Dubai - end of our trip

On our way home, we had a 2 night stopover in Dubai. Our hotel (a very nice Sheraton) was on Sheikh Zayed Road, one of the main thoroughfares with towering skyscrapers and some very modern metro stations (the slug shaped building lower left in the pic below).

Dubai has some new, luxurious hotels. Designed in the shape of a dhow sail and set on its own man-made island, the 7 star Burj Al Arab ("Tower of the Arabs") hotel is the city's architectural icon. The grey tint is due to dust in the air (common in a desert area).

We went up to the observatory level of the Marriott hotel for a view over the city. The Dubai marina can be seen in the view below. The blue tint is due to the glass.

From the Marriott observatory, we could see the Palm Jumeirah (island in the shape of a palm frond on the coast). Like the Great Wall of China, it is a man-made marvel so large it can be seen from space. Although still under construction, it will eventually be home to no less than 30 luxury hotels. The main attraction on Palm Jumeirah now is the luxurious Atlantis Hotel, which reminded us of the casino hotels in Las Vegas. Below are pics of the entrance, the ornate lobby and the aquarium inside the Atlantis.

Dubai is known for its huge entertainment shopping malls. Dubai Mall is the newest and lrgest in the Middle east, with over 600 international retail luxury stores. The pics below show the Dubai Mall entrance and Fashion Avenue, lined with stores selling the world's most desirable luxury brands.

Dubai Mall has an aquarium with the largest viewing window on earth and an Olympic size ice skating rink, seen in the pic below.

We found some very artistically decorated, mouth watering cakes at Brunetti's in Dubai Mall. We have been to the Brunetti outlet in Melbourne, so we have sampled the company products.

The Mall of the Emirates is another huge entertainment shopping centre featuring luxury brands. It also has a huge artificial ski centre, complete with chair lifts.

One evening we visited the Gold Souk (a souk is a traditional Arab market), which was quite a contrast to the modern shopping malls. It has about 700 shops on a cluster of streets shaded by a high roof. Vendors continually hassle you to buy their goods (annoying after a while) and you are expected to haggle over prices. We looked but did not buy.

We decided to do a desert safari tour in a 4 wheel drive. We knew we would be driving over sand dunes, but did not realise we would be "dune bashing", which is more like a roller coaster ride with twists and turns (supposed to be exciting but made us feel queasy). We were then taken to a desert camp site for a buffet dinner and entertainment (with optional camel rides, dune buggy rides and hookah smoking, none of which we did). The pics below show Don on the sand dunes, and the camel rides.

The entertainment was very good, with a male dancer doing touristy Las Vegas imitations of traditional whirling dervish dances (but very dexterous and entertaining nevertheless). A female belly dancer also performed.

The next morning, feeling quite tired after 7 weeks away, we departed on a direct flight to Brisbane.

So ends this trip. Goodbye until next time - wherever and whenever that might be.

Germany - Pt 5

We had two nights in the little non-touristy town of Esslingen, set among vineyards on the Neckar River (near Stuttgart). The town's historic buildings were fortunate to survive WW II intact. The Old Town Hall is a half-timbered building with a Renaissance front.

Esslingen has a 14th century bridge called the Innere Brucke which has picturesque houses and a tiny chapel on it.

Walking through the winding streets and narrow alleys, we came across a Starbucks in a half-timbered building, so we had to patronise it of course.

In the market square is the Stadtkirche St Dionysius, built in the 13th century, the oldest church in town.

We climbed to the Burg on top of the hill behind the town. It has a tower, walls and other fortifications. From up there you get a great view over the town and vineyards.

Esslingen is famous for its sparkling wines. We sampled the local Kessler wine at dinner one night. We found a picturesque little wine bar in one of the narrow streets in the town.

After leaving Esslingen, we headed back to Nuremberg. On the way we stopped at Ludwigsburg and did a guided tour of the 18th century palace. It is known as the "Versailles of Swabia". The following pics show one wing of the palace, the Queen's Bedroom and the beautiful baroque gardens.

Next stop (for lunch) was Schwabisch Hall on the River Kocher, another picturesque village with many half-timbered 15th and 16th century houses.

Schwabisch Hall has many historic buildings. The 15th century Church of St Michael sits high above the Marktplatz (main market square). Operas are occasionally performed on the steps in front of the church.

Back in Nurember, we spent our last day in Germany wandering around the Old Town. Gail finally got to visit the Kathe Wohlfahrt shop (which she has visited in many other German cities). Don was sorry he left her there alone. We took Debbie out to dinnner, stopping on the way at the Tugendbrunnen. This fountain has representations of the six virtues, crowned by the figure of Justice.

We had dinner at the Heilig-Geist-Spital (former Holy Spirit Hospital). It stands over the river in the centre of town and was one of the largest hospitals built in the Middle Ages. It now houses an old peoples home and a restaurant.

For dinner, Gail and Debbie chose dishes containing asparagus, in season at present, and the Germans make a big fuss over it. Don had Schweinhaxe (a large baked pork knuckle) which he was not able to finish.

We left Nuremberg by train to go to Frankfurt, ready for our overnight flight to Dubai.

Next update will cover Dubai.

Germany - Pt 4

We went away for a few days (from Debbie's flat), heading first for the medieval town of Dinklesbuhl on the Romantic Road. The walls surrounding the city include four towers. One of them (Wornitz Tor) is in the pic below.

We visited the late-Gothic church of St George, which can be seen in the background of this street pic.

The residential district of the town consists mainly of half-timbered houses. The best example in southern Germany is the Deutsches Haus.

Wealthy patrician families in Dinklesbuhl built their half-timbered houses around picturesque courtyards. A typical example is the Hezelhof.

We drove along the Romantic Road to another lovely medieval town, Nordlingen (a sister city of Wagga Wagga). The fortification walls surrounding the city include 15 towers. Below is the Reimlinger Tor.

There is an old 14th century town hall on the Marktplatz, the centre of town.

Before leaving Nordlingen, we walked along part of the city walls.

We stopped overnight in Ulm, on the Danube River. It is renowned as the birthplace of Albert Einstein. The city has many historic buildings, including a fancy Gothic-Renaissance town hall. It is covered with brightly coloured frescos and has an astronomical clock. See pics below.

Ulm's huge munster (basilica) is a masterpiece of European Gothic architecture. Its 161 metre high west tower is the highest church tower in the world.

The Fishermens and Tanners Quarter of Ulm is a very picturesque area, with half-timbered houses and little bridges over canals. We ate dinner at a restaurant in the area, trying a local dish with Schwabische noodles.

We drove through the scenic Schwabische Alb (Swabian Mountains), stopping first in Sigmaringen, where we had lunch in one of Germany's fantastic bakeries.

Sigmaringen's skyline is dominated by the castle, which was reconstructed following a fire in 1893. The pics show the castle entrance and the whole castle.

Higher up in the mountains, we stopped at the romantic castle of Lichtenstein. Along the road signs said to watch out for deer and wild pigs.

Next update will finish our German travels.