The best of Dubai

Dubai Airport is beautifully decorated with palm trees and large floor decorations. Already at the airport you can see that this is a rich country we have arrived in. If you have booked a hotel from home, it's worth arranging a pick-up, as the taxi ride is expensive. The distance is short, but the starting fee is 20 dh. In the city it's only 3 dh. The road network is impressive. There are not many traffic lights, instead there are many side roads winding through the air. There are many flower beds and lawns along the road, which are brightly colored and beautifully maintained. Still, it's easy to see that this is a desert state we've arrived in. It's barren in many places. Dubai is not a densely populated city. It stretches over a large area, with room for new buildings in many places. And yes, there is a lot of construction going on down here. New buildings are going up everywhere. There are cranes everywhere. Our hotel is located right on the edge of the city with a beautiful view of Dubai's skyscrapers. From our window we can enjoy the sunset over the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. If you go to Dubai's newest giant shopping mall, Dubai Mall, you can meet the giant at eye level. We had to look really, really high up to see the top of the building. It's really impressive. The Dubai Mall has 1200 stores, an Olympic-sized indoor ice rink and a giant indoor aquarium where you can dive with sharks. Dubai has one amazing building after another. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to see them all. Mall of the Emirates is also a gigantic shopping center that is world famous for its "indoor ski resort". Who hasn't heard of "The Sail"? Dubai's 7 star hotel shaped like a sail and the world's tallest hotel, the Burj Al Arab. It may not be a building but rather a construction... The World and The Palm. Regardless, it's impressive that you can create such things. We took a free shuttle bus from the hotel down to the beach, Jumeirah Beach Park. There was a beautiful little park before you got down to the beach. The signs said: No swimwear in this area. Nevertheless, the many Russians walked around as they pleased. The beach was reefy and without stones. The water looked very inviting - completely blue and nice and warm. The things we have seen so far have really been in order. Not much has been left to chance. It's simply attention to detail. Dubai also has a hop on/off bus that goes past the main attractions. 220 dh for 1 day and 280 dh for 2 days. The people are incredibly friendly. Everyone speaks English. However, we had to laugh as none of the people we have formed our impressions from are from Dubai. The taxi driver from the airport was Indian or Pakistani. The receptionists were German and Chinese. The bartender at the hotel was from the Philippines. The lifeguards on the beach were also from the Philippines. People are very nice, but when we think about it, we haven't actually spoken much to a "native". There is imported labor for a lot of things. We had dinner in the older part of town called Creek. We found a restaurant on the top floor overlooking the river, where many dinner ships whizzed around. We sat outside and enjoyed the warm winter evening. The restaurant offered a buffet with local specialties. There were many fish dishes, lots of side dishes and a large selection of desserts. It only cost 75 dh per person. Dubai does not have a free relationship with alcohol. You can buy it, but the restaurants that sell alcohol have thin curtains so you can't easily peek in.