Awesome Buildings Around Dubai & Abu Dhabi

you know the world’s tallest building burj khalifa is in dubai, but do you know there are many more buildings in dubai with awesome titles too? world’s tallest hotel, world’s tallest twisting tower, world’s furthest leaning tower – all here in united arab emirates.

here are more incredible buildings in dubai which prove that dubai never ceases to amaze me.

 

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my sis-in-law tina is standing in front of ‘cayan twisted tower’ in dubai marina – the world’s tallest twisted tower, twisting 90 degrees. standing at 310m, 75 floors; with each floor rotating by 1.2 degree. so beautiful, so iconic! to build something strong and concrete like that in its twisted form is amazing. it’s an apartment building tapi bila lalu malam-malam nmpak few lights je on. penuh ke tak penuh lagi ni?

 

I was at safa park with my in-laws to check out stuff at the dubai flee market. the two blue buildings behind us is the JW marriott marquis dubai – the world’s tallest hotel at 355m, and 72 storey. all the suites at JW marriott marquis dubai come with sheikh mohammed’s book of poetry penned by himself.

 

me, mr. khairul with his mom and aunt in front of the awesome coin-shaped ‘aldar HQ’ building at the edge of abu dhabi. another great feats of engineering and architecture in the UAE!

 

this quirky-looking building is simply called the ‘O-14’. some call it the ‘cheese grater’ building or the ‘honeycomb’. to me it’s the polkadot building! I always see it from afar, from sheikh zayed road on our way to dubai mall but never got near enough to take a picture – until now. one of my favorite buildings in dubai!

 

this is ‘capital gate’ – popularly known as ‘the leaning tower of abu dhabi’ – the world’s furthest leaning man-made tower. at 160m and 35 stories, it is one of the tallest buildings in the city and features an 18° incline to the west (according to wikipedia). that’s me and khaleef with abah on his visit here few years back. you can see how long it has been when you see how small my eldest khaleef is. hihi. abah you should come back again soon – so much new stuff happening in dubai and abu dhabi!

 

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there are many, many more interestingly shaped buildings in dubai and abu dhabi – and the ones I features here are just top of the ice-berg. awesome! and as usual – everything is ‘the most’ ‘world’s tallest, biggest, widest, leanest, –est –est –est!’ haha.

check out and gp google burj khalifa, burj arab, sheikh zayed grand mosque, the ferrari world theme park and viceroy hotel for more awesomeness!

waiting for the world’s biggest marvel theme park to finish and open here in dubai!

Dubai Flea Market @ Safa Park

one man’s junk is another man’s treasure – that pretty much sums up ‘flea market’ for me. flea market is for people to sell unwanted items cluttering up their homes – and sell it to people looking for a good bargain of that special something that they can get for an extremely cheap price.

abaya for aed30, ceramic bowl for aed15, books for aed5-10 and pretty accessories for just aed1 – if you have a good eye for cheap things.

..and who has a good eye that I know of? my mother-in-law. she has been to the safa park flea market countless times whenever she comes visiting, and came back with beautiful frames, gorgeous antique treasure boxes, and cheap abayas and dresses.

and how many times have I been to the dubai flea market at safa park in my 5 years here? this was my FIRST time. word.

 

mr. khairul setting up camp right by all the actions at dubai flea market, safa park.

 

yeap, this was my first time ever at a dubai flea market, and I was thoroughly entertained! it was definitely NOT just about business. it was a festival! people of all walks setting up tents here and there, and some spread out their picnic mat, snacks ready and just lie down reading that aed5 book that they just bought.

they’re planning to stay till the flea market closes!

 

I caught this amusing moment : my eldest khaleef, always the reliable son helping bapak set up camp, while my youngest kazim looked on to see what he can help with. my second boy kahfi? relaxing on the picnic foldable chair, enjoying the view. hihi.

 

the boys hanging out in the tent while mak went bargain-hunting with their grandma and aunt.

 

kazim chillaxing on the picnic mat, munchin snacks

 

my mom-in-law fixed a delicious spicy fried noodle. simple gile tapi pedas so sangat menyelerakan~

 

my mom-in-law played out her bargaining cards and got a good deal on lots of tops and dresses. bravo!

 

I think the key is to always smile, asked nicely for a bargain, and be politely persistent! haha. it’s definitely worth it if it means spending as little as possible.

also, learn to read the expression and body language too – when the seller seemed hesitant about the price, you might end up paying less; however if the seller seemed firm and adamant on the original price, she/he would most likely to stick to it – so just move on, there are many other stalls! good luck!

 

happy bargain-hunters!

