Dubai, Mashallah!

World's tallest sky-scraper, The Burj Khalifa

Author & Photographer: +Aarabhi H R

"How do you wanna come to the US, via London or via Dubai?" asked my husband +vasista k.j .
"Do you have to ask? Of course London!" said I.

Being brought up on a literary diet of Famous Five, Sherlock Holmes, Pride & Prejudice and Harry Potter, no wonder the UK was my first choice. But, this particular dream was not destined to be fulfilled yet. The visa process for traveling into this country, even for a short layover of 23 hours between my flights proved to be both cumbersome and costly. Then we heard that Emirates gave us free transit visa and hotel bookings. So, Dubai it was.

Being more enamored of natural wonders than manmade ones, I did not have any special desire to see Dubai. It was, as I said my second choice. This not so flattering opinion was reinforced when I saw the bottom two floors of the Dubai International Airport. Huge glass and steel enclosed spaces, but not a body in sight. The utter absence of crowds was jarring, especially after the crowds in Bangalore. To be truthful, it was somewhat eerie.

One of the huge lobbies at the Dubai Airport. You can count the number of people on one hand.

I had heard a lot about this airport from my friends and from my husband who had seen it before. About how big it was, how posh, how hi-tech.... So naturally, my expectations were high. The airport did live up to its description. Lot of other people would've fallen in lust with it perhaps; but for me, it lacked a certain something. I could see huge sleek columns, vast marble lobbies, sparkling fountains and couture-feel styling in everything; from elevators and bathrooms to chair designs and signboards.
But, the most engaging of things, the human element was sorely lacking.

This impression did a back flip once I saw the duty-free area on the fourth and top-most floor. It was sparkling too, but it was also bursting with travelers. Totally my kind of a place. But, I was there at an unearthly hour of 2 in the morning, without any companions and jet lag riding on my heels. Not conducive to a pleasant romp of window shopping.

The Blue Mosque, in the Jumeriah District

But I did squeeze-in four hours of "The Sights" of Dubai. Courtesy of the Emirates, I could stay at the Hotel Copthorne (Great, yummy food) and was able to book a $30 tour from the Sun Tourists in the hotel lobby. My Indian guide, Nehru (Mumbaiwalla) did a good job. Clear, informative and no butler english. What more can a girl want? 

We started by cruising the  Jumeirah district of the city. These are beach side, residential properties where most of the population are foreigners (80%). Lovely, villa-type homes bordered neat streets. For a desert, Dubai is amazingly green. Nehru explained that 90% of Dubai's water is reclaimed from the Persian Gulf (salty, briny nightmare) and only 10% comes from rain and groundwater. Great water management.

Sky scrapers- here, there, everywhere!

Tall, twisted and sparkling structures covered in glass of all known shades and hues lined the sides of most of the streets of Dubai. The stations of the fully automated Dubai metro which circumnavigates the city-state are golden brown tubes twisting here and there and everywhere. Watching these sights I slowly went from "Ayyo! Ade boring buildings, swalpa yetra irbodu ashte..." to "Abba! yeshtu kashtapattu, yeshtu kammi time nalli, yenella yochane madi kattidarappa!" (How much hard work, time, effort and thinking has been put into these buildings!)

In front of The Burj Al Arab

The most publicized picture of Dubai, is that of the palm island which houses the famed Burj Al Arab (Shaped like the sail of a Ship) and the Atlantis hotel. These are actually artificial islands, smack dab inside the Persian Gulf. We traveled over the stem of the palm tree through the multi-million dollar apartment buildings via the fronds of the palm, which houses luxury villas of the kind dreams are made of; finally reaching the five-star Atlantis Hotel shaped like a series of arches (sort of apes the Hawa Mahal, if you ask me ;) ) after travelling through a kilometer-long, under-sea tunnel.

The Atlantis Hotel

Wonderful statues of Arabic people at the Dubai Museum

My favorite part was in old Dubai. Centuries-old buildings were beautifully restored and had wind towers (for pre-electricity air-conditioning). The 2 centuries old Dubai fort is compact, and has been converted into a museum. A traditional arabian souk and home are painstakingly recreated underneath the fort, in a series of winding passages. The nooks and crannies hold statues of arabic men, women and children, dressed in traditional costumes. The story of desert life is told in songs, text and recordings. A place worth visiting.

Gold bangles at the Gold Souk

Dubai Creek- a beautiful sight at night

The gold market, meena bazar (clothing and artwork from India and Pakistan) and spice souk were pit stops along the way to the Dubai creek which was the final stop.

This creek is the backwaters of the Gulf and divides Dubai into two halves. It is a beautiful sight by boat at night. All the hotels, shops and buildings lit-up and reflecting in the water. A fine end to a short look into modern Arabia.