Every time I hear the words “desert” or “oasis,” my mind plays images of a caravan of camels plodding ever so slowly in the vast sands against a setting sun, sitting on carpets spread out across a plain, a feast of ouzi or whole spit-roasted lamb, biryani rice, fresh dates, baklava, a belly dancer desperately trying to distract me from the food; perhaps even Midnight at the Oasis playing in the background by the singer Maria Muldaur, a 1974 hit charged with sensually suggestive lyrics about a desert love affair (“Let’s slip off to a sand dune... and kick up a little dust”; “You won’t need no camel... when I take you for a ride”). Sounds more like a Hollywood script, doesn’t it? Well, it’s precisely because of all those Hollywood movies I’ve seen, all mixed up in my mind, that I can’t recall any particular one. Call it selective memory, or wishful thinking (wink, wink).
Early this July, I jumped at an invite by Emirate Airlines and Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing to join a small media group for a five-day tour of Dubai. Finally, I’ll have my fantasy desert safari come true, I said to myself. Well, to get ahead of my story, save for the ouzi and Maria Muldaur’s soundtrack, I got everything I fantasized about and much, much more. The ouzi gives me a big reason for a comeback trip.