The historic Al Bastakiya district is what is left of the old Dubai of fishermen, tradespeople and pearl divers. Its name means “Iranian city” after the large number of Iranians immigrants who settled there. Many of the buildings were constructed in 1890 and renovated in 2005 when the government decided to make Al Bastakiya an artistic and cultural landmark in the city. Although these buildings are new, they were built to be as faithful as possible to the original architecture. Most of the buildings are cultural centres, art galleries or small cafés with their own exceptional charm