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| Al Fahidi Fort, Dubai |
Dubai lies on a natural creek Khor Dubai which runs inland for about 10 KM, becoming the nucleus for the city to develop. Prosperity as a port dates back to 1902 when Dubai became the anchorage in the area for the dhows coming from as far as India and East Africa. People settled on both sides at Dubai and Deira.
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| Old Deira, Dubai |
With reinforcement of the banks, dredging of the creek and connecting the two sides of the city by the bridges - Al-Maktoum and Al Garhound, by tunnel - Al Shindagha, and construction of the wharfage, the Dubai creek became the main artery for trade in the Emirates. With Government support and low taxes, trade flourished. Oil was discovered in the 1960s and the city began to reap the benefits of the hard work of the past decades. The master stroke was the agreement of unity between the two Emirates Dubai and Abu Dhabi in 1968 and the exports of oil in 1969 and then on there was no looking back. After the independence from British rule in December 1970, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Fujayrah, Umm al Quwain, Ajman and Ras al-Khaymah formed a federation of seven states - The United Arab Emirates, growing from a quiet backwater to one of Middle East most important economic centre. Dubai became the commercial hub of the newly established country. The 70s ended with opening of the Jebel Ali Port, the Free trade zone and the advantage of high oil prices created the miracle for modern Dubai.
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| E11 expressway - Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai |
Today Dubai is known as the entertainment city of the world with ultramodern architecture with each gleaming skyscraper a landmark and each new building looking more futuristic than the last. It is an oasis in the desert with exotic and lively night life, beautiful skyline, synonymous with grandeur and pompous lifestyle.
To visit and explore the United Arab Emirates, one needs obtain a tourist visa. The UAE embassies do not issue tourist visa. To get one, you need to get in touch with one of the UAE bound airlines. In case the airlines you are flying are not extending the facility of obtaining the visa, services can be availed from a tour agency or a prospective hotel. Just word of caution, it is important to check the authenticity of travel agents one is dealing with and do refrain from paying or sending copies of your official documents until you are sure that the tourist operator is genuine. Assistance can be sought from the UAE embassy.
Dubai international is the busiest international airport in the world. If you ever wanted to visit a mega airport Dubai Airport is it. The airport has evolved from a single runway of compacted sand to become one of the most modern and dynamic travel hubs in the world. Dubai airport received its billionth traveler in 2018 and it fast becoming a favorite stop over and lay off airport for people travelling around the world. With hundreds of flights taking off and landing every day, it is important to know which terminal one flying through. Terminal 1 (consisting of concourse D ) - All international flights except Emirates, Qantas. Terminal 2- Flydubai and other regional and international airlines Terminal 3 - (consisting of three concourse A Gates B Gates C Gates) all Emirates and Qantas. Dubai World Central - Wizz Air, Flydubai, Aeroflot and other seasoned charter operators. Metro between Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 is available along with free 24 hour shuttle bus between Terminal 1, 2 and 3.
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| Dubai Airport - dedicated train |
We landed in Terminal 1 in Dubai International airport and as we did in most of the countries we have visited, just simply followed the signs. A short walk brought us to the dedicated airport train carrying us to the immigration desks.
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| Immigration - Dubai airport |
Queues to the counter were long, however once you reach the counter, a check on your Passport and visa, a photograph taken and a biometric iris scan, we were through to pick up our luggage.
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| Driverless automated Metro, Dubai |
The mass transportation system in Dubai is equally amazing. The 49 station, 46 mile metro is automated and drive less making it the third largest such systems in the world after Singapore and Vancouver beating the likes of USA where the automated trains are limited to Miami, Detroit and West Virginia. The bullet shaped stations lie above ground like golden space pods and the train run through like an artery through the heart of Dubai. The 29 stations red line runs from Rashidiya near Dubai International Airport to UAE Exchange formerly known as Jebel Ali. The 20 stations green line runs from Etisalat metro station in Al Qusais to Creek in Al Jaddaf. Transfer between the red and the green lines can be made at Union or Bur Juman formerly Khalid Bin Al Waleed. The Metro has turned local travel, previously a battle through traffic choked highway in a car reliant city into a seamless fast and incredible reliable travel experience. Do experience the driver less metro drive standing in the front coach, it will bring your childhood memories back.
