Valencian sun

Last year in the summer, we spent 5 days in the coastal Spanish city of Valencia. It was a city break kind of trip, which I rarely do nowadays. During those five days, we mostly walked around the city centre, enjoying the art, the food and the slow pace of Spanish life. It was fun, especially the opportunity to spend such leisure time with friends. My favourite day of course was when I took a local bus to one of the nearby coastal village, and loved it.


Getting there

The flight to Valencia took us over the Pyrenees, and I could spot some blue lakes down below which sparkled over the mountains. Close to landing, there were many olive and orange plantations everywhere. And all the houses had blue pools in their backyard - it looked like the good life.

Streets of Valencia

It was quite easy to get to the city centre. I took the local metro and then walked 20 mins to get to our airbnb in Carmen. It was a nice walk through the narrow streets of Valencia. You could see that it was an old part of town, with its narrow colourful streets, metal balconies decorated with loads of plants and many squares and churches on the way. The graffiti on the streets was very prominent, and I enjoyed noticing and appreciating it over the weekend. I did not know then, but learnt later, that Carmen is actually famous for all its colourful street art.

The first day, we just walked near our airbnb. The second day we walked around town though without a plan. The next day we visited the local city beach. The fourth day was out of town, to the beach town of Perello. And the last day I did another tour of the city, based on some walks suggested online. And finally saw a lot more of the town. I think the first two days we were walking around in circles to the same areas, and it was nice that I did the more planned walk on the last day. At least I felt I had experienced quite a bit of the town.


The city centre

Streets of Valencia

In Valencia, we were staying in an airbnb in Carmen, which was the old part of town. For the first two days, we would mostly just walk around the city centre, checking out the colourful streets, the parks, the squares, the churches and local art. Given my friend was a foodie, we explored many restaurants too, some good and many not so good.

Valencia at night

There were loads of shopping options and eating places in the centre. It was always very active everywhere, full of tourists. The shops were full of people checking out local stuff, the squares were full of people gathered there to eat and drink. And in the evenings, all these places would be bustling (even more) with people. After 9 pm though - this was Spain 😂. And even at 11 pm, there would be music and a lot of noise outside. As our airbnb was in the city centre, we could hear the noise till very late. And very loud noise ☹️.

Cultural centre

While exploring Carmen, on our second day, we visited a cultural centre, the Centre del Carme Cultura Contermporánia (CCCC), which was a convent now converted into an art gallery. The paintings were nice, but the convent and its central garden was stunning. After the cultural centre, we walked all the way to the Turia Jardin (gardens) and spent some time there - it was huge. (The park is built on the former riverbed of the Turia river). We then walked back into town, walking past grand colourful buildings, old gates, churches and squares everywhere.

The third morning, we explored the university side of town (while on our way to the local beach). It was green all the way and we walked through many parks, most of them full of trees laden with purple jacarandas in full bloom. As we walked from Carmen to the university, the scene suddenly changed from old colourful buildings in the city centre to the modern glass and steel buildings in the university.

Valencia Cathedral

The university felt grand and open. The area was quite empty though, as it was afternoon and quite hot - so all the streets had emptied out. We were planning to take a bus to the beach and were trying to buy tickets - it took us an hour to find a shop which would sell us that as everything was closed for siesta 😂. Finally we were able to buy a bus ticket pack - 10 journeys cost just 6 euros with that card. We then took the bus to the beach. While coming back, we stopped at the Valencia Cathedral and were impressed by the grand square. It was full of activity, with some local markets and loads of tourists there taking pictures.

Turia gardens

The fourth morning we started with a run in the Turia gardens. It used to be a riverbed which was later converted into a park circling the old town. We went running there and loved it. It was quite hot and humid, but still fun to be out and active. There were loads of people running and many activities going on in the park. It was also fun to observe all that it had, small waterbodies, old bridges, and loads of flowers everywhere. Every bridge over the Turia has its own history too.

Plaza de la Virgen

While coming back from the beach that day, I explored the eastern part of old town and realised that it was quite grand. The streets had metal lamps all along its sides. And everything was cleaner and better maintained. Also much richer than the poorer and rundown part of town we were living in 😂. My favourite was Plaza de la Virgen, with its churches and towers all lit up. It looked so grand, so charming, with loads of activity going on there. So I decided to return the next day for sure.

The last day, I finally decided to explore Valencia properly. So I found a walking tour online and then walked around town, going farther than where we had been till then. I realised we had barely scratched the surface of the place 😂. I saw a newer, grander side of town and loved the walk.

I walked past the La Lonja de la Seda, a grand building housing an old silk exchange. The square there was quite grand. And right next to it, was the Central market, a covered indoors market selling loads of touristy stuff. It also felt so much cooler inside than outside.

Colon Market

I walked along the Calle de la Paz, a street with many more modern buildings. I walked on Colon Street, a quiet tree lined street with charming buildings and architecture around. I stopped for a while at the Mercado de Colón, a covered market built in Art Nouveau style with some art and eating shops inside. It was so relaxing to take a break there under the shade, and enjoy the art exhibitions on display.

Plaza Redonda

I walked through many other Plazas (or Placas as they are know) and each one had its own character. Placa del Tossal was where we had gone for drinks one of the days. It was so active even during the day, though looked completely different from the night look. Plaza Redonda was a round square with a fountain in between. In fact, we had our first day's dinner there. And it looked so different during the day.

