MOTOSLVR Woman

Have you seen the ad for the new MOTOSLVR?

Smile For The Camera!

He's smiling - not growling. Today Barry and I took a mini tour around Dubai and in Dubai Marina we happened upon a great beach and some camels. Yay, I didn't get spit on! What do you mean? It is much more romantic to ride camels on the beach than horses!

Day Trip To Fujairah

Fujairah ~ Above is an aerial view of the Fujairah area and a collage of pictures from our most recent day trip. Barry and I packed up the car once again and this time headed to the only Eastern Coast Emirate of Fujairah where we found the Hajar Mountains (popular sport – 4x4ing/wadi bashing). The drive took about 1.5 hours and along the way we passed many trucks and the Friday market, which although is dubbed the “Friday Market” it happens everyday. From the main town of Fujairah we visited Khor Fakkan (which is spelt differently everywhere – even within the town). Khor Fakkan is well known for its diving and snorkeling – this is where we toured the local hotels.
Le Meridian Al Aqah Beach Resort: Day pass dhs120 ($36.70 CAD)
Friday day pass 150 (includes lunch) ($45.88 CAD) and the spa is AMAZING.
The Sandy Beach Hotel & Resort: Day pass dhs40 ($12.24 CAD)
The bonus to this hotel is that Snoopy Island is located just of its shore.
Oceanic Hotel: Day pass dhs45 ($13.77 CAD) Not recommended
Conclusion: The Meridian is amazing and is WELL worth a visit but for the budget traveler Sandy Beach Hotel is a deal and Snoopy Island has great snorkeling. At the end of the trip and you've run out of money? We recommend the beach beside Sandy Beach. From there, given you have your own gear, you can swim to Snoopy Island BUT you would have to pack some fresh water to wash the salt off you for the ride home and be flexible and agile enough to change into and out of your suit in the car conspicuously enough as not to get caught with your pants down.
Other highlights:
- Managed to get a picture of a camel on the side of the road;
- They serve up some good chicken in the town of Khor Fakkan;
- The Arabian Sea was warm;
- Loved the palm umbrellas on the beach
- Being on the coast we enjoyed the breezes and the temp was quite comfortable;
- I was surprisingly allowed into the Al Bidyah mosque (apx 1400 years old). Though I was helped into an abaya before entering;
- Stopped at the market on the way home and bought some popcorn at the market; and
- We didn’t get to see it all and we will definitely make another day trip to Fujairah.

Our First UAE Road Trip

Our First UAE Road Trip ~ Barry and I took our Volvo for its first day trip and travelled to Abu Dhabi this weekend (home of the worlds largest flagpole). Abu Dhabi is the largest state within the United Arab Emirates, and the richest, with a population close to 800,000. After taking in the sights and smells of the fish market we were off to sweat at one of the many parks - this is where we decided not to walk the corniche but drive instead. I stepped out of our enclosed air-conditioned haven to take a picture of the corniche and as you can tell, it was very secluded. We had dessert at Emirates Palace and when we went to the mall we realized that's where everyone was. It was around 42 degrees Celsius.

Goodbye Cape Town

Goodbye Cape Town ~ We took the Garden Route on our way back to Cape Town and as we hit the coast the sun set. These pictures wont do the moment justice but if you can imagine the smell of the sea and the wind in your face it may come close. Oh, so dramatic I can be. . .

The evening was spent at a B&B in Gordons's Bay that had an amazing view of the water and then the sun came up . . .

Karoo

Karoo ~ We travelled to the Karoo on the N1, stopped at a bizarre little town that looked like it belonged in a scary novel and continued on to stop at Prince Albert for the night. The B&B host packed us some tasty biltong, cheese etc. and we headed towards the sunset with our picnic and our wine that we bought from the special cellar in Franschhoek. The sunset was beautiful and will have to be remembered in my mind because I ran out of both batteries and film. We stopped in at the local dairy, for what we thought was going to be a quick cheese tasting and because it was close to closing time he was a little hesitant at serving us at first but soon I was surrounded by good wine, walls of cheese and laughter. In the morning we head out by way of Swartberg Pass in the Swartberg Mountains (Swart = 'black', berg = 'mountain' in Afrikaans). South Africa's terrain changes around every corner. There were so many moments during this trip that I was awe struck. Many moments were unforgettable. This Pass is hard to explain and I won’t even try.

Wine Country, SA

Wine Country ~ A well deserved trip out the city of Cape Town brought us to wine country. The drive alone was amazing never mind stopping to enjoy the tastes of the country as well. Anyone interested in buying a SA winery with me? I stayed in a town called Franschoek (the gourmet capital of the Cape). This small town located in a valley has only one main street, lined with a few antique shops, cafés and restaurants. There is no shortage of thatched roofs, French-style country guest houses and restored manor houses. After the chance meeting of a real-estate agent who was more than helpful with the next leg of our trip, we were off to the Karoo.

On The Way To Cape Town

Sun City, SA

Sun City, SA Grand, Grand, Grand. We had arrived in time for tea - very posh.

Safari

Safari ~ The elephant was definitely the highlight of my trip. It was very hard to choose the pictures to post here - for those of you who are interested in seeing them all, email me and I will send you the link.

Johannesburg

Johannesburg ~ In May I traveled to South Africa for business – I will spare you the photos of the late nights in the boardroom. In South Africa I learnt how to make myself less susceptible to broken car windows and road snatchers. I learnt the benefits of having a gate and walls around your house and that how sometimes even those walls, gates and gatekeepers wont keep you safe. I saw homes complete with a gated property, a gated front door, a gated upstairs and gated bedrooms. Most memorable however is how absolutely beautiful it is in South Africa! I stayed at a boutique hotel called the Peech - I recommend it to anyone staying in the Johannesburg area! http://www.thepeech.co.za/

A night at a Bed & Breakfast (Riverbend Country House) outside of Johannesburg was the starting off point to the safari - as you can tell South Africa is very green VERY DIFERENT FROM MY HOME THE DESERT.