Having used it quite a bit from the time it has opened; Mumbai's International Airport - the GVK CSIA T2 has earned my respect as one of the best in the world - from a passenger's point of view. Honestly, Dubai's Terminal 1 looked haggard in comparison now. (Yes it is being renovated, but Mumbai now scores over it in immigration clearance (both ways) as well as providing amenities, duty free, dining and other such facilities. I thought that arriving back from Dubai would be a painful experience with customs. But, with baggage screening of check-in luggage being done by Customs prior to it being put on the belt; every person does not have to endure the X-ray check process and one can reach from craft to car in 40 mins or less.
I am not so happy about an institution that I once admired. It is dropping its brand equity, craft and service quality standards. Jet Airways. It was a pleasure to fly it once upon a time and now getting to be a pain - at least on short haul routes - be it domestic or international. After it's acquisition by Etihad; one would have thought that the fortunes of the airline would get much better - specially flying to its new step-home base in the UAE. But, that's not the case even though the airline has decided to drop the "Konnect" tag and fly as a premium full service airline. The 737-800 I flew happens to retain the old "Konnect" configuration and my knees were jammed against the seat in front. I am not a 6 foot + guy and if I cannot fit then I pity guys taller than me. Introducing meals back is fine as long as what is served is good. It was better to pay and buy rather than eat the (sorry for saying this) "crap" that is dished out as part of the meal offering. Check in was slow and was being blamed on the system. In-flight service was not bad though. I can't tell if it was the "Athiti Devo Bhavo" (Guest is God) principle or "white is right" that got Caucasian passengers better service?
Now this is not a Jet Airways problem alone. I have seen this happen one too many times. How do people get to carry two (virtual) suitcases into the cabin? Refer to the attached image of an over sized person with supposedly a cabin size conforming bag and a laptop bag. This man must have hit at least 2 or 3 people in the face with his bags while trying to reach his seat. Leave alone the nuisance he caused trying to force his bags in the cabin hold. I now am in complete agreement with Ryanair's baggage policy that enforces a strict cabin bag size on board. The other matter I cannot understand is that of cell phone use on board. Is it really a danger if the phone is not kept on "flight" mode? Apparently not; cause if it was, then airlines would have not allowed them on board in the first place knowing well that 50% of the idiots getting on board want to show off their voice and phones to fellow passengers even after being told that "all electronic devices should be switched off or kept in flight mode". I think people have figured that out that there is no penalty to disobey the instruction and do not bother to switch off the phone's connectivity when asked to. I am predicting serious "air-rage" days in times to come when use of phone is allowed in flight. Loud mouth passengers yacking incessantly on phone up in the air will certainly get into fights with co passengers trying to shut them up.
Dubai Airport - the taxi rank is quite organized. All taxis charge a flat AED 25 as starting fare. The premium black limos run the meter at twice the regular cab rate. But the driver will disclose the approximate fare if you ask before stepping in. Trust me, they won't take you for a "ride". The Cabbies in Dubai are generally quite honest and won't intentionally take you the long way home. At times, the roads are such that it resembles a taxiway leading to a runway - not the least distant path. What I would have liked to see is the driver name and taxi details being displayed along with a bar code like in Singapore to make sure that taxis remain safe and honest in times to come.
If a not so great looking person with money can be surgically crafted into a piece of work then why should Dubai - a desert-dom not look great and desire the best - including growing roses in its Miracle Garden? From what I hear it's not going to be all roses for foreigners in time to come as the Emirate is considering imposition of a small income tax. But until it does; enjoy the best things that money can buy. Happiness is relative and while some may be happy blowing away hard earned (or hardly earned as the may be); it is not the first thing that comes to my mind while walking around in a Dubai Mall. One needs to be a geographically sound navigator to read the mall maps as each mall is larger than the other. Dubai does set the standards for big, bigger, biggest and the benchmark is breached each year. Besides my pockets getting lighter; I too must have lost a couple of pounds walking and carrying bags. For me it was an expensive gym experience.
The pain was much needed as Dubai has plenty of sinful places to eat and entertain. There was no way I was going to miss an opportunity to eat at the Cheesecake Factory" or "Uno Chicago Grill" to get a taste of nostalgia of my days back in the US of A. Thanks to Facebook; had a mini school reunion at "Loca" a nice little Mexican place which serves authentic mex and tex mex food. The Chef's from Mexico. On a Friday; it runs a brunch and if that's not what you like then go after 4pm. The food and drinks are actually very good. Actually; some of these places offer better value for money experience then the exclusive "branded" ones. Had what I call good but not great experiences at "Cle" and "Pacha Ibiza Dubai". Both are now on the "must visit" list for Dubai so how could I skip them? The former; has the backing of Michelin Stared Chef Greg Malouf and the latter an off-spring of the famous parent in Ibiza. Both left me wondering if a visit was worth my time and money or, are they just meant to be an outlet for splurging and being seen with and as the "happening" people? I call such places the "less for more" experiences. While both are certainly not experiences that I would have missed had I not visited; it was good to visit them from my personal education point of view in terms of how concepts are evolving in the food and beverage space. New concepts give way to newer; and then there is the "Wafi" gourmet. It's been around for I don't know how many years - untouched by time - in the way it looks and what it serves. There are many eateries that claim to serve the best Arabic food, but at Wafi Gourmet you can't go wrong. Maybe it's the temptation of the dates, backlavas, olives, salads, fresh produce, dry fruits that are laid out carelessly as display get the stomach hyper active or maybe it's the fragrance of the kebabs being grilled. It's magic.
Finally, one of the best experiences in Dubai is one that can be had for free. A walk on the beach. It was something that I could have done each day during my stay. The beach I visited is kind of man-made but I am not complaining. The 5 shades of ocean blue kissing the silver sands was nothing short of delight. I turned around 360 degrees and saw the towering Burj Khalifa piercing the sky in the distance, as well as the Burj Dubai resembling a massive sail boat in the sea. So much to visit and so little time. Great I will leave what I did not visit for my next visit "Inshallah". I was back in India on the 25th; could not miss the Republic Day Parade telecast on 26th morning. For the first time in its 66 years as a Republic; the President of the USA was being honored as the Chief Guest. Or it was the first time a President of the USA accepted to attend it. It just shows that India is no longer a nation that can be given symbolic importance. Dubai was wonderful; but then could, not agree more that "Sare Jahan se Accha - Yeh Hindustan Humara" (Better than the whole world - Is this India of mine). Yes that's what the parade band was playing as the brilliance of India marched by.
P.S. My reviews on some of the places I visited are on tripadvisor.com.
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