"A successful man is someone who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much, who has gained the respect of others and the love of children; who leaves the world better than he found it; who never lacked appreciation of earth's beauty ; who always looked for the best in others and gave the best he had. "
- a variation of "Success" by Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Dubai, the Gold City or the Golden City?

Dubai is such a beautiful city to visit.  My colleague referred Dubai as "Las Vegas and New York" on the desert but I personally think Dubai deserves more than NY and Vegas.

We looked at Dubai from many angles, from traditional to contemporary, from Dubai Creek to Old town to the Skyline and to the Arabian Gulf, from souks to malls, from day into night.  Too many excitements for us in just two days!

Beautiful city landscaping



Traditional Sculptures








Dubai used to be a fish village until the discovery of the underground oil.  Following pictures captured the Dubai Creek which represent the old trading hub in Dubai before the booming of the city.  Along the creek you can find a lot of early settlements.





Water Taxi is still the main transportation to across the creek.




We toured Dubai Museum to learn more about the history of Dubai as well as the artifacts from African and Asian countries while trading with Dubai.




















Dubai was once the city with most cranes and I think it still holds that title - look at the cranes on a regular street.
I counted 8 lanes on each side of the highway.



The sea blue Arabian Gulf. Can you believe it is a public beach in the middle of the city?
Famous Burj Al Arab Hotel. It was once the tallest hotel in the world but now it is the 3rd.  It is built 250 meters off the shore.


Standing on the gulf we have Atlantis Hotel on the Palm island.





City view





Alvin flew all the way to Dubai to see the tallest building in the world!  When we talk about Burj Khalifa, everything is a world record.  The building stands the tallest in the world.  Mall of Emirates is the biggest Mall in the world.  In fact, if you need to check out every store in the mall, it will take you 3 days!  The music fountain shoots up 500 feet, which makes it the tallest fountain in the world. The indoor aquariums in the mall holds the Guinness Record for ‘The World’s Largest Acrylic Panel".




Unlike the Palm island, Madinat Jumeirah is a luxury resort opens to public.  It is designed to resemble a traditional Arabian town.  













What are the things normally missing in a desert? water and cold weather!  I guess if you have money, you can have whatever you want - a 4 stories ski inside Dubai mall. 




Night tour around the city concludes our visit.  Burj Khalifa was spectacular at night with diamonds shining around the building.


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