After all those hours of planning, departure day is finally here!! Woo hoo!!
A 6am flight sounds ridiculously early but with online check in we were only required 90 minutes prior - barely enough time for a coffee which was fortunate with virtually nothing open!
Emirates and the A380 were great - amazing seats (thanks to Sue!!), meals good and movies even better.
Flying in to a totally new city is always tinged with excitement and anticipation and Dubai was no different! So flat and sprawling, the array of buildings, surrounding desert and that haze - was it the heat, smog or sand? We soon decided it was a combination thereof!
And, what an incredible airport! Ultra modern and pristine!
Finding Arabian Adventures was too easy and in no time our driver arrived to chauffeur us to the Hyatt Regency ever so grateful for air conditioned comfort in the 38 degree heat!
After 14 and a half hours flying and the exceptionally early departure we were starting to feel a tad weary ....but little time to waste! Quick shower and freshen up before catching the hotel shuttle bus to Dubai Mall.
OMG! Located in the heart of downtown Dubai, the mall is supposedly the largest shopping and entertainment destination in the world which includes the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo and an Olympic sized ice rink!
We wandered through a small section en route to the Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest tower - for our prebooked 6pm ride to "At the Top" on level 124 (the world's highest observation deck).
The tower is 828 metres tall and was officially opened in 2010.
The ride was incredibly smooth and fast; and the 360 degree views nothing short of spectacular despite that haze!
We took our time, waiting to watch the hazy sunset followed by the slow illumination of Dubai. Awesome!
This also meant as the sun was down the fasting restriction of Ramadan was lifted (glad we were aware of this in advance!) Arabic coffee, water and snack boxes were handed out. Have decided my new favourite are chocolate coated dates! Yum!
After our descent decided we needed sustenance so had a salad in the food court area of Dubai Mall- totally desolate earlier due to Ramadan.
Braved the heat and walked out to see Dubai Fountain's amazing musically synchronised show that runs ever 30 minutes in the evenings. No surprise that that the 275 metre display of 6600 lights was designed by the creators of the Bellagio in Las Vegas !
Wandered past the outdoor diners ( don't know how they handle the heat!) enjoying their Shisha pipes, and the golden fairy-lit palm trees to grab a taxi back to our hotel.
Big effort now to stay awake - had to keep nudging Raymo - but Day One was well and truly complete!