Day 79 - March 25 - Dubai, UAE

 

  Our Big Bus at the Wafi Mall

And once again we grab our cameras, etc. and take off on a bus.  I would fist chose to sit on the top and then move below when the sun gets too hot.

  Iranian Club

Like I said this place is diverse and cosmopolitan.  If you stand still long enough you may hear just about every language spoken.

  Highway Gardens

 

  Date Palm Trees

The dates are amazing and so plentiful.  We had to control ourselves at the grocery store because we just couldn’t be carrying bags of them around with us all day.  I got a couple small boxes though.

  Tower Home

It was here that on December 2, 1971, Dubai together with Abu Dhabi and fiver other emirates, formed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after former protector Britain left the Persian Gulf.  The current ruler of Dubai is H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.  He is also the Vice President and the Prime Minister of the UAE.  Large portraits of him are seen throughout the city, especially at hospitals that he has had built.

  The Bucket Run Walk which was sponsored by Kentucky Fried Chicken.  This was all along the highway in a very upper class neighborhood which reminded me in some respects of Chevy Chase, MD.

  Mosque and the Burj Al Arab

  The Burj Al Arab (“The Arabian Tower”) is 56 stories high and is the world’s tallest hotel, shaped like the billowing sail of a traditional Arab dhow and rising out of the Arabian Gulf on its own man-made island, an homage to Dubai’s seafaring heritage.  It is a stunning building, an iconic image of Dubai.

  Jumeirah Beach Park

I desperately wanted to get off the bus and walk in the Arabian Sea but we decided to do that at the end of Palm Jumeriah which is a man made island with the Atlantis Hotel there.

 

We noticed these immigrant uniformed workers from “Desert Turf Care” loaning unto their companies bus.  I had read earlier about Dubai’s potential human rights issues concerning their largely immigrant workforce.  The workers that we saw appeared to be all Indian.

  I found it humorous seeing this sign in an area that uses more water than the entire United States.

 

The above Palm District Cooling building provides the air conditioning for the residences and businesses for the Palm Jumeriah

  High Priced apartments and condos on the Palm Jumeriah.  This is all fairly new built in the past 5 years.  It’s Dubai though and though…..

  A Private Residence at the “Palms”

  Sign at the Mall. 

Any faith that provides prayer rooms at a mall can’t be all that bad.  In fact, I’ve been very touched by the spirituality that I have seen in these Islamic countries.  I particularly have enjoyed hearing the “Call to Prayer” which happens five times a day.  It’s a nice reminder to stop and pay attention to your soul.

  The ever present Starbucks

  Me and the Arabian Sea

I really wanted to put my feet in the Arabian Sea but didn’t think it wise to jump over the wall and scurry over the rocks all in front of the very elegant Atlantis Hotel.

  Another sign of the Dubai cleanliness.  This worker spent a great deal of time cleaning and scrubbing this trash bin on the sidewalk by the Atlantis Hotel.  (Yes, this is a far cry from Mumbai)

 

  Indoor Ski area at the Mall of the Emirates.  Some of my fellow passengers and members of the crew choose to go skiing here.  My environmental frugal self just wasn’t interested.  Why ski in a desert when I have the White Mountains!!!  But I guess the novelty of it was the draw.

  It certainly was fun watching those who did though especially the Muslims dressed in their traditional attire.  Here you see a mother and father taking pictures of their child.  What a thrill for them that must be.

  The Spice area of a typical grocery store.  OMG the spices are something else.  I could have hung out there for hours and it’s not just the spices, many varieties of rice, nuts and olives.  I wished I had checked out my spice supply before I left home.  I just couldn’t remember what I need.  Aren’t I practical???

  Grocery Store at the Mall

  Japanese Girl.

She was intrigued with me for some reason, wonder if I reminded her of her grandmother???    I shared some of my hand cream with her and she appeared to enjoy that.  Her mother was right there and approved of me taking this picture.

 

  In front of the Burj Khalifa.

We could have gone to the top of this building but once again that is not how I like to spend my “tourist dollars”.

  Interesting Mural painted on a parking garage.

  An Abra Boat on the Dubai Creek.

This creek is more like a river and it is an extremely busy place filled with much activity.

Our one hour “Arabian Dhow Cruise” was included with our bus tour.  We leisurely glided through the sparkling emerald waters of the this famous waterway – the Dubai Creek.  We had an informative commentary that told us of the history of the creek and showed us where the sea merchants have traded for centuries and still do!

  Dhows and the old section of Dubai

  Public Library

I took this picture for my cousin Penny who is a retired librarian.  I wonder if they charge for over due books.

  Self-Photography

  The restaurant that we had dinner at.  We were given directions for this place yesterday but couldn’t find it, we now saw on from the creek.  The lanes and ally ways of a souk are truly a maze.

  A nice young man took this picture of me and the mosque.

  A working Dhow.  I just loved these boats.  As you can see one side of the creek is very modern and the other is older and quaint.  Guess which side I liked the best??

  Lunch on the “creek”

In fact the creek was right under us, you could see it through the cracks in the wood.  I ordered Falafel.  My mother had introduced me to this dish when we were having lunch together at an ethnic restaurant in Takoma Park, MD.  This was a few years ago but it’s one of my cherished memories of her and her ability to have fun wherever she was.

  Our dining companions and the view.

We then walked through the Souk (again) and thought that we had missed our bus when lo and behold there it was.  So we were now all set to head back to the meeting place to take our night tour.  The night tour was O.K., we had seen all the places during these past 2 days and we were probably tired of being on the bus.

I enjoyed these 2 days in Dubai.  It certainly would not have been a destination that I would have chosen but I am glad to have had the opportunity to see it.  My biggest thrill is the people.  They are so exotic looking.  The Arabs have been around for such a long time and their history shows in their faces.  The men are handsome and masculine even in their traditional gowns.  It was very touching watching the men with their children.  They very freely kiss and hug their youngsters with wild abandon.The women are beautiful, such big brown eyes.  I was intrigued by how many of each gender you see dressed traditionally.  Interesting how after two days you begin to get used to it.  Seeing 6 women in black long burkas with the head scarfs get out of an SUV with a couple of them on their cell phones is quite a sight.