TRAVEL:How To Turn Your Vacation Into A Healthy Experience - Chronicles Of My Last Dubai Trip

👀: Free Wall Paper

More times than often, travelling for vacation is considered to be a leisure activity reserved for only the financially able but after almost 6 months of steadfast work from my new base and a gruelling professional examination experience, I was in dire need of a healthy vacation and I could practically  feel the stress draining out of my soul as I dragged the family luggage towards the tidy metro area of the Dubai International Airport Arrival Lounge. I couldn't care less about not having all the funds I needed; my major goal was how to turn the vacation into a healthy experience whilst having all the fun I could. This is not a paid advert for the Dubai Department of Tourism but a chronicle summary of my last vacation and what I made of the opportunity health-wise.

👀: dubai-international-airport.com

Since stable Health is "a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity", to turn a vacation into a healthy experience, every tourist has to take stock of their physical, mental and social gains as the holiday goes by. This was my simple strategy. Let's see how I did and perhaps you could get a few cues to turn your next vacation into a healthy experience.  

* PHYSICAL HEALTH:
Without knowing it, many of us get quite physically inactive with our everyday regular routines, so on this particular trip more than ever before, I was determined to take advantage of the pedometer on my I-phone and get the steps going. Check-In at the Rose Rayhaan by Rotana where we stayed was at 2pm Dubai time but we arrived at about 6:30am and by after 7a.m. we were practically done with immigration checking. My idea was to take the family straight to any restaurant around The Dubai Mall for breakfast and have a walk around before we retire to the hotel. We did just that, walking by the Dubai Mall Aquarium and heading straight outside to have a feel of the Dubai Fountains area for a daylight experience. The step count was slowly mounting up. After breakfast we headed to the Hotel, got checked into a room with the most amazing view I have ever had from a hotel, freshened up, had a much needed nap, dinner and then back to the Mall to experience an aspect of the trip I will mention below when I touch on mental health.  Why is PHYSICAL ACTIVITY important though and why should you make sight seeing on foot a very important aspect of your vacations, no matter where you go?    World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics reveal that, approximately 3.2 million deaths per year worldwide are due to physical inactivity. This probably sounds like a joke until you realise that - physical inactivity is estimated as being a major risk factor for developing: breast and colon cancer, 27% of diabetes and 30% of ischaemic heart disease(heart attacks) worldwide.  Being able to rent a car to take you around the city every single time you step out might feel like high level prestige but on this trip my brethren, I wasn't going to leave nothing to chance in turning this vacation into a healthy experience and by the end of our first day, this was my physical activity report card. Make no mistake about it, we certainly had to take Taxis in between. By the time we got back to the hotel, though our legs were aching, excellent oxygen-rich blood had circulated around our bodies and we had certainly surpassed WHO recommendations for daily steps per day. 

* MENTAL HEALTH:
Though it was my third visit but I realised that with every return trip, the scenery you experience as you enter the city and head Downtown kind of has a positively transformational effect on the mental faculty; if you know, you know 😀....Previously, I had thought this was the case because I was visiting from Nigeria on the last 2 occasions but here I was, visiting from the United Kingdom and my first expression was "woow"; my eyes were sending signals to my brain that in turn sent beautiful signals to it's own faculties and the overall effect was a deep sense of mental relief. The same effect you have when you go on wonderful sight seeing anywhere else in the world. You practically forget all your worries and just bask in the moment. The next visually exciting moment was our hotel room and the mind blowing view from the 33rd floor of the 65 storey high Rose Rayhaan by Rotana; and then the Dubai Aquarium that houses a large variety of water living creatures including: sharks,sting rays as well as other species too numerous to mention. To crown it all, was the superlative Dubai Fountain and Burj Khalifa light show, where water in fountain format was made to dance amazingly to soothing music, whilst an amazing light show was been simultaneously displayed on the front surface of the tallest building in the world- The Burj Khalifa. I will allow the pictures below to give you a better insight to what this all looks like and hopefully I will find time to edit a short video for my YouTube channel.   After all the sightseeing and more, my challenges may not have disappeared after the trip but the sheer amazement in the fact that, a set of people could live beyond their own challenges over time and make things look this beautiful for their satisfaction gave me a deep sense of hope that, with a little focus and determination, no future challenge was insurmountable! This gave me a deep feeling of mental relief and relaxation. I don't know how other visitors have felt but for me, the feeling is unexplainable.

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The room views above and then the mind blowing scenery when I looked outside the glass wall...shown below 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

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Dubai Fountain by Miroslav Petrasco 👀: www.hdrshooter.com

Don't get me wrong people, a vacation is by no means the recommended or definitive treatment for anyone who has been diagnosed with some form of mental health challenge or even those yet to be diagnosed. Seeking help from your Healthcare Practitioner should be your first go to but for those struggling with one decision or the other and needing a clearer mind to gain fair perspective, a vacation might make a difference and sightseeing is a great way to go.

* SOCIAL HEALTH:
January 13 is my birthday and part of this trip was to have a memorable time for this year's celebration so, in addition to some of the already above mentioned sightseeing activites that had a social aspect, we also did some socialising by catching up with family who live and work in Dubai. High point was visiting The Salt Bae Restaurant/Nusr-et Dubai Steak House at the Four Seasons Jumeirah Resort with family on my birthday for the very popular steak experience. Their Salmon was amazing as well.

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The Salt Bae Ottoman Rib eye steak by Nate Skid-👀: cnbc.com

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I currently live in Europe and I have been to a few places in Africa and the U.S.A. for visits. I have been to the U.A.E. before but this trip felt different and so will the rest of the trips God willing. Take advantage of every moment you can to turn your vacation into not only an enjoyable but also a healthy experience. I can testify of the benefits, so should you.

REFERENCE:
* WHO|New Physical Activity Recommendations For Reducing Disease And Preventing Death

* TRAVELEXUSA|Why Is Travel Good For Your Health