In 1894, Sheikh Maktoum bin Hasher al-Maktoum ruler of a fledgling Dubai, lured foreign traders to the city by offering a safe, tax-free port. Over a 100 years later, his entrepreneurial descents are doing the same with tourists and companies willing to invest in this country which has become flashy, fun, surreal but all in all a uniquely Arabian Experience.
My visit to Dubai this month was an unexpected pleasure - the main reason being the wedding of my dear friend Louise, who has been living there for the past nine years. During my visit I had the pleasure of not only seeing my dear friend start her life of wedded bliss but also making new friends and experiencing new adventures.
Dune Buggy racing in the desert (and taking loads of sand back home with you), flying over the desert in a hot air balloon at dawn, visiting old villages in Hatta, finding out what Dubai looked like in the 1940s, haggling over the price of spices in the Spice Souq and having a blow dry at the Burj Al Arab - the world's only 7 star hotel, and wandering in the huge shopping malls just made the visit to Dubai even more exciting!
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