Valencia Cathedral

Plaza de la Companya had a church and was surrounded by charming old buildings. Plaza del Ayuntamiento was a majestic square with the city hall on one side and other elegant buildings all around, with a green park in between. Plaza de la Almoina had a huge pink stone palace on one side and many charming buildings around.

Behind Valencia Cathedral

The walk from Plaza de la Almoina till the Valencia Cathedral was lined with historic gates and churches and doors and many other lovely views. It was quite nice to walk here, you felt like you had turned up in a different era. I also walked past the Museo del Patriarca, and it was impressive. There was a stunning church next to it, and I attended mass inside.

On this walk, we walked past so many lovely churches on every street. And picturesque churches. The colourful houses, though old all looked lovely, with their facades and their balconies with so many flowers. The whole historic area was huge, and apparently Valencia has one of the largest historic centres in Europe. And it was fun to explore. And then all the art!

Street art

Everywhere in the city centre, there were so many gorgeous paintings on the walls. Everywhere. Some many storey high, some small ones on the corner of the building. Some in modern designs, some commercial marketing on a shop’s shutter. Some with social messages, some just funny. Some colourful and some in monochrome, It was a real pleasure to see them all. And wonder what would have been going on in the artist’s mind when they made it. Here are a few of those graffiti art that I photographed.

Street art

Street art

Street art

Street art

The street art was everywhere, notable though were Carrer de Baix, Calle Alta and Caballeros, these streets were full of art everywhere (and quite near our airbnb).

Placa de la Virgen

Overall, I enjoyed this last day's walk through town. I think I did repeat many streets, but at least I knew what those buildings were. And after this city walk, I had lunch at Placa de la Virgen, with a view of the goings on in the square. And got a feel for what Valencia is all about.


The beach

On the third day, we took a bus to the local beach - Patacona. The bus was very crowded, so clearly it was popular 😂. The whole beachfront was lined with restaurants. And the food, especially the seafood here was better than what we had in the city centre. I swam for a bit too. The water was clean and shallow, though a bit choppy. But given the heat, the swim was very welcome.


The countryside

One of those days, I decided to take public transport and explore the countryside. So I walked to a bus stop, from where I could get a bus to Albufera Park. I saw so much of the city on that walk too, as I had time to kill before the bus arrived. On the bus, I decided not to get off at the park but go all the way to Perello beach. And just enjoyed the ride out of town.

It felt amazing to be out of the city. There was much more greenery everywhere. We passed by the Albufera Park with its marshy lakes. And then rural Spain appeared, with one village after another. All seemed welcoming. Though when I got off at Perello, I wasn't sure I had made the right choice or not. The village seemed empty, probably because it was quite hot

Perello Beach

But once I reached the beach, it was sheer joy. There were restaurants all along the waterfront. I ate at one which was still open at that hour, the Tapas King, a non-descript looking restaurant on the promenade. I had the best lunch of the trip. And the atmosphere was also so warm and relaxing there. By the time I finished my lunch, the sun had dipped behind the buildings, and the weather became more pleasant.

So I started walking along the beach, enjoying the views. The beachfront was lined with holiday homes, and the beach with people surfing or windsurfing. It was so chilled and relaxed there, I ended up walking for almost 2 hours, enjoying the warm breeze. 

Sunset over Albufera Park

Coming back to Valencia took 2 hours though as the bus I was to get on didn’t come, and the next one came after one hour. (I also realised that like in India, buses here don’t always run on time 😂). Plus we got stuck in the evening traffic. But the scenes outside were stunning. I saw the sunset behind the Albufera lagoon and paddy fields, it was just so serene. It made the entire day so joyful.


Eating out

As my friends were foodies, we spent some time trying to find good places to eat, based on their Google ratings. I would say though that the experiment wasn’t always very successful. Overall, I was not impressed with the food we found, though Valencia had come highly recommended.

The first day, we stuck to the Carmen district for our meals. I had my first lunch at a local tapas place, close to our airbnb - Tasco el Botijo. I sat outside in the shade and enjoyed the food, it tasted average though. Our dinner was at a well rated restaurant with apparently the best paella in town, the El Leon in Plaza Redonda. There were live local musicians playing in the square, which provided a lively background for the meal. The paella didn’t, though.

Streets of Valencia

The second day again in Carmen, we found a vegan place for lunch, the Lo de Ponxe. It had quite a unique menu which was quite tasty. That evening we again researched and went to a well rated fancy place called JamonJamon. It was quite upmarket but the food was a disaster and I had to use my emergency chilli pack to spice up the dishes and make them edible. Somehow we were not having good luck with food in Valencia.

We did find good ice cream at La Romano though - it always had long queues outside. We had drinks in the Placa del Tossal that day and enjoyed the vibe. I did enjoy the whole experience of sitting outdoors at the restaurants in all the squares. Everyone would be outside after 8 pm, talking loudly and having fun, with music playing in the background. And everyone would be out way past 2 am! Every day!

The third day we got out of Carmen and found better food - I think that was the trick. We had seafood lunch at one of the waterfront restaurants on the Patacona beach, the La Murciana. We walked in without checking the reviews, and loved the food. In the evening, we tried two places for cocktails in Carmen again. The Cafe Madrid at the Madrid Hotel, a fancy rooftop bar, was quite bad. But a cocktail bar called Santo Remedio was just awesome.

Continuing with my eating-outside-of-Carmen theme, the next day, I had lunch at a non-descript restaurant on the Perello beach promenade called the Tapas King and the food there was one of the best I had in Valencia. The ambience, the food taste - everything was perfect.

