V : Lets goto Ibn Batuta.
Me: Duh...whats that ? A restaurant ?
V: No, its a mall.
Me: Oh. What a strange name !
It turned out that the mall was named after a person called 'Ibn Batuta'. Ibn Batuta was a famous Arab traveller from the 14th century. He was born in Morocco in 1304 ( thank you google). He set out to go on the Hajj and toured many countries for more than 25 years before returning home. He wrote a travelogue called 'Rihla' with all his encounters. I was totally fascinated by his travels.
Batuta had visited China, Andalucia ( part of Spain occupied by Muslims), Constantinople, Baghdad, Persia, Tunisia, Mali , Ethiopia, Egypt, India, Sri Lanka and many other places.
India was ruled by Mohammed bin Tughlaq - Sultanate of Delhi ( remember those history chapters? ) when Batuta visited India. Tughlaq was an eccentric King ( he was the one who moved the capital from Delhi to a place in the Deccan and forced the entire population of Delhi to move as well). Batuta was employed by Tughlaq after which they had a misunderstanding and Batuta had to flee the country.
How did I know so much about Ibn Batuta ? Why, the mall ofcourse !
This mall has been designed to reflect Batuta's travels.
It has 6 theme zones inspired by the places visited by Batuta - China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia and Andalusia. So, V and I went about taking pictures and reading about his travels. The mall is beautiful ! There were tons of stores but for a change, I did not visit any and kept myself occupied with the beauty of the mall.
Each court was done very well. I simply loved the ceilings in each
court.
They were very
creative !
The China court had a huge ship and lots of
other decoration. India court had some people riding the elephant, an ancient clock and a band. The Persia court had a stunning dome ! It was the most beautiful among the other courts ! It looked so grand ! The Egypt court had many paintings on the ceiling, walls and pillars. The Tunisia court had blue ceiling which looked awesome and final
ly the Andalusia court had a big lion fountain. The mall was not only beautiful but also very educational.
If you are visiting Dubai - this place is a must see !!
Ibn Batuta Mall - The world under one roof !
Me: Duh...whats that ? A restaurant ?
V: No, its a mall.
Me: Oh. What a strange name !
It turned out that the mall was named after a person called 'Ibn Batuta'. Ibn Batuta was a famous Arab traveller from the 14th century. He was born in Morocco in 1304 ( thank you google). He set out to go on the Hajj and toured many countries for more than 25 years before returning home. He wrote a travelogue called 'Rihla' with all his encounters. I was totally fascinated by his travels.
Batuta had visited China, Andalucia ( part of Spain occupied by Muslims), Constantinople, Baghdad, Persia, Tunisia, Mali , Ethiopia, Egypt, India, Sri Lanka and many other places.
India was ruled by Mohammed bin Tughlaq - Sultanate of Delhi ( remember those history chapters? ) when Batuta visited India. Tughlaq was an eccentric King ( he was the one who moved the capital from Delhi to a place in the Deccan and forced the entire population of Delhi to move as well). Batuta was employed by Tughlaq after which they had a misunderstanding and Batuta had to flee the country.
How did I know so much about Ibn Batuta ? Why, the mall ofcourse !
This mall has been designed to reflect Batuta's travels.
It has 6 theme zones inspired by the places visited by Batuta - China, India, Persia, Egypt, Tunisia and Andalusia. So, V and I went about taking pictures and reading about his travels. The mall is beautiful ! There were tons of stores but for a change, I did not visit any and kept myself occupied with the beauty of the mall.Each court was done very well. I simply loved the ceilings in each
court.They were very
creative !The China court had a huge ship and lots of
other decoration. India court had some people riding the elephant, an ancient clock and a band. The Persia court had a stunning dome ! It was the most beautiful among the other courts ! It looked so grand ! The Egypt court had many paintings on the ceiling, walls and pillars. The Tunisia court had blue ceiling which looked awesome and final
ly the Andalusia court had a big lion fountain. The mall was not only beautiful but also very educational.If you are visiting Dubai - this place is a must see !!
Ibn Batuta Mall - The world under one roof !
14 comments:
Vow! thats really a wonder :-)Looks very beautiful and as you say creative! Ibn Batuta ..hmm..the only thing I remembered when I saw your blog title was that I have heard this name in History ... interesting to know there is a mall dedicated to him. And pls carry on with your Dubai journal :-) its like tourism education for the likes of me.
And btw have a personal question if I may ask ... have you left US for good or are you going to come back for some time?
Archana,
Yes its a very interesting mall ...u shd visit this place when u come here in Dec ! More stories to follow :-)
I am coming back for Fall semester and would graduate...but after that...I don't know :-P
So as of now...just globe trotting :D
wow...wonderful info...wil make sure to visit the place !
hey that is a lot of interesting history...
lolz..the moment I saw that name..I thought I'd heard it somewhere..:-)
Therz this stage play by Cho Ramaswamy...called Mohammad Bin Tuqlaq..avery very popular play that was re enacted and even videod several times...
As u said, Tuglaq was this eccentric king that kept boasting abt how easy it was for him to dupe his subjects and the guy he often boasted to was Batuta...:-D
so howz sun god treating u in dubai:-)
Looks like you really enjoyed 'Batura' so much that you forgot to include the shopping escapades inside the mall :)
Ashok,
As an architect...u will love this place...try visiting it sometime !
Prasanna,
If only history was taught to us like this...we may hv actually enjoyed it !!!
Ginkgo,
Sounds like a fun play ! Wish I could watch it !! God is being kind to me :-)
Prabhu,
As I mentioned in the post - I din't shop...I just enjoyed the decor of the mall :)
wow Shilpa, good history, and the mall sounds a lot of fun!!
I was reminded of the Aladdin Hotel in Vegas for some reason :-)
Hope you are having a great time with dear Hubby.
well, sounds like fun!! but I wud hav difficulties rite frm pronouncing the name of this place :-)
Looks like an awesome place!! Have fun :-)!
SK,
Yes I am having a great time...enjoying while it lasts :-)
Kutti,
Its very easy to pronounce...! It goes 'eben - batuta '
Archana,
:) Thank you !
Rahul,
Hey welcome back buddy...r u in blr ? or mdr ?
its big! yes it is!
GP,
yeah its big...but I think some malls r bigger !
Narrations about your trip to the mall is super and definitely I shall mark it to visit next time when I visit Dubai.
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