Star Struck

One minute I was admiring the topmost floors of our hotel that seemed to disappear into the afternoon skies...and the next minute I hit the floor hard ... cheek first ... "Welcome to Dubai," said a sarcastic voice in my head as I pretended that it was no big deal and collected pieces of luggage from the floor in front of my new manager. The hotel was gorgeous inside too, but things were swimming around and my colleagues' voices came from somewhere far away as I tried to clear my head after my latest fall.

It wasn't my fault. After getting out of the massive airport, post a 4 hour marathon in-flight movie session, you somehow feel like you are part of some glitzy hollywood set. Buildings seem to swim upwards out of no where. They turn at angles you never thought they could...they lean towards the ground...the make waves in the air....or simply disappear into the sky. If that wasn't enough, the glass exteriors reflect sun's rays from every possible direction right into your eyes, till you start getting weird bright flashes in your head.

After the shock and awe ride from the hotel, how on earth was I supposed to see that tiny little step that came out of no where and tripped me and made me see a whole new set of stars...

So with an aching cheek, a purple shoulder and a painfully swollen hand began my trip in Dubai. Apart from the glitz and the sheikhs...it almost felt like home...probably pre-partition home...considering the large Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi diaspora.

With one weekend in hand to check out Dubai, we decided to make the most of it. So our first Friday was spent shopping for 7 hours straight at the famous Dubai mall (whoever said Dubai was a shopper's paradise was solely talking about the variety...the prices are crazy)...post which we ended up in a colleague's friend's house and had the most amazing time ever! Since IIFT I hadn't gotten together with interesting people and just talked away about almost everything under the sun right through the night! It was brilliant!

The next day we decided to go for the much heard of desert safari. So off we went "Dune Bashing" in Land Cruisers, followed by bike rides and camel rides in the desert...and then the whole desert camp feel...complete with Lebanese food, sheesha, falconry and a belly dancer!

Driving down the roads at night is even more amazing, as the city cools down...and the buildings light up...the exotic Burj Al-Arab changes shades ever so often...this city indeed never sleeps...

My best moment there however took place when I was coming back on the last day from my final shopping trip to one of the malls. I got a Pakistani driver, gave him the wrong address and then shouted at him for making me get lost. But he was the best! He patiently called his friend, found out what I was talking about in punjabi, patiently explained how I had got it all wrong...and then told me all about his family that had spread across the globe. He was from Sialkot, from where my grand mum has come too...and so we discussed how the partition had been the worst idea ever...and how the leadership was at fault...

I feel an instant connection with Pakistanis...whether I meet them in Buffalo or Dubai..maybe because one set of my grandparents came from there...Don't know...but would love to go there sometime...