Little things that amuse me about Dubai

Are the Brits invading Dubai, or did they leave an imprint on the city before the emirate was independent, or is the entire world like this, except America? What am I talking about? The little things in Dubai that appear quite British. Like red phone booths along SZR. Or white and blue street signs that indicate traffic direction on islands or roundabouts. Or signs indicating camera-monitored traffic zones. And in some little way, this place reminds me that I'm not in Britain, but indeed in the Middle East, like the white-and-black curbs similar to Cairo.

At least in this part of Dubai - Jumeirah - it's immaculate. Makes Cairo look like an old, worn shoe. Perhaps it is, when Cairo is 5,000 years old, and Dubai is 5,000 minutes new. Taxis are clean and all drivers wear uniforms. Chicago should be ashamed. Trash is rarely spotted on the streets, at least not on the main drags. And the villas... more like compounds... some are massive. Some are massively ornate and some are massively gaudy. Perhaps taste is more a matter of volume.

This September 11, I spent the morning at Jumeirah Mosque. It was very beautiful, but although it's reputation as one of the largest mosques in Dubai, I was surprised at its relatively small size (hold about 1,200 worshipers). Perhaps the image in my mind was that of Muhammed Ali Mosque at the Citadel in Cairo, which by any accounts could quite be the one of the largest outside Mecca. At any rate, it had a comfortable intimacy to it. Certainly not old, only built about 30 years ago, which I suppose in Dubai Time that might be ancient.

I chuckled to myself as I took a taxi from the hotel to the mosque, how was I going to find a taxi to get back? Ah well, I figured I'd wing it. I've come to find that Dubai isn't so scary, and if faced with being on my own, I had to make do. Across the street at the Marina Beach Club the valet tried to tell me that a parked car with a driver waiting nearby was a taxi. That's all grand and very well may be, but as I walked over, saw he had no meter, no signage, and I wasn't in the mood for haggling the price of a drive back to the hotel. Just give me a metered taxi. I ventured back to the mosque, and within minutes a taxi passed through the parking lot that I waved down. Problem solved. :)

This evening is the desert safari. Can't decide if I want to rush a half hour into "downtown" or Bur Dubai to visit the old Bastakiya district and then a half hour or more back here... how long does that give me, about 2 hours in the area? Would I be able to find a taxi again? Am I trying to squeeze too much in within a matter of moments this afternoon? Eh, it's my own damn fault. If I had gotten up earlier, I could have booked my safari before I left this morning, then gone from the mosque to Bur Dubai and had plenty of time. But an Australian couple decided to hem-haw their way through the Arabian Adventures office and I didn't have time to waste waiting for them. Hence my silly return back to the hotel just to book the safari. I could do it Saturday, but I also want to find time to ski. It's almost 1pm, by the time I change some more bills, get to Bastakiya, mosey around, shop, and attempt to find a cab and get back here in time, I'll only have about an hour up there, all for the expense of nearly 100dhs round-trip. And I just plunked down 320dhs for the safari, and I'm not about to miss that. Dang, I really do need one or two more days here.

Now I look out my window, and the pool seems to be calling me.

RESIST! RESIST! GO HISTORICAL-ING!!

I know, I know... but I can't risk it... Off to grab my bathing suit. Maybe I can sneak in another ride at the water park.