Well when i tell you that i am a rich lady , i really am........for i possess diamonds that glitter in my darkest hours, who care for me, feel for me and pamper me.These diamonds are few of my selected friends and matured friendships i am giving an introduction to none other than MANJARI my college buddy who has been a friend more than last couple of decades.
All these years she had been inviting me to visit her in Dubai and all this while i had one excuse or the other till last couple of weeks when i visited Dubai on her behest and stayed with her for a week. Travelling and exposing ones self to other places, ways of living , cultures and perspectives is one of the most valuable gifts one can give oneself. Following this line of thought i try and travel whenever i can where ever i can. The de learning and re learning is an amazing exercise and one never remains the same after the experience.
Trip to Dubai besides unfolding the opulence of the province removed more than one cobwebs i had weaved in my mind around the Islamic cultures. To me till i visited it was a culture which was restrictive, intolerant and narrow minded. Now after i visited Dubai all that has been washed away Arabs are one of the most tolerant, warm hearted and open minded people who accomodate other cultures while maintaining the nuances of their own. I saw pork on restaurant menus, women dressed in short dresses along with women in veil all co existing in such a beautiful harmony. Everyone being looked at with equal dignity.
Technically speaking Dubai had the latest electronic gadgets, Mercedes and BMW appear as cheap cars because we see so many of them, some of the exotic sports models are seen off and on, there is a floating bridge they have which is few metres above the sea level, the sea is almost running parallel to it while one drives. We see roads lined with beds of pansies and oak trees with a network of water pipes for automatic irrigation. Every year the city reclaims parts of the desert and increases it boundary into it. They have ski slopes made in malls and desert safaris a call away. The systems function as effectively as in the US and the law and order is more seamless than in the US. I did not see half as many patrolling police cars as many i saw in the US. I was told that the police here moves in civil suits. One can see abandoned houses lying vacant no one tresspasses or poaches others domain. If one has to rent out a place one needs to switch the lights on and keep the doors open so that interested parties can walk around and reach you. People leave their shops open when they go out for prayers during the day.
I was told the total population of Dubai is 35 lakhs so one does not see flood of people its very spaced out no crowds except for weekends on popular joints. Men and women are very fashion conscious and by far quite handsome and pretty in comparison to their counterparts in US or UK. The beach walk area is as romantic as the one you walk at Santa Monica with very nice cafes lined up tastefully all along. Initially looking at the women i thought them to be European till i was told that besides the local Arab population most of them were Jordanians, Serbians and Russians. Most of the women wear good amount of makeup and are very conscious of their attire in spite of their veil. They support such exotic diamond rings, bangles, Gucci, Coach handbags, Arabic women wear very strong perfumes which linger way after they pass by you in the malls. One did not see frustration or unhappiness under the veil it was more of a smug contentment in their own world in spite of the women in mini skirts around them. One saw Arabic women in these ground sweeping black gown with huge hair buns under their black scarfs swirming the beach walks in their stilletoes. The men also supported those white robes and the head gear which was mysteriously held by the black band. I used to almost stare at them to see how they manage to retain the head scarf without letting it fall :)
On the lowlights the system of governance is monarchy which is widely accepted and did not see any signs of resistance. An average local is well taken care of with their education being free and quite a few facilities doled out to them on a silver platter. For immigrants its risky to invest in ownership because the beliefs of the rulers is the law of the land there is no sense of belonging or ownership they can have. The status of citizenship is granted to none no matter how many years one has been living there. All businesses have to have 41 - 51 % stakeholding of the locals. Alcohol is served in restaurants with licence and is not sold anywhere in public places such as water parks or malls. Paan is altogether banned from being sold or in any form so i missed it after those nice Turkish meals. I was told this is because of the spitting culture around it.
Well amidst all these i was treated like a queen where Manjari took me to a home made Arabic barbacue hosted by her brother at his grand bunglow, Turkish, Chinese, Italian eating joints, water parks and desert safari and topping to the cake was when she hosted a champagne toast at the exclusive Atmosphere the restaurant on the 122nd floor of the Burj Khalifa the tallest building in the world with its height shooting 828 m (2,717 ft) from the ground level. I could not have asked for more to see, taste and please my senses with. Manjari's Dubai was wonderful, without her all would have been very black and white. She added colour and life to it.
