It helps to know a guy.

We got a special treat last night. One of the teacher's husbands works as an accountant for a very large real estate company in Dubai. He can get in to a lot of the private buildings and take advantage of a lot of the perks. One of the really nice perks is access to a private condo overlooking the ocean from the Palm Jumeirah. This place has it's own private beach, a fabulous pool, and wonderful little restaurant. A bunch of us went last night at dusk. We just missed the sunset, but we got to eat outside overlooking the pool and private beach. I had the most succulent bruschetta, a buttery medium rare steak, and to die for potatoes au gratin. We all savored dinner, a calm warm breeze, and candlelight. We could see the Burj Arab, the most expensive and only six star hotel (they said theirs was six because five stars wasn't enough) across the water.

After dinner, we took a little tour of the Palm Jumeirah. The Palm is a man-made island. The fronds are all expensive villas, private beaches, and docks for yachts for the fabulously wealthy. No one can access those areas unless you live there or are invited by a resident (have to make some rich friends!) The Crescent of the Palm follows around the top and is covered in awe-inspiring resorts and hotels. We stopped outside the Atlantis, which is owned by Donald Trump. He has another one in Nassau. It has tanks of sharks and fish. You can go snorkelling, diving, and walk through the underwater tunnels and swim with dolphins. It also has a ton of high end shops, restaurants, and a dance club. I so want to go there and swim with dolphins! We got some ice cream at the Cold Stone at the Atlantis and went for a drive around the island. We have been here for almost two months, and this was the first real experience we had with the cool Dubai that everyone reads about in the travel books.

It really helps to know a fabulous teacher who is married to a wonderful man with handy connections so we can experience things that we otherwise would not be able to do. Like dine at a private restaurant on a stretch of private beach and enjoy a world class meal :)