Sisters' UAE stopover sparks unexpected life transformation in Dubai

Christmas 2007 brought two Australian sisters to the United Arab Emirates for what was meant to be a two-week holiday. Their father had recently taken up a diplomatic posting as Australian consul-general to Dubai, and the visit, simple in its origins, changed the course of at least one of their lives entirely.

The sisters were 25 and 27 at the time. They spent their days exploring the city with genuine curiosity, sampling Arabic mezze, dune-bashing in the desert, joining a Santa bus pub crawl in Satwa on Christmas Eve, and shopping for lanterns and carpets in Sharjah’s Blue Souq. A dhow cruise in the Musandam Peninsula brought them face to face with dolphins. By the time they rang in the New Year at a villa party, both had begun to imagine a different life in this place.

Additional reference context is available at https://www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/some-people-dislike-this-stopover-spot-but-i-can-t-wait-to-go-back-there-20260825-p60ri2.html.

Seven years after the September 11 attacks, when many Australians still viewed the Middle East with suspicion, the author made the decision to relocate. She packed up her life in Sydney and moved to Dubai during Ramadan, a choice that left most people questioning her judgment. She stayed for nearly seven years. Her parents’ villa in Al Barsha 3 became a lively household where five people across different generations lived in harmony. She landed the job of her dreams. She held her newborn niece for the first time in 2014, a memory she describes as etched into her heart.

She departed Dubai in late 2014. The city never truly left her.

She has returned regularly since, and with her sister’s family still based there, she expects those visits to continue. A recent Australian government travel advisory, which adjusted its Smart Traveller rating for the UAE from “Do not travel” to “Reconsider your need to travel” due to regional tensions, prevented her from visiting this year. That absence clarified something she had perhaps taken for granted: how deeply she misses the place.

Dubai polarizes people. Some love it unconditionally; others reject it entirely. The author does not pretend the city is without contradiction. Labour camps housing migrant workers who travel to the UAE to send money home represent a genuine ethical concern she acknowledges directly. Friends of hers found themselves in legal trouble over matters that seemed trivial by Western standards. These are real tensions, not easily dismissed.

Yet for this traveller, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. Dubai offers genuine safety, daily immersion in cultural diversity, and a food scene spanning virtually every cuisine on earth. Its luxury hotels operate at a level of excellence that stands apart. The city’s geographic position means weekend trips to Sri Lanka, Lebanon, Oman, Jordan or Morocco are entirely feasible. Destinations that once seemed frightening, when experienced firsthand, revealed themselves as deeply misunderstood by the outside world.

The emirate caters to nearly every recreational interest. Families can ski, surf, camp, hike, mountain bike or charter boats. The author skydived over the Palm Jumeirah, attended camel races, learned off-road driving in the desert, and watched world-class musicians perform at major events. The social scene thrives with an energetic expat community and legendary weekend brunches. In Sydney, she notes, organizing a catch-up with friends can stretch across months. In Dubai, something is always happening.

Meanwhile, the relationships formed there carry their own weight. Emiratis, the author writes, demonstrate remarkable generosity and tolerance toward the cultural and religious diversity that defines their international community. She experienced six Ramadans during her time there, occasionally joining locals for Iftar and suhoor. Her mother formed a genuine friendship with an Emirati neighbour and was invited to family birthdays and weddings. These were not tourist encounters. They were the texture of an ordinary life, built over years.

Over nearly two decades, the author has watched Dubai transform and grow, much as her own family has evolved around it. Her sister’s family remains there. The city is woven, as she puts it, into her personal history.

The full reflection appears in the My Happy Place series at www.smh.com.au/traveller/inspiration/some-people-dislike-this-stopover-spot-but-i-can-t-wait-to-go-back-there-20260825-p60ri2.html. Whether the easing of regional tensions will allow her to return sooner than expected remains the open question her story leaves behind.