Carmen delivered on the last day though. I had my last lunch in Plaza de La Virgen at the Petit Bistro. Its location was its best selling point. It was on this grand square, where you can eat while observing the goings-on in the grand square, with the huge churches, the fountains and all the tourists. It was just so relaxing to sit there, with a cool breeze blowing. I also started talking to an American lady there who was staying in Valencia for a month, evaluating whether she would like to move to Spain or not. The food was ok, but the experience was still fun.


Weather

As it was June, the weather in Valencia was hot, especially in the afternoons. It was still breezy and the temperature would be manageable in the shade. (Interestingly it didn't feel as hot as it showed on the app). Only under direct sun would the temperature be unbearable. So we mostly got out in the mornings, then came back home in the afternoons for a siesta as it was just too tough to be outside (unless you spent time indoors in a shop or restaurant). And then we would go out again in the evenings, when it was pleasant, and sometimes even a little bit chilly.

I loved the weather, especially the heat as it made it easier to relax and slip into the chill zone, not trying to do too much. And the city felt like that too - the squares would just empty out in the afternoon, and the only people outside would be sitting around lazily in shaded restaurants, waiting for the evenings when they could get back to activity again.


Overall, I enjoyed Valencia, but also realised I don’t enjoy city breaks much now. I prefer being away from the crowds, anywhere in the mountains or by a beach works.

Exploring Jurassic Coast in Dorset

In the 2025 Easter break, we finally (after decades of living in the UK) went holidaying to Dorset, a place we had heard of many times but never visited as it was just next door to London. And to be honest, I wasn't expecting much. So I was happy to be surprised.

Lulworth Cove

Dorset is gorgeous. It's got beautiful seaside beaches and coves, charming villages and stunning countryside hikes. And the greenery in spring was delightful. All in all, a great place close to London to explore whenever the weather and time allows.


Reaching Corfe Castle

The first day was supposed to be quite rainy in Dorset, so we took it easy, left a bit late and spent most of our time on the drive from London, with some stops on the way. London felt so empty (and therefore gorgeous) when we were leaving, maybe because everyone had left early already. Overall the drive was very relaxed, mostly through small towns and villages, driving past local pubs with quaint names on the way. Ah, so English!

We first stopped at Winchester, a cute little English town. We walked around the high street which had many local shops, selling some very good stuff. Looking at these shops, the town felt quite posh. We even found a Korean shop to buy some stuff from. The street was quite active and full of people. We had lunch at the Ivy Brasserie in the high street and it was fun to observe all the passersby. The food was tasty too.

Winchester Cathedral

Then we visited the famous Winchester Cathedral, it was magnificent from the outside (even in the rain). Inside, the roof was stunningly painted and felt higher than other churches. We also attended the Good Friday service at the cathedral, and it felt quite spiritual to be there on such a holy day. The whole town felt so leisurely, we would have loved to explore it more except it started pouring and we left soon after.


The drive after was mostly through small country roads, lined with wild yellow flowers all along. We reached our village, Corfe Castle late evening and were impressed by our first view of Corfe Castle, an old castle now in ruins but still standing tall, perched on top of the hill overlooking the village. The first view was so impressive, as we turned a corner, and saw the ruins on top, with all the bright green and stone houses below.

View from airbnb

We were living in an airbnb in the village with a direct view of the castle. It was such bad weather that day that after reaching, we didn't get out at all, just lazed inside. Admiring the views of the castle from the cosy indoors, while it was pouring outside.

In the evening we did somehow venture out for dinner. There were five pubs in this small village and we assumed they would have space. We walked to three of them but they were all fully booked or not serving dinner!! Finally we ate at the Fox Inn, a small historic pub, 500 years old. It was made of stone even on the inside, and had a nice cosy charm to it. The food was English, so we didn't have much to say about it 😂. The village also looked so cute, with all its old stone buildings lining the roads, it was quite picturesque.


Along the Jurassic Coast

The next morning started out rainy but then the sun came out and everything became gorgeous though still windy and cool. We woke up to a stunning view of the castle with the sunlight lighting it up in the morning.

The next day we spent exploring (a small part of the) Jurassic Coast. The Jurassic Coast is the name given to about 150 km of the Dorset seacoast with its many picturesque coves and villages. We first drove to Durdle Door which is generally used as a symbol for the Jurassic Coast. The drive till there was lovely. With rolling green hills and yellow gorse flowers covering all those hills. (These yellow flowers were present everywhere, and in full bloom. Shrubs after shrubs covering all the landscape, in its bright yellow, it's difficult to miss it). We also drove past some military firing ranges. It was lovely to be in the sun driving through such a stunning landscape.

Beach from top

The Durdle Door parking was full of people! We also saw many groups of Indian tourists there, it seems to be a very popular place back home (I checked later, many Bollywood songs have been shot at this location already). We walked down the hill towards the Door and came across two beaches on both sides of the hilltop. The view from the top was magnificent.

Durdle Door

We then chose one and walked down to the pebble beach to get a view of the Durdle Door up close. And it was impressive. The beach was a pebble beach, but the water was amazing, it had a stunning turquoise green colour. It was cold but not that much, it would have been possible to swim if we had come prepared.

Hike to Lulworth Cove

After Durdle Door, we hiked back up and then walked along the coast towards Lulworth Cove - the next place to visit along the Jurassic Coast. It was a short hike but offered such magnificent views of the green valleys along the sea coast. With small houses on the hills, bright green grass, wildflowers and wild birds. And some white chalk cliffs along the sea. It was a bit windy, but completely sunny, which made the walk enjoyable.

