Country #49 - Saudi Arabia Day 1

The Computer

Just to clarify, I do plan to actually enter Saudi Arabia before the end of my travels. I just counted this transit trip as the Guinness rules say that it is okay. But I have my visa, and I will be spending a few days in Riyadh in October or November of 2018. This post only focuses on my first visit and I will have a much more in depth post about my actual visit once it takes place. I look forward to visiting soon!

I had another great night and breakfast at Rove Hotel Trade Centre before spending my morning working on my blog at Rove. I had a long day (and night) to come and didn’t want to wear myself out trying to get out for an hour or so before my flight. I bid all of the awesome people at Rove Hotel Trade Centre farewell before taking the metro to Dubai Airport (DXB) to leave the UAE and head to Saudi Arabia. It’s a huge airport but as long as you know your terminal it is pretty simple to navigate.

The flight into Saudi Arabia was thankfully not a long one (that will be the flight out). I will be staying in the airport in Saudi Arabia which, according to Guinness, is within the rules. I would obviously prefer to go through immigration and get a passport stamp as I anticipate doing wherever possible, but unfortunately a visa of any kind here can cost U.S. citizens upwards of $850 if you have no connections to the country, which I obviously don’t. I was also glad to not have to deal with the Jeddah airport more than I already would as this past year it was voted the worst airport in the world - comforting, right?

Upon landing it was interesting to look out over the city. The most notable and completely unexpected thing that I saw? An Ikea. It was weird. When we landed it took a while for the bus to take us to the airport, and upon arrival in the airport I found the transit desk. I then went through a weird transit lounge and out the other side to go back through security. It was definitely my strangest security screening of all time. I have been in separate lines for women before but here the women are taken into a separate room. The screening is then performed by women at least and it didn’t take a while and was basically just a TSA equivalent pat down.

After security I ended up in duty free which was pretty barren but interesting to see what was there. I had a picture taken in duty free (the only place I could find a sign with the airport’s name on it) and then walked around the tiny terminal. There was a Baskin Robbins and a few other small stores. What is so strange to me about this airport is how wealthy of a country Saudi Arabia is to have such a depressing major international hub, but oh well. There are a lot of strange things about this country and this is the least of their worries I’m sure.

I then found a place to sit in the packed terminal before heading to my gate for London. I met two really cool women who were from Dubai (but actually Nigerian) who I got to be my witnesses for the country. I was worried about finding someone who spoke English but it wasn’t too much of an issue! They were really interesting to talk to, especially during the really long wait to check our computers. Yes, I said check our computers..

This has been a thing for a year or so now on flights from the Middle East and Africa to countries like the U.K. and U.S. ever since a plane blew up in Egypt. I’m not exactly sure how checking the computers would help if one were to blow up but oh well. It took forever which was annoying because the definitely do this every day. There was just a lot of waiting before finally, they checked both my computer and iPad in a tiny cushioned box, along with everyone else's’ on the flight.

I finally boarded and really lucked out - I had an exit row seat, which I had chosen for free in the online check-in, but it was one with a huge gap in front of it. It was a six hour flight to London so I was looking for any help that I could get as far as sleep goes. I got maybe two or three hours of very uncomfortable sleep before arriving at Heathrow very early in the morning. I won’t have long in London, but hopefully enough to at least do something!

49 countries down, 147 to go.

Read about my second day in Saudi Arabia here.

Country #48 - United Arab Emirates Day 2

The Penguins

I got a great night's sleep last night at Rove Hotel Trade Centre and really enjoyed the huge breakfast and tons of options for breakfast this morning! I had an omelette before heading out for another day in Dubai, UAE. My main stop for the day was the Mall of the Emirates because Dubai doesn’t need just one mega-mall, but two. I took the metro from my hotel all the way there and when I got there I walked around for a little bit before the main attraction - Ski Dubai!

Ski Dubai is the tourist of tourist attractions but I don’t care because it was amazing and everything in Dubai is touristy. It is basically an entire ski slope and other fun ski attractions inside of a mall. And it was incredible. I don’t like skiing so that’s not why I was there. My goal was to meet the Ski Dubai penguins! It was really expensive ($90) for my day at Ski Dubai but totally worth it, especially since I have spent very little on attractions this trip. The $90 got me in to meet the penguins, but it also allowed me to do all of the fun activities (besides skiing) inside Ski Dubai and I definitely took advantage of it!

