Thursday February 02, 2023
Today we also packed in two tours, both of which were amazing and gave us a lot more insight into the local culture as opposed to the glitz and glamor of yesterday morning. The guide – Ali, a Dubai native who had earned his degree in Zoology from a local university was then sent (all expenses paid by the government) to a University in England for his Master’s degree and to Germany to get his PhD in Zoology. After the government paid for his university abroad, he was forced to return and work in his field of expertise and impart the knowledge obtained abroad to others. He was a founder of the local Zoo and even though retired, he still helps out there. He has published 12 books and is working on the next one. A truly remarkable man, head and shoulders above all the other guides and always pointing out how big and great Dubai is, but kept it all light and fun.
The first tour was “The Cultural Emirati Experience” which took us to the old part of the city – the Al Fahidi Historical Neighborhood, that has various cultural, architectural and antiquities institutions; houses safeguarding the Emirati Heritage such as the old Post Office, Coffee and other museum; artistic houses for professional talents such as Galerys, some retail shops, coffee houses and restaurants, a couple of hotels and a few landmarks such as the Mosque and rock garden. (www.cultures.ae) Dubai was a small fishing and pearl diving village some 60 years ago. One man on the tour had been here doing oil exploration in 1967 and verified that it was a “nothing” village. We later saw photographs of the village that was Dubai during our lifetime. We visited and petted / kissed a camel and her baby and other exhibits of life in the fishing village. One of the exhibits was a 1971 oar powered boat (78 rowers), owned by the late sheikh Makotum bin Rashid Al Maktoum and from 1972 to 1992 was the winner in all the races of it’s class. We were introduced to a live falcon, which is the national bird as falconry is a very important part of the Emirates culture. As a bird of prey they are treated with great reverence. Anne mentioned that she was on a Royal Jordanian flight once where half a dozen falcons each had first class seats on the plane! We saw a typical Bedouin family living area with it’s cooking fire and “tent” with cushions. The “Tent” / covering was called the House of Hair Making (Bait Al Sha’ar) as the covering (which lasted about 50 years) was made from goat hair that women would find on shrubs in the desert and then knit together into pieces. It was then tied down with ropes to protect the occupants against the elements. We wandered the streets of the old adobe housed village that has been completely restored and is really a tourist attraction, but very well done as it gives one a very good idea of what the village was like.
The big attraction of the morning tour, however, was the “curated” meal. We entered the Cultural Center restaurant that had a large downstairs area set up for some 50 guests, but as we were only 15 we went to the upstairs room. After removing our shoes, we entered the (Persian) carpeted room with central tea / coffee service and pillows lining the outside walls of the room, both on the floor as well as against the walls, for the back. We all sat on these cushions and then were greeted by a 23 year old, charming man – Hassan. He walked us through what it was to have a family meal at home and answered many questions about what life is like for locals. He is from Abu Dhabi but works in Dubai and described clothing, the three head coverings – cap, white or red & white cloth and the black rope holding the cloth on (historically it was used to tie the camel’s feet together so they would not wander off into the desert). The long flowing cotton one piece covering with tassel (used to place perfume on so as to smell when unpleasant odors are in the air) and the undergarment which can either be a loose fitting cotton trousers or a slip. This “slip” takes the place of underwear. He also talked about what it was like to go about getting married which is typically arranged, but with a great amount of input from the individual. Once the boy decides it is time to get married, the mother then arranges, with her friends and family to have a list of possible alternatives. One is selected and mother & son go and visit the woman and her mother. After some discussions, it can lead to nothing or a second meeting. Always with the parent in attendance. Eventually if it goes to the next step, a “dating’ period is defined, about 6 months and formalized. At the end of that time, either one can back out, but if they want to continue to be married, they have to talk independently to the person who would legally authorize the marriage and if all is still a go, would lead to the ceremony itself. Under Muslim law, a man can take up to 4 wives, but all have to be treated exactly the same. This was mostly in the olden days of farming, where more children would be needed to help, than one wife could produce. So most men now only have one wife. “Love Marriages” are also allowed, but say a boy and girl meet at university and decide it would be good to marry, the mothers are contacted and the same procedure followed. Usually the first wife is always from the Emirates, but if there is a second wife, she may be from overseas. This is unlike Oman where men are free to marry women of any nationality.
