Do-Buy

Ah... the last portion of my trip. As I just now changed the title of, "A Journey from Africa to Europe to Asia to (now) the Middle East" it makes me realize how much spontaneous and unplanned travel I have done and also how long it's been. Africa seems like ages ago! Well, here I am, in the Middle East! I made it to Dubai, which has been called everything from "Disneyland" to "Vegas of the Middle East." I call it "Do-Buy" because Dubai is pretty much the place where you can buy anything and everything (including recently I heard that there is literally a GOLD plated ipad2 for sale. As I said, everything!). Also, what one has in mind is NEW and luxury... and of course all the top awards for "biggest" and tallest."

Anyway, here are some random fun facts:

• Dubai is the fastest growing city in the world
• Dubai has one of the highest per capita incomes
• 80% of Dubai's population are foreigners
• There is a ski slope... inside a mall (Mall of Emirates). Enough said.
• Dubai is the owner of the the 1st man-made island, the Palm
• The Burj Dubai (Kalifa) is currently the World's Tallest Building
• Dubai has no income tax and hence no personal taxes. What you see on the price tag is what you get!

The above are well-known facts! Below are some personal impressions so far from the month I've been here....

• It is CLEAN and.... NEW! Those were my 1st impressions even upon arriving from the plane. Granted, I had just come from India, but really, you rarely see run-down buildings. Everything is so squeeky clean, you can literally eat off the floors (most of the time).
• The men&and woman separation. In the buses, trains, and even waiting areas, there are "ladies only" and then "men," In the bus there is actually a little gate to get to the "ladies" section. Ha ha.

• The bus stations are air conditioned (wish the Chicago "L" had that!).... as well as pretty much every shop, even the little tailoring shops in the more traditional area of Old Dubai. Again, this is my impression coming from India where hardly anything is air conditioned. 
• The malls. Dubai is ALL about the malls, and although at first I thought it was weird when people would say "hang out at the mall" when I asked what they were doing. But really, some of the malls have the best restaurants in the area, they have live piano, and everything ranging from a ski slope to the world's largest tank of aquarium and underwater zoo... and pretty much every store you can think of. They even had.... get this, "Chicago's very own, Garrett's Popcorn!" I took a pic! haha!
• The dress. So after being here, I see how casual the States is. When I'm at home, I don't even think twice if I am in sweat pants and a t-shirt if I need to run to Walgreens to pick something up. No one even looks twice at me, and I've seen people in pajama's and don't think twice as well. Here, another story. I have been taking a few yoga/pilates classes, and as it of course is inside the mall, I was in my yoga clothes when I decided to pop in a store. Wow, now I know what it felt like to be Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman when she was dressed, to put it nicely, not so high class (I wasn't that bad!!). I really felt embarrassed and almost shameful. So generally people dress fairly nice.
• As for the population, I would say very scrawny and thin OR totally obese. 
• Outdoor stuff. I know it is H-O-T here, in the 90's every day that I've been here, but really, you hardly EVER see people walking. If something is a block away, they will drive there. The sidewalks are TOTALLY empty and that is almost the strangest thing for me. In Chicago (or other places in US and Europe), people are ALWAYS walking and the streets are busy. Not only that, but the beaches are totally empty too. The other day it was a beautiful evening, perfect temperature, and just lovely outside. I went to the beach, which happens to be a good 50m from where I am staying, and there was NO ONE on the beach. Look to the left, NOT a single person! Look to the right, NOT a single person. I couldn't believe it! In Chicago, on a perfect night like that, it would be packed with people taking walks, running, you name it. It was almost eerie. NOT to say there aren't sports here, there are, it is just all organized.
• The stereotypes. I was "warned" of this beforehand, and thought I would see it before I believe it. But it is true. Before I say anything, this of course is a generalization and by NO means exemplifies all the nationalities. But GENERALLY, the Indians/Pakistani's are the taxi drivers, the Philipino's are in the service industry (cleaners, servers), the Thai are in the hospitality industry, Chinese in the technology industry, Russians in jewelery, and on and on. 
• The $$. From what I hear, it is not what it used to be. Can't even imagine. But the people that have $$, they have MONEY. You can just tell by the cars on the street. I was in the store the other day, and I asked if there were any sales going on, and wow, you would think I had 3 heads. I've RARELY seen sales here AND, maybe it's just me, but I don't notice people even looking at price tags. So I think Americans are MUCH more money conscious AND not as spend thrifty. Thank you recession! And also the States is much much cheaper. You can ALWAYS find the discount stores, sales, coupons, etc. Here, not so much. Target? I don't think so! 
• Images. Here it is ALL about how you look. I went to a PT clinic and they were doing all this anti-aging and beautification treatments and "oh yea, PT is also here." Eh? Cosmetics and beautification is HUGE here!
• As I have been traveling pretty much these past 11 months by bus and public transportation, one of the 1st things I did was get a bus pass. Then I was told, more or less clearly, that as a professional, it is not looked favorably if I take the bus, "what if people see you? They will think you are cheap." As it does happen, I usually am the only white person on the bus, but still, in a big city like Chicago, you get everything from top notch lawyers to bums on the trains/buses, and it is a GOOD thing if you take public transportation. Here, not so much, it literally is for the lower-income. They DO have a metro system here, but it is not nearly as popular...maybe because of the poor infrastructure? Many just say they don't take it because of the implications, i.e. that you don't have money. Here it is all about showing off.
•  Overall, most all the woman, no matter where you go, are dressed to the 9's and have accentuating make-up and, besides a few exceptions, are fairly thin. I'm literally one of the larger sizes here. Granted I may have gained some weight traveling, but I feel like a giant here! AND of course I've been backpacking and hence my clothes are waaay bummy here. But as my closet is bursting at the seams in Chicago, trying not to spend $$ on buying here!

