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Madeleine Collins takes to the slopes of Ski Dubai and rediscovers a lost love.

Ski Dubai is one of the places in this city I always say that I am dying to visit, but I never do. The thing is, I've never quite known whether to book a lesson or just show up and try my best alone on the slopes.

The only time I've ever been ‘real' skiing was in the French Alps four years ago. I took to it like a duck to water and was weaving down the ‘blue' slopes like a love-struck
maniac after my first few lessons. I had never quite anticipated my need for speed but it was alive and kicking on the slopes of Les Gets and skiing provided the incredible rush I felt I'd been waiting my whole life for.

Unfortunately I haven't been near snow since, so Ski Dubai has always been an enticing option. I decide it's time to put my best ski forward and indulge in a lesson.

After being kitted out - Ski Dubai provide the whole skiing outfit apart from gloves (which cost from 10dhs in the shop) and hat - I'm met by my Russian instructor, Artem, who seems a little brusque initially.

To my disappointment, when checking my previous experience, he seems to focus more on the "four years ago" bit than "I was really fast for a beginner".

He merely looks at me deadpan and directs me to the baby slope to put me through my paces. We begin by a few jumps over ski poles to warm up but after just one I feel like I've put my back out because my skis are so heavy. "I can't do that," I whine. Again, the deadpan face.

I look longingly at the grinning, chatty instructors but I suppose Artem's frosty demeanour is rather fitting given the environment. He also seems skeptical at my claims of "I was doing that in the French Alps" when I point at people whizzing down the long, steep slope beside us.

When I exclaim "I used to do jumps and everything!" he barely acknowledges me, and I as good as give up. I sense I'm in for a bit of a boring time.

To be honest, although I did master a jump at practically every turn on the blue slopes of the Alps, I'm not sure it was a technically correct maneovre, and possibly I was simply lucky to get away with no broken bones.

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