It's the weekend in Dubai (working weeks are Sunday to Thursday). Louise & I decided to ease into the place by first checking out the western side of the east/west clash. We'll immerse ourselves in the eastern side tomorrow.
Today we:
Swam in a pool, in a country where water is the same price as petrol (approx Dh1.50 for 1L).
Went to Dubai Mall (the world's largest shopping mall based on total area).
Saw the ice rink, and a live shark in the mall.
Saw lots of Emiratis in national dress:
Saw the world's tallest building, Burj Khalifa (which is significantly taller than the previous tallest building, Taipei 101 which we went up last week). The pic below puts Burj Khalifa in perspective against 'ordinary' large skyscrapers:
Got a welcome soaking from the water show at 6pm between Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa.
Later on I met a couple of camels on the beach:
When I took off my shoes and let the ocean lap around my feet I was shocked to find the sea was hot. I don't mean 'warm' like Thailand (in the 20-28 degree range). I mean hot, over 30 degrees. It was 'hot bath' hot.
This place feels very foreign and surprising!
All the pics from today are on Flickr, starting here.
Looking forward to exploring the eastern side of the Dubai east/west clash tomorrow.
Not at all like the Isle of Wight!
Posted by: Dad | June 26, 2010 at 07:19 AM