Just before 11am, I boarded the bus in Al Ain and began the two hour journey to Dubai. Although I sometimes have concerns about trying out buses in other countries, this long-distance bus was nice enough and luckily mostly empty. At the bus station, I only saw men at first (including one helpful one who pointed me toward my ride) but a pair of women were boarded on the bus itself. There was a handwritten notice on the first three rows of seats that they were reserved for ladies. Oh yes, I took advantage.
As we approached the city, I got my first look at the skyline as it had been dark by the time I landed several days earlier.
Downtown Dubai. No question which is the Burj!
(taken from bus)
My orders of business upon reaching the bus station in Dubai were to 1. Figure out which bus station I was at (I had an educated guess based off the internet), 2. Find my way to the metro, and 3. Locate my hotel which was, according to the internet, a five minute walk from Al Rigga metro station.
I heard that it is a little bit weird culturally for a solo woman to ask directions of a fellow, but I had no choice really. Though, back in Abu Dhabi, I had made a point of asking the woman of the family to take my photo, but she immediately deferred to her husband. In any case, I was at the station I'd hoped (the one within walking distance of a metro station) and a shopkeeper pointed me in the right direction.
The Dubai Metro
Although getting a metro ticket wasn't difficult, I had to use a machine and the machine was counter-intuitive. They had a color-coded Zone map and wanted me to input the number of zones (0, 1, 2, etc) I would travel. But it did not specify whether they meant zones crossed (which in my case would have been "1") or zones total occupied ("2"). As I discovered when I reached my destination, they apparently meant the latter. I had to pay for the extra zone. This doesn't make sense to me because 0 and 1 would then mean the same thing (i.e. not leaving the zone.)
The next day, I just got myself a daily pass for my metro excursions.
The Dubai Metro (since 2009!)
My Hotel
The "Flora Grand" was not particularly easy to spot. I had to lug my backpack down Al Rigga road, turning around often, until I happened to spot the name of the hotel on the side of a building across the multi-lane street. The entrance was a block up from the main road. The receptionists were very nice ("You look hot!" they said cheerfully as the sweat dripped down) though wanted me to pay up front and because I had earlier done my math too quickly, using 3x instead of 3.6x, I did not have enough cash for two nights at $150/night. Luckily, there was an ATM in the little mini market two doors down.
The hotel gets bonus points, not only because of the free Wifi but because of the Fastest Meal Ever. I realized after I checked in that I had almost no time left before my planned excursion that afternoon, yet I was hungry! They impressively served me a chicken salad sandwich, fries, and apple juice in about five minutes.
Desert Safari
Yeah, this was fun. A little touristy, but a good time. A couple different people had recommended this kind of outing to me, purposely not giving me much detail. I recommend it as well, but will give detail. Because I took photos and stuff.
I had made the reservations online just days ago and luckily, had a hotel room number to e-mail to them just in time before they cancelled my pickup due to lack of contact info. They arrived at the hotel in a white Toyota Land Cruiser. Somehow, I got the front seat. Three friendly Brazilian dudes were in the middle and an Indian couple was in the back.
Then off we went, out into the desert!
...which was really just a few miles away. From Al Rigga Road to Sand, Sand, and More Sand is way closer than you'd guess.
We stopped for some gasoline and I was amazed to see some really scantily-dressed western teenagers (with their family) in line for the restroom. Short shorts and spaghetti straps and hair flowing. I mean, I'm pretty sure I am overdressing, but still. Seemed disrespectful. Then again, I might have done the same thing as a teenager just 'cause. Also, I've been in conservative-dress-land for the better part of the year so I've rarely seen anything short, even capris, in recent months.
Before our tour began, we made the (requisite) stop at a group of somewhat low-budget tourist shops. I did get myself a bottle of water and a couple postcards but some shopkeeper tied a red-and-white-checkered turban on my head, despite my protests, and dragged me in front of a mirror.
Yep, I concluded, I looked like an Arab man.
He tried to convince me that women wore these. Um. No. My whopping few days in UAE has been sufficient for me to heartily disagree. The one other woman I saw wearing one was another white tourist.
Well, at least we got that (the tourist shop stop) over with early. Then we drove a little further down the highway.
Dune Bashing
Finally we turned off the road...
...and onto the sand!
We gathered with a variety of white SUVs and took off!
Riding on the sand was a blast!
I'm sure the driver was in control the whole time. He said he'd been doing it 15 years, so even when the tires, spinning freely, spewed out a plume of sand as high as the window... Or when it seemed we were sliding down at 45 degree angle about to run into the truck in front of us... Or when we took a little detour, not going the same route as other white trucks, going on a steeper route right near the top of a dune... I was sure we were safe.
Pretty sure.
Actually, just the fact that there were so many trucks and they do this pretty much every day was enough to suppress the OMG-we're-going-to-topple-over-and-roll-into-a-dune feeling.
