This is the view from a restaurant where we ate sitting outside in the pleasant cool evening (cool is 60-70F). The water is Dubai Creek (more like a bay or inlet) and the bridge is lit with blue lights underneath. Very beautiful. While sitting there enjoying the view and the good food, we talked about how we no longer feel like newbies here, but this is our home. Not that we aren’t still seeing new things and being amazed by the unexpected, but we are very comfortable here and so very glad we came. Instead of asking ourselves “What have we done?” we are asking “Why didn’t we do this sooner?”
Here is our current rental car. We started out with a Caprice, which was rather large and a real challenge to get into our parking space. Then we had a Honda City, which was smaller, but not what we really wanted. So, now we have a Honda Jazz and really like it. It is small and peppy, both things that are advantageous when driving in Dubai. We’ll probably keep this one until June. Then, when we come back in the fall, we’ll lease or buy a new one.
For two days this week I attended a conference on teaching. It was very enjoyable and I learned some good things. The next four pictures are the view from the pool deck of the hotel where the conference was held. The large silver thing in the center of the first picture is the indoor ski slope, Ski Dubai, in the Mall of the Emirates.
The Christmas decorations have finally disappeared at Festival City mall and been replaced by brightly colored ribbons for the Shopping Festival. They also have a carnival set up on the walkway by the Creek.
Below is a fountain that consists of beaded strings that hang down several floors and water is running down the strings and then dropping into a pool at the bottom.
Below are several pictures of another of Paul’s favorite fountains. The stairs switch-back through the fountain which consists of water running over the “boulders.” He always has to stick his fingers in the water. It is imperative.
Below is a garden and fountain in the lower basement parking area. It is open to the sky directly above the garden. Leave it to Dubai to have a basement parking lot garden. Again, Paul had to stick his fingers into the water.
Now we move to Lamcy Plaza. A truly unique mall. Below is the waterfall fountain that you see immediately as you walk in.
Behind us at the entrance is a replica of the Tower Bridge (London tower???) Anyway, it is definitely European, not Middle Eastern. None of the decor here matched. Very eclectic. There were no walls and doors between the different stores either, so was hard to keep track of where you were and who you should pay for what you had picked up.
There you have it. Our week in Dubai. Home, sweet home.
Archive for the ‘malls’ Category
This week in Dubai
January 18, 2009Aquarium and mall redux
January 10, 2009We went back to Dubai Mall last night and ate at Taco Bell again. As you can see by the line, it is popular and not particularly fast fast food.
Below are our “cheesy fries” which are just fries with nacho cheese sauce poured over them. The fries were good and crunchy and would be much much better without the cheese.
Below is Paul’s expression when I take pictures of our food. He thinks I am crazy and is probably embarrassed to be seen in public with me. I know you are all dying to see what we are eating, so I suffer his scorn to satisfy my audience.
A toddler at a neighboring table climbed out of his high chair and proceeded to run away. An extremely observant busboy caught him and put him back. Only then did we realize that there was no one else at the table, just a purse and some shopping bags. No parents of this boy to be seen anywhere. The busboy hovered around keeping his eye on the boy and looking for the parents. People at a neighboring table signaled him to move the boy over to their table and they began to take care of him. We left before the parent(s) of this child returned. I hope someone tore them a new one for having left him unattended, but I suppose that is unlikely. We tipped the busboy. He definitely deserved it.
We went through the aquarium. It has two parts — small tank areas with different fish, reptiles, otters, seals, penguins, etc., and the big tank area with the walk through tunnel. There is a serious design flaw, however. You can enter either section, pay once and your receipt will get you into both. The parts are completely separate though. We entered the upper floor with the small tank displays and walked all through it. It exits through the gift shop and back out into the mall. You then have to walk back around past the entrance to the escalators that take you down to the lower floor where the big tank is and you have to walk back around to the far side in order to enter the tunnel. The tunnel entrance is directly below the exit of the upper section, so why they didn’t just design it so that you didn’t have to exit the top floor walk all the way around and back again, I don’t know. A simple elevator or escalator where the gift shop is would have done the trick very nicely.
