Seeing endless gold stores can be overwhelming but with patience, it is possible to haggle your why into some good bargains.

My last day, again in good weather, saw me take a desert safari tour in the afternoon. That was an excellent afternoon/evening, four wheel driving across the sand dunes, visiting the camel camp/riding the camels and being treated to and Arab BBQ and belly dancing floorshow. Not being a smoker, I was persuaded to try the traditional Arab water pipe at the end of the evening. It is a way a group of ARAB friends relaxing after the evening meal, but I think I inhaled too much and did personally find the experience relaxing!

After that tour it was back to the hotel and time to pack my bags for the flight home to Melbourne. It had been a wonderful 6 weeks away and I was heading home completely relaxed. Despite the jet lag that comes with long distance travel and the Melbourne heat, I was glad to land on the tarmac at Tullamarine airport.

Its taken me a while to write the final installment and its now 5 weeks since I've arrived back. I've blended back into work and Melbourne life well and truly now. The memories of my holiday will start to become distant but writing this final blog and my photos keep the memory alive and give me incentive to work towards another extended trip in another two - three years now.

Thanks for reading and so long until my next holiday...

Alison

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Photos

Burj Al Arab
Looking down the lagoon of one luxury resort the Madenat Jemeirah, to the world's only 7* hotel the Burj Al Arab

On the creek...
Looking across Dubai Creek to the business centre of Dubai. Gold panelling has been used in the windows of the building opposite and provides a nice reflection in the creek during late afternoon.

An Arab friend
On our desert safari we stopped by a camel camp. All were quite friendly and enjoyed the human attention.

Its not what it looks like Mum
Our safari leaders strongly encouraged to try the traditional Arab water smoking pipe after dinner.