And then there was Oman.

Khasab,the first port we docked in,was as unimpressive as the name was promising.Small ramshackle busses carted us off to a small ramshackle little hamlet.The oil money never reached this Allah forgotten little port.The next stop was Muscat.We stayed overnight.15 minute walk to the port.I wanted to see everything first,walk for several hours, then sit down to a cup of coffee and just enjoy the scenery. There was a lovely flower clad coffee shop at the beginning of the street offering wi-fi and this was where I wanted to end up. So I walked and walked and walked some more,then turned back,stopped at the souk and walked into the streets behind. Nothing,nothing had prepared me for what I saw in the back streets of the port. Nothing. The poverty. The squalor.I started snapping with my little Cannon,some of the residents took an umbrage with me and shouted shooing me away.

Abu Dhabi

is the capital of the United Arab Emirates. I have read somewhere that it is much richer than Dubai,but in my opinion not as ostentatious.In Dubai you can see the oil money being spent and invested. In Abu Dhabi not so much. With the weather being very bad, rain every day the previous 2 weeks and as it was only February and more of the same could be expected [ and in Dubai got exactly that several days later] and as we had docked in Abu Dhabi for a day only, I wanted to make hay while the sun was shining and remained on the Big Bus throughout the four or so hours, so that I could see as much as possible. The buildings not as impressive as in Dubai, not as innovative, the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque being the most memorable,quite beautiful in fact. There is a lot of building activity around the mosque,what the outcome will be the bus driver did not know. There were many lovely small residential houses nearby,so possibly more of those. The nicest part we drove through were the Marinas. Yas Marina on the Yas Island,Abu Dhabi,Eastern Mangroves or the Emirates Palace Marinas, each equally lovely.And every Marina has a Mall to be proud of. If I ever come to Abu Dhabi again I will take the earliest tour bus and stop in one of the Marinas for several hours. The views everywhere are magnificent and one could easily spend there days let alone hours.

Almost the final word on the stateroom 8548, The Vision of the Seas.

Larger than average, category JS,junior suite.If there is one memory that will haunt me for ever,it is that the stateroom was noisy,noisy,noisy.The infernal banging above started at 7 in the morning and continued well into the night.Situated under a cantilevered whirlpool [ it extends over the side of a cruise ship] some noise was to be expected and some noise would not have bothered me in the least. But this was not some noise, this was perpetual loud banging,heavy thuds frightening the life out of me,expecting something massive to come through the ceiling on the top of me.There were items being dragged,moved about all day,every day.When I booked the stateroom I was not told it was under a pool area.Paying a premium price for a junior suite, the noise was unacceptable and the stateroom should be re-classified and re-priced.It is not only very noisy,it is also plain and ugly,with the most awful furnishings.The coffee maker is an accident waiting to happen,very dangerous to use,it has no place on any cruise ship.The bed though large, was uncomfortable. The Vision of the Seas was built in 1998 and somewhat refurbished four years ago.It needs a total and complete make-over,including new menu.The most unpalatable part of the ship was the dirty,smelly self-service restaurant on the 9th floor,the Windjammer. The internet packages should never be sold when cruising in the Gulf.There is apparently a constant problem with the signal in the area,as I had found out too late. [I had bought a package,then had a great difficulty using the internet]. Why then are they offering the wi-fi? The Independence of the Seas, the Vision's sister ship, is MY sister's absolute favourite.She even prefers it to the Celebrity Eclipse, one of my three preferred cruisers [the other two being the P & O Oceana and the Cunard Queen Victoria].So The Royal Caribbean know what is good and what isn't. And their good can be wonderful. But the Vision is a great disappointment.

% ARABICA in the Dubai Mall

is the best place in Dubai for coffee.The best.

