Tag Archives: Christmas in Dubai

The Santa special

Posted on by

With Christmas Day brunches in the UAE costing as much as 610AED (£100) an adult – and the top-end ones including acrobats and petting zoos on top of a visit from Santa – I’m always on the look out for some down-to-earth (read: cheap) entertainment for my children over the holidays.

After all, there’s only so many ‘How many days/hours/minutes till Santa comes?’ that a mum can take.

This year, I do believe I found the best bargain in the UAE: Santa at Dubai’s Oasis Centre.

He’s a nocturnal chap – when darkness falls, he plods over to the 10-metre-high, snow-covered Santa Castle in the middle of the mall to do meet-and-greets, until as late as 11.30pm on weekends and 10pm on weekdays. (Children from some cultures are often kept up late here – not mine, I’d add, I reach my limit at 8pm.)

For 35AED (£5.80), we enjoyed a visit with Santa (a lot of ho-ho-ing) and received a present, a photo, a free kids’ meal at Max Burger, cotton candy, a free ride in the play area and even an adult’s gift (a USB or headsets). Best 35AEd I’ve spent this Christmas.

There was no holding Son2 back – he leapt straight onto Santa’s lap, peered at his spectacles closely, decided he was legitimate and had a little chat about what he’d like Santa to bring (a red bike with a speedometre on it). Then, in a fit of generosity, Son2 announced he’d be flexible: “But if you can’t make it in red, any colour will do.”

Son1 is already somewhat suspicious of Santa and hung back – finally going forward to request an Xbox. I suspect that next year, the man in red will be well and truly rumbled.

So here’s to enjoying the magic while it lasts.

*************************************************************************************************

WISHING EVERYONE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Love, the Circles family x

*************************************************************************************************

You might also like: Work-to-rule Santa; The real Santa; Last-minute shopping (with kids); Kids, meet Baby Jesus

Christmascard2013

Silent Sunday: Dubai quirks

Posted on by

Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year in Dubai, due to the cooler weather and laid-back atmosphere. But, there’s no doubt, it can be a funny thing too. Where else would a festive family fair, with a highly coveted Santa’s grotto for the children, be postponed until the end of January?

1474549_10151741675020069_2073857699_n

Another quirk I’ve noticed about living in Dubai is that they don’t make waterproof buildings. I guess it rains so infrequently, why bother? But, every now and then, this oversight results in torrents of water gushing down walls and across floors indoors. Check out the leaks that sprung at the new airport during a bout of rain last week – honestly, you have to watch this to believe it!

Silent Saturday: Wise Men

Posted on by

I’m doing Silent Sunday a day early because I’m never quite sure when Twelfth Night is (is it the 5th or the 6th?). Just in case it’s the 5th, and the bad luck associated with keeping your decorations up after Twelfth Night also applies to blogs, I’m posting this Gulf sunset photo now. It’s from a day out at Jumeirah Beach Residence and is a lovely reminder of the fun times we’ve had on the beach this Christmas school holiday.

So what do you think happened to the third wise man?

So what do you think happened to the third wise man?

The real Santa

Posted on by

“Santa came to my school, to music class,” announced LB proudly last night.

“No, he did not,” retorted BB, more knowledgable about such matters. “That wasn’t the real Santa. That was just a man dressed up as Santa.”

Christmas Eve: (having already had a visit from Santa on the 23rd) "Will he come twice, Mummy?"

Christmas Eve: (having already had a visit from Santa on the 23rd) “Will he come twice, Mummy?”

I listened in to hear where this conversation was going, especially as pulling off Santa this year involved a little more trickery than usual.

The ‘how he gets in’ questions – our villas obviously have air-conditioning ducts rather than chimneys – had all been fielded successfully, I thought (he slides down the mobile phone mast just outside our compound and makes his way through secret, underground tunnels to each villa).

We’d also carefully got round the fact that Santa visited our house on the night of the 23rd, so we could have Christmas with DH before he left on a ‘sleigh ride’ to Tokyo.

But there was a chance BB was getting suspicious.

“Don’t you know?” he continued, causing me to nearly choke on my tea, thinking he might actually be about to tell LB the truth (maybe the secret tunnels were a bit far-fetched).

“The real Santa,” he said, summoning up every ounce of his three years’ seniority over his brother, “lives on YouTube.”

Phew – thank you www.portablenorthpole.com for keeping the magic alive.

Last-minute shopping (with kids)

Posted on by

It’s retail hara-kiri at the best of times. Let alone 48 hours before Christmas, in a city brimming with tourists and visitors.

