Dubai: As a mother, German national Sandra Ludwig quickly notices how strangers treat her daughter Maria, 15, and son Benjamin, 7.On their first family trip to Dubai this summer, she began spotting a pattern in the way strangers in the city approached her children – a pattern that became her introduction to how people Dubai-it by achieving excellence, even in character, no matter the situation.Not-so-random acts of kindnessWhen Ludwig and her kids climbed aboard taxis on hot summer days in Dubai, they were offered cold water – free of charge.A taxi driver noticed Benjamin listening to the radio, so he turned up the volume, and encouraged him to join in for a sing-along. At a hotel, a woman gently stroked her son’s head and asked him his name.In the Metro, commuters asked if her kids needed help, and guided them on topping up their Nol cards.At Jumeirah Beach, a family posing for pictures asked if they would like to be included too – now, they’re part of someone else’s holiday photo album.Ludwig said: “It no longer felt like a series of isolated coincidences.” Kindness, she discovered, was embedded in the city’s blueprint.For Ludwig, who is originally from Thuringia, Germany, and currently lives in Frankfurt with her children, the experience was incredibly heartwarming “and felt very different from many of our everyday experiences in Germany”.She explained: “There had simply been too many small situations in which, people noticed my children and spontaneously decided to help them, explain something, make something easier or include them. What touched me most was that… these people had absolutely nothing to gain from doing so. They were often simply small gestures of consideration.”A different side of the cityLudwig is the founder of Maravida Capital & Real Estate FZCO, and works as a business operations and finance professional in international real estate investment.Although she lives in Frankfurt, her company, which she established in 2025, is based in Dubai, because her investments and business activities are connected to the UAE real estate market. So, Ludwig has visited the emirate before and has seen the professional side of how people Dubai-it.But this summer was the first time she brought her children along on a visit – and they discovered a whole other side to the city. She said: “When I first visited Dubai, the city impressed me enormously. This time, I could watch my children discover it in their own individual ways.”Watching Benjamin, who is usually reserved, find his voice and open up, has been especially rewarding. Ludwig explained: “From my experience, children are noticed very attentively [in Dubai]. People speak directly to them, take them seriously and at the same time, treat them with warmth and respect. My son was not simply treated as ‘the child accompanying an adult’, but as his own little personality. That was very good for him and visibly made him more open.”Because of the high standards of safety in the city, Ludwig even allowed her kids to travel to Dubai Mall by themselves, on the Metro. She said: “This was at the very end of our stay, by which time they already knew the routes, the Metro and the Mall very well. I wanted to give them that experience: to realise that they were capable of navigating through the city, using public transport and finding their way around the mall on their own.”Their solo trip was a success, again, thanks to the help of strangers.Ludwig said: “There was a problem on the way because their Nol cards did not have enough balance, but they managed to solve that successfully with help from people around them.”Humanity firstWatching her children experience the openness and hospitality of Dubai, Ludwig said she found herself asking the question: Do we sometimes lose a little of our humanity in trying to protect every boundary?She said she has often seen people here first ask: “What does this person need right now? How can we help?” and only afterwards consider how a process is formally supposed to work.Ludwig explained: “I value a society in which rules and human attention can coexist, and where one does not completely displace the other.”The emirate’s multiculturalism is another force driving its openness and consideration, according to Ludwig. She said: “It is part of the special energy of Dubai. People from completely different cultural and professional backgrounds come to the city and bring something of their own with them. At the same time, I often have the impression that many people come to Dubai with the desire to develop, build something, achieve something or create a better future. That creates a very particular dynamic: different experiences and perspectives meet a shared willingness to move forward. I think you can feel that in the atmosphere of the city.”Missing DubaiCurrently back in Frankfurt, Ludwig told Emirates 24|7 that she misses Dubai – and so do her kids, who have returned to school.The vibrant energy of Dubai is keenly felt, when you’re far away from it.Ludwig said: “It is simply enjoyable to be surrounded by people who are motivated, who want to achieve something, build something or develop themselves further. When many people share that kind of mindset, it creates a very special dynamic. You can actually feel that shared motivation, and I find it contagious.”She knows, however, that her family’s Dubai chapter is not over – their summer experience has just deepened their connection with the emirate.Ludwig said she hopes to be back soon: “For us, the city has become much more than just a holiday destination. I have professional and business connections there, and as a family, we experienced Dubai beyond the usual tourist attractions, in many ordinary everyday situations. Our connection with the city has grown... I could very well imagine spending more time there in the future.”
