November thrills and frills

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The winter sun provides the perfect setting for all things bright and beautiful in the UAE. This week, we see the launch of camping at the Jebel Hafit Desert Park in RAK, the Miracle Garden in Dubai and the 30×30 Dubai Fitness Challenge. In pre-pandemic times, it was the season when tourists flocked to the country to savour the best of Middle East hospitality and fun. They still do, mindful of COVID-19 norms, precautions and restrictions.

While camping and glamping gives one a chance to explore the wild and rugged desert landscape, be it at Hatta or at Al Qudra lakes, the Miracle Garden is Dubai’s little miracle for the winter months – where millions of dainty flowers and exotic plants come alive in the desert. This is the ninth season for the world’s largest natural flower garden, opening under stringent health and safety guidelines on November 1. That means the milling crowds looking for the perfect insta-worthy shot will have to maintain social distancing and wear masks.

One often misses the woods for the trees. In the frantic search for the perfect backdrop and the best flower arrangement, visitors often miss the beauty of the 120 flower varieties that adorn the Disney characters, castles and the beautiful ladies in stone. A photo staple with most visitors is the Hearts Passage while an Emirates A380 covered in blooms is the cynosure of all eyes.

Spread across an area of 72000 sq km in Dubailand in Al Barsha, Dubai Miracle Garden has more than 150 million flowers and a few Guinness records to boast of. COVID-19 had prompted a premature closing last March, but it has opened as per schedule to welcome an estimated 1.5 million visitors this year. An entry fee of Dh 55 and Dh 40 for adults and kids aged 3-12 respectively (under-threes and people of determination walk in free) is money well-spent.

Coming from the same developer is the Dubai Butterfly Garden next door, home to 15,000 butterflies in 10 climate-controlled domes. For first-time visitors, Dubai has all this and more that they will want to return year after year.

And when cricket-lovers world over turn their eyes to the ongoing IPL 2020 in the UAE, there is something else that is equally exciting for all residents willing to burn some calories. That is the Dubai Fitness Challenge 30 x 30 – requesting 30 minutes of one’s time daily for 30 days to indulge in any form of exercise – launched in 2017 by HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai, and which has kept fitness buffs on their toes from October 30 to November 28 ever since. The ever-energetic royal leads by way of example and the emirate is abuzz with fitness enthusiasts cycling, surfing (the waves, not the net), rowing, sandboarding or simply jogging while taking in the iconic sights of the city.

This year, safe and virtual workouts are part of the itinerary but there are plenty of activities outdoors too for those willing to step out. Those who have recovered from COVID and those who want to stay healthy and keep the virus at bay have all the more reason to exercise this time.

In pre-Covidian times, it was a fun month for schoolchildren in Dubai – going to school in track pants and t-shirts and exercising for half an hour at least. With schools still not fully functional this academic year, a PE or yoga class over Zoom is good enough.

Shopaholics and budget travellers can use this practical advice from DFC: “Leave the car at home and use the metro to get to The Dubai Mall. The enclosed and air-conditioned metro bridge that links the mall to public transport is roughly 1 km long; continue through the mall down to the Dubai Fountain and you’ve got your 30 minutes for the day,”

As Dubai aims to be the most active and happiest city, its residents and visitors can do their bit – download the DFC app and record the daily quota of calorie burning. I, for one, have a month of zumba sessions in the late evenings to look forward to.