The Rain

Those who say sunshine brings happiness have never danced in the rain

Anon

I grew up in semi-rural South West England, so I think I’m pretty experienced in all things wet weather. I own wellie boots, waterproof coats of various lengths, silly hats and lots of umbrellas, all of which were shipped to Dubai. Last year, the children and I laughed at the panic over forecast rain and as the sky blackened, we dug out our trusty waterproofs and set off for school. Oh my goodness, there is nothing reserved and British about the rain in the UAE. It absolutely pounds down and within minutes the roads become rivers, buildings have flooded and it is nothing short of chaos. A twenty minute round trip to school and back took over an hour. School was flooded and closed.

It does seem that almost anything is possible here, including making rain! I thought that “cloud seeding” was a fabulous joke to catch out the newcomer, but it is a genuine process and fully adopted in this country. The UAE is one of the highest consumers of water in the world, most of which comes from desalination, and a tiny proportion from underground. With its hot desert climate and an average annual rainfall of less than 90 mm, clouds are seeded to encourage more rainfall. In essence, planes release flares full of salt crystals into the clouds. The salt rises on convective currents into the clouds and attracts small water particles to form together into bigger water droplets. And the rain falls.

This year, all schools in the region were closed in anticipation of the heavy rain. A Dubai “rain day” is comparable to a British “snow day”, with the adults wondering if there was perhaps a chance that school could have stayed open and the children bubbling over with excitement. For them, there is so much innocent fun to be had on a warm wet day, scooting and cycling through deep puddles, pretending to surf on the flooded paths and dancing in their swimsuits in the rain.

The Block

Play is the highest form of research

Albert Einstein

There are so many fantastic indoor activity centres in Dubai, allowing the children to burn off energy on any day of the year. But, I’m used to an outdoor lifestyle and I do love to get them outside, running and scooting in a less structured environment, where they can make up their own games and play freely. Obviously there are a few months of the year when this just is not possible, when it’s too hot to take even a few steps outside. The rest of the year, we’re up and out early in the morning, and enjoy the lack of humdity and the lack of people too.

The Block attracted my attention as a large outdoor space, running alongside the water of the Creek in Dubai Design District. Opened in 2018, and accessible by water taxi, it is an imaginatively designed well-shaded area which has plenty of natural materials in its structures. It also made use of the recent extensive construction work on the canal, recycling 27 tonnes of concrete to build its walls and ramps.

It will appeal to children, like mine, who are no longer kept entertained for long on a simple swing and slide. There are wooden climbing frames, tunnels and swings but also an outdoor gym, several climbing walls and a skate park.

On a bright Friday morning, we arrived as a group charity walk was finishing and were gifted with bottles and t-shirts, before having the park almost exclusively to ourselves.

There are a few food shacks in the park, but if all this activity has worked up a real thirst and appetite, then the cafes and restaurants of the Design Quarter are an easy walk away.

Home delivery

Progress isn’t made by early risers. It’s made by lazy men trying to find easier ways to do something

Robert Heinlein

We returned from our long summer break last week to find the car covered in a thick layer of dust. To my great surprise the engine started at the first attempt but there was almost no fuel in the tank. I might’ve just made it to the nearest petrol station, but nowhere is just a mile down the road in this city. Instead, we headed off on foot to our local cafe for a bite of lunch, went for a swim, chilled out at home and got an early night. The next morning, the car was sparkly clean and the tank full. A bit of Dubai magic!

Dubai takes home delivery services to a new level. Ordering is simple, usually via an app, so I can surreptitiously sort out the bottled water delivery while sitting in a meeting or order a pizza delivery from the school play ground. There is a most extraordinary array of products that I might want to order, things that I never thought I needed to have brought to my door. Dog grooming, children’s haircuts, car cleaning, petrol, and even ice blocks to cool the swimming pool.

Despite the excitement of all the slightly unnecessary items I might be able to order in, I still haven’t mastered the perfect grocery home delivery service. Nothing compares to the one-stop online shop of back home. Most of the time, I luxuriate in this new laziness, but sometimes I have to actually get off the sofa and go to the shops.

Tall buildings

It must be every inch a proud and soaring thing, rising in sheer exultation….

Louis Sullivan

  • Dubai Marina

I prefer to stand on the ground and look up at tall buildings than to climb to the top and look down. In Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities to do both. The city is packed full of skyscrapers and they really are marvels of architecture; twisting, shining and soaring.

Dubai Marina is a scenic spot for a stroll, with a back drop of water, boats and tall buildings. The promenade extends for 7km and at certain times of year is populated by food and drink trucks. We jumped on a RTA ferry at Marina Walk which is a great value boat ride, stopping at Marina Mall and out to Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) for a short hop across to the beach.

