Dubai Luxury & Activities

Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates is the fifth city in the fifth country I’ve lived in. Dubai is hard to describe if you’ve never visited, but if I had to compare it to what I know, I’d say the city would be a mixture of Miami, Vegas and Scottsdale, AZ all wrapped into one. It’s nonstop like Vegas, with big shiny buildings with flashing lights. Insane amounts of wealth everywhere like Miami and reminiscent of the beautiful desert including flowers and palm trees like in Arizona. Dubai is a city where people can come to get away from reality. Everything is over the top, and the city actually becomes your “playground.” Boat parties, all you can eat and drink brunches, dressing up, shopping, incredible restaurants, rooftop pools, day time beach clubs and the list goes on and on. In a nutshell, this city is the epitome of excess and gluttony. I’m not saying this in an entirely negative way, because it definitely is experience.

Now that you’re all up to speed on the lifestyle of Dubai, let’s get some misconceptions out of the way! First, if you’re not muslim living here, you don’t have to wear an abaya or a head scarf. The local culture is very understanding and accepting of westerners here. Second, Dubai is extremely westernized and forward-thinking. 85% of the population is comprised of expatriates, and the Brits make up most of the western demographic. Third, drinking is absolutely allowed here, but only within hotels, which is where most of the fun partying happens. Finally, it is extremely safe here, probably one of the most safe places I’ve ever lived. People living here are extremely honest and trustworthy. You could leave your mobile phone sitting out on a table and come back hours later to find it still there. Living in a safe city, by yourself as a foreign expat woman, really brings a sense of security when living abroad.

Moving on to my recommendations or things I’m “obsessed” with. If it isn’t obvious already, I love finding new “vibey” places to eat or grab a coffee. So here are my recommendations when visiting Dubai.

FOOD + COFFEE

Coffee + Food + Vegan/Vegetarian: Comptior 102

Vegan Cafe: SEVA Table

West Beach: Koko Bay + Lucky Fish (West Bay Beach)

Authentic Thai: Pai Thai

Breakfast: Brunch & Cake (The Point & Al Wasl)

La Mer Beach: Row of cute places to eat

Mexican: Tortuga (Great view of the Burj Al Arab)

BEST Pizza: Pitfire Pizza

TIMEOUT Market: Drinks and various places to eat

Greek: OPA — authentic Greek food and traditions of smashing plates and music

Local UAE Coffee: Arabica 100% (multiple locations)

POOLS + BEACH CLUBS

Bab Al Shams (In the desert): Leave the city and spend a day or overnight in this gorgeous, incredibly decorated hotel for a pool day including an insane lunch buffet or stay overnight.

West Beach: Koko Bay, February 30, Lucky Fish — the West Bay beach clubs are such a vibe, feeling as if you’re almost in Mykonos. Good music, amazing ambiance and gorgeous drinks. Highly recommend for a day in the sun and water or for sunset drinks.

Chill Pool Day: Jumeriah Zabeel Saray Hotel - this hotel is on the palm and it has the most elegant vibe with a gorgeous pool overlooking the sea. The beach area is lovely as well as the drinks and food.

Chill Pool Day: Waldorf Astoria on the Palm

Chill Pool Day: Westin Hotel — check out the Heavenly Spa here as well. Probably one of the best massages I’ve had, ever.

Chill Pool Day: The Address Fountain Views

Party Pool Days: Zero Gravity or BLA BLA

BRUNCHING & GOING OUT

There is a never-ending amount of things to do when it comes to going out and spending the day partying, drinking and hanging with friends. Here is a list of a few of my favorite places and activities I’d recommend.

Boating: Find yourself a boat to get on — for any reason, birthday, goodbye party, or just for fun. Being out on the water is absolutely incredible and you’ll get to have the best views of the city.

Brunch: Treehouse, Saffron at the Atlantis, KOYO, Lucky Voice, Amazonico, Mr. Myagis, Seven Sisters

Of course you have to visit some of the other Emirates when you’re here such as Abu Dhabi to visit the Grand Mosque, go to the Lourve Museum, and if you have time take a quick boat to Nurai Island for the day. This is something I HIGHLY recommend you check out, it is a stunning, picturesque island 15 minutes by boat away from Saadiyat island in Abu Dhabi. It is known for its turquoise waters, beach activities and chill vibes, with great food and drinks, and music played by a DJ.