All and all, I like it here! And having said that, enough that I can see myself living here. So... da da dum, I have spent some time here actually job hunting! It has been an interesting process. They are not NEARLY as organized and efficient back at home, but isham allah (god willing, they use that term ALL the time), things will move along while I am here! So that is exciting news!

So because I have been concentrating on that, my sightsightseeing has been dismal at best, BUT I have ventured out and about Dubai, and below are some highlights! One of them is my week of fun celebrating my birthday! :-)

• Jumeirah Beach (where I am staying!):

 (the above and below is kite surfing!Very popular here. Never actually seen it before although had heard about it before I came. It is basically like snowboarding on the water with a harness holding a gigantic kite. Maybe I'll try it!)

• Malls malls and more malls! This includes the biggest of them all, Mall of Emirates and Dubai Mall:

 Wait, was I in a dream this whole time and now am back in Colorado? Ooh no, the above and below is actual a legit ski slope... inside the Mall of Emirates!

How often do you see everything from Medical Center to Underwater Zoo at the Mall? This is at Dubai Mall

One of the largest Acrylic Glass Panes in the World, housing the Dubai Aquarium! All inside the Dubai Mall. 

I literally did a double-take when I saw this! "Chicago's Very Own, Garrett's popcorn!" I still can't believe it! In Dubai Mall! They really have everything!

An ice skating rink inside the Dubai Mall

If you like bling bling, Dubai is the place for you! Above is the World's Largest Indoor Gold Souk, and below is an example of some of the many gold stores there!

 Above is outside the Medinat Jumeirah Mall and below is inside. It is one of the more "authentic" malls than the glitz and glamor at the others!

• Dubai "dancing" fountain (like in Las Vegas, at the Ballagio) which danced to Michael Jackson's Thriller, and the Burj Kalifa, the current World's Tallest Building! It used to be called the Burj Dubai, but Dubai actually couldn't afford to finish it so the sheik of Abu Dhabi, finished it off and then of course wanted it to be named after him. 

• Ahh... my birthday! I've been more or less budget traveling this whole time, so why not go all out for my special 25th birthday (hehehhe). I decided the best way to celebrate is at the World's Most Luxurious Hotel, the 1st 7-star hotel, the Burj Al Arab. You can ONLY get in with a reservation, and the cheapest thing is Afternoon High Tea for $110USD, which is what I opted for. A few interesting thing about the hotel:
• It was built on a man-made island just for it
• It is designed as a sail and is built so that the shadow does not cross any of the surrounding beaches
• It has all the best materials from around the world: custom rugs from South Africa and India, marble from Brazil and Italy, wooden doors from Dubai, chandeliers from UK, and on and on.
• The atrium is literally the world's largest! And no joke, ALL the columns are GOLD!
• One of the world's rarest marble's, the statutario that Michealangelo used was used for the floors
• It has the largest fleet of Rolls Royce's in the World. Nice to be escorted or picked up from a Rolls Royce, huh?
• There is a private reception area at each floor... and a 24/7 butler. 
• The service staff ratio to client is 7:1, with representation from 75+ different countries. 
• It is just 60m short of the height of the Empire State Building. And although that tall, it only houses 202 suites because ALL of the rooms are double stories.  
• If you so desire, you can arrange a helicopter pick-up/drop-off to/from the airport (if you stay there of course!)

So yes, quite amazing! The atmosphere inside is just awe-inspiring and it truly is beautiful. What I found most impressive is the level of service. They asked me if I was there for a special occasion and I said my birthday, and later in the tea session, the musicians played Happy Birthday and I simultaneously got a bday cake and a card from the staff. Nice!!! Here are some pics from the afternoon!

• Wildlife! Yes, believe it or not, got to see some wildlife. Granted it was inside the Dubai Mall at the Dubai aquarium and Underwater Zoo, but it still counts! :-) I have to admit, looove this aquarium! They have this awesome dome canal you walk through and you can literally see sharks and mantas and sting rays right above your head. Pretty amazing!

• Dubai Creek where there are the local souks. Cool experience riding the "abra's" or little boats across and around the Creek. It is the bridge between "Old Dubai" and Dubai! "Old Dubai" is home of the famous Gold Souk (darn, wish I had $$!)

If there wasn't A/C in each shop, it being fairly spacious and clean, I would almost compare the "souks" to India! Almost!

• And one of the best for last, went to the Shakira concert! I like her as an artist, but I most especially wanted to go not only because it was my week o fun, but also because it kinda marks the beginning and end of my journey. Started in South Africa where her song, "waca waca" was the World Cup theme song and here I am at the last stop ending with it! Sniff sniff...

 Soo... I think that is my fun here in a nutshell! I am going to take a quick trip to Bahrain to pretty much renew my visa and meet up with a college friend that is teaching in India, and most likely spend a couple more weeks here. We'll see! People stopped asking me when I'm coming home  because it has changed a good 032948230423 times, but HOPEFULLY in early June (ish!). heheh!