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| Metro station, Dubai |
The Dubai metro will be further extend the red line to facilitate single seat journey for participants arriving at Dubai International Airport the commuting to the Dubai Exposition 2020.
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| Dubai Tram station |
The Dubai Tram, the latest mode of transport loops around Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residence, heading off to Al Sufouh passing Dubai Media City, Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Pearl and Dubai knowledge village, covering a total of 11 stations.
Dubai is known to be a taxi centric city as the metro coverage is for a specific route. The Dubai Taxi Corporation operates the cream colored, metered, air conditioned are relatively in- expensive, fast and comfortable. The flag- fall for the street taxi in the city is DHs 5 and DHs 25 for trips originating from the airport. The competitor to the Dubai Taxi Corporation is Uber and Careem but there is a minuscule difference in comfort and service. The drivers are in uniform and are well mannered and friendly. High end taxis are available but at a cost.
To travel around Dubai, one should obtain the smart card- Nol Card, which enables one to pay for public transport fares in taxis, metro, buses, water bus and metro parking. The card is operated by Dubai Roads & Transport Authority. Cards can be obtained from ticketing office of Metro stations, Ticket vending machines, RTA customer service centres or online.
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| Water park, Palm Jumeirah |
What better place to kick start our exploration of Dubai than Palm Jumeirah, a man made island built in a shape of a palm tree, one of the largest artificial islands in the world and a triumph to human ingenuity. The place is known for the swanky hotels, stylish apartments towers and glamorous restaurants.
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| Mono Rail, Dubai |
To reach there take the metro to Jumeirah Lakes Tower on the red line. Change over to the tram line to Palm Jumeriah tram station and cross a footbridge to reach the mono rail Gateway Station. The Palm Jumeriah monorail runs down the trunk of the archipelago created on a reclaimed land.
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| Mono rail station, Dubai |
The route is three miles long and runs from the Gateway station to the Atlantis hotel and Aquaventure water park. The monorail is owned by Nakheel and does not fall under the jurisdiction of Dubai (RTA), as such Nol cards cannot be used. We did not avail the Dubai water taxi which takes tourist to 43 stations located all around Dubai to enjoy the sweeping skyline views and get close to landmarks nor took to skydiving to get an aerial view of Dubai.
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| Promenade, Palm Jumeirah |
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| Housing, Palm Jumeirah |
We did avail the Dubai water bus to hip hop the scenic Marina Mall, Dubai Marina, Marina Terrace and Marina Promenade.
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| Dubai Fort |
Old Dubai is equally fascinating as it has the history which is laced to it. Hop in a metro on red line to Bur Jaman and change over to green line and get down at the Al Faridi Metro Station to reach the 200 years old Dubai fort displaying the history of Dubai and its original heritage.
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| Textile souk, Bur Dubai |
A short walk from the Dubai fort brings us to the textile (old) souk with garments and textiles available from the Asian countries.
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| Abara, Bur Dubai |
In the close vicinity is Dubai Old souk abara station. Abram comes from the Arabic verb abara, which means to cross. Riding the traditional half boat half raft and cruising around the ancient Dubai creek with spectacular views of Deira and Bur Dubai was indeed charming and gives glimpses of the city history, heritage and soulful side of the city.
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| Collecting 1 Dh for Abara ride, Dubai |
Believe it or not, the crossing over the creek to Sabkha Abra Station in the traditional mode of transport cost only one AED. Make sure you carry the local currency ie AED since I have seen tourist turned away from the abara station because they were only carrying cards.
The abara cross over lead us to the Spice souk, situated at Baniyas Street which had an atmosphere of ancient Dubai as experienced during the visit to the Dubai museum. Mounds of aromatic herbs and spices are displayed in large baskets with shops spilling out on the walkway in the narrow alleys.
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| Spice Souk, Deria |
It is home to some of the most expensive types of saffron in the world but yet it needs haggling to get the best price. The fragrance in the air was a delight our senses, the colours pleasing to the eye and the sweet take away of the aroma hanged on with us for a long time.
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| Gold Souk, Deria |
Stone throw away form the Spice souk is the Dubai’s famous Gold Souk. The sight was awesome. I have never seen so much gold in my life. There are around four hundred shops displaying the yellow metal and it was indeed glittering.
The craftsmanship of the jewellery fascinated me more than the gold and it was for the craftsmanship which one has to haggle as the gold price is same at most of the shops.
