Dubai at Night, by Taxi Cab

Our trip to Tanzania was definitely a life changing experience but we didn’t start there. First we had a ‘night’ in Dubai. Our flight from LAX to Dubai arrived at 11:30PM Dubai time and we were all exhausted by the time we got to the hotel. Our flight out to Dar es Salaam left at 7:45 AM so we didn’t have any time other than right then to catch any glimpse of this incredible city. So, we organized three taxi cabs to take the whole gang around the city at midnight for an hour or so. Apparently the only thing to see at midnight in Dubai are shopping centers and hotels because that’s what our ‘tour guides’ showed us. At one point we even pulled over _on the freeway_ for a photo op… of what I’m still not sure.

The heat and humidity in Dubai were impressive, like nothing I’ve ever felt before. Midnight and it was 95 degrees and 90% humidity. Midnight. Let that sink in. Yes, Dubai is definitely a city where your live from air conditioned car to air conditioned office building to air conditioned apartment. Growing up in Central Washington and having spent some time in the dry heat of Albuquerque, NM I thought I knew how to handle the heat but this was a completely different animal. It didn’t even compare to the summer I spent in Georgia where I watched person after person fall prey to heat stroke.

At one point we found ourselves out on the beach looking at that crazy ‘6 star’, sail shaped hotel the Burj al Arab where a suite for the night will run you a minimum of $1,000. Mind you, it’s a 1,820 sq. ft. suite… That’s bigger than my first house!

A bit more driving in the cool but cramped minivan through a tunnel and down a long road and we appeared before this grand hotel and beach resort on ‘The Palm’ island that you may have seen on tv. The resort is a replica of the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas. Complete with the bridge suite joining the two halves of the resort. We ventured inside for a look and found a beautiful Chihuly art glass display in the lobby and a massive aquarium down one hallway complete with a whale shark. It just goes to show how small this world has become. Dale Chihuly is a Washington native and created the Pilchuck Glass School . I had the pleasure of shooting his glass school’s auction event for Seattle Metropolitan Magazine last year.

Whale sharks are awesome, by the way.

Somewhere between the Burj al Arab and The Palm Atlantis we stopped at this other cool resort with a very old world Arab feel to it. I would love to stay in one of those little ‘villas’ for a few nights.

Dubai is now home to the worlds tallest building, the Burj Dubai. I only know this because while on the freeway our cab driver pointed right and I caught this horrible image of it while buzzing down the freeway. At 818 meters tall it dwarfs Taipei 101 at 509m.

By the time we whizzed by the Burj Dubai over half of the cab was asleep. Exhaustion had kicked in. The early morning plane ride was looming only a few hours away and we all needed sleep. Back at the hotel we staggered up to our rooms and cooled off in our chilled ice box rooms.

All in all, I wish I had more time in Dubai with good light and a full night’s sleep to take in all the new architecture and really get a feeling for the culture. As it was, the thick hazy air at midnight didn’t leave me with the best impression of this super modern city. Next time.