Dreaming in Dubai: wanderlust

Showing posts with label wanderlust. Show all posts

Sometime during the summer my husband and I started researching places to visit for our first European holiday. The more time we spent reading blogs and on Pinterest, the more fascinated we became with Italy.

It seemed that every town was worth exploring and we couldn’t wait to see it all. When we finally started planning our holiday we knew that realistically we could only spare around 9 days including travel time. Never ones to be deterred by practicalities, we decided to make the most of our limited time, ignore everything we read online and plan to go everywhere we realistically could in that span of time.

My husband and I are what you would call ambitious travelers. As young professionals with limited time and resources to travel our goal is always to see as much as we can. Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre, Venice, and Burano in 9 days may seem like a lot but here's how we were able to cover them all:

Days 1 - 3: Rome

We booked an overnight flight from Dubai to Rome and landed in the Eternal City bright and early at 7:30am. The lines in immigration were insane and it took us around 2 hours to actually leave the airport. Once we were out we took a taxi and headed straight to our hotel which was around a 10 minute walk from the Coliseum. We stayed at the Hotel Infinito and I couldn't recommend it highly enough! It was affordable, quaint, and very centrally located! We got to our room, freshened up and headed out straight away. Having slept most of the flight we weren’t tired at all (one of the reasons I love overnight flights!).

Our first stop of the day was of course, the Coliseum for which we had pre-booked tickets online.

*I would strongly recommend that anyone who goes to Italy books all of their passes and tickets online. Otherwise you will spend at least 2 – 3 hours of your valuable time in lines.*

After the Coliseum we headed to the Roman Forum and from there we kept walking and ended up at the Trevi Fountain. We had had around 3 gelatos already by this point. Honestly, there are no words to describe how amazing Italian gelato truly is and I say this as someone who’s not a huge fan of ice cream or sweets in general! Also, if there's a panna cotta flavor then try it and thank me later!

After exploring the rest of the area around the Trevi Fountain we had dinner and headed back to our hotel to rest up for the next day.

Day 2 was our most ambitious day of the trip by far. We decided to wake up early and head to Trastevere as we had heard so much about this quaint village tucked into the middle of the city. And of course sometimes when you travel, things don’t always go as planned which is exactly what happened with us.

We decided to take the metro to Trestavere but when we got off at the stop we discovered that the Trastevere on the metro route was a completely different place than the Trestavere we had wanted to visit! By this point we were running late for our 12:30 ticket at the Vatican so we rushed back and decided to try and go back later in the day.

Luckily we got to the Vatican in time and spent around 2 hours there. From there we gave Trastevere another try and luckily we were successful this time! As a side note I would say Trastevere was one of my absolute favorite places in Rome and I couldn’t recommend it highly enough to anyone who visits.

From Trastavere we crossed over one of the bridges on the Tiberius and headed to the Piazza Navona and from there to the Pantheon. From the Pantheon we decided to take a longgg walk back over to Trestavere for dinner as it has some of the best restaurants in the city.

By this point we were exhausted. We had walked over 28,000 steps by this point and after dinner we took a taxi and headed back to our hotel. The funny thing was we thought the train we had booked to Florence was the next day so we had tried to cover as much as possible but when we got back to our hotel and looked at our bookings we realized we still had one more day in Rome!

On day three in the city we decided to take a more relaxed approach seeing as we had already checked most of the major tourist sights off our list. We slept in and then headed to the Spanish steps where we sat and people watched. From there we headed back to the Trevi Fountain and spent the rest of the day aimlessly wandering throughout what became one of our all time favorite cities!

Days 4 – 5: Florence/Cinque Terre

On day 4 we checked out of Rome and boarded an early morning train for Florence. We had mapped out the places we had wanted to see beforehand so that we didn’t waste any time when we arrived. Florence is small and incredibly easy to cover on foot. Our first stop was the Duomo and then the Pointo Vecchio which didn’t take more than a few hours.

On day 5 of our trip we got on the train again bright and early at 7:30 in the morning and headed to La Spezia which would connect us to another train that would take us to the five villages that make up Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre was the part of the trip I was looking most forward to and even though I was severely under the weather by this point I decided to make the most of the day and explore as much as I could.

The train rides altogether took around 2.5 hours and our first stop when we arrived to Cinque Terre was the village of Riomaggiore. It’s always such a surreal feeling when you a place that you’ve dreamed about seeing for such a long time. From Riomaggiore we headed to Monarola and then Vernazza. We traveled to all of the towns by train which was included in our Cinque Terre day pass. I would have loved to go on the walking on the trails that connected the villages but we simply didn’t have enough time. From our experience, 1 day is definitely enough to cover most of what there is to see in Cinque Terre. The towns are very small and unless you sit down to eat or go swimming you’ll be able to see each one in around an hour.

Days 6 – 8: Venice and Burano

On Day 6 we packed our bags once again and headed to Venice. While it might seem like most of our time was spent in trains this certainly wasn’t the case. Italian trains are quick and efficient and unlike airports you don’t need to arrive hours in advance of your booking.

