Page 184 of 12 Years
‘This hotel only has fancy things. All nicely plated with napkins and cutlery. I don’t want that,’ Payal replied.
‘What do you want?’
‘Something tasty, unhealthy and unpretentious. Is that a thing?’
I replied with another string of laughter emojis.
‘Or maybe I should just try and sleep again …’
‘Where’s the fun in that?’ I replied. ‘Let’s go unhealthy-snack hunting.’
‘What?’
‘I know a place where you’ll get what you want. Tasty, unhealthy, unpretentious.’
‘Where?’
‘I’ll pick you up. Let’s go.’
‘Now?’
‘Yeah, right now. Pick you up in twenty minutes.’
‘We’re doing this? Really? Going out to satisfy a pointless snack craving at three in the morning?’
‘Yep. Because sometimes, the whole point of life is to do pointless things.’
‘Good morning,’ I said as Payal got into the cab. She was dressed in a Hello Kitty T-shirt and matching track pants.
‘Good morning,’ she replied. ‘I can’t believe we’re actually doing this.’
The taxi left her hotel lobby and took the road towards Jumeirah.
‘Where are we going?’ she said.
‘Kite Beach,’ I said. ‘They have a tea shop there that’s open all night.’
‘I’m in my nightclothes!’
‘Don’t worry, this place is, like you wanted, “unpretentious”.’
Kite Beach, in Jumeirah, runs along the coastline of Dubai. Famous for kitesurfing, from which it gets its name, the beach is always full of families and young people. Open at night as well, it offers night swims and night kitesurfing, which are particularly popular in the hot summer months.
The cab driver dropped us where I told him to, near my secret tea shop. It was a small rectangular kiosk, built inside a shipping container, with an Indian guy manning the shop.
‘What do you have right now?’ I said to the guy.
‘Karak masala chai. Biscuits, samosas and Maggi,’ he said.
Payal’s eyes lit up at the mention of Maggi. I smiled. ‘We’ll have two cups of tea and a Maggi.’
‘I also want biscuits and a samosa,’ Payal said.
‘That’s literally everything on the menu,’ I said. ‘Anyway, I’m fasting. I’ll only have tea.’
Within minutes, our order was ready. I collected the food and told Payal to follow me towards the beach. I had carried a backpack from home. Once we found a nice place to sit, I took out a picnic mat from inside the backpack. Payal and I held it on either side, spread it on the sand below us, and sat down facing the waves. They made a soothing sound every time they touched the shore.
‘This is perfect,’ Payal said, dipping a biscuit in the tea and biting into it.
