Dubai

Is it shallow of me to say that my favorite thing about Dubai was the carmel corn we ate at the giant Cineplex in the Emirates Mall while watching Indiana Jones? O.K., then how about this one; we all adored the experience of flying business class from Nairobi to Dubai and Dubai to Delhi on Emirates Airlines. Oh wait, no that’s no good. O.K., here’s one – we were so happy to have a nice condo with a washing machine so we could do all of our wash (I mean every last piece!). Well, you get the drift - there’s not much to love about Dubai except the modern conveniences of Western culture! It is a Middle Eastern phenomenon and a bit of an environmental disaster, but you have to love the entrepreneurial spirit there. The Emirates are all going berserk with development and there’s so much more to come. It was interesting to listen to the conversations of the young people (mostly English and Australian) who have come there to make their fortunes. From the sounds of it, there is plenty of fortune to go around. It’s a feeding frenzy!

We did have fun one night when we drove out to the desert in a four-wheeler and tore up the sand dunes for a few hours. The girls were screaming with laughter as we rolled over the tops of the sand dunes and felt like the whole car would roll over sliding down the side of the dune! It was exhilarating (but not environmentally p.c.!)Then, we all drove to a little desert oasis and had a fabulous Middle Eastern dinner and watched some belly dancing. They had sand-boarding, henna painting, camel riding and various other activities and it was really fun. We wanted to see Dubai for ourselves and I’m really glad we did. The people are absolutely beautiful, especially those in their national dress. Dubai has an amazing skyline, but sadly, you can so little of it through the sand clouds and pollution. It’s a wildly out-of-control place and now, we can say we’ve been there!