Dubai: UAE residents are gearing up for week-long Eid Al Adha celebrations.
Whether it is flying back home to see family, as restrictions are eased in certain countries, or having a staycation in the UAE or meeting up with family over board games, residents sure are looking forward to the extended break. For some, however, it will be business as usual as they will work through the Eid holidays.
Italian expatriate Walter Scalzone, an international percussionist in Dubai, has a busy line-up of events for the Eid holidays as he will be performing daily.
Scalzone will be performing live from Toda, a theatre of digital art for a unique and immersive experience. “The live show will be broadcast on YouTube as well. I am excited because the Eid holidays promise to be busy for me. And I like to be busy! I am so happy that the entertainment industry is opening up in the UAE.” On all days of Eid, Scalzone will be performing in different venues. “I am looking forward to the next week,” he added.
‘New dynamics’
Anuradha Kamath, a life coach based in Dubai, and her husband Dr Narendra Prabhu, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, will spend their Eid holidays with family. “We plan to stay indoors through the break. My brother’s family will visit us with their newly-adopted puppy — a Golden Retriever. So it will be exciting to see how the new dynamics work out between all of us,” said Kamath, who owns a Maltese pet.
She added: “Previously, we used to decorate our home. This year, we are planning to empty the rooms to have more space for indoor family games over home-cooked food,” Kamath added.
Siberian expatriate Yuliya Kraemer will fly out to her hometown Barnaul with her South African husband Byron and their three-year old daughter Lidia.
Kraemer said her parents, Oxana and Vladimir Vakhrushev, are waiting to see them. Her sister Tania will be flying with them too. “The plan is to meet family and some old friends. We will do barbecue and house parties. We need this break,” she said.
Calling family back home
South African Lizan Gray, 29, will be busy preparing ‘braai’(South African term for barbecue). “Summer in Dubai calls for pool days! This Eid break, I’ll mostly be in a pool somewhere, and also spend a few days on the beach — if the humidity isn’t too high. My close friends and I will also dedicate a day to playing board games and spend time with our loved ones.”
She added that she would be calling her family back home every day to check on them. “The Eid break is a good time to catch up on family.”
Pakistani expat Mariam Mumtaz, 30, said this year, her family had decided to scale down the celebrations. “We are doing charity back home. Besides, the family will get together, albeit maintaining social distancing, and exchange Eidiya. Eid will be at home with family.”
Indian expat Madhurima Thakur is already holidaying in Maldives with her family and friends. “We took some extra days off to club it with the long Eid break. We are a group of friends who have come to Maldives with our families.”
She added: “My friends and I were thinking of a place to travel this Eid. Maldives proved to be a good destination. We wanted a safe place to travel to and Maldives it was. It is such a beautiful country and it is a good break for us.”
