Dubai is such an eclectic mix of the new and modern and the old and traditional. The sights, smells and sounds were exotic and intoxicating for us Canadians escaping the winter dark and cold with the brilliant sunshine that supported the midday heat an added bonus.
One of the first perks I found in retirement was the opportunity to travel to our cruise embarkation port early and since that port was Dubai I was so glad that we could. Although we arrived close to midnight after two days of travel I had booked a hotel close to the airport so we could get a shuttle at that late hour. Location is not of vital importance in Dubai as they have a great taxi system and it is relatively inexpensive (although I would recommend a metered taxi or negotiating your fare in advance).
The breakfast buffet was included in our hotel package and it was totally worth it. Aside from the scrambled eggs and hash browns pretty much everything else was foreign to me as a breakfast food. That did not stop either of us from enjoying dried fruits, nuts, olives, breads, jams and pickles all with a side of yogurt and honey. We feel it is essential to eat as much of the local cuisine as possible while travelling as this is as important to the experience as the history and culture. There was also as much diversity in the other patrons with English the least often heard language.
Since we only had one day to explore this great city we decided to divide and conquer. The morning was spend on a Hop On Hop Off tour of the newer part of the city and the afternoon on a walking tour of the Old Town.
A short taxi ride took us to the Dubai Mall. Had we been shoppers this would have been our only destination as this mall is the largest in the world with a total area at 1,124,000 square meters and over 1200 stores. There is even an aquarium! Instead we jumped on the bus (https://www.hop-on-hop-off-bus.com/dubai-bus-tours) for a two hour round trip on the blue line to see such sights as the Burj Khalifa, Atlantis and the Palm, the Dubai Frame and the Marina, beach and promenade. I wish we had enough time to hop off and really explore these areas of the new part of town. The architecture alone was breathtaking to say nothing of the colourful flowers, swaying palm trees and clean sparkling vistas.
Instead we continued on to the red line and hopped off at the second stop at the entrance to the Old Town. We had booked a small group walking tour in English that included tasting of traditional foods and drinks along with a visit to the Textile, Spice and Gold Souks. Our guide Hamza was amazing! He talked a lot about the culture in Dubai and the history of the city, and readily answered all our questions. He also tutored us on bartering and how to deal with the aggressive vendors in the markets, a skill we carried throughout all of our trip. We tried fresh coconut and pomegranate juice, munched on spicy samosas, deep fried vegetable bites and falafel wraps. It was an excellent introduction to the traditions of Dubai.
For our first trip to this area of the world taking a cruise was a comfortable and safe introduction. Having said that I would readily return to Dubai, and the other cities in the UAE you will hear more about later. It was tourist friendly, everyone spoke excellent English and we never once felt unsafe. It was also a beautiful city built upon the tremendous wealth of oil. Although Dubai no longer has oil they have embraced other industry, such as technology and tourism, in order to continue to expand and excite.