'Love is in the air' as V-Day draws near, expats tell KT

Swept up in the atmosphere of Valentine's Day, couples around town share how their sense of romance is cause for celebration in gorgeous Dubai

Rachida Sassou
Valentine's Day is the most romantic day of the year. I'm always excited for Valentine's Day like a kid waiting for Christmas. There are a million ways to celebrate love and a million ways to celebrate Valentine's Day. Some of you will say: it's a commercial trick, but we all love celebrating it, right?
I love receiving flowers on that special day, and [getting myself] ready to go out with my closest friends. As we are food bloggers, it's easy to guess what we do on that special day - We eat. We've tried probably 70 per cent of the restaurants in Dubai, but to celebrate our love, we never say 'no' to dinner at Kaftan Turkish Restaurant that has one of the best views of Burj Al Arab. We generally end up with more friends at Jumeirah Beach Residence or Downtown Dubai. Being with such friends on that day is the most beautiful gift. Even if we were to stay indoors and watch Netflix, it would be the same.
Happy Valentine's Day, guys!

Harneet Kalra
How often do we let negativity, envy, work and insecurities take over our thought process? But then, there is only one thing that keeps us connected, and that is love. As someone who has been in love for 11 years, this is my secret recipe.
Recipe of love - To make a LOVE-ly dish, you need two hearts full of love, two cups of friendship, four spoonfuls of joy, two cups of trust and respect. Take a big bowl of romance and mix all these ingredients, stir daily with happiness and patience, add a handful of humour, a special touch of warmth and tenderness, sprinkle it with hugs and kisses. Bake it for a lifetime of togetherness and serve with passion.
Though every day is Valentine's Day for my husband and me, Dubai has spiced up four years of our marriage. Be it heart-shaped chocolates and red roses, or superb decorations all around the town, many Valentine parties and events, this city has all the ingredients to celebrate this day of love. Dubai now also as its own symbol of love - the first man-made intertwined heart-shaped lake in the desert called Love Lake - how overwhelming is this?
The city has never failed to surprise me with their compassion to celebrate the occasion of love with so much interest. As the city goes pink, I love the feel around the town closer to the occasion. We celebrate Valentine's Day by spending hours talking to each other on a long drive and listening to our favourite songs like Yeh Raaten Yeh Mausam, Laung Laachi and Sapna Jahan, while going to a faraway resort in the UAE for a romantic staycation.
Happy Valentine's Day!

Trena Doris
Our love might not be perfect, but I can't deny that it is an eternal presence - the aspect may change, but not the essence. Relationship with your partners should be a daily celebration. Love isn't limited to a single day but to the joys of an everlasting one. As a couple, we enjoy celebrating this day with close friends and family.
To me, nothing works better than the spoils of an intimate gathering. It is an excuse to design and decorate your home for an enjoyable evening. I relish over the art of cooking and in creating my recipes like saucy chicken and potato, creamy spinach and mushroom pasta, coconut prawn curry and winter roast mutton with spices. Every gathering at my home always reflects the same passion I share for food. People tend to eat with their eyes first, so to me, it's important that I give my loved ones a visual treat.
Our secret for V-Day is really to treat it like any other day because you don't need a big spectacle to say you love someone. You need consistency and the mysteries of tomorrow.

Yasmin Gomez dos Santos
Even if you are single on that date, there is something in the air that makes you feel like you are "in love". I have to say that all my Valentine's Day spent in Dubai have been magical. My husband and I, who are both from Brazil, celebrate Valentine's Day on June 12.
Ever since I moved to Dubai in 2015, I feel that we now have two dates to celebrate our love. We use to say that our day is every day, but everybody likes to celebrate February 14, including me. Every year it impresses me, and for a second I forget about celebrating this day on a different date. We will likely be at our favourite beach La Mer, especially in this weather. I love a restaurant there called Mr. Greek because it makes us feel like we are in Santorini.
I would say that you can feel the love of the people who really care about you and matter in your life. You can feel at home. As they say, home is wherever your heart is, so the feeling of being connected to a place where you can feel the love, is all that matters.

Mostafa Desouky
Valentine's Day in Dubai is the perfect day to spoil your loved one. I love to take my wife to the beach so we can watch the sunset together and enjoy a romantic dinner. There are so many beautiful places with an ocean view or view of the Burj Khalifa fountains. There are also a lot of beautiful parks like Miracle Garden and Dubai Garden Glow, and beaches like Mamzar and River Island where we enjoy our time together.
We also enjoy this special day at one of the magical desert resorts or campsites, and choose from many restaurants that have special offers designed for couples. It is the perfect city to spend Valentine's Day.
Hamda Kunhimoyin
Last year we bought our wedding rings on Valentine's Day. We both ended up shelling out a lot that year.
This year Shameem and I are planning to dine at a Middle Eastern restaurant after exchanging gifts, complete with hearts and decorations. We also bake a strawberry cake.
I like to make my baby girl feel included, and we give her presents on the day, too. My daughter and I get together to make a card for my husband. We're also thinking of going to a restaurant in Dubai. We both love ethnic food, and Indian food is one of our favourites.

Tania Neskorodova
I adore Valentine's Day. Not that it is a great occasion, but it is also a day to look into the eyes of your loved one, to remember how it all began, exchange some cute gifts and be very close to each other for 24 hours. Especially in a case like ours, where we have children and all our daily life spins around them.
What we love to do for a day is to escape to the hotel, pretend to be teenagers who exchange postcards and heart-shaped chocolates, have breakfast in bed and enjoy drinks on the beach.
Our favourite destinations in the UAE are Cove Rotana in Ras Al Khaimah and Le Meridian Al Aqah in Fujairah; both are located far away from hectic cities. Bab Al Shams Resort is another five-star romantic spot in the middle of the desert or those hotels in Dubai where you can swim in a kids-free pool like Al Naseem Hotel or the Ritz-Carlton Dubai. Wherever you choose, be together and let the world wait.

Khalid Laghari
This year, Valentine's will be a special affair as I intend to spontaneously surprise my wonderful wife, the apple of my eye. Madly in love, we got married more than a year ago and this Valentine's I want to make it a memorable day for my better half. The one thing I love about her is that she is more about the experience than she is about the material things and I have just the right plan for the occasion. The weather is lovely and I would love to pack a romantic picnic outdoors and take her on a short, yet adventurous, road trip, one that she will love and surely remember forever.

Puneet Jatana
As an adventurous couple who've been together for 11 years and married for 10, we take Valentine's Day celebrations seriously. For our ninth Valentine's Day celebrations Kristeen and I chose beautiful Dubai, and we were not disappointed! Dubai's modern architecture was captivating, and we felt like we were in a city from the future.
The warm and hospitable people of Dubai made us feel welcome and at home. We spent most of our days here lounging by the beach and enjoying the serene views of the beautiful Burj Al Arab in Jumeirah. Dubai is a fun-filled destination to celebrate Valentine's Day.

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