Country #72 - Finland

The Snow

This morning my mom and I, unfortunately, had to say goodbye to Amsterdam after a perfect two days. It was a really early morning at that, as our flight from Amsterdam to Helsinki was at 7am. We took an Uber to the train station (because transit was not running yet) and then took a quick train to the airport. Now that we are in the Schengen Zone we didn’t have to go through immigration so the process at the airport was really simple. It wasn’t too long of a flight thank goodness, but we made a new friend on the flight! My mom chatted more than me but Ralph talked with us about lots of different things. Feel free to check out his blog (ralphslond.com)! You never know what kind of cool people you will meet on an airplane.

After we landed we took the train into Helsinki. It is super simple and is actually one of the first places that I that I travelled on my own when I studied abroad, so it definitely holds a special little place for me. I loved my last visit to Helsinki and was really looking forward to today! We were in the city in about twenty minutes and stored our luggage in the lockers in the Helsinki central train station. Our next stop was to eat lunch at a great little burger spot near the station called Friends & Brgrs. It was a great place to just look out at the city, which was especially interesting today because it was Finland’s 100th anniversary of Independence! We had no idea until we were leaving Amsterdam that today was so important in Finland, but hoped that it would make the day even more interesting!

After a filling lunch, we made our way to our first stop of the day, to try and find my mom a new memory card for her camera because hers had broken. We quickly found out, however, that 100 years of independence means that literally every store is closed. Restaurants and most tourist sites tended to be open though! Our first actual stop of the day, then, was the Kamppi Chapel of Silence. Kampii Chapel is a spiritual building (but not technically a church) that is open to everyone. The coolest part about it is that is just open for anyone to come in and sit and think, and it completely cuts off all outside noise from the busy square just right outside. It is also a really uniquely designed building, which makes sense when you learn that it was built as part of the World Design Capital program in 2012.

After enjoying the silence we made our way to Kissima, Helsinki’s Modern Art Museum, and honestly one of the best modern art museums I’ve been to! What is so impressive is that both times I have been to Kissima it has been entirely different, but both times it has been incredibly innovative and insightful. This time was especially cool because the current exhibits focused on technology and art. If you ever find yourself in Helsinki this museum is a must see! What was also pretty funny was that while we were in the museum we saw a van accidentally run into a statue outside. I say run into, but it was more like a gentle tap. That gentle tap, though, caused a giant leak in the van, and as we progressed through the museum the scene outside progressed from the guy in the van realizing he screwed up to the police and a tow truck on the scene.

After Kissima we headed over towards Helsinki Cathedral, one of the most iconic spots in Helsinki. I love how giant and imposing the church is, but also how simple and beautiful it is! My visit this time stood in stark contrast to last – there was absolutely no one there when I visited last February, but this time there were crowds everywhere due to the adorable Christmas market! It was truly the perfect setting for a Christmas market, right in front of the incredible Helsinki Cathedral. The stalls were all very original and local which I really appreciated. We really enjoyed walking through all of them, and I was very excited to find that Regatta Café, one of my favorite stops on my last trip to Helsinki, had a stall as well! It is a cozy little café on the edge of a tiny pond out of the center of the city so we didn’t have enough time to see it today, but the stall was definitely a good way to make up for that! We had some tasty (and warm) hot chocolate and a great plum pastry as well.

Once we finished at the market we then walked over to the Market Square area which was filled with people for the Independence Day celebrations. There were one hundred Finnish flags set up which was really cool, and the area in general is a great one because it is right on the water. Our last stop of the day was to walk up Esplanadi, which is sort of Helsinki’s high street and was adorably decorated for Christmas. In fact, Helsinki killed it with the Christmas decorations. It felt like there were beautiful street decorations around every corner, and each street was unique. It was great! After walking down Esplanadi and passing by Stockmann department store to look at their great window decorations, we then headed back to the central station to get our bags and buy a few snacks.

From the central station, we took the tram straight to the West Terminal, where our ferry/cruise (I’m still not quite sure what it would be classified as) was leaving from. We are taking the cruise from Helsinki to St. Petersburg, Russia, and then back again in two days. The exciting part about doing St. Petersburg this way is that we don’t need to get a Russian visa, which can be about $300. Taking this ferry (the Moby/SPL line) saved us cost and also was not too bad on time as both rides we would be sleeping overnight. We checked in and received our boarding card/room key, arrival card, and departure card. We then walked up to board the boat and headed to our room. It was tiny, but I’m glad we at least splurged to not have the beds right on top of one another! The room felt kind of like a hostel level accommodation, but we did have our own small bathroom at least, and the room was clean.