At the restaurant

Lulworth Cove was crowded and full of cars filling the whole parking area, all along the valley and even up one hillside. There were many restaurants and shops there. And a lot more activity too. We also saw a Telugu tv star there with his girlfriend! We decided to have our lunch there, at this pretty little restaurant called Lulworth Lodge. They serve seafood and had an out door space in the sun, overlooking the cove. It was so fun to sit there enjoying the warm sun and views of the cove.

Lulworth Cove

After lunch, we walked towards the cove. It was a stunning place, blue waters surrounded by golden sand, and full of people kayaking, fishing and doing other watersports. There were also some oyster farms there, because of which it didn't smell good. We walked up the hill there, to a viewpoint from where one could get a 360 degree view of the cove and beyond. The colours from the top were magical, blue-green water, fresh green grass, yellow sand and flowers, white houses, and the blue sky. It was quite a picturesque scene.

Weymouth waterfront

We then hiked back to the Durdle Door parking and drove onwards towards the seaside town of Weymouth, skipping all the other spots on the way as it was already late. In Weymouth, we walked on the beach, the waterfront, and then in the city centre. The waterfront and beach was quite empty, though there were some fairs happening on the beach.

Weymouth waterfront

The market was also quite cute, and full of restaurants. After trying a few place which were all booked, we finally found space at Aron Thai and had a very spicy meal after the rather bland food of the previous few days. Walking around the town centre was fun too, it was so simple and active. The drive back to our village was quite boring though, as it was dark outside and we could not see much.


Hike to Swanage

Purbeck hike

The next day we hiked all the way from Corfe Castle to the coastal town of Swanage. It was the day with the most spectacular views though I have the fewest words to describe the day. It just had to be experienced to be understood.


We started our day exploring our village - it was brimming with people that morning. We walked into the local church and chatted with some locals. We saw the castle from different angles. Then we started our hike going up the Purbeck Ridge and walking all the way along the hills till we reached the coast. It was a 12 km hike and we took around 4 hours to walk across.

Corfe Castle

Corfe Castle

Purbeck hike

The views of the valleys were magnificent, of farms and villages and wildflowers everywhere. And we could also see the towns of Poole and Swanage from the top. It was such a refreshing walk, just walking in the sun among all the greenery. We did get a bit lost and for the last part of the hike, we ended up walking on the main roads rather than the trail.

Swanage

When we reached Swanage, the first view in town was of the beach. Which was quite empty. It had got windy by then, so we didn't stop there for long. Swanage felt like a typical coastal British village, with a beach and waterfront, and lots of restaurants on the beach. We walked through the high street but somehow, it felt quite a dull place that day. So dull and gray. As it had got windy and cold by then, we decided not to spend too much time there. So we had a quick lunch at the Corner Mediterranean restaurant and left soon.

In the bus back

We came back to Corfe via buses which run all across the coast during tourist season (we took the No.40 bus). The drive back was quite mesmerising, through some picturesque stone-built villages on the hills around. Back in Corfe, that evening we finally were able to find a dinner reservation at a local pub called The Castle Inn. So we had a cosy dinner there chatting with some other tourists who were in town for a week, wishing we had also come for longer.


London via New Forest

And very soon it was time to leave. We took a longer route to come back, stopping at a few places on the way. We first took a ferry to cross over to Sandbanks and drove that way. We stopped at Poole town and walked along the waterfront. It was quite pleasant to be there.

We also realised later that this is the town which has Millionaires Row, a street with some of the most expensive houses in the UK! Somehow many rich people have all congregated in this small town on the south coast of England. And for sure, the whole area had somehow felt so posh. We could see some of these lavish houses even while driving around in town. I was quite surprised by how we had never heard of this place before.

After that, we drove through New Forest, a large woodland area not far from London. It had started raining by then though, so we couldn't explore it much. We had lunch at New Forest Inn, a local restaurant with an outdoor space within the forest. We sat outside for lunch and loved being surrounded by nature.

While driving back from there, we stopped for a short walk at one spot. There were so many wild horses in that area. We walked into the woods, just for a while. The whole area was full of the gorse flowers, and high trees. The yellow flowers were everywhere on this trip - apparently they are an invasive species which have spread in vast areas.

After this short stop, we continued on our drive, reaching London by 7 pm, with a plan to visit Dorset again, given it's so close to London!

Dubai, the city of lights

Hatta Lake

In October this year, I spent a few days in Dubai, a layover while returning from London. I was working remotely, so I did not have a lot of time to explore the city, but I did get out in the evenings and the weekend, and what I saw, I liked!

On weekdays after work, I explored some nearby local places, and on the weekend I ventured out to explore the countryside. I enjoyed all the experiences, especially how convenient everything was.


Dubai shopping

It’s tough to be in Dubai and not shop 😂. Two of the weekday evenings, after it had cooled down a bit, we visited outdoor places nearby, which had a cultural aspect to it, but of course they included shopping too. One evening, we explored the Al Fahidi and Al Seef areas around Dubai Creek. It is a long stretch of old historic huts along the creek, some made of stone and some of wood, preserved in their original form. Now it has been converted into a waterfront walkway, a tourist hangout place, with the huts turned into handicraft shops, restaurants and museums.