Novotel chain has three hotels in Dubai,

all in excellent position,very affordable.There is one in Deira City Centre,at £91 a room it is an excellent place to unload for several days if you want to get to know Dubai and beach is not a priority.It has a rooftop pool. Novotel Al Barsha is closest to the water,£113 per night,has 2 pools and is a perfect base for enjoying both, the city and the beach.The most expensive by the Mall of the Emirates,has an enviable position and a price to match,but at £141 it still will not break the bank.And you only get what you pay for. All prices are average and always,as in every hotel in the world, negotiable, and depend on demand.The mall has various coffee shops,each with quick and easy access to wi-fi,the staff are lovely everywhere and coffee not bad either.But the best,absolutely the best coffee in Dubai you get in " % ARABICA " in the Dubai Mall,a minute or so from the Aquarium - as you come in through the main entrance,it is one of the turnings to the left. There must be other branches,but I had no need to look for them. The latte...well, for a coffee lover this is the one and only place in Dubai to enjoy.Coffee paradise!

Hotel Kempinski is also in a lovely position, next to The Mall Of The Emirates

and Harvey Nichols, Dubai branch of Princess Diana's favourite London store.I know the Kempinski brand well, have stayed at the Kempinski in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, several times. But if I stayed at the Kempinski in Dubai, I would be tempted to go to the Mall every day rather than seek out the world outside. And the outside world in Dubai is wonderful.you can see the oil money being spent, invested, by The Corporation of Dubai, owned by the Dubai government.And so it should be. Every-one must benefit from this gift from Allah. In Dubai [it is both a city and an Emirate.United Arab Emirates have 7 member states, the capital is Abu Dhabi] I had never come near even a semblance of a slum. There may be some, but I had not seen any.The streets are clean,no grafiti anywhere.The taxis are reliable,well run, no-one had tried to cheat me and charge an exorbitant amount of money. 80% of the population are foreigners,every taxi driver I had was from India.Dubai is owned and run by the Dubai government,but worked by the foreign labour.Apparently 90% of the population suffer from the lack of vitamin D and measures are being taken to rectify the situation.This has surprised me.With all year round sun,how can this be?

The itinerary.

The travel package had all the elements I had wanted to experience - flying first class Emirates,staying in Dubai at the Atlantis and cruising in the Gulf. The flight really WAS first class,The Atlantis I never came to enjoy and the ship The Vision of the Seas turned out to be a great disappointment.And then there was Dubai. Mr Cameron went to the EU with a begging bowl asking for little and getting even less.I was expecting very little from Dubai and got a wealth of memories. On a bus from the airport to the Atlantis, where I was supposed to have stayed three nights, my heart sank - one tall building after another, hardly any people walking in the streets,no life to speak of,no colour.Just much of brown muchness around.My goodness,is that it,I thought, is this what I have flown for seven hours to see? At the Atlantis I perked up a bit.It was impressive,by golly,very,very impressive.But my heart sank when I was told there was no room for me at the hotel and five hours later I found myself at The One and Only,The Mirage. Not deterred I could not wait to take a bus tour. One day the red HISTORIC tour, driving through the old part of the city,the next day the blue MODERN route to Jumeirah Mosque,Burj Al Arab,the most luxurious hotel in the Emirates and the Mall of the Emirates, to name just a few well known stops.We even went to the Atlantis.This brown stoned complex is in every advertisement to entice the travellers to visit Dubai,the richest city in the world.We passed by numerous constructions of which I liked the SAMA TOWER the best,sleek,elegant apartment building where two bedroom flats go for 135.000 dirham a year[about 29.535 £, or 36.754 $] and the office buildings AL MOOSA 1 and 2,were equally lovely to look at.A lot of the time I had a sense that an architect had unleashed his anger over a failed relationship, on a building.Of all the hotels along the Jumeirah beach I liked the position of the Four Seasons very much indeed and if ever I come back to Dubai,this is where I will stay.About 8 km from the Mall of the Emirates, the possibilities for walking in the neighbourhood are endless,one could drink in local cafes and tea houses,[the ATTIBASSI coffee shop looked so enticing,THE WHITE TEA CUP tea house adorable] browse in small boutiques.8 km of paradise.I love to stay cocooned in luxury,but when I go out I want to see the life the locals live.I am not afraid to tread the streets not travelled.I am not afraid of the back streets,of the side streets, of no streets.I want to breathe and smell the life no luxury hotel can give me.The bus tours went from the Dubai Mall bus stop.The Mall is nothing much to look at from the outside, but inside is absolutely lovely.I could not believe my eyes when I passed by PAUL, a patisserie,they have a branch in Notting Hill by the tube,where I get excellent croissants and delicious cakes.The shoe section has to be seen to be believed.There were exquisite Prada black and white loafers and had they had them in size 3 1/2 I would have not left the shop without them! Burj Khalifa,at 830 m the tallest building in the world,was practically under my nose,but I had no desire to wait in line to go to the top of the 163 floors. The next time.