 

flea market. in the beautiful green safa park. among tall palm trees. crowded. bustling with buying and selling. but windy. a nice day to be rummaging through other people’s junks to find that one treasured item! haha.

 

mr. khairul’s aunt mak lang and his mom. and his sis tina on the picnic chair. tired but satisfied with today’s catch! berbondot-bondot plastik bag! kih kih. to me, our best catch of the day would be a big white bowl in the shape of a sampan that we got for just aed15, and an elegant, looks-new abaya for aed30. can’t wait for the next flea market!

 

not everyone was ready for this family photo but I kinda like it. us in shades of green, spontaneous laughter, genuine smiles, full tummies, clear boredom in one (hihi) and just a peek of me; but enough to see how incredibly grateful I am to be surrounded by my loved ones.

 

my eldest khaleef getting wacky with his aunt. alright, gate 4 y’all. come and join dubai flea market at safa park, on the first saturday of the month!

 

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dubai flea market will be held:

• on the first saturday of the month at al safa park
• on the second friday of the month at uptown mirdiff.
• on the second saturday of the month at ibn battuta.

the next dubai flea market in safa park is on the 5th of april, the usual time from 8am to 3pm. entrance is aed3 to be paid at the at gate 4.

other flea market around dubai :

• 11th april at uptown mirdiff at promenade courtyard, between starbucks and fitness first. from 2pm-7pm. no entrance fee
• 12th april at ibn battuta mall, tunisia parking rooftop with the big ‘geant’ signboard. runs from 1pm-5pm.

click this link to find out how you can participate in the flea market as a seller!

Yong in Dubai : Tourist Stops & Scenic Spots

yong, this posting is dedicated to our awesome time together in dubai. it’s also for haiqal and haqeem, to jumpstart their memory of the fun educational times here! warning : this posting will sound like a tourist guidebook. fine with that? proceed.

 

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burj khalifa. world’s tallest building. overlooking the world’s highest shooting musical water fountain. beside the world’s biggest mall. within it, the world’s biggest indoor aquarium.

aunty gim asked her nephews to just stand in front of the burj khalifa for a good few minutes – just try to soak it all in, and be fully aware that they’re at the presence of man’s extraordinary capacity – to build something so amazing like the burj khalifa.

oh well, our malaysia’s petronas twin towers are still the tallest TWIN buildings in the world!

 

haven’t taken a picture in front of the burj khalifa for SO LONG. took the chance to grab a shot.

 

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meydan grandstand and racecourse : able to accommodate 60,000 spectators in its 1 mile long grandstand. the wavy blue light is one distinct feature of the ‘meydan grandstand and racecourse’. you can even see the majestic burj khalifa in the distance; towering over others.

mr. khairul the expert at good-photo-spots stopped at some bushes, and hey – with a backdrop of meydan grandstand. *click!*

 

 

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burj al-arab, one of the most expensive hotels in the world. its unique shape is like an arab dhow; built on a man-made island. a night could cost you $10k to $15k – and that’s just the *cheap* rooms! haha. there are personal butlers, a private reception desk on every floor, and a chauffeured rolls royce for guests use. woah. you can only access the hotel with reservations, or invitations. tak bole selamba je nak masuk lobby amik gamba.

so usually tourists would go take pictures in front of the burj al arab near the wild wadi (that’s as far as anyone can go close to the hotel!) OR, at this spot that we went to – also a popular photo-taking spot – by the jumeirah beach.

 

at night, the lights on the burj al-arab changes color. once, on chinese new year, the lights even depicted a dragon! here we got this precious chance to take a picture with the full moon in the background. gorgeous!

 

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dubai historical bastakiya, my favorite place in dubai, simply because of its classic architecture of old dubai with traditional arabic courtyard and carved wooden doors. amazing that a place as quaint as this exists amidst modern skyscrapers and rapid development of dubai.

constructed in 1690s, it’s one of the oldest residential areas in dubai with houses separated by a labyrinth of narrow, winding lanes. my boys, nephews and niece had fun running around, and along the lanes – hoping not to get lost!

the most distinct feature is the architectural design of barajeels (also known also as wind towers). that’s the one on top of every emirati homes. hot wind comes in from the top, and cools off as it reaches below. natural air conditioning!

 

 

click here for a wonderful article about the dubai bastakiya in the huffington post; which also tells of the ‘legend’ of how england’s prince charles had a hand in preserving the bastakiya!