Dubai Creek

We walked all along the water, enjoying the evening breeze, while also checking out the shops around. It was nice to be there, especially as everything was all lit up including on the other side of the creek. And regular boat taxis were plying along the Creek, transporting workers between different stops. The whole place had a very festive feel to it, though it was just a normal day.

We also saw the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise boat which has been converted into a stationary hotel, and the sheikh's yachts next to it, all along the waterfront. Dubai really is another name for luxury. After that, we walked through Meena Bazaar and all the Indian shops in that neighbourhood. I was amazed by how crowded and active that place was, even at night. And with the number of shops selling jewellery, clothes and so on!

Another evening, we visited Global Village, which is a huge entertainment and cultural park in the open desert, about an hour's drive away. We drove by so many new developments and then the open desert. And then Global Village suddenly appeared, all lighted up in the middle of the endless desert.

Lake and Dragon boat

It is a massive outdoor park with pavilions from around 30 countries across the world, designed as a place to spend a full day exploring. The pavilions showcase the country’s culture, as well as sell products from there. Plus there are foods from different countries, shows going on on the central stage, and loads of restaurants. And in the centre, there is a lake with a dragon boat in between. People can boat there too. And all around are grand pavilions, all lit up. I think this is when I decided to give Dubai the epithet of ‘City of Lights’.

The pavilions

There is just so much to see, it's not possible to explore the place in one go. So we shortlisted a few countries we wanted to see. Though I must say, some pavilions were definitely better to visit than the others. We first walked into Turkey and that was amazing - they were selling a lot of local handicrafts, pottery etc.. Then Thailand was selling a lot of textiles. Plus the mangoes from there were very tasty. I was excited to see Japan and the Americas, but they were definitely not representative of all that the country had to offer. In fact, they weren't even selling authentic products! The Americas were selling branded shoes 😂.

Afghan jewellery

One of my favourite pavilions was Afghanistan, they were selling so many products which aren't generally available in markets - jackets and caps made of fur, juices from local fruits, tribal jewellery and so on. I also liked the Iran one, it was quite well set up and quite grand. We initially didn't visit the Indian pavilion as we thought it was home only. But when we went in, it was impressive. It had a lot more space than the others, and was selling a lot of good stuff. We walked into a lot more countries like Egypt, Sri Lanka, China and Korea but we weren’t impressed by them either. In China, they were selling anything and everything, as everything nowadays is Made in China 😁.

Latin American dance

Each of the country pavilions also had small stages inside where dancers were showcasing local dance and music. I liked the Turkish and Latin American performances, while the Japanese one felt quite slow. We also saw one performance on the main stage called “All aboard”, where they showed a bus of students visiting different parts of the world, represented by their dances. When the bus stopped in India, the dance was Bollywood but the background showed a poor part of some town with just doors painted in different colours. I was not happy to see that, is that all they could find to represent India? What about the forts and temples and handicrafts and himalayas and nature and so on India has to offer?

Anyways, there was just so much to see, we spent about 4-5 hours there and even then it was not enough. By the end we were exhausted, though still wanted to check out the other stalls. Overall we enjoyed our time there, and could go back too. I would love to check out the dances in all the pavilions. One of the other days I also visited an outlet mall, and found some good deals. So I guess Dubai being a shopper’s paradise is definitely true.


New Dubai

The Palm

I also spent some time visiting friends staying in New Dubai, and that felt so different than Old Dubai. Wide roads, lots of greenery and loads of new developments everywhere. I spent some time on The Palm, which has definitely become more full. As when I had visited in 2016, it was still being developed. Now it's fully developed and occupied. Also apparently it had been decided initially, that there will be no skyscrapers on the Palm, but now they have changed their policy and built one, with another on the way.

I walked into a mall there and was blinded by all the shopping and lights. The central pathway lined with the palms was nice though. Then I walked around the waterfront with a friend who lives there, and realised that as a tourist, you cannot access most of the sea front here. I was very impressed with the living there, all the restaurants on the beach, the many malls, and water activities available nearby. It also felt so relaxed, and green. And I liked the lights there too, especially Atlantis the Palm. It all looks magnificent at night.

The same day I also visited a friend’s villa, and was impressed with the luxurious life one can have in Dubai. With independent houses, greenery all around and even a private pool with each house. And they also had a lake nearby. Also sitting outside in the evenings is a luxury not that easy to come by in Europe, that sounded appealing too. I was slowly warming up to Dubai.


Hatta Lake

On the weekend, we decided to get out of the city and explore the Dubai countryside 😀, to Hatta Lake. It is about 1.5-2 hour drive from Dubai. We left in the afternoon, so that by the time we reached, around 3 pm, the temperature would have started to cool down.

Entry to Hatta

We spent the whole afternoon there, and it was amazing. The drive to Hatta was mostly through the desert. It was mostly empty, though the initial part had a lot of greenery. There were also some villages on the way, which looked very different from the city we had left behind. We also crossed Sharjah during the drive. Then we drove through dry desert mountains, where everything was dry and rocky. But the roads and services all the way were great.

Hatta lake

Hatta Lake is an artificial lake created by Hatta Dam and is surrounded by rocky desert mountains all around. It wasn’t very crowded when we reached as the tourists hadn't reached yet - they all turn up in buses after 4 pm when the weather has cooled down a lot. We were surprised with all the tourist infrastructure there. There was a parking space with all amenities. And shuttle buses to get from the parking lot to the dam and lake. At the lake, there was a centre for water activities like boating, kayaking, etc..