We got settled in our tiny space before heading up to explore the boat. There were a few restaurants, a casino, lounge, sauna, movie theater, and a few other amenities. We decided to eat pizza and were able to watch as Helsinki faded away into the distance, as did my cell service. We were soon in the middle of absolute nowhere (technically the Gulf of Finland), and after we finished eating we headed back down to our room. We both fell asleep really early as it had been such a long day and we were exhausted. I’m hoping to get a good night’s sleep on the boat before we hit the ground running in St. Petersburg in the morning!

72 countries down, 124 to go.

Country #71 - Netherlands Day 2

The Art

I had a fantastic night’s sleep before getting ready and having an equally fantastic breakfast! My mom and I had breakfast at our hotel, Ambassade Hotel, and had a view right out the window of the canals. I had a tasty omelette, warm chocolate crepe, and lots of other foods from the buffet. It was a great start to our full day in the Netherlands! After eating we headed to the lobby to meet Eelco, the reservations manager of the hotel. We had such a great conversation and learned so much about both the Ambassade Hotel and its history as well as Amsterdam. I am so glad to have been able to stay in such an interesting and historic hotel - if you want to learn more about my stay head over to the Ambassade Hotel page of my site.

After our meeting, we set out for the day! Our first stop was a hidden courtyard near our hotel, and then we headed to see the Nine Streets in the daylight. They were beautiful last night but are far more picturesque once the sun is up. We saw tons of cute shops before making our way towards Museumplein, the area of Amsterdam filled with, you guessed it, museums! My mom did the Van Gogh museum on her own since I just did it last year, and while she did that I made my way to one of the most beautiful spots in Amsterdam, Vondelpark. Vondelpark is a giant, relaxing, and beautiful park in the heart of Amsterdam, and I really enjoy just taking time to walk through and enjoy it. After an hour I made my way back to meet up with my mom.

Our next stop was a new one for me in Amsterdam - the Moco Museum. The Moco Museum features art by two artists only, Banksy and Roy Liechtenstein. It was definitely a change of pace as far as museums go and I absolutely loved it. It was so interesting to see so much of Banksy's art in one place as you don’t even normally see it in museums. It was also a very informative museum as far as learning about the inspiration behind many of Banksy's iconic works which I really appreciated. After finishing Moco Museum relatively quickly (it’s really small) we made our way to Stedelijk, Amsterdam’s modern art museum.

Stedelijk was one of my favorite museums on my last visit, but what was so incredible about my visit this time was that the entire museum was completely different than last time, and it had only been a year! It was still a great museum, though, and we saw lots of interesting pieces before heading back outside to Museumplein, where we walked to take a picture of the infamous I Amsterdam sign. From here we took the tram over to Albert Cuyp Market, which was another new experience for me.

Albert Cuyp Market was a great street with tons of vendors. We had two of the best stroopwafels ever (definitely visit just for the stroopwafels) and some very tasty fries. We walked through the market pretty quickly before heading back towards the Nine Streets to buy a small print that was in a store that had been closed earlier in the day. We then stopped by the flower market (Bloemenmarkt) where we got a few tulip bulbs to take home. Our next stop was then back by Van Stapele Koekmakerij to stock up on more cookies before leaving Amsterdam. If my last post didn’t convince you maybe this one will - they are literally the best cookies in the world and there is no argument and you have to go if you ever visit Amsterdam. The lady at the register even remembered us from the day before! We then headed back to our hotel to warm up for a bit.

We decided to do a night cruise to see the Amsterdam Light Festival, giving us only a little time to grab a small bite to eat beforehand. We decided to try The Lebanese Sajeria, a small spot that was right outside of our hotel and smelled amazing every time we walked by. It was a great decision because the food tasted as good as it smelled! We split a really yummy Manouse flatbread before catching our boat around the canals.

The light tour was so cool! I highly recommend visiting Amsterdam during The Amsterdam Light Festival because it was so cool to see an art exhibition based on light from the water. After about an hour and a half on the water, we arrived back and made our way back to Ambassade Hotel to get a good night’s sleep before an early morning heading to Helsinki, Finland tomorrow!

71 countries down, 125 to go.

