Trips & Photos

Monaco | June 2015

Monte Carlo is such a beautiful & fancy city. It is known to be the place where the rich & famous settles. Well that explains why there are so many luxurious yachts at the harbor and so many fast, vintage, luxury cars driving around.

This small city is wide awake all night long. Parties here and there! Every month, there seems to be huge event. Like last month, the F1 race happened. This month, like the day I am in Monaco the Longines Championship Tour was on, where the world's best of the best jockey were competing against each other.

If you love poker, know that this city also host one of the world's biggest poker event in their world famous Monte Carlo Casino. And if you fancy all those luxury brands like Dior, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta etc. well, you come to the right place. You name it, they have it!

Alright that's enough! You should check this city yourself! But for the meantime enjoy it through my captures!

One of the places on my lists of must visit country is The United Arab Emirates. It is in my opinion the most sought after country both for work and tourism. As a travel and photography enthusiast this is the place to visit. This Country particularly the city of Dubai holds 139 Guinness world records. To name a few: world tallest building, highest restaurant from ground level, largest seashells mosaic, longest graffiti scroll etc. i can go on and on but it's just too many to mention.

Anyhow, if you're planning to visit the country here are my lists of what to do and see based on personal trip experience in Dubai City and The United Arab Emirates.

1. Dubai Mall - Massive and gorgeous mall. The shops choices are stunning plus plenty of restaurants to eat. Dubai Mall is the shopping haven for shopaholics in the gulf. The famous Dubai aquarium is also situated in Dubai mall. The Aquarium and the underwater zoo are pretty interesting, it houses over 30,000 sea species.
Check website for ticket prices: http://www.thedubaiaquarium.com.

2. Dubai Fountain - Don't fail to witness the breath taking water show of the Dubai Fountain. It is the world's largest choreographed fountain system set on the 30-acre man made Burj Khalifa Lake, at the center of Downtown Dubai development. It is advice to come there minutes before the show will start because the crowds will flock once the show started.

For more information this website: http://www.thedubaimall.com/en/Entertain/TheDubaiFountain.aspx

3. Burj Khalifa Tour - I have a separate post about this tour in this site. You can check it if you wanna know my experienced having set foot in the tallest building of the world and see some of the photos that i captured from the inside and from the top.

But for more information about the tour check this website: http://www.burjkhalifa.ae/en/

4. Safari Tour - If you like adrenaline rush and enjoy a nerve racking driving style while enjoying the vast sand dunes, then you will enjoy this tour. The tour will starts with the safari dune bashing, then after that the driver will brings you to the resort/camp where you can ride a camel, have photos with a falcon (FYI taking photos with the falcon is not free), you can also do dress up and try the Emirates traditional clothes which is fun in my opinion, you can also get a henna tattoo (price depending on the size). Dinner is also included in the tour. And while having dinner a number of dancers will perform to entertain the guests.

For more information, check this website: http://www.viator.com/tours/Dubai/4x4-Dubai-Desert-Safari/d828-2168DXB007 (There are so many independent tour providers that you can choose but this one is the one we used).

5. Atlantis, The Palm - A must visit place when you're visiting Dubai. Check Atlantis official site for information's: https://www.atlantisthepalm.com/. It's such a fun place, so much fun things to do. My recommendations are, you visit the Aquaventure it is the said to be the No. 1 water park in the Middle East and Europe. Check the website to find out what awaits you when you visit this waterpark https://www.atlantisthepalm.com/marine-water-park/aquaventure-waterpark. Or if you fancies indoor aquarium go check out The Lost Chamber. For more info's check this one https://www.atlantisthepalm.com/marine-water-park/lost-chambers-aquarium.

6.Mall of the Emirates - If you're from a warm country where the sun shines 365 days a year and you want to quickly experience the feeling of being surrounded with snow or try skiing, I suggest you visit this place. It houses the largest indoor skiing place in the world "SKI DUBAI". Check websites for more information regarding prices, opening hours etc. http://www.malloftheemirates.com/ & http://www.theplaymania.com/skidubai/welcome.

7. Dhow Cruise - experience the panoramic view and the magnificent skyline of the new Dubai. The tour lasts for an hour covering areas like Dubai Marina, Jumeirah Beach, The famous 7 stars Burj Al Arab, the world renowned Palm Jumeirah, The Atlantis etc. For more information about this cruise check this out: http://www.dhowcruisedubai.com/marina-cruise.html. Or if you want privacy and wanna enjoy cruising just with your friends or alone you can rent the Abra boat and explore Dubai creek for a cheap price.

8. Markets or Souks - Trip to the Souks or Market is one of the things that a tourist must do when in Dubai. If you fancy gold and want to buy some for an affordable price, I suggest you visit the Gold Souk. It is located in Deira the nearest station is Al Ras Metro Station - Green Line. A few minutes walk to the south, you will find the Spice Souk. To the East of Gold Souk lies the Perfume Souk. Here you can find both international and Arabic perfumes. And by crossing the water through the Abra or water taxi you will then find the Old Souk/Textile Souk which is situated in Bur Dubai. Here you can find shops that sells fabrics like wool, cashmere, silk to name a few, you can also find here souvenirs. And of course there's Souk Madinat Jumeirah which is in Madinat Jumeirah Complex and Souk Al Bahar in downtown Dubai.These Souks are known for shops, restaurants and night clubs.

9. Jumeirah Beach Park - Beautiful place to relax, sun bathe, and take a beautiful photo with the Burj Al Arab as a background. The white sand beach stretches quite long.

10. Ferrari World - Yes, If you are in UAE or planning to, you must include this place in your itinerary. It is not in Dubai but in another city Abu Dhabi the capital of UAE. Ferrari World is an amusement park located on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. It claims to be the largest indoor theme park in the world. Formula Rossa, the world's fastest roller coaster, is located here.The park officially opened to the public on 4 November 2010. Ferrari World covers an area of 86,000 square metres. I had so much fun during my time there and hope you will too.

For more information's check their website: https://www.ferrariworldabudhabi.com/

How to get there:

There are two ways on how you can get there, by plane or by bus. I suggest to take the bus specially if you're a tourist that way you can see and enjoy different views and vibes totally different from the big city. You can take the bus from Ghubaiba Bus Station which is the main bus station in Bur Dubai or IBN Battuta - Abu Dhabi Station.The trip takes under 2 hours depending on traffic and it costs 25 Dirhams. And from Abu Dhabi Station, you can either take a cab or a bus to the Yas Marina where the Ferrari World is situated.

Hope these will help you in your future itinerary when visiting The United Arab Emirates. Ciao!

Enjoy the photos from my United Arab Emirates Trip: