Dubai Summer Surprises kicks off

It's back — and it promises to be even more fun than ever.
The 17th Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) kicked off on Saturday offering a host of events both for the young and old to further enhance the emirate's position as a year-round family tourism destination.
Running from August 2 to September 5, DSS proffers a long list of reasons why its organisers, the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), said families should visit or stay in Dubai during summer.
Under the theme ‘The Fun Side of Summer', DSS will fill malls across the city and other DSS venues with entertainment shows and activities from across the globe. The list includes the world premieres of the Angry Birds Universe Interactive Experience at Modhesh World, The Decepticon Clone Transformers Show at BurJuman and the Skylanders Spyro's Adventure at Mirdif City Centre and Deira City Centre.
For those not fond of going to malls, DSS will host free summer camps for children between the ages of 3 and 16. DFRE has tied up with the Knowledge and Human Development Authority and Ministry of Education and the Dubai Educational Zone to give some 100,000 pupils from more than 100 schools a chance to participate in the camps for free.
Aside from the free summer camps, DSS will also offer Modhesh Craftsville where children will have a chance to learn arts and crafts at specially designed sections of three malls in the city, namely, Mirdif City Centre, Deira City Centre, and The Dubai Mall. The children will be taught how to make their own art pieces using clay and popsicle sticks, musical instruments using recycled materials, and lanterns, baskets and their own crown.
Modhesh World, meanwhile, will continue to welcome guests daily at the Dubai World Trade Centre until September 8. It will remain open from 10am to 10pm, Saturday to Wednesday; 10am to midnight on Thursday; 3pm to midnight on Friday.
The Street Theatre is back at various malls in Dubai where visiting families and children will be entertained by a number of roaming artists and an art circus featuring eight circus performers.
Ten musicians with assorted instruments such as flute, trumpet, trombone, saxophone, violin and keyboards will appear impromptu at various malls and play well-known film and TV theme tunes, such as the new Spiderman movie theme and Arabic songs by Fairuz and Dalida.
DSS organisers said there's something for the adults as well with a host of special offers and discounts of up to 70 per cent on a wide range of merchandise, including designer apparel, homeware, electronic goods, fashion, jewellery, and accessories, among others.
The Summer is Dubai promotion will give shoppers spending Dh200 at a participating mall the chance to win up to Dh2 million worth of prizes including six BMW cars. Raffle draws will be held each week with one person winning a luxury car every Saturday from August 9 to September 6. The final week's draw will see one additional winner walking away with a BMW X5.
Source: Gulf News