We were roused from our sleep at 5:00 this morning by the sound of a helicopter doing an emergency evacuation, not the sort of birthday start Nicole had envisaged. After managing to doze back off again we were awake again at 7:30 to watch us pull alongside at the pier at Sir Bani Yas Island.
Breakfast in the MDR, back to the cabin then it was off to the beach in the hope that the weather would improve and provide at least some sunshine. After suffering from car park fever we eventually selected a couple of beds close to the water’s edge with a view of the ship right in front of us.
The weather in the morning was a real mixed bag, most of the time it was cloudy, with occasional sunny spells which probably accounted for about 20% of the time. Every now and again you would get spots of rain. The afternoon turned out to be much better than the morning. After 1:00 it was about 85% sunshine and warm enough to take a dip in the sea so that was Nicole’s birthday wish accomplished. Sir Bani Yas Beach is a contained area and you are not able to leave unless you take a ships tour.
We took a walk as far as you could go just to get some steps in and at the same time get some photos of the ship. All aboard was 4:30 but we made our way back at 3:30 because hunger got the better of us. A quick bite to eat in the buffet, followed by watching our sail away from Sir Bani Yas Island.
Tonight because it’s Nicole’s birthday, we are eating in one of the speciality restaurants call Hot Pot. It’s basically a Chinese Fondue where you cook your own food. It’s a bit of a first for us as we have never come across an onboard speciality restaurant that will cater for vegans. Find out how we got on in tomorrow’s post.
Happy Birthday Nicole! Not sure if the pier was there in 2019 as we tendered into the beach from Azamara Quest 20th December
It did look very new.