These are pictures of the giant groupers they have in the big tank. They are quite impressive and these pictures don’t do them justice. They can grow to 9 ft in length and these guys looked to be at the 7 ft range. They are related to hamour (brown spotted reef cod), the very tasty fish that is common on menus here. If you get fish and chips, it is most likely to be hamour.
Fountains
January 10, 2009Despite the scarcity of water and the fact that most of it comes from desalinization, there are innumerable fountains in Dubai. Every new construction involves some sort of water features – fountains, canals, pools, etc. Some of them are quite massive and some are quite creative and interesting.
Here is one of the massive ones. This is in Dubai Mall.
The diver sculptures are life sized, so that gives you some idea how tall and wide this is. Not only that, but this is one of a pair of fountains.
Below is one of Paul’s favorite fountains. He is a waterbaby and could watch fountains like this for hours given the chance. This is in Festival City mall and is an example of the interesting design type of fountain.
It is a sloped wall and at short intervals water comes down in waves.
The slope is covered with sea shells which is what causes the frothiness of the water and the sound of waves on the beach.
Dubai Mall miscellanea
January 9, 2009The Dubai Mall is the biggest and most recent mall. It is at the base of the Burj Dubai (tallest building). Many of the store spaces are still vacant with “store opening soon” signs. I kinda figure if it doesn’t say the name of a specific store, that nothing is opening there “soon.”
When we go into these massive and confusing shopping malls, I am very lucky to have my spacial genius husband to do the navigating. I would have to spend all my time looking at the maps to figure out where to go. Sometimes the maps don’t have the “you are here” indicator, so that increases my fruitless staring at the map time.
There are giant led boards displaying ads or national symbols on the sides of the walkways.
We were especially amused by the Ribs and Rumps restaurant. Doesn’t that sound appetizing?
Here is the one and only Taco Bell in Dubai. Yes, we ate here. The rule is that if we didn’t eat at an American fast food restaurant back home, we won’t eat at it here either. We did our fair share of Taco Bell back home. However, this TB does not have the burrito supreme, but it does have cheesy fries?!?!?!?!? We did not try the fries. There seems to be a rule that you can’t open a restaurant unless it has fries on the menu.
The mall has a giant ice skating ring.
And a large aquarium. We were too tired of foot to go through the aquarium, but it is on our list of things to do. I love the aquariums where you can walk through the tube and see the fish all around. After they had stocked the tanks they were having trouble with the fish eating each other, especially the big sharks eating the smaller sharks. Go figure! I’m not sure how they resolved this. They have regular feeding times (one of the things advertised on the reader boards), so maybe that keeps the predating down.
Wafi City Waiting for a Taxi
October 24, 2008The dinner (previous blog entry) was held in Raffles the hotel at Wafi city. These are pictures I took while waiting for the taxi.
The architectural theme of Wafi City is Egyptian. (previous blog entry Wafi City Mall) The hotel is a pyramid and there are two other structures in the complex with pyramid shape roofs.
Above shows the line of people waiting for a taxi.
They mixed a few Greek/Roman columns in for good measure.
Deodorant?
October 17, 2008So, it’s been asked:
“I was also wondering, do Arabs wear deodorant?”
Really I don’t know for sure. I can tell you one thing for certain: they DO wear perfume!
In the malls the third most common type of store- after the number-one-by-far category ‘Designer Clothing’ and strong second place finisher ‘Extravagant Jewelery’- would be ‘Fancy Perfume’. And we’re not talking a few varieties here. We’re talking more-kinds-of-perfume-than-you-thought-possible selection. I’ve seen fancy wine markets with fewer vintages. And picking out a perfumes seems to be taken no less seriously than choosing a fine wine. And why not? This purchase isn’t just going to linger on your lips and tongue for a few seconds; you’re going to be sharing it with everyone you meet all day long and possibly for weeks to come. If it doesn’t work out it’s going to take a thorough round of ablutions to start over again with a hopefully more successful fragrance.
And the fancy stores or not the lone bastion of such any array of aromatic variety. Most stores, even some small humble neighborhood markets have an ample selection available. The Gift Village store downstairs from us- rather like a large Walgreens without the pharmacy, but with a healthy sampling of souvenirs- has an aisle full of a remarkable number of perfumes for both men and women; many of them quite inexpensive and yet not unpleasant.
