Today was our last day in Dubai, so we wanted to make the most of it. Erin got up early, and used the internet to do some work, taking advantage of a connection with actual bandwith. She then headed down the gym and worked out. She knew this would probably be her last time to get some exercise in an actual gym for months, so she really wanted to make the most of it. When she returned to the hotel room, James had just woken up. We discussed the plan for the day and began packing up our bags again because we had to check out of the hotel by noon.
We packed everything up, and headed out in pursuit of the Bur Juman shopping mall. We did our best to follow the map, but there was a little bit of confusion - and some detours - before we finally found it. The mall was incredibly large. In fact, it was made up of three separate malls that had all been combined into a complex of over 130 stores. We walked through each floor, stopping in only a few to browse. One of the stores sold abayas - large, black cloaks worn by females over other clothing - in Iran, they are called chadors. Despite the uniformity in base color - black, some of them are very ornate, and carry many different price ranges. The workers at one store encouraged us to come in to browse (they were not very busy) and even convinced Erin to try one on. It was, in a word, hot - even though the mall was air-conditioned mall - and Erin wondered how many of the women tolerated the desert heat in the outfits outside.
 |
| Erin demonstrates the proper wearing of the abaya. |
After the mall, we stopped at a very large Spinney's grocery store, where we purchased food for lunch – healthy salads and hummus. (We decided to get lots of fresh vegetables before going to India because we knew we that in India, we wouldn't be able to eat much that wasn't cooked without getting sick). We also stocked up on some last minute necessities for India: hand sanitizer, antibacterial wipes, and toilet wipes.
 |
| The Spinneys Store - immediately before the brief "rainstorm" we saw in Dubai. |
 |
| Erin's choice of India supplies. |
We stopped back in our hotel's lobby for some last-minute internet work while we ate our lunch, and then took the hotel's reserved taxi to the airport. On the way, we saw the only rain we had seen in either Egypt or Dubai - a couple of drops, followed by more sun. We had given ourselves about 3 hours before our international flight, but while that sometimes seems like too little time, in this case - well, it ended up being plenty.
We went in search of Air India's ticket counter, but here in Dubai, like in Egypt, we were required to go through security before reaching the ticket desk. Once through, we met a young Indian man traveling home from Dubai who explained that the flight had been delayed - from 6:30 pm until 11:30 pm! After waiting in a very long line, we reached a somewhat sympathetic clerk who confirmed the delay, and issued us our tickets.
So, 8 hours to kill in the Dubai airport... We wandered around, certainly taking our time. There is a lot of duty-free shopping in the Dubai airport, unsurprising given the tenor of the city when it comes to the all-important shopping. We had budgeted for the weekend with both the city tour and desert safari in mind when taking out money, and with the safari cancelled, we still had some money to spend. We made one circuit through each of the stores, browsing the normal duty-free staples of candy, cigarettes and alcohol, in addition to jewlery, perfume, cell phone and electronics, sporting goods, and even tourist garb. Erin could've bought an abaya there in the airport, but decided against it. There was also a raffle in progress for a Mercedes Maybach that was valued (at least according to the organizers) at $1.6 million. We opted against entering the contest, but were succesful in spending all of our Dubai (UAE) Dirhams on soda and candy.
Another note - while we've seen variations in airport luxury, Duai is certainly competitive with anything we've seen. Again, we were unsurprised, but it was very pleasant to walk through - and given the time we had to kill there, we were very happy with the amenities. There was even free, albeit sporadic, internet, so Erin could catch up on some of her work.
 |
| The interior of the Dubai airport. |
 |
| The Mercedes Maybach we admired, but did not attempt to win. |
 |
| One of the Dubai waiting lounges - notice the fully-reclined seats, a first in any airport weve seen. |
 |
| The lion's share of our duty-free spending spree. |
We were told the flight would board an hour before its scheduled departure, so we walked over to the gate around 10:00 in anticipation of our 10:30 boarding. James spoke to the agent at the gate, who told him the flight was further delayed - now until 1:30 am. James returned to Erin to let her know the update, but when they returned to the gate around 10:30 to confirm, there was no gate agent - just a group of passengers with little idea as to what was going on. We then went to the information desk, who said that the flight was not delayed - and returned to the gate, where there was (a) no plane, (b) no agent, and (c) certainly no boarding.
There was no update on the gate or the airport monitors, but rumors started to percolate through the group of passengers. Earlier in the evening, we were able to use our Air India tickets as vouchers to recieve a McChicken and a small drink from McDonald's as our "delay dinner." The first new rumor stated that we could get a second meal due to the second delay. James promptly ran to McDonald's to wait in the (now) long line for our food. Another rumor then circulated, that the gate had moved, the flight was further delayed, and this gate was on the very opposite side of the airport. Thus started a migration of passengers through the Dubai airport in search of any Air India personnel or further information.
The new gate was a mob scene - or near to it - when we arrived, with people pressed close to the ticket desk trying to determine exactly what was happenng, threatening action, or begging for upgrades. Long story short, we boarded the flight around 2:00 am, and were airborne by 2:30. The helpful flight attendents then served us our dinner, at 3:00 am, and we tried to get some sleep before tackling New Dehli - a day later than expected.
 |
| Despite the long delay, Erin is still happy to be finally on the plane. |
 |
| Proof that our dinner was served around 3 am! |
