Dubai - Summer Surprises Festival
Posted by admin on Aug 7, 2008
Arabian Tales - Courtesy www.instablogsimages.com
The first condition of understanding a foreign country is to smell it, so said Rudyard Kipling. Circling over Dubai skies and glimpsing rising towers over the clouds, I smelled money! And then some, as I walked down the ramp of the aircraft. And a whole lot more as I traversed the city. Dubai is flush with money. The streets are lit bright making it daytime even in the middle of the night. If anyone can make things as big as in America, then it is the poet-ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Yes he certainly dreams big!
From the Gulf Rupee, to Riyal to Dirham has been a quick journey for Dubai. Its surrealistic riches beginning with oil are now taking in everything else that follows. The precipitation of the oil flow leads on to real estate, maritime trade, construction and financial services that keep reinventing the city skyline. To think that just back in 1950 the city got its electricity, telephone services and airport, the Palm Islands, World Islands and the Dubai Burj are manifestations of the ostentatious transformation of this minuscule pearl-diver’s village.
Second largest of the seven emirates comprising UAE, Dubai is the financial center of the middle east. The World Trade Center stands as a monumental testimony in the heart of the city. Looks like the city-fathers never stop trying to create the biggest and most amazing structures under the sun. The latest plan, I hear, is to build the world’s largest arch bridge. Its true the skyline here keeps changing constantly as Dubai is forever under construction. In fact the standing joke is that the national bird of Dubai is the crane. Crane as in tower-cranes!
For a tourist like me, following the New York Times listing of Dubai as its travel choice for partying in 2008, the decision was easy enough. Never mind the climate. Summers are extremely hot and humid in Dubai, so I was informed on the internet. Actually the number one preoccupation was to look around for comfortable lodgings. The Downtown Dubai hotel site helped me zero in on to not only accommodation but also flight bookings and more. This was a blessing indeed as I had a whole lot of things on mind that were to be done.
The magnificent City of Dubai truly offers a medley of surprises. Right from the sprouting huge towering skylines down to the timeless world of the old city, I enjoyed a delightful Arabian adventure all my own. The futuristic cityscape, the bustling souks and the majestic desert were all an enchanted arabesque escapade, brought to life by people who are both traditional and modern at the same time. The Dubai Summer Surprises festival lasting a full ten weeks had scores of families from all over having the time of their lives. The children especially seemed to be having a great deal of fun at the Modesh Fun City where play and education was part of the deal.
The global annual Dubai Shopping Festival is a major attraction every year when the mega shopping event turns Dubai into a haven for shop-a-holics, I am told. Something that I just missed. Oops! Not really. For me the traditional markets or souks as they are called here, hold more charm. They were certainly worth the visit if only to take in the strange variety of goods and the traditional way of doing business. It felt almost like going back to Sindbad-the-Sailor’s time. Countless souks are located on both banks of the Creek. But the ones in Deira are something else. It is easy crossing the two banks in about ten minutes on one of the many abras or small wooden dhows, if you want a taste of the real Dubai.
The spices souk and the gold souk are truly exceptional. While the former will have your nose in a tizzy with sackful of myriad spices spilling over to the pavements reeking with aromas, the latter will bedazzle your eyes and you almost wished there was no retinal damage! I seriously advice you to wear sun glasses in the gold souk. Nonetheless the metallic flashes all over create a frenetic litany, do-I-buy, do-I-buy, do-I-buy - O Dubai! I did listen to my impulse and bought a pair of button ear-rings as a souvenir. Better this, than the Fly-Buy-Dubai memorabilia I thought to myself. To come to Gold City and not to buy!
Its easy enough to do the city if you get on to the tourist band wagon that makes sure you do not miss anything. Its the best way to do it. The Burj Al Arab, the world’s tallest hotel is the signature landmark for this exciting new city. Dubai Internet City, Maritime City and Media city are new free zone clusters that take the city to another level. You have fine dining and shopping areas catering exclusively for electronics, perfumes and textiles.
Then there are events galore especially organized to get the world to come over. The city hosts the annual Dubai International Film Festival. Dubai has an active music scene with the Dubai Desert Rock Festival at the core of the multitude of concerts enlivened by renowned International singers. An active sports scenario has football, cricket and tennis fans crowding these events. However the annual Dubai World Cup for thoroughbred horse racing is an event that is awaited with much anticipation.
My Arabian adventure ended with a remarkable tour into neighboring desertscape where a gravel road reached out to the wadi, a dry riverbed for a bird’s-eye view over the limestone mountains and canyons. This is the real thing! The desert landscape with extensive sand dunes and oasis offering a scenic view. I had opted for the stomach-churning dune safari, followed by sundowners and dinner in the desert that came with a spectacular song and dance ritual. The belly dancers were in their element and the setting takes you to a make-believe Bedouin world. Best of all is the saffron spiced camel-milk. Its ‘camelicious’ to borrow the term!
You will be glad after the revelries to retire comfortably in your room and be happy for all the modern amenities. Although booze is a little hard to find and you might be left craving for a drink, but it can be had at a price! Which tells you that Dubai has a tolerant approach. Hospitality is the by-word that goes all out to make a visitor comfortable. While I am left marveling at the pace of change and development in Dubai that goes on creating eclectic structures one after another, I am also glad that women can happily move around, even after dark. The city is virtually crime-free due to strict law enforcement. So then its just a question of finding out - where’s the party!