My 30th Birthday Weekend

First of all, thank you to all those who greeted me during my birthday. I sincerely appreciate your thoughtfulness, and all your warm tidings. I had a blast celebrating this milestone birthday, and here is my uber late story. Have to warn you though of the photo overload! :D

I’ve always loved a good staycation so for my birthday, just as last year’s, I decided to book for one night at Dusit Thani Dubai Hotel. Thanks to my dear cousin who works at the hotel, I managed to get a pretty good deal with the rates, owing to their family member special rate benefit. Not only did I get a fairly discounted rate – i also got a two bedroom suite accommodation with freebies such as breakfast for 2, access to the Club Executive Lounge, and a whopping 50% discount at their coffee shop. What a nice birthday gift, no?

me & hubby at our suite

I was pretty lucky my birthday landed on a weekend here so I was able to have a relaxing day for myself. Hubby and I checked in at the hotel at 9:30 am then went to St. Mary’s Church after dropping our stuff in the suite. Afterwards, we had lunch at Dusit Delicatessen where we ordered their Blue Plate Special. For drinks, I had a glass of a flavorful Strawberry Smoothie.

having lunch - all my favorites in one plate

I dared not let the day pass without taking a trip to the salon. I haven’t been to one in the last few weeks so I took the opportunity to pay it a visit, this time with my bestie Beth. When we finished, hubby picked us up, and we all headed back to the hotel where the husband surprised me with a lovely bouquet of flowers. I knew that he may order flowers for me since he always does that on every occasion but I i was totally surprised when he handed them over to me after we got off the car. I was spaced out that afternoon because I was feeling sleepy so when he walked towards me with the big bouquet in his hand, I was rendered speechless!

bonding time with bestie 

from honeybear

I had arranged a small gathering for my birthday where I invited my cousins, my Pinoy family at work, and a handful of friends to celebrate with me. I prepared a bowling party at Dubai Bowling Centre where my guests and I bowled to our heart’s content for two hours. After making my guests work so very hard at knocking off some ten pins, I treated them to dinner at the nearby Mugg & Bean. The highest score of the night was by Harvey (ni Gracita) who took home a box of Cadbury truffles as a prize.

bowl a strike

an EB (finally!) with my katukayo, Gracita & her Papa Harvs

with the best husband in the world!

at the bowling centre

with my pretty cousins

blow the big 30 candle

cutting the cake

After dinner, we all headed to the hotel for some cocktails and drinks. Here are some more pictures of the night: 

with the girls 

a pose with the drinkers in the house

cheers!

the bar

it's fun being 30!

opening a gift

thankful!

lovely presents

birthday girl

It was a fun party, all in all. I had a great time bonding with my family, and friends plus I got to meet new ones, too. The night was capped at half past three in the morning, I think.

At 9:00 am, hubby and I roused ourselves from our deep slumber to have breakfast at The Californian Restaurant at the hotel’s 24^th floor. Despite the lack of sleep, I was pumped with energy as we were to catch the movie, Kung Fu Panda at the Metroplex Cinema for the 11:00 am time slot, which was exclusively arranged for all of us DIFC Authority staff and our families. Loved the movie to bits! :D

We had late lunch thereafter at the famous home of peri-peri chicken, Nando's in Sheikh Zayed Road. Once we finished savoring their sumptuous chicken delights, we trooped back to the hotel for a short nap. We later on packed our stuff to check out at 6:00 pm but before doing so, we made a side trip to the Executive Lounge for some cocktails before heading back home.

It was a tiring weekend for the me but no complaints.  You only turn 30 only once in your life so best to make the most out of it. In my case, I obviously did! And despite my family being away from me on my special day, it was still extra special because of the guests who took time to come by and party with me.

I used to not believe in happy birthdays but now I do :)