It’s been an unbelievable whirlwind of a journey and I am so proud and glad to say that I was able to spend time in the Middle East and experience a new culture and way of living.

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شكرًا لك (thank you)

Ciao Italia | Travel Umbria, Italy

Ciao everyone! 

I've recently returned from a long weekend  in Italy. While on holiday from teaching, I reunited with a few friends, Tanira and Loris, who I met while in the Grand Caymans, who are temporarily staying in a town located in the Umbria region of Italy, called Terni. Terni is located just about two hours north of Rome and is nestled within and surrounded by large hills and mountains. Its a beautiful, quaint town where the people tend to grow up and remain most of their lives. Its incredibly and quintessentially Italian and just what I needed, a real, authentic Italian experience. While in Terni, I stayed at my friend Loris's Nonna's (grandmother) house. I was greeted with such  warm welcome and by the end of my time there, she invited me to stay forever, "if I'd like." 

The best part about staying in the Umbria region is there are endless amounts of small villages you can pass through and meander throughout. We didn't manage to see them all, but made quite the dent. I fell in love with Italy this time around. Even though I had previously visited Italy years back, I couldn't help but fall more in love with the perfect blue skies shining down on the rows of olive trees covering the hillsides, the dilapidated and worn down towns once used for movie sets to film the infamous Pinocchio, flowers adorning every windowsill,  persimmon trees as far as the eye could see and The Dolomite mountains peaking out from a distance. It was a dream. The best vino I've had in ages where the tasting just so happen to be free! How could it get any better, you're asking? Well it did. I was staying with an Italian family and chef, who would make fresh bruschetta every morning and evening on their log fireplace, be served homemade espresso boiled from the kettle on the stove and pick oranges from the tree outback. It was a slower and much more simple way of living and I absolutely enjoyed every minute of it. 

Civita De Bagno | Italy

The first town we visited was called Civita De Bagno or "the dying city" as Loris likes to call it. This town's buildings cling to the edge of the cliff that has been slowing eroding away over the years. Be prepared to walk, because there's no transportation to visit this village, but once you arrive, it's breathtaking. Beautiful architecture, flowers, unending views and cats strolling along the streets everywhere. It was definitely a perfect way to start the trip. 

Orvieto | Italy

We arrived in the town of Orvieto, and were starving from all of our walking thus far. So we grabbed lunch and of course, what do you get when staying in the Umbria region...besides wine, anything with truffle, or a sandwich from a porchetta shop! So we ended up getting a truffle cheese panini from a porchetta shop. Perfecto! The umbria region is known to have incredible truffle mushrooms which are special to the region. Since I am obsessed with anything truffle, of course I bought a jar of whole truffles, along with truffle oil.  

Spoleto | Italy

Spoleto, spoleto, spoleto...a town with such stunning architecture and alleyways, that one (aka: me) nearly couldn't make it through the town without stopping every 5 minutes to take a picture. Each building carefully detailed and painted with a different color, made me realize how much beauty there is around us. We walked through the town square which was getting decorated for the upcoming holidays, grabbed lunch at another trattoria where we ate more meat and cheese on the most beautiful charcuterie board I had ever seen. It was so big, it spanned the entire table.  

Papigno | Italy

Pinocchio, the movie that put this town on the map. This movie was filmed in the town of Papigno. Papigno is one of the most magical villages I've ever been to. Small, but perfect. Old, but historic. I couldn't seem to understand how one small village could exude and hold so much beauty. Surrounded by mountains, next to olive tree fields and nearby the Marmore Falls, Papigno is a perfect place to getaway and enjoy the beauty in life. We walked around the town, weaving in a out of alleys, up and down stairs and greeting locals who wanted nothing but to provide us with advice on where to go and what to check out. This town, although your visit may be quick, is one not to miss. 

Peidei Lugo | Italy

Only spending a few short hours here, wandering along the lakeside, feeling the chilly winter air, the town of Peidei Lugo was breathtaking. Known for being more of a summer town with beach and water  activities on the lake, it still had a wonderful feeling to it, where you could take in the views of the Dolomites from a distance and grab a espresso from a local cafe. Umbria was nothing but incredible. 

Cheers to Italy, friends and more travels to come! 

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