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| Perfume Souk, Deria |
A short walk brought us to the Perfume souk. Directions were not sought for as the aroma of the Arabic fragrance led us to the souk. Interestingly it is not only the liquid perfume which is only sold but hundreds of traditional Arabic scents can be purchased as a stick, powder, crystal, rock or wood. One can even tailor make a personalised aroma created based on the type of skin and personality.
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| Al Karama market, Dubai |
Visits to the souks will not be completed without experiencing the haggling in Al Karama market, a short walk from ADCB metro station, a buzzing experience full of barter with sales people and flavour packed Indian street food and restaurants.
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| Madinat Souk, Dubai |
Another fascinating must visit destination is the Souk Madinat at Jumeirah, an authentic re-creation of an ancient market place with traditional Middle Eastern style maze like bazaar mixed with contemporary stalls and restaurants under wooden covered arcade remaining true to its Arabic heritage meanwhile incorporating aspects of modern technology.
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| Burj Al Arab Hotel, Dubai |
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| Jumeriah beach |
Perhaps what makes Souk Madinat Jumeriah one of the most popular tourist spots in Dubai is its proximity to the 7 star hotel in Dubai the Burj Al Arab, perfect for a photo shoot, the beach Jumeraih and its thriving nightlife, creating a perfect allegory to showcase Dubai the old and new tradition and modernism.
What better day to visit Abu Dhabi, the capital of UAE on 2nd December, the National Day of UAE. The distance from Dubai is 140 KM, a one and half hour drive via famous E11 expressway, a highway which united UAE (The change in tarmac colour indicated the Dubai-Abu Dubai border on E11 at Seih Shuaib), stretching from the Saudi border in the west to Oman border in the East. The drive gave an insight to infrastructure development of UAE, its modern cityscapes and road development and we were awed.
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| Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi |
The visit to the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, one of the largest mosque in the world was the must visit destination in Abu Dhabi. It is a place for daily prayers, Friday gatherings and Eid prayers, established to unite the cultural diversity with historical and modern values of architecture and art.
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| Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi |
The open door policy inviting visitors all around the world was indeed heartening to note. We could witness the impressive and imposing white onion top domes, the reflective pools in the courtyard, the iconic prayer halls and the world’s biggest handmade chandelier and carpets.
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| Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Abu Dhabi |
It was ranked the world’s third favourite landmark according to Trip Advisor travellers choice during the year 2018, with Angkor Wat in Cambodia beating it to the top spot.
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| Presidential Palace Gates, AbuDhabi |
Having enjoyed the grandeur to the Grand Mosque it was time to join in the celebrations of UAE National Day. The city was adorned with red, white, green and black colours with spectacular display at shopping malls, skyscrapers, beaches and parks. Looks anyone and everyone were out in the streets of Abu Dhabi as the excitement built up for the fly past of the country Air Force. We were near the Presidential Palace when the first of the planes flew past. It was a sight to behold, the Presidential Palace gates at the back ground and the planes flying past.
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| Miracle Garden, Dubai |
As the name signifies Miracle garden, the signature creation of Dubai is indeed a phenomenon in the middle of the desert city. The 72000 sqm wonderland with million of flowers was launched on valentine day in 2013.
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| Miracle Garden, Dubai |
Castles, houses, 3 D installations of insects, birds, animals, forts, larger than life archways shaped like hearts and butterfly entirely covered in flowers beckons one to lose themselves to this man made fairyland.
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| Miracle Garden, Dubai |
Miracle garden has found its name in the Guinness book of world records for the largest floral decoration life size model of the Emirates Airbus A380 in 2016. The garden is open to public every year from November to May, but do check the exact opening and closure dates in case you intend to visit the urban oasis in the middle of the desert city.
UAE is blessed with sea on one side and desert on the other. Mornings might have been spent visiting the Miracle garden or lazing in Palm Jumerieh, but when in Dubai the Desert Safari is a must visit destination during one of the evenings.
