Public bus transport

Vanaf 1 juli zijn vrijwel alle de bustarieven aangepast naar 2 Dirham. Voor een aantal bestemmingen is deze tariefaanpassing gunstig echter voor de kortere ritten betekent dit vaak een tariefsverhoging.

Khan Murjan Souq

Afgelopen vrijdag zijn we naar de nieuw geopende Souk "Kan Murjan" gegaan.

A close copy of an ancient Arabian market has been poured into a 50,000-square-feet hole off Shaikh Rashid Road in Dubai.

An underground shopping mall themed after the legendary Khan Murjan souq in Baghdad of the 1300s was officially opened by the Queen of Syria – actually an actress playing her role – in Wafi City on Sunday.

Though the Dubai version of the original Khan Murjan is dimly lit – it is two floors underneath Wafi Mall – and air conditioned, it follows the traditional styles of Egypt, Turkey, Morocco and Syria.

The modern Khan Murjan features hand-made decoration like marble floors and walls studded with colorful tiles and stone carvings.

Arabic perfume fills the cool corridors, while shopkeepers gesture to visitors to have a look inside.

Using only their bare hands and a few tools, craftsmen in many Arab countries worked for months on the souq’s interiors and architecture, especially the stained-glass ceiling. The mainly blue mosaic throws down a soft light on tourists below.

The stylish interior was built piecemeal, with individual parts flown in and assembled here.

Like the finishing, many of the goods at Khan Murjan are handmade – furniture made in Yemen, natural soap from Lebanon or gowns from Saudi Arabia, for example.
At least 70 stores have opened up already, with 80 others in the pipeline. All alleys lead to a central courtyard. A white canvas roof lets in natural light after filtering out the Sun’s heat. It is folded up later in the day – when its cooler – turning the courtyard into an open-air food and coffee feast.

The original Khan Murjan was an inn for visiting merchants in Baghdad. It had a 45-feet-high central hall and gardens. Though damaged, it survived wars and floods for centuries.