TRAVEL

Home & Away with Robert WalsheLiving

Etihad Airways, the na-tional airline of the United Arab Emirates, has launched a Meet and Greet service for guests arriving on Etihad Air-ways flights at Abu Dhabi In-ternational Airport ideal for traffic on their twice daily service from Dublin.

The service can be booked up to 48 hours before travel and is designed to make it easy and quick to collect lug-gage and pass through Abu Dhabi immigration and cus-toms. The Silver Package includes a personal welcome on arrival with one staff member for every one to five guests, immigration fast track and assistance with baggage collection. The cost for this package is US 38 per person. The Gold Package includes all of the compo-nents of the Silver Package, but with one staff member for every guest as well as a complimentary personal porter to collect and trans-port baggage through the airport to curbside. The cost for this package is US 65 per person. www.etihad.com/meetandgreet

Holiday Hotspot – Movenpick Resort

Petra, Jordan Petra is often referred to as

a place that everybody must visit at least once in their lifetime. In fact nothing can quite prepare a visitor for their first glimpse of Petra, a city intricately carved into a rockface. It is understanda-bly Jordan’s most celebrated attraction. Located towards the south of the country, Petra is surrounded by dra-matic mountainous terrain which provides a sensa-tional backdrop for this an-cient treasure. Even if you haven’t travelled before, the destination is instantly rec-ognisable. El Deir, a fantastic monastery and also the Ob-elisk tomb have had starring roles in blockbuster mov-ies including Indiana Jones

and the Last Crusade, and Transformers.

Historically this mysteri-ous city of the Nabataeans came to prominence as a powerful trading post on the Silk Route, reaching its heights around the first cen-tury AD before disappear-ing into the story books of legend after the fall of the Roman Empire. Known to local Bedouin, it was redis-covered by Swiss traveler Johann Burckhardt in 1812. The city was unmarked on modern maps until Burck-hardt’s visit had been unseen by outsiders for more than 500 years. Early visitors ar-rived on camelback and foot to marvel at Petra’s grandeur and wonder about its past. Their accounts and images fueled curiosity about the city and its origins. Petra’s location in the Holy Land of Arabs, Christians, and Jews added enormously to its allure. For those who like outdoor activities, Petra is a great venue for hiking trips. For the best excursions, trek through the High Place of Sacrifice and the Mountain of Aaron home to elaborate rock altars historically used as places of sacrifice. The highest peak in the area and home to the tomb of Aaron, brother of Moses, it remains a must see. You could spend

two or three days in Petra exploring the various caves, tombs and passageways; and if you have an opportu-nity try and see the old city at night, when thousands of candles light this very spir-itual destination. There is no better place to stay when you visit such a dramatic attraction then the Moven-

pick Resort. The property a symbol of elegance and Swiss efficiency standing alongside the entrance to this legendary rose-red city. Its Middle Eastern interiors include a fountain and four-storey atrium surrounded by palm trees where afternoon tea beckons. The hotel pro-vides guests with access to

the hotel’s wellness center, fully equipped gym, outdoor pool steam baths and a fully stocked library including books about Jordan and Petra. The hotel also hosts banquets in the property or on location in a reserved sec-tion of the ancient city. All rooms in the hotel features air conditioning, satellite TV, direct-dial telephone serv-ice, coffee-making facilities and full service bathrooms. Al Saraya an all-day dining restaurant serves a splendid breakfast buffet and interna-tional or local classics for dinner, whether à la carte or buffet. The Al Ghadeer roof garden is perfect for en-joying a nightcap watching the sky change colour over the Petra Hills - simply per-fection! The hotel will also arrange different types of ex-cursions into Petra for you, with tour guides who speak several languages. For best rates visit www.moevenpick-hotels.com Petra is one of the world’s most compel-ling historical sites, up there with the Taj Mahal and the Pyramids for romance and visual drama. www.visitjor-dan.com

Turkish airlines offer 10 flights a week from Dublin to Istanbul with onward connec-tions to Amman. Turkish Air-lines, fly to 217 destinations

in 96 countries with new des-tinations like Maldives, Kili-manjaro, Sharm el Sheik, Buenos Aires and South Af-rica. www.turkishairlines.com

