Our favourite place to swim is the Jumeirah Beach Park. People come from all over the world and they swim here. When you are in the sea, you can strike up a conversation with anyone. It feels like a very safe place. I think we are all in there wondering about the other lives of the people splashing around us. Greeting each other with a smile and a 'hello', we break down the barriers between the different nations, although we still have problems understanding one another. Two tall, slender Ethiopian men wanted to know where we were from, but conversation came to an impasse when they informed us they were not political. Their English wasn't very good and we forgot that they probably spoke Arabic, so we didn't know what to say next.
Some people swim athletically out to deep water and back and then with much muscle flexing, they stride up and down the beach keeping fit, while others frolic around fully clothed. Groups of Filipinos are just having fun. Chinese ladies wear broad brimmed hats in the sea and bob around. Indians and Arabs come mainly with their families. I took a snorkel once. One bemused Indian man asked us "What are the benefits of swimming in this water? I do not know why are people swimming here. What is the benefit? Is it the salt is good for the skin and the skin ailments disappear? Or is it for the fat burning? What is the benefit?" Yet again, we didn't know what to say. The pure joy of feeling the warm water on your skin and being able to exercise without breaking out in an uncomfortable sweat was what we were enjoying.
As the sun sets over the water, the lifeguards whistle everyone out of the sea and there are showers on the beach and changing rooms. It is lovely. The muezzins start up their prayer call and the Ramadan cannon booms out across Dubai, signalling that you can start your Iftar.
Beach kitten |
For our younger readers.
Question: Why does the sun set over the sea in Dubai, when it is on the East coast of the Arabian Peninsula?
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