The two waiters serving me at the table 88 in the Aquarius restaurant in the evenings

were a joy to know,charming,smiling, eager to please, utterly professional.The younger one was from Brazil,this information came in a kind of roundabout way,I did not think it appropriate to ask the older one where he hailed from.I never ask personal questions. The Vision of the Seas was a great disappointment,in the need of a complete overhaul.Everything looked old,fraying at the edges.Not enough deck-chairs were provided and those that were available were very uncomfortable.The two chairs on the balcony were not any better,they could not be adjusted to lie on,there was a large round wonky table next to them that hadn't been properly cleaned for weeks.Neither were the windows or the glass balcony wall.The guttering had stale smelly water sitting by the outflow during the whole 7 days of the cruise.The state room was large,had lots of storage space I never needed as I travel with just a small cabin suitcase and a bag [and I still had too many clothes,did not wear them all].The most disappointing was the bed,king size,as I like it to be,,but hard and very uncomfortable. The food was a hit and miss affair, more misses than hits.The choice of cheese was poor, the cakes and biscuits not to my taste,there was not a single desert I enjoyed. The lunch was served in he Aquarius restaurant once only during the seven days.This was the first time I had encountered any such arrangement on a cruise ship.Unacceptable,given that a large service charge was daily added to the bill. Not good, the Vision of the Seas, not good, the Royal Caribbean. I was charged twice for the same cocktail [but one amount was readily removed when I pointed this out]. The internet service was deplorably unreliable. I had difficulties purchasing a package and when I finally did manage to get connected I wished I had not done so. The entertainment programme offered nothing to entice me to want to sit in the theatre and watch or listen,except a couple of acrobats.That left the TV set.Old and simple, with no music channels.No clock in the stateroom,no stationary,no pen,no little chocolates left on the pillow in the evening,no biscuits next to the kettle,no tea bags,only the most dangerous coffee maker that has no place on a cruise ship.The fridge was on its last legs.The shower was powerful and mostly had plenty of hot water,but the sink was too small and placed so high that it was difficult to use.The toiletries were quite unpleasant.I was thankful I took some from the One And Only Hotel,those were exquisite. Would I want to cruise again on he Vision of the Seas? No, not unless it is completely modernized,improved and offers something much more than the run of the mill food and entertainment.

The Vision of the Seas.