  • Burj Khalifa

Dubai is home to the tallest building and tallest free-standing structure in the world. The Burj Khalifa was officially launched in 2010 and stands at over 828m. There are many extraordinary facts and figures about the construction of this vast tower. It took only 5 years from the start of excavation to completion of the spire with 12,000 workers on site daily at the peak of construction.

It is awesome to stand and look up at this immense tower, which is illuminated every night with a different light show on one of its facades. I’m sure it’s every bit as impressive on the observation decks at the top or enjoying tea in the clouds, but the experience does not come cheap and I’m saving those trips for another time.

The Dubai Frame is a less costly and more relaxed way to look down on Dubai. Standing at 150m tall and 93 m wide, the Dubai Frame is positioned in such a way that modern Dubai is on view from one side and old Dubai from the other.

We visited on a Saturday in November and bought our tickets at the gate. There is an interesting exhibit of Dubai through the ages and a quick lift trip to the top. The children particularly enjoyed walking over the long opaque glass bridge which connects the two towers of the Frame. As they stepped on the bridge, the glass cleared allowing a view to the ground below. Walking on air.

Old Dubai

We are not makers of history. We are made by history.

Martin Luther King Jr

There are days when the polished sky scrapers, white washed residences and glossy malls all feel too polished, white and glossy. An escape to a bit of history is needed and there is plenty to be found in Old Dubai. Situated in the northern part of town, Bur Dubai and Deira, separated by Dubai Creek, are vibrant and diverse districts, full of historical and cultural interest.

Al Fahidi Historical District (Bastakiya Quarter) is a good place to start a tour of Old Dubai. It lies along the bank of Dubai Creek and offers a glimpse back at life in Dubai from the mid 19th century until the early 1970s. The beautifully preserved and restored gypsum and coral buildings were the residences of wealthy merchants, whose privacy was protected by the tall stone walls and lack of front windows. It is the last wind tower quarter left on the Arab side of the Gulf.

Barjeel (wind tower) sits atop the walls and funnels wind into the building below.

I easily whiled away a few hours strolling around the shady alleyways, stopping at the old buildings which have been converted into art galleries, museums, cafes and quirky little shops.

It is a short walk from Al Fahidi Historical District to the banks of Dubai Creek. This saltwater creek served a vital role in the history of Dubai, for fishing, pearling and as a gateway for traders. The Dubai Water Canal was completed in 2016, extending the Creek out into the Persian Gulf.

  • Abra station

I walked to the Bur Dubai abra station where it is possible to jump on a shared abra across Dubai Creek. There are over 100 of these traditional Arabian boats, constantly passing from one bank to the other. I loved the simplicity of the experience, sitting among tourists and tradesmen on the deck and handing over my 1 dirham coin to the abra driver in payment for the journey. There is little else to be bought for only 1 dirham in this city.

The spice souk is to be found on the opposite bank. As soon as I stepped ashore I felt like I had travelled to a different country. There was little of the modern Dubai to be found here, other than a passion for shopping. Atmospheric, bustling and lively, I had spices wafted under my nose and a pashmina wrapped around my shoulders by men keen to make a sale. Haggling is expected.

Bags of aromatic spices

Further along is the more sanitised gold souk. I had to jostle with parties of tourists to get a look through the windows at gold bracelets, rings and chains. Many people travel to Dubai to buy gold so it was no surprise to see sales being made in most of the shops.

Gold and more gold

There were no purchases for me on this occasion, just an opportunity to watch, wander and experience a completely different side of this fascinating city.

Walking the Boards

Under the boardwalk. Down by the sea.

Artie Resnick & Kenny Young

It was a bright, cloudless November morning when my sister, baby niece and I decided to go for a stroll on the Palm Jumeirah boardwalk. Having visited a fair few British seaside towns, I envisaged a promenade with people walking or running and elderly couples sitting on benches eating ice-creams. Unsurprisingly, the reality was entirely different. After all, this is Dubai.

Completed in 2016, the boardwalk is an 11 km long, 6 m wide walkway which hugs the coastline around the top of the Palm. It is a striking addition to the man-made Palm. The colour of the boards contrasts with the rocky shore and the Arabian ocean beyond, making a fabulous photographic opportunity.

The boardwalk was all but deserted. We saw a few other tourists taking photographs but not another soul. Sadly, there were no ice cream vans or food trucks to be found although we had a good cup of coffee in an atmospheric hotel cafe nearby. The boardwalk is a perfect place for a peaceful walk or run, without having to leap out of the way of bikes, skate boards and scooters. It is also a great spot to take visitors for a few holiday photographs.

