Emirates Palace…an International Icon in World of Hospitality

Emirate Palace Mandarin Oriental hotel in Abu Dhabi (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Emirate Palace Mandarin Oriental hotel in Abu Dhabi (Asharq Al-Awsat).
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Emirates Palace…an International Icon in World of Hospitality

Emirate Palace Mandarin Oriental hotel in Abu Dhabi (Asharq Al-Awsat).
Emirate Palace Mandarin Oriental hotel in Abu Dhabi (Asharq Al-Awsat).

The Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi, officially named Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, is a landmark in the world of international extravagant hotels. Now, the palace is offering people the chance to visit and take a closer look at its breathtaking luxury.

 

In the lobby, you can spot Arab and foreign visitors queuing to enter the hotel through its massive doors accompanied by the receptionists who stand to warmly welcome the guests. The tour often starts at the grand dome known for its unique decoration inspired by the Islamic and Arabic civilization that reflect the history of the country and the region.

 

Executives at the Emirates Palace believe that “the hotel has become a world-known landmark in the UAE, and a site with a cultural and historic significance.”

 

The fancy and precise detail we see are indescribable; gold dominates everywhere inside the hotel. According to CNN, the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, valued at $3 billion, has witnessed the restoration of 2,000 square meters by a specialized team that painted the interior sides of the hotel with real silver and gold.

 

The latest developments promise a new phase of advanced services at the hotel, whose management has always been eager to maintain the legacy of the site and provide new hospitality experiences for guests including renovated rooms, new spa, and improved sport facilities.

 

The hotel is characterized with top-notch sustainable services and trends, and provides redesigned accommodations including the so-called “first vegan rooms” in the region with an eco-friendly design, sustainable beds, vegan menus, and cruelty-free bath products.

 

Located on the shores of the Arabian Gulf, the Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental boasts wide areas, expanded lobbies, and highly detailed and diverse decors that reflect an incomparable creativity completed with rare artifacts displayed in glass vitrines in the corners of the corridors.

 

The management of the hotel has been making major steps to ensure significant upgrades that lure more visitors, such as incorporating cafés and restaurants into the main lobby, and dedicating a special pavilion for high-profile gatherings so guests can take their favorite hot and cold beverages on comfortable tables and chairs in keeping with the hotel’s tone, in addition to exquisite food and drink menus.

 

The Mandarin Oriental also includes Michelin starred restaurants and international award-winning spas.

 



Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

 Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
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Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

 Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)

For many people of a certain age, high school gym class began with reaching for their toes. Then, over the years, we were told it was better to stretch after exercise.

It turns out, both those things can be true, but the differing advice has created some confusion.

Stretching can help make you more flexible, improve range of motion in your joints — and feel good. David Behm, who researches human kinetics at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada, offers this advice on when to stretch and how to do it safely:

Warm up first

It’s almost always good to stretch, but it’s better if you warm up first, said Behm, author of "The Science and Physiology of Flexibility and Stretching." He recommends a light aerobic activity such as jogging, walking or cycling for five or 10 minutes.

Follow that with some static stretching, the traditional way of reaching and holding a position (think back to that gym class). You can then do activity-specific dynamic stretching, in which you warm up the muscles with repetitive movements like leg lifts.

Behm says one minute is "the magic number" for how long to do static stretching per muscle group without fatigue.

Expand your definition of 'stretching'

Should you always stretch before exercising? If it's traditional stretching, not necessarily.

The better question, Behm says, is, "Should people increase their range of motion? Should people have better flexibility? And that is yes, because it helps prevent injuries. It helps with health. But you don’t have to stretch to achieve that."

Resistance training, for instance, can be an effective form of stretching, he said. Doing a chest press increases range of motion in your deltoids and pecs, whether with barbells, dumbbells or machines, so there is no need to stretch beforehand. Just make sure to start with a small amount of weight to warm up and then add more to train.

"You probably don’t have to do extra stretching unless you’re a gymnast, a figure skater, or even a golfer who needs a great range of motion through that swing," Behm said.

Nor do you need to stretch first if you’re going for a leisurely run. Simply start with a slow jog to warm up and then increase the pace.

Don't do it if it hurts

After exercise, "light stretching is OK, as long as you don't reach a point where you're feeling pain," Behm said. Since your muscles will be warm by that point, overdoing it makes you more likely to injure yourself.

Foam rollers can help with muscle recovery and have been shown to increase range of motion as well as stretching.

Do some static stretching before sports

If you’re playing a sport, Behm said, static stretching beforehand helps reduce muscle and tendon injury.

"If you’re going to do an explosive movement, change of direction, agility, sprint, any of these explosive activities that involve your muscles and tendons," he said, "you’re going to be stronger if you do static stretching."

People can especially get in trouble when they go back to a sport they used to play, whether it's tennis, surfing or any sort of team activity.

Also, stretch both sides equally. Lacking flexibility on one side also can lead to injury.

Sounds simple. Why all the confusion? Different studies over the years have either encouraged or discouraged stretching before exercise. Behm says that partly because some studies didn't reflect real-life conditions, or were designed with elite athletes in mind, not regular people.

"If you’re Usain Bolt, it makes a difference," said Behm. Not so much for the rest of us.