March 06-07, 2009
The first glimpse of the sea as I arrived at my destination used to be my trigger for getting into holiday mode.
But since living in Dubai, that had to change or every day would be an endless round of food from different fast-food, mall hopping and lazing by my bed and I would never get any work done.
Arriving at the hotel in Ras Al Khaima, I found my new trigger.
The song of the cicadas in the trees overhead as we reached the car park was overwhelming and brought me back to holidays spent sunning myself in Philippines.
The fun begins
Ras Al Khaima (RAK) is about a 80-minute drive from Dubai (unless you take a wrong turning trying to get on to Emirates Road and drive around many round about and flyovers for 40 minutes) but it feels as if you have crossed a border into somewhere more peaceful, traditional and full of nature.
With its long stretches of coastline, sandy white beaches and nearby desert along the way, it makes a great adventure weekend.
When my friend and I checked in, our thoughts were far from an action-packed break.
Instead, we headed straight for the huge pool for some tasty cocktails (including My Temple’s, which a confident Italian boy of about twelve years came to order two of from the counter, making me giggle).
The resort is fairly family-orientated but kids tend to stay in the shallow pools while adults head for the deeper areas or to the quiet beach section.
So it’s easy to avoid the crowds.
Early evening I headed for an Ayurvedic massage (A traditional medicine native from India – A herbs can cure various ailments and diseases) so that I would be relaxed and ready for a blissful sunset-watching dinner.
The treatment was so incredible that I actually missed the second half after drifting into a deep snooze that lasted until I was nudged awake by the amused therapist at the end of my session.
I woozily thanked her, washed off the excess oil and headed up the lift in my robe and slippers.
Stunning views
I missed the sunset too — still a bit too relaxed from the spa treatment — but I’m told by my friend that it looked wonderful from one of the balconies overlooking the Ocean.
Every room in the hotel has a vistas are stunning view from a green and bluest ambiance.
I felt conscious enough for dinner at 7.30pm, so we opted for a friendly beachfront restaurant located adjacent to the swimming pool terrace, offering garden fresh salads and light meals seasonal a la carte specialties and candlelight’s dinners in Le Chalet’, with a very spectacular taste or western food.
I chose vegetable spring rolls and Big tasty stake with a cocktail drinks on it wasn’t on the menu but that wasn’t a problem for the helpful staff. We notice as well that most of the staff are Filipinos, we glad!
The lighting was low and the atmosphere relaxing — there was no sign of the kids from the pool here.
We lingered over our meals until we were roused out of our reverie by the arrival of a lively band.
The atmosphere took an instant upward turn as diners handed in requests to the musicians and tapped their feet.
A lovely rendition of Way Back into Love from a Movie of Music and Lyrics my favourite.
The efforts of a long day in the sun meant we were ready to head for an early night, followed by an early morning, so we could make the most of the buffet breakfast and another long day by the pool.
After dreaming for hours about the prospect of a hotel breakfast (who wouldn’t be excited about the prospect of rounds of pain au chocolat, Belgian waffles with hot chocolate sauce and an English breakfast with extra hash browns and baked beans?), we rose at 8am for a slightly more restrained breakfast in Views restaurant, overlooking the hotel’s colourful gardens and the sea beyond.
After a few more hours in the pool, playing a spot of water volleyball, adventure water sport like kayaking, wind surfing, and Jetski was enjoying most and a poolside game of table tennis and even contemplating a game of chess on the hotel’s oversized board, we also tried to play with kids the famous of them all the Football, we headed to Village Resto, the resort’s open-air beach-hut restaurant.
Despite the greed of breakfast, I guzzled down a sizeable veggie sandwich and chips while my pal opted for an enormous hunk of steak.
The menu is typical beach fodder — ideal for the relaxed location and informal setting next to the on-site Al Boom Diving Centre, where wet-suited divers trudge back and forth to the beach every few minutes.
We were told they were part of the regular sea clean-ups that take place.
Boat to Thrillville
Feeling ready for a bit of sea action ourselves, we headed to sea side after lunch for what we imagined would be a relaxing afternoon of snorkelling. Not so.
As we hopped aboard our boat, I was a little anxious to be handed a life jacket.
Our guides soon revealed themselves to be speed demons, whisking us off to RAK Oceans in mere minutes in what was a thrilling, if a little bumpy and wet, journey.
One of the guides even lost his cap in the process.
Feeling exhilarated, we hopped off the boat in our snorkels and flippers for an hour of exploring the coral reefs.
Unfortunately, the recent red tide has taken its toll on the marine life in the area but we still saw several schools of colourful fish (I’m afraid my marine-life knowledge isn’t sufficient to elaborate), a few baby reef sharks and the first turtle I’ve ever seen in the wild.
After an equally adrenalin-fuelled trip back to dry land, we decided we still weren’t quite ready to bid farewell to the resort.
It had been a good few hours since our last meal, so we ordered a pizza by the pool, which we munched on as we watched the Sun set behind the glazing green landscape around us. It doesn’t get better than that.
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