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A city that never sleeps
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Shopping or sightseeing, this is the right place to be in, says SUDHISH KAMATH
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PHOTOS: SUDHISH KAMATH
THE MANY FACES OF DUBAI The thrilling desert safari
It wasn't a trip I had planned for shopping. At the end of it, I wished it was. I have always found shopping to be a mundane exercise in indulgence and pointless luxury — an activity women use to bond with each other when they have nothing better to do. Well, men just get in, get what they want and get out. Or, at least that's what my take on shopping was, until Dubai happened.
The first thing you need, if you are planning a trip to Dubai, is a lot of money to splurge. You will get the best bargains under the sun, in the land known for sand and oil, especially during the Dubai Shopping Festival (The 45-day festival ended on February 9). The Global Village, the main attraction of the festival, is a 17 million square feet market set apart for different countries to put up their pavilions and line up the best buys from home. (Psst: The Indian corridor with about 350-400 stalls is usually among the biggest and is gaining the reputation of being the best, after winning awards year after year.)
Wide choice
This year, about 40 countries put up their pavilions. Even if you calculate at a minimum of 100 stalls per pavilion, you can imagine the amount of shopping in store.
Given that the cheapest products across corridors always seem to wear a `Made in China' tag, it does make sense to head to China or Singapore straight away. The African stalls have some fine woodwork, the Arabian ones have the best of spices and nuts, the Europeans had racks of sculptures and arty souvenirs and the Indian stalls stacked up quite a bit in terms of handicrafts, ceramic and terracotta.
Be prepared to walk and walk and walk. A word of caution about hiring trolleys. Given that it costs about 10 dirhams to hire a trolley for an hour, you are likely to spend a minimum of 40-50 dirhams (Rs. 500 to Rs. 600).
Breezing in and out of each pavilion, faced with a severe shortage of time, all we managed to cover in five hours of non-stop walking was about 20 pavilions. We didn't half expect the trolley to be full by the end of it. Your bargain skills would come in handy and 40 per cent of the quoted price is a reasonable start for negotiations. During the festival, even the malls in the Emirate and hypermarkets come up with the best bargains.
Designer brands
Carrefour was the cheapest, Lulu was next best and Spinneys was a little on the higher side. For designer brands, head to the Mall of the Emirates, one of the biggest in Dubai. The mall also houses Ski Dubai, one of the world's largest indoor skiing facility.
A view of the city
Dubai, like Mumbai, never sleeps. Taxis are a big problem in the night though. Sometimes, it takes up to an hour before you can find an empty cab. But since we had our own transport, we were covered. Only the other night, we had lounged around at Buddha Bar with Malibus and eaten sumptuous Indian food, better than it ever tasted in India, at Gazebo. So unless you have transport, it may not be a good idea doing a night out.
Spells luxury
The trip to the world's only seven star hotel was a luxury but it seemed like a must-do, especially with its reputation of being the tallest hotel in the world. The Burj Al Arab is gorgeous, stands tall and beautiful in a man-made island a few feet away from the mainland and it takes a minimum of 225 dirhams (a dirham costs about Rs.12) for breakfast, the cheapest excuse to find yourself inside a world of opulence. Our breakfast consisted of cereal with nuts in it, a mini burger (just bun with some snobbish variety of cheesy cream in it), a few slices of assorted fruit, a well-endowed cutlet, fresh fruit juice and coffee. Ordinary fare yet filling.
Curiously, I did check out the loo. The restroom was surprisingly small, claustrophobic even. Just about functional, far from the royalty the hotel boasts of.
The most thrilling part of the trip, however, was the Desert Safari (around 250 dirhams inclusive of dinner). The dune bashing with reckless drivers ripping their Landcruiser Pradas through the desert, was a two-hour long roller coaster of sorts, and our car just stopped short of toppling over.
But given that SUVs only drive in groups, and go one car after another, there is no real danger of getting stranded in the middle of the desert. So when our car had a flat tyre, there was nothing to worry about.
The sunset in the desert with camels for company is simply the most beautiful sight in Dubai and yes, nothing like ending an adventurous evening, sitting around the desert camp with food, sheesha and enchanting belly dancers.
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