16 May – Wildlife Sanctuary and Traditional Dubai

We decided that we will try to find the Ras Al Khor wildlife sanctuary even though the honeymoon couple we met at the Burj the night before said that they did not see any flamingos there during their helicopter ride over it.  We decided to get there by public transport – by train to Al Jafiri and then on Bus 61.  The driver of Bus 61 was a friendly Filipino so when my travelling companion spied the reed walls that hid the path to the bird hide of the sanctuary on the other side of the highway, she pointed it to him.  Like a jeepney drivers of Metro Manila, he made a stop at the side of a highway in front of a fuel station for us to jump off.  That was where the next problem began – the highway is 10 lane rated at 100 km/hr with dense traffic travelling way faster than the speed limit. 

There was no way to get across.  After waiting for 10 minutes, a car which had been at the fueling station honked at us and offered to take us across.  The driver did not look dangerous although I could tell that my travelling companion was really uncomfortable about getting into a car with a stranger out of nowhere.  Suppressing her instinct, she got in.  Then he asked how much she would pay him.  He suggested 20 AED which was an exorbitant price for the short ride, considering the ride from the airport through the traffic jam to the hotel in the souk area was only 50 AED.  But beggars cannot be choosers so she paid up as soon as she was deposited at the door of the sanctuary, glad that nothing more untoward had occurred.  She vowed not to take unnecessary risks again.

The sanctuary does not look like much initially – a corridor hidden by reeds and branches to a bird hide.  But the sight that greeted us when we enter the bird hide – hundreds of flamingos less than 50m from the viewing window itself.  These were running around waiting for their treat.  The sanctuary supplements their diets twice a day.  There was more than one species of flamingos.  There were lots of actions among all them, pecking, jostling, territorial and group actions.   It was a spectacular sight for a bird watcher.  At the bird hide was a film crew at work making a promotional video for Dubai newest ministry, the Ministry of Happiness.  Dubai aspires to be the happiest city in the world.  We spent a good few hours there observing the activities. The international film crew very kindly agreed to give us a ride to the nearest metro station when they are done so we hung around with them.  In the end, we went with their boss, Alex.  And he deposited us at Business Bay station, the station next to their office.  Thank you, again, Alex for your kindness and for your help.

We decided that we would spend the rest of the day after that exploring the traditional side of Dubai.  We took the metro to the World Trade Centre where the City Sightseeing tour for the traditional route would pass.  We decided that Concierge at the Ibis would be the best direction giver on where to find the bus and they were.  City Sightseeing’s direction about where they pick up was rather sketchy and there was no marker in situ at the pick up area.  The first bus driver sped past and did not stop even though we waved hard. The wait for the next bus was almost 30 minutes.  Oh well.  We have time.  It was only slightly past noon. 

We took the next bus to the dhow cruise centre when we went for a slow cruise along the Creek. 

It was interesting.  We were reminded of the Bhosphorus of Istanbul.  Dhows lined the side of the creek along with wooden junks filled with goods.  Here, away from container traffic and modern ports, wooden junks bear the burden of shipping goods. Fishing boats and water taxis were mostly wooden structures.  There were a few fibre glass modern yachts anchored at the marina.

Gorga, the Croatian lady who was travelling alone as well and my travelling companion sat down to chat.  She gave us a few tips about Croatia and we exchanged details.  It was fun finding another friend when travelling solo. 

We took a full bus ride around the old town and then stopped at the Dubai Museum which was housed at Fort Al Fahidi.  The museum looked understated from the outside - a simple adobe structure bearing some resemblances to the old Great Wall of China near Jiayuguan.  But once inside and underground, we found it to be extensive with good exhibits on the way of life of the Bedouins.  It appeared that in the past, Bedouin women cover only their noses and their mouths but not their eyes or chin – was it protection against the fine sands of the Sahara or was it a matter of modesty – it is a logical question.  At times those covers were jewellery pieces obscuring their identities.  In this place where the culture is such that a smile is perceived more as a come hither than simple friendliness, one wonders if that is meant to be protective.  My travelling companion found it difficult at times to know the appropriate behavior in a culture where she wants to be friendly but not misinterpreted.

We then went to the museum that used to be the house of the original ruler of the Emirates – Al Maktum house.  Relatively simple and very very square, it has a lofty area where the family spent summer in the relatively open air.  We finally learnt the functions of those tall boxy structures at the top of traditional houses … they are traditional air conditioning.  It made sense that there are no eye level windows at ground level -  both to protect against the sand and for privacy.  These tall “windows” help to ventilate the house and keep everything cooler.

We finally “hijacked” the City Sightseeing Bus as it was passing where we were walking towards the metro station.  The driver opened the door and let us in even though there was no official stop but requested that my travelling companion do Spanish to this lady trying to get a 24 hr ticket.  Again he was trying to get her to buy a 48 hr ticket rather than the 24 hr ticket.  We finally got off the bus at the Gold Souk, where we dined at the local  wrap stall and drank fresh coconut water, all for 13 AED. 

Totally exhausted by then, the adventure of Dubai concluded with a good shower to get rid of all of sweat and grime that had accumulated through the day.  There was a lot of that.  My travelling companion's clothes were soaked as if she had been caught in the rain!!