The Final Post: The Ride Home

I am writing this final post as our flight approaches the Dallas airport after a 15 hour flight from Dubai.

As I look out the window to the land below, somewhere between Arkansas and Texas, I am reminded that I am already at the other side of the world ... so different ... it is green and brown and flat, with lakes, meandering rivers, agriculture parcels, roads ... no sand, no blue oceans, no sharp brown mountains, no impossibly tall and unique buildings.

I wondered how many people down here know that there is a completely different world on the other side of the world ... full of people that are just the same as us here ... hard workers, trying to take care of their families, fun loving, warm and welcoming.  I wish they knew how similar we all are.

Interesting to be reminded of the power that travel has to expand our minds and our ability to love everything and everybody.  

I wish these two worlds knew more about each other ... I wish they knew how to connect more ... I wish the media would be more focused on the mission of bringing us together and not apart and afraid of each other ... I wish for people everywhere to know that we are all the same ... all basically good.

In any case, here are some final and interesting facts about our 2023 Oman Motorcycle Adventure:

• Countries visited: 2 (UAE, Oman)

• Borders crossed: 3

• Borders visited without crossing: 1 (Yemen)

• Time zones away from home: 10

• Ocean bodies visited: 3 (Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Persian Gulf)

• Total days traveling: 14

• Kilometers ridden: 2,000

• Flat Tires: 0

• Highest temperature: 93

• Lowest temperature: 55

• Steepest climb:  37 degrees (dirt)

• Highest altitude: 1,600m

• Lowest altitude: 0m

• Accidents: 1 (no injuries)

• Speeding tickets: Unknown (cameras everywhere)

• Nights camping: 1 (sand dunes)

• Nights in traditional mud hotel: 1

• Boat rides: 2 (Musandam Fjords and Dubai Canal)

And, again, confirmation that humans around the world are good by nature!

Day 13: The Beach Life

A relaxing last day as we got ready for our 16-hour flight back to the US.  

After a late morning start, we headed to the popular Zero Gravity Beach Club for brunch, swimming and relaxation.  

A great place to just hang ... lots of people from all over the world, great food, great pool, great chairs around the pool and at the beach ... and an amazing view of the Ain Dubai (the 250m tall wheel like in London) and of the Dubai skyline around Jumeirah.  

Seems like Jumeirah is the area of Dubai where wealthy people from all over the world have a place ... or two ... it is full of beautiful apartment buildings, villas, and hotels ... this is also where the Dubai Marina is ... great yachts!

We then headed to Trails and Dust, our motorcycle rental outfitter, to finally meet Jorge, the owner (from Colombia) and Karen (from Lebanon) in person.  A great shop with 50+ motorcycles on display for sale and for rent.  Great inventory.

We returned our motorcycles, hung out at the shop for a while, had a cappuccino, and then headed back to the hotel to pack and to go to the airport.

This is it.  An amazing overall trip!  Everybody is healthy and in one piece! Great memories! 

The beach in Jumeirah

Enjoying the Zero Gravity Beach Club ... pool, beach, food, music ... a nice way to end the trip

The view from our cabana at the beach club

Boys will be boys

Skydiving is big around here ... lots of people going up and down

Andy and Derek ... we had to swim in the Persian Gulf waters to complete the trio ... Arabian Sea and Sea of Oman

We rode the famous Palm Jebel Ali ... human ingenuity at its best ... and money : )

The view of Dubai from inside The Palm

Yeap ... we made it to the very end of The Palm

Karen at Trails and Dust as we returned our motorcycles

Having a cappuccino at the shop after returning our motorcycles

Day 12: The 37 Degree Climb

We decided that before we headed south to Dubai, we needed to try to go up the Jebel al Harim mountain range which is at 7,000 ft.  We had heard that it was a beautiful road going straight up the very steep mountains around Khasab ... but we were not prepared for what we found.

We had heard it was paved ... but it wasn't ... we had heard that it was steep ... but not like this ... a 37 degree climb on dirt through switchbacks ... our motorcycles rear tires were having a hard time getting traction even in Enduro mode ... making a switchback turn while going up at this steep angle was definitely not for the faint hearted ... the scenery and the mountains were as expected ... unique, beautiful, and awe inspiring.  After a while we decided we gave it a try and turned around and headed back to Khasab and on to Dubai.

The ride to Dubai was uneventful and peaceful ... the border crossing was also easy ... knowing that we were reaching the end of our ride ... all in one piece ... made the ride thoroughly enjoyable ... seeing the sights ... no need to take any more pictures ... just absorbing it all ... the towns, the beaches, the sea, the dunes, the camels, the people.  All was good with the world.