When we arrived to Venice we dropped our suitcase at our hotel which was only 5 minutes away from the train station and started exploring right away. On the first day we let ourselves wander and get lost in the city as we had a packed itinerary for the next day. Venice is one of those cities where you will get lost so be prepared!

The next day we headed to Saint Marc’s Square early in the morning and from there took an aperetto to Burano. After exploring the colorful, fairy-tale like island for a few hours we headed back to Venice and spent the rest of the day wandering. If you’re going to Venice I would highly recommend buying a 24 hour aperetto pass which allows unlimited use of the public water buses.

Day 9: Venice to Rome

We were unable to buy open jaw tickets that would have allowed us to fly back to Dubai from Venice so we had to go back to Rome. The train from Venice to Rome took a little over three hours and by the time we reached our hotel we decided to stay in as it ended up being much farther from the city center than we had expected. The next day we headed to the airport and flew back home concluding our trip. While there’s still so much left we want to see we were grateful that we could cover as much as we did in a span of just 9 days.

After spending an incredible four days in the Seychelles, I’m reluctant to admit that the island had never been high up on my list of places to visit. I don’t know what it is but I’ve found that the places I expect the least from always end up impressing me the most! This was certainly the case with the Seychelles. In the days leading up to my trip I wasn’t sure of how I would fill my four days on the island but by my last day there I found myself wishing that I could stay forever. From the moment my husband and I were greeted with warm winds and balmy sunshine on the tarmac of the airport we knew we had landed somewhere special.

Once we passed the immigration counter at the airport we headed straight to our hotel, The H Resort Beau Vallon Beach. Taxis are readily available at the airport, and although they’re expensive, there’s no way to get around them. Getting from the airport to our hotel cost 600SCR which is about 165AED, much more than a 20 minute taxi ride would cost us here in Dubai. The good thing is that taxi rates are fixed throughout the island so you don’t have to worry about getting ripped off. On our taxi ride to the hotel we soaked in the gorgeous views from the mountainous roads. We found ourselves wishing that we stop and take pictures every few minutes! The locals in the Seychelles were so friendly and we quickly found ourselves in conversation with our taxi driver. He told us that in the Seychelles children learn to speak three languages in school – English, French, and Creole. The languages are staggered with Creole and English coming first, followed by French. This way everyone on the island is able to converse with one another and with the many tourists that come to visit. It’s also mandatory for all children to attend school from the ages of 4 – 16. I was curious to know about the government and he told us that the Seychelles is ruled by a socialist democracy but as with most countries, the population feels the government could be doing much more to for their people. Another really interesting fact we found was that food and imports in the Seychelles are very expensive because Somali pirates impose their own tax on everything that comes into island!

We were so entwined in conversation that I was almost disappointed by how quickly we arrived at our resort. There’s truly no better way to learn about a country than by talking to someone who lives there. After saying our goodbyes we entered our resort we were immediately taken aback by how beautiful it was. The lobby had an ethereal seashell chandelier that made the most melodic sound as it gently swished from the breeze. Because the lobby was open from two sides we could see the clear blue water and white sand of the beach right away. Even though we arrived at the hotel around 10:00am the staff was kind enough to let us check into our room two hours early. One of the funniest moments of our trips occurred when after finding out that my husband and I are ethnically Pakistani, one of the guys working at the reception desk eagerly exclaimed that Shakti Kapoor along with his entire family were staying at the resort. We spotted them a couple of times throughout our trip but decided against asking them for a picture in case they found it rude.

After freshening up in our room we were starving and tired. Even though we couldn’t wait to jump into our pool and lay out by the beach we decided to find food first. We headed to an Indian restaurant nearby located at the Coral Strand Hotel that we had read about online but when we arrived we found out that they would only open for dinner. We headed to a nearby pizza place instead and had a really filling and delicious Cajun style pizza with grilled fish and spices. We were surprised to find that pizza was a very common meal in the Seychelles and almost all of the restaurants we visited had it on their menu.

After getting back to our hotel we spent the rest of the day lazing on the beach and taking dips in our pool which was included in our room. The main pool at the resort closed at 7:00pm but we could use ours at our own convenience which made for an even more amazing overall experience! If you’re planning to stay at the H Resort I would definitely recommend opting for the beach villa which includes a private pool. The small difference in price is definitely worth the amenities you’ll receive in return!

When we had checked into our hotel the concierge had informed us that a local market takes place ten minutes away from our resort every Wednesday. We had completely forgotten about it until we ventured out to find a money exchange and walked right into it! The energy at the market was amazing. There were people of all different ages, locals and tourists alike. We couldn’t believe that so many people had come out to enjoy life and socialize on a weekday. It’s definitely not something we can imagine happening regularly in any of the cities that we’ve lived in. After sampling some local specialties including fried plantains and grilled fish we decided to call it a night and head back to our hotel. One of the most memorable experiences of our trip occurred on our walk back. The way to our room was along the beach and we couldn’t help but notice how bright everything looked. At first we thought there was a light coming from one of the nearby hotels or restaurants but when we looked up we were immediately greeted with the sight of what looked like thousands of radiant stars scattered across an inky black sky. The only way I can describe what we saw is to say that it looked like someone had thrown silver glitter into sky. I’d never seen anything like it, not even in rural Pakistani or New England. Had that sky been the only thing I saw on my trip, I still would have left being content.

