Christmas on steroi_s 🧑‍🎄🎅🎄🦌🛷

[Pushka]

View towards Burj Al Arab from front driveway and back towards Khalifa. The fireworks run down this line.





Christmas decorations. A bit subdued I think.

 

[Pushka]

Followed by a spectacular sunset.

 

[Seat0B]

LOL. just note that Emirates lounges and in air will serve veal bacon.

And I’ve also seen turkey bacon offered in the UAE, especially at a brunch cafe style meal. It’s funny that they call it bacon, which is of course haram, when they sell Bundaberg branded ginger beer everywhere there labelled as “ginger beverage”. So maybe “bacon/facon” is less haram than beer and they can at least use the word?

 

[Seat0B]

That sunset was totally magnificent @Pushka.

 

[Pushka]

That sunset was totally magnificent @Pushka.

Just luck. After UK we thought it was too late at 5.30 pm to see it. . We were scoping out spots for NYE vantage points.

 

[Pushka]

Well. Probably stupidly I used my ING card as the one for the rental car so there was a pending hold. Now the actual and correct charge has come through but the pending charge wasn’t released. Meaning - that’s the card that has our cash. Which has now evaporated into nothing. It’s there. I just can’t access it. $1500. Of course pre travel NAB had errors notifying of travel plans so couldn’t register that card. ANZ card has registered ok but that’s not where we keep our cash. Hopefully credit card will suffice. I do have pounds andUSD but that’s a pain to exchange. Bloody AVIS/Budget.

 

[Pushka]

Well. Probably stupidly I used my ING card as the one for the rental car so there was a pending hold. Now the actual and correct charge has come through but the pending charge wasn’t released. Meaning - that’s the card that has our cash. Which has now evaporated into nothing. It’s there. I just can’t access it. $1500. Of course pre travel NAB had errors notifying of travel plans so couldn’t register that card. ANZ card has registered ok but that’s not where we keep our cash. Hopefully credit card will suffice. I do have pounds andUSD but that’s a pain to exchange. Bloody AVIS/Budget.

So ING have messaged that the merchant has allowed release of the funds. But ING are refusing to do so, and will only do so if the secondary card holder (there are two cards, mine as the main, MrP as the secondary one, same funds) calls them. On a weekday. Not Public Holiday. He should not have to do this, it's irrelevant to a pending hold esp when the merchant has released it. It should now drop off. So theoretically another four days until we can call them. Needless to say, while it won't do any good this time, I've advised ING that as they admit they are now holding our funds unnecessarily then the Ombudsman will be involved.

 

[Pushka]

So. I'd like to say that we did some retail therapy but we didn't but we did at least go to Dubai Mall. We've been a few times before. The hotel provides a shuttle. Khalifa is right next door.

The aquarium is excellent but we think it's deceptively small for so many fish.







The Khalifa towers over the scene.


Magnificent sculptures and waterfalls. With a muted Christmas theme

 

[Pushka]

We always visit this hedonist store but don't usually buy anything. This time we are loaded up with chocolates from Switzerland and UK anyway.







He gave us a sample to try - it was still hot and yum.

Toffee sushi. It was on a conveyor belt.




Sounds excellent.




We kept walking through the mall to the skating rink. Of course.



And a rather posh restaurant. Who am I kidding. Everything in this mall is posh.

 

[Pushka]

Villeroy and Boch again. Gorgeous.





Heading towards the fountains we found the mega Apple Store which had great views over the main fountains.
Took a couple of photos




Preparing for NYE




Then this started happening. WT?



And within a minute we'd lost the view.

 

[Pushka]

Headed down to the fountains. I think a couple of times a day the fountains perform to music. I waited last time for around 30 minutes, it was a bust as it seemed over before it started.



We wandered into the souk across the way, I'd been there during Ramadan desperate for a drink of water so had dashed into the toilets here to drink it. I'd had a cold at the time and was coughing.

We heard loud music as we left and just caught the last few seconds of the fountain dance. When it ended there was barely a clap even though there were large crowds. It promises more than it delivers.


We didn't want to hang around too long as it was incredibly crowded by now, around 2pm. Tomorrow it will be hell for NYE preparations. Most of the roads around here will be shut. When we went a few years ago the crowds were massive.

Cartier of course. Its an afternoon tea spot apparently.



So the brown building here is The Address. It's a hotel. It was this building that caught on fire the last time we were here on NYE and it stopped the fireworks that night. I'll dig in my other TR for a picture I posted.



Here they are from 8 years ago.

 

[chooms]

So we had missed another port, Mannheim, which was a simple walk of the boat and explore in the morning kind of port.

Terrible experience you had (and I hope they have made up for it)… but brutally honest you didn’t miss much with a walk around Mannheim. Except for maybe the Baroque Mannheim Schloss (Mannheim University), there isn’t much. I went to the Business School there as part of my MBA and whilst a great experience, the city itself is very industrial. Heidelberg on the other hand… unmissable.