On 6th February I took a taxi at 10.30 in the morning to the Port Rashid to join the cruise ship.The passenger terminal is beautiful,clean,well organized and as I later found out, has spotless toilets.There was no-one being checked in,so the whole process was a breeze and in no time was I carrying my bags to the lift that took me up to the self-service restaurant on the 9th floor.The lift was empty.And that had never ever happened to me on any other ship on either embarkation or disembarkation.The rooms were going to be ready at 1 pm and the two hour wait passed quickly and enjoyably,with food and drink available at one's pleasure. My stateroom 8548 was large,plenty of storage,the balcony with two chairs and a table,was partly shaded.The bathroom big and all white,with a bath-tub and an overhanging shower fitting.My allocated table was for 6 and when I asked for a small table just for me, I was told in an off-hand manner none was available. I asked to be put on a waiting list,this was reluctantly done. On my very first entry into the self-service restaurant the Windjammer on the 9th floor I was struck by an unpleasant musty kind of smell.This prevailed and got stronger with each passing day.The position of the restaurant is such,that there are no doors from it leading into any open outside space,only another covered terrace,so the restaurant never gets any fresh air and when fish is served the awful smell remains for hours together with all other odours. So as I did not have a small table to myself I had dinner - some curry,dhal,salad and the most delicious brown roll covered with cheese and pumpkin seeds,in the Windjammer.The roll was available in the evenings only and became my firm favourite food. But the next day I got a note that a small table 88 was available at 8.30 in the evenings in the Aquarius restaurant on the 4th floor.My heart jumped with joy.For there are two things guaranteed to make a cruise a success for me- a small table to myself in a restaurant and a balcony where I can sunbathe in the nude.The latter, as I later found out,was to be in a very short supply during the cruise,because of the unfavourable position the ship was either sailing or docking.Only twice did I feel the full force of the sun on my balcony. The table 88 was one of the best placed table I have ever had on a ship.In the middle of the restaurant,at the beginning of a row.The waiters were delightful,they were the nicest part of the whole ship.

The three night stay in a hotel in Dubai and a 7 night cruise 02/02/2017 - 13/02/2017.

The plan was to stay for 3 nights at the Atlantis The Palm,then join the Vision of the Seas for a cruise in the Gulf.Only the travel agency did not reserve me a room at the Atlantis,the hotel was full of Chinese guests,celebrating the Chinese New Year.After seven hours of flying and having been told by the agency's woman representative, that it was not her job to"look for missing rooms", after making numerous phone calls to England,at 3 in the afternoon I finally entered a room 4045 of my new hotel The One And Only The Mirage,some 30 minutes by taxi from the Atlantis. Mistakes do happen. The most deplorable thing was the way the rectifying of the mistake was handled. At The Atlantis,this rich five star hotel where I had to sit in the lobby and wait for five hours, not once had any-one come to me to offer a glass of water or a cup of coffee. Not once. And when I asked a girl at the reception if they would allow me to connect to the internet [I needed the password] so that I could e-mail England,as I had used up all my credit phoning, I was told - no, you are not a guest here. That was the most disgraceful thing for a hotel to do.Utterly despicable and heartless. The room at The One And Only,The Mirage was beautiful,the hotel excellent,the service second to none,breakfast one of the best I have ever had in a five star hotel [the other two being at the Bauer in Venice and Thermia Palace in Piestany, a spa town in Slovakia].But the position of the hotel was such,that to go anywhere one had to take a taxi.You did not see any-one walking outside in the street.There was nowhere to walk,nothing to see in the neighbourhood. The private beach was short and full of rocks and stones.You could not walk on it barefoot.There is a massive building for parking, adjacent to the hotel,it quite spoiled the view,next to it a rail track, a train passed by several times an hour. The Atlantis has 8 km of private beach,it is a massive resort [the first ever built in Dubai,opened in 2008] with endless possibilities for activity and walking.This is where I had imagined spending 3 days in Dubai.And this is what I did not get.

There really is no place like home.

It is a great privilege to be able to travel,to visit near and far places,only to realize how lucky you are to live where you live, to have what you have. The Dubai stay and the Gulf cruise have been very educational.I have seen the beautiful and I have seen the ugly. And now I am at home feeding the birds,unpacking,doing the washing,attending to the plants.And the world is wonderful again.

Fifty shades of grey?

Dubai has 150 shades of brown! Light brown, lighter brown,paler brown still with a slightly different undertone of the undertone of every shade of brown.Making a grand total of 150 and not a shade less.Then there are the glass buildings that glitter in the sun.Tall buildings and buildings taller still springing up.

The underground stations have all the same barrel like shape,dark glass,elegant,smooth-just look at us they say,aren't we different, have you ever seen anything like us? No, not for a station to be shaped like a Guggenheim. Dubai is full of very impressive surprises.

