on cushions under the central Bedouin-
style tent and enjoy coffee and traditional
snacks, such as loqmat (fried flour balls
with rose water and honey) for just Dh3.
Most rooms have audiovisual displays
and recreate traditional aspects of daily
life, complete with dioramas. They in-
clude the majlis (meeting room), kitchen,
marriage room (with a singularly gloomy-
looking model bride and groom), tradi-
tional larder or ‘store’ (complete with sound
effects), and a cattle pen. There is also an
exhibition of rare photographs taken in
Dubai between 1948 and 1953.
Fal-ahMadiya school MuSeuM
Map p206 (al-ahmadiya St, north of Spice Souq;
h8am-7.30pm Sat-Thu, 2.30-7.30pm Fri; c) Du-
bai’s first school was founded by the pearl
merchant Sheikh Ahmed bin Dalmouk
and welcomed its first students, all boys,
in 1912. You can see the original classroom
where they squeezed behind wooden desks
to learn the Holy Quran, grammar, Arabic
calligraphy, mathematics, literature and as-
tronomy, plus a recreation of an Al Muttawa
home-schooling session. Exhibits are pretty
basic, although teachers, in particular, may
be interested in the more-informative vid-
eos about the development of education
in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The
building is lovely: note the exquisite detail,
especially the intricate carving within the
courtyard arches, the heavy carved doors
and the decorative gypsum panels outside
the entrance. It remained in use as a school
until the student body outgrew the premis-
es in 1963.
dhoW WharfaGe harbour
Map p208 (along baniyas rd) Dhows are long
flat wooden vessels used in the Indian
Ocean and Arabian Sea, and they’ve docked
at the Creek since the 1830s when the Mak-
toums established a free-trade port, lur-
ing merchants away from Persia. Today’s
dhows trade with Iran, Iraq, Pakistan,
Oman, India, Yemen, Somalia and Sudan,
and you’ll see them precariously loaded
with everything from air-conditioners to
chewing gum to car tyres, almost all of it
re-exported after arriving by air or contain-
er ship from countries like China, South
Korea and Singapore. Try to chat to the sail-
ors if you can – if you find one who speaks
English, you may learn that it takes a day to
get to Iran by sea and seven days to Somalia,
or that dhow captains earn as little as
Dh400 a month. If your sailor friend is in a
chatty mood, he may even regale you with
real-life pirate stories. The gangs of thieves
that stalk the waters off Yemen and Somalia
sometimes make life very tough for Dubai’s
hard-working dhow sailors.fish MarKeT MarkeT
Map p206 (al-khaleej rd) Shrimp (prawns)
the size of bananas, metre-long kingfish
and mountains of blue crabs are among
the treasures of the sea being hawked at
Dubai’s largest and busiest fish market,
which is near the Al-Shindagha Tunnel. The
smell can be a bit overpowering but you’ll
get used to it after a while and it’s great to
watch, not just the wiggling wares, but the
wild haggling between the blue-suited ven-
dors and their customers. Come either early
in the morning or in the evening, and wear
sneakers or other waterproof shoes. If you’re
buying, ask to have the fish cleaned. The
adjacent fruit and vegetable market isn’t
nearly as exciting but great for stocking up
on anything fresh from pears to papayas,
all neatly stacked and bargain-priced. Date
lovers have a whole row of stands to peruse.
Remember dates are packed full of miner-
als and vitamins and can contribute to that
‘five a day’ optimum daily intake.deira coVered souq Souq
Map p206 (btwn al-Sabkha rd, 107 St & naif rd)
Despite the name, Deira Covered Souq is
only partly covered and really more a war-
ren of small shops on narrow lanes spread
across a few square blocks. Even if you’re
not keen on cheap textiles, knock-off Dior
scarves, kandouras (casual shirt-dresses
worn by men and women), large boxes of
washing powder and cheap trainers, you’re
sure to be wowed by the high-energy street
scene.neW naif MarKeT Souq
Map p206 (btwn naif South St, 9a St & Deira St)
The historic Naif Souq succumbed to a
major blaze in 2008 and was replaced by
this new-look version in the summer of
2010, when the 200-plus traders returned
to the air-conditioned comfort of their
new premises. Come here for Indian tex-
tiles, inexpensive fashion, souvenirs, ac-
cessories, shoes and perfumes. There are
also restaurants, free wi-fi and parking.
Although the traders provide a reassuring
atmosphere of banter and barter, thed
eiraSi
G
h
TS