“Dubai is a city “to love or to hate”. I have always been very sceptical about Dubai. This is my first visit to this beautiful city. Yes, beautiful! I feel totally in a different world. It wasn’t long to find the right comparison. New York and Miami; put them in one drum and the result is Dubai.”
Experience Dubai and Oman through the eyes of Jozef Verbruggen.
An exuberant atmosphere, vibrant,stylish tower blocks with hotels and restaurants. One notices in the streetscape with a Skoda or Kia. Dubai is a shopping bonanza. While in large cities at higher latitudes the heat is requested, the shopper here is protected from the heat of the summer months to spend his money in peace.
But to my surprise also the tranquility at the beach, including “The Palm”, another world. Some beaches can rival islands in the Indian Ocean and all this on a six-hour flight from Amsterdam. Temperatures are heavenly from November to April. In the garden of paradisiacal “One & Only” I see a hop and a free-range, two beautiful birds that are extremely rare with us. They are fleeing the harsh European weather. They are my connection to my world, nature. I’m so excited to see these birds that sales manager Ahmed makes me look like a fool.
In terms of hotels, Dubai offers a variety of accommodations. Like Armani Hotel; pure design housed in the tallest building in the world, Burj Khalifa with at his feet the dancing fountains, The Address, Vida and Anantara. They all breathe a worldly atmosphere, are shaped in pure design and offer solid service in detail.
In two hours you’ll drive from Dubai to the North of Oman, where you’ll find one of the most beautiful hotels I’ve ever stayed at, Six Senses Zighy Bay. Rustic, authentic design in a perfect bay with dolphins and whale sharks. Mountains to tell you, an oasis of peace and pleasure. This is highly recommended for anyone who wants to say goodbye to the daily grind. What an atmosphere and atmosphere.
My mission the next day is Khasab, the capital of Musandam. My driver, Ali, is from Islamabad. While telling great stories we cruise via Fujairah and Ras al-Khaimah (two of the seven Emirates) to my final destination. Khasab is a quiet town full of date palms. Only very occasionally we are startled by stray cruise tourists.
The next day a short flight takes me to the capital of the sultanate. Ghaleb is waiting for me for a drive to the mountains, near Nizwa, an ancient cultural city with an authentic fortress and a farmers market on Friday morning. This region is very popular with the townspeople of Muscat who escape the heat of summer. Spectacular canyons, authentic villages, olive trees that have passed the tooth of time and thousands of date palms that turn the valleys green. Gnarled trees, rose bushes and countless mohair sheep. Life here is single but good.
My next stop is the desert. I’m staying in a mobile bedouous camp, set up especially for us. I look forward to the silence I know of Namibia and the Sahara. The equation is there. In the distance camels the pets of the Bedouïenen who are eagerly looking for the little grass that can be found here. Great, the starry sky. I’m greeted by “scorpio.” At night I walk around to see if you can see the Southern Cross.
After a spectacular drive through the mountains, I spend my last days in Muscat, the charming capital of Oman. Shangrila, Al Bustan and Chedi, all pearls of hotels for a laid-back ending in a safe and friendly country.
Oman is a blessing, ideal for escaping the cold weather with us, for the traveller who has no message to our winter weather and wants to enjoy Sauvignon Blanc in a beautiful garden in the shade of countless date palms. But Oman is also culture, a desert country with a tropical touch for the experienced traveller. Rent a vehicle and go out. Oman has a perfect road network, friendly people, rugged interiors, deserted beaches and bays to be discovered where turtles make their nests. I’m excited and come back to explore the South, Salalah and of course The Empty Quarter.
Oman; go there before the “Playa del Carmen” tourist discovers this destination. Delicious!
“Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take your breath away” [muurschildering Oman] .
