Old & Blue

Dubai is full of contradictions.

A few days ago, around sunset time, I packed my camera gear and tripod to shoot at a remote part of Dubai Creek. A place where Arabian Dhows are being made. Dhows are wooden merchant ships which sail to Pakistan, India and Iran. Sails have given way to engines, but these boats are still very active today.

Various new developments are pushing the site away, becoming smaller and smaller. Old disused boats are retiring on the side of the creek while the new Dhow projects seem to be quite scarce. Obviously this is a part of Dubai that is becoming extinct to make place for new projects like Business Bay.

The new Blue Business Bay Bridge is the latest of 4 bridges across Dubai Creek and makes quite an interesting photo subject.

Just across the Creek is yet another new Dubai Project; Dubai Festival City, two 5-star hotels attached to a huge shopping mall, all facing the waterfront.

At the end of the shoot I walk away with mixed feelings... It's great to live in a developing city like Dubai but it's also sad that the art of the centuries old Dhow building is disappearing.

To find more Architectural photos of Dubai, click on any of the photos above.

Happy shooting,

Bjorn