Mr Trump had a meeting a day or so ago with the chiefs of the American airlines,

who had complained about the expansion of the Gulf airlines in America,mainly the Emirates,who,the Americans claim, are subsidised to the tune of 50 billion[I presume US $].The Emirates have denied the accusation.Any subsidy is unfair and it may or may not be true. But having recently experienced the most wonderful Emirates flight,I know the airline has an excellent product and I pray nothing will happen to change that. People I have spoken to who travel economy are just as impressed with the Emirates as I am travelling first class. The Emirates airline had been founded by an English businessman Maurice Flanagan in 1985,making Dubai the headquarters,thus putting the city and the Emirate of Dubai on the global map. Having just visited Dubai for the very first time,when driving from the airport to the Atlantis,The Palm hotel,[the hotel should have been  booked for me but Imagine Cruising did not do so,failed me miserably and took no responsibility], I was astonished to see some very innovative buildings,everything is being made big and bigger still.That the Burj Khalifa at 830 m the tallest building in the world is in Dubai? Well,where else? Dubai's hotel rooms have been rated the second most expensive in the world,after Geneva.This does not surprise me.I do not know where in the rank of cleanliness they stand.[ The cleanest rooms are in Japan, then Warshaw ,third place has Bratislava ].Having spent three nights in room 4045 at The One and Only The Mirage,I can vouch for the spotlessness in the first degree.I,who always cleans out all drawers before putting anything inside [as I did on Monday last on the Vision of the Seas] can confirm,that having passed a tissue inside one drawer in this beautiful room,I knew I would never have to do it again on any subsequent visits [and I do very much hope to return]. The hotel is immaculate.The white towels as soft as a baby's bottom,the toiletries of the finest quality.I give the breakfast joined first place with the Bauer in Venice and the Thermia Palace in a spa town Piestany, in Slovakia.The fresh fruit,every last morsel sweet and juicy as the first [ as good as in New York],freshly pressed orange juice as - nowhere,really.The best ever.And the aroma! Bread and rolls taken out of the oven in front of my very eyes. And the service! Cold drinks handed out by the pool together with ice cold towels,then fruit on a stick.I have stayed at some excellent five star hotels,but nowhere has the service equalled that of The One and Only The Mirage in Dubai.

The nightmare

The flight to Dubai left at 7 pm on Thursday 2nd February,it took almost 7 hours,with the 4 hour time difference I was ready to be "met and greeted " by the Imagine Cruising representative,the company that had organized the trip, at 6.10 on Friday morning.More than 2 and a half hours later the other 29 passengers had joined me. Two and a half hours. At 9, still not sure if we were missing someone,we boarded a bus and set off for the hotel Atlantis where we were going to spend 3 nights before boarding the Vision of the Seas.At the hotel I was told there was no room for me,they did not have a reservation in my name.They were completely full mainly with Chinese tourists celebrating the Chinese New Year.I will not go at the moment into the details what followed, all I will say is that when finally at 3 pm I was in the room of my new hotel The One and Only The Mirage,I collapsed into bed and slept and slept and slept.

The Emirates

I have always known that if ever I flew to Dubai it would be first class with Emirates.One week and a day ago this is exactly what happened. The airline company is wholly owned by the government of Dubai's Investment Corporation of Dubai.They have an excellent product and I hope they are never ever going to change it.Improve,yes.Keep up with the times,yes.Change the nitty gritty of it,no.The Emirates lounge at Heathrow terminal 3,next to gate 7, truly IS first class.The layout,the comfort,the cleanliness, the service,the speed with which one is connected to the internet are second to none. Their mixed roasted peanuts are the best in the world. In the world.I have not yet opened the bag containing the pyjamas I was given to sleep in,or the personal items bag.Every time I read about the first class travel, the Emirates'goodies are considered to be the most coveted.Mine from this flight will go to my sister.Her best friend's daughter works as an air-hostess for the company,in the first class section,in her opinion no airline looks after their staff better.On the plane I was given a red card to fast track me with the immigration procedures.And so it was, in 2 or so minutes I was through,it would have been seconds had the lady at the counter not decided to have a personal chat and laugh with her colleague opposite. So far so wonderfully good. Then the nightmare began.