Dubai ts a big city ... way bigger than I thought ... lots of suburbs, highways, buildings and industrial activity.  Traffic is heavy as we approached the city ... stoplights take forever, which make progress once in the city, slow.  Our hotel is in a great location ... one block from the ocean surrounded by a nice beach walk and lots of cool restaurants.

Andy and I decided to have lunch at a great seafood restaurant next to our hotels by the beach where we met Maria and Sergei from Russia.  We shared a table with them because getting a table for 4 was faster than waiting for 2 tables for 2.  Maria and Sergei left Russian one week before the war started and never went back ... they loved it down here.  Sergei is in software development and Maria does marketing and event planning.

Derek and I went to do the touristy thing and headed to the Burj Khalifa to see what the fuzz was all about ... a 150+ story building ... so we got the VIP ticket and headed to the observation deck on floor 148 ... Wow!  Bought some souvenirs, had a cappuccino while sitting at the lounge at the very top and watched the city light below.  An enjoyable visit after all.

At sunset, we all headed to the Dubai sour's ... they are big, interesting, colorful ... my Uber driver explained that most shop owners are Indian, most drivers are Pakistani, most service workers are from a number of Stan republics (the host at our hotel is from Kyrgyzstan), Philippines and Nepal ... but, at the end of the day, we have met people from all over the world working here ... a truly international city.

The souqs in Dubai are big and are located round the Dubai Creek in central Dubai ... we had to take a small colorful boat taxi to go visit the other side.  A great night in the middle of Middle East life ... gold shops, spice shops, souvenir shops, people, children, lights, smells ... a nice way to end the day.

Tomorrow, we will return our motorcycles, go visit a beach or two and head to the airport to take our flight back home.

The 37-degree steep climbs up the mountains in Musandam, Oman ... on dirt!

Back to the UAE

My friend Sauda from Uganda taking picture of the flags in my jacket to show her kids

Driving through some of the Dubai suburbs

Our place for lunch ... fresh seafood in front of the ocean ... a winning combination

We shared a table with Maria and Sergei to be able to be seated sooner ... great stories

One of the many marinas in Dubai

Wow ... this is indeed big when you are standing at the base

Architectural marvels everywhere you look ... al built by EMAAR ... the Dubai construction conglomerate

A bit busy ... but impressive

Wow!  The view of the city from the top of the Burj Khalifa

At floor 148

There are UAE flags everywhere in this country ... buildings, houses, businesses ... big, small

A big of one of the souq's in Dubai

A typical spice shop

The view of the city from the Dubai Creek

The parking piers for the water taxis to take across to the creek to the other markets

On the colorful water taxi crossing the creek

Even bigger boats plow these waters

Andy getting a trim at the souq

An amazing gold store in the Gold Souq of Dubai

Day 11: The Musandam Fjords by Omani Dhow

After breakfast, we were picked up by Yahya and David who arranged a boat for us to go see the famous Musandam Fjords and to do some sightseeing, swimming and snorkeling.  

Yahya is a cousin of Yhan from Muscat who we met through the Oman Bikers Club.  He is married, has 3 small daughters and his wife is from the Philippines. He works in fire prevention. 

David is Egyptian, Christian, and lived in Moscow for 5 years ... and a few other countries.  

Great guys to spend time with swimming and talking about Oman, philosophy, politics, religion, history, and 100 other things.  Incredible to always realize that at the end of the day, we are all the same.

Our boat was a dhow with a Persian rug and cushions all around the deck ... what a great custom ... to conduct all meetings, chats, meals while sitting on the floor surrounded by rugs and cushions ... very civilized.

Made it all the way inside the fjords for some incredible nature (see pictures below) ... we also visited Telegraph Island, small rocky island that was a telegraph-cable repeater station built in 1864.  So remote ... why would you need a station here?

The return to Khasab was a bit rougher when we hit the open water but the dhow handled it very well.

Dinner was at the Musandam Restaurant in town (best restaurant) where we met a German couple that had just arrived to Oman and where on their way down to Salalah.  It seems so long ago that we were there but it was only 10 days ago!  The German couple spoke Spanish, French, English, German, and a few others perfectly.  They had lived in Chile for a bit.

Tomorrow, we go to the highest point in Oman on our way to Dubai.

The view from our hotel ... just noticed the road to up to the zip line launch site

The center of Khasab ... fishing boats and dhows for visitors to the fjords

All aboard our dhow ready to go see and swim in the fjords

Our captain explaining where we are going

Oh yeah! ... snorkeling in the Musandam Fjords ... also know as the "Norway of Arabia" : )

Great cliffs all round us

Just chilling as we traverse the fjords

We saw lots of dolphins playing in this area

Remote villages with only 50-100 people each with no access to the world other than by sea

We are in the middle of the fjords

The geological movements to create this area of the world must have been incredible

Padel is taking over the world!

Derek decided to do the zip line across the sea

Our last dinner in Khasab with our German friends