Jennifer Lopez is in Dubai and ready to party tonight at her sell-out concert at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre. But before that, what exactly does a star of her calibre get up to when in Dubai? From what tabloid! saw on Wednesday night, check out some cars and have a big — and we mean big — Italian dinner. And we can reveal she’s had another big meal today, with a traditional Thanksgiving celebration cooked by her mother.
Lopez — who is accompanied by her boyfriend, dancer Casper Smart — landed in Dubai late Tuesday night and spent Wednesday playing on the beach with her two children, twins Max and Emme at their hotel on the Palm. “We’ve been looking forward to coming to Dubai, I have to tell you, the whole time we’ve been on tour,” she said on Wednesday night. “It’s my first time here and I am so excited to meet the fans in Dubai. It was a lovely day today — I hear the weather is good right now. I got very lucky.”
Lopez was speaking at the opening of the world’s largest Audi showroom in Al Quoz, where she was the guest of honour (Al Nabooda is a sponsor of her concert). Dressed om a silky print top and wide-legged white trousers, her long hair was straightened and had a streak of deep burgundy — matching her on-trend dark lipstick.
“We are going to do the show and I’ll be here one day after that,” said Lopez, who takes her Dance Again tour to Shanghai, China, on Saturday. “I wish I could stay longer — I’ve dreamed of coming here.”
She spoke to the crowd of Audi VIPs in a chat with Al Nabooda Automobiles CEO K. Rajaram, who quizzed her on her driving habits. “I’m not a big driver, I like more to be driven. I grew up in New York — we don’t drive that much there. I live out in LA now and I get driven a lot. For me, my favourite is the Audi R8. When I first had my babies, we had kind if the van, I don’t know what it’s called.” (Rajaram reminded her it’s the Q7.)
Lopez then took off in an Audi — driven by 25-year-old Smart — and headed for dinner at Cavalli Club at the Fairmont Dubai. The club celebrated its third anniversary the same night, and Dubai’s social set had turned out for the event in their shortest skirts and highest heels, paying Dh1,000 for a five-course meal.
While the club full of people gawped, Lopez and Smart, who was wearing a grey sweater and fashionable thick-framed glasses, only had eyes for each other — and their plates. From what tabloid! saw, she’s a woman who likes her Italian food. Rather than pushing bits around her plate, Lopez appeared to enjoy every course served to her by the costumed waiters, and munched on everything at the table. She and Casper then left the club just after midnight, driving off in the Audi they have been lent for the duration of their stay. Keep your eyes peeled — you may well see them driving down Shaikh Zayed Road over the next couple of days.
Thursday is Thanksgiving in the US, and the New York-born Lopez celebrated the tradition away from home, with a meal cooked by her mother, Guadalupe -- well, sort of. Our mole tells us Lopez’s entourage contacted Ruth’s Chris Steak House asking them to cook Thanksgiving lunch for Lopez and 25 of her close friends and family. On the menu? Beluga caviar, three turkeys, stuffing, sweet potato casserole, cheesecake and apple pie. Guadalupe Rodríguez, Lopez’s mum, went into the kitchen at the Rixos to knock up her gravy recipe.
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