I’ll start from the beginning, though. I waited in the penguin waiting area along with a family from Iran and two girls from China. We watched an adorable penguin instructional video before meeting the penguin trainer and then, of course, meeting the penguins. They were so cute and honestly just pretty hilarious! The first ones that we met were the Emperor penguins, the second largest type of penguin. They were very cute and they were the ones you could meet and pet. One of them was in training and it was adorable watching the penguin learn how to meet people. Their feathers felt like velvet and it was just an awesome experience. Also, the mom from Iran was hilariously afraid of them (in a funny way) and refused to touch them so they took a group picture with the mom like ten feet away - it was fantastic.

The second penguins that we met were the Gentoo penguins. They are smaller and much faster than the Emperor penguins. They were so fun to watch run around and they even played with baby toys! You couldn’t pet the Gentoo because they were so much more active but they were still cool to watch and learn about. I got pictures with all of the penguins and that is where Ski Dubai really makes their money. I spent $50 on two pictures - and it would have been $70 but the girl at the checkout counter felt so bad for me struggling to decide between the two that she let me use her employee discount which was so sweet and super helpful because I really could not decide.

After meeting the penguins I had an incredible rest of the day at Ski Dubai. I spent three more hours there! My favorite thing was the snow tubing - they would spin you around down a huge hill and it was so much fun (remember, I’m from Alabama where we have literally zero snow ever). I also really loved the zorb! A zorb is a giant, inflatable ball that you get inside and ride down the snow in. I have always wanted to zorb and it was so cool! I also had fun doing the Snow Bullet slide, the snow luge, and just riding the ski lift to see all of Ski Dubai. The last thing that I did was watch the penguins put on a little informational show which was, of course, adorable.

I had an amazing time at Ski Dubai, with my only complaint being the prices. After finishing my great day I headed just next door inside of Mall of the Emirates to Shake Shack. I know, very unoriginal, but I was starving (it was after 3:00pm) and I wanted their hot chocolate. I scarfed down my favorite fast food burger and then walked around the mall while drinking my hot chocolate. Afterwards, I took the metro to my next stop, the Dubai Marina. Going from below freezing to over one hundred degrees wasn’t the most enjoyable experience (it made my fingers hurt like crazy) but that’s Dubai for you!

The Dubai Marina was amazing to walk around and see the huge buildings and boats. Some of the buildings are really unique and I enjoyed just walking around the area. I ended up making my way to the Dubai Marriott Harbour Hotel & Suites as this is the only place that you can get a good view of the infamous Palm Islands. I made it up to the restaurant and ordered just a Sprite to be able to watch the sunset over The Palm. It is a pretty incredible man-made thing to see a palm tree figure in the ocean and is incredibly expensive to stay (or live) there. I was really glad to be able to see it from above!

After a bit, I made my way back down and to the metro to head back to Rove Hotel Trade Centre. It was a full day filled with some of Dubai’s highlights and I really enjoyed every second of it. I’m sad to be leaving Dubai tomorrow but am so glad that I was finally able to visit this incredible (and very hot) city - I would love to come back and explore more of the United Arab Emirates some day!

48 countries down, 148 to go.

Read about my first day in the United Arab Emirates here.

To learn more about Rove Hotel Trade Centre click here.

Country #48 - United Arab Emirates Day 1

The Mall and Fountain

After a long few days of travel, I’m so excited to be heading to Dubai, United Arab Emirates today! Dubai has been near the top of my travel bucket list for a long time and I’m so excited to have two whole days to explore it. I had a pretty early flight out of Almaty, Kazakhstan and luckily the immigration line took a lot less time this time through. I arrived around 10:00am and immigration and customs in Dubai (DXB) were a breeze. I found the metro easily in my terminal and took it to my hotel, Rove Hotel Trade Centre.

The metro was a very interesting experience because the front two cars are reserved specifically for women and children. I’d never seen this before but it was honestly really nice mainly because we usually had much more space than the guys did! The metro was also really cool in that it runs without a person driving it. I arrived at my metro stop in no time and had a ten-minute walk to my hotel - no big deal, right? Nope. It was so hot. Like, we’re talking 105-110 degrees Fahrenheit. With my luggage and still in warm clothes - it was killer.

