In the midst of all this, I sadly let more than a few balls drop today. I accidentally missed the recitation I was supposed to led, I didn't get research done for a group project, and I squeaked in some readings for a class somehow between other classes.
I guess that's what a weekend in Dubai will do.
Overall, I'm not delighted with my overall Dubai experience, but that is mostly my fault. I like to have plans and back-up plans and a segment of everyday for everything. So when this weekend we went in with school work piling up, there wasn't much time for planning.
It also taught me the value of a good guidebook. Ours were 3 to 4 years old, so missing such monumental elements at the Burj Khalifa. Also, neither had deep background on any of the sites (or sights) we went to; my Rick Steves guides often have self-guided tours.
Now, Dubai in general is much larger than I thought. It stretches up and down the coast, and much of the glitzy stuff was along these many sea lines. Because the Metro was slightly inland, we stayed by the malls and the skyscrapes when we took it. Our hotel was in a very good location that we could've taken greater advantage of, if we weren't so dead tired at night. Budgeting time for a nap (especially when we didn't have anything to do anyways) probably would've been more effective, so the carnival happening two streets away would've been more attractive at 9pm.
Another thing to mention is our path; we were often bouncing between the far ends of Dubai without good regard for a daily plan. I think we missed out on some other sites along the Creek because we were walking so much that we just wanted to relax at a place (like we did at the Bastakiya district, in the picture).In a bit of a "duh" statement, Dubai was really nice because it was so much bigger than Doha. There were a good variety of people in all the places we went... the most diverse place in the world, so brochures claim. Around the souks at night, we saw a lot of Indians, which just made me more excited for my spring break India trip. Around "The Walk at Jumeira Beach Resort", there were a large variety of khadeeji people (from the other Gulf states), Europeans, and Asians.
Looking back on it, there were quite a few really good experiences nestled among the sunburn and blisters (on the feet, not the burn, thankfully). The Bastakiya district, the fountain at the base of the Burj Khalifa, the Heritage Village at the Walk, bargaining for my (not very comfortable) shoes at the souk, all of these were more pleasant if plucked out of their original context.
It was travel, which is enriching and enlightening at the best of times, and tiring and harassing at the worst of times, but in the end, it is another experience through which my lens is tinted. Jessica, as well, has a few experiences that she really treasured and a few that missed the mark a bit.
Lastly, did I mention they have 1 dirham ice cream cones at McDonald's?
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