Fall, to Fly

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Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Ok, you know that stale saying that 30% of the world's cranes are in Dubai? HOLY COW THEY WEREN'T LYING.. they REALLY ARE HERE!

Warning: Photos Galore! May take some time to load fully.

If Dubai ran on a slogan, it would be JUST DO IT! The city is living proof that anything is possible if you dare to dream...and of course, it would be IDEAL if you had as much money as them. =P

After all the fabulousness we heard about Dubai, we were extreeeemely excited to see it for ourselves. Unfortunately, we got to Dubai at the peak of summer... that is no joke, sweltering or scorching are not even enough to comprehend that heat that hit you the moment you step out of a/c. When its close to 50degrees out there, you feel like you are in a sauna, suffocated because the warm air fills your lungs and you.just.cannot.breathe. No joke. But fortunately, everything is air conditioned in Dubai. We even spotted bus stops that are really booths and were a/ced.

Some worthy mentions in Dubai are the Burj Al Arab Hotel (managed by Jumeriah) - aka the world's only 7 star hotel, the Palms and the World - aka top choice of exclusive residence per every rich and famous show out there, the desert safari - motion sickness on sand, and of course, the malls.

Just by being there, looking at all the new developments going on and the completed construction, you cannot help but feel awed and salute this seemingly conservative Middle Eastern society plagued with social unrest in her bordering territories, to break free and embrace advancement so well like they did.

Dubai is positioning themselves for everything biggest and the best, and they are well on their way to becoming that. Why would they want to do that, one might ask? Why would they want to build the world's best hotel without the goal of making a return? Why would they want to build this entirely exclusive fantasy in the name of the Palms and the World? What about their traditions, customs, and people? Where are they and do they like this? Will Dubai succeed? Many questions I wanted to find answers to...but it is not that easy.

I guess the only way to answer all those question is that Dubai wants to become the best, simply because Dubai can.

And why shouldn't they?

But anyway, one may argue that Dubai is probably setting themselves up to become a city with no culture. When 93% of their population are expats, I can see where this concern is coming from. But then this is the only city we've visited where all locals, albeit a mere 7% of them, are fully dressed from head to toe in traditional garb, and I don't think that tradition is changing for some time. A guest lecturer probably put it best... that the Middle East needs a place like Dubai to lead the way, to lead the way towards development and modernization... And judging by what they have already achieved, no wonder Dubai is already the poster child for their neighbors... You will be amazed to see what Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan and the fellow Emirates are already doing.

The Dubai I see is balancing modernity and tradition pretty well... It is a city that embraces other cultures, but adheres to their own strict rules. Any offenders who knowingly come head on with Dubai's laws are not tolerated... What I see is not a city that is getting ahead of itself, but a city who does not want to be left behind by the rest... one that wants to improve the life of their people, one that wants to preserve their traditions while welcoming talent from other cultures, one who wants to join the ranks of the big boys, one who wants to surprise and delight her visitors..if you would let her.

And rightfully so. Its their turn to shine.

Pics coming up!

First of all, we were taught Arabian customs, primarily on their traditional dress since that is what everyone wears and intrigued us the most... Not hot meh?! And apparently the ladies wear designer gear underneath the black sheath... They are only allowed to remove the dress in the presence of their husband and other women, and of course that will be a time to seduce or show off la!

Here, Alexa and George demonstrates how to wear the traditional costume, to our cheers and laughter

The soon-to-be tallest building in the world - The Emirates Tower:

Is siao one. They are not telling anyone how tall it is going to be, and they are just gonna keep adding layers on until they absolutely cannot do anymore

The Burj, the Burj, the Burj..

That name to us Hospitality students is like a dream. And it is really built like one.. In the shape of a sailboat, constructed in the middle of the ocean entirely on reclaimed land, connected to mainland by a lone bridge, this hotel has been touted as the World's only 7 star hotel. And rightfully so. This hotel, we learnt later was constructed not with the aim of making profits, but to put Dubai on the map as a top tourist destination. Seems like the investment is well worth it, because it is probably the hotel that has garnered the most international media attention thus far. And we hear that they are actually starting to generate profits!

