Ten hours in Dubai
Ten hours is too little a time to see a place, no matter how small. It took me three weeks to see the British Museum in London and I have a strong feeling that I should have more time there. There is a lot to see in this desert city of Dubai and claiming to have justly explored it in a day is nothing but belittling the beauty of this metropolis. There are two reasons to my claim that I saw the the place in ten hours; one that, like always, I chalked out an itinerary before undertaking the trip knowing in advance what I was supposed to be seeing in the available little time and secondly the skyline of this city is changing so rapidly that with each subsequent visit you encounter something novel to explore in the changed city scape and you can choose the area to visit accordingly.Time management is the key. During my first visit to Paris, where I was supposed to be staying only for a couple of days, I spent nearly 15 to 16 hours on the roads; by bus, by metro and on foot each day making full use of the time at my disposal. Similarly on one of my subsequent trips to Cairo when I was there only in transit I engaged a cab for long hours that took me to the tourist sites, including the famous Cairo Museum, which I had missed out during my earlier trip.
I was going to Amsterdam via Dubai and wanted to have a fresh glimpse of the city that I had visited some three decades back. I gathered advance information about Dubai, chalked out an itinerary for the day and rented a car on arrival in the city. With nearly ten hours at my disposal for site seeing I spent the morning time visiting the famous Dubai gold souk, one of the largest retail gold markets in the world selling intricately crafted jewellery at bargain prices. This market, located at the mouth of the creek running through the city, has been a part of this Emirate since its origin as Dubai nearly one hundred and fifty years ago. The next place that I visited and enjoyed spending some time at was the Dubai Museum, fifteen minutes walk from my hotel. This Museum is tastefully designed offering a trip to the desert life, the traditional Arab homes and madrassah mosques and pearl diving trade etc. Housed in two centuries old Al Fahidi Fort this museum is a treat to visit. This fort is the oldest existing building in Dubai.
We had a small nap after lunch and as per arrangement our chauffer driven car was there to take us around other parts of the city. We drove to Jumeirah beach and saw Burj Al Arab; world’s tallest free standing and the only seven star hotel ercted in the middle of the sea on a reclaimed piece of land and connected to the main land mass with a causeway. This billowing, sail shaped structure has become trade mark of Dubai in the world. Souk Madinat Jumeirah, designed to resemble a traditional souk with modern comforts and air conditioning, selling traditional Arab goods and soviners, was close by. European tourists were fascinated to see this shopping complex which did not attract us. The market that impressed me the most was the Emirates Shopping Mall, with 200 plus shops, cinemas and an indoor ski centre. This mall has many international high street chains as well as luxury brand store, restaurants and cafes. Any amount of time is insufficient for this mall. It looked like a mirror image of Meadow Hall near Sheffield or Trafford Centre in Manchester, UK. It was crowded with locals as well as Westerners and going around the mall one got the feel of being in Europe. If I get a chance to stop over in Dubai in future, I would spend more time in this mall than any where else in this city.
Dubai with its modern infrastructure, quality tourist amenities and relatively liberal policies attracts tourists from across the globe including the conservative Arab staes who get some reprieve here from their repressive regimes. From the timelessness of the desert to the lively bustle of the souks, Dubai offers a kaleidoscope of attractions to its visitors. It is a multicultural society of captivating contrasts between the Western and Arab business elites and the South Asian slaves. The expatriate work force of Dubai in construction trade almost outnumbers the local population. As per Human Right Watch reports they live in sub-human conditions herded in small dingy rooms shared by eight occupants on the average. This is in a bid to set aside some Dirhams to send back to their respective home countries to support their families. That is what they are here for in this distant land of the desert. With significantly diminishing oil revenues and the pearl trade already having become obsolete since long the state revenues are mainly generated through free trade and growing tourism. The way the real estate business and tourism industry are being developed in this business hub, is commendable. The fact that Dubai has the largest number of cranes per square mile in the world reflects positively on its enviable pace of development and real estate boom. The innovative Palm and World Islands and Burj Dubai are the projects to watch. They are being built on the land reclaimed from the sea and can be termed as the modern wonders of the world. Another mega project of significance, the Dubai Metro, is also nearing completion and is likely to be partially operative by the year 2009. Covering a distance of seventy three km this project will have forty three stations in all, ten of which are going to be underground. So much development on this otherwise barren stretch of land is like getting on to the moon and turning it into a city of wonders against all odds. Climatically Dubai is hot and arid with very little rainfall and almost all the food items are imported but the place still attracts the affluent westerners. The South Asian labour force is there by compulsion. This is because of the magical development of Dubai. Kudos to its rulers.
Dubai Creek runs throug the city dividing it into Deira and Bur Dubai areas, with the former on the nothern side and the later to the south. Deira covered souk gives an Indian feel with textiles, kitchen ware and cloth shops, while most of the real estate boom is west of the creek on the Jumeiral coastal belt. Dubai creek has a beautiful, calm and serene atmosphere where water taxis are used to cross over to the other side. The stable law and order situation has attracted nationals from civil war torn Lebanon and oil rich countries like Kuwait and iraq after their long drawn oil wars with the ensuing political and social unrest and they have almost made Dubai into their second home. Tourist attractions like Desert Safari also entices adventure loving western visitors in great numbers. The establishing of two PGA standard golf courses, an indoor ski ‘resort’ and regular ITF tennis tournaments have brought up Dubai on international sports calendar. Another indoor ski centre, larger than the existing one, is also under construction.
Having landed at Dubai International Airport at 6 AM and and spending a busy and hectic day in the city it was time to say good bye to the place. Our flight to Amsterdam was to depart at thirty minutes past midnight so we went to the airport and spent some time at the duty free shops before boarding the plane for the onward journey. Though the prices at the duty free shops were not competitive with the local market, it was a good place to window shop and while away the time. An announcement was being made to check in and we walked towards the plane with many happy and refreshing memories. The pace with which this Emirate of Dubai is progressing has many a lesson for the countries with better natural resources and more strategically located. Does anyone care?
Written by Dr. Shahid Qayyum
Published by Alisha Khuram
