Dubai Desert Safari and Happy Birthday Bryan

I'm going to start my Dubai travel diaries with one of the best experiences the hubs and I have ever had on a holiday - the desert safari.

We'd heard a lot about it and I had been stressing out about how to get on one because I had done lots of research, and emailed tons of tour agencies prior to getting to Dubai, and didn't get a single response. In the end, we booked our tour when we arrived, and based on the recommendation of our friend in Dubai, decided to go for the package that was sold at the counters of the Big Bus Tours, which are located at almost every major shopping centre in Dubai.

 

The package costs 275 uae dirhams (60 euros) per person, and included hotel pick-up and drop-off, desert sand bashing on a 4x4, camel riding, followed by dinner at a desert campsite, as well as traditional and belly dancing shows at dinner.

Our driver was an Indian national, Rashid, who's lived in Dubai for 17 years, and I must say we were very very very lucky to have gotten him. He was calm, sweet, and egged-on by our screams of thrills and exhilaration, proceeded to give us a whole lot of extra treatment during the sand bashing session. We saw so many other cars cutting corners, but our guy went the extra mile (literally) to give us the ride of our life. I personally love roller coasters and thrilling joy rides, so this was super duper (x10000000) cool for me. For the queasy ones, urmmm... you might prefer a calmer driver.

And being in the desert at sunset is something else. I felt like the boy in the Alchemist. Awe-inspired. Blessed. Filled with wonderment. Bliss. Bliss. Bliss.

And as always, some tips:
1. Wear boots or sneakers or flip flops. Or like me, you'll end up barefooted because the sand just jumps into your pretty little flats. And you'll spend the next few days dealing with sandy shoes.
2. It is COLDDDD in the desert. Depends on how you look at, we were lucky/unlucky with the weather in Dubai this time. Average night temperatures in the city were around 19 degrees celcius (66° fahrenheit). Temperatures in the desert go down many, many, many more celcius at nights. Imagine that, coupled with the wind! Felt like 10°. Now imagine me in my light summer clothing. FREEZING! I looked at some very prepared Japanese tourists in their down feather jackets and really wanted to cuddle up to them.
3. Wear white. It photographs beautifully in the dessert. I wish I wore white pants too.

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Today, I also wanna wish my darling Bryan, a very happy birthday. I love you so much littlest brother! You're so handsome and adorable and wonderful and caring and loving and understanding!!!! I think of you all the time, and love the moments when I get to hug you, dance with you, drink with you, and just hang with you. Here's a quote that I loved best from the Alchemist, which I've bought for you as one of your birthday presents to get you to read and inspire you to find your bliss :)) 

 

“What you still need to know is this: before a dream is realized, the Soul of the World tests everything that was learned along the way. It does this not because it is evil, but so that we can, in addition to realizing our dreams, master the lessons we’ve learned as we’ve moved toward that dream. That’s the point at which, as we say in the language of the desert, one “dies of thirst just when the palm trees have appeared on the horizon.”

365 #37 The journey

 Remember, remember:

Paragraphs below copied from here

1] You have already arrived. So, feel pleasure at each step and do not worry about things that you still have to face. We have nothing before us, just a road to be traveled at each moment with joy. When we practice pilgrim meditation, we are always arriving, our home is the present moment, and nothing more.

2] For that reason, always smile while you walk, Even if you have to force it a bit and feel ridiculous. Get used to smiling and you will end up happy. Do not be afraid of displaying your contentment.

3] If you think that peace and joy always lie ahead, you will never manage to achieve them. Try to understand that they are both your traveling companions.

4] When you walk, you are massaging and honoring the earth. In the same way, the earth is trying to help you to balance your organism and mind. Understand this relationship and try to respect it – may your steps have the firmness of a lion, the elegance of a tiger and the dignity of an emperor.

5] Pay attention to what is going on around you. And concentrate on your breathing – this will help you to get rid of the problems and worries that try to accompany you on your journey.

6] When you walk, it is not just you that is moving, but all past and future generations. In the so-called “real” world, time is a measure, but in the true world nothing exists beyond the present moment. Be fully aware that everything that has happened and everything that will happen is in each step you take.

7] Enjoy yourself. Make pilgrim meditation a constant meeting with yourself, never a penance in search of reward. May flowers and fruit always grow in the places touched by your feet.

