Arabian Desert

One of the things that my family love the most is travelling. We've been having road trips ever since I was young and even went to other countries to have fun. The UAE was a special place to me and my family. My sister and I grew up there and of course, we explored the Emirates. 

Everyday was an adventure to me and my family. We'd go to unpopular beaches, eat at different restaurants and camp in the desert. My favorite was camping in the desert though. It was really wild and exciting. 

The Arabian Desert is located in Western Asia. It is a vast desert wilderness stretching from Yemen to the Persian Gulf and Oman to Jordan and Iraq. It occupies most of the Arabian Peninsula, with an area of 2,330,000 square kilometers (900,000 sq mi). At its center is the Rub'al-Khali, one of the largest continuous bodies of sand in the world. Gazelles, oryx, sand cats, and spiny-tailed lizards are just some of the desert-adapted species that survive in this extreme environment, which features everything from red dunes to deadly quicksand. The climate is mostly dry (the major part receives around 100 mm of rain per year but some very rare places receives down to 50 mm), and temperatures oscillate between very high heat and seasonal night time freezes. It is part of the Deserts and xeric shrublands biome and the Palearcticecozone. This ecoregion holds little biodiversity, although a few endemic plants grow here. Many species, such as the striped hyena, jackal and honey badger have become extinct in this area due to hunting, human encroachment and habitat destruction. Other species have been successfully re-introduced, such as the sand gazelle, and are protected at a number of reserves. Overgrazing by livestock, off-road driving, and human destruction of habitat are the main threats to this desert ecoregion.

A picture of the dry desert

You may think that camping on the desert would be peaceful like paradise but NO, NO, NO. It's unlike the places you've been to. This place is dry, hot and dangerous. Yes, it's dangerous when you don't have a 4x4 wheel drive to hop into. The quicksand in Arabian deserts is a little bit scary but fun. As a kid, going to these kinds of places would terrify me but I wouldn't want to waste this adventurous experience.

I'm the one with the headband. We didn't look irritated by the heat at all.

We were actually sliding down but hey! We looked fine, didn't we?

 There are few experiences that are as ‘Dubai’ as the desert safari. Take a backseat (unless you prefer to sit at the front of your four-wheeled drive) and hold on tight as an experienced driver whips you around the sand dunes, teetering on the edge of seemingly sheer drops, before dipping down sandy slopes and back up again.

I'm telling you that desert safari is the best thing you could do out here in the desert. Remember to hold on tight though!

Mom was screaming too much. She wasn't even in there haha! You could
see that whether you're inside or outside the 4x4 wheel drive you'd be thrilled!

There are a lot more things that you could do in the desert. Like camel riding!

You can't ride this camel though. If you want to, you need to go to nearby camp sites where they serve you and ask a staff or someone who could assist you. It has a low cost plus it's worth it! But another thing is that it hurts near your private parts after you get off so don't be on it for too long.

Getting a henna after doing exhausting things in the day is also fun! You'd love to get that as a souvenir. It even looks cute and cool! It washes off after a few days though. When I had mine I thought I would be able to have it on my arm forever because I wanted to show it off to everyone. But there's no 'forever' in these kinds of experiences. Anyways, let's move on to belly dancing!

Belly dance is the traditional dance of middle east, Belly dance is also known as raqs Sharqi and raqs baladi. Raqs sharqi is the style more familiar to westerners dance performed in restaurants, Raqs baladi is the traditional dance of Arabs and is the is the folkloric style, danced socially by men and women of all ages in some Middle Eastern countries, usually at festive occasions such as weddings.

I felt kind of awkward when the belly dancers started dancing because I thought it was too 'sexy'. Lots of men were there too. But then my dad told me that it's a tradition for Arabic people and that I needed to respect that. So I did. When we got back to our camp site, my cousin and I imitated the belly dancer and started belly dancing in front of people! It was embarrassing but I didn't think that since I was young.

When you go to the desert, I forgot to mention that it's even more fun when you go with friends and your family. Don't go there alone! No one would like to go to a deserted place alone, right?

Second, bring camping stuff like:

• ·        Sleeping bags
• ·        Flashlights
• ·        Chargers
• ·        Pocket Showers
• ·        Comfortable Clothes
• ·        Tents
• ·        Canned Goods
• ·        Lighters
• ·        Foldable tables and chairs
• ·        Water (Lots and lots of water)

Third, make sure you book into touring services like:

The Dubai Safari - 00971-50-99141241

Bab Al Shams - 971-(0)4-809-6100

I had a blast the moment I touched the sand in this wonderful desert. It's not peaceful, but it's wild. I liked it.



* All of these pictures were from way back in 2007, but the desert had a little changes but it's still the same *

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