 

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hard rock café, dubai, the biggest hard rock café outside of the states. after 12 years operating in sheikh zayed road near dubai marina, it was closed in 2009, only to open again at a new, bigger venue in 2011. in fact, we celebrated khaleef’s birthday on its opening day on 18th nov (his bday was 15th nov).

click here to read about khaleef’s awesome 6th birthday makan-makan at hard rock café on its opening day.

yong just wanted to check out some stuff at the store. yong was a collector of hard rock café shot glasses from her days studying in the states. banyak collection dia! we didn’t even dine there coz it’s impossible to get a seat so fast on a weekend! takpe lah yong – it’s all just burgers and fries. dtg dubai makan nasi mandi ok!

 

 

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the global village, also my favorite place in dubai because you can see and experience the whole of the middle east in one HUGE venue – egyptian cotton or an african goat carpet, or soft nepal shawl; indian silk or rm700 hand-woven palestinian abaya – you can get it all at the global village. turkish ice-cream, indian briyani or indonesian bakso. hungarian pastry or mexican churros. iranian nuts or yemeni honey – you can taste it all here. amazing, amazing experience!

some may say that it’s always the SAME thing displayed at global village, but I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of it all – even after 5-6 years here. the colors, the taste and smells, the unique items and beauty of the cultural performances!

yong agreed – global village is indeed, a special place full of diversity!

click here to read about my trip to global village with my two younger sisters, syida and azi when they were here in 2009.

 

one of the best things to get at the global village is my favorite emirati food LUQAIMAT! that hot crispy dough balls scooped fresh from the wok; served with sweet date syrup on top. absolutely heavenly. my nephews and niece loved the taste of luqaimat too!

 

since it’s a local EMIRATI food, you’d think they’re easy to get macam goreng pisang makcik tepi jalan but nope – it’s quite rare. and for me, I know I can only get it here at the global village; and at the expensive emirati restaurant al-fanar in dubai festival city (click here for my review of al-fanar)

 

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metro dubai – yeap, I even took a ride on the metro with just yong and her kiddos nuna and adam; while mr, khairul took care of the rest of the kiddos back home. it was just us because we were heading to one of the busiest places in dubai – the naif souq – the abaya and shawl heaven.

borong! it was a very tiring (lots of walking!) but very enjoyable experience with my older sis! the kiddos? sleeping all the way on the train.

I have to mention that on the way to, and back, there were always chivalrous men standing to give up his seat for us and the kids. however, one time when we’re going out of the train, SO MANY inconsiderate people pushing their way in – except only one guy who kept shouting, “hey kids! kids! there are kids!” and he spread out his hands to give way to us. may Allah bless you for your good deed, kind stranger!

..and as always, dubai contains all the superlatives – so the dubai metro is also the world's longest fully automated metro network spanning at 75 kilometres. there you go!

fyi, to reach naif souq by metro you need to follow the RED line to UNION station, CHANGE to GREEN line, and stop at BANIYAS SQUARE station. spot the minaret of a mosque, and walk towards it. you’re soon there at naif souq.

check out my first time on the dubai metro here, written in malay.

 

 

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the atlantis on palm jumeirah, is the first hotel ever built on this world’s biggest man-made island; the palm jumeirah – shaped like, well a palm tree. 100k fireworks were used during its grand opening, lasting 15 minutes. there is definite plans to have an even grander fireworks display this coming new year’s eve, to break the world record.

this is also where our prime minister would stay on his visit here.

the kids were a little cranky here, probably thinking, “it’s JUST a hotel! why are we taking so many pictures here?” haha.

 

 

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these are priceless moment for us sisters, and for the cousins. thanks to mr. khairul for making all these trips and stops possible. our designated driver and awesome tourist guide! mwah!

Get Lost in Dubai Mirror Maze @ Creek Park

mirror maze is FUN!

you’re looking for your son, and see you see him straight in front of you. you walk towards him, but you bumped your head. it’s a mirror. you turned left, saw him again, and face another bump. a mirror again. you turned the other way and finally found a way forward. then you realised you need to walk with your hands dangling in front of you to feel for a mirror.

your eyes are deceiving you in the ‘mirror maze’ – you have to depend only on your sense of touch!

and you laugh all the way.

FUN!

 

 

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this ‘mirror maze’ is inside dubai creek park, gate 1. when you enter, you’ll see the big signage ‘children’s park’ – you are in the right place. head on to the dolphinarium building, and the mirror maze is right next door.

it’s aed 25 for adult, and aed 15 for kids. personally kids would enjoy it so much more, finding their way around the mirror maze looking for their brothers – great laughs!

 

 

before entering, we’re given plastic gloves to prevent visitors from smudging all the mirrors while they find their way out and about. furthermore, when there are smudges on the mirrors, it affects the  illusion of space in the ‘mirror image’.

there is only one size so my little kazim has to use adult-size gloves.

