Dubai Special The Travel Show - Short Edition

joining us. Coming up next, it is

The Travel Show.

20 years ago, Dubai set out

to become one of the most

talked-about towns in the world.

Since then, this young city state,

one of seven emirates in the UAE,

has largely succeeded.

It's become one of the

fastest-growing tourist destinations

on the planet synonymous

with spectacular skyscrapers,

gigantic shopping malls

and high-end hospitality,

and also the occasional stories

of tourists who fall foul

of local customs.

But scratch deeper and there's

much more to this place.

No longer the brash new kid

on the block, Dubai is now

an established hub and one of

the world's few truly global cities.

Oh, yes.

And although the impulse

to impress is still here,

there's now a more complex

identity taking shape,

and I'm here to see how that's

changing the look and feel of Dubai,

its people and its future.

This is The Creek, the real heart

of old Dubai, and gorgeous

in this light.

Now, this used to be a real trading

hub for the city and the kinds

of boats you can see behind me bring

in spices and other goods

from countries like India,

Iran and much further afield.

This is my personal favourite part

of Dubai, the old town,

where you get a real sense

of the past, as it's a contrast

to the skyscrapers and

shopping malls downtown.

What is this?

This is cinnamon.

Cinnamon, yeah, I recognised that.

Very good.

This one is turmeric.

Turmeric, yeah, very

good for cooking.

This one is for cooking,

and this is for the face massage.

For the face massage?

OK.

And what is this?

This is a long piece

of wood, what is it?

This is more cinnamon!

Very good!

You're testing me, aren't you?

Tell me the difference,

that is bigger?

This is bigger and this is smaller.

Is that it?!

LAUGHS.

Frankly, if I hadn't stopped him,

I think he would've taken me

through every single

spice in the shop.

This one is for

smoking and for soup.

Of course, if you're into bling,

you don't have to go too far to find

that here too, but to find

authentic arts and crafts,

21st century style, then you'll need

to venture even further

from the glitz and skyscrapers

and head to be gritty Al Quoz

industrial area, where a flourishing

warehouse-based community arts scene

has sprung up.

This is 'calligraffiti' -

a mixture of traditional Arabic

calligraphy and graffiti -

and it's the signature style

of a French-born artist of Tunisian

origin who goes by the name of eL

Seed.

He'd taken his unique approach

to street art around the world

with astonishing results,

including this monumental project

he created in a working-class

district of Cairo.

So what's he doing in Dubai?

For me, Dubai is like, a new city.

I look at it, I try to

have a different view to it.

A lot of people coming

from outside say, "Oh,

it is fake!

You are an artist -

how could you be here?"

For me, there is this kind

of growing art scene,

there is a growing art community.

As an artist, it's always good

to see that I am part of this,

I am part of making a change

and making this movement.

If I can question you on that,

it is also a place that is glamorous

and wealthy, you have a big expat

population, you have some very

rich people here.

Is that inspiring for you?

We are here in the middle

of the industrial zone that has been

turned into this cultural

and art community.

Like, when you cross the road,

you have still factories.

This is the Dubai

that I want to see.

I am not interested

in the shiny things.

That's not for me.

But some people say

that they want it.

I think at some point

there is a switch.

Dubai will show people,

this is what we do.

Some people love Paris -

I love Paris - some people hate

Paris.

Some people love New York,

some others hate New York.

You cannot compare.

For me, it's too naive.

But what I look, at,

yes, what has been done here in less

than 30 years is crazy.

I think people should

just salute that.

While the artists there

are busy feeding the soul,

many locals and expats

here in Dubai are also now keen

to exercise their bodies,

some of them in the most

quintessential Emirati locations.

Now, you wouldn't normally

associate Dubai with cycling.

In fact, riding through the Dubai

rush hour is definitely a no-no.

But the sport is becoming

increasingly popular here thanks

to facilities like this,

a cycling track.

It's long, smooth, purpose-built

and flat as a pancake.

In a country not famed

for its exercise culture,

these days, many locals are now

getting into a whole

range of sports.

And in case you're wondering,

I'm going to leave this one

to the experts.

Hi, I am a wake boarder in Dubai.

I'm all about board sports -

so snowboarding, wake boarding,

kite surfing, all

accessible in Dubai.

Living in the desert,

the closest mountain is in Lebanon

or Georgia or something.

You have the best instructors,

you learn how to snowboard

here and when you go into any

mountain from the Alps

to Colorado, it's simple.

The younger generation is actually

crazy here in Dubai.

They're crazy when it

comes to extreme sports.

They're trying to compete

more internationally.

It's actually really nice to see.

The vibe of the city

is all about work hard, play hard.

You put in so many hours at work,

so the little time you have left,

you don't want to waste it

just lolling around.

Keen to get another fix

of the great outdoors,

I'm now heading out to the desert

early in the morning to experience

something new that I am told you can

only see here in Dubai.

It's a new twist on traditional

Arabian falconry.

I hear it's going to be

truly breathtaking.

2,500 years ago, people relied

on the falcon the way you and I rely

on the supermarket.

Falcons put food on the table.

Traditionally the way it worked,

birds from Europe and Asia migrated

from the Middle East to Africa.

On that migration, they would trap

them from the wild and then use them

in the winter months.

At the end of winter,

they would untie them and release

them into the wild.

It is a beautiful system

of borrowing a bird from the wild

and then giving them back.

We are about to release Oberon

from the basket and I'll untie him.

You'll see he's wearing

a transmitter on his tail -

that's so I can find

him if he flies away.

I'll pop his hood off in a second.

This device is called a hood,

and this is keeping him

calm and relaxed.

That comes off.

OK.

Ready, guys?

Five, four, three, two, one...

Wow!

Amazing.

Hey!

Good boy.

Do you want to have a go?

I would love to, let's try.

Oh, yes.

Peter has helped to hand-rear these

birds from birth and the bond

of trust between them is vital.

It's clear that to him the falcon's

welfare is paramount,

and months go into training

the birds to get them used

to the sights and sounds

of the balloon and its passengers.

It's practised.

These birds are in good shape.

So the bird is not suffering.

Absolutely not.

What more could you ask for?

A unique experience

and a beautiful animal.