We had to make a choice. Should we go to “Nandos” or walk a bit further to “Chipotle”? It was an easy choice in the end; we love Mexican any day, and that day was no different. Unlike a typical day, we didn’t stand at the counter in the Chipotle restaurant. Instead, we took a high chair and looked outside, catching sight of many anxious faces. I noticed people slowly chewing down what they had bought. For a moment, I glanced at the counter staff; they were in no hurry to invite us to join the queue. They could sense that we were not there to eat. They knew most people had rushed into the joint after receiving the “Shelter-in-place” advisory message on their phones, accompanied by loud notifications.
We were there, waiting to calm ourselves and decide what to do next at 8:30 PM on March 5th, the day India had beaten England in a nerve-biting finish in the T20 World Cup cricket. I had been walking and sitting for the last two hours, watching that match on a small screen. It was March 5th, our elder daughter’s birthday, so since we were far from her, we decided to enjoy ourselves. Additionally, we chose to chill out a bit after receiving confirmation that our flight ticket from Dubai to Bangalore on the 8th had been confirmed. I believed that called for a little celebration amid the fury. Over the last two hours walking around JBR, I noticed and planned to have dinner at one of those places. While sitting on that high chair, I asked my wife the most important question: “Shall we go to that pub, let us brew and chew?” My colleague had called an hour earlier, and he had put it in her mind to get some gold from Dubai. As Malayalis, we sometimes think, “Gold is life.” She gave me one look and told me one of the most rational answers I had heard from her so far in my life: “We are going to the hotel, Life is Gold.“
We came out of Chipotle, walked to JBR, and a Lexus taxi pulled up. Since there was a traffic jam, he slowed down, and we got into the car and fled. While I was in the car, I asked what JBR stands for, and that is when I understood that JBR is a premier 1.7 km waterfront community in Dubai featuring 40 high-rise towers, a popular 1.7 km promenade named “The Walk,” and a white-sand beach called “The Beach.” It offers bustling retail, dining, entertainment, watersports, and stunning views of the Arabian Gulf and Dubai Marina. So how did we land in Dubai?
On the 28th of February, we informed our close family that after 17 years, we were embarking on an international trip together. My flight photos were eagerly shared in our family WhatsApp groups. This was also our first trip without the kids to a destination (a picture of which I had, thanks to my boss, who encouraged me to pursue this in my workbook). Our flight departed on time, and my wife had downloaded the latest episode of Bridgerton on her phone. Initially, I was uncertain about what to do. I had “Diary of a CEO” with me, but I was in the mood for a movie. After flipping through a few options, I ultimately settled on this film. Who knew I was stepping out from reel to real in a few hours?
I felt that it was too short a flight to finish the movie. So I left it, thinking that on my next Emirates flight, I would get to see the next 45 minutes of the movie. We had a 4-hour layover in Dubai, and since we both like coffee, we decided to go through immigration first and then head to a coffee shop called Peet’s Coffee. Initially, I was not worried about the lack of charging points. After our first round of coffee and quick snacks, we decided to explore the airport shops by walking around. Our flight was from gate A14. We went around most of the places, and that is when I started observing a certain scene around the airport. Why on earth are people crowding around the gates, some even sitting on the ground? That is when I started wondering if everything was okay with the flight schedules. We decided to move to A14, and there again, the scene was the same. I noticed one lady who was willing to talk, and I inquired. She was amazed that I was not aware of what was happening. She said, “A war has broken out, and we will be stuck for some days here.” It was very sad to hear her story as she was on her way from Senegal via Dubai to India to attend her mother’s funeral. My wife and I decided to sit around that place and started wondering what was next. We still received an update on my phone that our flights were rescheduled from 16:00 hrs to 18:00 hrs. So I still had hope, which was short-lived as I saw people crowding in front of the flight screens—a scene I had never seen in my life.
We received information that the airspace is closed. In the next 8 hours, from 4 PM to 12 AM, I was amazed at how the authorities managed an “epic mission” when this part of the world was thrown into an “epic fury.” Over 20,200 passengers were officially confirmed as stranded at UAE airports by the GCAA, with the highest numbers likely in Dubai. I had the opportunity to see a sea of people as I came down the escalator. In the following hours, I witnessed on a massive scale how the officials rose to the occasion, working tirelessly to secure accommodation for all passengers across Dubai’s hotels. There were serpentine queues, but nobody was complaining. My wife and I appreciated their efforts to minimize hardships for passengers. I recall how Emirates staff assisted us, even entering the correct hotel address into the bus driver’s phone. We were initially taken to a hotel that had run out of rooms and told to wait; it was around 11:45 PM when we received an alert on our phones. We were taken aback, as it was our first time encountering such a situation. We checked with the hotel staff, who kindly calmed everyone down. We waited there until 4 AM when we were escorted to another hotel at 4:30 AM. The hotel was “The Paramount,” which became our shelter until 7 PM on March 7th. The entire hotel radiated Hollywood themes, and guests were introduced as “Stars.”As I stepped into the 17th floor (Room No. 1701), the quote that embraced us prompted us to look deeper within ourselves.
We had nice memories at the hotel, meeting people from all over the world. How can I forget “Ms Rose,” who was at the front desk and provided all the support to keep us calm while encouraging us to venture out? Three ladies from Mumbai inspired us to shop, and a gentleman from Seattle, with his wise jokes, made us reminisce about the Nineties when he worked in Delhi. We also had a chance to catch up quickly with our cousins. The paradox was that when we went to see the Miracle Garden, we saw warplanes, and when I was buying a new cover for my iPhone, the alert and sirens went off loudly. I also stood in the Emirates queue for a lady with two teenage kids as she struggled to get to Zurich, and I thanked a Sri Lankan friend, with whom I am still in touch, who taught me more about coffee and the Hario V60 coffee type. He was kind enough to give a gift. From all these positive people I met, I learned one common theme: “It’s easier to be judgmental than curious.” Humans are triggered by negativity yet the set of people I met were all having positive vibes. They imparted to me the need to pick myself up and accept the non-controllables. There were moments when we felt awkward sitting in the room, hearing the news on TV (CNN, Fox, BBC, France 24, TRT World) while my wife checked Twitter feeds. We decided to venture out after doing some research once the airline addressed the visa restriction. So finally, we ventured out, and I got some electronics gadgets, a blue pen, and a book for freehand journaling, which helped me in the morning, along with some physical movements. Somebody asked me what kept me positive, and in my view, it was my wife’s company and also critical ignoring (a term I picked up while reading an article). I don’t know how much reading this Stoic article helped me maintain my composure, but my wife mentioned that I was cool.
The best way to “overlay this layover” of 8 days came from my wife, who said, “We got to know each other once again.” To summarise this blog, I was in search of an impactful phrase. I noticed this one on TV during our stay, and I thought it was relevant: “Tides that bind.” It is also used as a title for novels, including a short film about messages in bottles. It presents an intriguing perspective on deep connections, lasting relationships, and navigating life’s changing currents.
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