I wake to thin stripes of light peeking through thick curtains. After some stabbing of the “open” button on my techy wall panel, the shades purr open, bathing the high thatch of my villa in morning sun. Shuffling into hotel slippers, I pad out onto the deck, looking out over glimmering water. A heron glides by, low to the water. Sitting cross-legged on a circular daybed, I sip a coffee and enjoy the silence.
It seems improbable, looking at this, that I flew into Dubai airport last night, arriving here just an hour later. I’m in a different Arab Emirate, Ras Al-Khaimah (RAK), where the January-opened Anantara resort promises to reveal a new “eco-luxury” side to the country, a world away from the frenetic development of the UAE’s best-known destination.
