After a 5 day hiatus from the online world except to check my emails at the free Internet Kiosks provided by Etisalat at the Dubai World Trade Center, I thought its time to write again.

GITEX is the 5 day exhibition that is held in Dubai showcasing the best technologies in the world making it accessible to the region. The exhibition itself is well organized and had close to a 1000 or so companies. Consumer, Telecoms and IT are the divisions of this exhibition and draws in people from all over the region and perhaps even all over the world. Due to the sheer size a trip to the exhibition can becoming a tiring and harrowing experience; these are only compounded by Dubai’s traffic and METRO construction situations. The exhibition hall itself does not have too many places for visitors to sit down and rest their feet so make sure you stop by at the cafes or even chat with the exhibitors at their stalls for a breather.

I have been to Dubai a lot of times earlier however I never took time of to explore it Independent of the guidance of my friends, which are usually limited to their homes and parties in Fujairah.

I will be writing about a few places – needless to say – ‘I woz dere’  or rather been there done that…

The Irish Village

This is a quaint pub near the Emirates Aviation College and off the Tennis Club – if I’m not wrong. The crowd was energetic and there was plenty of live music and good company. There is a souvenir shop attached to the pub and it offers both indoor and outdoor dining.

Trader Vic’s

Located deep in the innards of Madinat Jumerirah, hidden in the basement, without even a mention in the restaurant’s guide, I was lucky enough to find this famed night outing place that I had heard a lot about. Seems they have one at the Crowne Plaza too.

This Polynesian style bar with drinks served in custom made ceramic coconut shells and the like is interesting. They had a great Latino band playing the night I was there and the crowd was in a mood to jive. – Lively

Boston Bar

 

Styled based on the famous Sitcom Cheer’s Bar, this bar has a square counter running around the bar and like 10 different screens all over the place including projector and plasmas. It’s more of a sports bar with everyone glued to the screens if there is a game on and you hear the occasional cheering when the teams score. Needs a bit of Ted Danson’s touch.

Madinat Jumeirah

This turned out to be the most interesting place of all. It is a shopping mall with a hotel, restaurants, night clubs, beach resorts…all in one.  The place has been built in what I would call ancient Arab style and the shops (or at least the ones I saw before I found Trader Vic’s) were antiques and souvenir shops.