The next day was mainly spent in and around the resort relaxing. It was raining quite heavily and frequently throughout the day so we decided to postpone our plan of heading to Victoria, which is the capital city of the Seychelles. Victoria is actually the smallest capital city in the world and after seeing so many cute pictures of it on Pinterest and Instagram I couldn’t wait to get there and explore! When we asked people what the best way was to get to Victoria many recommended getting a taxi but a few also suggested that we try a local bus. A taxi would cost us 500SCR while a bus ride was 5SCR; needless to say we went with the bus! My husband and I always like to use local methods of transportation everywhere we go so figured this would be the perfect opportunity. As soon as we got on the bus I knew that this would be an experience I would never forget. The Seychelles is basically carved into a mountain which means there are lots of steep, winding roads with no side rails. Our driver was going around 80mph and I was sure that we would fall off the edge of a cliff. By the grace of God we arrived to Victoria safely and in one piece. Although I was terrified at the time I now look back on the experience and laugh! I’m so happy we tried the bus because it definitely gave us a taste of what daily life is like for the people who live in the Seychelles.

When we arrived in Victoria we were eager to explore but the humidity was stifling. The rest of the island is humid as well but the heat from the cars and people in the city center made it extremely hot. After cooling down and buying some water at a small grocery store we began exploring. One thing we noticed was that people in the Seychelles are very laid back and friendly compared to almost anywhere else we had ever been. I think the fact that they live on one of the most beautiful tropical islands in the world probably helps! Victoria lived up to its reputation of being quaint and very small! We visited the Hindu Temple, the Clock Tower, the tourist market where we picked up a new magnet for our fridge and the admired the colorful exteriors of the colonial buildings. After about an hour of walking around we decided to head back and once again opted for the bus. The ride back was definitely a lot less scary compared to the ride getting there, probably because we were going uphill which made driving a lot slower. All in all, I would definitely recommend allocating a few hours to visit Victoria on your trip. I’d also add that before arriving we read online that the island is very safe and we definitely didn’t feel otherwise while we were there. Remember to keep in mind that everything in town closes at 4:00pm so plan to go early on in the day before the afternoon humidity sets in.

All in all, I cannot recommend visiting the Seychelles enough. Prior to this trip I always preferred visiting big cities because I like having lots to see and explore. However, this journey taught me that vacations don’t have to be all about walking thousands of steps of a day and scurrying to see a new city in the timespan of a few days. I still remember around 8 or 9 months ago my husband and I were watching a travel documentary about the Seychelles on a channel called TravelXP. After watching the footage I was impressed with the beaches and views but I thought I wouldn’t be a fulfilling experience for me. Not only did I realize how I wrong I was, it’s also prompted me to add a few more tropical destinations to my travel list. If you have any specific questions about visiting the Seychelles, feel free to email me or leave me a comment below!

Weekend brunch is a big deal in Dubai. Although my husband and I like to avoid the rush of the brunch scene and have breakfast at home instead we decided to go out today and try something new. I immediately suggested we try The Hamptons, a cafe inspired by the famous vacation town in New York. Despite being from Connecticut I've never been to the Hamptons before but I knew just by driving past the cafe that it emulated the simplistic and elegant vibe that the Hamptons is so famous for.

Since I'm a sucker for chic, white interiors I felt like I had walked into interior design heaven as soon as I stepped into The Hamptons. The space was filled with natural light with large airy windows and an understated and classic decor. We were seated on the rooftop level like we had requested. I would definitely suggest making a reservation before going especially if you want to sit on the rooftop since. The place is packed on weekends and it can be difficult to get a table otherwise. When it came time to order we were given two iPads which contained the menus. I ordered the West Hamptons Breakfast which included a yogurt parfait, a croissant, jam, and a fresh orange juice. My husband ordered the French Toast. We also got a hot chocolate which came with a free macaron and we ordered an extra macaron for good luck!

We were so surprised when the food arrived in under 15 minutes. Unlike other places where you have to wait forever for your food we were served so quickly despite the rush. As you can see from the pictures the presentation of the food was incredible. Everything was served on wicker trays which I now totally want to get for my own home. The hot chocolate had the cutest anchor on it. After we were done staring at how cute the food was and taking pictures it was finally time to dig in. As soon as we had our first bite we were blown away. Everything was incredible. The yogurt parfait contained almost everything you could think of from granola to fresh fruit to dried fruit and nuts. The hot chocolate was one of the best I've ever had and the macarons were amazing. We were worried that we might have ordered to little food initially but the portions were more than enough for us.

I really can't say enough good things about this place. From the quality of the food to the amazing service this place has everything that defines a fantastic restaurant. We'll definitely be going back soon!