Dubai

Being whisked in to Heathrow T5 in our own personal parking Pod was a real treat and once the check in and security business had been taken care of, we retired to our favourite T5 restaurant, the V Bar. V Bar is an oasis of calm in the chaos and bedlam that is T5, a place to be calm and peaceful before being couped up and squeezed in to a flying tin can for a few hours.

Both of us viewed Dubai as somewhere exotic, somewhere from a different time, a place only read about in books of our childhood, like Ali Baba and his forty thieves.

Once again, we arrived at our destination after dark being met by the hotel pick-up that whisked us swiftly away from the airport and almost instantly in to the older quarter of the city passing dhows all lit up for the evening and along the creek that seemed to glitter with lights from the nearby hotels and buildings.

Checking in at the Arabian Courtyard was easy, friendly and we were greeted with a cooling and refreshing mango juice while we waited in the small queue.
Not a modern high-rise resort hotel, our traditionally styled room looked out across a sandy, monochromatic bustling city-scape that gave us a tantalizing glimpse of the Burj Khalifa, the highest building in the world in the distance.

After breakfast, taken in the calm and peaceful executive lounge, we decided to stay local to get our bearings. Directly across from the hotel, we visited
the Dubai Museum. Not the most stimulating museum visited, but at 3 DIRHAMS it was cheap, cheerful and gave us a glimpse of the local history before the explosion of oil and the beach resorts, it was also a chance to pose with some badly stuffed camels!

Drifting through the local area we found the newly restored textile souk where we were bombarded by offers of cheap pashminas from all angles, something I found difficult to engage in. Mrs Y, on the other hand, enjoyed the enthusiastic banter and lively bustling
market atmosphere. Our drifting brought us out by the creek and the abras, the water taxis that for 1DM criss-cross the creek to Deira almost constantly.
Making a brief return trip across the creek to Deira in a rickety abra was very refreshing and cooling in the extreme afternoon heat. This was a trip we repeated later on in the week where we toured the gold souk, perfume souk and the spice souk. Not as pleasant an experience as we were approached often by hawkers selling fake goods, leather ware, watches etc., finding it a little threatening to say the least.

With the setting of the sun, bringing with it slightly cooler temperatures, we explored the historic Bastakiya area with it’s narrow streets, barajeels (wind towers), carved wooden doors and interesting architecture, all nicely illuminated to show off the amazing buildings. Bastakiya was apparently restored to its former glory at the request of our very own Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana on a visit to UAE in 1989. Our meandering around Bastakiya  worked up an appetite and we dined out in the Arabian Tea House Cafe, formerly the Basta Art Cafe, where and amazing meal was enjoyed along with refreshing mint and lime iced drinks.

Sunrise saw us donning our tourist persona’s as we joined the Red Bus tour to visit the beach resort areas along with the monstrous shopping malls and the amazing
Burj Khalifa tower. Both of us enjoy a good shop, bargain hunting is a sport in our house, but the Mall of the Emirates was awful. We can’t put our finger on just why it was so bad, but it just felt awkward and wrong.

With a massive ski slope anchoring one of its sides, it was just brash and way too much. Just an excuse for Dubai to show that money was no object. If you want a ski slope in the desert, then we’ll just build one.
The Dubai Mall on the other hand, despite it’s 1,200 shops was airy, well laid out and more enjoyable to shop in. Of course, with the added attractions of the Dubai Fountain (daylight showing not as impressive as night-time show), The Souk and the truly wondrous Burj Khalifa it has a lot to offer. Visiting the 124th floor observation deck is of course a great thing to do, but be sure to book in advance to enjoy the huge discount.

Take Passport ID and the credit card you used to book you tickets when picking them up, as they are VERY fussy and we witnessed some families being refused and turned away.
Turn up early to pick up your tickets too as you will have to queue and also you will have to queue again to actually get in to the tower.
Well worth the queuing though as the views are stunning. Book a time that spans sunset, as the evening sky is amazing as the sun sinks over to city.

One stop on the Red Bus route was the Madinat Jumeirah Souk. Sadly a fake characterless shopping arcade, masquerading as a traditional Souk, it’s only
saving grace was a Costa Coffee shop with great views of the Burj Al Arab hotel. A Kodak moment for sure.

Taking the Red Bus Tour is not something we’d normally do, but Dubai is big and sprawling and the hop-on/hop-off convenience and good ticket price gave us the
chance to see a lot more than using the public transport system. Seeing the flashy, brash tourist side of Dubai from the bus we decided we felt blessed
that we had booked a quiet more authentic hotel in the old quarter. But, it’s horses for courses, and the beach side of Dubai is just not our kind of course.

Forgoing our return ticket on the Red Bus as it ended before we exited from our visit up the Burj Khalifa, we ventured on to the Metro.
New, clean and cheap, the Metro was easy to use. Men, be aware that some carriages are women only, usually the front carriage. So caution should be exercised.

We dined out again, this time at the amazing Bastakiya Nights restaurant. An amazing venue. Great food. Amazing service. Being allowed up on to the roof of the building after our meal to take in the scenery was simply wonderful.

An after dinner stroll again took us up along the creek where people were eating outside in the cooler evening air, smoking their Shisha pipes and local Mosques were filling the air with their melodious calls to prayer. Dining Dhows lit up like Christmas trees chugged up and down the creek with the abras ducking in between them on their criss-crossing trips across the creek, beautiful and delighful to take in.
Though clearly for the tourists, the creek side Heritage Village exhibiting traditional crafts and camel rides was interesting to visit.
And we also caught a glimpse of the ageing QE2 liner on our stroll.

All in all a great visit. It was nothing like I expected, but it managed to exceed every preconception I had.
Mrs Y and I would love to return to the Arabian Courtyard someday and enjoy another romantic stroll along the creek.