A Fancy Place, Dubai
Abundance of modern skyscraper.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates Tuesday March 23, 2015
Today our destination is Dubai. My cousin Nina and nephew Thirdy are both living and working here.
As recently as the 1950s, Dubai was little more than a cluster of tiny villages and date farms populated by fishermen, pearl hunters and nomadic Bedouins. It wasn’t until the advent of oil production in the 1960s that the emirate got its first paved roads; later, hospitals and schools arrived.
We were greeted warmly by my cousin Nina, and Thirdy eyes sparkling, his face chiseled and handsome. “Ten years ago, there was nothing here,” he said.
Before 2006, “you would have had to come by boat,” he added. “There wasn’t a road or bridge. There was nothing but sand.”
Dubai’s old creek.
The Dubai Fountain.
We indulged in their hospitality. Nina took us to restaurant overlooking the Dubai Fountain which is the world's tallest performing fountain. At over 900 ft in length – equivalent to over two football pitches . It is performing to a selection of different melodies.
Viewing area at Burj Khlaifa.
Fifty years ago, Dubai rarely appeared on travel itineraries. The last few decades, had witnessed Dubai's emergence as a crucial engine of the industrial revolution- skyscrapers, in the UAE. Stepped out into the port and you enter a city that looked like the result of a movie makeover show. You don't have to search far to find to see the evidence. At first glance, there seemed to be a way of life that is in danger of disappearing.
It is unlike any other place in the world, filled with luxe, glitz and towering skyscrapers but it is also unimaginably rich. Emiratis drives Porsches and Ferrari's. There are shopping and high-end boutiques, unique souqs (markets) scattered all over the city, and cultural institutions like the Dubai Museum. While you’re stopped on a Dubai cruise, you’re meant to live it up on unforgettable excursions like a helicopter tour of the city or a camel ride at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve. Not even differences in climate can stop Dubai from bringing you every experience you crave. There’s even an indoor skiing experience and the massive Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo.
Burj Al Arab.
It is obvious, Dubai is a must-experience city. The lure of Dubai is irresistible, from its glittering mega-skyscrapers to its traditional Islamic roots. This enigmatic destination is recognized worldwide as a city pointed full throttle toward the future. Dubai’s most iconic sights include the 160-story Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest skyscraper, and the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, a luxury resort which happens to be shaped like a boat’s sail.
Colorful display at Dubai Spice Souk.
Burj Al Khalifa is a testament to the city's crucial role in development. Then there's the dazzling high rise beachfront beachfront community of Jumeira beach. You can visit the “Walk”, a 1-mile long stretch of restaurants, souvenir shops and big name retailers.
Palm Jumeira. Shaped like a palm tree on reclaimed land, its one of the city's attraction. It's part of the gazillion dollar effort to reinvent the city.
Lovely flowers around the City.
Head over the the Wafi city mall and you trip over super expensive boutiques. All the shops bespoke dazzle and glitz. We walked in the slick marble floor. My eyes were wide and nearly break my neck taking in the enormous size, and it's over the top light fixtures, the intricate decorations, fountains, gilded ceiling murals of birds and I can't get over the chic shops and boutiques much bigger than Singapore and Las Vegas. The window dressing of the boutiques like Armani, Channel, clamor for my attention. I'm pulled into one of the shops as if there was a magnet. My husband, chuckled at my wonderment. Passing through shops resplendent with glitz and opulence, I spotted a few women in head to-toe chadors loaded with designers shopping bag. “This place is shop till you drop on a grand scale!!!”
There are cell phones worth more than our house. ATM's spitting out gold. A modest Starbucks outlet is so big. Just insane!
Dazzling gold display at the Gold Souk.
I'm so delighted I can hardly breathe. I scan the area for gold bangles that my daughter wanted me to get for her. The display shocked me. I can see them before I get there, more than a thousand gazillion pieces of jewelry on display!!!
I found it difficult to focus on a single item. There are beautiful pieces of gold bangles and necklaces and bracelets and earrings. Surrounded by them, I found it hard to concentrate and focus. Every second, one seemed to whisper to me from their display case, and every piece are all calling me to pick it up and buy it. I took in the long display and my eyes turned bloodshot!
The dazzle of these jewelries on my arm and neck are so unfathomable that each item makes me feel rich like a mega star. It was an extraordinary encounter of the gold kind and nothing had prepared me for all the flash and glitter. It's clear that retail therapy is one great way to enjoy Dubai.
As one of the Emirates' oldest traditional markets, Dubai Gold Souk has over 350 retailers trading tax-free gold of different carats, designs and weights.
Meanwhile at the Dubai Suks or Arab market, one can haggle for everything from a scarf to a gold bangle. At the Dubai Spice Suk easily reachable via an abra or water taxi, across the Dubai Creek, one can find all kinds of spices from pungent to aromatic. You can then swing to the Perfume Suq and customized your own scents from essential oils.
At The Top experience includes a visit to Level 124 which has an observation deck.
Walk the Bar Dubai and gain the glimpse of the City's character. It is lively and unpretentious. It is also a culinary hotspot where one can get practically anything from Indian food to Pakistani to Turkish, Korean, Italian and many other ethnic food symbolizing Dubai's multi- ethnic palate. Amid all these, Dubai's old life has not been forgotten.
Later we joined a group of people heading up the Burj Al Khlaifa for the sunset viewing. At 828 meters (2,716 .5 feet), more than 160 stories it is the modern Tower of Babel. It is twice the height of the Empire State Building.
It is brimming with superlatives and holds the following record:
The view of Dubai's cityscape from more than 400 meters above the ground.
Tallest building in the world.
Tallest free- standing structure in the world.
Highest number of stories in the world.
Highest occupied floor in the world.
Highest observation deck in the world.
Elevator with the longest travel distance in the world.
Tallest service elevator in the world.
It was said to be built to garner more international attention and to diversify from oil-based economy to service and tourism. Our journey with the multimedia presentation of the history of Dubai and the marvels of Burj Al Khalifa. This is where we watched a short movie depicting the old Dubai. It tells the City's back story and contains old photographs before the emirates became the Las Vegas of the Middle east. It highlighted the pearl diving boats that were once prominent profession dating back some 7,000 years. It showcases past and present as well as Dubai's strategic location. Here you can learn the past glide alongside the present all the same!
Bragging Rights at THE TOP!
At the Top, I felt like a falcon wanting to soar and to ride up the hot dessert current and taking everything in sight until I find a prey, wham! For a second I looked down at the spread below us with the golden sun holding its last fading lights that spreads across the dessert. The horizon is endless and when it turned dark, I still have the urge to see as far as I can see.
The high point of our experience of course is the view from the At the Top, observation deck.
As dusk falls, we lingered not wanting to head down.
Finally, I got a chance to experience Dubai in very sense of the word glitz and glamour.
Now I know why people are magnetically drawn to Dubai! It’s too bad, we can only stay for two days!