Home & Away Deal of the Week

Natural Retreats is offer-ing guests the opportunity to save up to £146 (€170) with a luxurious self-cater-ing break in June from only £128* (€150) per night stay-ing at the stunning Natural Retreats Castlemartyr in Co Cork or Natural Retreats The Heritage in Co Laois. Staying in a beautiful two bedroom residence and experienc-ing the best Ireland has to offer, this break is ideal for families, couples or a group of friends. Guests receive a complimentary welcome hamper filled with delicious local produce such as bread, cheese and wine and are granted full access to the five-star hotel facilities, in-cluding spa, restaurants and championship golf courses. There is a wealth of activi-ties to keep guests busy in the area, from horse-riding to fishing, cycling to moun-tain walks and the Natural Retreats Concierge Team can help with everything and anything. www.natural-retreats.co.uk

Pet’s Corner... with Kathleen Murray

Home and Away ExtraStena Line has invested £4.6M on its ships

on the Belfast – Liverpool route. The new look ships, the Stena Lagan and Stena Mer-sey, have been refurbished by £2.3M each to offer improved facilities and additional services for customers with the aim of making travel between Belfast and Liver-pool affordable and hassle-free. The ferry giant can now offer customers the same ex-perience travelling the Irish Sea, whether they are going by Superfast from Belfast to Cairnryan or Supercruise to Liverpool. Stena started work on the two ship refur-bishments last year and successfully com-pleted the project earlier this year. With improved facilities and additional services

customers can now enjoy the most indul-gent, fun and relaxing way to get to Liver-pool.

The ferry company also invested in new lounge areas, kids play area and in a new food offering while also introducing five new comfort class cabins per ship which offer the ultimate in relaxation and com-fort. Stena Line operates the biggest fleet and the widest choice of routes between Ireland and Britain with an extensive route network including Belfast to Cairnryan, Belfast to Liverpool, Dun Laoghaire to Holy-head, Dublin Port to Holyhead and Rosslare to Fishguard.

www.stenalink.co.uk

n The Treasury Building Petra Jordan.

n Movenpick Resort Petra Atrium.

Pedigree v. Mongrel – the choiceWhat is the right dog for

me? What are the advantages of getting a pedigree dog and what are the advantages of get-ting a mongrel dog? If you buy a pedigree dog then you have a history of where the dog came from.

The pedigree form has the names of several generations of your dogs relatives on it. You will know the mother and father, the grandparents etc. You will know if any of the dogs on the pedigree form have won anything at dog shows (if they are champions).

Pedigree dogs are bred for specific purposes. Some are herding dogs, some are gun

dogs, some are “toy” dogs (lap-dogs) etc. so you will know what the dog is most likely to be attracted to e.g. a springer spaniel like to run over to hedges and bark, a border col-lie likes to herd things even children, a husky likes to run, a terrier type dog likes to hunt mice etc. Dogs work with the instincts that their type is bred to work with. Some pedigree dogs are prone to certain types of medical problems. Please don’t ignore this fact as veteri-nary costs can be quite high. Money-wise alone, pedigree dogs can cost a lot of money. First you have to buy the dog, then you need to pay attention

to grooming. Some dogs need a lot of grooming and this is an-other frequent and regular bill for you to allow for.

Pedigree dogs often develop behaviour problems as their owners think of them as more than a dog (because they paid a lot of money for it) and this can lead to trouble. Mongrel dogs have their ups and downs also. You can get beautiful cross breed (mongrel) dogs at dog shelters or dog pounds. Mongrels tend to have fewer medical problems than pedi-gree dogs. Because their blood lines are more hap-hazard they can go their whole lifetime with only the necessary trips (vac-

cinations and neutering etc.) to the vet.

Mongrels can have any kind of behaviour as the breed-ing is unknown. This is not a bad thing. They tend to have friendly personalities and can be very intuitive and playful (if brought up properly, like any dog). I have a “Joe Soap” aver-age looking collie (sheepdog).

She is not a pedigree dog. She is 13 years old and that little dog has been the greatest com-panion anyone could want. She has worked her whole life to make life better for other dogs by demonstrating to farmers, children in schools, private individuals etc. what dogs are

capable of. She has never been sick in her life although her heart is weak now as she is older. She is in great form, sharp as a button and I wouldn’t part with her for anything.

She will be a great loss when she goes. I also have pedigree dogs (given to me) which have cost a fortune over time in vets bills and in grooming care, so getting a

dog is a very personal thing. One is as good as the other if brought up the right way. No matter what dog you pick please make sure you get it neutered if you are not an above board, full time breeder, otherwise you risk adding to the population of unwanted dogs as your dog will breed with some “ship that passes in the night”... or day.

Robert Walshe is a travel broadcaster with Q Radio Network & Travel Editor forRiver Newspapers Ireland & Lifestyle Northern Ireland Online - www.robertwalshe.com