But it was my last chance, and the present was important.

Each year, on top of a Christmas bonus, I like to treat our helper Catherine the Great to some girly presents. It’s the least I can do, given how hard she works, and I also love shopping for her. Being the sole female in our household other than the cat and me, it’s the only chance I get to buy guilt-free girl stuff, usually in pink.

This year, I’d left it a bit late, and while at the Madinat Jumeriah with the children, I realised I probably wasn’t going to get another chance to buy her gift.

Shopping sans children is better than sliced bread

Shopping sans children is better than sliced bread

The kids darted through the Arabian souk, past wind towers and lantern-lit hallways. We paused briefly at a few market stalls, my eyes scanning the rows of sparkly jewellery. My fingers roamed over the rings and I picked up a couple of silver bracelets, turning them over in my palm to see the jewels catch the light.

All in about two seconds flat …

Because the boys’ hands would reach up to grab the shiniest item within touching distance. They dropped things, sent rings rolling across the floor. They knocked pots over. They put their fingers in the jars of coloured sand and it was a small miracle the souvenir bottles of sand didn’t go flying. Then someone needed a poo.

We found ourselves in one of the boutique clothing stores and I resolved to make a split-second purchase before my stress levels got too high. But then they discovered a mannequin, dressed in a floaty white cotton top.

“She’s got boobs,” announced BB to everyone around. It got worse: he cupped them in his hands. Gave them a rub, and called his brother over. “Look, boobs!”

I shooed them away, but they spotted the male mannequins, in swimming trunks. The boys peeked down their shorts to see if there was anything there (I must admit, I did ask them later: it looked like a nose, said BB).

Then, as I raced to the till with a hurriedly chosen item, BB appeared with a bikini top clutched against his chest.

“Look Mummy, boob holders,” he said loudly, with a triumphant grin that suggested he’d just invented the wheel.

I’m never taking them shopping again, I swear.

A tune for Tuesday

Posted on by

After all the bad news, this is a very quick, cheery videopost, best viewed with a mince pie and glass of sherry.

I really enjoy the fact that in Dubai we’re surrounded by about 200 different nationalities – it makes for a rich blend of culture that broadens your horizons in so many ways.

Tonight, our doorbell rang, and standing outside were some carol singers from the Philippines. I invited them in straight away, and called up to the boys that they had a reprieve from bedtime (woo-hoo, they yelped, as they scampered down the stairs).

These carol singers – who our helper Catherine the Great knows from church – visit every year, and I just love how festive they make me feel. Last year, there were about eight of them and it was like having a whole choir drop round. This year, there were just three, with a guitar, but how wonderful to be serenaded like this at home!

This might not work if my blog is emailed to you, but if you’re online, it’s a 30-second snippet of Jingle Bells. Enjoy!

Kids, meet Baby Jesus

Posted on by

While I personally think it’s still too early to put the Christmas tree up, my children disagree. I promised we’d do it today, and at 7 on the dot this morning, the pestering started.

“Mummy, c’mon. Get out of bed,” BB ordered, tugging at the duvet. “You said we’d put the tree up.”

No stopping them: My little helpers decorating the tree early this morning (yawn)

My little helpers throwing baubles at the tree

“Later, BB, later,” I uttered in reply, but to no avail. The kids’ excitement about hanging twinkly lights, baubles and tinsel on a fake tree had taken on the momentum of a runaway train that wasn’t about to be halted by a mummy hoping for a lie-in.

I gave in – and got up. We hauled the decorations from the outside storeroom to the house, dusted them off, and got started (minus the Christmas music – as I said, too blimin’ early).

You would think that living in a Muslim country might mean Christmas would start a little later. Not so. The shops are full of it, their floors adorned with trees and their windows decked out.

But the commercialism aside, it’s definitely harder to convey the true meaning of Christmas here. It’s all a bit of a hush-hush operation at BB’s international school, where they do put on a celebration, but disguised as a ‘winter festival’.

To be honest, my children don’t think beyond the presents – and I was reminded of my shortfall in this department today.

Each year, I bring out a nativity scene that I bought at a Christmas festival. As I was setting it up, LB came over and peered at the figurines: he touched the baby Jesus swaddled in the manger; looked quizzically at the reverent wise men bearing gifts, the proud, tired parents and the guardian angel. Then he reached out and grabbed the cow sitting lowing in the hay.

“Mummy, what is it?” he asked, with a not-so-reverent shine in his eyes. “Is it a farm?”

Mental note to self: make sure that this is the year my children learn the basic story of the nativity.