Dubai - To Do (Or What To Do?)

Broadening horizons, adding spice, captivating the senses and calling you. Everything should feel this good...

If the most accurate judge of time is a clock, the most sensitive is surely Dubai. It has cultivated its heritage carefully, keeping itself trimmed neither ostentatiously nor in an unstylish manner, walking neither too near to the past nor too far from it, neither too quickly nor too slowly from progress. It has taught itself to pay more attention to the broader picture than to the centre of its vision, thus building itself and expanding into the complete experience for everyone.

Seasons in the Sun
Not just a weekend destination but an ‘any-day-of-the-week’ one. Not just a getaway but a wholesome, fulfilling holiday. The Dubai of now: a place where the frantic pace of modern life slows down enough for you to enjoy it.

The Arabian Experience
Dubai has taken its historical artifacts, monuments, texts, traditions, picked up oil along the way and marched boldly with it all through the streets and souqs of old Arabia into the corporate, much heralded and well blended globalised world.

Summer Surprises
Modhesh! Amazing! That’s what summers are supposed to be. 1998 brought a series of surprises to this season with the starting of the Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS). In its 9th year this year and held between June 21 and September 21, 2006, DSS increased surprises ten-fold with its 10 Surprises and more. Modhesh, the yellow mascot for DSS has been bringing fun and cheer to children and adults as he ushers in something for everyone.

Nocturnal Lures
A taste of the desert night air gives one transparency to clear the day’s dust and grime. A taste of its culture at venues throughout the city offer a time to begin a new journey into a new experience. International events, concerts, music artistes, film festivals all provide space and time to adjust to this new world.

Centre Stage
Dubai Creek
The earth gleams still and deep like an opal in the gentle morning sun. A calm breeze gently scallops the creek’s surface at the edges and scrapes the dust across the land. Giving birth to this city and remaining the very lifeblood of Dubai, Dubai Creek has an enticing magnetism for visitors here.

Souqs
The market shimmers into view. Evocative of a scene from the Arabian Nights, the network of tiny lanes and by lanes meander on either side of the creek and other parts of Dubai. Men, women and children don’t just sell their wares but demand a return to the old market rules of bargaining and barter. A sensory invasion few want to run away from.

Bastakiya
Bastakiya gives a peek into the alluring and enticing old city. Thin lanes bear houses with tall chimney-like structures called wind-towers to cool homes naturally. Renovated, preserved and protected Bastakiya now houses a museum, cultural centre, restaurants and a heritage hotel with an art gallery.

Bird Watching
The climate of any country tells of its flora and fauna. A tidal wetland right on its doorstep, within a few minutes off the centre of the town, the scorching desert heat, the cooling desert night, the gulf, all have given rise to a varied array of bird species.

Spirited Sports
Snow (Hey Oh)!
Night is day and winter is summer. And sand is snow. And maybe the gods have gone crazy. But, wait before you pinch yourself. There is snow in the sweltering heat of Dubai. Welcome to Ski Dubai, which opened in December last year and is an indoor ski resort set within a 6.5 million square feet complex. From ski runs of all types for all ages to themed restaurants to an exclusive retail shop to professional instructors.

Golf
An old luxury, a new leisure, Dubai offers this sport with élan. Bragging premier golf courses, challenging ones with varying tee and pin positions, yet enjoyable and rewarding, Dubai has been voted the world’s leading golf destination by the IGTOA.

Horse Riding
Horses have been the pride of tradition here. Riding thorough the desert with the wind in your hair, one can literally paint a picture with the sand as your canvas and the horse as your paintbrush.

Adventure Tourism and Water Sports
Everyone has a wild side. And Dubai provides just the opportunity to unleash it with sports like Mountain Climbing, Sky Jumping, Scuba Diving, Go Karting, Wadi Bashing, Dune Bashing and Sand Storming. Caressed by the waters of the Gulf, Dubai offers diving down to the rich marine life and mysterious wrecks. Sailing and windsurfing are other attractions. Racing and jet skiing add to the thrill of this chase.

Super- Shopping- Dooper- Dubai!
Trust Dubai to tap into and cater to the hilt the one gene that is inbuilt in some, acquired by others and just doesn’t go down with a few. Dubai has taken the business of shopping seriously—right from its historical souqs to its modern malls and shopping villages. The Dubai Duty Free and the Dubai Shopping Festival ranks high on any shopper’s list with discounts and knick-knacks and what-nots.

Carte du jour – Dubai
Culinary experiences in Dubai call for conspicuous consumption. Be it the soul feeding Middle Eastern cuisine or the stomach filling Asian dishes, or the appetite satisfying junk food and even the heart beating romantic dinner cruises in traditional sailing dhows, Dubai gives new meaning to the term ‘food for thought.’

Dubai is thus the paradise that broke the mould once it was created. Come take a ride on this dreamland express and don’t miss a single moment of the sheer bliss offered here.


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