Getting In and Around the Indian Ocean

One of the most fun parts of any wedding is that after an amazing day with those nearest and dearest, you head off into into the sunset on what could be the most amazing trip ever.  Nick and I decided to go a little crazy and planned a trip of the lifetime - to the Maldives and Dubai!

For Nick and I, we took off out of Boston for JFK where we spent the night at the Hampton Inn, ensuring we would not miss our flight for Dubai the next morning at 10:40am.  This plan seemed very smart during the bookings when we thought that New Years meant extreme cold with the possibility of ice and snow!  Little did we know that that would so NOT be an issue this year!  Nevertheless, after an anxious sleep we awoke and arrived at the Emirates Air terminal of JKF.  After waiting in line, negotiating for an upgrade (didn't happen), and some major suitcase shuffling (only 15 pounds for a carry-on!) we were checked in and ready to head through security.

Emirates Check-in Counter

While we did not get the upgrade, we did have a pretty good entertainment system that had plenty to keep us busy for the eleven and a half hour flight to Dubai.

In Flight Entertainment

More cool gadgets

Refreshing Cloth in Coach?  Yes please!

Once everyone was settled, we were off - heading out with an amazing view of Manhattan.

NYC!

The City

We basically flew through the night and followed the sunrise for a bit of time, which we had a perfect view of out our window.

Sun Rise

Looking at the in-flight map was kind of crazy - the areas we flew over were places I never thought I would go near, let alone see!

Over Afghanistan

While the pictures may look a bit weird, not only did we actually get two meals and a snack, it was actually good!  There were a few options for each meal and trying to get used to the food we would be having, Nick and I tried to stick with the Middle Eastern food.

Good Plane Lunch

Good Plane Breakfast

Almost There!

We got a great view and first taste of Dubai as we were coming in for a landing.

Sun Rise

Glimpse of the Burj Kalifa

Taxing to our Gate

Finally, after a short layover we were off again, this time only for three and a half hours to the Maldives (peanuts when compared to the previous flight). Once again we were treated to a great view of the area around the Burj Kalifa!

Such a great view

After a few short hours we were staring down at some of the 1000+ islands that make up the Maldives.  It was such an amazing view - I kept trying to find the one that we would be spending the next 10 nights at.  Eventually I spotted the runway and we had arrived.

The Maldives

After spending 45 minutes in the customs line, we were greeted be a friendly resort representative who took us to the docks where a speed boat was waiting to whisk us away to the resort.

after 20 hours of flying...

Almost there!

And while I will go into detail in future posts about our amazing time in the Maldives, for now we are moving forward by 11 days, when we were forced to leave this magical island and were taken back to the airport for the next part of our honeymoon adventure: Dubai.

We flew over Oman, and I sadly needed the map to let me know for sure what country we were in fact flying over.  I could not believe how mountainous the country was!  Not at all what I expected.

Oman

Over the next few weeks I will post more of the amazing details of the honeymoon, like the resort, the diving, the excursions, the food, Dubai, our camel trek etc.  It was so much fun and may really be the trip of a lifetime.