HHH in the UAE, Nothing beats Hazy Hot and Humid

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HHH in the UAE, Nothing beats Hazy Hot and Humid

We let ourselves sleep in our first morning in Dubai - the temptation of a king sized bed, room with a/c and some residual jet lag was a serious sleep-in kind of cocktail. Mike had really enjoyed the pool time the afternoon before, so I was convinced that sunning by the pool (or shading by the pool for me) was a good idea for the day.

When I booked the hotel room back in January, I had found a great deal that gave us an “executive” room for a good price. I knew that gave us a ride to/fro the airport but that’s all. We were really happy and surprised to find it also gave us access to a smaller pool than the main one (very important with zillions of kids running everywhere on the big one), free internet access for us to keep up with the blog and an included breakfast every morning in any venue we liked, even room service if we wanted it. How sweet is that?

Thus, we headed to our “executive” breakfast (haha) and got some great food to start the day off right. We changed and set off for the pool afterwards and staked out a nice spot under an umbrella by the pool. As it was 107 degrees in the shade, we spent the next few hours sweating, applying sunscreen (it’s amazing how many UV rays get through an umbrella), drinking a ton of water and reading. It was a great time, relaxing and enjoyable for all. I managed to drag Mike off his beach chair a couple of times for a dip in the water but most of the time was spent solidly planted in chair, book in hand. For Mike’s guys who go to the beach every year with him, you know the man likes to sit and sun himself like nobody’s business! I get a little restless every so often and want to (a) talk about anything, really mostly nothing or (b) want to explore, swim, play, etc. We made a deal that I would be quiet for about 30 minutes at a time without interrupting his reading but on those ½ hour intervals I could bother him to talk or swim with me or something. Compromise really is the secret of marriage; it worked really well.

In the early afternoon we got hungry and overheated so we called it done on the pool front. After a quick lunch we got all adventurous and caught a cab downtown to the “real” Dubai, known as the Dubai Creek area. We had looked at going earlier that day but found out that the traditional shops close everyday from 1-4pm so catching a cab down there before 3pm didn’t make any sense. Thus, post pool and post lunch it was off to the real Dubai!

Dubai, like any growing city, has a serious traffic issue to continually handle. They’ve done a great job on the infrastructure and roadways with 5 lane highways being the standard, but as more businesses and people stream in, it continues to back up on the popular roads at key commute times. We spent a good amount of time in the cab trying to go downtown, but it had a/c and we got to look out the window so all was well.

The attraction of downtown Dubai is its old factor as the only area of the city that was natural to the area and hasn’t been created in the last couple of decades as the modern, biggest/tallest/best places that are continually being built. It’s where the old souks are (outdoor markets), the historical houses and mosques and where a good amount of the workers live - the workers who make Dubai run everyday. These workers are not native to the Emirates, they have emigrated to Dubai from Pakistan, India, the Philippines and more in hopes of steady employment and a better life. Sadly, these hopes are often seen in life as a lot of working hours, crowded housing and limited freedom as non-citizens. I really think this disparity between citizen/non-citizen opportunities will come up in the future as a human rights issue for Dubai and they’ll have to address it long term if they want to truly be the top destination for business and tourism in the years to come.

We got downtown and as I stepped out of the cab, I immediately knew that I wanted to get back in and go straight back to the resort. I can hear you saying “What? Kel, you love an adventure and seeing new things!” True and true. This was one of the first times I just felt downright uncomfortable and wanted nothing to do with being out of my comfort zone. I feel bad admitting it, but it’s true.

As I have done the last few weeks, I wore a basic back black tank top and capris out that day but judging from the reactions of the men around me, I might have well have been in a miniskirt, bustier and stilettos. Every man stared at me without hesitation and without any restraint. I felt undressed even though I was nothing but conservative. In a culture where women are covered in black from head to toe, it’s acceptable for men to stare and look lasciviously at women in anything less. I stayed real close to Mike, didn’t look around too much and tried to shake the feeling of yuck that I felt coated in.

Remembering also that it was 107 in the shade, stepping out onto crowded pavement in the sun made me melt immediately as well. I blinked the sweat out of my eyes repeatedly and tried to think cool thoughts - popsicles, penguins, igloos . . . . Sadly, to no avail. Mike took one look at me - feeling creeped out and melting - and realized that this trip to real Dubai was going to short one. Gotta love a man that gets it so quickly and without extensive explanations!

