Sightseeing In Dubai

According to Business Insider website, Dubai holds the 7th rank in the Most Popular Cities For Tourists. Few years ago no one had heard much about this city and today Dubai hosts millions of tourists from all around the world. For some tourists Dubai is a shopping destination, some come here to see the Tall Towers and there are others who come here to experience the cultural heritage of this Middle East City.

Last Friday we visited few popular tourist spots in Dubai. Our first stop was Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood near the Al Fahidi Roundabout, along the Dubai Creek. It also includes Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding and The Ruler's Court. It was interesting to see those Traditional houses in the narrow lanes. The top of the houses had wind towers made of burlap pieces. These wind towers were an effective means to get in breeze of air blowing in whatever direction. These houses are also known as Al Arish. The restaurants here had a traditional set up which attracts many tourists. This place also had the remains of the Wall of Old Dubai. The writing about the wall said "In the past Dubai had two such walls that defined the city context. The oldest one constructed in Bur Dubai about the year 1800 A.D. It surrounded the old city, which included Al Faheidi Fort, the Grand Mosque and residential houses. The second one was built in Deira side in fifties of the nineteenth century. In the beginning of the twentieth century the wall was demolished to accommodate the expansion of the city. Only remaining evidence of this wall is a part of the foundations, which was explored and restored in 2001 by Historical Buildings Section in Dubai Municipality". There was also a Coins Museum, and Mawaheb- an art studio for adults with special needs.

Our next stop was Al Fahidi Fort. This was a few minutes walk from the Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood. Dubai museum is also located in Al Fahidi Fort. Very close to Dubai Museum is the Grand Mosque.

    

We kept walking until we reached the Temple. Yes, there is a Temple and a Gurudwara in Bur Dubai. This area is also famous for the textile market.

We walked towards the Al Ghubaiba Water Transport Station to go to Sheikh Saeed Al Maktoum House. On our way we also saw the Al Shandagah Watch Tower.

 Our final destination was Heritage Village and Diving Village. 

An evening spent by the Creek side,enjoyed the sunset view and the cool winter breeze along with my spouse. What more could I ask for :)

Notes:

• Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding is closed on Fridays.
• Dubai Museum Visiting Hours: Sat-Thur 8:30am-8:30pm, Fri 2:30pm-8:30pm, Official Holidays 8:30am-8:30pm. Entry fee is 3 AED.
• Sheikh Saeed Al Maktoum House Visiting Hours: Sat-Thur 8:30am-8:30pm, Fri 2:30pm-8:30pm. Entry fee is 3 AED.
• Please check the Ramadan timings before visiting.
• To plan your trip visit http://wojhati.rta.ae/dub/XSLT_TRIP_REQUEST2?language=en

New York City- Tips and more

Planning to come to NYC? Here are few tips to help you in your trip.

• Have a subway map handy at all times. NYC subway can be confusing. Map does help but ask around to be sure you are on the right train.
• All subway station entrances don't have metro card machines so if you want to refill make sure you are at the right station.
• I noticed that most stations don't have escalators. It can be difficult if you are carrying a luggage. You may even have difficulty locating an elevator.
• Plan your trip using the Trip Planner link http://tripplanner.mta.info
• The cheapest way to reach JFK airport is by air train which costs 5 USD only. To reach the air train terminal you will have to take a subway route. Check the trip planner to get more information.
• Walk the Brooklyn Bridge and capture the beautiful Lower Manhattan skyline in your camera. For best views go to Brooklyn Park.
• If you plan to go to Liberty Island try to leave early to avoid the long queues. Best to board the first ferry to Liberty Island.

Hope you have a wonderful trip. Enjoy!!!

Times Square, New York City

Times Square at Midnight.

Last day in New York City- 18 October 2013: Day 3

When I am in Dubai or India I usually avoid going out in the sun but today I wanted to enjoy the warmth of the sun. The best place that I could think of for sitting and relaxing under the sun was Central Park. When you are in NYC you cannot miss Central Park. Spread over 843 acres of land, this public park brings you close to Mother Nature. Many Hollywood movies are shot here, including the famous snowball fight scene from the movie Elf. You have the option to go around the park in a horse carriage or  on a bike and of course it is chargeable. There is a Carousel and a playground for children. The park has many more activities and you can check their website http://www.centralparknyc.org/ to know more.

Central Park Playground

Central Park Horse Carriage

Today we were in a mood to relax and avoid much walking so we spent a couple of hours in the park sitting under the sun. I was carrying some snacks in my bag pack so had that for lunch. After the sunbathing we boarded the train to Grand Central Terminal from Columbus Circle Subway.