Kayaking in Hatta

We parked on the dam itself and walked across to the viewpoint, getting some panoramic views of the lake around. The water was a beautiful green. And the sun made it even brighter. I kayaked around in the lake and was amazed by the scenery around. Brown rocky mountains all around, with some birds flying around. And the water so green. It was so peaceful. And so surreal, a lake in the desert.

Sunset at Hatta

After kayaking, we had a hearty meal of Indian snacks like bhelpuri and vada pav, right on the dam. They were welcome after the strenuous activity of the afternoon. We saw the sunset on the lake, and it was stunning. With all the yellows and oranges around. I really liked this location.

After the lake, we went to Hatta Heritage Village but it seems like that is still being developed. We did see some old ruins there - an old watchtower, old irrigation canals and a fort being renovated - but the shops were all closed and there wasn't much to do there. While driving back, we saw the Sharjah Mosque on the road, all lit up too, it looked quite grand.

On this drive is when I realised that the UAE is quite huge, in fact much larger than the Netherlands. Other than the cities, the rest is an endless desert. Dubai is such a surreal place, luxury in the middle of harsh desert conditions. I felt a lot of respect for the Sheikhs then, it isn’t easy to have such a vision for building a global city out of the desert lands they inherited. Hats off!


Everyday life

I also noticed a few small things during my stay which I found interesting. 

• Dubai airport was so bright even at midnight when I landed - it was blinding 
• I was staying in Old Dubai, in the Al Mankhool area. It was full of apartments but not skyscrapers. And so many of the houses were lighted up with Diwali lights. Plus they were still lighting fireworks for Diwali. That was quite a surprise. Old Dubai is full of Indians, a lot more than I had expected.
• It felt like Hindi was the second language of the city. So many people speak Hindi, even some of the Arabic people, especially the ones in shops and other services 
• Apparently traffic has grown a lot in Dubai over the last few years, and pollution is also rising which was not the case when I visited the last time. It was quite surprising as Dubai generally manages to keep living quite convenient and under control. 

Overall, I was impressed with Dubai and thought that it could be a nice place to live. Easy and convenient. And what it lacks in weather and nature, it tries to make up for in other ways.

A week in Oxford

In June 2024, I spent a week attending an in-person summer course in Oxford. It was part of the Continued Education department at the University, which runs one week courses in summer on different topics, for people who have finished their education but still want to pursue learning.

Brasenose College

During this week, I lived and studied in a college in Oxford, just like students do. It was something I had always wanted to do, and finally I got to experience it😃. It felt amazing going back to school after so long, and that too in such a stimulating environment. I learnt and discussed a lot. The weather played spoilsport though, it was cold and rainy the whole week, definitely not how I had imagined the week to be like. But I still enjoyed my stay there, attending psychology classes in the mornings and exploring around town in the evenings.


Getting there

I flew from Amsterdam to Heathrow and took the Oxford Tube from the airport, a very convenient bus that leaves every hour from the airport to this old seat of learning. During the drive, there was a diversion and we got to drive through some gorgeous Cotswold countryside, where everything was a lovely summer green. And then Oxford appeared - this old town with grand yellow sandstone buildings, with a story to tell in every nook and cranny. It felt like such an old and storied place. Just the feeling of being there felt uplifting.

Radcliffe Library

In my first five mins in Oxford, I saw sights that would not be the norm elsewhere. I first walked by a Rhodes statue, of the famous philanthropist and imperialist. It had a plaque below it stating that the college does not support how he got his money but for certain reasons they cannot remove his statue from there. And they also asked the passers-by to consider that history has to be balanced with what was acceptable at that time. So they are requested not to deface or try to destroy it.

Evening meetings

And then right after, in front of Brasenose College was the famous Radcliffe Library, the centre of many of the town’s activities. I saw a lot of tents pitched outside and students protesting against Israel, for Palestine. These students had been living in those tents for a few months by now. In the evening, I saw a group of students sitting outside next to each other and conducting a prayer meeting for Palestine. Just seeing all this made me realise that it's at a place like Oxford that we can see students doing whatever they can for causes they believe in. It's only at places like this, student towns, that this can happen. (In cities, we are too busy earning a living, to care about spending so much time on protests). It just felt very liberating and heart warming to see this.


Studying in Oxford

Brasenose Quad

The one week course was run by the Continued Education Department. It was very well planned and organised. Our course was being run in Brasenose College, which is where we would be living for the next week. After I arrived, I checked into my accommodations, one of the student rooms at the college. It felt so simple, yet so cosy. And in the afternoon, we got an orientation tour around the College. 

Dinner Hall

It was a stunning place, with three gorgeous lawns in the courtyard (called Quads). We checked out its library, chapel and the dinner hall. The dinner hall was the most impressive - with three long tables for the students and a high table at the end for the faculty, all set up for a formal dinner. All around the room were paintings of notable alumni, as well as teachers from the college. We were then told the rules to be followed while having dinner in the hall. It all sounded so formal (and it was). We ate our dinner daily in the dinner hall and even had our gala closing dinner there. It was always fun. And I felt then that I had entered a different era, like I was in a Harry Potter movie. 

Then we were told all the other plans for our stay. The mornings and afternoons were generally quite packed. Every day we had lectures on our chosen topic from 9 am to 12 noon. And after that we would have a lecture for the entire cohort by a professor from the University on topics not linked to our chosen subjects. They were all so interesting that I attended and enjoyed each of them. Like on ‘whether EU foreign policy is dead’, ‘the history of teacups (and porcelain)’ and one about the author, CS Lewis.

