Dubai -- Beyond the Malls

Last weekend we went to Dubai.  This was my third time to go and I was determined to see more of Dubai than just the malls.  Amazing as they are.

 

We made the five-hour drive the last two trips, but decided to fly this time.  This banner was in the Muscat airport.  You can take the girl out of Texas, but Texas is never far.

 



 

Some of the souvenirs for sale in the Muscat airport.

 

This is the view from our hotel in Dubai.  We stayed at the Al Murooj Rotana Hotel.  It was right across Sheik Zayed Road from The Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa.  I said I wanted to see more of Dubai that just the malls.  I didn't say I wanted to avoid the malls, however! 



 

We decided to do the Big Bus Tour.  We caught the bus in front of The Dubai Mall.  This was a great way to see Dubai and I recommend it.  We stayed on for the blue route tour and the red route tour.  I have to say, that was too much bus for one day.  I would suggest the two-day pass and do one route a day.

 



Did you know that Dubai has one of the highest water consumption rates in the world?  You need a lot of water to make all this green grow in the desert!

 



I am wanting to see more than malls, and what is the first stop?  A mall.  This is the Wafi mall.  Pretty cool, though.

 



Here we are on the Dubai Creek.  Seriously, this river is called a creek.  We are about to take a boat tour along the creek, included in the price of the bus tour.  This is the original site of Dubai.  It started as a small pearl diving village.  By the way, I have come to realize that there is no such thing as a good hair day when one is sight-seeing.

 



When I think Dubai, I think glitz and glam and new.  These old wooden barges transport goods much in the same way as they have for a long time.

 



 

I could do a whole blog post on all the cool architecture in the city.

 



I love this picture of the white, serene mosque surrounded by all the hustle and bustle of the city.

 



Here we are on Jumeirah Beach Road.  Water on the right, and skyscrapers on the left.  I just realized that I don't have any pictures of the Dubai beaches or coastline.  I think that after seeing all the beautiful beaches and coastlines in Oman, the beach I saw at Dubai didn't impress me much.

 



How could I talk about Dubai with at least one car picture?  Here is a nice Ferrari, but we saw lots of Bentleys and Maseratis, too.

 



 

The Burj Al Arab.  We thought about staying here one night, but a basic room runs about $1200 a night.  We decided to pass.  You can buy a whole lot of shoes with that money!

 



 

Did you know that Dubai also has an Atlantis Hotel?  Not just The Bahamas.  This is where we will stay on our next trip to Dubai!




After three trips to Dubai, The Dubai Fountain is my favorite thing in Dubai!  They are located between the Dubai Mall and the Burj Khalifa. The dancing fountains are patterned after those at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.  I have probably seen at least a dozen fountain shows in Dubai.  This one is my favorite, set to Andrea Bocelli's Con te Partiro (Time to Say Goodbye).  In case you are in the area, Andrea Bocelli will be performing in Abu Dhabi on April 24th.  I would love to see him, but couldn't work it out.