Birthday in Dubai

For my 32nd birthday this year… (have I mentioned anywhere that I turned 32 in 2025)🤣 this is a first even for me, THREE blog entries about my birthday?? Someone stop me!!

Anyway, for my 32nd birthday, I actually took two trips, and the second one saw me visit Dubai for the first time, and Qatar as something more than a layover, making it my 20th country!!! I have a goal to see 40 countries by the time I turn 40, and I am now well over half that goal!! Country 21 was Oman.

My 19 ladies and I landed in Dubai in late January to board the MSC Arabia. This was my first cruise ship trip and group travel experience, which may also be my last because it’s one of those things you could be okay with only experiencing once. I realized that I prefer the solo, couple, or friend group travel experience better, so I will have to come back to Dubai.

It was also my first time in Dubai, and MY GOODNESS!! What a city! My driver picked me up in a slick black electric car (I couldn’t tell you the brand, but it was so comfy), and I looked out at all the lights and sights for the entire taxi ride to my hotel. I LOVE it! It is unashamedly loud, bright, garish, well-developed, and a beautiful assault on the senses. I must visit again!

We stayed at the lovely Avani Palm+ hotel the first three nights before the cruise and I particularly enjoyed the breakfast. The hotel had a stunning infinity pool that overlooked some highways, not very pretty (the view, I mean), but somehow, it worked.

Views from my room at the Avani Palm Plus

Are you even a first-timer in Dubai if you’re not spending hours at Dubai Mall? I loved that place. It is an attraction in and of itself, and I enjoyed shopping at the regular places I’d go to in Sandton City and discovering new shops I’d never shopped at.

A forever favourite

We did all the touristy things inside the mall, like the Dubai Fountain, the Aquarium, and the waterfalls, and I loved them. Our hotel was a five-minute walk from Dubai Mall, so I often went back (okay, I only went back again once) to see these monuments again.

I had never been interested in Dubai, so I didn’t know many places beforehand. So when all the ladies were excited to visit Deira, I didn’t get it until we went, and I was like, "Oh, I get it now." Deira is a shopaholic’s dream! They sell EVERYTHING in that marketplace, from gold to perfumes to electronics. I didn’t take any pics while there because I know that it only takes one second for someone to snatch my phone, haha.

As with all my travels, if there is a hop-on, hop-off bus, I’m taking it. So in Dubai, I took the red AND blue bus tour and ended it off with the evening one. A fun activity for me was “mapping out” where I’d live and hang out if I ever moved to Dubai. While there were some interesting tidbits on the tour (and I learnt a lot about the history and government workings of the UAE), I realised most “monumental” spots were just cool buildings and fancy hotels. This makes sense, as a fairly new city, the architecture is incredibly remarkable, but it also began to warp itself into one indistinguishable piece for me.

Shot while on my hop on hop off bus

We also visited the Miracle Garden and wow!!! What a plant lovers dream! It’s so bright, it’s colourful and honestly, you can’t take a bad picture there.

Breathtaking views from Miracle Garden

Of course, I had to go up the Burj Khalifa on my last day in Dubai. I went alone, as I wanted to be “fully immersed in the experience” (or whatever small time travel bloggers such as I, tell themselves) and I regretted it within minutes when I saw how long the line would be.

I took the time to take some pics and start working on this blog, and 45 minutes later, I was on the world’s fastest elevator! Dubai’s obsession with having the world’s “fastest, biggest, tallest…” must be studied. On that elevator, that took 60 seconds to get to the 124th floor, 452 meters above ground, I experienced the same sensations I get during take off and landing and my ears got blocked, slight nausea set in, and I walked out feeling a bit disoriented. However, it was all well worth it because those views were to die for! Desert, land and sea all came together to form this fascinating place ,and I was glad to close off my time in Dubai with that. Have you been to Dubai? Does it get old the more times you visit?