Brasenose College

After lunch we would get some time to relax, and then every evening, we could join any of the organised events. I joined two of them, a literary walk through Oxford and a trip to Waddesdon Manor. But I missed a few others too, an evening of punting in the river (in the rain 😅), a Shakespeare play in the park (again in the rain), the Chapel concert and playing croquet in the Quad.

Studying in Oxford had been a dream of mine. And actually being there felt so exciting, just like the feeling on the first day of going back to school. In fact, on the day of the orientation, all the tutors gave an introduction to the course they were going to take that week. And I wanted to take all of them 😇. Especially the course on “the fourth dimension - time” sounded so interesting. The physics, philosophy and literature of it. I had chosen a different course already, and could not change at the last minute. But maybe someday later, I could try out another interesting one. Also interestingly, some of these topics may not have inspired me in my 20s when I was actually studying. But now they do. Still, I did manage to chat with the “fourth dimension” professor, one of the evenings in the dinner hall. And he sounded quite eccentric.

Over the next week, being with people from different walks of life, with differing life experiences, varied interests and unique views led to very interesting discussions on very varied topics. Such discussions were just so common here, they just happened all the time. You can learn so much from each other in such an environment. Only an eclectic university like Oxford can offer you an experience like this.

The lunches and dinners in the dinner hall always felt so short, there was never enough time to exchange thoughts with fellow students, on and beyond our course topics. For example, during one such dinner, I spoke to a professor who had moved to New Zealand for the last couple of years, to research Tolkien. Just like that. And the whole dinner, we spoke about Tolkien, his philosophy, the life events that impacted him and his literature, and so on. How I wish I could be in such inspiring company more often.

I had another very interesting discussion with a professor when we were talking about psychology, the topic I was studying. He was quite surprised that they're teaching psychology because he said that Oxford is very slow to accept new topics. I commented that psychology is not a new topic, it has been around for awhile. Then he asked me, 'just look around yourself in this dinner hall. Other than the lights, is there anything that you see that is less than 300 years old 😂’. Everything in Oxford has a different timeframe, in terms of what is new and what is ‘old'. I found that comment really funny.

During the week, I also learnt a lot about Oxford through all these chats. For one, Oxford seems to be quite self-absorbed with Oxford . Everyone talks about the town a lot, almost all the time. And many make a big deal of anything and everything about the city. It is almost like a bubble they all have lived in for long, and they don't know (or want to know) a lot about things from outside. For example the three authors that originated from here turn in up in almost every second conversation - Tolkien, CS Lewis and Lewis Carroll.

Also, there is quite a lot of rivalry between colleges. They talk about each other quite a lot, about which ones are richer, which are not, which are good at what and which not, and so on. It is interesting though to know that all the professors know each other and visit each other's colleges even if they talk competitively about them. Also, the college felt quite British, given most of the tutors were locals. I heard so much British English around me, I realised I hadn’t been in such situations a lot recently 😆.

The weather had been so unpredictable that week in July, that everyone was very cold, the professors AND the students. It was really funny to see. Everyone was freezing but couldn't do much about it, especially the ones who had come from abroad for the course. They had been expecting British summers and so hadn't brought any jumpers with them!! It's understandable give it was July, but still it was very funny to see. (Thankfully I was warm enough as I had (unwillingly) brought a jumper along with me)


Around Oxford

On my first afternoon, after quickly checking in at the college, I left for a quick tour around town. I first had lunch in a covered market nearby, which felt more like a food court than a market. It also felt like a student hangout place, with many types of food available for very little 😆. And later I learnt that there are tunnels connecting each of the colleges to the covered market. So it was definitely popular with the students.

Around Oxford

Then I walked around the colleges. Something I tried to do daily, even in the bad weather, with cold and rain. They were all so grand, so magnificent, so charming. Each college has its own history and character. Some are purely for research (like All Souls College), and some accept students. Some are focused on the arts, some on science. Some are a lot richer than the others. Most have some famous professors and writers associated with them. Each of them has a chapel and a dinner hall. The University has quite an interesting setup for studies. Students live in the colleges, are friends with other students there, have tutorials there while their lectures are held all together across Oxford University departments.

Christ Church College

One of the days, I joined an organised walk through town, called the Oxford Literature Walk (or maybe it was the history walk, but both are so intermixed always that you never know). The guide took us to the main colleges and libraries in town, giving us an overview of its history as we walked. Christ Church is one of the grandest and richest of the colleges, its buildings and gardens were impressive. The most famous authors from Oxford are CS Lewis, Tolkien and Lewis Carroll. And they were mentioned on the walk many times, their names adorning many plaques around town. In fact there were a few tours taking tourists around the University, talking about these authors and what inspired them to write their novels.

Punting in Oxford

The whole town was full of grand buildings - the university departments, churches and museums, famous libraries and so on. And so many parks in between. And then there were small streams and rivers around, with scenic bridges on them. They were all so impressive and grand to walk by, standing tall in their yellow sandstone. And there was so much history all around. It was always fun to walk around.

Christianity and religion were present everywhere. There were so many churches in town. And all college chapels had their own choirs, with concerts being organised regularly. That being said, it was interesting to know that the Vatican did not allow Catholics to come to Oxford until the 1800s! Only Anglicans were allowed before that.

