ZENITH - Experiencing a Sheik's Life in Dubai - Feb 2008

At the invitation of Zenith, we were invited to this year's pre-Basel presentation in Dubai, UAE. Heard so much about this booming city and I was naturally excited. True to its luxury image, we were treated with luxury all the way from the flight (Emirates Business Class) till we land in Dubai (pick-up by a Lexus ES350) till we left. We stayed at Mina al-Salam Hotel at the Madinat Jumeirah, a 5-star resort city. Our rooms were splendid as you shall see in the pictures below and the cost - US$2,000 per night ! The resort was so huge that we travel within in small boats via a network of water canals. There were many F&B outlets including a Chinese restaurant, a Singaporean restaurant, a hip bar etc. The pool was huge. The view facing the Indian Ocean was stunning.

Our first day was for self discovery where we went about the resort grounds taking many pictures along the way. We also visited one of Dubai's most famous shopping mall - the Mall of Emirates, so huge that it even had its very own skiing slope complete with ski-lifts ! There were many familiar brands including a number of Malaysian and Singaporean brands. Prices were not much cheaper, in fact almost the same. There were many designer boutiques (Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Armani, Bally, Salvatore Ferragamo etc.) including several watch boutiques (Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, Rolex etc.).

Our Zenith seminar started on the second day afternoon. It was 5 hours long showcasing all the latest novelties presented in an entertaining show comprising modern dance and music. Our third day was spent looking at the new watches and placing our orders. Everything was so beautiful and we bought almost everything!

The hospitality was so good that every little detail was looked into. We were given gifts over the days we stayed and it include a beach bag with a beach towel inside. Initially I didn't understand the meaning until we were reminded to attend our breakfast on the second day at the beach. The gift was actually meant to be used at the beach after breakfast. But as we went to breakfast late, we didn't enjoy the beach other than taking a few pictures for remembrance.

As the resort was so beautiful, I spent some free time in between meetings to take some pictures of the place. Don't think I will be able to afford going back to stay at the resort any time soon.