Dubai

My friend Pearly is a great admirer of George W. Bush, so imagine his surprise when he discovered that there was a country named after him! Dubai is one of the richest areas in the world and it is ideally situated on the Gulf coast right near Arizona. The Bush family was very involved in the development of this exciting travel destination. They had made much of their fortune with beer during the dry years of Emancipation and then turned to oil to expand their riches - in fact, Dubai started as farmland for growing corn and canola! Bush Senior saw the possibilities for tourism when he surveyed the coastline and the rest, as they say, is history.
Dubai is now a playground for the rich and famous. They dock their cruise ships at the giant natural harbour and hop from club to bar all night long! Celebrities abound in Dubai; on any street, at any given time, you will see celebrities - perhaps at an outdoor cafe or at the cockfights (which are legal there). The local authorities ask that you respect celebrities by remaining completely silent, avoiding eye contact and kneeling if you're so inclined.
Celebrities aside, the fun and frolic includes everybody in Dubai. Although there are accomodations for two hundred and fifty thousand, the actual year round population is about thirty seven people - including children. Most of the working class is comprised of Filipinos who commute daily from the Phillipines every morning. The rest are tourists and are they ever having fun!
Dubai has the world's largest shopping mall, which is actually on only two acres but is built up so you figure by total square footage. It is over twenty stories high and each floor has a theme. My favorite will for sure be the condiments floor. You get complementary packets of mustard and ketchup when you leave! Another feature of this mall is the giant central elevator that is constantly on the move in it's vertical comings and goings. There are two cafes, a bowling alley, kareoke bar and a movie theatre aboard. Sometimes when the movie theatre is full, the elevator operator will go into free fall for a moment to add some excitement to your day. Sounds like fun!
When you view the coastline of Dubai, you'll understand what inspired Bush Senior to build this vacation paradise. White sand beaches for miles and palm trees softly swaying in the gentle breeze. This can change drastically during typhoon season. To minimize damages caused by Mother Nature, all trees were uprooted and replaced by artificial replicas made of a special resin compound that's much more realistic than plastic. When winds get stronger a mechanism is triggered and the trees fall back onto the ground until the storm subsides. The sand is actually fine bleached iron pellets that have a magnetic cable running about 5 feet under which, when activated, holds the "sand" down, preventing sandstorms. You can swim and splash around in the water without fear for the most part. The wolf eel and stingray population has been reduced drastically with the introduction of poisonous minnows (don't worry, they're harmless to humans - unless you eat them!)and kelp. Of couse, barnacles are immune to the poison so watch your feet!
Food is everywhere in Dubai - especially during Typhoon season - when there are less tourists. The favorite eateries are buffets. In fact, one of the streets is known as "Buffet Alley"! That particular street is wider than the rest in order to accommodate the larger people that frequent these establishments. The cuisine of Dubai is what is known as "American" fare. Lot's of burgers, and pizza, fried chicken and pulled pork.
Don't be surprised if you see Paris Hilton chomping down on some down home Barbecue sandwich with the sauce all over her. George Clooney loves the fried dough dipped in white sugar and Tina Turner loves the deep fried ham!
There's a Donut shop owned by Donald Rumsfeld that is supposed to be amazing!
Well I'm gettin' mighty hungry so Pearly and me are heading over to the Tim Horton's.

Keep on travelin'!

Blitz