Dubai

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Hello again! It is so long since I posted that I had trouble remembering the password to get in!

We decided to take a new route to Oz this time. In the past we have always headed west, usually via Vancouver, L.A. or San Francisco.

Emirates Air offered a number of attractive perks including free accommodation, transfers and meals on the return leg because the layover will be more than 12 hours between flights! We had already decided to break up the outbound trip by spending 2 nights in Dubai which is roughly 1/2 way to Sydney.

Here are a few pics and observations from our brief visit.

Remember to click on the first pic for better viewing

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Photos

Dubai skyline
The world's tallest building has to compete with a number of very impressive architectural gems for your attention. Dubai is a very wealthy emirate and flaunts it.

Beach rules
Although a more liberal Muslim country, there are still some strict guidelines to be followed by residents and visitors. Shisha anyone?
Alcohol is only available in Western style hotels....a bottle of Lindemans Chardonnay listed at $115! Water please?

Jumeirah hotel
Rory McIlroy can afford to stay in this hotel. Not us.

Nice Digs
One of the palaces of the ruler. He is an autocratic, but apparently benign sheik.

Need to ablute?
Fortunately for us English is widely spoken and appears on all signs.

An oasis
Dubai is literally a man made oasis in the desert. Water is plentiful thanks to desalinization and natural gas. We signed up for a 1/2 day city tour and learned a great deal about the (brief) history, culture and political makeup of Dubai and the UAE.

Clever!
A cell tower disguised as a palm!
Very clean, no graffiti, no homeless. The government provides housing and benefits to all citizens...no one born outside can become a citizen

Dubai Creek
Part of our tour included a dhow ride across the Creek, which provides access to the Arabian Gulf.

In the spice souq
There has been some speculation about the 2 fingers including one suggestion that he is bidding on wife # 2. No sale!

Name that spice
Dozens of small shops like this one displayed spices for sale and always provided a sample or explained the use.

Gold Souq (market)
You'd need a strong neck and a fat wallet to consider buying some of these items. Plenty of shops but very few shoppers.

Dubai Mall
There are a number of massive shopping malls. We caught the local metro to see this one...as well as the rink it has an aquarium, waterfall and countless shops.

Waterfall
We were impressed with this work of art in the mall.

Our Sauble home
Is it any wonder we left this for the southern summer?

Comments

[Lin]

Great pictures. Very interesting. Love to go there one day. Have fun

[Marg and Ted]

Wow!
We are impressed...move over,Rory...here we come!!Thought that we would like to go to Dubai some day...at the moment we are cold here in Dunedin with furnace on this am as we have our cuppa!Getting lots of tips and info about Spain as we depart for Barcelona from Tampa on Feb 6th...but a lot to do before then as we fly to Ontario on Thursday for 4 days to see the snow..brrr!You both look happy and healthy...make lots of memories!Your writing is most impressive in its descriptions!Cheers,T and M

[Lorraine Runstedler]

WOW! there you are - Did you see your screen door is flapping in the wind in Saubel Beach(ha) - Dubai - what a beautiful place - Marlene, stay away from those spice markets, Ian does not want to lose you - NO WAY!!!
Thanks for sharing again you guys - ENJOY !!!!!!!!! Lucky you - Pretty darn cold here in Kingsville today - not much snow, but COLD!!!!!!! keep me posted - love you both - xo

[Nancy Gansser]

Happy travels!
Hi Ian and Marlene - Just checked to see if you were still blogging and happy to see your most recent post - always thought we might like to venture to Dubai at some point ....Dietrich would love to go for the car race! We have friends who were in Dubai a few years ago and really enjoyed it. Our recent travels have kept us much closer to home but maybe we will decide to venture further from North America again one day. Both of us are still enjoying good health and love to see new places. Heard on the radio this morning that tomorrow is Australia Day and that made me think of you and those wonderful buns ....the cinnamon ones, that is! Those were fun days for sure. I spoke to Nancy Westwood last week and she is still teaching - yikes! - she will be 68 in March and still has no plans to retire - she is number 2 on the Peel seniority list. Hope you are both well - happy travels! Love, Nancy G.