Meena Bazaar
Before Dubai was awash with expats and those lured to the glamorous hotels and idylic beaches, the city population comprised locals and workers from the Indian Sub Continent.
Today, it is clear the majority of expats in the country are from the Indian Sub Continent and Meena Bazaar for them is a home from home- a little piece of India in the heart of Dubai. Interestingly, in Dubai there is officially no such place as Meena Bazaar, even though most officials would be struggle to call it anything else.
The area, affectionately known as Meena Bazaar was originally known as Cosmos Lane. A Meena Bazaar was the title given to small bazaars exclusively for the women living inside the palace walls of the Mogul Era rulers. These bazaars, which were actually located within the palace walls were intended to resemble a real bazaar for women of the royal courts who were not permitted to go to the real bazaars. At an unknown point in history, Dubai residents began calling the shops lining the streets behind the Bastakiya Quarter Meena bazaar and the name survives until today.
Most UK visitors on holiday in Dubai will be staying in Jumeirah, which is a good 40 minute drive from Meena Bazaar, so the first question is whether a visit is worthwhile. Meena Bazar will almost certainly be a prominent feature on the itinerary for those on holiday in Dubai from the UK who come from an Asian background. The reason is quite simply that Meena Bazaar offers Asian clothing and artefacts at fraction of the price of the same items in the UK. But Meena Bazaar has something to offer non-Asian visitors on holiday in Dubai as well.
For a start, Meena Bazaar has numerous tailor who can replicate almost any item of clothing. Tailors in Meena Bazaar are highly skilled, but generally in expensive, and if you like your clothing to be bespoke, then Meena Bazaar is definitely for you. Meena Bazaar also offers a range of health and beauty treatments at bargain prices. Manicure, pedicures, Indian head massages, facials and therapeutic full body massages are delivered by expert therapists. Indian culture however dictates that treatments for women are administered by women and vice versa for men.
Meena Bazaar is also a hotbed for imitation fashion and fashion accessories. This does not however mean cheap designer rip-offs. In fact, in Dubai imitating brand is illegal, and carefully policed. This does not however stop traders imitating designs and quality, provided it remains unbranded. So if you are looking for some real shopping bargains during your Dubai holiday, then Meena Bazaar will certainly be lighter on your pockets then the many malls that tend to lure the majority of tourists.
Jewellery and embroidery are however what Meena Bazaar is most famous for. Gold is after all purchased more in Indian then in any other country in the world, and this has lead to a generation of expert jewellery designers and manufacturers. Dubai's strategic location means that raw material is easier to come by resulting in quality jewellery at budget prices.
The best time to visit Meena Bazaar is probably at about 4pm. This is when the bazaar springs to life as traders return from their afternoon siestas. The bazaar lights up and is in itself a sight worth visiting for. The night also brings some relief from the heat! Being an out door bazaar, walking the streets in the morning is not for the faint hearted. If you are worried about missing a meal in Meena Bazaar, then don't be. You will quickly discover during your Dubai holiday that whilst restaurants and eateries in Jumeirah are by no means expensive by UK standards, they are certainly comparable. In contrast, Meena Bazaar offers some of the most authentic Asian dining experiences in the Middle East, and the pricing has been set to entice the Indian expats, and not the tourists, which means your meal in Meena Bazaar will probably be the cheapest you enjoy during your entire Dubai holiday.