Did you know that Grand Central Terminal completed 100 years? Well, I wasn't aware until I saw the advertisement at the station. On the outside, the sculptures of Minerva, Hercules and Mercury atop the terminal. The main concourse of the terminal has this beautiful celestial ceiling with stars which depicts the zodiac. Interesting point here is that the sky is backwards. Some say that the ceiling reflects  God' s view of the sky.  There are 68 shops and 35 dining options in the terminal which I thought was really cool.

Outside of Grand Central Terminal

Main Concourse at Grand Central Terminal

Celestial Ceiling at Grand Central Terminal

The clock was ticking and our time in NYC was about to end. On our way back to the hotel we ate at KFC-our last meal in NYC. Time to say Goodbye to New York, taking back with me some pleasant memories.

New York City- 17 October 2013: Day 2

It was a foggy morning so we decided to leave little late. Our first stop for the day was Liberty Island to see the marvel
ous Statute Of Liberty. We boarded the Red Line Train 1 from Times Square subway to go to South Ferry. Only the first five cars of the train go to South Ferry so we had to change the car at one of the platforms. A short walk from South Ferry subway is Battery Park. The Statue Cruise Ferries leave from the Ferry Terminal in the park. You can buy tickets at the park itself but we had a voucher from Grey Line so we had to collect our tickets from the Grey Line representatives who were there at the Battery Park entrance near the American Indian Museum. Before boarding the ferry we had to pass through the security check point. Security checks cleared and we were ready for the ferry ride.

Within few minutes we arrived at the Liberty Island and there 'She Stood'. Statue of Liberty, a symbol of freedom. The statue conveys it's message of freedom through a number of dramatic symbols. The broken shackles at her feet signify escape from tyranny. In her left arm she holds a tablet of law inscribed in Roman numerals the date of American Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776. Her crown's seven rays suggest the seven seas and seven continents. Her torch and flame symbolizes truth and justice enlightening the world.She was a gift by the French to America. The outside of the statue is made of thin copper. Her original colour was copper, the colour of a penny but now The Lady is green in colour. It took twenty years for the copper to oxidise and change into green colour.

One look at her and I was in love with this amazing piece of art. There is a free audio tour available at the island which tells you a lot about the history of this marvelous structure. I have come to know a lot of interesting facts after taking the audio tour. Tickets to walk to the Crown have to be purchased three months in advance and our trip was planned a month ahead so we couldn't go to the Crown.

I was looking forward to walk the streets of Lower Manhattan. We  took the cruise back to the Battery Park. Our next stop was Wall Street and New York Stock Exchange. A short walk from Battery Park is Bowling Green Park. There were a lot of benches to sit and eat. We bought chicken gyro from the street side vendor. We sat and ate in the Bowling Green Park, enjoyed the weather and the lunch.

After lunch we were ready to walk the Wall Street. As a tourist the most important thing to carry with you is a Map of the City which we already had. In fact, we had two maps, an extra as back up.

The Wall Street Bull- the famous Bull which I had seen in a lot of Bollywood movies. There were so many tourists standing around the Bull waiting for their turn to click a photo. Everyone wanted to pose with the Bull and even I wanted a photo clicked with this superstar who had made appearances in many hit movies. One photo clicked, it's not that good but I had to be satisfied with that. I also wanted a photo of me and my hubby with the Bull but sadly we did not get a chance, too many tourists around. We walked few more blocks to see the New York Stock Exchange.

Our next stop was 9/11 Memorial. For visitors without passes a donation of 5-10 USD is needed to enter the Memorial Site. This donation is used to maintain the site. They also give you a wrist band for the generous donation you make. We passed the security check post to enter the Memorial Site.The site consisted of two pools set in the footprints of the Original Twin Towers. These are were the Towers used to stand. Thirty foot water falls- the largest in North America- cascade into the pools, each then descending into a center void. The names of the victims are inscribed in bronze parapets around the pools.

After the 9/11 site we had to walk a long way to Brooklyn Bridge. We took a short break at Starbucks and then walked towards the bridge. On our way to Brooklyn bridge we saw City Hall. Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in US. Lower Manhattan skyline looked beautiful from Brooklyn Bridge. We also saw the Manhattan Bridge from there. While walking over the bridge don't forget to take a look at the 'Love Locks' hanging on the bridge. The last scene in the movie "Now you see me" is shot on Brooklyn Bridge and it shows the 'Love Locks'. We walked the bridge to go to Brooklyn Bridge Park. This was a perfect place to click some lovely photos of Lower Manhattan skyline at sunset. I sat in the park while my hubby was clicking photos. This was our last stop for the day.

