I hope everyone had a great Columbus Day weekend. I arrived home to New York City on Columbus Day to warm and sunny 80-degree weather after a phenomenal flight on board Emirates‘ A380 from Dubai. The plane is an amazing aircraft, and it’s hard to beat the seat and bar upstairs. The cabin crew was so thoughtful, singing “Happy Birthday” to me at the bar with cake and champagne. They will keep me coming back on board the airline!

I spent Saturday in Dubai brushing up on my knowledge of rugby, as the 2011 Rugby World Cup is taking place. I met with a dear Irish friend over the weekend, and she said no matter what we did, she had to get up at 6 a.m. Saturday to watch Ireland play Wales. The Irish expat community is big in Dubai, and I wanted to see what all the excitement was about. I joined my friend at McGettigan’s Pub above the Bonnington Jumeirah Lakes Towers in Dubai, bright and early on Saturday morning.

We arrived closer to 7:30 a.m., but it was like the bar never closed the night before, except the kitchen was serving a full Irish breakfast instead of fish and chips and Irish stew. The bar was packed in a sea of green, plus a few red jerseys in support of Wales. The bar also had a special guest in attendance — Jerry Flannery, an injured member of the Irish World Cup team, who flew into Dubai the night before from New Zealand, where the matches were taking place.

Ireland was playing in the quarterfinals that morning, never making it to the semifinals in World Cup history. While they lost in the quarters, the experience was still unforgettable for positive reasons. McGettigan’s is a big pub, with a fantastic bar and separate beer garden. It’s spacious and serves great Irish fare. Laughing and hanging out with part of the Irish community in Dubai was an absolute blast. There are several good pubs in Dubai, but I recommend you find McGettigan’s when you need an escape and a good pint next time you’re in Dubai — I know I will!

— Alex Young, vice president and associate publisher