Thursday, 7 November 2019
Sir Bani Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE

The Encore’s first port in the UAE is an island off the coast of Abu Dhabi, privately owned by the local Sultan.  The island offers several private resorts, as well as a public beach surrounded by beautiful blue-green waters (photos do not do justice).  This part of the island is not unlike the private islands owned by several cruise lines in the Caribbean.  

The big difference here is that the large center of the circular island contains the largest animal preserve in the Arab world—home to free-ranging Oryx, Deer, Spotted Deer, Emus, Peacocks, and Giraffes.  We ride in eight-passenger 4x4s over some rather rough terrain to get close up views of the animals in their close-to natural  environments.  Since they have no fear of predators, they come quite close to the vehicles for close-ups.  We even get a glimpse of one very fast-moving Cheetah—too fast for a photo.  But the photos I do get are better than words.

After the not-very-strenuous activity of the Safari Ride, I am ready for the big BBQ lunch.  The entire crew has worked really hard to set up a very large buffet, under large tents, to protect us from the sun, which is very hot, although there is a cooling sea breeze.  The buffet consists mainly of a variety of cold salads, with a small selection of pre-cooked meats—not my idea of BBQ, but quite filling nevertheless.  There is also, of course, lots of free alcohol to make everyone happy.

In the early afternoon I tender back to the ship for an afternoon of rest and more packing.  Dinner tonight is Spanish-themes, but I am still full from lunch so will probably eat very little