I arrived way too out of breath where I was greeted by Maria, Yolisa, and Bohdan. They were all so cool, about my age, and from all over the world! It was great talking to them about my trip for a while when I arrived and then Bohdan helped me with my bags. I cannot thank Rove Hotel Trade Centre enough for an incredible stay - it was absolutely perfect from start to finish in every way! My room was so nice and I loved the aesthetic of the entire hotel. I especially loved the room decor and the floor to ceiling window that looked out over the city! Once in my room, I fell asleep for about an hour and it was much needed to help me get through the day.

After my quick nap, I set out to explore Dubai! Today my goal was to visit Dubai Mall, Dubai Fountain, and Burj Khalifa. I started by taking the metro (in now cooler clothes) to Dubai Mall. The walkway from the metro to the mall itself was over fifteen minutes of an elevated air-conditioned walkway. It seemed like it was never going to end but I wasn’t going to complain thanks to the air conditioning. When I arrived at the mall I found a map and planned out my visit.

I wanted to see all of the main points in the mall (the atriums, waterfall, designer section, the aquarium, etc.) and it would be no easy feat. The walk throughout the whole mall took about two hours and was exhausting. One of the coolest spots was the Apple store (of course) which was the only shop with a huge terrace overlooking the Dubai Fountain and Burj Khalifa. It took me forever to find a place to eat (which seems ironic but it was just because I was tired and therefore unnecessarily picky) but I eventually found an Italian spot with a view of the indoor waterfall.

After eating a much needed full meal I found a really cool spot for dessert - Syrian ice cream! It was so uniquely made (basically it was rolled up and then they put the roll in a cone) and it was so tasty. Who knew! Afterwards, I walked along the designer row which was pretty empty compared to the rest of the mall but really beautiful (in terms of malls). I then made my way outside to see Dubai Fountain! The fountain was designed by the same guy who designed the one at the Bellagio in Vegas and supposedly the fountain is visible from space.

I was absolutely blown away by the first show! It was just so cool - I’ll add a video below to help show just how amazing it was. I loved it and watched multiple times over the next few hours - it got even better once it gets dark outside and the lighting started! It happened every fifteen to thirty minutes and each time it was synched to a different song. It was so cool to see and if you ever visit Dubai it should be at the top of your list!

After watching multiple times I headed back into the mall to make my way up Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world! I had already seen the building tons today as it is situated right outside of Dubai Mall and is a backdrop for Dubai Fountain (and it’s obviously hard to miss) but it was really cool to visit the inside. What amazed me most was probably how fast the elevator was (it took under a minute to get to the top) and how much you can see that Dubai really is in the middle of nowhere (surrounded by water and desert). I also enjoyed learning about how Burj Khalifa was built and how many countries (including many U.S. companies) worked together to make it possible. My absolute favorite part, though, was seeing the fountain show from above! It was so cool to see it from such a unique perspective, especially after having seen it on the ground first.

After visiting Burj Khalifa I was entirely exhausted. I made my way back to the metro and back to the hotel where I promptly crashed. I now know that it is entirely possible to walk over ten miles visiting a mall because that’s what I did today. Totally worth it, though - the mall was nice to see but Dubai Fountain and Burj Khalifa alone have already made my time in Dubai amazing!

48 countries down, 148 to go.

Read about my second day in the United Arab Emirates here.

To learn more about Rove Hotel Trade Centre click here.

Country #47 - Kazakhstan

The Loft

My flight to Kazakhstan was uneventful and I arrived unfortunately too late to actually see any of Almaty.  It was a bummer but honestly I’m just going to keep blaming the flight schedule for Central Asia - it is so poorly set up it is almost comical. I took a taxi from the airport to Saraichik Hotel. It was a weird taxi ride as the driver stopped and picked up another rider along the way to make an extra fare, but I was not a fan of this because whenever you hear of a taxi robbery happening this is how it starts. However, the passenger was a young guy (probably fifteen) and he was dropped off about ten minutes later so it was never uncomfortable.