Read about my first day in the Netherlands here.

Read about my third day in the Netherlands here.

To learn more about Ambassade Hotel click here.

Country #71 - Netherlands Day 1

The NYC Lights

Today was an early one, but it’s exciting because it is the start of my two week Europe trip with my mom! I’m really looking forward to having her join me for two weeks in Christmas-y Europe. We’ll be going all over, including to the Netherlands, Finland, Russia, Denmark, Belgium, the Czech Republic, and Hungary. Our first stop is in the Netherlands (Amsterdam, specifically), but to get there we have to fly through both New York and Dublin.

We drove three hours to Atlanta where we had an 11am flight, which meant we had to leave by 6am. We were running a bit late but thanks to my dad’s quick driving ended up making it without having to run to our gate, thank goodness. I was pretty annoyed with United, though, as they made us check our carry on bags through claiming there was no space left in the overhead bins. When we got on the plane though there was still plenty of space! The flight seemed really short and our bags arrived safely in New York as well. I also found out mid-flight that Alabama would be headed to the college football playoff, so that was some exciting 37,000-foot news!

When we landed we met my Aunt Dana outside. We would be spending the day with her in NYC before departing late in the evening. There was very little traffic on our drive into the city, and after exiting the Lincoln tunnel we parked without a hassle and then took the subway towards our first stop: food! On the way to eat we stopped in the MOMA design store and walked up a small portion of 5th avenue, glimpsing the beautiful lights for the first time. We were soon at the Plaza Food Hall, one of my favorite places to eat in New York as it’s really close to where I worked last summer. I really love the pasta place there, Ora Di Pasta, which is where we decided to eat. I had my favorite, the four-cheese alfredo ravioli! We met some nice ladies from Florida sitting next to us, and after we finished we headed back out to enjoy all of the Christmas lights and window decorations.

It was so insanely crowded (much more than it ever was during the summer), but we were still able to see a lot. My favorite decorations were probably Tiffany, Burberry, and Cartier, and the best indoor decorations were Bergdorf Goodman and Saks. Saks also probably had the best lights but we didn’t realize until after we left that we needed to wait to see them turned on. The windows were cool too, though! We stopped in St. Patrick’s church real quick as well (it is beautiful and definitely worth stepping inside if you ever find yourself in New York) and then made our way across the street to 30 Rock to see the giant tree. It was, indeed, giant, and also was a pretty chubby tree. It was wall-to-wall people and we quickly made our way through to catch a cab back to our car on the other side.

We drove up the west side highway, out of the city, and on towards Newburgh where we would be flying out of. We made a quick stop at Best Buy and to see my Uncle Tom who had some chicken fingers waiting for us at a small restaurant in the town where they live right near Newburgh, Cornwall-on-Hudson. We ate quickly and then headed on to the airport. It was a great day taking a quick visit through the city and visiting with Aunt Dana as well.

It took forever to check-in for our flight, and I had my first ever bad experience with Norwegian Air (which is good because I fly them all of the time). Our bag was .2 kg overweight and they refused to let us carry it on, or to let us take anything out of it, which I have never in my life seen before. I was livid. It didn’t cost anything to check it through, but we have a dangerously short layover when we arrive in Dublin and having to wait on our bags honestly could make us miss our connection. Funny how my first bad experience with Norwegian ever was dealing with US-based gate agents, right?

The Canals

Our flight to Dublin was almost completely full and we had no window seat, only a middle and an aisle. The flight was only six hours and by some sort of miracle, I slept more than I almost ever do on international flights, even without a window seat! I guess I was just exhausted from only getting a few hours of sleep before having to get up so early today, but I truly was amazed. When we landed in Dublin it was off to the races to catch our next flight. We were changing airlines and only had an hour and a half because our flight was late on top of already having such a short amount of time. We raced to immigration where the line took about twenty minutes and then had to wait on our bags for another ten minutes (see? I had a right to be upset back in New York).

We had fifty minutes to make our flight at this point. We were flying Ryanair so we had to go to the gate to have them stamp our tickets since we are not from the EU - they call this a visa check but I call it a waste of time because literally no other airline requires it. We then went through security where our line ended up being the slowest and both of my bags were flagged for extra screening, of course. We now only had about ten minutes until boarding supposedly closed, but with European airlines, especially Ryanair, the boarding pass times can be exaggerated. However, they could also be accurate every now and then, so it is always best to play it extremely safe.

