Anne Thornley-Brown is the President of Executive Oasis International, a Toronto based firm that regularly organizes incentive travel and executive retreats in Dubai, Oman, Jamaica, Malaysia, Singapore, and Canada. They provide one stop shopping service with a personalized approach to incentive travel for corporate groups of up to 40. Customized itineraries include travel, transfers, hotel, tours, team activities, and special events.
I was bitten by the travel bug long before I can even remember. It’s really quite simple. As a toddler, I boarded an airplane with a close family friend and travelled from my native Jamaica to join my parents in Montreal where my father was studying at McGill. So, it’s not surprising that travel was a comfortable thing for me to do. In high school, one of my teachers (her name escapes me at the moment) mentionned that her daughter, a university student, was working as an Air Canada flight attendant. That stuck with me and, as soon as I was old enough. I applied to Air Canada. The first year that I applied, they weren’t hiring but the second year, I was in luck. It really wasn’t hard. A couple of interviews followed by a medical examination and I was in.
It was the summer I turned 21 and it was an exhilarating experience. After 6 weeks of training which even included courses in make-up, walking and grooming at the Constance Brown modelling agency, I began the adventure of a lifetime. I worked domestic flights from coast to coast in Canada, travelled all over the USA and went to Europe for the first time. It was to Brussels and we were a juniour crew all on reserve. What a blast we had touring the ancient sites. I remember it as it were yesterday. The chocolate shoppes on street corners, the first time I tasted steak au poivre and the wonderful people we met.
That is how I spent 2 glorious summers, travelling to places like Port of Spain, London and Paris where I had profiteroles au chocolate for the first time and savoured the delights of strawberries and cream in the Bois de Boulogne. I remember working a flight to Frankfurt and having a glorious layover in a picturesque town called Mainz. I was with a senior crew that time so a lot of my exploration was on my own. After all, even if my crew was going to be in London or Germany a few times a month, this might be my last opportunity to see those places. While they rested at the hotel, I took a cruise to Bacharach, a town that was over 1000 years old. That’s when I learned to be comfortable and explore foreign destinations on my own. I’ll come back soon and post some of my photos from those 2 summers after I scan them.
After graduating from University of Illinois, I went back to Jamaica. I hadn’t lived there since I was a child. Working as a social worker at the University Hospital of the West Indies, going to drama school at night and exploring Jamaica, created many fond memories and special experiences for me.
So, it’s not surprising that years later, after I did my MBA at York University’s Schulich School of Business, after a stint at corporate life, and after I set up my own business. I again seized the opportunity to travel. It was unexpected. In the fall of 1999, I received an e-mail asking if I would be interested in moderating a seminar in Kuala Lumpur. I had never been to Asia before but, since I grew up in Montreal’s downtown core and went to school with a lot of Chinese classmates like Elizabeth Lee, Carol Chan and her brother Kenny, and Henry Wong, I immediately said yes.
Asian Adventures
In January, 2000, a few days before the Chinese New Year, I got off the plane at KLIA to a city that was beautifully decorated with Chinese lanterns. I had to pinch myself to make sure that this wasn’t a dream. My first seminar was at Kuala Lumpur’s Regent Hotel and there were 65 delegates in attendance. I returned to Malaysia often and discovered magical places like Penang, Genting Highlands, the Cameron Highlands, Melacca, and my favourite, Kuching in Malaysian Borneo. I went on to conduct sessions in Singapore, Thailand, and India.
Asian Incentive Travel Links
Dazzling Dubai
On the way back to Canada I took advantage of the opportunity to have short stopovers in places like Paris, London, Tokyo, and, Dubai. I arrived in Dubai after conducting sessions in Mumbai and I immediately fell in love with the place. It was the day after Ramadan began in 2000. It was around the same time that their much beloved leader H. H. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan was returning from having a kidney transplant in the USA. The city was beautifully lit up for Ramadan and there were giant photos of Sheikh Zayed everywhere. I spent the next few days in what felt like a futuristic Arabian Nights fantasy. There was a riding lesson at the polo club followed by a chance to relax and watch polo, shopping, a desert safari, and an enchanting Dhow dinner cruise on the Dubai Creek. When we floated by what I later learned was the Dubai Heritage Village, it was all lit up and I was in the process of sampling the most delectable chocolate goodies. It was again time to pinch myself as I was sure I was dreaming. When I returned, I never stopped talking about it and I was delighted that I eventually had a chance to work with some clients there.
Middle Eastern Incentive Travel Links
Finally, in October, 2007, I was invited on a familiarization trip to the United Arab Emirates (Dubai, Abu Dhabi) and Oman. Not only was I reminded about why I have fallen in love with the UAE, my trip to Oman was truly a magical experience.
Majestic Oman
Oman has managed to preserve so much of the traditional Middle Eastern architecture against a backdrop of stunning mountain ranges. The views from mountain ranges like Jebel Shams and Jebel Akhtar are truly spectacular. As one travels throughout Oman, it’s like visiting one oasis after another. An extensive irrigation network has made it possible for rich foliage to grow on what was once rock and desert.
It was during my trip to Oman that it occured to me that I had discovered so many luxurious resorts, enchanting hideaways, unique attractions, and truly stunning places in my travels that I could share them with my clients and other companies. That is how I was bitten by the incentive travel bug.