He also went through the ritual of serving coffee, with your right hand at the beginning of the meal and tea at the end, (left hand is used for toiletry) we enjoyed a really delicious meal while the Q&A continued.
After the meal we went to the largest (Suni) Mosque in Dubai (Al Farooq bin Alkthattab Masjid) that can accommodate 2,400 people, men and women separately and the ladies all had to put on the long flowing black “abayas”. It was great to see Anne fully kited out and we took pictures in the mosque with the other ladies. It was built in 1986, expanded in 2003 and rebuilt in 2011. Interesting was the difference of 13 days between the Arabic Calendar and Gregorian Calendar we use, making both back in synch after 33 years. So at 33, the same person in the Islamic calendar is 34 years old. Currently the date is 9.7.1444 (when we were in Abu Dhabi) as it dates from Mohamed not Jesus Christ. By this time we were getting concerned as we had told our guide that we had to be back on time (2PM). We had only 1 hour between arrival and departure on the afternoon tour. At 2PM we were still at the Mosque undergoing more and more explanations and 1/2 hour from the port. We eventually got to the ship 10 minutes before the next departure. We ran the full length of the new large port structure as entry and exit from the building are on opposite ends. We made it onto the 10th of 12 – 4X4 Toyota vehicles that were to be the transport for the afternoon tour.
The young driver got in behind the wheel, and with a chubby, coughing lady from the Canary Islands, in the front seat and us in the back all duly masked, we were ready for the adventure. Unfortunately the driver, possibly from Sri Lanka either could not speak English or did not want to communicate and the woman in the front seat, who despite us attempting to talk to her in her native Spanish language, decided that she also did not want to communicate. So we were subjected to a silent vehicle, and worse, we knew not what was to happen, what were stops, what to expect. Incessant Arab music came from the radio, the driver with headphones attached to his mobile phone and the music getting louder and louder when we got to the dunes. We sped out of the city, more or less in caravan, suddenly stopping at a petrol station in the middle of the desert. 10 minutes the driver said. We got out and asked another driver what this stop was all about? A toilet break he said.
After doing our “due diligence” we soon were at the Khatam exit to Melina Drive, where we passed through an entrance in the barbed wire fence. All the cars were now lined up in numerical order and the drivers got out and deflated the car tires, to get greater traction on the sand. Soon we were on the sand in the Arabian Desert, going up and down the dunes. Some were high and the car needed to speed up to get to the top, but at the top some fell off sharply on one side or the other, Others we could see vehicles in front of us going down a very steep hill sliding sideways down the 300 – 400 meter high dune. A scary but enthralling experience and the driver did a terrific job. We noted the large “roll bar” over the roof, in case the car rolled over, our heads would not be crushed. This half hour thrilling experience, Arabic music blaring, and us holding on for dear life suddenly came to a stop where we were able to get up and gaze at the beauty of the sun fading over the vast expanse of the desert with nothing but sand dunes all around us. An unforgettable experience. After some 20 minutes gazing upon this glory of nature, during which time the drivers re-inflated their tires from machines in their respective boots / trunks, we were off to another part of the desert where some 300 camels were in pens ready to be hired for travel into the desert.
Next to our final stop of the day, a Bedouin camp site (owned and set up by the travel company that Cunard uses in the country – Orient Tours). A large complex consisting of a group of some 10 covered areas each seating some 50 people at tables with cushions on the floor (a few chairs for those of us that have difficulty getting up after sitting on the floor, were found). On the other side were cooking areas, buffet style serving area, drinks area as well as henna tattoo lady (Anne got a scroll tattoo on her hand), a few shops (one doing sand bottles with your name) and other shops, public conveniences etc. In the center was a raised platform where we experienced a fire dance, belly dancing and other such dramatic Arabian dance exhibits. We enjoyed the dinner and show under the desert skies. When the lighting in the compound was off the moon and stars in the pitch black desert sky were spectacular. A terrific day.
Roger & Anne Travels 