Mostly.
Or you can decide for yourself...
(Video should play in Chrome or Firefox. Or right-click to download.)
After about half an hour of slipping, spinning, and sliding among the dunes, we came to a nifty spot where the several dozen trucks all came to a stop and parked. Photo op!
Gratuitous Dunes!
I took photos of other people. I asked other people to take pictures of me. Then some random dude with a fancy camera took my photo (as well as some of other people). Was he from a newspaper?
Hookah and Henna; Falcons and Food
We kept on going forward, up and down the endless dunes, until we leveled out on a completely different highway. (Then it was time to pay our driver. I guess because we survived the sand dune portion of the evening?) Just a few minutes of getting used to the smooth road before we turned off onto the sand again. As the sun was sinking over the bumpy horizon, we approached the next agenda item on the Evening Desert Safari tour: the camel farm. Or more accurately, the Do-a-Lot-of-Touristy-Stuff Village.
Some of the touristy stuff you could do included:
Local coffee and fresh dates (yep; I love dates)
Camel ride (nope; I did this very recently)
Henna (yep!)
Traditional Outfit Photos (nope; It would have been more fun with a partner as you wouldn't have been able to tell it was me under there)
ATV (nope; It looked cool, but was an extra 150 dirhams ($45 or so) and I did not bring sufficient cash)
Hookah or "Shisha" (yep; I smoked a few puffs of an apple-flavored version through a bubbly bong)
Shop (nope; Though the garments looked cute and sparkly)
Falcon Admiring (yep! I loved the falcon and falcon dude)
Sand Skiing (nope; I wanted to do this but was unable to locate it)
As the darkness settled, I climbed a nearby dune, the sand turning chilly, and looked up at the stars. Not as many as I expected. Maybe it is too hazy or we are too close to the city.
Nifty henna (just painted on!) and the chillest bird ever (cameras flashing, lots of noise, strange foreign folk - no prob!)
The buffet dinner was similar to Indian style with roti-like flatbread, chicken curry, steamed cauliflower, but also hummus and lamb kebab. As we dined (the six folk in our car sat at Table 35), I noticed a dude walking around delivering people group portraits taken earlier. I was vaguely wondering where the portrait station was when he came up to me with two photos of myself! I realized he had been the one snapping photos during the dune bashing break earlier. I passed. He was charging a ridiculous 50 dirhams per photo which I realized too late I probably could have talked him way down on because, what else was he going to do with photos of me?
As we were finishing our meal, the performances on center stage started. The first show was amazing, simply because the guy was spinning in a circle the entire time! He kept it interesting, doing all sorts of fun things with hoops and his costume, but I was getting dizzy on his behalf. But the advertised "belly dancer" seemed less a skilled dancer and more a show to please the male 18-34 demographic. I found the booty-shaking long and boring (and kind of offensive after being so careful in this country - and in India - of not doing anything remotely resembling what the performer was doing.) They did have a bar, like most places aimed at tourists seem to, and I did get myself a rum and coke. And lots of water. But it didn't make the show much more interesting.
Despite living in India, here in Dubai was my first time getting Henna. And I had no idea how it worked. But now I know. First you get it painted on (the woman was super quick and the design was cute; I tipped her 5). Then, over the next several hours, the paint flakes off, as it is supposed to, which is the part I didn't know. Then you are left with the cool-looking designs on your arm for the next week or so.
Henna, after the ink flakes off
The driver dropped us all back to our respective hotels. And I enjoyed a lovely night's sleep.
Day in Dubai
The next morning, the friendly front desk guy settled my concern about getting to Jumeirah Mosque from the nearest metro stop. "Taxis are lined up there", he said, of Financial Centre station, also along the red line.
Despite that it was 8:30am on a Tuesday morning (i.e. rush hour) the metro was not all that crowded. There were more men than women and despite the diversity of passengers, I still felt stared at, though it might have been psychological. On the whole, a smooth enough ride.
There were not as many taxis as I expected at the stand in front of a Starbucks outside the metro station but I was able to get myself a ride without much delay. I headed toward the only mosque in Dubai that admits foreigners.
Jumeirah Mosque
The building and surrounding grounds were very nice (and conveniently across the street from Haagen Dazs) but this mosque was quite humble compared to the Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. I was almost first to arrive (I gave myself plenty of time to spare before the daily 10am tour) and I and a German couple greeted each other.
More and more (and more) tourists arrived. Mostly white folk and a few Asians and other nationalities until it seemed there were a hundred of us. The weather was becoming gradually warmer, but a large, covered waiting area and plenty of trees made the wait much more comfortable. Thankfully, a lot of signs were posted explaining what the deal was with the mosque tour. Finally we formed a line and paid 10 dirhams ($3) for a ticket, a bottle of water, and for the women, a headscarf.