Since we had come all the way down here we weren’t ready to just turn tail and run. We committed to making the most of it and trudging through at least some of the area before we headed out. The cab left us off at an Abra Station, a key landing spot for the abra boats that cross Dubai Creek back and forth moving people and goods across. Abras are basic wooden boats with a motor and an operator driving the ferry route. The locals use them to cross and thus they’re really cheap - one UAE dirham for a ride or about 29 cents. Not bad, huh?

We got on the abra with about 20 other men and 1 woman. None of the men would sit next to me (I’m unclean as a non-Muslim woman and they don’t want to touch me. It’s strange to have people so brazenly staring at you yet they shrink away when you walk by.) Finally a husband/wife in traditional dress came on and the wife sat next to me - I guess that’s okay by the local code. It was hot and everyone was sweating, so the ride and the occupants were stinky to say the least. Breathing through your mouth is truly an underappreciated art until you really need it!

We had to jump off the abra on the other side to the dock and off we went. Our goal on the other side was to check out the much renowned gold souk and spice souk in the area and hopefully for Mike to get some more interesting pictures of Dubai than the pool and the hotel. We were sort of successful on both fronts. We wandered around for a while before finding the spice souk which ended up being an area of storefront after storefront of places selling huge vats of spices, rices and grains. It smelled so exotic and we kept wanting to just stop and stare and smell. The proprietors were hoping for more but our sniffers were the only things getting a workout on this trip, no reaching for the wallets this time! We walked for a while and checked out some stores that sold gold in all sorts of designs and settings but due to the heat and a rapidly wilting me, we found a taxi and headed back “home”.

I’m really glad we checked it out because we got a better feel for what the roots are in this business driven place - the small businesses and storefronts that buy and sell every day. With giant skyscrapers dotting the skyline and international conglomerates setting up shop left and right, it’s neat to see what the foundation is - one person/family staking their future on a dream and an idea for a business.

Once we got back to the hotel (after another long, trafficky drive) we rested for a bit before heading to dinner, a Lebanese restaurant on the grounds of the hotel. It was a great dinner, yummy food and a talented belly dancer being two of the highlights. Another highlight for us was the table of 6 Emirate young women next to us. They all came in veiled and in the abaya black robe but ended up being pretty lively. They pulled back their veils, smoked some shisha and sang and clapped loudly with the Arabic music and the belly dancer’s performance. We did notice that they had a tangible aura of privilege and expectation that they would be catered to and it almost hurt their ability to enjoy what they ate and drank. They clearly have always had anything they wanted so they looked bored as lobster was laid down in front of them and waiters scurried to do their bidding. It made us realize again how happy we are to be able to enjoy life for the big and small things and that life has not jaded us too much yet.

After dinner was some internet research/travel planning and bed. The joys of snuggling into a comfy king-sized bed will never be old, it’s great!

Dubai Lite - the souk created for tourists

After our adventure the day before, we decided to be shamelessly pleasure seeking and devote the day to sunning (shading) ourselves by the pool for the day. We got another yummy complimentary breakfast followed by pool time. Sitting in a comfy chair on towels laid by helpful staff people while sipping cold water and looking up at the Burj al Arab hotel and out onto the blue water of the Arabian Gulf is just not a bad way to spend time! So relaxing and great all around.

Since this was our last day in Dubai for the foreseeable future we couldn’t resist a little excursion out of the pool area. We hopped on the resort shuttle over to the Madinat Jumeirah Souk, an indoor air-conditioned copy of the crowded, small street markets that old Dubai is built around. If you remember, this souk is next to the hotel we stayed at last time, a truly great hotel and a great visit. We spent some time wandering through the small winding alleys, having lunch and just poking through stores looking for postcards and souvenirs. While not the authentic experience of the day before, it’s always fun to look in little stores and just explore . . . especially when it’s air-conditioned and a blistering 107 plus outside.

We logged some more pool time once we got back to the hotel and got a low key Italian dinner that night. We knew that an early trek to the airport was coming the next morning so we try to lay low in preparation. After some good food and necessary packing we crawled into bed to be ready for our next leg - Frankfurt, Germany here we come!

Hope you’re doing great and enjoying sunshine and summer! Long distance smiles and hugs for all =)

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Photos

Dubai Creek Apartment Complex
Sad to see how different life is for the majority of Dubai's population. No luxury here.

Dubai Creek Apartments
Sad to see how different life is for the majority of Dubai's population. No luxury here.

Full Abra
River Transport at its best.

Comments

[harsha]

marvellou$$$$$$$.............!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!