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Published: August 16th 2023
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Dubai, the land of gold, both black and yellow; the land of malls where shopping malls have proliferated in every nook and cranny just like our mom and pop stores but I like to call it the land of superlatives starting with Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world to the Dubai Mall, the largest shopping mall in the world, to Burj Al Arab, the only 7-star hotel in the world to the unique concept of Global village.
On a pleasant winter morning in January, we reached Dubai after a flight of around 4 hours from Kolkata. On arrival VISA process for Indian passport holders with valid USA VISA was a very smooth, quick and hassle-free experience. Once we got out of the airport, the car arranged by our travel agency dropped us at our hotel Crowne Plaza Deira. It’s close proximity to the airport and to the Gold Souq makes this location quite convenient. The hotel not only allowed us early check in but also offered us complimentary breakfast. Indian, Continental, Middle Eastern – what was not there in the breakfast platter! I still cannot forget the taste of spongy soft pan cakes with Maple syrup. After our
breakfast, we took a cab to Dubai Mall. Our first stop was Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo housed inside Dubai Mall. After spending around 2 hours in the aquarium, we had a late lunch in the food court of the Mall. Then after browsing through the shops of the second largest mall in the world, we sped onto our hotel.
We spent the evening on a Dhow cruise floating on the Dubai creek appreciating the Dubai night-time skyline along the way.
The first day was quite hectic for the kids, so we decided to just rest the following morning. In the afternoon, we headed towards the desert. There were mini-Jeeps and scooters for some adventure in the desert. Then there were hawkers selling keffiyeh for around 30-40 dirham. Keffiyeh is the traditional headdress worn by the Emiratis. There were people with eagle perched on their hand or shoulder. You can take photographs with the eagle for 10 Dirham. Then after some adrenaline rushed dune bashing, we went to a desert camp and watched Tanoura dance, Belly dance and Fire dance while enjoying the food and kebab served by the live counters.
Third day began with the city
tour. We passed Dubai Frame on the way to the Zabeel Palace which is the residence of the ruling royal family of Dubai. Zabeel has a beautiful meaning. It means “Thank you”.
Next stop was the pristine white Jumeirah Beach on the coast of the Persian gulf. Here you can see the Burj Al Arab on one side. If you are a sea, sand, sun kind of person, please plan beforehand to spend at least half a day on Jumeirah Beach. After spending just 15 minutes there, we boarded our tour bus for the next destination, Palm Jumeirah. Now this island is one of its kind. A bird’s eye view truly lets you admire the uniqueness of this artificial island in the shape of a Palm tree created on the sea. Now this is Dubai we are talking about, so there must be a shopping mall. Spend some time in the Nakheel Mall and then head to the Dubai Mall. After finishing lunch and browsing through the shops, we took our position well in advance to watch the Dubai Fountain show which starts at 6 in the evening. And the sight of the fountains dancing to the tunes of
Arabic music is just spectacular. Our next stop was Burj Khaleefa the entrance of which is from within the Dubai Mall itself. There was a long queue, very well managed nonetheless to visit the tallest building in the world.
Dubai travel is not complete without a visit to the Deira Gold souk. Our Day 4 started with visit to the Gold souq where you can see exotic gold ornaments on display. Rather than words, here is a glimpse of the bedazzling world in the Photos section.
Post lunch, we set out for Miracle Garden, the garden of flowers. Flowers and trees creating dreamy, fairy tale setting make this entire space a photographer’s paradise. After spending a couple of hours and a lot of photography, our next destination was the Global Village. A very unique concept of international integration. Apart from food items and shoppable items from different parts of the world, the most interesting aspect is the showcase of respective country’s rich culture. We witnessed three beautiful Chinese dance numbers, a Russian Dance number and happened to hear some Afghan music as well. If you can devote a few more days in Dubai, please make a tour of
this place at least 3-4 days to catch a glimpse of the world’s rich heritage and culture.
Next and last day of our tour, we didn’t venture out although there were many shopping malls, outlets, traditional villages and museums still left to be explored. Instead we wrapped up our tour by relaxing in the swimming pool of our conveniently located, nice, neat and clean hotel offering excellent food and service.
See you all soon with another travel experience! Keep on travelling!
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