Dubai is a transit city, for those living and those visiting. There’s always someone flying in and someone flying out. Having one of the highest populations of young adults, it’s not uncommon to see people heading back home after a few years.
It’s a great place to make money, meet people and live an incredibly luxurious life. After three years, my time has come to an end with this lavish city, and it’s time to bit it adieu.
These are a few of the things I’ll definitely miss!
1. Having everything delivered
I’m going to have to think ahead now, and that’s no fun. In Dubai, if I’m hungry, thirsty, or even want my laundry picked up, it’s all just a phone call away, and at almost any time of the day. Thank you for spoiling me Dubai, I will always cherish that.
2. Incredible amenities
When I’m paying $100 to have my place cleaned, I will think of you Dubai, and the peanuts I used to pay for incredible housekeeping. With one text message, I had the handyman, the housekeepers and any other maintenance I needed taken care of.
3. Massages, massages, massages, oh my
I will miss the spa services, the nail services and the hair services. I had the best Thai massage outside of Bangkok at Umm Al Sheif. I used to get my nails done under my building, and it would last. I will miss being pampered, and for cheap!
4. Meeting so many people from around the world
Dubai is full of cultures, and it’s truly one of the best perks of the city. In the three years I lived in Dubai, I worked with more cultures than I had my entire life. I heard more languages than I had ever heard in my life and learned about so many different traditions. It was like a crash course in world sociology.
5. The food. Oh dear God, the food
This, I will miss the most. It’s no surprise that I love food, between my odes to food and my reviews, it’s pretty understandable why I gained 12 kilos during my time in Dubai.
6. Shisha
This sounds silly, but I will miss my evening shisha and tea catch up sessions with friends while sitting under the Burj or by the sea. There is shisha everywhere in the world, but the ambiance is one of a kind. Where else can you enjoy a smooth shisha on the beach with a panoramic view of Burj Al Arab, Burj Khalifa and the Atlantis?
7. Hearing the adhan
Any Muslim living outside the Middle East can agree to this. There is nothing quite like hearing the adhan and seeing gorgeous mosques on your daily drives. It’s one of the things I miss most about living in the region.
8. Being central
As an avid traveler, Dubai’s central location was perfect. I was three hours away from Cairo to visit family and friends, five hours away from most of Europe and less than six hours away from Thailand, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and more. And now being host to the busiest airport in the world, there’s always a flight going or coming! It’s the perfect place to live for a traveler.
9. Being around so much ambition
Dubai is full of hustlers, and while the networking game can get a little exhausting at times, the ambitious vibe in the city is contagious. Everyone’s an entrepreneur, everyone wants to be something, and won’t stop. It comes from the country itself. The UAE was just Bedouin desert not more than 43 years ago, and now look at it. The booming vision for the country has trickled to the residents, and it’s unstoppable.
10. The safety
I will absolutely miss not having to think twice about locking my door, or leaving my phone on the table for five minutes while I grab something from the counter. Dubai’s safety is one of the most comforting things I’ve ever felt. I never felt like I was in danger walking home alone at night or heading to my car in a parking garage.
So for those that are just moving there or just landed, enjoy these perks! That being said, I won’t be gone for long 😉 Between work and family, I still have one foot in Dubai and can’t stay too far away. So while I’ll miss these in my everyday life, hopefully I won’t be gone long enough at a time to miss them permanently!
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