Opened 1997 under three glass pyramids with pharaonic motifs throughout — hieroglyphics, sphinxes, carved columns. Wafi did architectural theming before Ibn Battuta made it famous and before anyone called it a concept.

The mall itself is curated and quieter than most. Raffles Hotel sits above it. Below it is Khan Murjan, an underground souk designed to replicate a 14th-century Baghdad market — elaborate brickwork, lanterns, a restaurant at the centre. It is excessive in the best way.

Wafi attracts a more discerning crowd than its size would suggest. People who know it, love it. People who don't, drive past on the way to somewhere louder.