A friend, who was recently fresh off the boat in Dubai, was in the market for a kayak.
He had just snapped up a new home on Shoreline Apartments on the Palm Jumeirah and thought it was about time to lose some weight, get fit and pretend to his new friends he was a man of sea. A captain of some sort.
So the "captain" picked up a second-hand two-man kayak for about Dh2,000 (US$544) on Dubizzle and parked it on the beach, ready to role.
He has probably used it all of two times in two weeks but, most importantly, at dinner parties he can now be described as a kayaker.
"Oh, that is James, you should talk to him about kayaking," people will say. And if you do talk to James, you will find there are myriad different spots in the UAE to go kayaking.
There are the mangroves of Abu Dhabi, the Al Jazirah Port in Ras Al Khaimah and even places to spot turtles in Umm Al Qaiwain.
Musandam in Oman is also renowned as a beautiful area to get lost in - the so-called fjords of the Middle East. And if you really want to impress your friends, then you can spend a lot more than Dh2,000 on getting the best kit.
Surf Shop Dubai sells a brand of Kayaks called Epic Kayaks, which are endorsed by two blokes called Greg Barton and Oscar Chalupsky, who are a previous Olympic champion and a World Champion, respectively.
Their touring kayaks can cost about $4,000 and enable you to travel long distances with more speed and little effort.
Adventure HQ, also in Dubai, sells a whole range of different kayaks that go for as much as Dh13,500.
So if you fancy spending a lot to get out on the water, then top-notch kayaks are not in short supply across the UAE. Although for $4,000, you might be better off buying a small boat and then you can become a real captain.
If all else fails buy a captain's hat and wear it to dinner parties.
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