A Year of Short Eids

Dubai Creek – Abra Station at the Old Souq, in Deira

It’s Raya again! Yippee, 3 days off. But it’s nothing to shout about compared to previous years. I remember I got a 5 day break in 2013 on Eid al-Adha! This year’s holidays are pathetic – 2 days off for Eid al-Fitr and 3 days off for Eid al-Adha (and that is including friggin weekends!) And this is a Muslim country!

Anyway, 3 days is better than none, so here’s to a Selamat Hari Raya Haji to my Malay friends, and a Eid Mubarak to all the Muslims out there!

I’m staying put in Dubai this Eid. (…Which wasn’t my original plan. I suggested flying to Moscow to the missus, but it was thrown out the window, without so much as a blink! …“You think money grows on trees?? We just came back from Europe!…” etc, etc, etc. OK honey, you’re right. And she is.)

Decided to put some photos of the more traditional parts of Dubai, to reflect the mood… (a trick I'm still using to keep the blog updated ahem)


A mosque at Deira, between the Gold Souq and the Spice Souq


Boarding an abra (water taxi), at the Bur Dubai Old Souq Abra Station






Crossing the Dubai Creek on a water taxi (abra) – we ride it for fun, after all it costs only 1 dirham per adult, one way, and it’s free for Justin!


See, Justin loves it. But only recommended for winter, unless your idea of fun is to sweat like a pig, and to breathe in the odours of a boatload full of sweating workers and diesel fumes.


The Old Souq in Bur Dubai


Grand Mosque, Bur Dubai


A newly completed mosque in Al Barsha, Dubai – one of the more unique looking mosques around in Dubai