Happy new year!! *insert all corny new year jokes* Now that I'm done with that I can move on to more pressing issues. I was lucky enough to have spent part of my holiday in Dubai- bought a bunch of useless Arabian paraphernalia that I'm very proud of- and I have never felt so much like a child of poverty from a third world country. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL. I'm one of those Africans who'd never left Africa so it was crazy. I'm sure there's someone scoffing at me thinking 'Europe is better' but since I only see Europe via TV I'm going to go ahead and say that Dubai is the most beautiful city in the world. Funny thing though, I only saw a handful of Arabs. Other than on the road driving ridiculously sexy cars and at some tourist sites the Arabs were scarce. Then a taxi driver explained why...they don't work. Their government has put in place policies that they basically get the rest of the world to work for them. I wish my government would so the same thing for me...hehe...anyway, the sad thing is that place is a desert yet somehow they've managed to outdo us to a level that's even sad. Even their museums almost made me drool (I love museums). Holographs, videos, interactive screens and an entire Arab market made in a way that makes you feel like you've been taken back through time to an Arab village with all its sounds, sights and smells. There was even a video showing us their future plans to make the already amazing city even better. They are going to reclaim more land from the ocean to build little islands in the shape of the globe. Yes. Then the buildings...the buildings...I'd imagine that in the desert they have problems like really high wind speeds and sandstorms but that doesn't get in the way of their construction of the most beautiful and unique structures. The Burj Khalifa is one of those things you need to see for yourself. No picture or explanation will do it justice so I wont even try. It was the highlight of the trip for me...closely followed by a belly-dancer and the best kaimatis I've ever eaten.
I could sing praises of Dubai til next year but I'll just wrap it up by saying their public transport is better than their private transport system and if you have the chance to go DON'T pass it up.
