It’s been 5 years since I was last in Dubai and so much have changed over the years. One thing that hasn’t though is the fact that everything outdoors is still dusty no matter how many green trees they have taken great pains to grow and build irrigation for. Since we traveled late in the year though, the weather was cooler and much like the Philippines’ except that it’s not humid. Even if we walked around a lot, we didn’t sweat as much as we would have back home. And so dusting sand off our clothes at the end of the day is a small price to pay for being able to walk around feeling (and smelling!) fresh.
We took the direct 8.5-hour flight to Dubai via Emirates Airlines because they offer to process visas if you purchased your tickets through them. It was a breeze to apply for visas online as long as you have accommodations already booked. Two days was all it took for us to receive our visas via email and in a matter of weeks, we were off. We arrived in Dubai at past 2 in the afternoon and because I love taking public trains in other countries (not in PH though!), I thought it was a great way to start off our adventure. After having some USD exchanged for Dirhams (AED), the local currency (around Php 12 for AED 1), outside the airport, we paid 11AED each for the one-way Metro Gold ticket and got off at the station near our hotel. We would have walked the few blocks down but since we had huge luggage in tow, we decided to take a taxi which set us back 10AED (it was really 7AED on the meter but they won’t give you change for that small amount). We stayed at the popular and affordable 3Star hotel – Citymax – at Kuwait Street in Bur Dubai. Checking in was a breeze since we had already booked our rooms via Agoda. Once settled in, we decided to look for a place to eat outside.
Since we were on our own then, we had zero knowledge about where to find good restaurants so we walked aimlessly until we reached a nearby local mall and settled for – you guessed it – KFC. Yes, we traveled to the UAE for KFC. After having our fill, we headed back to the hotel and called it a day (we gained 4 hours) because we had had a loooong day of traveling.
My sister, who works and lives in Dubai with her family, was free the next day so she graciously drove us around the usual tourist spots. Our first trip was around the Palm Jumeirah which instantly brought me back to 5 years ago when everything was just reclaimed land and not a building nor tree in sight. Now all you can see are posh hotels, expensive residential villas, and of course the Atlantis hotel that stands majestically at the “trunk” of the palm.
Atlantis
The Palm Jumeirah is reclaimed land that they formed into a palm so it has a trunk and branches just like that of a palm tree. It is one of the two (formerly three but the third one was redesigned) “palm” islands – the Palm Jumeirah and Palm Jebel Ali (not yet completed).
They are also building another group of islands, One World, where you can actually buy your own island. I am told that only a few of these islands are still up for sale and that the only way you can get to one is by air. I’d love to buy me one and never leave. Now where can I get a Gazillion dollars?
We headed back from the island toward the beach area in Umm Suqeim where they are completing a public beach with a view of the Burj Al Arab hotel. It was late afternoon and save for the truck partially obscuring the hotel, the view was awesome. The weather was cool too.
Umm Suqeim
Our next stop was Souk (Arabic for “market”) Madinat – my favorite place in the city. It wasn’t so much a market as it was an upscale mall. You enter the halls and it’s as if you are magically transported back in ancient Persia (well, at least that’s how I’d imagined it would be!).
An ATM for gold bars. Of course.
My sister treated us to yummy Japanese food outdoors. The server there knew her personally and congratulated her for her son’s recent award (Beaming Mum as I am a proud Tita!). This was our view from the restaurant. Notice how the Burj Al Arab is again in this photo (far right)?
We spent the following days with my other sister and her boyfriend who both flew in from Qatar to meet us. First on our list was Dubai Mall next to Burj Khalifa (“burj” is Arabic for tower), currently the tallest building in the world.
The Burj Khalifa was supposed to be named Burj Dubai but the city fell into an economic slump a few years ago and couldn’t afford to finish the construction. The President of Abu Dhabi, the richest emirate, Sheikh Khalifa, stepped in and saved the day on the condition that the tower be named after him. (Trivia: Abu Dhabi has 94% of all the oil in UAE while Dubai has 4% and fast depleting, prompting them to boost tourism to save their economy.)
Behind the mall where you see the tower is a vast fountain. Every 30 minutes for about 4 hours every night, tourists are treated to a show of lights here. Needless to say, the place is always suddenly packed just before 6pm everyday. The water danced to the Aria and it is beautiful.
And then of course what’s a trip to Dubai Mall without looking at the largest indoor aquarium in the world?
We capped the night with a dhow (traditional boat) cruise along the creek. We had a great view of the Dubai marina skyline.
The food wasn’t great but there was a fantastic performance of the Egyptian folk dance tanoura in which the dancer expertly twirls around in a heavy skirt and does some complicated juggling of multiple round discs at the same time. The husband even tried the twirling but didn’t last 30 seconds before he got dizzy.
Our next trip was to Ibn Battuta Mall – named after the great Moroccan explorer Ibn Battuta who chronicled his travels around Asia and the Middle East. A diorama of his travels is featured within the mall along with cultural artifacts and trivia. The mall is divided into different sections, showcasing each country that Battuta has visited. This is one of my favorite malls in Dubai. Here are some pictures:
Tune in for my next post about our trip to Abu Dhabi.