Also, that cruise at Luzern seems ridiculously over priced. I was there during summer and I think it was around AUD110 for the cruise with a mountain visit. In the end I ended up staying in Zurich instead of there and did a day trip with lift and cogwheel train passes included up to Jungfraujoch (with an hour or so at Interlaken). It was about AUD220 but i thought extremely worth it. Switzerland (Zurich) is now the home of the most expensive meal I’ve ever eaten... I’ll post a trip report one of these days!

 

[Pushka]

Kind of a waiting day today. We have been completely undecided on whether to do the Resort NYE bash. It isn't cheap, at $250aud but doesn't start until 8.30pm. Does include alcohol. Waiter last night said it included spirits. Alcohol is super expensive here. We are somewhat landlocked here with all the demolition that used to contain a beach promenade with lots of cafes etc. But all gone. Dinner options otherwise are a bit grim but would suffice but we were worried we'd have to sit out the night in the room. Which does overlook party scene and if there was a balcony and not a Juliet one, that might have been an option. But where to get the booze

We were told there are no takeaways from the Gala. Which sounds odd to even need to say that but apparently people from a certain currently invasive country are known to book for two, sometimes even one, then take piles of food on plates up into the room for other non payers to eat. . There are lots of tricks that are used by them so consequently every guest is treated as though they are trying something on.

So just now they closed the main area down in the plaza below us to start to set up. I guess we will grab a sandwich to last until 8.30pm but the hordes will descend then anyway. There's a really handy grocery kind of store in house that sells pretty much everything - except booze. We've checked.

Currently 4.20pm. We will leave the gala at 11.30 to walk to the outside of the hotel to see Khalifa. As it can also be seen from the gala area hopefully there won't be a crowd.

 

[Pushka]

Oh my golly gosh. We knew there were issues with that invading nations country. The bus driver said there were far too many of them. We'd witnessed rudeness to staff etc. So just now I was in the shop getting snacks to last to 8.30pm when two young girls wanted to see a display near the checkout. Fair enough I moved over. Then, as she walked past me she physically pushed me into the guy serving everyone. I comment, that's ok, I don't mind being shoved, the local lady also being served (Arabic credit card) just said, They are so rude, and the guy serving just shook his head.

 

[MelMel]

Well. Probably stupidly I used my ING card as the one for the rental car so there was a pending hold. Now the actual and correct charge has come through but the pending charge wasn’t released. Meaning - that’s the card that has our cash. Which has now evaporated into nothing. It’s there. I just can’t access it. $1500. Of course pre travel NAB had errors notifying of travel plans so couldn’t register that card. ANZ card has registered ok but that’s not where we keep our cash. Hopefully credit card will suffice. I do have pounds andUSD but that’s a pain to exchange. Bloody AVIS/Budget.

I had this happen at a hotel in Singapore. The took full payment and said the hold would be released in 4-5 days. I called Westpac on the overseas number and the woman I spoke to released the hold immediately without the authority of the hotel. She said they should not be doing it that way.

 

[Pushka]

Getting ready.





It’s just dark now.

 

[Pushka]

Team meeting. And instructions on how to serve the alcohol. I’m guessing there will be vodka. At the same time as a broadcast call to prayer.

 

[Pushka]

Holy Grail achievement. Two women from a particular country came and stood in front of us at the last minute to midnight and to which we both reacted to immediately (having lined up 20 minutes prior) and accused us of being aggressive. The staff who’d also lined up with us were smiling. Security stood beside us. Win. More later. It’s late.

 

[Seat0B]

Oh my golly gosh. We knew there were issues with that invading nations country. The bus driver said there were far too many of them. We'd witnessed rudeness to staff etc. So just now I was in the shop getting snacks to last to 8.30pm when two young girls wanted to see a display near the checkout. Fair enough I moved over. Then, as she walked past me she physically pushed me into the guy serving everyone. I comment, that's ok, I don't mind being shoved, the local lady also being served (Arabic credit card) just said, They are so rude, and the guy serving just shook his head.

I’ve had this happen to me too - most recently in a supermarket where I was reaching up to get a product to put in my trolley and the Little Doll could not wait the 20 seconds it would have taken for me to complete the manoeuvre and instead pushed me firmly out of her way. I may have accidentally brought my elbow down a bit hard with the shock of it all.

 

[love_the_life]

I’ve had this happen to me too - most recently in a supermarket where I was reaching up to get a product to put in my trolley and the Little Doll could not wait the 20 seconds it would have taken for me to complete the manoeuvre and instead pushed me firmly out of her way. I may have accidentally brought my elbow down a bit hard with the shock of it all.

And hopefully the elbow accidentally connected with the young miss.