2017 Arabia

We flew  from Larnaca (Cyprus) on  the Emirates flight to Dubai, which took 4 hours.

Dubai.

On our first morning we made our way into into the old Town of Dubai and our first stop was the Gold souk, the array of golden jewellery on show was quite staggering. We then moved onto spice souk with a huge variety of spices and dried fruits.

We moved onto the Dhow wharf where all the merchant Dhows berth with their wares from all over the Gulf states. We then hopped on a Abra (water taxi) for the short trip across the Dubai creek and quick visit to the Dubai museum, we then strolled over to the Arabian tea house which is situated in a Lovely, shaded courtyard. We ordered the Arabian breakfast, a selection of sweet and spicy dishes served with Arabic bread, washed down with a lot of refreshing mint tea. 
Day 2
We then used the superb Metro system and made our way to the famous Burj el Arab hotel, we walked along the beach and took some photos  of this iconic building. Our next stop was the Miracle garden, this is park with features completely made out of flowers, a couple of hours flew by walking around this impressive park.

Our final stop of the day was the Global  village, its a huge amusement park representing various countries of the World. It’s a very impressive site with lots of activities, live music and delicious food outlets.

Day 3.

The final day in Dubai began with another trip on the Metro, this time I kept well away from the “woman only “ compartment. We jumped off at the Mall of Dubai stop and from there it was a good 10 minute walk on those flat moving escalators.

The first thing we saw was the  Aquarium wall with a scuba diver feeding the fish, very entertaining. There was a huge variety of marine life, but the Rays stole the show. 
We then moved onto the giant waterfall with its unusual sculptures of diving men. We then moved onto visiting the Burj Khalifa, the tallest man made structure in the Word. The lift swept us up 140 floors in double quick time  and it was the smoothest of rides. The views from the two observation decks were spectacular. While we were on the deck we saw a guy get down on one knee and propose to his girlfriend, she accepted, not a dry eye in the house.

We then moved onto the outdoor pool area, grabbed a front row table at one of the restaurants and watched the dancing fountain and music show which was mighty impressive.

The Cruise.
Early in the morning we took a taxi to Port Rashide and managed to join the cruise ship Thomson celebration with our cabin 494 on deck 3.

We just sunbathed and slept in the day. At night we had a quick drink in Hemingways, had dinner in the Lido. Later that evening we saw the Queen tribute show in the Broadway show lounge and had a nightcap in Minstrels lounge.

The following day we were supposed to dock  Doha in Qatar, but due high winds were unable to enter the port, so in gale force 8 winds we sailed towards Muscat, Oman.
In the evening we dined in the Meridean restaurant and saw Rocky horror show, we then  had a glass of Rum in Hemingways bar. 

Oman
Our first port of call was  Port Qaboos, we went ashore, met up with Kim and John and took a taxi for a tour. Our first stop was the Grand Mosque which was a twenty minute drive from the port, our driver Mohammed, provided the four of us with the correct dresswear for entering the Mosque.
The mosque was quite spectacular with a huge chandelier in the main prayer hall. We were then invited to share Omanie coffee and dates before heading off to visit the local souk for a little light shopping.

We then drove through the old town of Muscat  before arriving at the Royal palace. Our final stop was the old fish market on the port. In the evening we had dinner in the Meridean restaurant where we sat with a Johnny Vegas type who told us all about his hernia operation.
We then saw the comic , Anthony Scott followed by the crew show. 

Khor Fakken

Our next port of call was Khor Fakken which is in the United Arab Emirates.We took the East coast tour, visiting Fujairah fort, Haddiq  Mountains, the Friday market and the old mosque.

In the evening we went to the Horizon bar and met up with our Geordie friends for drinks and dinner in the Lido. We then saw the show, The Brit awards followed by the very funny Scottish comedian, Anthony Scott who had us in stitches.

We finished off the night in Hemingways bar with a little music and dancing.

Abu Dhabi

We sailed into Abu Dhabi and took a Taxi for the 20 minute drive to the Grand Mosque.  Words are hard to find to describe this beautiful building, the Mosque stood gleaming in the early morning sunshine with its bright white marble facade.

After passing through security, where Mandy was given a long black robe that all female visitors mush wear we made our way up to the  main building. The detail of the interior was stunning with its arches, pillars and comes of white marble standing out. We then entered the main prayer room with its 3 magnificent chandeliers taking center stage.

We both took so many photographes because there were so many beautiful sites. We spent well over an hour wandering around the Mosque and both agreed that it was the most beautiful building that either of us had ever seen.

Next stop was the Etihad tower, were we took the lift up to the observation deck on the 74th floor, the views of the city up there were simply breathtaking, we toured the 360 degrees of the deck snapping away like two excited kids.

We were lucky in the fact that the deck was not at all crowded and included in the entry price was a drink and snack, so we found a table and ate our lunch with those wonderful views in front of us.

We then strolled over to the Emirates palace for a photo stop before walking along the corniche with its stunning views of the city's impressive skyline. We made a quick stop at the Marina mall before catching the shuttle bus. Back on board the Celebration it was time to pack our bags and sail back to Dubai for the next stage of our adventure.