My mom went on to the gate to tell them that I was coming, and I had to run a good long ways after waiting ten minutes for my bags. Dripping sweat I made it to what seemed like the farthest away gate with only a few people left boarding. It was a miracle - we made it! It was a pretty quick flight and seemed almost over by the time we received the food that we ordered as we had yet to eat today.

When we arrived in Amsterdam immigration was simple and we then made our way to the train into the city. We bought our tickets at the terminal for about five euros and the ride itself took about twenty minutes. When we arrived we walked across the street from the train station to the GVB Tickets & Information office to buy our tram passes for two days. We then took the tram two stops to head to our hotel, Ambassade Hotel. It was a two-minute walk from the tram and boy, is it incredible!

We were greeted by Eelco, the reservations manager, and that was just the start to our amazing stay. Ambassade Hotel sits right on a canal and is such a cool place. Our room was beautiful with a canal view, amazing interior, and very cosy bed. Oh, and the best shower ever! The hotel itself has a stunning library that features over 4,000 books. And get this: they are all signed by the author, and every single author had stayed at or been to the hotel!  And we are talking some really famous authors, too. There is also a lot of art throughout the hotel which I especially loved.

After checking in, showering, and resting for a bit we then headed out for a few hours. We walked around the Nine Streets area, one of my favorite parts of Amsterdam that happens to be where Ambassade Hotel is located. It is filled with really cool shops and is so picturesque. It was a beautiful night and really enjoyable to walk around. Our first stop was an obvious one: the absolute, indisputable, greatest cookie shop in the entire world, Van Stapele Koekmakerij! I am not exaggerating people, they are the best. Dark chocolate cookie, white chocolate and chocolate chip middle, served straight out of the oven still piping hot. I have been dreaming about them since last being in Amsterdam a year and a half ago, and they are still every bit as good. I would literally fly across the Atlantic just for these cookies. So I think it goes without saying, but if you are ever in Amsterdam, definitely make the stop. There might be a line out the door but it is always worth it (and we were lucky enough not to have a line!).

After the cookies we had dinner at Eetcafe Singel 404. I had a tasty bacon, chicken, and cheese sandwich. It was a really cute little spot and we had a great view out the window. After dinner we went into a few shops, walked around a bit longer, and then visited the Cheese Museum. It is really just a cheese shop (with tons of free samples) with a small museum in the bottom, but it is such a happy little store and I recommend it as well. The coolest part about walking around, though, was all of the Christmas lights! They make an already beautiful city even better. When we walked back we stopped by the Anne Frank house. I did this on my last visit and I highly recommend it. It is such an interesting and well-done museum!

Afterwards, we headed to Dam Square, which is where the Royal Palace is located. We walked around for a few minutes and then headed into de Bijenkorf, which is a department store similar to a Saks or Harrods. It was nice and warm and enjoyable to walk through all of the cool floors and to see the Christmas windows and all of the Christmas decorations. By this point, we were getting pretty tired and decided to head back to our hotel to get a much needed good night's sleep. It was a crazy forty-eight hours, but I am so glad to be back in Europe and back in Amsterdam! We have a whole nother day to explore tomorrow and I am really looking forward to it.

71 countries down, 125 to go.

Read about my second day in the Netherlands here.

To learn more about Ambassade Hotel click here.

Country #70 - Macedonia

The Statues

I had a great (though early) breakfast at Dunes Hotel Apartments before leaving Dubai, UAE to begin the trip headed back west. I flew out of Dubai at 9am and had a longer than expected flight to Skopje, Macedonia. I had no idea that the flight would be six hours! Luckily I had the entire row to myself, though, and was able to sleep for half of the flight. When I arrived in Skopje around noon I took the transfer bus into the city and then walked about ten minutes to my hotel, Hotel De KOKA. I was greeted by the kind front desk staff and given a small but very nice room in the heart of the city. It was perfect for my short stay, and I cannot thank Hotel De KOKA enough for everything!

By the time I set out for my day in Skopje it was already 2pm. Luckily, though, the town is not huge so I was still able to see a lot! My first stop was located right near Hotel De KOKA, the famous Old Bazar. The tiny winding streets and shops were cool to walk through and the historic architecture was really interesting to see. After walking through for a bit I made my way towards the heart of the city by crossing the Stone Bridge. The Stone Bridge was where I saw the first of the many statues scattered throughout Skopje. The giant Alexander the Great statue that can be seen when crossing the Stone Bridge in the heart of the Macedonia Square is probably the best example of the statues dotting the city - it is giant!