Mosque Visitors
Visitors' Guide
The tour started outside the mosque.
The volunteer who led the tour was awesome. She was a very matter-of-fact woman from the UK with a good sense of humor who had converted to Islam over 15 years previous. First, she led us to a circular tiled area with stools and faucets and, together, using some audience members (male, because apparently the outdoor one is only used by men), we all learned the pre-prayer wash. It was a lot more detailed than I expected, involving hands, feet, and ears even.
She did note that, in the absence of water (which would be a common problem in the desert), sand is an acceptable alternative cleansing media.
Then we all removed our shoes and walked into the mosque. The mosque was wonderfully cool and air conditioned. It is not comparatively hot right now, being nearly November, but I was still sweating in my head scarf. We all took a seat in the main area under the dome.
Gathering in the 1970s-era Jumeirah Mosque
I loved the talk she gave. She spoke cheerfully and was very down-to-earth, willing to answer any question about Islam. Photographs were allowed and they were even pretty chill about the dress code (though the head scarves were still a requirement.)
I was wondering if people whose English was not very good were a little bored. The tour was mostly a talk and a question-and-answer. English is a handy language to be native in. As far as I've seen during my travels, English is almost always the default language of tourism, difficult as it is to learn and pronounce.
(Not impressed with my head scarf)
She explained the Five Pillars of Islam which are basically faith, prayer, fasting (during Ramadan), tithing, and the Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). She had her partner demonstrate a typical prayer that a Muslim does 5 times daily.
Lots of people asked about the outfits, of course. She said the black and white robes that women and men (respectively) wear around here are a Gulf fashion. She also said that, in Islam, a face covering on a woman was her choice (and so if you see a woman with only her eyes showing, don't make an assumption that she was forced into it, especially in UAE.) She clarified that black flowy outfit really did work as a shadow, like a car windshield cover, to keep one cool. She added you could get away with wearing whatever you wanted underneath, even pajamas in a pinch.
Personally, I find headscarves (I brought my own) awkward to wear, hard to keep on, and kind of hot. I would probably find them less awkward if the rule were not gender-based, though to be fair, I did see a lot of men wearing turbans here. I guess it is something you get used to.
Prayer Clock
In the mosque is a clock that lists several times. There are the five daily prayers and (if I recall correctly) the reason there are six times listed is because the first one is sort of a wake-up call so you can pray in time for dawn, which is the second one.
I am impressed with the devotion of Muslims and even more impressed with the concept of Ramadan. I had a coworker who observed Ramadan (who worked all day even though he had often not eaten since the previous evening if he missed the pre-dawn meal.) He said, over the month, he usually loses a couple kilograms weight. A lot of cultures fast for a lot of reasons and it seems both a good way to hone your willpower and to really get a sense of what it is like for people who are going hungry all over the world. I'm told it is not dangerous for your health to subject your body to not eating or drinking (even water) for a day. I've never fasted before. The hardest part for me would be the not drinking water. Followed by the inevitable blood sugar crash. I'd probably be useless at work, but it would be a good thing to try at some point.
As I walked out of the mosque after the tour, something occurred to me that probably occurred at the same time to everyone. We all needed a taxi! Jumeirah Mosque is nowhere near any public transportation.
I figured that the drivers in the area would have to know about the daily tour times because that's a lot of business for them. And I think I was somewhat correct; I did see significantly more taxis than I did earlier that morning. But it was quite the competition! The first several taxis I saw were immediately taken. I finally got my hand out for one the fastest after which many other people and groups of people tried to hail the one I was in.
The Burj Khalifa
I heard that the entrance to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world (at least until someone builds a bigger one) could be found in the Dubai Mall. So that is where I had the taxi drop me off.
Dubai Mall: For shoppers, not smoochers
But I soon wondered if I was mistaken. For, after wandering among the fancy-looking stores for some time, I had seen no signs or advertisements or anything pointing me toward the most famous building in Dubai.
Then again, Dubai Mall is big. I mean, really big.
It is several stories high and is so big, it has its own full size ice rink...
...as well as a waterfall, palm trees in pots, and a pork shop (for Non-Muslims only)...
Not to mention the large supermarket, multiple food courts, and full size aquarium!
Eventually, I looked up, spotted this, and figured I was at least in the right place.
But, then I found something even better than the entrance. It was an exit to a cool spot to take photos! The doors right near the waterfalls led out to this pleasant spot with a reflecting pool.
Wow, that's tall.
Wait, let me back up a little...
There we go, that's better.
Is it time to go up yet? Nope. My ticket, bought two weeks ago, says 2:30. So first, let's sit and have a nice chicken pita lunch in the multi-cuisine food court. (When I say multi-cuisine, I mean it. I even saw a Baja Mexican Grill!) Then, let's enjoy a delicious nutella latte, a drink made by people who can apparently read my mind.
