Dubai - Biggest, Tallest, Hottest!

We arrived in Dubai about 5ish in the morning and stepped into a world of superlatives. The airport itself is huge and at that hour of the morning was virtually empty. From there we stepped out into what was certainly the hottest morning that I have experienced in my life - the temperature was a mild 35 degrees celcius, rising through the day to about 41. We were told that things were cooling off though, as it had been 45 degrees the week before! Our hotel apartment was very nice - not too flash but clean, comfortable and very cool. After a bit of a rest and a freshen up we were collected for our afternoon tour. Being the last week of Ramadan, we were instructed by our tour guide that we must not eat or drink in public to show respect for those Muslims who were fasting during the daylight hours. However, we were able to do so if we pulled the little curtains on the minibus so as to be hidden from view. Gus and Theo were exempt from this rule, being 10 and under.

Highlights of the tour were the amazing buildings - Dubai is a city under construction, with cranes and scaffolding wherever you look. It must be an architects' paradise though, with the brief being that if you can imagine it, build it! We also really liked the old fort and museum, which although small, had really interesting and informative displays. The spice and gold souks were a bit disappointing though - really just a way for getting tourists to part with their money, although we were highly amused (briefly!) by the hawkers offering "watches, very good fakes, madam!"

Dinner was another highlight. We saw a sign in our hotel advertising a buffet for 69 dirham per person (half price for children), which is about $23 AU per person. We did have to walk a couple of blocks to another branch of the Golden Sands Hotel chain but boy, was it worth it! The food was fabulous and as it was early, we were almost the only people in there. Everyone ate 'til they were completely satiated and then one of the waiters amused the boys with magic tricks! We did find that we were treated very well during our stay and people seemed especially kind to the children. All in all, Dubai was well worth a stop over but I am glad that it was only 24 hours.