The area around the Alexander the Great statue was really nice. From the water and the beautiful Museum of Archeology building to the beautiful architecture of the surrounding buildings, it was my favorite part of the city. From there I walked to what I found most interesting in Skopje, the Memorial House of Mother Teresa. I had no idea that Mother Teresa was born in Skopje and it was a really great, free, and tiny museum about her life. I really enjoyed reading about her life and the museum took less than fifteen minutes to see everything. The house was really quaint and informative and I really enjoyed my visit!

From the museum, I walked back towards Macedonia Square where I ate at Pelister Restaurant. I had some really tasty ricotta stuffed bread followed by some much needed lasagna. The food was fantastic and I really enjoyed the restaurant for the view out on the square. After dinner, I made my way back to my hotel by way of the Art Bridge. It was so cool! The entire bridge was filled with statues and was all lit up as it was now getting dark outside.

I arrived back at Hotel De KOKA around 5pm and was asleep by 8pm as I was so tired and knew I would have to wake up at 4am the next morning. It was a great short stay in Skopje and I’m really glad I was able to see the highlights of the city!

The Thanksgiving Travel

I woke up at 4am and took a taxi to the Skopje, Macedonia airport as the shuttle bus was not running regularly so early in the morning. I slept okay but was really dreading today as I have a bunch of really quick flight connections to make. I even dreamed that I missed my connection in Belgium! The flight from Skopje to Brussels CRL airport was easy but then the fun set in - I had to transfer from CRL to BRU airport in Brussels in an hour.

I lucked out and had a seat in the second row of the plane. I was able to then rush to immigration and then run from immigration to the shuttle bus that would take me to the main Brussels train station. This was my biggest concern as the buses ran only every thirty minutes, but I made it (dripping sweat) with three minutes to spare! When I arrived at the train station I caught a train to the airport (that was, of course, delayed). However, when I got to the airport there was still such a long line at the check-in counter that I immediately knew that I would be fine and would definitely make it back to the US!

I was really annoyed at check-in, though, by the new rules in place regarding travel to the US. Every airline implements them differently, and everyone, regardless of nationality, must deal with them to fly to the US. My questioning was fine and super basic (did you pack your own bag, blah, blah, blah) but it was the couple in front of me’s questioning that made me quite angry. They were a married couple - the husband was from Florida and the wife from Holland, and they were maybe two or three years older than me. They live in the Netherlands but were traveling to the US for a few weeks for the holidays. She didn’t yet have a return ticket because legally she could enter the country for three months. Honestly, I don’t know if I’ve ever bought a plane ticket three months out! Anyways, they told her (and many others on my flight) that if they did not purchase a return ticket on the spot that they would not be able to fly.

It was absolutely insane! They were very smart and bought a $50 ticket to the Bahamas, but no one should have to deal with having this sprung on them when checking in for a flight. This new rule is ineffective at best (if you’re breaking the law I don’t think you’re going to fess up to a gate agent) and greatly deterring US tourism at worst. If the rules were well implemented and people knew about them that would be one thing, but to just spring them on people with no warning was harsh and upsetting. I would hate to be put in that situation! And honestly, I would just buy a refundable plane ticket and then cancel it once I arrived. It is a system that is easily outsmarted and I would consider just political BS.

Anyways, to get off of my soapbox, I boarded my flight and had a long, ten and a half hours ahead of me to Miami. I slept for about three and spend the rest watching movies and working on the blog. When I arrived in Miami I was greeted with the unfortunate news that the flight I was planning to use a family pass to fly home on had filled up in the past ten hours. I’ve said it before (many times) and I’ll say it again - using a pass can be the best but can also quite easily be the worst, especially when travelling around Thanksgiving. I had to scramble with the help of my dad to search for last minute connection options to just get me to the state of Alabama.

I ended up flying from Miami to Charlotte and then from Charlotte to Huntsville, but it was definitely a stress-filled few hours. There were a few times I thought I would be sleeping in either airport overnight! Luckily, though, I made it home and just in time for Thanksgiving. I’m not going to lie, this trip on the whole was a bit more stressful than most. Whether due to the short flight connections or a few stressful destinations, I’m glad to have this one behind me. It was also incredible, though, and I had a great time seeing some of the most amazing sights in the world. I wouldn’t trade the travel, no matter how stressful, for anything, and am so excited for my next trip: I’m headed back to Europe around Christmas, and this time my mom is joining along!