 

 

dubai ‘mirror maze’ has over 100 mirrors in a straightforward path, so you’ll never have to worry about getting lost.

once you pay for the entrance, you can get out take a rest, and get back in.

 

 

entrance

 

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the bright light changes color every now and then which did make us a bit dizzy! a song in arabic went blaring over the speaker.

 

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once out of the dizzying ‘mirror maze’, we got some fresh air playing football in the lovely park. 

Splash! @ Dreamland Aqua Park, Umm Al-Quwain (I Hate the Raft Ride!)

fun fact : this is my first trip to a water park. not a fan, not too keen, but excited for my boys.

yes, never been to sunway lagoon or lost world tambun (which is near abah’s house!) – I did try the triple looper roller coaster outside of sunway lagoon (yg dah tutup lepas org jatuh mati tu) and I have been inside to watch a gig with innuendo; but never went inside to the water park.

so there I was, experiencing my first water park at ‘dreamland aqua park’ at umm al-quwain together with my boys.

 

 

why I enjoyed my first experience at a water park at ‘dreamland aqua park’:

1. the boys (including the biggest boy) went nuts swimming and splashing. I enjoyed watching them enjoying themselves. hihi.
2. the weather was perfect considering that the hot summer is already here in dubai. it was quite scorching even at 4pm, but was cool and windy towards late afternoon. a really nice day to be out
3. the lifeguards are very strict (read : garang!) when it comes to safety (watch your kids! must wear safety jacket! must use float!) which I really appreciate because it means they really put safety as top priority
4. toilets are clean, water is clean, the whole place is comfy and well-maintained
5. for a weekend, it was surprisingly NOT crowded! this was really a PLUS for me because crowded pool was my pet-peeve about water parks
6. oh, khaleef slid down a death-defying 20m-water slide TWICE that will make any mom’s heart skip a beat!
7. and i now officially HATE that darn family raft ride. other than that, FUN!

 

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once in, we stored our belongings in the clean locker room, and I changed my clothes at the clean and spacious changing room.

 

this is khaleef wearing the ‘dreamland aqua park’ life jacket. life jackets for kids are available at every ride and slide. just take one, put it on, enjoy the slide and then put back when you’re done with that particular slide. safety first!

 

‘lake ‘o’ wave’ – fun with waves

 

1. LAKE ‘O’ WAVES

first stop : 'lake o waves' – basically a huge swimming pool with simulated waves! weee~ quite dangerous for small kids for fear of them bobbing towards the deeper side of the pool, moved by the wave. so my boys and I just played at the edge – where the water is shallow, but we can still feel the wave.

it was really fun – experiencing the feel of a wave in a safe, confined space.

 

 

there are huge floats and tubes available

 

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2. TWISTING DRAGONS

next, mr. khairul tried the 'twisting dragons' – sliding down 40m of twisty turning slide that looks like a worm-dragon, and then you come out through its mouth! I can see it would be super fun to do with 3 other friends, go in together at the same time, and see who comes out first and to which side!

mr. khairul slid down with a banging splash!

you’d be hurried out by the lifeguards though, before the next person falls into the pool.

 

yeap, that’s my mr. khairul splashing down the pool!

 

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3. BLACK HOLE

next : the 'black hole' – mr. khairul carried this huge yellow float up the stairs, and then went sliding down this really LONG black tube on that rubber raft. all the boys wanted to try the slide, and since mommy is water-phobic (huhu) so mr. khairul had to climb the long stairs THREE times – first with khaleef, then kahfi and finally with kazim. a great work-out at the water park, honey! hihi.

 

uuUUUuuuu weeeEEEEeeee~ view from the top of the 'black hole'. picture taken from google

 

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4. KAMIKAZE

the 'kamikaze' – true to its name, is a death-defying fast and furious ride, plunging down in a split second! when we first arrived, mr. khairul tried the orange one; the longer, slightly wavy slide which gives you a few bumps on the way down. looks really dangerous to this water-phobic!

mr. khairul slid down so fast, and once he reached the pool he was still sliding towards us, stopping just a few cm before the edge of the pool! he said the trick is to pull your legs up as you land which will stop the sliding. (watch the clip below).

one of the men I saw sliding down so far out that his friends had to go into the pool and stop his leg from banging against the edge of the pool!

anyway, right before going back, khaleef (I’m still in shock!) faced his fears and actually tried the blue one, with bapak waiting inside the pool of course! yes, my 7 yr old khaleef! batt dah dead masa tu – so very frustrated takde record of that courageous slide! i could never do what he did! oh my khaleef!

