This year’s Christmas will be quite unlike
any other we’ve had especially since it’s the first Christmas spent outside
Malaysia.
Today marks our third day in the UAE, and
after the exertions of the past two days Ginny and Sern decided to give us a
day off to rest and recuperate. Today will be spent lounging around and ambling
along around the Dubai Marina area.
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| this is Nuran |
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| our home for the past few days |
Knackered by the adventure we had yesterday
at Bur Dubai and Deira we collectively slept in and awoke close to 9:00am.
After a quick shower we headed out of our apartment complex and walked north
east along Dubai Marina Walkway, a seven kilometre walkway circling around the
Marina.
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| we began our morning walk |
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| a cruise boat moored |
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| built in the traditional style of the Abra |
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| a glimpse of Nuran |
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| a view of the JBR in the distance |
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| we didn't realise there was a Carrefour nearby |
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| the Marina is situated behind the JBR |
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| we'll be heading there soon |
A short walk away is the Dubai Marina Mall,
and on its terraces are a few eateries. Ginny and Sern decided that we would
have brunch at
Le Pain Quotidien, a comfy
café overlooking the Marina.
After a hearty and organic breakfast we
resumed our walk along the Marina Walkway in the opposite direction due south west
until we got to the bridge along Al Gharbi Street. We walked along the bridge
due North West right up to the end of the street, which took us to a cluster of
skyscrapers in an area known as Jumeirah Beach Residence, or JBR for short as
it is fondly known among the local community.
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| along Al Gharbi Street |
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| which is right beside Nuran, turns out |
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| view of the Marina from the bridge |
JBR is a 1.7 kilometre long, 2 square
kilometre area of waterfront community located against the Persian Gulf here at
the Marina and is a residential development that contains forty towers.
Cat and I marveled at the magnificence and splendor
of the entire area, which housed among other things Hilton Dubai Jumeirah
Resort, Sheraton Jumeirah Beach Resort, The Ritz-Carlton and the Le Royal
Meridien Beach Resort, not to mention the world-renowned JBR Beach. This was
indeed Dubai’s ‘Golden Mile’.
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| straining our necks |
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| to appreciate the view |
It was here that we found a store called I
Love Dubai selling souvenirs and trinkets from the UAE, which leads us to a
peculiar story that we just had to re-tell. The day before at
Ibn Battuta Mall as we entered the premises a
young Emirati man walked by carrying a scent that was distinctively Middle
Eastern which captivated my senses. However, since we were strangers it would
hardly seem appropriate for me to walk up to the man and ask him what scent he
was wearing, right?
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| we love Dubai too |
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| we couldn't believe what was in store (pun intended) |
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| reminded us of the Souks we visited yesterday |
Well, as things would have it entering the
I Love Dubai store as we were browsing through the items on display we found a
section where local perfume were sold. God was smiling upon us, since after a
few sniffs we chanced upon a perfume called Al Qasr Almalki. Bingo! We found
our Habibi scent. Masha ‘Allah, as the Emiratis
would say.
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| I eventually added 3 bottles, but that's a whole other story |
We
counted our blessings that we were able to find this perfume since it was out
of stock in online websites like uae.souq.com.
We then headed south west along The Walk, a
leisurely promenade along the waterfront where we saw a lot of stylish
boutiques and al fresco dining. Barely five hundred metres along The Walk we
were astonished to find a café that was a sight for sore eyes… Papparoti!
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| would you believe it? |
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| feels like home |
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| Sern's weapon of choice |
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| with a middle eastern setting? |
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| teh tarik! |
Despite having had our breakfast a half an
hour ago we just had to drop by and sample their teh tarik, lol.
We resumed our walk to the end of the
promenade were a small fair was taking place. We gravitated to a stall selling
stuffed toys and Brendan fooled around with a life sized tiger while Sern
dutifully obliged by taking a few shots (me too).
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| giant candy canes |
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| it felt very Christmassy |
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| hello Bethany |
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| Brendan getting 'mauled' |
We then turned north west towards the
beach, and then headed north east along the famed
JBR Beach, a fascinating stretch of sand
facing the Persian Gulf that deserved its own separate post.
After a good hour at JBR Beach we headed
back towards the Marina, south east along Al Gharbi Street and across the
bridge. In no time we were back at Nuran to
rest and relax.
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| heading back to Al Gharbi Street |
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| crossing the Marina |
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| Sern doing what he does best |
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| let's hop on the yacht |
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| hello Nuran |
Tomorrow will a very eventful, exhilarating
and heady day… so stay tuned!
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