70 countries down, 126 to go.

To learn more about Hotel De KOKA click here.

Country #69 - Afghanistan

The Stressful Country

I was able to sleep in a bit this morning but it definitely was not a very restful sleep. The most stressful country of my trip so far was today, and I was worried about making the flights and finding my witnesses with enough time to spare. I headed to the airport four hours early because the New Delhi, India airport is infamous for taking a while to get through. Also, you have to have proof of your flight to even be allowed inside of the terminal.

When standing in line for my ticket I could tell I was getting a few funny looks - I was pretty self-aware, too, that I didn’t fit the bill of a normal passenger to Afghanistan. I was given my ticket, though, and made my way to immigration and security which were fine but a bit time-consuming. I then had Dominos for lunch because I wouldn’t be eating again for a while and wanted to have a large but relatively inexpensive meal. Also, there were very few options in the New Delhi airport when it came to food.

At my gate, I was again aware of how out of place that I was. Thanks to the guys who looked like backpackers for sticking out more than me, though. My time in the Afghanistan airport was fine but I don’t think it is currently an ideal backpacking destination. Anyways, the flight was a little delayed which stressed me out as I was already going to have a tight window to transit through the country. Eventually we boarded, though, and I luckily had a seat close to the exit so I could be off the plane quickly when we landed. Upon descent into the country, I was amazed by how beautiful the country was as there were tons of snow covered mountains everywhere.

It was a two and a half hour flight and upon landing immigration was a breeze. I had no idea what to expect but I guess they likely do get quite a few Americans through the airport. So while it was new to me and I definitely stuck out on my flight, I’m sure the airport does actually see quite a few people like me (though if I had to guess, probably not too many solo women).

I exited the airport briefly and then made my way back to departures. The security screening for women upon entering the airport consisted of a pat down but I actually really enjoyed talking to the two women in the area. They were really intrigued when they found out I was American and complemented my skin and clothing profusely. They were so kind and it was a great first interaction in the country! I was also impressed with their English as well, as I had no idea what to expect when it came to English proficiency in Afghanistan.

I then checked into my flight at what I assume was an English speaking check-in counter as they both spoke perfect English - which was great because they agreed to be my witnesses! I was making good time and only had security and immigration left. Immigration was fine, I was just asked when and where I entered the country (a bit awkward to say that same day but it was not an issue) and other than that I was free to go. Security was actually a bit funny as they had to scan my bag through at least three times due to the many electronics that I carry. The guy helping me spoke English and thought it was entertaining that electronics kept coming out of my bag (cameras, computer, lots of chargers, etc.). Once again he was very nice and after a final scan, I was able to go to the boarding area.

I had my picture taken in the airport and then sat in the open boarding area until my flight. I noticed at least three other Americans waiting for the flight to Dubai who looked like they were definitely involved with the military in some way. My flight actually ended up being delayed by thirty minutes so I ended up making it through with time to spare! I was relieved to board the flight even though I felt fine throughout my few hours in Afghanistan. I actually did not see any evidence of the military until the plane was taxiing to depart when I saw tons of helicopters sitting on the runway and a giant American flag in a hanger off in the distance. I’m definitely glad to have Afghanistan off of my list as it was one that I was a bit worried about, but I know I have a few more countries that will be even more tumultuous to come in the future. For now, though, it’s on to Dubai, UAE for the night!

It was a three-hour flight and when I landed I was met by the driver for Dunes Hotel Apartments. I rode in a really nice SUV to the hotel where the nicest greeting was waiting for me! David, who had arranged my stay, along with a few other employees met me in the lobby with a bouquet of flowers! It was so sweet! After a long and stressful day, this made my day for sure. After taking a few pictures I was shown to my room which was a fantastic one bedroom suite.

There was a full kitchen, living room, two bathrooms, and a giant bed. I was shown around the room before wishing everyone goodbye - I cannot thank David and everyone at Dunes Hotel Apartments enough for an amazingly warm welcome and really great stay! I loved the room and slept so well. It was a great few hours back in the UAE though I wish I could have stayed longer!

69 countries down, 127 to go.

To learn more about Dunes Hotel Apartments click here.