Planning is not my forte. And if I do make a plan, unless I have to stick to it, I'm not good at doing things according to it. I guess that's why most of my columns are thought processes, moments that I capture, rather than introduction blah blah and conclusion. Anyway, the point is, I recently did make a plan for a Friday afternoon in Dubai. And since I have rarely indulged in the famous institution of the Friday brunch, I decided to take full advantage of the perfect afternoon weather and splurge on a brunch. Of course, it had to be outdoor, and Mina A'Salam therefore fit the bill perfectly.
The other thing about planning is that if something about it doesn't work out right, I'll end up having a worse day than if someone else had organised that very same thing, simply because I have no one to blame but myself. And so I thought about it very carefully. I decided that if I was to have a large buffet spread by the end of which I might feel a little guilty and regretful, I should begin the day with a good workout so as to avoid the awful after-effects of grand buffets such as this. And so I did.
I was up at the strike of the alarm, or even earlier, perhaps, and was at the Quay healthclub in time for an hour of high-altitude training (will reveal more about this next time), after which I did a yoga class and then ready to eat and chill by one o'clock.
I sat on a table beside the water, on one side of which was the Arabian architecture of the Madinat and on the other side, beyond the calm waterways and beach, was the sweeping ocean. I smiled at the perfection thus far. Brunches are not as much fun when alone, and so a party of six worked well. Taking a first glance at all the food, I was confused even as a vegetarian. There was certainly a lot of dishes I couldn't eat, but the choices were as delectable as they were endless. As I put the first forkful of honey-roasted parsnips in my mouth, I found myself filled with relief at this choice. Phew, one side of my brain whispered to the other.
By the end of the meal, or what might have worked out as a few meals, we still found ourselves sitting there, sipping fresh mint tea, having picked at a few desserts. And so the hour of 5pm arrived, and with large bubbles of sleepiness. Planned this was not, but by this point the planned part had gone better than OK, and I was ready to give myself a break. My bed and pillow loomed large in my hazy mind. Instead, however, since the day wasn't over and others around me were assuming responsibility of the plan of action, we went for a brief sheesha, after which an early night was the order of the day. There was nothing to think about for tomorrow, apart from the fact that I definitely wanted to work out again.
— For more from Meera Ashish log on to www.talefourcities.com