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| Sunset view, Desert Safari, Dubai |
The desert safari package is a bundle of activities of dune bashing, camel ride, sand ski, sun set photography, quad biking, henna painting, traditional Arab dressing, taking pictures of falcon sitting on your shoulder. The Arabic coffee and dates along with unlimited water, cold drinks, tea and coffee is indeed welcome after the dune bashing. The pick up 4x4 wheel drive are fitted with a roll over cage as a safety measure for event of a roll over with the car and passengers covered by insurance. The car picked up from our hotel and drove through the desert along Al Awir road. The tyres were depressurised and with the driver announcing put on your seat bells, we went dune bashing. First the movement through the desert was smooth, slowly the landscape changed and the experience hand of the driver guided us through the golden sand dunes each passing dune more steep than the last with the finale almost at ninety degrees. The plummeting low in the deep ditches and escalating high on the summit of the dune is an exciting adrenaline pumping experience but not for the faint heart or children or old people. One must choose a established tour operator, as accidents do happen during sand dune bashing and the holidays turns into a nightmare.
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| Desert Safari Camp, Dubai |
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| Desert Safari Camp, Dubai |
The tour operators have established camps in the desert with sitting arrangement in the traditional Arabic Bedouin under the bedu style huts made of palm trees ferns with cushions and carpets laid out which enables to experience the Arab way of entertainment. The bar is well stocked but found the liquor quite expensive. However personal liquor is not permitted in the camp. The shisha the famous Arabic water pipe was passed around with snacks was laid in abundance.
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| Tanoura Dance, Desert Safari Camp, Dubai |
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| Fire Dance, Desert Safari Camp, Dubai |
As the tourist settled down, the evening entertainment program commenced with the Tanoura dance. a folkloric Egyptian dance usually performed by the Sufis. The performer aim is to spin continuously wearing long swirling colorful skirts fitted with led lights making astounding patterns, reaching a spiritual inner purity and trance like state, interestingly showing no signs of discomfort at the end of the performance, but the formations are mesmerising to watch. The next to follow was the fire dance which enthralled the crowd making different patterns juggling flares, burning hoops and spitting fire.
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| Belly Dance, Desert Safari Camp, Dubai |
Finally it was the much awaited belly dance performance to the rhythmic sound of the tambourine. It is the traditional dance of the Middle East and is known as Rags Sharqi familiar to westerners dance performed in restaurants and Rags baladi a traditional folkloric danced socially by men and women of all ages. The attire of the dancer is called the bedlah consisting of bejeweled bra like blouse, a belt and a skirt or harem pants, the dress decorated with sequins, crystals and coins richly embroidered. The music is saidi cheerful or Masmoudi Kabir serious and the movements very fluid and vibrant. The dance has to be performed a lot more than a belly jiggle but arch the upper thighs, move the knees rhythmically and the hips in a linear manner to the beat with focus so intense that all the audience sees is the belly moving. All good experience end and our ended with a sumptuous dinner. The return from the desert to our Dubai hotel rooms was a quite drive and thankfully with no dune bashing.
The Mall of Emirates, a flagship luxury destination is equally enthralling with Ski Dubai complete with chairlifts and happy penguin with enclosures with minus two degree offering snowboarding and ski lessons.
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| Theme India - IBN Batuta Mall, Dubai |
IBN Batuta Mall is a mall divided into six sections each having a theme park dedicated to the places the great traveler IBN Batuta visited - Persia, China, India, Tunisia, Andalusia and Egypt.
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| Maria Mall, Dubai |
Dubai Marina Mall situated near the waterfront, small and relaxed shopping mall with promenade café and restaurants.
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| Dubai Frame |
Dubai Frame, a 150 m high picture frame is one of Dubai’s latest sights, whisking through a series of Emirati heritage before one travels up to the sky deck. A amazing panorama of both old and new Dubai can be snapped on the viewing gallery culminating with a futuristic vision of future Dubai.
Dubai loves to think of challenges and figures out ways to meet or surpass them. The world tallest building – Burj Khalifa, the world the largest floral decoration life size model – in Miracle garden, world tallest hotel Gevora hotel, world largest choreographed fountain system – Dubai fountain, world largest snow park – Mall of Emirates, world’s longest automated metro system – Dubai Metro the list goes on.
Dubai amazing infrastructure, world leading aviation, highly developed surface transport, sophisticated financial and service centre, excellent public transport and connectivity is like hopping into a time machine to the future. The trade, commerce and tourism sector is booming and is ready to compete with the likes of Singapore and Hong Kong and what better place to show case as the Next Destination to the world during the ensuing Dubai Expo 2020.
