Last weekend I had the opportunity to go to Dubai and get the royal treatment courtesy Media Centre of the Dubai Events and Promotions Establishment to cover the 18th annual Dubai shopping festival and it was amazing. I will admit it was my first trip to Dubai and the people at MCDE made sure it was a jam packed couple of days filled with the best of things Dubai has to offer.
I stayed at the Jumeirah Emirates Towers which is the perfect location to be able to see all the best attractions and it had the most incredible view of the Dubai Skyline. 
How is that view to wake up to every morning? It was amazing. Jumeirah Emirates Towers located on Sheikh Zayed Road and is in the centre of Dubai’s commercial business district and stands as a highly visible statement of the region’s corporate success.
Comprising of two equilateral triangles, Jumeirah Emirates Towers consists of a 350 metre Office Tower and a 305 metre Hotel Tower with 400 bedrooms, both connected by a central podium which is home to the Boulevard, a unique and prestigious shopping destination. Jumeirah Emirates Towers has been designed to cater for every possible need that a business traveller may have.
After checking into the hotel the MCDE had organized our first outing of many. We went to a shopping mall called Mercato which is based off the same architecture you would find in Tuscany, Italy. It's open air vibe with high ceilings and giant glass tiles makes you actually feel you are sitting outside enjoying the fresh air with a good cup of coffee.
Mercato (Italian for market) is the first themed shopping mall in the Middle East and UAE, which brings together the choicest lifestyle offerings from the Mediterranean, in addition to many exclusive international brands. Based on a distinctive Renaissance architectural concept, Mercato captures Italian, French and Spanish flavours and artistic characteristics; playing host to regular fairs and festivals from each country.
I also had a lovely lunch there at a restaurant called "Paul" which will be opening here in Muscat soon. It was delicous and they had many healthy choices for eating if you are like me and count your calories.
Next up was a trip to the Carpet Oasis. I was thinking an afternoon looking at carpets, hmmmm but I was amazed but the craftsmanship and how some of the carpets were actually too beauitful to put on the floor. They were more like paintings.
After our walk around the Carpet Oasis we headed to the Paris Gallery which was amazing from a shopping perspective.
A leading luxury retailer in the Middle East, Paris Gallery is the eponymous flagship brand of Paris Gallery Group, with over 1 million sq. ft. of luxurious shopping space and 40 stores located in prime retail addresses spanning across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain. The stores offer a premium collection of over 450 international brands across several product categories including perfumes, skincare, makeup, watches, jewelry, fashion apparel, sunglasses and accessories.
After our shopping trip we headed back to the Jumeriah Emirates Tower for an amazing dinner at Al Nafoorah conveniently located inside the hotel and you can experience a fantastic restaurant with authentic Lebanese cuisine and eclectic favourites. Some of you might not have heard of some of the dishes, but all are skillfully prepared and tastefully served. Hot and cold mezzeh dishes are Al Nafoorah's specialities.
Yes, I am one of those people who takes pictures of food for Instagram.
After our whirlwind of a day it was time for some sleep, because the next day we were heading to the Prominade and Global Villlage. I knew nothing of either of these places, but my next trip to Dubai will include them both.
Global Village is where the World comes together, well at least part of the world all wrapped up in a cool theme park like atmosphere with shows, music, and little shopping malls that represent countries from around the world.
Global Village Dubailand is claimed to be the world's largest tourism, leisure and entertainment project. It is the region’s first cultural, entertainment, family and shopping destination. Every year, it has 6 million visitors over an area of 17,200,000 sq ft (1,600,000 m2). Global Village has over 39 pavilions each representing their country.
Of course I went to find Oman and Egypt.
(That's my friend Manal, who I met on the trip. She is an amazing photographer and a beautiful person)
Next up was the Promenade in Dubai. While we were there, they had visiting Bedouin tribes from around the world setting up tents and explaining about their cultures. I met a tribe from Kenya and Mali but my favorite were the Bedouins from the Emirates who had camels and falcons. I admit I was a little afraid of the Falcon but they had his face covered so he wouldn't bite.
It was incredible to be that close to one of God's most amazing creatures.
After our trip to the Promenade I had to go to sleep. I was so tired from walking around Dubai all day. I will say this, remember to wear sensible shoes. My feet are still killing me.
On the last day, it was more shopping (which is one of my favorite things) We went to the Burjuman mall. BurJuman, strategic partner for DSF 2013, is bringing the 18th edition of Dubai’s biggest celebration alive for its guests with a fantastic mix of entertainment shows, raffles, and other fun offerings, apart from a range of tempting discounts on some of the world’s most popular brands. When they say brands, they mean brands. DKNY, Saks, Valentino, Hermes and Chanel just to name a few. It was like shopping heaven for 2 hours.
(These people are other journalists who were there)
Unfortunately, you need more time to see everything Dubai has to offer, but I am going to make it a point now to head up there at least a couple times a year just for something different. Global Village alone in order to see all of the activites you need about 5 hours. The malls, I lost count. I will say if you are going to book a hotel and you want the V.I.P treatment, amazing staff, and prime location, book at the Jumeriah Emirates Towers. It really was one of the nicest placest I have stayed in a long time.
Thank you for reading my adventures, and keep checking back. I have another trip planned soon!
Erin @->--
