Au Revoir and Not Goodbye, Dubai - Shivani Mohan / Khaleej Times 12 February 2010

The French may have lost it on many counts recently but have got it so right when it comes to saying goodbyes. They never call it the end. Each parting is a beginning in itself. Au revoir literally means ‘until we meet again.’ My recent trip to Dubai had me brimming with the same sentiment. I came to Dubai looking for a crisis. The last time I was here two years ago, the global financial crisis had not even set in. This time I anticipated stark reverberations of this phenomenon. There were no visible signs at first. The malls were bustling as the DSF was on. Stores were packed as a lot of discounts were being offered. The city was as vibrant as ever-children busy ice skating, skiing, candy shopping in the malls, restaurants alive with the crackle of spices and tinkle of wine glasses, people all welcoming and warm. Scratch the surface and the stresses of retaining jobs and meeting both ends meet were more palpable.   When I spoke to people across different strata of society, things were not all that hunky dory. There is a visible guardedness about spending this time that I did not notice last time. It is almost as if they have discovered a prudence that was alien to Dubai earlier. People are moving into more sensible-sized houses, buying smaller cars. And it may be a good thing after all. The current financial crisis has forced people out of that extravagant excess characteristic of Dubai and get a more realistic approach to life and livelihood. The Burj Khalifa however stood tall and proud like a citadel of hope. It commanded attention from every possible corner of the city’s landscape. No doubt, I waited anxiously to get to the top. But Dubai is not all about magnificent malls and skyscrapers. It is a city that offers a lot of hope. It showcases such a wonderful, tolerant face of Islam. Cultures blend and coexist in an unassuming way. Here I was, a lone female traveller in a city new to me. I could wear anything from a skirt to a saree depending on the occasion and mood and this freedom made me appreciate the mysterious grace and fluidity of the burqa. In Dubai, not even for a moment did I miss India.  I heard many other people from different nationalities say the same thing about their countries. Now how beautiful is that! I went to the top of Burj Khalifa with a noted American journalist who was visiting the city and whose work I have admired for a long time. There was a memento picture being taken of all visitors that was later framed attractively and given to us at a price that was high end, but I bought both of them nevertheless as keepsakes.  Global village was my next stop, a feast of exotica from various countries of the world. I picked up an eclectic mix of curios from Africa to Indonesia at this colourful fete which is an annual event on the outskirts of Dubai. But on my way back I realised one bag was missing from my booty of buys. And it was the one with the Khalifa pictures and other knick knacks. I told the taxi driver, Bashir— a Pathan from Pakistan—that I was in a fix. My next meeting was scheduled at 6 pm in the centre of Dubai and it was already 5.40 pm. I had to somehow go back looking for my bag. “Don’t worry. You will find your bag. No one loses anything in Dubai. People even return lost credit cards,” he said in Urdu judging from my appearance that I must be Indian. I too slipped to my Hindi-Urdu dialect, feeling comfortable discussing the problem I was in. Can you imagine how complicated things would have been if I had to explain all of that to him in Arabic, or Marathi as some of our Maharashtrian think tanks in Mumbai would have us do? I told him I couldn’t postpone my appointment as it had already been postponed many times. Bashir said, “You have your meeting. And then I’ll take you back to global village. You look for your packet and then I’ll get you back to your hotel.” I called a friend who has been living in Dubai for some time and checked with her. “It’s getting dark. I don’t know whether I should go back into a fair on the outskirts of the city at this time.” She said that women could take a taxi at any time of the day or night in Dubai and be completely safe. Now that is something I still cannot do with full confidence even in Delhi. I went back to global village and everyone guided me to the police lost and found section. The person on duty took down the details of my bag, my telephone number and the date till which I was in Dubai. He reassured me that there was no chance I would not get my bag. I was still a little sceptical as, if you happen to lose a small bag at a fair in India, you pretty much bid adieu to it. Sure enough, two days later I got a call from the policeman at global village saying that my bag had been found and I could go there and collect it. There is a lot that truly cosmopolitan cities in the world do to nurture the will in tourists and visitors to keep coming back. Often it is by creating an atmosphere conducive to free intermingling of ideas, ethos and cultures from different parts of the world. Sometimes it is by building the tallest skyscrapers and magnificent structures. And sometimes it is simply by ensuring that if a lone female traveller happens to foolishly lose her Burj Khalifa pictures at a burgeoning fair in the city, there are systems in place that help her get around looking for them and the confidence that she will get them back without any doubt! Dubai is a city one wants to believe in. I want to come back to see its original buoyant spirit back. It will bounce back, for it has generated tremendous goodwill amongst expatriates from all over the world. So it is definitely not goodbye Dubai, literally and figuratively. Rather, au revoir Dubai, until we meet again. Shivani Mohan is an India-based writer. For comments, write to opinion@khaleejtimes.com