We landed in Dubai this morning at 6am after a long trek from Brussels. Our journey involved two flights with a connection in Istanbul. The mood was still jovial as we disembarked the first in Istanbul. There was one moment of trepidation though as we waited to get off the plane. I think it was Rochey who mentioned Maria Brosnan (in relation to their Karaoke exploits of the previous weekend), but of course referred to here by her other name, ‘The Bomber’ (she is from Kerry and plays full-forward). Within about thirty seconds, four or five lads mentioned The Bombers name, which drew many a strange look from the other passengers. Fortunately, they did not see sufficient risk to notify the authorities.
Our hope was to sleep on the four hour flight from Istanbul to Dubai. We achieved this with varying degrees of success. I had some big Dutch lad sitting next to me who took a keen interest in Gaelic Football and flung questions at me for the first half hour. Fortunately, the arrival of his dinner quietened him long enough for me to adjust my seat, throw the blanket over me and catch a bit of kip. Already we were getting our first taste of what Dubai would be like. The difference between the clientele on flight #1 and #2 was noticable with those on the latter decked out in the finest and most expensive clobber.
Once we hit the ground in U.A.E. (not Saudi Arabia for those of you who didn’t pay attention in Geography class) we were greeted by loads of funny looking lads in full white coat type costume. I was convinced they were the umpires for the tournament but was later informed that this is in fact some sort of local custom. Anyway, on through passport control and to get our bags, or not as it turned out. As we walked passed duty free we weighed up whether to avail of the superb alcohol deals, given the difficult with buying it in Dubai. So in we went and raided their supplies to build sufficient stock for the post-tournament sessions.
The hotel had a bus there to pick us up and it whipped us away quickly. Dubai is a bit surreal and you feel it instantly. Everything is written in Arabic & English and it has a weird East meets West thing going on. The sun was just coming up as we journeyed in towards the hotel and the cities giant skyscrapers were in full view. Their height and shapes grasp your attention easily. Fortunately, when we arrived in the hotel the rooms were ready, and even better, they were all on the executive floor. I’m in with Becky, Conor, Dec and Rochey. We have two twins and a double with a sizeable living room and kitchen with all the mod cons.
Lads seperated at this stage and some opted to get out and about quickly to try and keep themselves awake, whilst the rest opted for a couple of hours sleep. Those who slept rose around half evelen and met in the lobby. It was quickly consensed that the beach was the best option and with temperatures of 23 degrees why not. The beach is totally man made and goes on and on for ages. We found our spot (it wasn’t hard given how scarce people were) and lay down the towels before charging down the sand and plunging into the surprising cold Gulf Sea. A few heroes (Micheal, Olof and Rockey) decided to swim out to some buoys and back whilst myself, Colin, Conor and Dec splished and splashed in the shallower water!
As we dryed in the midday sun Micheal was bouncing around looking for someone to play with and Dec was moaning about his grumbling stomach. They disappeared for a few minutes and returned with a volleyball and guidance to the nearest court/pitch/whatever they call a beach volleyball patch. The first few games were spent finding our feet at this new and novel game before the Cork boys (Conor, myself and Micheal) challenged the Rest of Ireland (Rochey, Dec anc Colin) to a duel. They were lucky to score in the first game but to keep things interesting we took the foot off a little in the second. However, in the deciding game, they were not to be spared and they were dealt with in a cruel and efficient manner.
Of course, being carefree lads in a city that we don’t speak the language and have never visited before, no-one took the hotel address. That wasn’t actually the first problem, instead it was the complete lack of taxis coming our way. Eventually, after about forty five minutes, four of us hopped in with very hazy instructions about where to go and left the other three with the promise we would text them the address. I think we are staying in a district called Bur Dubai and our reference point for the taxi was a shopping centre we passed in the morning, but had only a kinda idea of the name. Anyway, he brought us to a shopping place which was not it but we hopped out anyway and decided to go in search of the internet. The address was found and after a wander around we eventually made it back to the hotel. So, after a day in which tiredness could have driven tempers to flare we have survived so far without incident.
We’re back in the hotel now chilling out for an hour or so before dinner and then we will hit the hay early enough I’d say. Pick-up tomorrow is at 8am so we will need to be rested. We are grouped with Carrigtwoill, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. One would expect the Cork lads to be strong. As for the other two, given the tournament is on in Dubai they will have everyone available i’d imagine. You see it in the European tournaments that home teams always perform best at their own tournament for this reason. With Abu Dhabi just up the road we would expect the same for them. Hopefully, we will be recovered from last nights travel and no-one will suffer any debilitating jet lag.