Thank you Manjari i will cherish our time together always !
All these years she had been inviting me to visit her in Dubai and all this while i had one excuse or the other till last couple of weeks when i visited Dubai on her behest and stayed with her for a week. Travelling and exposing ones self to other places, ways of living , cultures and perspectives is one of the most valuable gifts one can give oneself. Following this line of thought i try and travel whenever i can where ever i can. The de learning and re learning is an amazing exercise and one never remains the same after the experience.
Trip to Dubai besides unfolding the opulence of the province removed more than one cobwebs i had weaved in my mind around the Islamic cultures. To me till i visited it was a culture which was restrictive, intolerant and narrow minded. Now after i visited Dubai all that has been washed away Arabs are one of the most tolerant, warm hearted and open minded people who accomodate other cultures while maintaining the nuances of their own. I saw pork on restaurant menus, women dressed in short dresses along with women in veil all co existing in such a beautiful harmony. Everyone being looked at with equal dignity.
Technically speaking Dubai had the latest electronic gadgets, Mercedes and BMW appear as cheap cars because we see so many of them, some of the exotic sports models are seen off and on, there is a floating bridge they have which is few metres above the sea level, the sea is almost running parallel to it while one drives. We see roads lined with beds of pansies and oak trees with a network of water pipes for automatic irrigation. Every year the city reclaims parts of the desert and increases it boundary into it. They have ski slopes made in malls and desert safaris a call away. The systems function as effectively as in the US and the law and order is more seamless than in the US. I did not see half as many patrolling police cars as many i saw in the US. I was told that the police here moves in civil suits. One can see abandoned houses lying vacant no one tresspasses or poaches others domain. If one has to rent out a place one needs to switch the lights on and keep the doors open so that interested parties can walk around and reach you. People leave their shops open when they go out for prayers during the day.
I was told the total population of Dubai is 35 lakhs so one does not see flood of people its very spaced out no crowds except for weekends on popular joints. Men and women are very fashion conscious and by far quite handsome and pretty in comparison to their counterparts in US or UK. The beach walk area is as romantic as the one you walk at Santa Monica with very nice cafes lined up tastefully all along. Initially looking at the women i thought them to be European till i was told that besides the local Arab population most of them were Jordanians, Serbians and Russians. Most of the women wear good amount of makeup and are very conscious of their attire in spite of their veil. They support such exotic diamond rings, bangles, Gucci, Coach handbags, Arabic women wear very strong perfumes which linger way after they pass by you in the malls. One did not see frustration or unhappiness under the veil it was more of a smug contentment in their own world in spite of the women in mini skirts around them. One saw Arabic women in these ground sweeping black gown with huge hair buns under their black scarfs swirming the beach walks in their stilletoes. The men also supported those white robes and the head gear which was mysteriously held by the black band. I used to almost stare at them to see how they manage to retain the head scarf without letting it fall :)
On the lowlights the system of governance is monarchy which is widely accepted and did not see any signs of resistance. An average local is well taken care of with their education being free and quite a few facilities doled out to them on a silver platter. For immigrants its risky to invest in ownership because the beliefs of the rulers is the law of the land there is no sense of belonging or ownership they can have. The status of citizenship is granted to none no matter how many years one has been living there. All businesses have to have 41 - 51 % stakeholding of the locals. Alcohol is served in restaurants with licence and is not sold anywhere in public places such as water parks or malls. Paan is altogether banned from being sold or in any form so i missed it after those nice Turkish meals. I was told this is because of the spitting culture around it.
Well amidst all these i was treated like a queen where Manjari took me to a home made Arabic barbacue hosted by her brother at his grand bunglow, Turkish, Chinese, Italian eating joints, water parks and desert safari and topping to the cake was when she hosted a champagne toast at the exclusive Atmosphere the restaurant on the 122nd floor of the Burj Khalifa the tallest building in the world with its height shooting 828 m (2,717 ft) from the ground level. I could not have asked for more to see, taste and please my senses with. Manjari's Dubai was wonderful, without her all would have been very black and white. She added colour and life to it.
Thank you Manjari i will cherish our time together always !
