The United Arab Emirates (UAE)

I took a Gate 1 eight–day tour to Dubai and Abu Dhabi (three days flying time). The UAE is on the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East. It borders Saudi Arabia and Oman and is across the Persian Gulf from Iran. This is my first trip to this area but have heard about Dubai from previous fellow tourmates who have made it a stopover between Europe and Australia. It sounded exotic and in a way it was.

Dubai

A map of Dubai, also showing the Emirates of Sharjah and Ajman. Abu Dhabi is to the south. Dubai is the name both of the Emirate and the city. Note the islands off the coast. These are man–made islands and our guide told us that more than 300 of the artificial islands are planned in order to extend the Dubai coastline. The Palm Atlantis hotel, which has underwater rooms, is located on the middle island in the drawing.

The Sheikhs of the UAE

The UAE is made up of seven Emirates: Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujeirah, Sharjah, Ras al–Kheimah, and Umm al–Qaywayn. Sheikh Zayed of Abu Dhabi founded the UAE in 1971 when the Emirates became independent from Great Britain. Two Emirates didn’t join the UAE––Oman and Bahrain, which remain today independent countries. Photo is of the Sheikhs of the seven Emirates.

Dubai and Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi is the largest of the Emirates and the richest––it has at least 70 more years of oil reserves, so its sheikh, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (on the left), is the president of the UAE. The second richest Emirate is Dubai and its sheikh, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (on the right), is the vice president of the UAE. Dubai has run out of oil and makes its money from commerce, finance, and tourism. You see their pictures often in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Eighty percent of the people living in Dubai are foreigners. Someone told me that 50% of the 80% are Westerners. Foreigners work as construction workers, cleaners, hotel staffs, store clerks, etc., and also in finance and other fields. Dubai is a magnet for jobs and for shopping as there are no taxes on anything.

At the Trader’s Hotel, Dhabi

There were a number of hotel guests wearing Islamic dress. This man is wearing a dishdasha and a white gutra (head scarf) with a black agal to hold it in place. Some of the men wear checked gutras. The men dress the same in both the Emirates and in Saudi Arabia. Our guide told us that you can usually tell one from the other as the Emirate men wear sandals and the Saudi Arabians wear shoes. This man is wearing shoes.

There are many workers from Pakistan and other Muslim countries. They mostly wear tunics and pants and caps to cover their hair. Some of Emirate men also wear caps rather than gutras.

At the Trader’s Hotel in Dubai

The Emirate women wear a black abaya––a long dress with sleeves. To cover their hair, they wear a hejab. Some women do not cover their faces and others do partially or completely. Part of a hejab can be pulled down over the face, completely covering it. It is a good way for the Emirate women to stare at us visitors as much as we are staring at them and we can’t tell if they are doing this. Visitors do not have to wear abays or hejabs but do need to wear a head covering to enter a mosque. It is requested of visitors to dress modestly.

Our Tour Guide

Our tour manager, JR, met us at the airport and we were taken to our hotel. Much congestion going to it as it was rush hour. I flew from LA to Washington, DC––four hours––and then to Dubai––13 hours. A long trip. We met our tour guide, Mounir, the next day. He is from Yemen, having lived in Dubai for 15 years. Dubai is his winter home and he escapes Dubai’s summer heat (up to 130 degrees) by spending summers in Montreal where his wife and son live. We couldn’t have had a better tour guide. He speaks fluent Arabic, English, French, and Spanish and maybe a couple more languages. Since Gate 1 is an American tour company, all 30 of us on the tour were Americans except for a couple from Mexico.

Getting Around Dubai

I thought that an escorted tour was a great way to see Dubai but you can easily come on your own and get around by the hop–on hop–off Big Bus, by taxi, or by metro. What surprised me was how spread out the tourist sites are in Dubai. The map included in one of my travel guides made it look like everything was close to each other and easily walkable. Not at all.

The Atlantis Hotel

Our first stop on today’s Dubai tour was the Atlantis hotel on the Palm Jumeirah, one of the artificial islands shaped like a palm tree. You drive down the trunk with expensive residences on the fronds. This hotel has underwater rooms but you can only view them if you are a hotel guest and probably only if you are a guest staying in those particular rooms. Nonguests are not even allowed in the hotel’s lobby but they can view the hotel’s aquarium, which we did.

The Atlantis Hotel’s Aquarium

The floor to ceiling aquarium. I have put the rest of my photos of the first part of our tour of Dubai on a slideshow. Go directly to

http://www.peggysphotos.com/dubai–day–1a/

or to Slide Shows, Dubai, “Dubai, Day 1A.”

The Burj Al Arab

The Burj Al Arab is the symbol of modern Dubai. It was completed in 1999 and is the world’s tallest all–suite hotel. It is set on an artificial island and has an underwater restaurant.

The Burj Khalifa

The new Dubai. The tallest building in this photo is the the Burj Khalifa, which is the tallest building in the world. It is over 2,600 feet tall (800 m) and was completed in 2009. The Chinese are presently building a taller building and our tour guide told us that Dubai, in turn, is building a taller building than the Chinese one.

Dubai Mall

To go up to the observation deck of the Burj Khalifa, you go through the Dubai Mall, the largest mall in the world. The mall is elegant. Photo of a caviar shop in the mall.

Building the Burj Khalifa–Movie

A movie that was played while we waited in line to get in the elevator to the observation deck of the Burj Khalifa. No sound.

Burj Khalifa Elevator Ride–Movie

We were entertained on our elevator ride to the observation deck.

Burj Khalifa Observation Deck

View from the Burj Khalifa observation deck. The blue water is where a water show is held, which we saw another day.

I put the rest of my photos of the Burj Al Arab, the Dubai Mall, and the Burj Khalifa on a slide show. Go directly to

http://www.peggysphotos.com/dubai–day–1b/

or to Slide Shows, Dubai, “Dubai, Day 1B.”

Dubai Museum

Our next stop was at the Dubai Museum, located in the Al Fahidi Fort, which was built in 1787 to defend the Emirates from an invasion. The museum is to show how far Dubai has come in modernization from the 1930s.

Crossing the Dubai Creek in an Abra

After the museum, our bus took us to the Dubai Creek where we took an abra across to the Deira section of Dubai to go to both the Spice and Gold Souqs.

At the Spice Souq

Spices at the Spice Souq. A souq is a market, usually specializing in selling one type of item.

At the Gold Souq

So much gold jewelry here.

I have put the rest of my photos of the Dubai Museum and of the souqs on a slide show. Go directly to

http://www.peggysphotos.com/dubai–day–1c/

or to Slide Shows, Dubai, “Dubai, Day 1C.”

A long day, dinner and then to bed.