Dubai

Law Enforcement

Drug offenses felt like a priority for the police. Plainclothes CID were said to follow up rumors, and I worried a stranger would report somebody for looking stoned.

Random checks seemed rare. People claimed officers needed a warrant to enter a home and might knock to get you outside. That wasn’t a reliable statement of police powers. Even people who saw little police activity warned about taking anything through the airport.

Where to Buy Marijuana

In Deira, around Naif and Baraha, there were sex workers and a small number of dealers. People rarely approached you. Asking the wrong person in an area with plainclothes cops could cause trouble. Trendy clubs offered a slim chance of meeting someone local, but they were mostly full of tourists.

College students sometimes knew people. Sharing a joint in return was considered polite, though they might tell their friends later. Asking openly was frowned on. Homegrown wasn’t usually shared.

People talked about friends bringing their own from Pakistan or driving to Muscat in Oman and back. Those trips were uncommon, and transport across borders carried serious risk.

Marijuana Prices

A tola, described as ten grams, was AED500–1,000. AED500 was the bargaining target. Larger amounts varied widely. One quote for schwag was US$50 a gram.

It was easy to pay for what turned out to be a lump of chicken stock or coal.

Types of Marijuana

Mild African weed, mellow Iranian hash, Kashmiri charas from Pakistan and Afghan second press. The Afghan was smooth, potent and some of the best hash I’d had. Skunk was so rare you might as well wait for it to find you.

The Pakistani charas reminded me of Indian charas but sometimes burned my throat. I suspected henna, without proof.

More Information

Dubai had a reputation as a transshipment point, but finding weed on a holiday was another matter. Chances were slim. People talked about affordable trips to Morocco, Lebanon, Iran, Pakistan or India, sometimes with expatriate friends who could show them around. Bringing anything back was the trap people warned about.

There was talk of growing in private at a fraction of Western costs, maybe 30%, with hydro gear hard to find and seeds difficult to get past customs. Dragon Mart was said to sell 1,000-watt metal-halide lights for AED300. The same conversation was full of paranoia about sharing and the unverified claim that cannabis meant more prison time than armed robbery. The conclusion was simple: think hard about whether any of it is worth the risk.