Dubai has become a " must see" place on the wish list of any self
respecting Indian traveler and well, I am just back from the famed
golden land. The city is a modern day megalopolis but its evident at
first glance that its an Asian urban miracle. There are towering malls
and offices but at the bottom of it all are South Asian laborers
galore freely walking across the city as also huge spaces dug up to
accommodate the metro and the flyover construction.
Dubai is a big construction site these days and the Metro is expected
to roll out by Sep 2009(thats 9/9). Till then there are honking cards
and disgruntled cab drivers. Taxis are hard to flag down and even then
it may take a long time to reach your destination due to traffic
snarls.
Besides this, what does Dubai have to offer to an average tourist.
Besides the over hyped Duty Free shopping bonanza taking place every
Jan-Feb what happens here in the remaining 10 months. There are some
places for sure, to visit but sadly my impression was one of limited
choices. Yes there are malls, and then there are malls, and then there
are some more malls. Ranging from an architectural delight like the
Wafi city mall to the ubiquitous corner malls , this place is crammed
full of them selling all kinds of mind boggling merchandise. NO doubt
for the commercial minded and the richly laden, there is no dearth of
shopping opportunities.
Its a nicely planned city with landscaping along most major roads but in the end Dubai remains a Concrete jungle with just a colection of builidings.
I want to list the places I zeroed in during my stay in Dubai. I would
say 3-4 days here are sufficient to traverse the range of activities
offered. We started with a trip to the largest mall here, The Ibn
Batuta Mall. This one was splendid as the entire humongous mall is
divided and done up in 6 national architectural styles viz: India,
China, Egypt, Andulasia etc. The interiors are worth spending time
gazing at. I visited many malls after that but this one surely made me
return to it again. The shops are a combination. Another notable mall
is the Mall of the Emirates that impresses due to its size and sheer
luxury. Dont miss the Wafi city mall thats a take off on the Egyptian
pyramids and houses the Jashanmal and Selaam stores.
Dubai gets hordes of tourists especially from the western world who
need their space to practice their adventurous manouvres so there is the
newly opened Ski Dubai that has ski slopes all year round. While its
blistering outside one can ski or just gaze at the icy cool environs of
this great place. To beat the heat there is also the incomparable Water
sports park called Wadi right close to the Al Burj , the famous and
perhaps the only 7 star hotel in the world.he rides are many and
organized well so an entire late afternoon or morning can be spent here
frolicking with the kids. Adults will love it too for the thrilling
rides.
The highlight of the trip for me had to be the Desert Safari. Its a
contemporary thing so sadly there were no long camel rides trudging in
the lovely sands. Instead there is a 4X4 land cruiser thats takes you
around on this trip that takes about 5 hours. There are many travel
agencies that book the desert safari with prices ranging from
160-200Dirhams/person so just go with the one you are comfortable with
since the items in the agenda are identical. The cruiser will pick you
from the hotel(generally, please check with front office) and take you
out of the city for about 40 minutes right in the middle of the desert.
Then they do an interesting thing, deflate the tyres since after this
the ride become one thrill ride with the passengers securely fastened
in the seat belts(each vehicle sits 7 adults) and the skillful driver
gliding the vehicle across high sand dunes. This is called Dune Bashing
and its a combination of peaks and troughs by the vehicle over the
dunes. Its amazingly original and fun. I enjoyed it thoroughly and
would recommend strongly since this was one item that really made me
feel I am in the sand, in the dunes, in the middle east.
The ride culminates in a Arabian setting camp complete with Barbeque,
unlimited drinks, sheesha(akin to a hookah) and some gorgeous belly
dancing.
For the history lovers, there is but scanty entertainment, apart from
Jumeirah Mosque and the Dubai Museum housed in the Al Fahidi Fort. Both
are nice but nothing spectacular. The mosque has guided trips on
certain mornings and the details can be checked from the website.
To round off this glamorous city, an interesting sojourn is to the Gold
Souq. There are neatly 150 shops, big and small with a comprehensive
range of gold jewelery ranging from 18-22 carat. There are Arabian,
Bahraini, Indian and Italian designs and also shops offering peals and
diamonds but I found these shops empty. The daily gold rate is flashed
outside at the gate and the making is at places negotiable but not too
much. I did shop from there since its one thing Dubai is famous for:-)
but otherwise the gold prices compared to India were absolutely the
same.
IN close proximity is the Spice Souq that is a haven for your olfactory
senses. It smells divine and its really fascinating to stroll in the
labyrinthine mazes and look at the spices and the incense and perhaps
pick up an exotic perfume.
Food is no problem at all. THere are swanky restaurants catering to international cuisines, many Indian restaurants(including exclusively vegetarian) and numerous roadside joints ofeering quick coffee & burgers for the people on the go.
Dubai is an interesting mix of east and west. I sighted more westerners
and Indians than the local sheikhs and the city has ample entertainment
for a few days for the family or the lone traveler. Its truly a melting
pot of cultures. Its also a bustling modern commercial capital the the
rapidly expanding skyline and FDIs poring in are testimony to the
growing power of this "Pearl of the Middle East".
P.S. Some pics of this interesting holiday spot can be found in my album..
