#871 Ibn Battuta Mall, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Where in the world can you travel many countries and continents in comfort in less than an afternoon? I really hate to be an advertisement, but of any mall I have ever been to in the world, this one has had the most imagination and the most beautiful design -- the Ibn Battuta Mall in Dubai in the UAE. It may not be as record breaking as the Dubai Mall under the Burj tower, but it is more pleasant and every visitor should learn something -- about the namesake Ibn Battuta.

Ibn Battuta was a Moroccan traveller who went around the world centuries before Marco Polo, his most famous European equivalent. He went across the Middle East, completed his Hajj pilgrimmage to Mecca and continued on through India and Asia to China. In order to replicate his route (focusing on the more famous parts, of course!) the mall progresses from China court at one end, which has a food hall and cinema along with an enormous Chinese junk boat, through India Court, Persia Court, Egypt Court, Tunisia Court to finally Andalusia at the other end.

Unfortunately, every time I went there I was not taking photos but focusing on shopping so none of the following photos are mine. It takes a good 15 minutes to walk from end to end as its 1.3km long, unless you get the convenient train!

China Court. Image from www.ianandwendy.com

India Court. Image from tripadvisor.com

Egypt Court. Image from timeoutdubai.com

Egypt Court from the outside. Image from flickr.com

Persia Court. Photo from madiganburke.blogspot.com. If you look closely at the Persia Court tiles you will see that they are not really tiles. Innovative workers painted these beautiful creations instead. While this may be a disappointment for traditionalists, it is smart on a commercial scale -- and still beautiful!

Persia Court. Image from www.tripadvisor.com

Tunisia Court. Image from www.uae-businessdirectory.com

Andalusia Court. Image from travelblog.org

While I am not wishing to advertise a company, the mall website can be found here.

Dubai - The Lively Oasis of The Middle East

All the people and travelers visiting Dubai should keep it in mind that the city is generally warm and hot. Even in the ‘winter’ months, which starts from December and end on March, the city is warm. But during this time, Dubai Shopping Festival takes place that happens to be a paradise for Shopaholics. Not only that, people from all around the world visit the great city just to attend this festival.  The festival first took place in 1996 and was planned by the government of Dubai. At first it was a small festival, but now it has turned out to be a shopping, ethnic extravaganza, and amusement that takes place annually. Millions of people come to attend the festival and therefore, encouraging sightseeing of Dubai. Airline companies help the people by reducing air fares to Dubai. The festival entertains all types of crowds: musics lovers, adventure or sports lovers and even families on a visit.

Skywards Dubai International Jazz Festival – festival exclusively for jazz lovers. It is arrange annually in February for 9 days. The jazz lovers are given the chance to enjoy themselves in the concert of jazz singers such as Jason Mraz, James Blunt and Morrison. The festival features shows that are shown live and performances in the streets that goes on for nine days non-stop.

Emirates Airline Festival of Literature- the festival features books that are on display and put on sale. The feature is also known by the name “first literature festival”. Visitors attending the festival can enjoy at the workshop classes related to literature that are open for everyone.

Tate of Dubai – the festival takes place annually from 8^th March to 10^th March. The festival occupies Dubai Media City’s amphitheater. The tickets to the festival are easily available on-spot. It starts from 10 a.m. and end after 12 hours, at 10 p.m. People visiting the festival can view live performances in Taste Chef Theater and also, they can learn new ways of cooking from the Taste Cookery School. In each day of the festival, people can enjoy themselves smoking the traditional Shisha placed in the traditional Arabian atmosphere at the Taste Shisha Lounge. 

Dubai Football 7s – the event takes place at the start of March. In this event, football players come together to form teams and play matches on Fridays and Saturdays. During The Sevens, public and spectators can enjoy themselves with the entertainment shows during the game. Airline companies have arranged special cheap air fares so that matches can be watched live with ease.

The Chill Out Festival and Emirates International Peace Music Festival– Even though both of these festivals have different style of music, they are enjoyed by everyone and are famous in whole Middle East. The festivals take place in March and April. In the Peace Music Festival, people can enjoy listening to Music played by young experts who do a really good job. At Center Point Theater, one can listen to orchestras. As for the Chill Out Festival, it is for the young people and teenagers as famous DJs are invited and they entertain the crowd at Palm Jumeirah.

The festivals and events in Dubai do not end here. Dubai is a world famous city and is a home to some of the world famous personalities. In Dubai, events go on throughout the year that is related to sports, fashion, music and much more. So all that is needed is to pack the bags and book a cheap ticket to Dubai which their government is offering.

#903 Gold Souq, Dubai, UAE

I never really knew what rich was until I visited the Gold Souq in Dubai. It was a sweltering mid-July day when if you're wearing glasses and you try and go from inside to outside, they immediately fog up because of the humidity. It is so sweaty that being outside for any length of time is draining. The gold souq was empty, but the gleaming windows were free of onlookers so we could gawp all we wanted! Wow -- so much yellow (the preferred variety in this part of the world as purity is more important than durability). So big! So much! It's not much more than a block or two, but it feels like the concentration of shops and jewelry makes up for its small size. I could wander and find a favorite design or simply marvel at the styles. Some are ugly and others elegant. Some can clearly only be afforded by a rich oil baron, but almost all is intended to be part of a dowry. An amazing cultural exchange!

#909 Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE

Soaring a mile over the sands of Dubai and towering over all surroundings, the "new" Burj Dubai, was renamed the Burj Khalifa after the sultan of Abu Dhabi (because he bailed poor Dubai out of it's financial troubles). It and it's smaller brother the "old" Burj Dubai, the elegant sail on the ocean's edge, are truly very elegant buildings and marvels of architecture and engineering. Whether it's having high tea at the 7-star old Burj, or enjoying the musical fountains in front of Dubai Mall at the foot of the new Burj, they are both examples of the elegant living that is Dubai.

And while you can't go to the top, you can visit a platform that is certainly high enough! With spectacular views over the metropolis of Dubai, following the Sheikh Zayed road as it disappears into the deserts towards Abu Dhabi or looking at the various canals from above, all views are impressive. What a wonder!