The Middle East: Exploring Dubai
April 23, 2023
We flew from Delhi (where is was 102 degrees) on Saturday the 15th to relatively hospitable Dubai where it was a refreshing 75 degrees. The next day we were on a walking tour of Old Dubai.
We first marched through the Bastakiya area that features the “Creek” waterfront that allowed Dubai to become a center for trade and commerce. After visiting several museums in the area, including a perfume museum, we headed out to a textile Souq. The Souq had people from all walks of life there, all looking for a deal.
After the Souq we headed out to Al Fahidi fort and did a walk through there.
Dubai is an emirate and constitutional monarchy. It is run by the Al Maktoum family and has been since 1883. The Prime Minister and ruler of Dubai is Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. He is the head of government and an emir (head of state). All laws, rules, decrees and court rulings are in his name.
The city very modern and very clean. Our guide was proud to point out that there were no citizen protests. How that should be interpreted is an interesting question.
Joe