And therein lies the good news in that while there are certainly plenty of the overly flowery and froofie fragrances, (Say that five times fast, willya?) in such a grand selection there are also some that are quite tolerable, more along the lines of musk, sandalwood and other spices.
So while while we cannot yet answer whether the Arab people are prone to wearing deodorant, it is quite evident that they do were perfume. Happily, they seem to wear it in discreet amounts since one does not frequently come across someone reeking of it. (Kanga’s experience with this may vary since she works with a large number of well heeled young ladies!)
Admittedly this information has not been scientifically verified since we are not in the practice of going around deliberately smelling the Arab peoples, or any of the many other peoples that populate this teeming city. However I count it a very good thing that although we have often been out amongst large crowds, we yet remain largely ignorant of their aromas.
There have been occasions when we could not help but notice an individual’s smell; but then the construction workers that put in 12 hours a day toiling in the sun rarely have the opportunity to freshen up before walking down the sidewalk to the bus waiting to take them to their accommodation. That being said, I would wager that they would still compare favorably to the average Western construction worker. I suppose we Westerners are of larger stock and therefore probably have an exponentially greater number of sweat glands.
Always happy to impart to you the intellectual gleanings of our travel experiences!
(Posted by Daddybird)
Wafi City Mall
October 11, 2008
This is inside the Khan Murjan. It is a recently constructed souk (marketplace) in which they pulled out all the stops to include traditional architecture and artistry. It is two floors and both are underground. There is beautiful carved wood everywhere and this picture shows the stained glass window ceiling. The souk was divided into different areas by regional areas – Egypt, Africa, Lebanon, etc. All the shops are supposed to sell traditional goods — carpets, Arabic garments, Middle Eastern style tea pots, jewellery, etc. There was a spice store, but it was closed 😦 The items were kinda spendy, so not exactly a real souk. I don’t know if they would have bartered and sold for a lower price. This is sort of a rich tourists souk.
The traditional souk is connected to a much larger modern mall — Wafi City — which is done in Egyptian style architecture (including a pyramid). These pictures are of the Eye of Ra, a stained glass dome in the mall. It was impossible to get the whole thing in one shot. The Eye is in the dome and then a tornado shaped spiral of glass extends to the floor.
Before we went to this mall, someone had mentioned that it is never crowded. Once we got there we discovered why. The shops are all high end (maybe with the exception of Marks and Spencer who are my friends where I can buy clothes and shoes in my size). We discovered Japengo, a multicultural restaurant that has SUSHI. Yeah! I’ve been missing my sushi! I also had the most decadent hot cocoa at one of the shops here. Yummy.
Luckily, Paul is a spatial genius. Otherwise I would get completely lost in these malls. We found the chocolate shop just after having eaten all that sushi, so we decided to come back later. Luckily, Paul knew how to get back to it. I would have had to locate a mall map and spend 10 minutes trying to figure out where to go.
Shopping here is like an extreme sport. Imagine the Clackamas Town Center mall (or any big mall in your area) the week before Christmas. That is what every Saturday is like. Madhouse. Very few of the stores have anything I would even consider buying, so I have a hard time understanding what everyone is shopping for every week.
Last night we walked down to the Lulu Hypermarket in our neighborhood. It was crowded with people. I was at the counter trying to pay for our items and a little guy (less than 5 ft tall) pushes up shoving his money and the item he wanted to buy toward the clerk, pushing me out of the way as I am trying to sign the debit card slip to finish my transaction. I am so amazed by the complete inability of people to wait their turn. They don’t know how to line up or wait. If there isn’t a physical lane leading to the counter that forces people to line up, there is a jostling crowd. And, unfortunately, the rude person is the one that gets served. I spent all my life learning to be polite, now I have to relearn to be rude.
Transliteration
September 11, 2008
Here is a picture of my name plate. Notice that it has my name transliterated in Arabic above it. (Read from right to left.) I especially like the long flat part. I’m not sure if that is how the letter is written or if they were lengthening it out to match the length of the English.
There is a lot of transliteration here, especially on store names. For example, Baby Shop is not shown in Arabic with the words for “baby” and “shop, ” but is spelled out in the Arabic letters that come closest to Baby Shop. They don’t have a “p,” so it is probably Baby Shob. A classic example is a furniture store called “2XL,” which in itself is a strange name, but it is transliterated in Arabic as “2eksl,” again no “x” in the alphabet.
