Dubai Dreaming

The flight was fairly easy, although I was horrified when I first found my seat and was sitting next to a woman and her baby... It was nowhere near as traumatic as I'd assumed - the baby flew quite well, with minimal tantrums! I think I slept most of the way, so when we landed at just after midnight local time, I was ready to spend my 8 spare hours exploring one of the world's largest international airports!
First off a bathroom break, then I thought I'd figure out where I could spend my free meal voucher. We'd been given vouchers for a meal, I assume to compensate for the long wait between connecting flights. I found a small garden in one of the terminals, and lots of designated smoking areas. They were all small rooms though, and every time someone opened the door, the smokey haze would waft out... Yuck!
I ended up finding a pizza shop and got my free pizza and drink. It wasn't the greatest I've ever had, but I'm not complaining about free pizza!
I kept wandering around, eventually stopping at an irish pub for a 3am cider. The pub wasn't that busy, but I was shocked at how busy the rest of the airport was at all hours of the night - I guess it is a bit of a transit airport, so it shouldn't have been surprising.
I left the pub after using the free wifi, then wandered off to find a Costa Coffee, to get a hot chocolate and use their wifi.
By now it was nearly 6am, so I made my way to check out the shops, maybe find a puzzle book and some snacks for the next leg.
I eventually headed to my gate at about 7am, but there was still another hour until boarding, so found a seat for a snooze. It was almost like a lounge, it was shaped so you could lie down.
I started chatting to the woman next to me who was from perth, but she was at the beginning of her trip, heading to the UK.
I ended up setting an alarm on my phone, putting my bag under my jumper, my beanie over my eyes and had a 45min nap. I actually slept pretty well! By the time I awoke, I had time for a quick toilet stop before boarding.Read more