Dubai Shopping

They say you must try the shopping in Dubai. Not least because of the largest mall in the world, but because of the attractions inside the mall will blow your mind. I'm not much of a stranger to malls, but even the Dubai Mall was daunting. I went there twice, once with Mass and once with my gf, Erin. With both of them, I took home a pair of shoes. Dubai Mall is sectioned off into areas of interest. So, for example, if you are looking for athletic wear, they will have an arm dedicated to various brands (both Western brands and their own local brands) or if you are into the high end fashion, there is a branch (or two) dedicated to the likes of Alexander McQueen, Giuseppe, and Tom Ford. Safe to say that if you're looking, you will find.

I bought this Balenciaga dress at a local boutique for 70% off. In fact, the entire store was 70% off (they were closing down because a Prada was going to take its place). Mass, being the valued shopper he is, loves a good bargain. So we searched high and low trying on every dress in the store in my size - I always complain I don't have enough dresses for weddings etc. This is from the '09 / '10 f/w collection I believe.

We tasted some of the different restaurants while there and to be honest, none of them blew me away. All very decent, but nothing to boast about. The arabic food, of course, was a totally different story.

What I did enjoy and differentiated from say Hong Kong, was that the consumerism wasn't completely in your face. In many Asian countries, i.e. Japan / China, you can turn left or right and there will be something for you to buy. In Dubai (& Abu Dhabi for that matter) the consumerism was segregated to the malls and the specific shopping areas. Basically, you're not forced to buy if you aren't searching for it. Which, I like.

Mass is so used to my elevator antics now.

Balenciaga dress, Zara heels, Chanel bag