Now we can go up!
Some things about going up the Burj Khalifa:
The observation deck on the 124th floor is called "At the Top" but it is not precisely the top. Actually, it's not even two-thirds of the way up. Still pretty high, though!
It seems to be one of the few places with any kind of security, which is nice after Delhi where you get searched and patted down just to go to the movies.
It is very expensive. If you reserve a time a week (or more) in advance online, it's about thirty bucks. Thirty bucks! If you want to just go when you get there, you are looking at a hundred bucks a person.
You can buy tickets online and print them out. That part at least is easy to do from out of town.
Sunset is a very popular time. It sells out more quickly, so you'd need to reserve even farther in advance (or spend a whole long time up there).
There may be some waiting time, but there is a lot of interesting trivia about the building design and construction along the way.
The top has both an indoor and outdoor section.
Although you won't usually get a rainy day, it was pretty smoggy when I was there.
Outdoor Observation Deck and the View "North"
View back down to the reflecting pool where I took that photo earlier...
Burj Khalifa Selfie
Burj Al Arab, Barely
In the above photo on the lower left side, you can see the roof of the corner of Dubai Mall. Huge! The observation deck takes up the full floor, so you can see out in every direction. I could barely make out the sail-shaped building in the distance, the Burj Al Arab. The right photo is the best I could see, even fiddling with the picture in Fireworks. The Burj Al Arab was one of the places I had wanted to see while in Dubai, but due to my overly conservative time plans (i.e. I gave myself way too much buffer time), I did not make it.
Up At The Top, there is a suggested counter-clockwise path that makes a loop around the whole floor, though I think you could go clockwise if you were really determined. On the far side is the requisite gift shop and a restroom as well. The 13-year-old in me was amused to flush from 124 stories up.
Views from the "Top"
I thought it would be fun to connect to the WiFi and check in up here, but somehow, it didn't fill me with confidence, so I changed my mind. The line to the elevator looked long, but went quickly. The ride down also went quickly. Check it out. I took a video in the elevator of the floors going down, the calming background tune distracting you from the less-than-a-second-per-floor speed. (Chrome & Firefox or right-click to download, because how exciting is a video inside an elevator.)
I had a couple hours before sunset, not quite enough time to take the metro to the sailboat building, but enough for a bit of wandering. I walked down the main drag and noticed something odd. The skyscrapers were not very close together at all, like they would normally be in a big city. I realized why after I thought about it. The amount of space is not the problem: Dubai isn't building up because of lack of room, they are building up just because then can.
Skyscrapers rising out of the sand is a cool image after all.
Downtown Dubai
A twelve-lane highway through skyscrapers. Where else can you see that?
Emirates Towers
I took the above photos just a couple metro stops down from the Burj, on the main Sheikh Zayed Rd. (You can actually see the metro itself, which goes both above and underground, in the second shot.)
I did not have a guidebook, so trying to find the harbor and Old Dubai was not as successful as I'd hoped, but I did end up in an area famous for two things: gold and fish.
In "Gold Souq" (souq or souk means a market or bazaar in an Arab city)
Yes, if you have some gold to buy or sell, this is the place for it! Some shiny window shopping at the least. An interesting mix of people here. Fewer tourists, but enough of them that it wasn't completely weird that I was walking through on my own.
This neighborhood is near "Palm Deira" metro station in northwest Dubai where the river meets the sea. I did not actually go inside where the fish were being sold, but I caught a whiff as I walked by. It is a good location for a fish market.
But Palm Deira Metro station? Not a good way to take the fish home...
As I strolled back to my hotel, I enjoyed the Arabesque things I was about to leave behind. Like...
...Prayer Rugs in my Hotel Room (as opposed, I suppose, to a Gideon Bible)
...Mosques at Sunset
...Foot Washer Ads
And last, but not least, the loudspeakers at the airport early the next morning playing the dawn call to prayer.
Also, on an unrelated note, Dubai Duty Free has TINY NUTELLAS! These are about the cutest things ever.
My flight on Oman Air went through Muscat. Not a bad airport, though I had been temporarily excited at a coffee shop when it said my change would be given in Omani currency. I wanted some Omani currency! So I bought a cookie. However, the woman in front of me had paid in dirhams (UAE currency) as I planned to. But then, since I had paid in dirhams, the cashier probably thought it was more convenient (for me and maybe him, too) to just give me back the change the person ahead of me had paid. I half-heartedly said I kind of wanted the Omani currency, but the line was too busy to make a big deal out of it. Oh well. I have a whole heck of a lot of single dirhams now. Maybe even forty-two of them.
Instances of 42 I spotted in Dubai
... and that was my great week in the United Arab Emirates! You should visit, too!
