Madinat Jumeirah

After a good night's sleep I woke up feeling not too bad, although still a bit croaky.  

We took the metro to Mall of the Emirates and then caught a taxi to the Madinat Jumeirah which is a purpose built Arabian resort with hotels, restaurants and a Souk.  There are 5 kms of waterways that you can see by taking a traditional abra boat, and the Burj Al Arab is only a short distance away.  We wandered through the souk and then along the river, stopping for lunch at a Greek Taverna which has only been open for 3 weeks - all the staff appear to be from South Africa, and on talking to our waiter, he's had to leave his family at home as he can't afford for the children to be schooled in Dubai, but he said that things got so bad in SA that he had to find work elsewhere.  He has 3 children aged between 4 and 10 years old, and he's given himself a maximum of 5 years in Dubai, but while he's here, his accommodation and food are provided as well as transport to and from work.

The adjoining hotel Jumeriah Mina A'Salem was hosting the Art Dubai 2019 and there was a very colourful display of parasols that I wanted to see, and fortunately today was the opening day and it was ladies day preview, so I was allowed in free of charge.   I've added an extra of the parasols.

We then caught a taxi to Jumeirah beach, but unfortunately the sea was very rough so I wasn't able to swim, but I did have a paddle and we just chilled out and enjoyed the sun.  From there we took a taxi back to the metro at Mall of the Emirates and went to the Dubai Mall.  First of all we went to see Fashion Avenue which has the most amazing shops, and then we went to see the Aquarium and after wandering through the mall, we went to watch the Dubai fountains.

And today is Violet’s 3rd birthday so we FaceTimed her briefly to wish her happy birthday.  I’m heading North on Friday for a very brief visit to see the birthday girl :-)

It's been a really lovely final day here in Dubai and it's come to an end all to soon!  I now need to go and pack as we head home tomorrow, so I'll say goodbye for now.