365 #12 Obsession

I spent the whole day cleaning again. I have this kind of obsessive compulsive need for order when I start establishing it in my life. When a speck of dust appears in my otherwise pristine environment, I find it necessary to turn over every cushion and chair, which inevitably causes more dust to join the party. Thank god this obsession doesn't last for too long. After order is established, and when I inevitably succumb to living with a few specks of dust, chaos can reign again.

So, lately, I also have this (revived) obsession with Paolo Coelho. I loved him so much many many many years ago, after 'The Alchemist', and couldn't wait to lay my hands on whatever new book he came up with. But he sorta lost me after a bit, but I won't go into detail because I can't allow myself to speak ill of my idol. :)) But that's irrelevant now, and he's back (with a vengeance) on my radar. And till this obsession fades away, which I hope is never because his words have such a calming influence on me, there will be a lot of copied text here from his blog, which I am obviously obsessed with.

Today, I learnt about living, changes and mistakes.

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The sentence belongs to Pablo Picasso: “God is above all an artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant, and the ant. In fact, He never tried to follow a style – He simply went on doing what He felt like doing”.

Our wanting to walk is what creates our path – yet, when we start our journey towards our dreams, we feel very afraid, as if we were obliged to do everything right.

After all, if we all live different lives, who was it who invented the “everything right” standard?”

If God made the giraffe, the elephant and the ant, and if we try to live in His image and likeness, why should we need to follow a model? Sometimes the model helps us to avoid repeating stupid mistakes that others have already committed, but normally it is a prison that obliges us always to repeat what everybody does.

To be coherent is to need always to wear a necktie that matches our socks. It is to be obliged to keep the same opinions tomorrow that you have today. So what about the way the world moves?

As long as nobody is hurt, change your opinion every now and again, and contradict yourself without feeling ashamed. This is your right; it does not matter what the others think – because they are going to think it anyway.

When we decide to act, some excesses will happen. As the old cooking saying goes: “to make an omelet, first of all you have to break an egg”. So it is also natural that unexpected conflicts will arise.

It is only natural that there will be injuries during these conflicts. The wounds pass: only the scars remain.

This is a blessing. These scars stay with us for the rest of our lives, and they help us a lot. If at any moment – due to complacency or some other reason – the desire to go back to the past is great, just look at your scars.

Scars will show us the signs of handcuffs, they will remind us of the horrors of prison – and we will keep on moving forward.

So, relax. Let the Universe move all around you and discover the joy of being a surprise to yourself. “God chose the crazy things of the world to embarrass the wise”, says Saint Paul.

A Warrior of Light notices that certain moments are repeated; he often finds himself facing the same problems, and he confronts situations he has confronted before.

Then he becomes depressed. He begins to feel that he is incapable of making any progress in life, since the same things he has lived through in the past are happening all over again.
“I have been through this”, he complains to his heart.
“You really have”, answers his heart. “But you have never gone beyond it”.
The Warrior then begins to realize that repeated experiences have a reason, which is to teach us that we have not yet learned. He always finds a different solution for each repeated fight – and he does not see his faults as mistakes, but rather as steps towards meeting himself.

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Italicized text copied from here

365 #8 When you thought I wasn't looking

by Mary Rita Schilke Korzan
 

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You hung my first painting on the refrigerator
And I wanted to paint another.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You fed a stray cat
And I thought it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You baked a birthday cake just for me
And I knew that little things were special things.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You said a prayer
And I believed there was a God that I could always talk to.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You kissed me good-night
And I felt loved.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
I saw tears come from your eyes
And I learned that sometimes things hurt—
But that it’s alright to cry.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You smiled
And it made me want to look that pretty too.

When you thought I wasn’t looking
You cared
And I wanted to be everything I could be.

When you thought I wasn’t looking—
I looked . . .
And wanted to say thanks
For all those things you did
When you thought I wasn’t looking.

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Dedicated to my wonderful and gorgeous parents.

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Post copied from here


 

Don't forget the evil men

The following prayer was found amongst the personal belongings of a Jew who died in a concentration camp:

Lord, when you come in Your glory, do not remember only the men of good, but remember too the men of evil.

And on the Day of Judgement, do not remember only the acts of cruelty, inhumanity and violence that they carried out,
but remember too the fruits that they produced in us because of what they did to us.
Remember the patience, courage, brotherly love, humility, generosity of spirit and faithfulness
that our executioners awoke in our souls.

And then, Lord, may those fruits be used to save the souls of those men of evil.

Post copied from here. 

What a beautiful reminder.