I got new business cards, too. They are in English on one side and Arabic on the other. I took pictures and was going to post them here, but then thought twice about the wisdom of posting my contact info on a blog. Duh. So, you will just have to imagine what they look like.
Shopping, driving, ogling
August 25, 2008Saturday, August 16th – We experienced “weekend shopping” yesterday. We had been warned about it, but we had to check out of the hotel, so we needed things like sheets, towels, pots, pans, dishes, etc., in order to begin living in our new apartment. So, we had no choice. We took a taxi to Deira City Center, which is a large mall a short distance from here. Most of the things we needed could be purchased in Carrefour, a large (and I mean LARGE) store not unlike a super Walmart. I don’t think I have ever seen so many people in a mall or store at one time. It was a mad house, not unlike the old jokes about the JC Penney white sales. AND people here drive shopping carts like they drive cars.
We purchased our refrigerator (only appliance not provided with our apartment). If you are wondering about prices here, we got a large side by side with ice maker in the door (656 liter capacity – don’t know what that is in cubit feet) for approximately $1,300.00. Try that in the States! For the most part, prices are comparable or lower for most goods. The rents are sky high, but we don’t have to worry about that.
Gary B. asked what I would miss and I haven’t figured that out, yet. I have found many things that I am delighted are available, however. Fruit juice, REAL fruit juice is cheap and easy to come by. We can buy bottled lemonade that is actually made with lemons and tastes like lemons. Yummy! There are also many other fruit juices available – Mango, Orange, Apple, etc. I have yet to see CranApple, CranGrape, or CranWhatever. The juices aren’t all apple, pear, or white grape base with a little of the titled juice thrown in either. In fact, you can go to a food court restaurant and order fresh squeezed orange juice with your entree.
Our first load of laundry is running right now. The “directions” on the machine are all in symbols, so I hope I have guessed right. I thought the swirly symbol meant wash, but it turned out to mean spin, this lead to the discovery that I should read the symbols from the right to the left, not the left to the right.
It is interesting being out in public and discovering that you are some kind of oddity. The East Indian men “check me out” when I walk by, which wasn’t too unexpected, except that I am old, grey and overweight, so really didn’t expect to get ogled. On other occasions, though, women have given me a thorough look up and down, so I am not sure what that is about. My clothes are not unusual, so maybe it is my grey hair (which I have not seen much of on other people) or my weight (not many overweight people here either) or my pale skin (not much of that in the crowds where we’ve been shopping either). The cab driver, yesterday, seemed very interested in Paul’s appearance and asked us what country we were from. Perhaps he hasn’t seen a ruddy, red bearded guy before.
So, let’s talk about driving/traffic. The only thing I miss at this point is the freedom of having personal transportation. However, we are not in any hurry to start driving here. Lane markings are apparently only suggestions. You don’t actually have to stay in the lane as you round corners or even when driving straight. Changing lanes is done simply by nosing your car into the other lane. You can signal after the fact to let them know what you did. There is NO patience at a stop signal. If the light turns green and the first car does not immediately move forward, horns honk. No dilly dallying allowed. Construction is in progress everywhere, so detours are everywhere also. New buildings are going up everywhere, but infrastructure is not necessarily keeping up. There are plenty of main arterials, but the commute traffic problem is, in part, due to the lack of side street alternatives. No one has laid out a grid of streets, things just sprout up wherever and however large they want to. This plus the total lack of street addresses makes getting around a major challenge. Neither one of us is eager to join the chaos that is traffic.
The rapid transport train that is currently under construction will run right in front of our apartment building. I don’t know where the nearest station will be, but hope that it will be within walking distance. The train does not go right by the college, but will be a short walk (again depending on where the station is placed), although there is talk of a shuttle bus from the train to the college. It is scheduled to be completed in Fall 2009, so my hope is to hold out and taxi/carpool until then.
Sunday (tomorrow) is my first day of orientation/work. I’ll be glad to have something other than shopping to do and to be around others who are new and as bewildered as I. Will let you know how it goes.
Living the Travel Channel 