Finally, it really is unreal to be here. There is a great buzz amongst the lads and this is a trip so far-fetched, that it is unlikely ever to be repeated. We are looking forward to seeing Dubai in the next few days, I suspect it will be an unforgettable experience. For now though, we need to fill the bellies and get a good rest before we play ball tomorrow.
Our hope was to sleep on the four hour flight from Istanbul to Dubai. We achieved this with varying degrees of success. I had some big Dutch lad sitting next to me who took a keen interest in Gaelic Football and flung questions at me for the first half hour. Fortunately, the arrival of his dinner quietened him long enough for me to adjust my seat, throw the blanket over me and catch a bit of kip. Already we were getting our first taste of what Dubai would be like. The difference between the clientele on flight #1 and #2 was noticable with those on the latter decked out in the finest and most expensive clobber.
Once we hit the ground in U.A.E. (not Saudi Arabia for those of you who didn’t pay attention in Geography class) we were greeted by loads of funny looking lads in full white coat type costume. I was convinced they were the umpires for the tournament but was later informed that this is in fact some sort of local custom. Anyway, on through passport control and to get our bags, or not as it turned out. As we walked passed duty free we weighed up whether to avail of the superb alcohol deals, given the difficult with buying it in Dubai. So in we went and raided their supplies to build sufficient stock for the post-tournament sessions.
The hotel had a bus there to pick us up and it whipped us away quickly. Dubai is a bit surreal and you feel it instantly. Everything is written in Arabic & English and it has a weird East meets West thing going on. The sun was just coming up as we journeyed in towards the hotel and the cities giant skyscrapers were in full view. Their height and shapes grasp your attention easily. Fortunately, when we arrived in the hotel the rooms were ready, and even better, they were all on the executive floor. I’m in with Becky, Conor, Dec and Rochey. We have two twins and a double with a sizeable living room and kitchen with all the mod cons.
Lads seperated at this stage and some opted to get out and about quickly to try and keep themselves awake, whilst the rest opted for a couple of hours sleep. Those who slept rose around half evelen and met in the lobby. It was quickly consensed that the beach was the best option and with temperatures of 23 degrees why not. The beach is totally man made and goes on and on for ages. We found our spot (it wasn’t hard given how scarce people were) and lay down the towels before charging down the sand and plunging into the surprising cold Gulf Sea. A few heroes (Micheal, Olof and Rockey) decided to swim out to some buoys and back whilst myself, Colin, Conor and Dec splished and splashed in the shallower water!
As we dryed in the midday sun Micheal was bouncing around looking for someone to play with and Dec was moaning about his grumbling stomach. They disappeared for a few minutes and returned with a volleyball and guidance to the nearest court/pitch/whatever they call a beach volleyball patch. The first few games were spent finding our feet at this new and novel game before the Cork boys (Conor, myself and Micheal) challenged the Rest of Ireland (Rochey, Dec anc Colin) to a duel. They were lucky to score in the first game but to keep things interesting we took the foot off a little in the second. However, in the deciding game, they were not to be spared and they were dealt with in a cruel and efficient manner.
Of course, being carefree lads in a city that we don’t speak the language and have never visited before, no-one took the hotel address. That wasn’t actually the first problem, instead it was the complete lack of taxis coming our way. Eventually, after about forty five minutes, four of us hopped in with very hazy instructions about where to go and left the other three with the promise we would text them the address. I think we are staying in a district called Bur Dubai and our reference point for the taxi was a shopping centre we passed in the morning, but had only a kinda idea of the name. Anyway, he brought us to a shopping place which was not it but we hopped out anyway and decided to go in search of the internet. The address was found and after a wander around we eventually made it back to the hotel. So, after a day in which tiredness could have driven tempers to flare we have survived so far without incident.
We’re back in the hotel now chilling out for an hour or so before dinner and then we will hit the hay early enough I’d say. Pick-up tomorrow is at 8am so we will need to be rested. We are grouped with Carrigtwoill, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. One would expect the Cork lads to be strong. As for the other two, given the tournament is on in Dubai they will have everyone available i’d imagine. You see it in the European tournaments that home teams always perform best at their own tournament for this reason. With Abu Dhabi just up the road we would expect the same for them. Hopefully, we will be recovered from last nights travel and no-one will suffer any debilitating jet lag.
Finally, it really is unreal to be here. There is a great buzz amongst the lads and this is a trip so far-fetched, that it is unlikely ever to be repeated. We are looking forward to seeing Dubai in the next few days, I suspect it will be an unforgettable experience. For now though, we need to fill the bellies and get a good rest before we play ball tomorrow.
4 comments:
Desert safari Dubai once you visit Dubai Deserts you will defiantly visit it again.
Dhow cruise Dubai this is lovely place to visit.
Desert Safari Dubai is a perfect choice for the trip i like it.
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