Thankfully there were no additional passengers the rest of the drive and my taxi driver was very nice even though he was unable to speak English. When I arrived at the hotel I checked into my room which I was very surprised to find had a loft in it. It was a different layout for sure and definitely not what I was expecting in Kazakhstan! I spent the rest of the day (it was about 7:00pm at this point) working on emails and blogs and just resting which was very nice. Amazingly enough I had really great wifi which I definitely wasn’t expecting. It was also pretty entertaining to flip through the TV channels - the only things in English were a few music video channels!

Of all of the Stans I think I am most disappointed to not be able to see more of Kazakhstan. But the good news is that, of all of them, it is the easiest to get to and the one I would be most likely to visit again in the future. I am very glad to be done with Central Asia for now and to be headed to a city that has been at the top of my bucket list for a long time tomorrow: Dubai!

47 countries down, 149 to go.

Country #46 - Uzbekistan

The Immigration Line

When I landed back in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan I had another layover, this time of three hours. Thankfully it was not as painfully long as my first layover here. It was pretty uneventful other than finding some snacks. I had to make one more connection before being done with travel for the night and I was getting painfully tired. Going on just a few hours of airplane sleep this was going to be my fourth flight of the day.

The flight was to Almaty, Kazakhstan which I will be headed back through tomorrow for longer than a layover. I fell asleep instantly and only woke up when the plane landed (which is a pretty startling feeling). I had two hours for this connection. The bus to take us to the airport took quite some time but then immigration was a breeze. I easily checked in my bag but then the real waiting began. The wait to go through immigration on my outbound flight was painfully slow. Like, over an hour of standing.

It was incredibly inefficient. Lines would open and close randomly and I always ended up stuck in the slow line no matter what. By this point, I was delusionally tired (I forgot what country I was in for a solid five minutes). The airport experience got no better when I paid for the most expensive airport food of my life. I literally just bought two bottles of water and a packaged Belgian waffle and it was the equivalent of $14. I feel like there is no need to explain how insane that is. I had no other option though as I forgot to take a protein bar out of my checked bag and I hadn’t eaten a meal all day. Funnily enough (but not so funny after I had just spent $14) they served a small meal on the flight which was much appreciated as I didn’t expect it on such a short flight.

I fell asleep for the remainder of the flight and awoke to the most depressing immigration experience of my entire life. I hope I never again encounter anything like immigration at Tashkent airport - it was madness. There are no lines so you are basically in a giant mess of people trying to work your way up to an immigration booth. There are only a few booths and it seems to take forever, especially when you’re exhausted. It was the absolute last thing that I needed. It took about an hour of being crowded around people to finally have my turn which was very quick. I can’t understand how they don’t have a better system - like literally just a line would save everyone a major headache. And it’s not like this was just a thing for my flight - I had read the horror stories beforehand and they definitely proved to be true.

Luckily I had booked a cab through my hotel so I didn’t have to worry about being scammed and the driver was waiting when I finally made it out. It was a long walk to the car but at that point I didn’t care - I just needed to get to the hotel. I stayed at Hotel Grand Art which was a safe inexpensive place for an overnight stay. I fell asleep almost instantly and am so glad I don’t have a red eye in the morning.

The Guards

I was so glad to be able to sleep last night it’s not even funny. After a whirlwind day and a half of traveling to five countries on very limited sleep, last night was much needed. After a good nights sleep I had a much better day filled with only one flight (thank goodness!). It started by meeting the sweet staff at Hotel Grand Art who wanted to take a picture with me. They called me a taxi and wished me good luck before I headed back to the airport. The thing that I noticed most about Uzbekistan, both last night and today, is the guards positioned outside of every building. It was very strange to see and I’m not quite sure what it’s about even after a Google search. But they were at every building all the way to and from the airport.

Immigration was annoying if only for the fact that my visa was so expensive for no reason. $160 and I had to use it on this exact set of dates (if you’re wondering why I’m suddenly in the Middle East, this is why). Actual immigration at the airport was fine, but I didn’t want to tell the nice lady that no, I wouldn’t be back until $160 gets me more than a one day visa to a country that could probably use any tourism it could get.

The most exciting part of my day (sadly) was finally eating a real meal for the first time in almost forty-eight hours. I had been eating but nothing substantial. I found a grilled chicken sandwich and was so excited for it. The girl at the restaurant was very sweet and helpful! After my meal I boarded my flight to Almaty, Kazakhstan where I would be spending the night.

46 countries down, 150 to go.