 

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5. OBSTACLE COURSE

after the heart-pumping slides (watching them pun dah dup dap dup dap!) khaleef tried the more relaxing and fun 'obstacle course' made for kids – it's simply a huge float where you can climb, go over, go under bla bla bla till you reach the end.

the pool is deep, but there are ropes connecting the obstacle course float to the edge of the pool.

khaleef was pretending to be on the show 'survivor'. go khaleef go!

 

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6. DEAD SEA

we didn’t try this one, and it seemed to be closed, but it’s worth mentioning because of the interesting fact – it’s made to look like the 'dead sea' in jordan where you can never sink! it’s a high salinity pool where you can actually float, just like when you swim in the dead sea, jordan. mr. khairul has been to the real thing, so he was very curious about how this plays out!

 

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7. AQUA PLAY

obviously, this was the boys' favorite spot – the 'aqua play' – a playground in a shallow pool. mandi sampai kecut. see, not crowded. nice!

kazim enjoyed this the most since the water is just knee-high. he can just walk around and not worried about falling down deep in the water. I can even sit on the side and just watch him wobbling in the water from afar. no worries!

 

 

one of the things the boys enjoyed the most is this huge bucket on top that gathers water and then-----

 

 

---SPLASH!!! every few minutes. kids or adults – all enjoyed standing below the splash. wonderful fun! 

 

 

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8. DREAM STREAM

yeap ‘dream stream’ is perfect alright – perfect for a nap in the water park! haha that was how SLOW it was haha. hop on a float and literally float dengan sangat lembabnya along a stream. really slow and pure relaxation, perfect for slowing down after a hectic ride and slide, or just spend some cosy time with your other half. also, if you want to get a tan. haha.

can be really boring though because after a few minutes I was already like, "bila nak abis ni" huhu.

 

 

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9. FAMILY RAFT RIDE

I absolutely HATE this one! argghhhh super scary ride for this water-phobic mom!!!

walk up the stairs. go left for scary-fun 'family raft ride', and go right to try the only-for-swimmers 'twister' ride.

 

 

basically there’s this huge raft which can fit about 5 people at any one time. you hold on to the ropes at the sides and then it goes super-scary-fast along this spacious tube.

HOLD ON TIGHT!!!! because it's super bumpy and i was so afraid that i might get thrown off the raft!!! I kept telling mr. khairul to hold on tight to kazim as I was so afraid he could get thrown off as well! I was closing my eyes, I was screaming even louder than my kids, and really was praying for my life, I kid you not! dead-scared!

 

ready to SCREAM! picture from google

 

but guess what - khaleef kahfi kazim went on THREE times with bapak. mak tunggu kat bawah after the 2nd ride. haha. chicken! khaleef enjoyed it so much that at one point during of the rides he went, he purposely let go of the rope and let himself be bumped left and ride! crazy!

to me it was like an evil rollercoaster without harness, on water! major suicide!

haha. my personal phobia aside, it really is a thrilling fun for the whole family to enjoy together at the same time (rather, SCREAMING at the same time) but it really is not for me – me who has fear of rollercoaster, fear of speed, fear of water!

 

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10. TWISTER

the last thing that we tried (or rather, mr. khairul tried and we watched) was the 'twister' – there was already a warning up on a board, ‘strictly for swimmers’. so mr. khairul je went and try. seriously this ride is like getting flushed down the toilet haha.

go up the stairs, slide down----

----and weeeeeEEeeee khairul went round this 'bowl' twice before came splashing down---

 

go down the slide, and around inside this bowl before coming splashing down the deep pool underneath. picture from google.

 

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the friendly lifeguards in yellow having a chat with my boys. like I mentioned earlier, the lifeguards here are extremely strict on safety, always on the alert and ready to blow their whistle at the slightest suspicion of danger. a really commendable point at a water park.

they’re no-fuss when it comes to safety and they’re very blunt at telling someone off when they see something done wrong (no floats or kids left unattended, or kids stand too close to a deep pool) which I really understand as there are no tolerance when it comes to safety in the water. good job!

but at the same time these lifeguards are very friendly with the visitors and especially kids.

 

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we had fun! (or rather, the boys and mr. khairul had super-fun while mak had enough *fun* on the family raft ride to ever ride on something like that ever again! haha)

staff and lifeguards are friendly with strict safety precautions, there are locker for our valuables, toilets and changing rooms are very comfy and clean. also, on the day we went the water park was not crowded at all – overall a memorable time, especially for the boys. we'll come again!

or wild wadi, yas island water park or atlantis next?

‘dreamland aqua park’ is in umm al-quwain and can be reached following the ras al-khaimah highway. please refer to mr. google for further directions. hihi.

visit the dreamland aqua park official site for entrance fee, and more information.