We were super lucky to get presentation and tour of the property. Like please lor, you can't even walk in to eat in the underwater restaurant.. you gotta have contacts to get you a reservation! They have a helipad at the top (top right of the pic below), where they receive their guests by helicopters. Not bad, if you are willing to pay US$4000 for the 20minute flight from the airport! As a publicity stunt, they had Tiger Woods play golf, and Roger Federer and Andre Agassi play tennis against each other up there. TOTAL INSANITY!

The Burj taken by a professional photographer i.e. ripped from the internet. Astounding

The Burj Al Arab by day... we were driven to the front entrance by golf carts

The Burj by night. Still captivating by any means

This is what greets you when you step into the hotel and look up. The Atrium is just...simply breathtaking

The theme of this restaurant on the top floor is the Galaxy. Very futuristic looking, you would think its only possible in computer generations

We freaking got a tour of the ROYAL SUITE!! Someone was checking into the room that day, and it took 4 housekeeping staff to keep it in order. 1 of them would devote 1hour to cleaning the banisters of the staircase that would lead to the upstairs sleeping area. Thus, we were told NOT TO TOUCH the railings, or incur the wrath of the aunties.

The royal bath, complete with full size Hermes toiletries...Ahhh, how nice to be rich!

As you can see, everything is larger than life!

Us sitting in front of one of the sitting rooms of the Royal Suite

Other notable Jumeirah properties:

Views from the top: Wild Wadi, Dubai's water park operated by Jumeriah

Jumeirah Beach Resort. Insane lor, I thought a building like that was only possible on pictures!

Medinat Hotel & Resort... in flawless Arabian style

8th World Wonder.. the Palms:

This is a first... an exclusive enclave for living... Built entirely on reclaimed land, it is constructed in the shape of a Palm tree. Each settlement will be in the shape of a palm tree, topped with a crescent, and will have a large number of residential, leisure and entertainment centers. Monorails will transport you from the Mainland, whether you are going to the Trump tower, or to the Atlantis resort, you will be well connected. We got a presentation by one of the staff, and as if it wasn't enough, they chartered boats to take us out to sea to see the actual thing! Dr. Singh says its the first time they've done that for students, and it must be because of all the girls on the trip that did the trick.

How The Palms will look like

They are actually building 2 more palms to make a trilogy. And they go by the tag: Three times the Innovation, Three times the Ingenuity, Three times the Ambition.. In my opinion, this development probably started purely as a fantasy, but it is surprisingly coming along nicely.

Whee we're going on a boat! But hor, walking to the boats itself nearly killed us la, so hot!

And they made us wear life jackets like hello? Do we look like we have an urge to dive into the boiling water? Nevertheless, commendable efforts for promoting safety!

Villas on the Palms. When they first started selling it (pre-constructed), they were only going for usd$1+ million to lure people in, and they are now going for usd$4million+. Smart decision huh? Apartments cost upwards of $700,000 Euros each. IS siao one

The Mall of Emirates:

Worthy mention: Skiing in the desert!

Night on the town@ Trilogy:

Just one pic: Melissa, Lyndsey, Me and Jenna. Honestly, not as fun as saree night in India.

Highlight of the trip: Desert Safari on the last evening in Dubai:

Miles and miles of sand

6 people in a 4 wheel drive. With Fred our bad-ass driver (shades in the middle). He looks like a mafia lor! And he drove like a madman. It was really rollercoaster-motion sickness inducing- on sand.

After quite a crazy ride, we arrived in the middle of.. well, the desert... to a campsite, where there we would eat while sitting on carpets, be entertained by a belly dancer... the whole Arabian Nights package.

Our campsite, where we dined under the stars

While waiting for dinner to be cooked, there were tons of stuff for us to do... For instance, if you like, you can go either go for a shisha smoke, or...

Go on a camel ride...

Get your hands painted AGAIN...And if you don't wanna do that, what about...

Sand boarding? Way Cool!! (not that I tried it)

But we didn't have to wait that long, cos dinner was served very soon after....

Meat, meat and more meat.. I'm in heaven (shiyun are you drooling?)

And end the night dancing away! Paul demonstrates doing the belly dancing thingy

And thats how we ended our study abroad.... on a perfect breezy evening, on an ultimate high. =)

Coming up: Thoughts on Study Abroad India-Bangkok-Dubai 2007

Labels: Study Abroad 2007