Rags to Riches: Visiting the Modern Desert

Nothing is impossible would be the apt title for this city where world records are created regularly and is on the direction to be the World's No - 1 travel destination for people alike. The place which was bleak and lifeless, is now dotted with skyscrapers, high rise building, man made vegetation and luxury hotels. Dubai, one of the seven emirates of the UAE country and the most populous city, is the business hub of the Middle East.

Dubai was in our travel destination from the time it became iconic for its luxury and created something which was unimaginable in our times. Man made island, Indoor Rain forest, 7-star hotels and many more. We wanted to experience something which was biggest, tallest, highest , fastest and all adjectives possible.

The accommodation cost was cut down as my wife is a member of Club Mahindra resorts and fortunately we got rooms in the holiday season. We flew through Indigo and they(Travel2Dubai/) helped us in arranging Visa + Ok to Board facility. We can't apply directly for UAE visa and there are some rules like relatives/friends should refer. Best way is to get through travel agent. After enquiring with many agents, Travel2dubai seem reasonable. Ok to Board is airline approving your ticket after verifying the UAE Visa.

It was a 5 days trip and we left on September 10, 7.20 am flight. We reached at 9.30 am local time. After finishing the formalities, my friend Shrini received us at the Airport Terminal 1 Metro bay. We left in metro to our hotel, Arabian Dreams Apartments. The metro currently has only two working lines and most of the attractions can be reached through metro. Our accommodation was in the Bur Dubai, where mostly Asians stay.

After checking-in, we got ourselves a Etisalat sim at the market. We heard the sim will be expensive in the Airport and so we bought it outside.The other provider is Du . The hotel has travel desk and we enquired rates for few sightseeing tours. The same was decided and booked through them. We had lunch and rested for a while. The room we booked was like a service apartment and we stocked some MTR food items to prepare food ourselves.

Our first excursion was Dhow cruise along Dubai Creek in the night. Dhow is the generic name for sailing vessels. The vessels are decorated with neon lights and dinner is served on broad. You dine and sail along creek, visualizing other fancy vessels, Burj Khalif in the distant and some high rise buildings.

Next day we started with the city tour which included must see attractions like Gold Souq, Jumeirah Mosque, photo stop at Burj Al Arab hotel, Atlantis Hotel, drive through some under sea tunnels like Al Shindagha Tunnel and Sheikh Zayed Road which is the downtown and is the commercial district of the city. The tour ended at Burj Khalif, with an option to explore Dubai Mall and other places in the vicinity.

Same day, in the evening, we left for Desert Safari. After an hour's drive towards Oman, we reached a meeting place where there are options to do Quad Biking, Horse riding and some refreshments. The air pressure in the car tires are reduced for Dune bashing and we left along with 3 other cars. The dune bashing was like a semi roller coaster and it all depends on the driver skills to drive on the sands. Ours was not bad, as one ended up puking in the end. It was close to 20 min. and we came out for sunset photography. Next was the shows in the tents which was in the desert. There was Arabic Dance, Fire show and Belly Dancing shows with dinner server along with.

Next day was Eid, so most of the shops were closed till 3 PM. We had lunch with my friend Shrini and his family at Chandni Chowk, Jumeriah Lake Towers and left to Dubai Mall. The walk from Dubai Mall metro station to the mall is close to 1.5 km. We had yoghurt at Yoghurtland which is not to be missed. We wandered for some time and went to Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo. We had coffee and exchanged Burj Khalif ticket for voucher. We had booked it through travel desk and its advisable to do it in advance to avoid standing in queue. Our slot was at 8 PM and they allowed us 30 min. prior. We were at the top of the world at 8.15 PM. The night view was spectacular with things looking minuscule. We saw the Dubai Fountain much like the fountain at Bellagio Casino, Vegas from the top and spent considerable time at the top. We had dinner at Kamat Restaurant near to our hotel.

Next day we left to Abu Dhabi. 150 Kms was covered in 1 hour. Our first stop was Sheikh Zayed Mosque which has some strict dress restrictions for both Men and Women. The carpet inside is a single one and was hand-knotted by 1200 artisans for 2 years. The center chandelier is the second largest in the world. Photography is allowed inside with some restrictions.

Next we visited Emirates palace, Presidential Palace, Eithad towers of the Fast and Furious 7 fame, drive through Corniche Street/beach and finally Ferrari World.

As it was Eid time, fireworks show was organised at The Beach, Jumeriah Beach Residence area. The incredible fireworks display lit up the skies above The Beach for close to 8 min. We then took a stroll along the Dubai Marina Waterfront which was very pleasurable. We took metro to Al Fahidi and did some shopping. We again dined at Kamat and decided to call it a day. We returned to Bangalore on September 14.

Dubai believes in extravagance. Who would have imagined, a city which was arid before , now is bustling with activities 24/7. It took 9 years to construct the first tower back in 60's. Recently, they constructed a tower in 9 months. Some of the records they currently hold and in future are,

a)World's Tallest Tower

b)World's Fastest Elevator

c)World's Largest Mall by Area

d)World's Largest Indoor Theme Park

e)World's Tallest Residential Tower

f)World's Tallest Commercial Tower

g)World's Largest Firworks Display

h)World's Tallest Hotel

i)World's First Indoor Mountain Resort

j)World's Longest 22-Karat HandMade Gold Chain

k)World's Largest Indoor Illuminated Advertising Sign

l)World's Largest Airport

The list is inexhaustible and they are hungry for even more. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is the current Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai. He was the man behind the tremendous growth of Dubai and launch major enterprises including Emirates Airline, Jumeriah Group and others. He was responsible for numerous economically transformational projects like the Palm Islands, Dubai Media City, Dubai Internet City, Burj Al Arab hotel and the iconic Burj Khalifa.

For the upcoming Expo 2020, many projects are in the pipeline and they are determined to complete all of them. Some of them include, Dubai Water Canal Project, Museum of the Future, Jewel of the Creek, Al Habtoor City, Deira Islands, MBR City – District One, Dubai theme parks, Aladdin City and many more. All these are being done without disturbing current infrastructure and number of tourists are soaring daily.

Dubai is one of the safest cities to live and it was evident when we used to reach hotel in the midnight. All places including bus shelters, enclosures for animals at zoo, metro stations are air conditioned. But for oil, most of the other things are imported. The annual budget to maintain greenery in the city is close to 440 Million AED. The emirate's Western-style model of business drives its economy with the main revenues now coming from tourism, aviation, real estate, and financial services Everything is Man Made and it just proves Man is capable of doing beyond wildest possible things.

Some pictures below,