Dubai | On My Canvas

Train and Tram-Hopping to the Marina Beach Dubai, a Water Taxi, and Operation Falafel

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When I Took The Tram to the Marina Beach Dubai, Walked the Dubai Marina Walk, Indulged in a Water Taxi and Falafel, Strolled in the Air Above the BlueWaters Island, and Finished the Day By Taking The Wrong Metro

The morning had started slowly. I had been sleeping on the couch at a friend’s home in South Dubai. They had been accommodating another family who had taken shelter in their home because they were too scared to stay in their own high-floor apartment in a downtown skyscraper. I woke up groggy, not having slept so well. While having tea at nine am, we heard loud interceptions.

The interceptions and the bangs had been dying down, though. My friends, Haninder and Aina, both agreed that it would be okay to go explore a bit of Dubai.

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UAE Visa on Arrival For Indians: Eligibility, Requirements, and Immigration

As I have a US visa, I didn’t take a visa for UAE. I decided to visit UAE on a whim. In early February, I was looking for flights to Turkey. As days passed and flights got expensive while I decided on the date, I do what travelers do. I put in my destination in SkyScanner, a website I have been using for years. I also put in my source destination and looked for flights around the world for the entire month.

Dubai had been on my mind since I had traveled to Chile in 2016 and had an all-night layover on the Dubai airport. I knew it is a major airport and connecting hub. There were many flights from Calcutta to Dubai and from Dubai to Istanbul. The combined fair of the two flights would be slightly more than the single flight from Calcutta to Istanbul. The prices looked great, and so a plan formed in my head.

I searched for visas to Dubai for Indians. I had a hunch that I could fly to the UAE on a valid US visa. My search confirmed my intuition. For Turkey, I could get an e-visa, given my US travel visa (a travel friend and a dear reader had confirmed).

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A Day in The Dusty Emirate of Sharjah, The UAE: Exploring on Foot, Seeing Some of The Best Places to Visit in Sharjah

Sharjah is another emirate in the UAE. While flights have been rescheduled, as I mentioned in this subtly titled piece, I had more time on my hands. Of course, I wanted to see another one of the seven Emirates of the UAE, after visiting Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

Several ways were on my mind. Either I could go to Sharjah by bus for a day trip or stay overnight. I had booked one night in a hotel in Sharjah, thinking that I shouldn’t spend all my days in Dubai. That was a fully refundable booking as I was unsure of my plans. Then, while walking around the Old Dubai creek, I saw a board of the Sharjah tourism map, and next to it were mentioned ferries or water taxis to Sharjah.

That sounded too good! The Dubai Creek was fringed with boat stations and marine stations. These marine stations had the water taxi and ferry schedules. The particular boat station Al Gouibiba, which was near the Bur Dubai Marine station, had Sharjah on display. The first time I asked the counter, I only enquired about ferry times, not duration or price. Weekdays had a ferry starting from morning, 7:30 or so, and on weekends, the ferries only ran in the evening. I thought to go on the four pm ferry and return by the eight pm ferry. Or if I was going to stay in Sharjah, then take a one-way ferry.

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This is How My Solo Trip Began

So this is how the nightmare began. I shouldn’t say that, though. Many people must have had it much worse.

I was in Dubai at my friend Haninder’s house, working on my newsletter, when I read a message from him. He had gone out.

“Heard the interceptions? Loud blasts?”

What blasts?

“Not really? You did?” As if that wasn’t obvious.

I checked the news.

Dubai airspace shut down. Flights canceled. Iranian missiles and drones hitting UAE. UAE intercepting the Iranian air attacks. Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Jordan bombed as well.

NO. NO NO.