when the Choc Nut and Christmas islander blogs within the breeze of the Gulf

Taken on 26 February 2010 at The Waterfalls, Dubai Mall

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I am in UAE for quite a time now but it was only this year I checked the (Annual) Dubai Shopping Festival. With tired feet and hungry monster tummies, there was no better way to culminate last Friday night than visiting the Rainforest Cafe. We have passed by here when we checked the Dubai Aquarium last time but I never thought that this cafe offers more than the usual.

I think that this cafe is well-conceptualized in the sense that this is currently one of a kind in the UAE. For the naturally greenery scarce Gulf, an artificial rainforest environment will be appreciated by many. There is a reptile at the entrance, and as you take more steps to the dining hall, you will be greeted by a serpent. Then the rest of the tigers, gorillas and butterflies are strategically situated. Although these creatures are available in their artificial form, it is hugely entertaining because approximately at every 10 minutes , they would air some sounds of animals and synched with their movements. The banging of the thunderstorm signals that these creatures will become alive.

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One of the stores in Dubai Mall that would probably catch one’s attention is Desigual (the multichannel concept came from Barcelona). It’s obviously unorthodox, just as you can see the hanging of clothes. Parang sinampay lang sa bakuran.

For a time, I am fond of statement (and non-traditional) tees. In the Philippines, the kookiest and most strange things are normal.  But in UAE, you can get arrested for (unintentionally) wearing an unacceptable tee. Last year, a set of t-shirts displaying stick drawings of naked man and woman were removed from this Spanish shop. The same year, Harvey Nichols, a British department store in the Mall of the Emirates, was forced to close for a few hours to remove t-shirts considered obscene after a customer complained to a local radio station. The t-shirts had the image of a British bulldog standing on top of a UAE flag. The store quickly apologised. In another incident, an expatriate was jailed for a month before being deported after he was arrested for wearing a Marc Jacob t-shirt depicting a naked Victoria Beckham with the slogan “protect the skin you’re in” as part of a cancer-awareness campaign. The man was charged with offending public decency.

This serves as a gentle reminder when you’re traveling in this part of the globe, whether you’re a tourist or not.

Siguro naman hindi nila ako huhulihin, pag suot ko ang menu shirt ko.