There are plans to develop four new extensions from the central trunk. These expansion plans also include glass-covered cafes, food trucks and refreshment stands. It won’t quite be a Mr Whippy on Worthing seafront, but it might come close.

  • Worthing ice cream

The Heat

What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance

Jane Austen

In the UK, summer (if it happens) is the season of fun, to play outdoors, meet friends for picnics and concerts in the park, go to the beach and feel happy. That is turned on its head in Dubai. We live in a desert. Summer is the season to stay inside and long for it to be over. It seems that everyone, who is able to, leaves for the summer, travelling home or to somewhere with fresh air. People have been talking about the summer, with dread, for some months. In a way, I have been looking forward to it. I want to experience the summer for myself.

The heat is extraordinary. The cold water in the taps is running hot, the plastic coating on the handlebars of my bicycle has melted, the ground scalds the soles of my feet within a few steps. It honestly feels like I’ve opened the oven door and stuck my head inside, with the fan running.

I know that I am fortunate. I can hop from one air conditioned space to another and spend a minimal amount of time outside. I am soaked within seconds of stepping outside, a human condenser that has been chilled by the AC and then exposed to the searing humidity. It is said that there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothes. Well, there are no clothes that are good for this. I am damp and crumpled all the time.

I stop complaining when I look out of my car window and see a man in coveralls cycling against the traffic with all his gardening equipment strapped to his bike. It’s 48 degrees. I’ll quietly escape to Europe with the children and fully experience the summer next year.

Packing up

There is always a sadness about packing. I guess you wonder if where you’re going is as good as where you’ve been

Richard Proenneke

I have mixed emotions about packing. Packing suitcases to go away on a summer holiday fills me with excitement and anticipation. Packing my old trunk to go back to boarding school at the end of the holidays was less welcome. Packing up an entire house to emigrate to a relatively unknown country was a completely new experience altogether.

I started with good intentions. I felt positive about using this opportunity to clear out all the things we had accumulated over the last decade, a double garage and a loft filled with bags of baby clothes, toys, and old furniture that had never found a place in our home.

Every item in the house was to sell, ship or store. Cash payments for small items or for anything belonging to the children were put into a “Dubai kitty”, a good incentive to sort through the toy mountain and look forward to some new beach toys for Dubai.

Inevitably, my good intentions disappeared in a whirlwind of work, children, paperwork and goodbyes. Selling takes time, especially answering the endless obscure questions on Ebay. Instead I made use of the many local charity shops and used Freecycle to mop up any leftover items. It then took 3 days of professional packing and “ship…store” to empty the house.

Finally, all that remained was a completely empty house, 3 big suitcases, 3 small cases, 2 children and 1 slightly emotional and exhausted Mummy.

The Dubai Fountain

If there is magic on the planet, it is contained in the water

Loren Eiseley

I had been in Dubai for a few weeks when I was invited out for a meal in a restaurant at Souk al Bahar. At 10pm, one of the group persuaded us all to go outside to see the “dancing fountain”. I was surprised to be so moved by the display and put my teary eyes down to the upheaval of moving to a new country.

The Dubai Fountain is the world’s tallest performing fountain and the world’s largest choreographed fountain. Over 80,000 litres of water are shot to a height of 150m at any one time, illuminated at night by 6600 lights and 50 coloured projectors.

The children were keen to see the fountain for themselves, so we decided to visit early on a Friday afternoon. We easily found a bench in a prime spot opposite the Dubai Mall. Front row seats. There is something about the shock of the loud music starting and then the incredible display of dancing water that works some spell. It sounds like it should be a bit tacky, but it is really a beautiful experience.

Dubai Butterfly Garden

The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough

Rabindranath Tagore

We drive past the sign to Dubai Butterfly Garden almost every day and the children have asked repeatedly to visit. I have been reluctant as it brings to mind those Victorian displays of butterflies pinned out on cork boards which always made me feel so sad.

Thankfully, the butterflies in this garden are very much alive. The children were absolutely captivated, especially as they were allowed to entice the butterflies to crawl onto their hands and land on their heads.

This is a perfect all weather outing. The 15,000 butterflies are housed in 10 huge climate-controlled domes. There is a clear educational emphasis with plenty of signage and engaging staff, one of whom brought a chrysalis over to us so that we could watch the butterfly emerge.

There was fairly tranquil music playing and lots of benches to relax for a minute while the children decorated themselves in butterflies.