We took the subway from Cadaman Plaza High St to Uptown 42nd street. Walked two blocks to reach our hotel. It was a long day, would rest for a while and then go to Times Square. I want to see what Times Square looks like at midnight.
The map below will help you better understand the places we visited in Lower Manhattan.

View from the Statue Cruise

The Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty

Statue Cruise

9/11 Memorial Pool

The Wrist Band from 9/11 Memorial

Manhattan skyline from Brooklyn Park

Times Square at midnight

New York City- 16 October 2013: Day 1

After a 4 hours bus journey we reached New York City. This place was so different from Arlington and DC. New York is the cultural capital of the world. I could see people from different nationalities around me. Undoubtedly, this is the most popular city in the United States. Tall buildings, streets full of people, slow moving traffic, lots of restaurants, the city has a different charm. I could see MNG, H & M, Aeropostale, Forever 21 and so many other top branded stores, of course NYC is the Fashion Capital of the World. There were so many policemen around, New Yorks finest that's what I call them.

The bus had dropped us near Sbarro's 33rd and 7th street so we had pizza for lunch. Our hotel was on 43rd, we had to walk few blocks. We were staying in NYC for just two nights and there was so much to see. After checking in the hotel we decided to go to Empire State Building and Times Square. We had bought the Grey Line voucher online, the voucher included tickets for Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty. We collected the Empire State Building tickets from the Grey line office which was few blocks away from our hotel.

Our first stop for the day-The Empire State Building, a short walk from our hotel. We had express tickets so we could directly go for security check. We were carrying a Tripod and the person in charge told us that we are not allowed to carry a tripod to the observatory. The observatory is small and for safety reasons tripod's are not allowed. Anyways, we kept our tripod with the security and walked towards the elevator. The observatory is on the 86th floor  of the building. It is an open air 360 degree observatory which provides great views of the city. We reached at the time of sunset so we got to see both the night and sunset views. It was cloudy and windy. We could literally see the clouds passing over us. NYC looks beautiful from the observatory. Tall buildings of various designs all around. At night, it looked all the more beautiful with the lights glittering everywhere. You can upgrade your ticket to go to the 102nd floor observatory . Upgrade ticket option is available on the 86th floor. 

Next stop Times Square, the world's most visited place. Electronic Billboards, Broadway Theatres,crowded pedestrians that is the identity of Times Square. I saw many costume characters there including Disney characters,The Lady Liberty,A Red Indian,A Naked Cowboy who was in his underwear only. We would come here again to click some photos.

Tired and hungry we decided to go back to our hotel and rest. Tomorrow will be a hectic day as we plan to walk the streets of Lower Manhattan.

NYC- you can hate it or love it.

The Bustling street of NYC

View from Empire State Building

View from Empire State Building

Avenue Of the Americas

Washington, D.C- 12 October 2013: Day 2

I had read a lot about Potomac Mills online so that was in our To Do List. Potomac Mills is an outlet mall in Woodbridge, Virginia. It is said to be the largest outlet mall in Virginia and features indoor shopping experience with over 200 stores. To view the store directory of Potomac Mills you can visit the website http://www.simon.com/mall/potomac-mills/stores.
Whenever we are in US shopping is always on our list. We had decided to spend the full day at Potomac Mills and for that we had to leave early morning. Saturday mall opens at 10am and I did not want to be late for shopping. It would take somewhere between an hour and half to go by public transport if you have planned it well. We had checked the metro timings along with the Prince William Metro Direct schedule. We took the subway to Franconia-Springfield Station and from there we took the Omni Bus Ride. 
To know the bus schedule visit http://prtctransit.org/commuter-bus/schedules/index.php and look for Prince William Metro Direct AM/PM schedule. PRTC was also offering Saturday bus service to address the congestion on I-95 during weekends when the HOV lanes were closed for construction of the I-95/I-395 Express Lanes. Saturday service was free for the three month trial period.

It was raining, but we were not worried about that as the mall had indoor shopping. We reached the mall exactly on time. Our store hopping then began.
If you take the food court exit near Burlington Coat Factory you can walk down to Walmart too. Sears, Forever 21, Bloomingdales, Nordstrom Rack were some of the stores that we visited.

Shopping done; looking forward to visit Washington the next day.

Walmart

Ikea