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- Fountain outside Dragon Mart.
After a couple of cocktails at the first bar that seems to put alcohol in their drinks in Dubai, I was too tired to write last night. But, here is a recap of day 5 of my Dubai adventure.
Before work yesterday, Gabbi and I went to a restaurant in the Bur Dubai souk called Bait al Wakeel. Her tour Dubai book recommended it because it is one of Dubai’s oldest buildings and is located along the creek. The view was beautiful and really gave a feel of old Dubai, similar to the Gold Souk we visited before. Wooden water taxis glided across the water packed with people sitting shoulder to shoulder.
Although the food was no better than mediocre, simply sitting along the creek was a nice change from being at a mall for 6 hours a day. Work was steady, and once again I saw genuine interest from many in the art of hula hooping, including two British women about my age who picked it up quickly in 6 inch heels.
After work the whole crew got burgers and then Gabbi and I went with Lenny, the sound guy, to his favorite bar. Although alcohol is illegal in Dubai, there are loopholes with bars in hotels and club compounds, and they are able to serve it. The bar was called Trader Vic’s and mimicked an island tiki bar with rum-based cocktails. And, unlike the posh bar we went to the first day on Jumeirah beach, these bartenders were generous with the alcohol. This also could have been because Lenny was a regular and everyone knew him on a first name basis.
After chatting with Lenny for a bit, I learned that he used to be a band member in the biggest rock band in the Middle East, Juliana Down. But, after signing with Sony in the U.S., who wanted the band to use backup tracks, Lenny quit the band in the spirit of keeping real rock and roll alive. I felt honored to be hanging out with someone who followed his passion of alternative music, even after growing up in such a conservative place. I later googled his band and discovered that they were written about multiple times in Rolling Stone. Maybe I should’ve gotten an autograph!
But, as we sat there talking loud over live traditional Spanish music, Lenny was answering any questions we had about the Arab culture. To my surprise, women in the bar were dressed like they were going to a club in Miami, tight dresses and skyscraper heels. He explained to us that in bars, the rules of covering your shoulders and knees don’t really apply. If you swear at anyone, or give them the finger though, you could easily go to jail. Holding a man’s hand or dancing with him in the parking lot could also result in jail time if you’re caught.
But, the most interesting and surprising fact I learned on this night out was that here in Dubai, a camel’s life is worth more than a human’s. While a human’s life is monetarily worth about 200,000 dirhams, a camel’s is worth 800,000 dirhams. Weird.
Funny how bar chats can become educational experiences.
Today, after sleeping in past breakfast I went to the China Mart with Madgy, another hula helper who has appeared on Arab’s Got Talent and teaches acrobatics in Cairo, Egypt. China Mart is a big warehouse filled with stores that sell merchandise made in China. I bought a cheesy souvenir snow globe and a case for my phone at only 5 bucks. But, the stuff made in China was anything you could think of, including fake iPods and iPads.
At work tonight I had another repeat visitor, a little girl about 5 years old who was brought to the play area by her nanny. She followed me around, constantly asking to do the routine I taught her yesterday. She then ditched the hoop and just started dancing and saying she wanted to be just like me. It feels good to be a role model and really touched me for her to say that. But, enough with all the mushy stuff, I have to get to sleep stat for my desert safari at the crack of dawn tomorrow! Stay tuned for pictures of sand, camels and the like!
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