Oxford

The city centre was always full of tourists during the day, crowding all the main sights. It was actually overwhelming to deal with all the tours going on. And there were so many events happening around, parties, concerts, lectures and so on, just students getting together and doing things. The real beauty of the town could only be seen either away from the centre or in the evening, when all the tourists had left. It felt quieter and cosier then.

So during the day, I would walk away from the centre. One day, I walked to a restaurant outside the main hub and saw a different side to the town. The road was lined with University departments. And there was a lot of greenery and parks (with no crowds!). It felt so different from the main Oxford university area, quieter, with no crowds. It felt like a nice place to live, I enjoyed my walk there.

Another day when I walked away from the university hub, I saw that the town has nice canals and beautiful residential areas. There was even some punting going on in the canals. Also as I walked out more away from the centre, there were newer colleges which were clearly less rich than the others. And this area was full of new buildings. It felt so different, like I had switched centuries within a 10 mins walk.


Waddesdon Manor

For one of the evenings, the organisers had planned a day out to a surprise location. So after our lectures, we got onto a bus and were on our way. We drove through the beautiful Cotswold countryside in summer, a vibrant green, dotted with small stone villages. And the destination turned out to be Waddesdon Manor - a huge manor house built by the Rothschilds (and later donated to the UK National Trust). Generally I am not a ‘buildings tour’ kind of person, but this was an enjoyable experience for me.

A dinner room

It was raining when we got there, and our tour wasn't to start till much later. So we hung out in the cafe, admiring the rain outside (just kidding!) till we could start our tour. And we were mind-blown. Every room was decorated with paintings from great masters, expensive carpets, exquisite furniture, vases, ceramics, silver, jewels and so much more. There were multiple dining rooms laid out with elaborate silverware. There were displays of antiquities as well as modern equipment from that time, including never-seen-before machines of that era. There was a jewel room with displays of some of the famous and expensive stones owned by the family. It was a huge place, and every room was full of such displays, it was tough to leave it to move to the next room. And it took us a few hours just to see the whole place.

A living room

It was just astounding to imagine how much money the Rothschilds would have had, to create a place like this. The Manor felt more like a museum, with a collection vast enough to challenge any museum. And that was true. This Manor was never a home, the family did not live here. It was not even an old country house of some British titled family. It had been built much later in the 1800s, by the Rothschilds, a business family, purely for the purpose of entertaining rich and successful people, networking as we call it now 😃. So it had been commissioned and decorated with art pieces sourced from across the world, with the single aim of impressing their rich guests. Later on, I read about the Rothschilds and was even more intrigued - the family that stays quiet but is said to be so rich and powerful that they are said to still be behind many economic and political decisions taken across the world. Interesting!

Gardens outside

Also, this Manor is the location where the famous introductory scene of Shah Rukh Khan in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham was shot - when he steps out from a helicopter and runs toward the home where his mother is waiting. We enacted that scene for our Instagram reels, that was fun 😂.

The Stables

The gardens were even more spectacular. Just behind the house were some well landscaped gardens full of colourful flowers. And when I walked around the estate, I came across some stables, art houses and a lot more. But sadly, we didn't have enough time to explore it all. So after our tour, we headed back to Oxford, through some stunning scenery again. 

Ashmolean Museum

I had kept half a day free on my last day to walk around town and enjoy the (sometimes) nice British summer. But it ended up raining the whole day. So I did what I generally don't, go to a museum, the Ashmolean in this case. And what a revelation that was! It turned out to be a big one, with about half a million objects displayed over four floors. So I spent the next 3 hours in the museum admiring art from around the world, ending with a quick snack at the rooftop restaurant.

In the art section, the Ashmolean houses paintings, sculptures and ceramics but given the limited time I had, I walked around only the Post-Renaissance paintings section. And it was an absolute pleasure to explore it. I saw pieces from some new artists that I was drawn to - Panini, Canaletto, Joshua Reynolds, Courbet, Edward Lear and Thomas Moran (his painting reminded me of my favourite painting from Thyssen).

And then of course, there were the pieces from the greats. There is something about these legends - their art always draws you. 70% of the paintings I stopped at turned out to be painted by greats, like Constable, Guardi and Renoir. And clearly I was improving in my art appreciation given how I noticed them 😀. My favourites as usual were their landscape oil paintings and sketches.

I also did a quick tour in the world cultures section, exploring some of the Indian stone sculptures and textiles, Greek sculptures, Chinese ceramics and textiles, and Japanese paintings. There were just so many interesting things here from around the world. The pieces from the Arabic world, linked to their architecture, were impressive. And I realised that the Gupta period architecture defined a lot of how Indian architecture evolved into what it is today. Also, exhibits from Egypt are always so fascinating. But I wasn’t able to explore that section much, so next time.

But seriously, the UK has so much of global artefacts and treasures, they can have museums spread across the country and still not be able to display all they have. As usual, most of the stuff in the museum was from around the world. And in between some British things were kept to indicate 'we also had some history and culture .

My last day in Oxford was also “Alice Day” a day when people dress up as characters from Alice in Wonderland and join in parades throughout Oxford (as Lewis Carroll was also from Oxford). As it was raining, it seemed like the event was cancelled but while going back from the Ashmolean, I saw some people on the street dressed up as characters from the novel. But alas I had to run, so wasn't able to join the festivities at all.


And as I always end my articles, till another time. I enjoyed my stay in Oxford, learning so much, from the course I had signed up for but beyond that too. And I would suggest these summer courses to anyone looking to learn again, they are totally worth it.